The
Canon EOS 5D Mark II (abbreviated to 5D2) is one of the most anticipated digital SLR cameras for a long time. It is the successor to Canon's famous EOS 5D which was the first "affordable" Full Frame Sensor DSLR (with FOV equivalent to a 35mm SLR).
The Canon 5D was/is legendary for its exceptional image quality, particularly its high ISO performance, its colour rendition, and the "3 dimensional look" (probably because its full frame sensor allows subjects to pop out more due to the lower depth of field inherent to files from a full frame camera versus a 1.6X ASP-C DSLR) that so many users allude to.
However, at the time of the 5D2's announcement, the 5D had become somewhat of a veteran in the DSLR arena. In DSLR terms, it was a Dinosaur as it was first announced and released back in 2005. It was still used because of its spectacular class (and arguably small format DSLR industry) leading Image Quality, but its features and functionality was very obsolete. In fact, the many cheaper, consumer model cameras were more advanced in the features and functionality department.
We all hope that the 5D2 is able to live up to the 5D name. First impressions are that it will, however, a lot of the samples floating around the internet seem to suffer from heavy Noise Reduction so it is hard to assess its Image Quality just yet. Canon indicates that this camera will have their best high ISO performance to date, but we all remember the infamous claims they made about the Canon EOS 50D being a stop better than the Canon EOS 40D (which was not true for RAW images at the pixel level, and arguable at the image level).
The 5D2 was first announced back in September, and has now started appearing on shelves in China. It has not yet been released in Australia or the United States or the U.K. yet, and the rest of the world outside of China is eagerly awaiting the camera. Word on the street is that JB HiFi is currently leading the price stakes by taking orders at $3800 AUD, which isn't bad given the low value of the AUD at the moment. Up until a few weeks ago, the 5D was selling at a clearance price of $2400 at some of the major stores, and whilst I was tempted to buy one I really wanted a Camera with AF Microadjust and decided to save up for the 5D2.
UPDATE: As of the 28th, the limited 5D2 stock is available in Melbourne at JB HiFi (though only those who preordered can get them)When will I get one? Well given my financial situation, I probably won't be able to afford one till it becomes obsolete :) I am fervently saving up my money to acquire one, however I will wait for the first user reports first before I purchase this camera. Recent Canon cameras have had a lot of teething problems (1D3 - AF; 50D - constant Err 99; 1Ds3 Viewfinder Alignment) so it's probably not worth being an early adopter, especially for the financially impaired (like myself)
A few weeks ago I went to the 5D2 launch at Michael's in Melbourne where I got to use the camera (but unfortunately could not keep any of the photos from it so I don't have any sample shots.) The Camera was very nice and slick to use, but I tell you what, I then picked up a Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III to try, and this older camera (with crappier LCD screen and no video or other advanced features of the 5D2) which is twice the price of the Canon 5D2 was intoxicatingly special. I could never afford it though, so I try to keep it out of my mind :)
Here's some photos of the event. Canon Australia was kind enough to bring the only two 5D2's in the country at the time, as well as some CPS (Canon Professional Services) Loaner Lenses which I noted had been scratched and roughed up from use by Pros:
^I took this photo surreptiously with my 40D and EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM
^The only two 5D2's in the country at the time
^That's the 800mm f/5.6L IS USM, which costs about as much as a small car
^And here's few more random shots
^ That's the 5D2 and EF 200mm f/2L IS USM (over $11,000 worth of gear in my hands right there). They aren't mine so don't try and rob me :) Photo credits: Daniel Yong
Assuming everything is ok, I really want to buy one though for several reasons:
1. AF MicroadjustThis feature is the reason I didn't purchase a 5D when they were being cleared out by the camera stores at the ridiculously low price of $2400 or so (they sold for $4000 or so when they first came out). Taking my cameras and lenses for calibration has frustrated me to no end, not because of the service quality, but because of the time it takes. Canon Melbourne is constantly overworked, and as a photographer, I simply never seem to have the 2 or 3 weeks gap it takes to get a camera or lens calibrated. This feature will be a godsend for me. AF calibration is very important especially for the fast primes I use which really expose the inaccuracies of the Canon AF system. Yes all of Canon's recent cameras (except the Consumer models) can do this but read on...
