So it’s no secret that we like the Canon 5D MK2 around here. This little $2700 full-frame sensor equipped camera offers a stunning featureset and jawdropping image quality for shooters in all genres of production. On June 2, Canon released a firmware update that enabled full manual controls of video functions. Awesome. We think that’s very cool.

But wait, there’s more! As of a couple of days ago, we’ve got an unofficial firmware build (well, really it’s a ROM inject hack for the time being…but we’ll call it firmware) that also enables onscreen audio meters, 16:9, 2.35:1 and 4:3 crop marks, zebras, and live headphone monitoring (via the A/V port). The firmware also disables the annoyingly hissy auto-gain control of the 5D, provides a manual gain control, and finally provides a framework to write new extensions to the code. An impressive achievement! Watch the video below for all the juicy details, as well as a quick comparison of the difference disabled AGC can offer to your audio capture.

You can get an unfinished copy of this unofficial firmware here. Read the detailed FAQ at Cinema5D also. It appears the developer has taken careful steps to avoid bricking camera bodies, as the software is only loaded into memory upon booting. From the FAQ:

“…a file named ‘magiclantern.fir’ is copied to the CF card and “Update firmware” is selected from the menu. The running firmware shuts down, loads the file into RAM and starts it running.”

“Nothing is written into the ROMs. When the camera reboots, the RAM image is flushed and the bootloader FROMUTIL at 0xFFFF0000 starts the pristine copy in ROM at 0xff810000. After any reboot (or even powersave), you must select the “Update firmware” menu item. Eventually we want to be able to boot directly from the AUTOBOOT.BIN file on the CF card.”

Even with these steps to avoid breaking things permanently, it’s probably worth mentioning that you should only load that firmware if:
A. You can afford to replace the camera, should this break it (this firmware surely violates mfr warranty).
B. You don’t test it on paying shoots with Real Clients (I’ve heard scattered “Err70″ reports).
3. Should this firmware eventually be 100% stable, kick ass, and you decide to replace a studio full of cameras with 5D MK2’s, that you buy them all via FreshDV’s B&H affiliate link (patience, they’ll be back in stock soon enough). And lots of lenses. L glass, preferably…

Until that day, the developer is looking for assistance from any programmers “skilled in ARM assembly, embedded systems, GUI programming and don’t mind risking your expensive camera…” as well as Paypal and equipment donations, specifically “steadicams, rails systems and lenses.” So if you are wetting your pants from this announcement, I’d suggest waiting for a stable release and feeding that dude some cash via Paypal in the meantime. I did, even though I have no intention of loading this on my 5Deuce just yet. Because, as the developer says, “If it breaks your camera, you get to keep both pieces.” However, if you are so inclined to try the firmware out, good luck, and report back your findings for the rest of us poor lemmings. We’re dying to hear how it runs.

(via BoingBoing)