orangefirefish
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 p.1 #21 · original 5D vs. 1D Mk III | |
sskoutas wrote:
Does anyone have any thoughts or personal experience on how the overall IQ of the original 5D and the 1D Mark III compare? I'm very interested in the 5DmkII, but I don't need the 21MP files and I don't (think) I need the movie capability. I'm also concerned that they might be pushing the pixel-density barriers a bit, and I'm not going to be surprised to hear complaints about noise. If this proves not to be true, this camera comes back into consideration for me.
I'd love to gain the speed and AF of the 1DIII, but how do the final images out-of-camera compare to the 5D? How about low light (not what the dials say, what real world shooting allows)
5d has the advantage in price and in being FF.
Mark III has the advantage in FPS, AF (for about $2K more).
Are the 5D's currently on retailers shelves the last of them?
1) If you need the resolution, then by all means the 5dII trumps the 1d3. As far as high ISO goes, there's no significant difference for real world applications, except that the 5d2 does let you go to 12800 and 25600 in camera. The original 5D has lower pixel density than the 1d3- so a 1.3x crop is equivalent to 7.6 MP. If you can get close enough to your subject, this won't be an issue- but otherwise, the 1d3 will have more reach then your subject distance can't be varied. The high ISO on the 1d3 is also approximately one stop better than the original 5d.
2) As far as pixel density barriers, even the 5d2's sensor is no more dense than that of a 20D or 30D. So as long as your glass is good in the full frame corners, you'll be okay. The 5D is even less dense so I wouldn't worry about that at all.
3) You can't beat the 1d3 on low light AF. It is the reigning world champ in that realm. I've shot the D3, and 1d2, and almost every other Canon and Nikon prosumer body, and nothing comes close to the focus acquisition of the 1d3 in low light. In good light, the differences are less, and the 1d3 does fall short of the 1d2 in terms of being able to hold focus while tracking a subject- but it is not a big deal. In short, I don't think you'll be disappointed with the focus tracking of the 1d3, at all.
That being said, the 5D/5D2 is rather good in low light when compared to the 1d2. The assist points in the center make it quite a good body for AF in poor lighting- it's no 1D3 but rather good- just like the original 5D. The peripheral points, since they're not cross type, are junk in low light, but for all practical purposes you can get away with the center point. One thing you might want to consider is that they're clustered fairly in the middle and you will have to focus/recompose in one-shot mode quite a bit in low light- which is not always an optimal approach, esp. with fast primes.
4) It all comes down to what you want to shoot. You'll find that, even for moderate action, the 3/3.9 fps and shutter lag of the 5D/5D2 just won't cut it. In fact, for that, even the 40D would outdo it, since it has all cross type points, and 6.5 fps. For birding and small wildlife, where you're stretched as far as subject distance goes (IE you can't get closer regardless of camera body) even the 40D holds an advantage over the 5D2 since it has higher pixel density.
Buy the 1d3 if you need to shoot fast action, in any light, and it is crucial that you never miss an important shot. If you can live with good timing and anticipation, and you're not getting paid to shoot sports, I'm sure your 5D/5D2 action shots will be fine- just prepared to miss a couple of key shots once in awhile.
5) I'm not sure about the 5D stock- but there are many on the B&S forum here. Last time I checked, the 5d2 kits are in pretty plentiful supply at Adorama, Abe's of Maine, most internet retailers have them. You get a pretty nifty lens for dirt cheap- and you could unload it easily, to get essentially a body only. The bodies, are in lower supply but I would say that the way these things have been shipping, there's definitely no difficulty in getting one if you're willing to wait at most a couple of weeks.
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