Help Canon 5D owner wannabe

The 5d is so cheap at the moment. You guys in the US can get it for under 2500...... I just bought mine last month for 3200aud. It might go lower, but it won't be much at all.

The 5d is so close to the d3 in noise performance it isn't funny. Preliminary reports suggest the 5d may have better image quality at low ISOs. considering it's 3-4 years old, thats pretty incredible. Focussing is excellent - no problems there. Even compared to my 1d, its still very good.

The camera is solid as hell and so easy to use - just buy a couple of cheaper primes for it and you'll love it. Full frame sensor marks a massive advantage over the crop sensor.

Lastly, think about this - when the new 5d comes out, is the current one going to take worse pictures? Comparing the 5d to the new 1d's, which aren't really improved with IQ, I don't think the next one will be all that much better - it's already at the pointy end of the scale. The new one will be more expensive as well.
 
I know many people speak highly of the 17-40 and yes I own one but I cannot recommend it. Mine is easily outperformed by the wimpiest of m42 lenses attached to the camera with a adapter. When shooting film I never noticed, but when shooting on a 5D every fault of the lens is brought into dreadful detail especially is lack of resistance to flare, its hard core contrast edge issues and its overall total lack of sharpness. I thought this might be sample variation but my friend has one too and can report the same problems, especially flare which on this lens is simply horrible.

Also I have had a poor experience with canon's 50 1.8 lens as it reproduces colors in a very poor way, also the build is so awful that it makes me cringe. I have the 50 1.4 and while its colors are first rate and its more solid, its still built like crap. I think I have been spoiled by the likes of Zeiss, Voigtlander and Leica, but really, you need to go handle these things before you buy.

One more gripe, my friend bought a 400D, what a pain in the neck to use after coming from dual wheel controls...

I highly recommend a 5D if you are willing to spend the big bucks for the right glass in front of it, but if you want to lay off the money a bit I would also highly recommend the 40D and the proper ef-s glass such as the 10-22 and 17-55. The 70-200's in canon line are also all great, dont snuff IS too fast though, its a life saver, I would never contemplate buying a lens longer then 80mm that didnt have it simply because it can save you more times then not when you are working for real, many of my best photos were taken with a canon 70-200 2.8 IS and even though its a heavy guy its worth its weight in gold. Frankly I think a good place to start is the 40D and the 17-55 2.8. Speed is important even if you dont think you will use it.

Now most people dont work in the conditions I do where taking gear to certain extremes comes into play, but you can rely on these things out there and thats what its all about.
 
Avotius said:
I know many people speak highly of the 17-40 and yes I own one but I cannot recommend it. Mine is easily outperformed by the wimpiest of m42 lenses attached to the camera with a adapter. When shooting film I never noticed, but when shooting on a 5D every fault of the lens is brought into dreadful detail especially is lack of resistance to flare, its hard core contrast edge issues and its overall total lack of sharpness. I thought this might be sample variation but my friend has one too and can report the same problems, especially flare which on this lens is simply horrible.

Also I have had a poor experience with canon's 50 1.8 lens as it reproduces colors in a very poor way, also the build is so awful that it makes me cringe. I have the 50 1.4 and while its colors are first rate and its more solid, its still built like crap. I think I have been spoiled by the likes of Zeiss, Voigtlander and Leica, but really, you need to go handle these things before you buy.

One more gripe, my friend bought a 400D, what a pain in the neck to use after coming from dual wheel controls...

I highly recommend a 5D if you are willing to spend the big bucks for the right glass in front of it, but if you want to lay off the money a bit I would also highly recommend the 40D and the proper ef-s glass such as the 10-22 and 17-55. The 70-200's in canon line are also all great, dont snuff IS too fast though, its a life saver, I would never contemplate buying a lens longer then 80mm that didnt have it simply because it can save you more times then not when you are working for real, many of my best photos were taken with a canon 70-200 2.8 IS and even though its a heavy guy its worth its weight in gold. Frankly I think a good place to start is the 40D and the 17-55 2.8. Speed is important even if you dont think you will use it.

Now most people dont work in the conditions I do where taking gear to certain extremes comes into play, but you can rely on these things out there and thats what its all about.
Click to expand...

