News For camera nerds only

[caLLous]

Lol, whoops Nikon. Using footage from a 5D2 to promote the video capabilities of the D800 and then showing a clip from The Art of Flight (which is awesome btw) which wasn't even shot on a DSLR.

 

[milou]

Second hand TSE-IIs, in great condition, are about the £1,400 mark. Makes sense - usually there's a 20% dep'n. Not sure there's a reason to go from 5D2 to 3.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

£3k or less? I'm sold.

So we're talking about ~4k outlay on new camera and lens. Painful, but could be worse.

 

[old.user4556]

When I get home tonight, I will post my musings.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

I'm yet to read that article on CanonRumours. No doubt most of it will mean about as much as a Toht rant though.

 

[caLLous]

Read dpreview's Canon EOS 5D Mark III Hands-on Preview instead, then. It seems to be more of a full-frame 7D than an evolution of the 5D2.

 

[old.user4556]

That's exactly what I'm thinking Cal. Will post thoughts later.

 

[caLLous]

tl;dr

We've not really had our hands on a 5D Mark III long enough to do much more than scratch the surface of what it can do, but first impressions are extremely positive. It addresses the Mark II's most glaring weakness - its distinctly unimpressive autofocus system - in what on paper is the most comprehensive fashion possible, while adding an array of interface tweaks and improvements as well. It's at least as much of an improvement over its predecessor as the EOS 7D was over the 50D.

They then go on to mumble something about a higher resolution Nikon, it remains to be seen how they do head-to-head. There's a review I'm looking forward to.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

It sounds fantastic to my n00b ears tbh.

 

[caLLous]

Well if they're comparing it to the step up from the 50D to the 7D then that is a very fucking big step tbh.

 

[Wazzerphuk]

Will be interested to see how the in-camera HDR stuff works.

 

[old.user4556]

Well, now that we've got official specs and not speculation and conjecture, here is what I think.

At first when I saw it, I was thinking "this doesn't really look like much of an upgrade from a 5D Mk2", but when I thought about it a bit longer it makes perfect sense.

When I moved out of the Pentax world, I did so because of the following main reasons: lack of incremental camera body updates, absolutely woeful autofocus compared to Canon / Nikon and no hint of a full frame. When I was deciding on which Canon body I wanted, I didn't want to leave behind the weather sealing of Pentax (the actual amount of weather sealing on the 7D is debatable) but I also didn't want to go to "just ok" autofocus. I did some digging on making the jump to the 5D Mk2 instead of the 7D, but a lot of the anecdotal stories on the web suggested that if it was blazing AF you were after, then the 5D Mk2 wasn't for you. At the same time, I wanted to make the leap to full-frame, but the 7D was APS-C and I just could not justify the money on something like the 1DS Mk3 (effectively a 5D Mk2 with 1D autofocus). I plumped for the 7D in the end and it's been a brilliant camera that's served well for two years now, but I still dream of full-frame and Zeiss primes.

That's the clincher with the 5D Mk3. It gives you two bodies rolled into one - a full-frame 5D Mk2 with the best bits of the 7D coated in a layer of 1DX. It is the camera that would have made me jump at the chance when I was back in the Pentax world because it was exactly the camera I wanted to invest in. When you see it that way, it makes it a very cost effective upgrade. The 5D Mk2 costs ~£1600, the 7D costs ~£1050; so you're talking about a body that gives you both, with a brand new sensor and the AF system of the 1D X, all for an extra £300?! Buy one, buy it hard.

The flipside is that I'm not sure there's enough of an upgrade for existing 5D Mk2 and 7D owners. Let's be honest, the 5D Mk2 is still a brilliant camera capable of making TV shows and images worthy of a gallery. In addition, the 7D is still a superb APS-C unit with autofocus so quick that it probably ate into sales of the 1D series. For me, I don't need the super autofocus of the 5D Mk3, so would be better looking at a second hand 5D Mk2 and a prime or two.

I think this camera is really going to appeal to those in the area that I was in back in the day with Pentax, or those still using older bodies (like Wazz) looking to make that next significant jump. A bloke on DPreview replied to one of my posts with:

That is exactly how I see it.

I am not a "fast" upgrader (I still use a 5D for landscapes & portraits and a 1DMkIIn for sports) and, with my background and for my needs, the 5DMlIII is the perfect camera.
Since all my gear is still working perfectly, I'll wait a few more years (2 or 3) and replace my 5D+1DMkIIn by a 5DIII once it goes bellow €2000 (yes, I am also cheap... and an amateur...).

