For those that don't like the video component, may I ask why this is such a turn-off? I doubt the availability of this feature reduced or eliminated the potential for an additional feature or improvement in an existing one.
From a creative standpoint, I think the ability to record video in a non-intrusive way could pay dividends for some. For instance, how neat would it be to shoot a few minutes of "behind the scenes" videos and include a DVD as part of your package to the clients? People love behind the scenes stuff, especially in memorable situations. Obviously storage becomes an issue (another +1 for dual card slots), but from a perspective of enhancing your portfolio and finished product, I could see several clients finding value in something like this so long as it doesn't take away from the pictures themselves.
jamesf99 wrote:
I'm nasty? So you have simply forgotten your provocative statement to me? I don't like insults from people like you trying to start something and my fanboy-BS meter is on high. As long as you can say something nasty it's all good right?
I don't want to be put down, belittled, or made fun of for your amusement. This is not the first time you've taken it upon yourself to express your displeasure over something I wrote. If you want to go after me, then take it off line and PM me or send me an email.
Whatever you do, give up the "innocent" act and grow up....Show more →
Dude get off your high horse and take your own advice and STFU..no one cares how much money you got in gear.
Get back on topic on how it took 3years to come up with this ehhh camera
Maliketh wrote:
I was pissed that I had spent 8k earlier in the year on a 1Ds MkIII only to have it's resolution matched by a much cheaper camera a few months later. Yes, resolution isn't everything but it should be pretty high on the list of any serious photographer.
I'm with you there pal... it hurts even more that the sensor is better than that in the 1Ds3. I would be curious if digic 4 is better at processing than the two parallel Digic 3's that are in the 1 series.
If the autofocus is indeed the same as the 5D, then this is a major disappointment. I shoot mainly wedding and portrait work, and the 5D has been a workhorse with great image quality, but the AF is lacking. I will echo what was said earlier, the only accurate focus point on the camera is the center one. I will also concede that the center AF is very good in low light. Otherwise it is very frustrating to not be able to frame a shot as you would like since you just can't trust the outer focus points to accurately work with small DOF, like you would be doing in wedding work. You have to bullseye every shot and crop to get the framing you want. If you focus and recompose, then the parallax issue will throw the eye out of focus. Now a few years ago, we would just chalk it up to the equipment not being up to "pro" standards and just accept that if we want better autofocus buy the 1D series. The crux is, we know better now by seeing what the competition is offering. I don't want to switch brands and I love my lenses but I would like to have a camera that is equal to the competition. It is not good enough anymore and Canon knows it, but chose the wrong path anyway. Like I said, very disappointing.
staying with (original) 5d. looking at nikon d700 once the prices fall.
it's the AF/ weathersealing that really got me on the 5d II- but mostly the lack of better AF. the 5d II higher MP don't really float my boat. neither does the video mode, although i think it's cool. cool for lexus-driving soccer moms and little Jimmy.
This thread is a classic example of why consumers cannot drive innovation, only improvements. What do consumers want? Only what they know about. Such as "I want this fixed, this improved, this but cheaper, this from the upmarket model, but without the upmarket price". Look at it, all the member expectations fall in that category (AF, weathersealing, fps...).
Not one member, in 100 pages of thread in anticipation of 5DII (yours truly included) wrote "I want the best frigging IQ the DSLR world has ever seen". Not one. Because to want that, and for 2700$, it is not an improvement, it is an innovation. It means testing uncharted waters. Nobody knows if it can be done, how much it would cost, or how meaningful it would be.
This is why the Nikon D700 finds favor with a certain type of member. It is full of improvements. But absolutely no innovation. Even D90 has innovation, with video, as does 5DII. 12 mn of full HD. Wow! I am going to have some fun experimenting with that! How many times did I curse the fact that I had a DSLR and not a camcorder, even though I won't carry both, nor settle for the dismal IQ of a camcorder! Even though my Casio Exilim had a video mode...
I vote for innovation over improvements every time.
philber wrote:
Not one member, in 100 pages of thread in anticipation of 5DII (yours truly included) wrote "I want the best frigging IQ the DSLR world has ever seen". Not one. Because to want that, and for 2700$, it is not an improvement, it is an innovation. It means testing uncharted waters. Nobody knows if it can be done, how much it would cost, or how meaningful it would be.
Or maybe, just maybe, we're actually HAPPY with the IQ of our current cameras and would just like to be able to use them in the rain ? Or was that thought "too innovative" ?
Chris Beaumont wrote:
They DID call it "the future of photography" which was over exaggerating just a teensy weensy little bit!
Not much. We can't know what features will come along, but LiveView, 15-25mp, and good video will probably be a staple of most SLRs in the future - and the 5D2 is the only camera that has all those things now.
So it may be hyperbole, but it's probably truer of the 5D2 than any other SLR we can name.
Yes, however there's the small matter of Sony (2Xmp camera at "affordable" price) and Nikon (video) being the first to implement those changes, maybe I'm just arguing semantics here, but to me "the future of photography" implies something new and original that will blow us away, and all it actually achieved was a massive, massive anti-climax, just look at this board, how many posts have been written today going either "meh, same old same old from Canon" or "I'm furious that the D700 still hasn't been answered" - personally I think they shot themselves in the foot by building up this ridiculous tension for something distinctly underwhelming and, I'm sorry to say, almost entirely predictable.
skibum5 wrote:
even crazier is RG claims it doesnt even use the gapless sensor technology (held back for 1 series??). If you dont imrpove the mirror box or AF at leat give the most up to date sensor? nikon will kill this with the D800 in a year.
