Cowpix,

I just finished field testing the new Canon EOS 5D and will be sending my report to Shutterbug in a few days. Very hard to find anything not to like about it from any perspective, particularly the results obtained. And one of the nicest camera to work with yet.

David,

You know by now I am a film guy, but I am open to thought here. How well Built is the 5D? When I held the new 20D Canon I felt it was not made very good. You know that is a lot of money to spend if you always have to worry about them. The other thing What lens works best with the 5D? The camera is 3200 How much would you have to spend to get a good lens? I feel the New Canon is a step in the right direction I just wonder if it is worth the money it cost. After all in a year like computers it will be replaced with something different. It is hard to change my thinking even though the world is changing around me. Monte Johnson.

Monte,

Really, you can tell by just holding a camera how effective the engineering and workmanship is? I'd like to know what your secret powers are, it would make my job a lot easier.

Depending on the kind of photography someone is engaged in what a "good" lens is, it is what will get the job done. It may be one lens, but more likely unless a photographer is a one-trick pony, it will be several lenses. I happen to have six lenses I use with Canon cameras, and I think many if not most who will be in the market for this camera may very well be similarly equipped - lenses last a long time and evolve slowly - the normal 50mm Canon EF I have came with the first EOS 620, I believe that was about 20 years ago.

The Canon 5D after working with it for about 3 weeks now is worth every penny for any photographer skilled enough to make it pay off. It is designed and built to be a workhorse production camera, so the value is in what use you put it to. It is more than capable of doing all the many different kinds of photographs I produce and have had published over the last 40 years, which by the way now amounts to quite a few thousand images.

As to artificial obsolescence it is an old game well known to Henry Ford when he was first mass-producing cars. Some people have to have the latest model new every year, but no one is holding anyone hostage to that. When I was parked at the Post Office today someone parked a 1951 Dodge next to me. It got its driver to the Post Office and back as did my much newer car.

Monte, this is a very fast changing world. You have the choice of staying on the sidelines and watching it go by. But if you want to participate you have to jump on the merry-go-round and choose a horse to ride. As far as I am concerned this new Canon 5D is the best horse there is at the moment and I am sure it will provide a very good, long ride for the ticket price. If you don't like the merry-go-round, carping about it will not make it stop or even slow it down.

David,

You know until this camera came along I just was not interested, but I must say it has my interest. I love my Fuji, but I always look ahead. I do respect your views because you have paid your dues. Bottom line I will not rule this one out. Monte Johnson.

Hi David,

I'm a long time Contax 35mm user. I bought a Canon 20D about 6 months ago. I've found it to be a very capable camera but I find the focusing screen/viewfinder not as nice as what I am used to in the Contax manual focus cameras (which admittedly had some of the best viewfinders in my opinion). I'm not sure if it has to do with the smaller sensor size or not. How is the viewfinder image of the 5D compared with that of the 20D? Is the high ISO performance (noise level) comparable to the 20D or perhaps better? Thanks. I look forward to reading your full review.

Jason

Jason,

The one thing I noticed immediately when I began using the Canon EOS 5D is that the viewfinder is "brighter and clearer" than either the two Digital Rebel or the 20D, all of which I have used recently. The EOS 5D is much more like the recent professional Canon 35mm SLR camera bodies as far as viewfinder performance is concerned.

The Canon 5D has a built-in noise filter which will automatically function when long shutter speeds are used, and can also be set manually through Custom Functions. In addition the pixel sensor size of the 5D is fairly large at 8.2 microns, so its light gathering capability is good, and this of course advantages the use of higher ISO settings without producing noise. I did not encounter any pixel noise in the test images I made including some very long exposure made in a naturally lit interior.

I love mine! I shoot everything from weddings to hard core fetish and well, no complaints..

www.pbase.com/mackey

David:

When will your review appear in Shutterbug?

Popular Photography reviewed it in their current issue and everything said was very positive. In fact, they rated it as "digital camera of the year".

Robin,

It will be awhile yet, a monthly magazine takes awhile to get through production and printing. I wonder what Pop's review was based on, considering when the first production 5D's were available.

BTW, I have just about decided to buy one myself, if that tells you anything<S>.

Thanks David,

After reading your comments, I went and checked out the 5D myself. The viewfinder is a major improvement over the smaller viewfinder of the 20D. From what you've said it sounds like the low light performance is a bit better. This is corroborated by some reports on one website I found on the internet which indicate it is about 1 f stop better - ie the noise level on the 5D at ISO 800 is about what it is on the 20D at ISO 400. Last but not least, the sound of the shutter/mirror mechanism is much nicer to my ears than that of the 20D. I definitely want one! I'm going to hold off for a bit though hoping the prices will come down a bit after the camera has been out for about 6 months or so....

Jason

I just sent my order in to Canon for a 5D.

I'm sold. When buying on the internet from so many different photo stores, how do you know which ones are reputable? i've notices that the prices currently range from $2,600 to $3,600.

Buyer beware! There are a lot of shady people out there. A good source of information is: www.resellerratings.com
They rate very many retailers and you will find almost every photographic equipment reseller there, both the good and the bad.

