C'mon Andre'. You aren't presenting any new facts. The shots you link to could be done with manual focus. Think about it. Why would RG lie? Are you fanbois so paranoid that you think there's some kind of conspiracy? What I've seen from RG is is some good reporting of the facts. Just because you don't like the facts doesn't mean they're not true. You don't own a MKIII or IV yourself, so how do you know how they they perform? You cite one thread by someone who's vested interest is to justify his purchase (I'm tired of hearing the word investment, especially from hobbyists), whereas its in RG vested interest to post objective reviews on his site. You guys need to quit crying about bad reviews and take Canon to task for the job they've done. I've seen enough Canon users post their problems to know there is some serious grounds for RG comments. You know as well as I do that these problems with the AF aren't just singular abberations.
What really surprised me wasn't the fact that there were engineering problems, but the way Canon handled the situation. Those that say the problem doesn't effect them are just being naive.
I understand what you are saying but you're really missing the point. You keep arguing FOR the Mark IV but don't see that I'm NOT arguing against it. I've not used the Mark IV as my Canon shipped sailed with the MK III debacle. I'm simply saying that aside from my subject matter, as a consumer I expect to get what I'm paying for whether its from Canon or Nikon. And for my money the Nikon D3 just gets the job done much more consistently at this point.
As far as your link to Russ' forum posting that really has no relevance. I have a lot of respect for Russ' work and his ability to consistently produce great photographs. Whether or not he's using Canon or Nikon would not change that opinion. I suspect Russ, like any other technically skilled photographer, would produce the same results no matter which camera he had in-hand. The MK IV works for him and I hope anyone who uses it is just as happy with their results.
You are correct in one thing: the real input DOES come from the users... and in this case Lee has already described his experiences in shooting Canon and Nikon side by side and the results. I myself shot my current D3 along with my Canon MK III side-by-side for several MONTHS before making my final decision. Don't you consider us to be real users?
Brand loyalty has nothing to do with this...it's performance and what works best for the professional photographer to do their job.
I was a very happy Nikon shooter for 20 years and had no reason to look at other brands until Canon released the 1D Mark II which came out just about the time my D2H's were back at Nikon for repairs on a regular basis.
I didn't want to purchase new camera gear but the unreliabilty of the D2H, a 2-3 stop ISO advantage of the Mark II and the increased resolution couldn't be overlooked so I made the switch 5 years ago.
Now...it all turns around and Nikon released the D3 about the time when the pros using the Mark III ( me included ) started reporting AF issues. Rob Galbraith didn't influence my decision at the time...my own personal experience with the Mark III's AF forced me to look at other options...and the D3 was the only other option.
I hated getting rid of alot of my Canon gear but my tests...at the time...showed the Nikon cameras performed so much better at high ISO's than the Mark III and the AF was far more reliable in about any shooting condition.
The roles were now reversed.
I just found the D3s is a better camera...from my personal tests...than the Mark IV so I'll...most likely...sell off the remainder of my Canon gear to finance the complete switch.
It's nothing personal against Canon...Rob Galbraith didn't make my decision for me...it's just business....plain and simple.
In all honesty...if you make your living off of photography...you need to do your tests before purchasing camera gear.
In the case of the Mark III and Mark IV, my results and observations pretty much matched Rob Galbraith's but that didn't influence my decision to make the change.
My path: Shot Nikon for 20 years. Sold off D2Hs' for Canon MK II's for the exact same reasons you mention. Upgraded to MK III's. Dumped Canon for Nikon D3's.
The US' deadline to Saddam H. to leaving Kuwait expired without Saddam's knowledge. This was because the foreign minister, charged with delivering the ultimatum, was familiar with Saddam's practice of shooting messengers with disappointing information. So Gulf War I (and later Gulf War II?) began. So lighten up on "The Messenger" so you can get the facts-even if you don't like them.
Grognard wrote:
With all the hate on RG, you would think he was Ken Rockwell.....
Well RG utterlty stuffed up his 7D AF review so bad it looked like a hatchet job (wrong AF modes for servo as pointed out by the manual he linked to) so why trust him here, when most of his 1D4 issues (front focusing with closing subjects) are addressed the in the firmware fix he didnt test....
IIRC, he had the firmware update. Did not read the 7D review.
RobDickinson wrote:
Well RG utterlty stuffed up his 7D AF review so bad it looked like a hatchet job (wrong AF modes for servo as pointed out by the manual he linked to) so why trust him here, when most of his 1D4 issues (front focusing with closing subjects) are addressed the in the firmware fix he didnt test....
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