I did a fair bit of searching for my 1D III. As I do a lot of BIF, action work, I waited until someone with similar interest was selling and had the proof of the AF being good. And it was a clear step up from my already great 1D II. Then there's the much better IQ above ISO 400, better interface, lighter weight, vastly better battery life.

Current price: 1DsIII
Original price: 5D

Pixel Perfect wrote:
I did a fair bit of searching for my 1D III. As I do a lot of BIF, action work, I waited until someone with similar interest was selling and had the proof of the AF being good. And it was a clear step up from my already great 1D II. Then there's the much better IQ above ISO 400, better interface, lighter weight, vastly better battery life.

Good for you. My 1D3 wasn't bad at all in low light. But put something shiny in the center of that darkness (like solo dancer lit with single light, on black background), and my 1D3 would start FF/BF wildly, whereas 1D2N in the same situation, same lens and guy holding it would be dead-on. In normal light it was so-so accurate. But still couldn't beat the 1D2N. And it had the high serial number, the one that should have had all the fixes applied right in the factory. Well, I sold it with 25% loss.

40D - still miss that camera some times.

The 5D for portrait, and the 40D for everything else. The 5D was the first affordable full frame, with the ability for shallow DOF which that enables. But the 5D felt clunky otherwise. The 40D, on the other hand, was both affordable and simply got everything right. Good IQ, felt right in the hand, very responsive, instant startup, good viewfinder, good menu system, high FPS, etc. I had a 20D before, and the 40D just killed it. I had no qualms letting the 20D go, but even though I now have a 7D, the 40D remains in use. I had both the 5D and 40D, and the 40D took more than 90% of the pictures.

So, another vote for the 40D, but I'll tip my hat to the videographers that vote the game changing 5DII.

michael49 wrote:
40D - still miss that camera some times.

I had mine 14 months and then the 7D came along and I forgot all about it by the next day.

jcolwell wrote:
Current price: 1DsIII
Original price: 5D



only a good value if nothing breaks! seen some expensive quotes on fixing a non-functioning 5D

Pixel Perfect wrote:
michael49 wrote:
40D - still miss that camera some times.

I had mine 14 months and then the 7D came along and I forgot all about it by the next day.

We call that dementia in the UK.....you might want to get it checked out!!.....

anthonygh wrote:
Pixel Perfect wrote:
michael49 wrote:
40D - still miss that camera some times.

I had mine 14 months and then the 7D came along and I forgot all about it by the next day.

We call that dementia in the UK.....you might want to get it checked out!!.....

CW100 wrote:
jcolwell wrote:
Current price: 1DsIII
Original price: 5D



only a good value if nothing breaks! seen some expensive quotes on fixing a non-functioning 5D

I meant original price of the 5D, when it was new.

"Best ever" is tough as prices drop. It also depends on end user and what they are trying to do but the used 20D to 40D are unreal. For a FF, 5Dc prices are insane as well. Since this focuses on "value", it would have to be 40D.

I guess I am missing out, because I've never used a 40D.
Personally, I've never had much connection with the XXD bodies.

I think the 1Dc and 5Dc are both incredible values these days. 1Dc's are going for under $300 when you can find them. 5Dc's are so cheap for what you get.

5Dc. I just sold one for £350 with a new shutter and mirror box. The other one is still going strong, this was with it 2 days ago in the rain and the dark..

ISO1600 wrote:

I guess I am missing out, because I've never used a 40D.
Personally, I've never had much connection with the XXD bodies.

If you could've only held that body in your hands you'd be spoiled.

I nicely hedged my bets then..I have a 40D and 5D, both with grips, both nr mint......and probably the two setups wouldn't cost more than about £750 in total to replace......so pretty good value really for what they can produce between them.

I can only comment on what I've actually owned. My 1Ds2's served me well for 6-7 years, nary a failure and when used alongside the 1Ds3, 1D3, and 1D4 on several occasions, I preferred to stick with my 1Ds2's. But they cost me $7500'ish each.

The 5D3 blew me away with how great it was compared to the aforementioned bodies, and the fact it "only" cost me $3500 in March makes it the bargain of the century for me. The fact that you can get them now for well less than that is just mind boggling, so here's another vote for 5D3.