2. HD VideoA lot of photography purists will scoff at the idea of Video in a DSLR, with comments such as "It's a camera not a video camera". Well, sometimes I want Video, and the 5DII offers 1080p full HD video recording. Yes, there is a FAT32 file size limitation of 4GB. Yes, the audio quality likely sucks without an external mic (which can be attached). Yes, you would likely need thousands in dollars of stabilisation equipment and lighting equipment to get the best out of it. I still want it :)
Just watch Vincent LaForet's video to see what this camera is capable of: http://www.vincentlaforet.com/
Let's not delude ourselves, you can't just pick up a 5D2 and do what Vincent LaForet has done. LaForet is an extremely able and experienced photographer (Joint Pulitzer Prize Winner), and has very expensive gear, but this does show you the potential of the 5DII, even if we aren't able to extract that potential ourselves.
and most importantly...
3. 21.1 Megapixels Full Frame Sensor Ok 21.1 Megapixels is a bit overkill most of the times, only because the file sizes are crazy huge and will take up a lot of hard drive space. I never delete ANY of my photos, and keep multiple backups, so this is especially problematic for me. But I can always lower the resolution when its not needed. Many users will complain about how dense the sensor is and how this is likely to be a detriment to Image Quality due to the increased noise that will likely be evident at the pixel level, but we'll have to wait and see on this one as conclusive tests have not been done yet. Many "special" early users have reported that it is very clean at high ISOs but all samples posted seem to suffer from excessive Noise Reduction which makes the images seem "watercolour" like, so no concrete conclusions can be drawn yet.
Most importantly though, beyond the megapixels, is the Full Frame Sensor. I have a lot of fast prime lenses (EF 35mm f/1.4L USM, EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM) which are crying out for a Full Frame Sensor to extract their maximum potential.
What don't I like about it? Canon has copped a lot of criticism from not just myself but many others for their choice of upgrades. They were happy to upgrade the resolution of the 5D from 12.8 megapixels to 21.1 megapixels on the 5D2 (which not many people complained about)
Dislike 1. Autofocus (AF) SystemHello? Canon? Is anyone home? For some insane reason, Canon decided to retain the AF hardware of the old 5D. Software may be improved, so it could be better than the old 5D system, but the hardware has not changed so no one is expecting any great improvement. The old 5D's Cross Type Centre AF point is decent, but the outer points are unusable. This was one of the biggest complaints about the 5D so you can imagine the anger elicited when one of Canon's top executives proclaimed:
"...the market's evaluation of the 5D's AF system has been very positive; there have been no complaints from users, with everyone saying it's very good. Given that, to a certain extent, we think we shouldn't change it." Source: DPReview.comUm...no.
The executive goes one to make a more sensible argument about the size constraints in the 5D series compact body, but many users point out that D700 and 40D/50D are able to fit in far superior AF system hardware.
Another problem with the 5D series AF hardware is the fact that the outer points are so close to the centre point that the outer points are pretty much still in the centre anyway, making their uselessness not as large an issue. Note that last phrase in the previous sentence was supposed to be in a tone saturated with sarcasm...
Canon should have increased the spread of the AF points within the frame, so that a wider area is covered, and they should have made the outer AF points Cross Type. Adding in more AF points wouldn't hurt either.
Dislike 2. No Dual Memory Card SlotsGiven how ubiquitous the 5D is amongst Wedding Photographers and other professionals, dual memory cards would be a godsend for backup purposes and data security. To be fair, Nikon's D700 (competitor to the 5D) doesn't have two card slots either, and there is hardly any space in the 5D2 compact body to begin with so this could have been a physical constraint rather than Canon choosing to spite us, but even a tiny backup SD card slot would have been a godsend for almost every wedding photographer out there. CF Card Failures are extremely rare but do happen, and a second card slot would have been awesome for safety. We Photographers will unfortunately just have to use other ways to mitigate risk.
It is disappointing that Canon chose to upgrade features that noone really asked for, but neglected to upgrade features that everyone was crying out for. Who knows why. Some people speculate that perhaps the marketing department (I think this overstates the influence of Marketing departments in companies though), whilst others speculate the AF and Dual Cards omission is to separate the 5D2 from the higher end 1 series cameras (Canon EOS 1D Mark III and Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III). I think the second reason is a more likely explanation, but this doesn't make it any less disappointing. Nikon puts pro AF in its D700 camera (competitor to the Canon 5D series), but it's still selling plenty of D3's (competitor to the Canon 1D series).
All in all though, I'm excited to see what this Camera can bring. It shouldn't be too long now till the Message Boards are flooded with User Opinions and the Comprehensive Reviews from the Review sites start flooding in.
If only my Bank account is also able to follow suit...