I believe that DPReview's preview explains the use of "almost gapless" on the 5D. Or at least speculates on a potential reason.
Chris, of course we are happy with the IQ as it is today. Just as drivers were happy with the performance of their model T Ford in its time. Satisfaction is a relative thing. It is normal to be happy with what the industry can deliver as "state of the art", or "good VFM". This does not preclude being happy as well when an innovator pushes the envelope.
I also don't knock improvements. Nobody can argue against a better mousetrap for less money. It is just not the same thing as innovation.
As to weathersealing, Canon say it is significantly improved over 5D, and that it will withstand shooting for quite while in light rain. A member even posted the picture of all the extra seals and gaskets in the 5DII.
deepbluejh wrote:
FWIW, the 40D/50D AF is far better than the 5D AF. its definitely an upgrad.e
Not for tracking, it isn't. I have the 5D and the 40D and have compared them extensively. The 5D routinely turns out more keepers in AI-Servo. Unfortunately, the peripheral AF points on the 40D are superior, and deal with low light much better.
I can't help thinking most of us would have been quite pleased with a 21 meg full frame camera with liveview and 4 fps only a few months ago
What exactly were the people waiting for a 5D upgrade expecting?
Canon aren't going to step on the toes of their one series by offering pro level focusing systems and weatherproofing on a model that is primarily designed for studio, wedding and advanced amateur use.
It's a significant but modest upgrade, heck it's a 21 meg sensor in a medium sized dslr body at what will soon be a 5D price, that isn't bad IMHO
Chris Beaumont wrote:
To me "the future of photography" implies something new and original that will blow us away, and all it actually achieved was a massive, massive anti-climax.
Just look at this board, how many posts have been written today going either "meh, same old same old from Canon" or "I'm furious that the D700 still hasn't been answered." Personally I think they shot themselves in the foot by building up this ridiculous tension for something distinctly underwhelming and, I'm sorry to say, almost entirely predictable.
But isn't that said here EVERY time Canon introduces a new camera? It's not a lot different over at the Nikon board: except for Nikon's two full-frame cameras (introduced several years after Canon's), the hopes of forum participants are never fully met by any new camera.
So it may be a matter of unrealistic expectations more than anything. But I'll play along: what innovations with the 5D2 would have "blown [you] away"? Some more AF points? Better weather-sealing? Another stop of dynamic range? I'm not sure any of those things would have said "The Future of Photography!" a lot more clearly than the 5D2 does as presented. I'm not being snide: I'm genuinely curious about what you think Canon could have done but didn't?
With LiveView, video, and sensor resolution as good as most lenses', I really think we're largely past the "revolution" stage and most DSLRs will now be degrees of "evolution" instead. I doubt that any camera from any mfr at photokina 2010 or 2012 will be a bigger step ahead of the pack than any of this year's crop stands out right now.
I understand youre reference to the model T, and I often use car analogies myself to explain everything however in this case, I'm not sure it's apt, the model T was barely quicker than a horse, whereas the current 5D can do wall sized prints that stand up no problem, and shoot at ISO3200 with practically no visibly noise, even in the largest sized prints most of us will do, IQ is already spectacular, however the areas in which the 5D was severely lagging (especially to rivals) have remained untouched, that's what irks me, it's the cynicism of it all "give em 20 odd megapixels and they'll shut up" - being melodramatic I'd say there's almost a touch of Marie Antoinette about it.
However I am making sure to breath deeply and often and keep telling myself that nothing I say will make the slightest bit of difference I either have to put my money where my mouth is, take a massive financial hit and get the D300 and D700 that I was hoping the 50D and 5DII would actually address, or shut up.
deepbluejh wrote:
Why do people keep saying its the same AF system as the original 5D.
It is NOT the same.
FWIW, the 40D/50D AF is far better than the 5D AF. its definitely an upgrad.e
Er, per Galbraith and Westfall, the 5D2 AF is a tweaked version of the original 5D AF. And, interestingly, according to Chuck Westfall (of Canon USA), the 5D AI servo AF is superior to the 40D/50D.
"Somewhat surprisingly, Canon has not adopted the 40D/50D's AF system which, on paper, is superior, given that all nine of its AF points are cross-type. Canon USA's Westfall says the reason for that is the "6 Assist AF points plus center point were deemed to provide a higher level of performance for AI Servo AF than the center point-only arrangement of the [40D and] 50D." Given that we've previously found the overall autofocus performance of the 5D to be decent, while the 40D's tracking capability has been erratic at best, Canon has likely chosen the better of the two AF systems for the 5D Mark II.
and
"The 5D Mark II does include two changes in its AF system, relative to the 5D: it now has the ability to detect scene colour temperature and light flicker, then incorporate that as part of the camera's autotofocus calculation, plus AF Microadjustment, to compensate for focus calibration error in the camera body or combination of body and attached lens, has been added."
I honestly don't think Canon wants to disrupt their 1DsX sales and that is why we are not seeing some of the features we would have liked to have seen.
I am really interested to see how the video is going to work out, to me I might get to like that feature.
it hurts even more that the sensor is better than that in the 1Ds3. I would be curious if digic 4 is better at processing than the two parallel Digic 3's that are in the 1 series.
I either have to put my money where my mouth is, take a massive financial hit and get the D300 and D700 that I was hoping the 50D and 5DII would actually address, or shut up.