Behold! The Mighty Canon 5D MKIII arriveth ($3500)

[jpeyton]

Quite the role reversal from the D700/5D2 days.

I remember the Nikon shooters singing the praises of high-ISO performance and better AF.

I remember the Canon shooters touting the superior resolution and movie capabilities.

Sometimes I think the CEOs of Canon and Nikon get together and conspire about the best way to get someone shooting one brand to sell all their gear and upgrade to the other brand.

 

[finbarqs]

I think the paper spec racing has already ruined you.

Quite simply, when you ask anybody why they depend on brand X. It's always about the files. It feels natural to me when using ACR or DPP.

The whole AF based on points thing gets old fast. Especially with a 7D, I have all I need for birding. It will grab anything moving and lock on with no issues. Gulls, ospreys, sparrow, hummingbirds.

I don't do that everyday, so when shooting people, the 7D seems like an appliance. It just works.
I had my first oof shots I had in months the other day. It turns out I bumped the siggy's af switch off. Glad I still chimp it.

Paper spec didn't ruin me. I get cameras based on what I shoot. I shoot landscape. I shoot portraits. I shoot weddings. I shoot still life. I shoot in studio. I shoot on location. I shoot events. I shoot concerts.

Yeah, my mark 2 can get it done no problem. The main problem I have with my mark 2 is my landscapes (I've been to places where it the 'sealing' isn't enough compared to my old D300 i.e. I get dust in the sensor day 1 on my mk2). Also, my AF is not exactly how i want it to be. I have OOF shots i'd say 40% of the time, vs. 5-10% of the time on my D300.

So AF is VERY important to me. My bare eye cannot tell the difference if the pupils are in focus, or if the nose is in focus. Nikon I rarely have this issue, my mark 2, happens quite often. I use the joystick on the back of my mark 2 to select the AF point as well, so I don't have to recompose 'too far' (so that I minimize movement to miss focus)

So 2 things I want: better AF, and better sealing (at least as good as Nikons). If the 7D is as good, then great! Maybe this is the next camera I should be looking at. but @ $3,500, nikon has ALL of this, and more... $500 less. I've switched systems before, so I can switch again.

 

[mmntech]

Speaking from a video standpoint, the 5D series takes better video than a lot of dedicated camcorders costing twice as much. Wonder if they improved CMOS cooling and removed the file size limits.

 

[jszklany]

If you haven't tried out Magic Lantern's firmware for the 5D II i would highly recommend it. Changed everything for me.

 

[RobDickinson]

lol at nikon always building better cameras. Until the D3 nikon didnt even make a full frame sensor.

5D3 is looking a great camera apart from the price. For me if I was buying new with no lenses I would be looking at the D800.

But I think I will keep my 7D and buy a 5d2 and install magic lantern.

 

[finbarqs]

build quality and sensor size not the same as "building better cameras". Nikons are better sealed than anything that canon makes but the 1 series cameras. That's what I meant by "better built quality". Not sensor size. D300 > 40D in terms of camera and build quality. D700 > 5D or 5D 2 in build quality. (as a result, it's better sealed)

 

[Koing]

The price is kind of irrelevant...people who tend to buy these cameras will generally upgrade from a lower model anyway. They won't be switching from one brand to another and have to rebuy all of their lenses again.

The AF was along time coming on the 5D.

Koing

 

[Anubis]

lol at nikon always building better cameras. Until the D3 nikon didnt even make a full frame sensor.

.

as finbarqs said "build quality" has nothing to with the size of the sensor, it is one area where many agree Nikon flat out wins

 

[CptObvious]

I thought Canon lost it with the price of the new 24-70 II, 24 2.8 IS and 28 2.8 IS. This just confirms it. It's not just the price of the 5D3, it's the insane pricing on the new grip, flash and transmitter. Maybe they smoked the same stuff as the Sigma SD-1 and Fuji X-Pro 1 guys.

Nikon deserves to take the market share crown. Not that they're guiltless of overcharging (made in China 85 1.8 is $500) but they were in tune with the D800. I only wish there was another lower-cost non-Japanese player in the game (Samsung?) to provide real competition.

 

[iGas]

Canon 5D Mark III Hands-on First Impression

The video shown the 5D mkIII high ISO noise reduction is extremely good, that well out class its older sibling 5D mkII.

 

[jpeyton]

I thought Canon lost it with the price of the new 24-70 II, 24 2.8 IS and 28 2.8 IS. This just confirms it. It's not just the price of the 5D3, it's the insane pricing on the new grip, flash and transmitter. Maybe they smoked the same stuff as the Sigma SD-1 and Fuji X-Pro 1 guys.

Nikon deserves to take the market share crown. Not that they're guiltless of overcharging (made in China 85 1.8 is $500) but they were in tune with the D800. I only wish there was another lower-cost non-Japanese player in the game (Samsung?) to provide real competition.

Sony is the only other possible competitor if they release a successor to the A900. They already have the sensor (since they supply them for Nikon), high-quality glass (Zeiss) and the A900 was a very competent camera body.

