Well i've decided it's time to go FF. I'd like to put my film away & bring it out only during fall (I just can't quit film) But to lower my over all cost i'm thinking of going with a 1Ds. My question is, is the 1Ds still up to par for doing stock photography? I do mostly landscape & wildlife for stock. But I also do portraiture, weddings, commercial and glamour. I'm not really worried too much about the latter, though doing stock with a 1Ds has me curious as what i've seen written it seems to be softer than most of the cameras. Has this effected anyone getting a images accepted by agency's? With the prices being so close to what a used 5D is going for I was leaning toward a 1Ds because of build quality and weather sealing. What are your thoughts?
The 1Ds is still a great camera and does an excellent job with both image quality and color rendition. The only drawback that I would give to the 1Ds is that at higher ISOs it's quite noisy (Noiseware to the rescue, though!). I have both the 1Ds and a 40D. I love the 40D, but when I go out to shoot landscape, I mount the 1Ds on a tripod and have at it.
If anything, the 1Ds is sharper than other (newer) cameras because it has a weaker AA filter. Speed and higher ISO (anything above 400) will your mortal enemy - the 5D is better there. For everything else, I'd still pick the 1Ds over the 5D any day.
If your agency allows 5D submissions I can't imagine them not accepting 1Ds, again as long as you keep it below 400.
The 1Ds is a great camera, but it less convenient than the 5D. The files write much more sloooowly to the card, the buffer is smaller, the battery life is shorter, and it is harder to look at a magnified image. In addition, the 1Ds has poor high iso (above 400) performance and is significantly heavier. Canon really needs to put the build of a 1Ds into the 5D body. The 5D would be the "perfect" mid-level pro camera if they built it like the Nikon D200 or D300... sadly, we are all forced to choose between image quality and durability when spending over $2000 for a camera!
Apologies for my editorial... just another frustrated canon shooter,
regards,
bruce
Both great cameras but i would choose the 5D. Just too many advantages in terms of lower noise and overall I,Q. The 1Ds feels better in the hand though.
I agree with Stan above, I think the 1Ds was one of the sharpest cameras out there with a luminance noise characteristic to die for. That being said, buying used is a bit of a gamble, between the no warranty issue, and the possibility of getting one with a sensor that 'macro bands' in the shadows. Since the 5D image is so close in quality, the prices are currently so good, and it would come with a full warranty, unless you really need the build quality or 45-point AF I'd go with the 5D.
I had a 1Ds and can confirm that the slow write times, and the delay of about 5 seconds for the image to appear on the tiny LCD were a major drawback to the usability. Battery life on the 1Ds is pathetic. You definitely need to carry a spare (heavy) battery if going more than half an hour from the house! I have since swapped it for a mkIIn and am much happier with that. If I were you I would go for the 5D.
I've shot a lot of landscapes on the beaches of Oahu and rain forests haven't had a single problem with durability of my EOS 5D these past 2 years. Zero. Seems pretty dad burn tough and, despite the the lack of moisture seals, a little tropical rain hasn't hurt me yet. And the VF and image quality are ideal for landscapes. I thought about buying a 1D series instead but I found I prefer the petite form of the 5D. I don't really need ultra high speed or a battle brick to hump over rocks.
Noisy? Not if you expose it correctly! I think Canon biased it's default exposure low, to avoid blown highlights for the camera's intended use: studio. (Which is why it was named the 1D(s), and not the 1Do or 1Di... :-)
Battery life... I've had exceptional response - 500+ images over a 6-hour period in cool outdoor shooting, and I've had the battery go flat on it's own in 2 weeks of non-use. I think that is the key - the battery self-discharges, so you need to top it off just before you go out.
I loved the 1Ds, it was a terrific camera with fantastic image quality. The 5D has a -- don't quite know how to put my finger on it, but -- prosumerish kind of finish to images from the in-camera JPEG processor. If you shoot RAW, you can get quite a punch out of them. But the 1Ds produced beautiful images straight out of camera. The RAWs were sharp and contrasty with no post processing work required.
That said, the 1Ds had high IQ (image quality), but kind of a low IQ (intelligence quotient). It is slow to display an image on the rear LCD. No, slow. Like a couple seconds slow. And if you shoot a burst, you have to wait and wait for the images to get written to the card. Also, the AI-Servo performance was "de-tuned" by Canon. Not a birding camera.
Oh yeah, and it's a freaking BRICK. The 5D is smaller and easier to travel with. For studio work, go 1Ds. For travel? My money is on the 5D (but shoot RAWs).
The one thing where the 1Ds was ahead of the 1Ds2 was buffer size: 10, no matter what format you chose. So, raw+L: 10. 1Ds2 - raw+S: 9. 1Ds3 - raw+S: 12. It took us 5 years to grow the buffer...
Thanks for the advice guys. I think i'm going 1Ds when I get the chance. it's pretty tempting now as Adorama has one for $1800. But I may have to wait til this summer.
Mine was a used one with 50,000 clicks. The batteries were probably past their best. I would struggle to get 100 shots on a charge. If you get one probably worth seeking one with low mileage.
I have to give my two cents. I had two 1ds' and loved them...but I agree with the slow response, which was kind of embarrassing when doing wedding formals and always asking everyone to wait. When I first got my 5d...I hated it...just didn't look right...but now 2 years later...I have really learned to use this camera and would never go back...the 5d files are every bit as good as a 1Ds. In fact, if you really want to look exactly like the 1Ds...just shoot the 5d at iso 800....it will pretty much duplicate the noise of the 1Ds at 200 iso. Here is a landscape taken with the 5 d. The web doesn't do this justice as you can see the individual sheeps faces clearly in the 20x30 print.
