Canon 5D Mark III

[The1]

Originally Posted by PNF

I dont really do a good review, but I have my 5D3 for a couple days now and loves it. i never owned a FF, so I cant really compare on how it performs vs the 5D2 or others.

I also own a 7D right now. I can tell you one thing in my early testing on taking some sports photo. (track n field). The AF tracking works just as well as my 7D in my opinion, using the same 70-200 f4 IS lens.

I think this 5D3 will go down as one of the most solidly built Canon FF!

Nice, keep us updated there's lots of people in here that are holding back until they learn as much as they can.

how do you find the sharpness of the photos at 100% zoom compared to the 7D about the same? or slightly softer?

Do you find the pictures are "popping" off the screen with the depth?

[PNF]

Originally Posted by The1

Nice, keep us updated there's lots of people in here that are holding back until they learn as much as they can.

how do you find the sharpness of the photos at 100% zoom compared to the 7D about the same? or slightly softer?

Do you find the pictures are "popping" off the screen with the depth?

I think the answers to your question is gonna be arbitrary.

I am not a pro. I am just a guy who loves to shoot and enjoys the pictures. But by my experience so far.

I am using 16-35II mostly so far.

I have not compared the two, but today I went to a local shrine here in Taiwan and used my 16-35II on my 5D, in a relatively low light situation inside the shrine, at 12600 ISO with f3.5 stop. I have to tell you, I am pretty amazed at the IQ at this high ISO.

I also tested some photos at max zoom (35mm) at max f2.8. The image looks pretty sharp. I wouldnt say sharper or softer than my 7D, simply because I dont have exact same pic taking at the same time if you know what I mean. There are many other factors.

To do a comparable test, I should have 2 of the same lens tripoded at the same location with 7D and 5D3 to really compare. But I dont..

All I can say is, this is definitely an upgrade over my 7D and love it so much right now.

So, to answer your question from my 2 day experience so far, I would say this thing sure damn worth every penny of it. For those enthusiast, it is only matter of time before you give in and upgrade from 5D2 to 5D3!

I might have waited a year for it to drop down to say $2995 to compete with D800. But I am not a man of patience when it comes to my hobbies.. (car + camera)..

[The1]

Originally Posted by PNF

I might have waited a year for it to drop down to say $2995 to compete with D800. But I am not a man of patience when it comes to my hobbies.. (car + camera)..

I have a feeling this might be what happens to me

Thanks for sharing your experiences, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I can only imagine the smile it's putting on your face knowing what sort of smile the 5DmkII put on my face when I first got it.

by the way, Nice choice of lens for that camera It's pretty much glued to my 5DII unless I'm doing portraits and my 7D is pretty much only used with my telephotos or macro. (because of the flash control and better sharpness)

[PNF]

Originally Posted by The1

I have a feeling this might be what happens to me

Thanks for sharing your experiences, I'm glad you're enjoying it. I can only imagine the smile it's putting on your face knowing what sort of smile the 5DmkII put on my face when I first got it.

by the way, Nice choice of lens for that camera It's pretty much glued to my 5DII unless I'm doing portraits and my 7D is pretty much only used with my telephotos or macro. (because of the flash control and better sharpness)

+1 same.

Right now, I am trying to sell my 7D, since I probably wont be needing both. But I am still contemplating the idea of selling the 7D.

Many say 5D3 is not designed for sports. Yes, I agree if you compare it to the 1D series.

But lets face it, 5D3 can do (at least in the few photos I tried) can do just as good job as any of those non-$5000+ cameras or better. Only time will tell.

Right now, I am only using 16-35.. and waiting for the 24-70MK2 to drop price. $2300 for that lens is just outrageous, even it if is just as good as the Nikon's 24-70.

Still... I will find out more about what this 5D3 can do as I go. =)

Good luck holding your urge man.. I gave in on mine..

[rodi]

can you upload some high-res video samples to Dropbox or something?
maybe like 3 seconds worth at different ISO's. if you've got the time, I'll give a list of stuff you can do.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by PNF

+1 same.

Right now, I am trying to sell my 7D, since I probably wont be needing both. But I am still contemplating the idea of selling the 7D.

Many say 5D3 is not designed for sports. Yes, I agree if you compare it to the 1D series.

But lets face it, 5D3 can do (at least in the few photos I tried) can do just as good job as any of those non-$5000+ cameras or better. Only time will tell.

Right now, I am only using 16-35.. and waiting for the 24-70MK2 to drop price. $2300 for that lens is just outrageous, even it if is just as good as the Nikon's 24-70.

Still... I will find out more about what this 5D3 can do as I go. =)

Good luck holding your urge man.. I gave in on mine..

I'd keep my 7D, but that's because I do wildlife and need the extra reach of the 7D's smaller pixels. Otherwise, I'd stick with the 5D3. The only reason to keep it is as a backup, if you don't need the reach.

Dave

[signes]

Dave, how does the 7D do at higher ISOs? Still waiting on shipment notice for my mkIII but also have a D800 on order, too. Couldn't resist, will only keep one.

[dcstep]

Originally Posted by signes

Dave, how does the 7D do at higher ISOs? Still waiting on shipment notice for my mkIII but also have a D800 on order, too. Couldn't resist, will only keep one.

