Comments on: Canon 5D Mark II, Take II

By: AFS

AFS — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 18:03:29 +0000

The current state, as far as I am concerned, is that Canon never really fixed the problem with dodgy AF on this camera. Nor did they even acknowledge it. It’s too bad, as there are many who do not trust the camera to focus correctly, when then clearly should be able to. It’s sad when a company this large can;t get the focus correct in this camera, nor some of their more expensive 1 series cameras. I also have the banding in shadows and hot pixels in one of my bodies. When directly comparing the 5D2 to my friends D700 I found that the 5D focuses faster in dim lighting, and the D700 is really not more accurate – just slower. I guess you could say that I look forward to the day when Canon makes a 5D-style camera with 7D style AF. (Though I am not sure the 7D is really more accurate. Anyone know?)

By: nws

nws — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 05:04:24 +0000

So, What’s the current state of 5D2 AF performance? I am interested to get 5D2, but it will be no use to get 21 mp if most of it are not in focus.
I saw the samples on the internet, they’re beautiful, although I found they have some banding in low iso….
Can you give us update about the current situation?

Will D700 focus better than 5D2? What I mean is AF in accuracy, because mostly I found AF Speed comparison between 5D2 and D700 but not about accuracy.

By: AFS

AFS — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 16:09:50 +0000

Errr, date fixed!

By: Nick-at-Nite

Nick-at-Nite — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 16:00:02 +0000

Great article — thanks!

BTW — you wrote above: “[This total was edited Jan 19, 2009]” Pretty sure that date hasn’t happened yet.

By: Miles H.

Miles H. — Sun, 11 Jan 2009 18:13:03 +0000

If you are doing your RAW conversion in ACR/Lightroom, try some of the other camera profiles. The default Adobe RGB profile for the 5Dmk2 is great for nature/landscape stuff but sucky for the fashion/people type photos you shoot.

By: FashionBoy

FashionBoy — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 03:53:05 +0000

Ron so far I have the 24-105L and the 50 1.4. I’m hoping to shoot some tests with the 50 1.2 and maybe the 85 1.2 next week.

Let us know your thoughts with the new firmware when you can.

Maybe the fluorine coating wasn’t such a good idea after all? Canon should know better than to mess with a good thing…

By: AFS

AFS — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 22:19:52 +0000

Out of curiosity Babar, which lenses are you using with it?
On a side note, I recently read about the 5D2’s new sensor self-cleaning unit that includes a fluorine coating on the low-pass filter for better dust resistance. Perhaps this is responsible for taking some of the life out of the images as compared to the 1Ds3.

By: FashionBoy

FashionBoy — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 21:44:17 +0000

I shot some initial tests with the new firmware last night. From what I can tell image quality does appear to have improved. So maybe whatever bug was causing the black dots was also degrading the image in a subtle way?

On the negative side I can still see some minor banding in the shadows in RAW with HTP on.

By: AFS

AFS — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 04:58:46 +0000

I have not used the D700 extensively. I think it is close to the 5D1, but the Canon wins in terms of absolute sharpness and detail. However, the Nikon has better AF, etc.
The 5D2 will clearly best the D700 in terms of detail, but I am really considering getting either the D700 replacement (D800?) when it arrives. (Though I must say that the Canon 1Ds3 has been an amazing camera on all fronts – image quality, focus, build quality…but like many people, I do not always want to carry a large heavy camera around.)

By: FashionBoy

FashionBoy — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 00:46:54 +0000

Out of curiosity have any of you used the Nikon D700? Any comments about the IQ compared to 5D, I or II?