Then I'll be set for the next 10 years..

It's going to be a brilliant camera.

 

[old.user4556]

Will be interested to see how the in-camera HDR stuff works.

It'll only apply to JPGs and you'd be able to do it better yourself with the proper software. Imo, it's a gimmick.

 

[old.user4556]

If weddings and portraits are your thing, what more could you ask for?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/98609590@N00/6947464739/sizes/l/in/photostream/

 

[Clown]

I don't really need to focus fast, so what should I do? Get a 5D2 now and wait for the 5D3 to drop in price or just get the 5D3? That way I will end up with two awesome cameras!

 

[caLLous]

It'll only apply to JPGs and you'd be able to do it better yourself with the proper software. Imo, it's a gimmick.

Yeah, like face recognition and all that shite.

Like you say it's a trickier (and less justifiable) decision to upgrade if you already have a 7D or a 5D2 (which, incidentally, wasn't just used for the finale of House season 7, it was the only camera they used for *all* of season 8) but for anything <7D (60D, 50D etc, all the xxxD's) it's a no brainer if you want to go full frame.

 

[old.user4556]

I don't really need to focus fast, so what should I do? Get a 5D2 now and wait for the 5D3 to drop in price or just get the 5D3? That way I will end up with two awesome cameras!

My advice is to wait for the reviews and the full size RAW files to become available so that you can see exactly what advancements Canon has made in the sensor technology.

If the dynamic range and ISO performance are pretty much the same, then I don't see the point in a Mk3 if you don't care for speedy autofocus or fast frames per second, but that's my opinion. I'm still firmly in the "Mk2 and a good wide angle prime, plus change" camp until I see full size RAWs.

 

[old.user4556]

Worth a watch (I like this guy's cynical tone ).


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnFaIPCU3d8&feature=uploademail


From 5:20 he compares high ISO, looks like the Mk3 has at least one stop advantage over the Mk2 in high ISO but this is by no means a proven and scientific test. Still, great to hear that there are improvements in this sensor.

 

[old.user4556]

Woah.

http://www.petapixel.com/2012/03/05...anon-5d-mark-ii-and-5d-mark-iii-at-iso-12800/

Looks like there is more noise reduction going on with the Mk3 though.... still waiting for proper tests.

 

[milou]

l meant to say Big G, good post up there about upgrades etc.

 

[old.user4556]

This is not good to read.

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=40826153

I had high hopes that pattern / read noise would finally be solved, but it's not looking like it. Not a show stopper at all, very unlikely to see it, but you'd hope Canon would have done something about it by now.

 

[old.user4556]

http://www.petapixel.com/2012/03/05/cloaking-a-car-using-leds-and-a-canon-5d-mark-ii/

 

[caLLous]

Canon EOS 5D Mark III ISO Samples

Including 40+mb CR2 downloads.

 

[caLLous]

^ You'll need the release candidate of Camera Raw (or DNG Converter) 6.7 to open the CR2's.

 

[old.user4556]

Just in from work, but had a gander at lunch time, looking very good indeed; perhaps 2/3 of a stop to 1 stop improvement at high ISO. Wedding photographers rejoice!

I reckon the D4 and 5D Mk3 are going to be so close in terms of image quality that it'll be insignificant.

 

[old.user4556]

Umm.

Those ISO 100 shots are absolutely brilliant. I dislike shadow pushers, but it's a good test of pattern noise and at 100 fill I see practically nothing (compared with the 7D....).

 

[Wazzerphuk]

So it's good at high and low ISOs? Fantastic.

How do you guys get motivated to go out and shoot stuff when you have no specific objects/locations in mind? Want to get out and shoot film but don't know what to do with it.

Might have to start shoving it in my work bag and seeing what I can do en route to work, only problem is I don't think the underground is particularly good for shooting without a tripod, and there's so much cool stuff on it.

 

[Lethul]

I want a reasonably good cheap compact digital camera. Been looking at Canon Ixus 220 HS. Any opinions or better ideas?

 

[Wazzerphuk]

Don't know a great deal about them. Lumixs are pretty good bang for the money though.

 

[milou]

So it's good at high and low ISOs? Fantastic.

How do you guys get motivated to go out and shoot stuff when you have no specific objects/locations in mind? Want to get out and shoot film but don't know what to do with it.

Might have to start shoving it in my work bag and seeing what I can do en route to work, only problem is I don't think the underground is particularly good for shooting without a tripod, and there's so much cool stuff on it.

You need a photo project. Acquire this: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Photo-Proje...=sr_1_7?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1331145791&sr=1-7