Tag Archives: Canon 5D Mark II

Canon 5D Mark II Out-of-the-box Review

8 January 2009 – 9:17 pm

As a geek photographer it is always a lot of excitement when I receive a new toy tool. And I finally received my Canon 5D markII!!

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I did a quick hands-on review in two of my previous post: here and here.

But this time this is the real stuff!

So you will find here my first impressions about the camera. I just had time to unpack it and grab my 5D MkI to do some quick comparison tests today. I can’t wait to use it in real shooting conditions for a photoshoot or a wedding!

From what I can see the image quality is great! Better than the current 5D if it’s possible: the image is a bit cleaner and there is more details involved which was predictible. I still have to do some print tests to see the actual results on posters and how these added pixels come into play. Colors are wonderful and from what I see the LCD screen is much more reliable and precise than it used to be so this is also great news, we may be able to rely a bit more on it. I also had the opportunity to confirm that although the AF mechanism is the same, the AF algorithms have been improved. I did some testing to see if the camera was able to focus in tricky back lit condition and it performed better than the 5D. I still have to see how the camera perform is dimly lit condition though but for now the results are more than promising.

I also did some quick tests to see how the camera handles high iso and needless to say that I am impressed! ISO 1600 is clean and ISO 3200 is more than usable with a little noise reduction processing. ISO 6400 is messy but can still be used in case of emergency.

I am really ecstatic. The camera is awesome, I cannot wait to use it properly.

So here are some tests shots, please be kind with them, they weren’t meant to be artistic. First shot is always the 5D MkII and the second is the 5D MkI. No post processing, no white balance modification, only soft sharpening applied. The images were shot on AI One Shot, with the center focus point, ISO 100, 1/250th, f/5.6. The lens was the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4.

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As you can see, the colors are a bit richer on the MkII. Even at this resolution you can see that the shots of the MkII pack more details.

And here is a 100% crop comparison on the center focus point.

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I think this speaks for itself. I was amazed that I could see the bird on the MkII shot

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Impressive no? The 5D has nothing to be ashamed of it is still a wonderful camera, but the MkII is just simply better.

Here is my AF test shot, the focus point was the outer right one and it was aimed at the top of the bus near the sun.

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And now come the ISO tests shots. I did 4 different shots of one of my favorite model: ISO 1000, 1600, 3200, 6400. Focus point on the eye, 1/100th, f/2.0. The lens is still the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4.

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I am really really impressed! I will be using ISO 3200 a LOT during my weddings!

This camera is a killer! There is absolutely no doubt about that. Combined with L Primes the results are even more amazing! I still have to test the video feature so I will certainly blog about that in the near future. For now I leave you with two shots of two of my other favorite models.

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Edit: Just added a video extract in HD. Please be gentle it’s not meant to be great art. Don’t forget to turn HD feature on and go to Vimeo!


Untitled from Pascal Tran Binh on Vimeo.

By Pascal | Posted in Technical | Also tagged , | Comments (1)

Canon 5D Mark II Hands-On extended

18 November 2008 – 12:55 pm

As I had some emails asking me about more information concerning my hands-on on the Canon 5D Mark II, I will give you more details about my first impressions here.

As I already said I couldn’t put a CF card on my own in the body itself so I cannot comment on the image quality itself or ISO sensibility. However I can give you an overview of the overall ergonomy and my first impressions of how video feels like (for my impressions about the AF, please refer to my previous post.)

The body felt good in my hand, if you are used to the current 5D you won’t sense a difference at all. The body still feels robust and solid, the hand grip area feels really good and the button layout is pretty much the same with some slight modifications. I didn’t take the time to fumble in all the OSD menus but they pretty much look like what you can find on the 40D for example.

What really is different on the 5D Mark II is the LCD screen. As I am used to the current 5D rather poor LCD, it felt huge! The screen is really big and the resolution seems at least on par with the 40D. The information displayed are really clear, so the screen might become more usable than it is on the current 5D (I am only checking the histogram on the current 5D model). I still have to see the results in bright daylight though.

Now concerning the big addition in terms of feature: HD video.

In order to access the video mode, you have to press the instant print button (for once this button comes in handy), you automatically switch to live view then. All the focusing and video shooting is done with the live view. And that’s where that big LCD screen comes to play. As expected when switching to video, you lose the capability to autofocus. You have to select your focus point using live view and do a mirror lockup in order to set your focus area. When I tried the feature, I could confirm one of my concern: it is very difficult if not impossible to track accuretaly a moving subject. From the video sample I could see on the internet, I had already noticed that most of the shots where static shots where the camera didn’t move. It feels very awkward to handhold the 5D Mark II for shooting video. I had the 85mm f/1.2 mounted and it was really heavy.

While shooting video, you still have the capability to capture still frames. By doing that, the video is split into two video files and you lose one second of shooting. The frame is captured at full camera resolution and not video resolution.

I still have to see if and how I will use this video feature in my current workflow. I saw still frames extracted from actual videos and they look impressive enough, but one thing is sure, I will not be using video in a wedding to extract frames afterwards. As I said the setup is too heavy and awkward to manipulate without a tripod and focusing on a moving subject is extremely difficult (at least to me), and I am still and foremost a photographer. But I still think that this is a nice addition,and it’s good to have the option to use it or not.

I am more and more psyched about this camera, I will call my supplier today to see if he has some more information about its availability. I have a good position on the waiting list so I am confident I will have one on release day. I will keep you posted when I receive it with actual tests shots.

By Pascal | Posted in Technical | Also tagged | Comments (6)

Paris Photography Convention - Canon 5D Mark II Hands-on

16 November 2008 – 4:32 pm

I just came back from the annual Photography Convention here in Paris. Obviously it is not as big as Photokina is for example, but I just went there because I really wanted to see and hold the upcoming Canon 5D Mark II.

I already have it on preorder, but it’s always good to try it out, if only for 10 minutes, to see what to expect. I didn’t expect much from this try out on the con, but from what I saw of this baby, if image quality at least matches the current 5D then this is gonna be a killer. I couldn’t put in a CF card of my own so I can’t comment on that, but one thing that concerned me was actually resolved.

From all the beta testing and all the first tryouts articles I have read on the web, one of the main valid complaint was concerning the AF (Auto Focus) system. Canon didn’t change the AF system on the Mark II, it is the same as the one in the current model. While I don’t have problem with the current AF system, having a more precise one would have been nice: I don’t shoot sport or fast action but sometimes the AF gives me awkward results, particularly in low lit situations. But when I tried the 5D Mark II on Canon stand with a 85mm f/1.2 (known for its slow AF focusing) as my lens I was very surprised to see that the AF seemed sharper and more precise than the one on the Mark I. I quickly compared it by mounting the 85mm on my 5D and I could definitely tell that there was a subtle difference. So however the AF system is the same, Canon probably tweaked and improved the algorythms handling the AF mechanics.

I am really eager to hold my Mark II, I cannot wait for it to be released! Still about a month to go.

EDIT: I have posted some more information regarding my hands-on, please refer to this post.

When I came in these two acrobats were performing on the Panasonic stand.

Some really nice tech on the Samsung stand, I was really impressed with the new tactile interface.

But here was my main interest!

And here is some of my booty: I also went to the Con to grab some more information from Fine Art paper suppliers (as I am offering Fine Art prints in some of my packages), I managed to get in touch with the suppliers I wanted to see and got some samples. I will try them out today or tomorrow.

By Pascal | Posted in Technical | Also tagged , | Comments (7)