Hi to all you would be 5d mk 2 owners.
I am just back from Photokina, where I was one of the first through the door and onto the Canon stand to get my hot sweaty hands on the new 5d mk2.
What can I report? Well, firstly let me say that if you are reading this thread you have probably already read all the speck on the camera anyway. We all know it is 21MP and does HD video. has chip cleaning and has a wide ISO range.
I will leave other people to comment on those aspects of the camera as they will be reported on over the coming months in the minutest details by every photo site and magazine.
What I am hoping for here is what people really think of it, what it has, and what it doesn´t have. and what affect will it have in the 1ds mk3 spec and its pricing.
Firstly let me say the camera feels almost identical to the old 5d. Not a bad thing, and not a brilliant one either. The viewfinder looks almost the same as well. The focus system has ( at least as far as I could see) not been updated. That is not a good thing!
In as much as a 9 zone AF system with 4 assist points often struggles to lock focus on tricky subjects. The shutter on the other hand does feel completely different. When you fire the camera it is very balanced and makes a much softer click action. this may be due to the new secondary metering and focus mirror and the added dampening mechanism. Either way a big improvement on the old model, and good for at least 100,000 cycles.
As a landscape photographer I was very interested in a mirror lock, which is not located within the custom function menu. Now, I do not have an answer as to whether
they have relocated it or if it still resides in the CF menu, I do know that there is the option to have a mirror lock via the self timer but that is frankly of almost no interest to me. So if anyone out there knows if the mirror lock has been added to the function buttons, I would love to hear about it. I did ask the guys on the Canon desk, but no one could give me an answer.
Another niggle for me on the 5d was the CF card door, which I always found a bit light weight and could at the very least have done with a spring mount or an interlock to hold it closed. Well no change there I´m afraid. Also no ability to back up files with a second CF card like in the NIkon D3.
Now there may be many of you out ther like me who have read that the Canon 5D mk2 will write GPS data to the exif data. Well, after much asking about on the Canon stand, I managed to find someone who could give me some full info on that.
You need to get the WFT-E4 file transmitter grip that bolts on to the bottom of the camera and a GPSi hand set and connect the two via a USB lead.
Now, this would be okay if my GPS could communicate with the grip via an IR link or digital radio link, but USB! Do me a favor! this grip costs €1200,00 and it is the only way to connect to GPS, even though the camera already has a USB socket installed, it can´t be used, as it needs the WTF-E4 as an interface.
So my advice is to go with one of the third party systems, until Canon sorts this out.
They cost a fraction of this price and work just as well.
I have now said what I think is bad about this Camera, now I will say what I think is good, 21MP can not be ignored, and will be without doubt a real pisser for anyone who has coughed up €6500.00 for a 1DS MK3. Along with 50-25600 ASA with very little noise, Chip cleaning, dust recognition software, 3.9 FPS, and lets not forget HD video. All for €2400.00
For anyone who thought they would do the wait and see game on what Canon would come out with, you will not be disappointed. I know it is not perfect, and lets face it
what camera is? The D3 is nearly there, But no chip cleaner! what were they thinking? the 1DS mk3 The camera equivalent to Laura Croft but with a price tag that could be grounds for a divorce from your partner, I never saw it as a clear winner. But the 5d MK2 Looks like Pamela Anderson, (Well Specked) goes like a barn door in a hurricane and at €2400.00 even Lehman brothers could afford it.
So, an all round winner then? not quite, There is Sony bitting at its heals with the Alpha 900 which I have also seen, which handles very well, has a higher MP count and Zeiss T* Lenses. Okay not quite such a high spec as the Canon but a good machine never the less. Its biggest downfall is the Focus, I could not detect an improvement over the Minolta 7D focus system. Its slow and struggles to find focus on low contrast scenes. But apart from that a great camera.
But wait, there is one more shoe to drop, The Nikon D3x, Yes, that old chestnut.
If it appears this year and prices itself within €1000.00 of the Canon 5D Mk2 I think Canon will have a fight on their hands. If on the other hand they price closer to the 1DS mk3 price the 5D mk2 will have the market to itself, and for a very long time.
So as a verdict, will I be buying one? I will wait until November-December to see what Nikon do, and let the price settle down to about 20% off its launch price, And then if Nikon don´t react with something even better then Canon you will have another €2000.00 of my hard earned.
Keep the comments coming, chaps, and if anyone can tell me more about the mirror lock I would like to hear it.
Andy