Colin, very strange that you mention those problems with your 17-40 f4L..... I have one as well, bought new from Canon Australia and it has none of the aforementioned problems. No, it isn't the sharpest in the corners - I tested it against my superb zuiko OM 28 f3.5 and though the L was slightly better in the center, the OM was a bit better in the corners. Despite this, I find it to be excellent for such a zoom, and the overall sharpness I would rate to be excellent. The most interesting thing for me is that you mention yours flares a bit - I have found mine to be almost completely resistant to flare. I can point the lens almost directly at the sun, or have it appear in one of the diagonal corners, and the most I can get out of it is a tiny little internal reflection in the opposite corner of the frame. And I mean tiny. No loss of contrast or anything though.

With the 50 1.8, you have to remember the us price of one brand new is about $80, and for that price, the optics are unbeatable. Once again I'm not sure whats up with yours, because mine is almost exactly the same in optical quality as a 50 1.4, except for slightly worse bokeh.
 
I just recieved an excellent example of the famous Zeiss 28 f/2.8 Distagon for less than $300, for effective 45mm on my 400D. If one had a FF Canon or 5D, how much wider than 28mm do you need?

You can optimize the long lenses with 1.6X crop cameras, and optimize the short lenses with the Full Frame cameras.
 
Just my .02 cents....


How about this.. Get a rebel xt, 70-200mm F/4, 50mm f1.8, and you'll still be under 1.5k... You can get the kit lens for the remaining balance but I think that lens is the "dog" lens you are trying to avoid.

Maybe some fast primes? 24mm f/2.8? 28mmf/2.8? will probably push you over the budget but will be worth it.. Alternatively, I think there are some sigma lenses that are pretty decent but again it might throw your budget.

Ultimately, stay away from the EF-S lenses. ONly because I believe FF will be more affordable in the future and you'll be able to get the 5D for under a 1.5K. If you plan on getting and keeping the 40D for a long time then please ignore.

I am a cheapo and this is pretty much where I am at.
 
Here is a question: Due to a possible move away from Lake Michigan up to Canada (Saskatchewan), I might sell all my SCUBA gear and have some spending money for a camera. My dream camera has been a Canon 5d.

I currently own a Contax SLR with 3 Zeiss lenses: 35/2.8, 50/1.7 and 85/2.8. I am happy using film and have a Minolta Scan Elite film scanner (2820 optical dpi). Would I really gain anything by getting a Canon 5d and using my Zeiss lenses on it vs. just using what I have?

I guess I mean it this way: what advantage would I have in using my lenses with a 5d over against film and a scanner?

(BTW - I am not a professional, do not publish anything, but just enjoy the art of Photography for myself. I rarely print above 8x10, but am willing to do so for that elusive special shot I want to hang on the wall. )
 
I can share you some of my experience with the system.
Body: I didn't use the 40D. I had an 20D before switching to 5D. I would never go back on a crop sensor. Is not only the full frame but the pixel count is near perfect. Even the fact that Nikon after two years comes with the same amount of pixels like 5d with their new D3 is a sign that this is a perfect number. And 12 is a perfect number anyway.
After using the 5D my impression is that it has less of the impersonal impression given by digitalization.
Lens:
What I have:
Sigma 20mm f1.8 (less used since I don't realy like wide-angle)
50mm f1.4 (superb lens): my workhorse
135mm f2: best glass i used in SLR world. High grademtf also. Very sharp and aberation free. Suited for portraits.
I was using almost all the possible lenses on the systems but I settled for primes.
If I have to recomand a lens kit for 5D in 1500USD margin I would consider:
Sigma 30mm f1.4
Canon 50mm f1.8 best for buck
Canon 135 f2 if you make portraits also
It would add up to 1400USD on BH.
With this kit I can do watherver I want.

If you wanna check up what 50mm and 135mm would look on 5D you can check my gallery here: http://www.stefandinu.ro
All the pictures there are made with this combo.
 
megapixels

megapixels

Just make sure your "D" camera is equipped with megapixels from the mine in south Australia. Some of the lower end cameras are loaded with megapixels from the Siberian mine. They are of much lower quality.
 
stefan_dinu said:
If I have to recomand a lens kit for 5D in 1500USD margin I would consider:
Sigma 30mm f1.4
Click to expand...

The Sigma 30mm 1.4 cannot be used with larger than APS-C sized digital sensor. So it will NOT work with the full frame 5D, nor the 1D series cameras (both the 1.3x and full frame bodies).
 
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