Here's a shot at ISO 6400 on my 7D with only default processing by DxO Optics Pro 7.1:


Michelle checks for text message... by dcstep, on Flickr

For comparison, here's one shot at ISO 6400 with my 5D2:


Giant Tinkertoy, outside Earl of Sandwich by dcstep, on Flickr

I see nothing to complain about with either. Both have pretty incredible dynamic range. If I look at the RAW files at 400%, the 5D2 is a clear winner, but I only view the RAW files prior to conversion. In real life usage, the 7D is pretty well stunning. The complete "system" is camera/lens/software, not camera/lens, unless you only shoot in-camera jpegs.

Do I Jones for a 5D3? Hell yes, and I'll be shooting it at 12,800 for sure and testing at 25,600. The added shutter speed will be useful for shooting critters after the sun's gone down. (Gotta get a new client or two to fund my hobby...)

Dave

[The1]

Originally Posted by signes

Dave, how does the 7D do at higher ISOs? Still waiting on shipment notice for my mkIII but also have a D800 on order, too. Couldn't resist, will only keep one.

you're going to have to do a nice write up for us on the camera and why you choose one over the other

[dcstep]

Pretty impressive high-ISO jpeg with NR off (look at the end of the slideshow):

http://www.dpreview.com/galleries/re...ples/slideshow

[The1]

Originally Posted by dcstep

Pretty impressive high-ISO jpeg with NR off (look at the end of the slideshow):

http://www.dpreview.com/galleries/re...ples/slideshow

looks like 12600 will be about as high as we'll be shooting without doing plastic surgery to the photos.

That being said, there was one that was pretty decent in there at 51,000 ISO

It's always hard to tell with other peoples work, you don't know 100% where they were focused (you can guess) All of them I assume were without a tripod but again, that's a guess.

Until the last set of test shots, it's all nice pictures, but not really an entire story. But it's a nice story

It was nice to see the test set at the end for sure. I almost like the NR- off pictures better then the ones with NR - on in the higher ISO levels.

Now I want this camera more just to see what can be done with it.....

[The1]

I've also made the assumption those were all JPG files to start with? I didn't see it written anywhere

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by The1

I've also made the assumption those were all JPG files to start with? I didn't see it written anywhere

yeah, I would assume so. Since the raw conversion software currently isn't working properly for the 5D3. Plus, Adobe has yet to release one themselves for this camera.

[The1]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

yeah, I would assume so. Since the raw conversion software currently isn't working properly for the 5D3. Plus, Adobe has yet to release one themselves for this camera.

I find this surprising, does this mean that canon was being silly to a certain point where it backfired on them? I figure they would have given over some of the tech before hand to help get adobe and other companies up to par with what the new software should do.

And why is it so different then what was coming out of the old 1D cameras? or is it more the lens/camera correction information that's the issue?

[Chewy734]

Originally Posted by The1

I find this surprising, does this mean that canon was being silly to a certain point where it backfired on them?

apparently, yes.

Originally Posted by The1

And why is it so different then what was coming out of the old 1D cameras? or is it more the lens/camera correction information that's the issue?

Beats me. But, this is why we aren't able to make RAW to RAW comparisons between the 5D3 and other cameras right now.

[The1]

Originally Posted by Chewy734

apparently, yes.



Beats me. But, this is why we aren't able to make RAW to RAW comparisons between the 5D3 and other cameras right now.

price you pay for being overly secretive I guess...

Either way, without the software for it, the pictures are looking promising.

[dcstep]

There's almost always a short delay (45-60 days) between release of a new camera and Adobe, DxO, etc. having their own modules fully developed.

I've read that Canon substantially upgraded Digital Photo Professional for the 5D3 and it includes improvements for models going back to 2009 (read 7D). I'll be curious to see how DPP's NR works on the ISO 25,600 shots.

I can't afford the 5D3 at the moment, so when I buy later this year, I'm sure that DxO will have a module for it. I'll do some comparisons between DPP and DxO at that time.

Dave

[The1]

Originally Posted by dcstep

There's almost always a short delay (45-60 days) between release of a new camera and Adobe, DxO, etc. having their own modules fully developed.

I've read that Canon substantially upgraded Digital Photo Professional for the 5D3 and it includes improvements for models going back to 2009 (read 7D). I'll be curious to see how DPP's NR works on the ISO 25,600 shots.

I can't afford the 5D3 at the moment, so when I buy later this year, I'm sure that DxO will have a module for it. I'll do some comparisons between DPP and DxO at that time.

Dave

That's sort of my thought process. No point buying the camera when there's not much support for it yet.

[signes]

Damn, those 7D pics look very impressive. At this rate I will wind up with three new bodies (kidding.) Really makes me wonder whether the mkIII is the right time for me to switch back to Canon given the extra cost of glass. I am eagerly awaiting the D800 and will report back.

[The1]

The 7D can do that kind of ISO, but if you're to try and crop it, you're at a dead end.

you wouldn't be able to print a very big picture with it.

that's where the 5DmkII has been a winner in my book. It may not be as sharp as the 7D, but it's 98% as sharp. And when you shoot at 6400, you can still crop in a bit before it becomes a problem.

[PNF]

umm... ok, I will do some testing tomorrow of the 7D vs 5D3 at highest ISO for testing.

So far I only had some chances of really using my 5D3. Busy schedule recently. I should have sometime tomorrow.

[Chewy734]

cool... looking forward to your tests.