Their only big weakness in the professional market is image processing. They haven't found the balance between detail and noise reduction. Comparing the D3X and the A900 (which share the same size/resolution full-frame sensor), Nikon was able to pull a LOT more detail with noticeably less noise than Sony (unfortunately they charged over double the A900's street price for the D3X).

 

[arrfep]

After thinking (and some drinking), I've come to have a different point of view re: the pricing on the 5D3. While I feel like everyone says this with every new iteration of a flagship DSLR that's released, I genuinely think that the 5D3 could be the last camera that a serious photographer would ever need to buy. 5DII reached what many consider to be the resolution sweet spot. 22 MP is an insane amount of image information...even a quarter of that frame could harvest publishable images. But it lacked in the speed department.

New 5D has pro-level AF as well as competitive frame rates. High ISO is (if we believe the marketing) going to be among the best in the industry. Where do we go from here? What will anyone ever need from a camera besides what this model is offering? Pro sports 'togs will want 12 fps, but, for the most part, every other demographic of shooter should be sucking at Canon's teat for this body (assuming it lives up to the hype). Landscape, low-light, fast-action, weddings or portraits or children or battlefields...what can a new camera possibly bring? The digital photography world is, like the computer world, reaching the point of diminishing returns. It seems like it may be ever more important for Canon to maximize profits on every newly released body...because every subsequent release will attract less buyers.

Of course, like any industry, there will still be plenty of people buying the latest and greatest. But I can honestly say that if I bought the 5D3...there's nothing more I'd ever want in a camera.

Except for pro-level weathersealing. Dammit Canon!!

PS. All the above pretty much applies to the D800 as well.

 

[finbarqs]

D800 HAS pro-level weathersealing. Had it since the D200, D300... possibly even the D100...

 

[foghorn67]

D800 HAS pro-level weathersealing. Had it since the D200, D300... possibly even the D100...

I'm going to tell you something about weather sealing you may not want to know.

There is a reason they make showercaps for pro cameras. Yes, despite the weather sealing, there is a market for them.

Ask FBB why that is. If I take a 1D out of the pool, my plastic cover still goes over it anything more than a drizzle.

 

[foghorn67]

Paper spec didn't ruin me. I get cameras based on what I shoot. I shoot landscape. I shoot portraits. I shoot weddings. I shoot still life. I shoot in studio. I shoot on location. I shoot events. I shoot concerts.

Yeah, my mark 2 can get it done no problem. The main problem I have with my mark 2 is my landscapes (I've been to places where it the 'sealing' isn't enough compared to my old D300 i.e. I get dust in the sensor day 1 on my mk2). Also, my AF is not exactly how i want it to be. I have OOF shots i'd say 40% of the time, vs. 5-10% of the time on my D300.

So AF is VERY important to me. My bare eye cannot tell the difference if the pupils are in focus, or if the nose is in focus. Nikon I rarely have this issue, my mark 2, happens quite often. I use the joystick on the back of my mark 2 to select the AF point as well, so I don't have to recompose 'too far' (so that I minimize movement to miss focus)

So 2 things I want: better AF, and better sealing (at least as good as Nikons). If the 7D is as good, then great! Maybe this is the next camera I should be looking at. but @ $3,500, nikon has ALL of this, and more... $500 less. I've switched systems before, so I can switch again.

5-10% is still a ton. What exactly is the type that goes OOF?

 

[jpeyton]

There is a reason they make showercaps for pro cameras.

And that reason is: people like to baby their gear.

Professional camera gear (for example, a D700+70-200VRII) does not need a shower cap to function in the rain if you have common sense.

By common sense, I mean not exposing electrical ports/sockets/slots or breaking the camera body/lens seal while under direct rain.

 

[ElFenix]

D800 HAS pro-level weathersealing. Had it since the D200, D300... possibly even the D100...

D800 is a separate line from the D100, 200, 300...

 

[Cattykit]

with the comparison, The nikon seems to be the better deal. The only thing the canon has on TOP of nikon is the higher ISO range, and the higher resolution LCD. It seems that Nikon has Canon's Video beat with AF during video, uncompressed HDMI footage, and more 720p framerates. Also, better weather sealing (i'm certain) than the III. More AF points (51 vs. 61), but nikon has that awesome metering system as well.

Nikon has always had better built cameras, unless you're comparing to the 1 series... then the D4 is comparable...

But the question remains... what makes this camera $500 MORE than nikon's?

Although AF during video sounds good, it's the feature you'd want to avoid since it produces nasty video: AF hit and miss, flickering AF micro adjustment with lens breathing.

The biggest difference is that new Nikons still suffers from line-skipping issues (moire,false color, aliasing, and lack of detail) whereas new Canons do not. That makes huge difference.

