The Canon 5D Mark III is here…

The long awaited Canon 5D Mark III is here.  Am I going to rush out and buy one?  No.  How does it compare to the 5D Mark II sitting in my bag, well, calling it the 5D Mark II.5 would be more apt.  It has a 22MB Full Frame Sensor compared to the Mark II’s 21MB and shoots 6 frames per second compared to 3.9 do to the new DIGIC 5+ processor (upgraded from the DIGIC 4).  It brings a few things from the 1D X like the 61 point AF system and the 63 zone iFCL metering system which is a big improvement over the Mark II.  Another nice, new feature is the In Camera HDR.  Multiple shots with bracketing and the camera stitches together a nicely balanced image for you while keeping the originals so you can manually do it later if you like.

Overall the Mark III is more of a 7D upgrade to a Full Frame Sensor.  Take a peak at DPReview’s Preview of the camera for all of the details.  The big kicker however is the price tag at $3,499.00.  Seeing that the Mark II came out at $2,699.00 this is a big leap in my opinion, with not much of a reward.  But judge for yourself.  It’s got better noise reduction and a higher ISO, better water resistance and a lighter, more fluid feel.  But this camera has to be the right one for you to make the investment.  Maybe I’m casting too harsh a judgement too early.  I’ll wait until I can put my hands on it and take a few shots to see if it truly is worth the upgrade, but in the mean time, and unlike the Mark II, my name is staying off of the Pre Order list.

The Canon 5D Mark III is here…

The long awaited Canon 5D Mark III is here.  Am I going to rush out and buy one?  No.  How does it compare to the 5D Mark II sitting in my bag, well, calling it the 5D Mark II.5 would be more apt.  It has a 22MB Full Frame Sensor compared to the Mark II’s 21MB and shoots 6 frames per second compared to 3.9 do to the new DIGIC 5+ processor (upgraded from the DIGIC 4).  It brings a few things from the 1D X like the 61 point AF system and the 63 zone iFCL metering system which is a big improvement over the Mark II.  Another nice, new feature is the In Camera HDR.  Multiple shots with bracketing and the camera stitches together a nicely balanced image for you while keeping the originals so you can manually do it later if you like.

Overall the Mark III is more of a 7D upgrade to a Full Frame Sensor.  Take a peak at DPReview’s Preview of the camera for all of the details.  The big kicker however is the price tag at $3,499.00.  Seeing that the Mark II came out at $2,699.00 this is a big leap in my opinion, with not much of a reward.  But judge for yourself.  It’s got better noise reduction and a higher ISO, better water resistance and a lighter, more fluid feel.  But this camera has to be the right one for you to make the investment.  Maybe I’m casting too harsh a judgement too early.  I’ll wait until I can put my hands on it and take a few shots to see if it truly is worth the upgrade, but in the mean time, and unlike the Mark II, my name is staying off of the Pre Order list.