Frans Waterlander
frans2001@netzero.net

I just received mine yeaterday. My only other DSLR is the XT so I don't have a lot to compare to. I immediatly put on my 28-200mm lens and snaped a few pictures at different ISO settings to look at the quality. All I can say is WOW! I am going to love this camera. I paid $3100.

Sam

I see this is an older post, but if you haven't decided and still need more info check out www.dpreview.com - They review the camera extensively and compare to similar models on the market. being fullframe digital though, it's a hard comparison considering it's one of the first at a lower price. Hope this helps.

enjoyed the 5D review, what I appreciated most was the tip about getting rid of noise along the edge of very bright areas with Photoshop's Noise Reduction. I have had that problem with 20D shots and tried various things to get rid of it but your solution knocks down the edges a great deal. Thanks.

Paul,

The green/magenta fringe at the outer edges of images caused by extreme wide angle lenses used with dSLR camera's apparently affects all brands and types of cameras I have encountered. And of all the various raw converts I've worked with none has provided an effective elimination of the color fringe artifact, yet current versions of Photoshop's Noise filter is effective (this includes Elements).

Hey, just an update... I work at Best Buy and we just got in a 5D to sell in the store! I have never seen such an expensive piece in the store, so this was pretty exciting! It was nice to get to pick it up and see it up close!

I also wasn't aware that it doesn't come with a flash... so basically, when you buy the camera, you have to get a flash and a lense to be able to really get into the camera.

Oh well though, lol, I still want one!

Kornel,

Interesting a consumer electronics store would stock a pretty high-end professional camera. But not having anything but the camera body is typical of pro-level cameras sold regardless of brand. It is assumed a pro will either already have lenses and flash, or will want to choose particular lenses and accessory equipment that is relative to the photography work expected, which may vary considerably between different kinds of professionals.

Monte,

I just got my new 5D in yesterday, so I haven't had a lot of time to play with it yet. However, it appears to be every bit as good as David's review says it is. I would certainly recommend you try one out if you can. This springtime, when I go wildflower hunting, I will be taking two 'weapons' - my Fuji GA645Zi, and the 5D.

I expect to use both of them fully, and if you go hunting with me you won't have to worry about it if you wind up in my line of fire

(Sorry to all you Dick Cheney fans out there - I just couldn't resist.)

-EdT.

David
I realize you do camera reviews, so I was wondering why you chose to buy a new 5D just before PMA show? Looking as canon

I like mine.

David,

From your remarks I wonder if you realize what the Digic processor does and what it applies to. It is in camera post capture processing to generate JPEG files. It does not have any relevance to saving in Raw format, which captures the data output from the A/D converter before it would go to the Digic chip and records it directly to the memory card. Also Digic does not come into play as far as ISO speed is concerned as that is a pre-exposure setup function.

David

Where are you getting your Info? I am quoting directly from Canon The digic processor not only handles jpg compression but also handles noise reduction algorithms. Please reference the following documents from canon.

http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=CanonAdvantageTopicDtlAct&fcategoryid=113&id=3264

http://www.canon.ca/digitalphotography/english/ctech_article.asp?id=208&tid=6

http://www.canon.com.sg/index.cfm?fuseaction=digitalcamera&prod_type=technology

[url=http://www.letsgodigital.org/en/news/articles/story_2585.html]

]http://www.letsgodigital.org/en/news/articles/story_2585.html[/url]

It also handles all the other camera functions such as auto focus and buffer control.

David,

I don't disagree at all. In fact when Canon sent out their detailed information describing the design achievements they made a point of the fact compared to previous full-frame camera design they were able to reduce the size and weight by using fewer control chips and combining some control functions on a single chip.

But your original post on this to me stated I should be concerned with image quality relative to the Digic II chip. And my response was that would only be the case if you use in-camera post exposure processing, which is ONE of the Digic II chip functions.

In that regard please read all of the digital camera documentation that defines what saving in Raw format involves, namely bypassing in-camera post exposure processing.

As far as I am concerned the post-exposure in-camera processing is the same as a snapshooter taking their film to a mini-lab for machine processing.

Raw format is provided as a means to give the photographer all of the data the sensor collects so the photographer can do the processing and control final image quality.

David
I realize that Raw format sends the information to the recording medium with no processing as far as white balance sharpness or saturation ect ect ect

Never get a new camera right before PMA. Get a used 5D or 1Ds immediately after Canon announces new camera(s), as prices of used gear always drops, and there is flurry of people unloading their old gear that now seems inferior - but is still very usable. I would look at a USED camera - a 5D (now $2600 used), or a 1Ds (now $2400-2500 used). These are prices in user forums, not eBarf.

Buying a new camera right before PMA is the biggest mistake you can make i.m.o. -- unless you have a killer assignment and you must have it. In that case, get a used 5D now

I have heard that RAWs are compressed, and one would think that there might be some NR applied to any signal coming from a potentially noisy sensor. After all, the processor handles the DSP, and includes NR. I dont think we ever see exactly what the sensor sees, even in RAW -- as it has been interpreted by the processor - and I dont think we would want to

Paul

David,

There is nothing of any significance to settle. However, if Canon Technical sees that there is an issue that needs clarification I would suggest you contact Chuck Westfall, and if he has the time to respond, you'll obtain the most accurate information that is available officially from Canon.