If new 1dx and 5d mk3 got rid of line-skipping completely, we can also expect superior detail and much reduced noise along with not facing issues that are mentioned above. If it's done by processing, we can still expect the same thing although said improvement wouldn't be as dramatic.

http://www.eoshd.com/content/7311/canon-5d-mark-iii-vs-nikon-d800-for-video

 

[finbarqs]

5-10% is still a ton. What exactly is the type that goes OOF?

mainly portraits, where it really really matters (to me at least) I can't have a nose in focus, or an earring... I need the pupils to be perfectly in focus!

 

[finbarqs]

Although AF during video sounds good, it's the feature you'd want to avoid since it produces nasty video: AF hit and miss, flickering AF micro adjustment with lens breathing.

The biggest difference is that new Nikons still suffers from line-skipping issues (moire,false color, aliasing, and lack of detail) whereas new Canons do not. That makes huge difference.

If new 1dx and 5d mk3 got rid of line-skipping completely, we can also expect superior detail and much reduced noise along with not facing issues that are mentioned above. If it's done by processing, we can still expect the same thing although said improvement wouldn't be as dramatic.

http://www.eoshd.com/content/7311/canon-5d-mark-iii-vs-nikon-d800-for-video

reading vincent laforet's blog, eosHD says that he changed his mind... According to Vincent's blog, he's utterly disappointed with 5D Mark 3, and is definitely gonna skip it. Of course, he's shooting now with the C300 (his move to motion) so his need for another DSLR that does video is irrelevant. Though in the comments, he did say that he wishes to do a side by side comparison with the D800 and the 5D Mark 3, but his contract with canon forbids him to do so!

 

[Cattykit]

reading vincent laforet's blog, eosHD says that he changed his mind... According to Vincent's blog, he's utterly disappointed with 5D Mark 3, and is definitely gonna skip it. Of course, he's shooting now with the C300 (his move to motion) so his need for another DSLR that does video is irrelevant. Though in the comments, he did say that he wishes to do a side by side comparison with the D800 and the 5D Mark 3, but his contract with canon forbids him to do so!

Where does he say he changed his mind? In his blog and Twitter, he's still highly praising 5dmk3 to the point he's sounding silly. Vincent is "utterly disappointed"?

Here's what he says: "A bit underwhelming for some? Sure. But this now becomes the camera of choice for HDSLR videography in my book – this is still one of the largest sensors in the world with incredible color – and now one of the best performing low light sensors in the world as well – it’s important not to lose sight of that fact."

As you've mentioned, of course, he can skip 5d mk3 and wait for that "EOS Concept camera" since he's got $16000 C300. I'd do the same if I were in his situation. But, if it's a choice between D800 and 5dmk3, it's clearly 5dmk3.

 

[elitejp]

I dont know how it can be clearly anything right now. We still need to wait a while for some more pics to come out and have some good 3rd party reviews. In my book both these cameras have the potential to be seriously awesome.

 

[finbarqs]

I'm sorry, but I just read through the blog again, and he mentioned what you've said above in one sentence. I did NOT get the impression anywhere to the point where it sounded "silly" in high praise.

"If anything- this will be a great opportunity to pick up a 5D MKII for a much more affordable price now that its big brother is out. " -- doesn't sound like a huge praise to the mark 3 to me, but a more "practical" approach in the fact that "get the mark 2, it's still in the game". When the Mark 2 came out, yeah. He sounded silly.

Vincent NEVER 100% personally sided with Canon. In fact, he said (when someone asked about Magic Lantern and about the D800 Video):

"Thank you for your thoughts. What’s your take on the Magic Lantern hacks, especially the new one coming out that will give the 5D MKII full uncompressed HD out? If it works well, I’m most likely just sticking with the MKII.

Also, how does the MKIII compare to the D800? I’d love to see your side-by-side review. Thanks again.

D

Reply

Vincent Laforet Reply:
March 1st, 2012 at 10:40 pm

Always afraid of using hacks… never have…. would love to do a side by side w D800 but can’t due to contract w/ Canon "

Once again, didn't claim Canon's Superiority.

Then he mentions WHY he doesn't shoot a sequel to Reverie (This doesn't claim that he's disappointed with it -- but it doesn't have him singing praises of the Mark 3)

"I obviously didn’t choose to thrown my hat into the ring in the quest to shoot a sequel to Reverie for the launch of this camera - and that is due to four main reasons:

1. I find it foolish to mess with a good thing…

2. The specs on this camera don’t necessarily warrant it.

3. No clean HDMI out… why…why…why? (not!?)"

I'm pulling direct QUOTES from his blog. (as I saw you were too).

From your quote, it sounds as if he was talking down the Mark 3 so much that he needed to "recover it" and praise it somehow.

 

[Kaido]

and the $500 grip makes for a $4k setup...

Well anything on today's market made out of unicorn horns fetches prices in that bracket. Tight margins, you know

 

[foghorn67]

mainly portraits, where it really really matters (to me at least) I can't have a nose in focus, or an earring... I need the pupils to be perfectly in focus!

I've never heard of that keeper loss with a pro AF with anything really.