There has been a lot of speculation about how Canon will replace or update various cameras in both their professional DSLR lineup and their “prosumer” lineup.

They just announced an update to the 10D, 20D, 30D line: The EOS 40D. This looks like a fantastic camera and it’s already listed at Amazon (Canon EOS 40D).

They also announced an update to their highest end camera, the 1Ds Mark II called, of course, the EOS-1Ds Mark III. This is an extremely high end camera that many professional studio photographers use. Not to be confused with the also relatively new EOS-1D Mark III which is also very high end and used more in photojournalism as it has a fast frame rate for continuous shooting. This camera is already available through Amazon (EOS-1D Mark III) as well.

Canon also updated their top of the line PowerShot G7 camera which was the latest in the G line (I had and loved the G3): Canon PowerShot G9. This looks like a spectacular upgrade and I might consider this camera as a pocket camera that takes high end pictures. I’ve not seen it yet at Amazon but this type of camera generally weighs in at about $500 when it comes out.

This is pretty exciting stuff for us camera buffs and all of these cameras will sell extremely well as they are both decent upgrades and timely.

The 40D appeals to me as I need a second DSLR body and it has dust removal built in which is a constant problem for me in changing lenses as I do. The issue here is what the camera that replaces my beloved Canon EOS 5D will be and whether that’s the one I’ll want instead.

The 40D’s cropped sensor means a cognitive and actual re-calibration of lenses: a 50mm lens on a cropped sensor produces an image that has a narrower angle of view than it will on a full frame sensor like I have on my Canon 5D. This can be an advantage on the long lens end in that my 300mm lens will produce an image that in effect will look like it was shot with a 420mm lens. But, on the wide side the effect is a problem in that the 24 end of my 24-70mm zoom will seem more like a 35mm angle of view. This issue can be worked around and taken advantage of, or, one can hold out and buy a second full frame camera. Or, one could (I won’t) dump the full frame camera and just get two 40Ds.

Given that the biggest liability is the wide end of my one wide zoom, I’ll probably go with the second body being the less expensive cropped 40D. We’ll see.

The G9 appeals to me for times when I want a high quality picture but don’t want to carry a lot of gear. I know my friend Gary Sharp loves his Canon G7 and has done some great images with it. The G9 looks like a nice upgrade to that camera.

All of this is interesting news and so far the reviews in various places have been excellent for all of these cameras.