Canon 6D vs 5D MKII (Focusing?)

[LetTheRightLensIn]

And the AF is not very fast. I tried the 5D3 next to it. it was much faster.

Oh my, there goes the neighborhood :-( ... if that's true then it's really a letdown, I had hoped at least with center point af it would be as fast as the 5d3 since they're both using the same digic5.

5D3 doesn't use the Digic for AF though, in fact, I don't think any Canon does. AFAIK they all use either share the main CPU (rebels,xxD, 5D,5D2) or a dedicated AF CPU (5D3/7D/many 1 series (perhaps not the very oldest?)). Technically the 1DX also uses a digic iv for AF, but only if all points are selected and you use the face and color tracking mode. Digics are used for dealing with the images.

[hemidesign]

I tested both cameras.. 6D and 5Dmk2, and the 6D is way better than 5Dmk2..
I would say the center point from the 6D is supercharged.. WOW!.. Can't even compare with 5Dmk2
The new tech behind 6D with low light autofocus (-3EV) is a big improvement over any camera ever made.. IMO
You can really focus spot on in any light conditions.. impressive!!! And the images still sharp (using 85mm 1.2)
Btw, I really don't care if the camera has only 11 focus points.. I use the center point all the time (99.9%)..
My final words are.. the center point from the Canon 6D might be better for accuracy from any Canon camera ever build.. believe me, this thing is very powerful..
And the ISO performance BLOWS 5dmk2 and better then 5Dmk3

[x-vision]

My final words are.. the center point from the Canon 6D might be better for accuracy from any Canon camera ever build.. believe me, this thing is very powerful..

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

[verysimplejason]

My final words are.. the center point from the Canon 6D might be better for accuracy from any Canon camera ever build.. believe me, this thing is very powerful..

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

5D2 and 6D AF are already amazing if you know how to use it.  I'm sorry but I have to say it.  We've got overwhelmed by the no. of AF points but what we don't realize is they don't matter much to these photographers.  Just count how many have taken these with 5D2.

http://blogs.reuters.com/fullfocus/2012/11/30/best-photos-of-the-year-2012/#a=95

[wickidwombat]

I tested both cameras.. 6D and 5Dmk2, and the 6D is way better than 5Dmk2..
I would say the center point from the 6D is supercharged.. WOW!.. Can't even compare with 5Dmk2
The new tech behind 6D with low light autofocus (-3EV) is a big improvement over any camera ever made.. IMO
You can really focus spot on in any light conditions.. impressive!!! And the images still sharp (using 85mm 1.2)
Btw, I really don't care if the camera has only 11 focus points.. I use the center point all the time (99.9%)..
My final words are.. the center point from the Canon 6D might be better for accuracy from any Canon camera ever build.. believe me, this thing is very powerful..
And the ISO performance BLOWS 5dmk2 and better then 5Dmk3

can you try the other points out in low light and see how they go? that was where the 5Dmk2 really fell over in a pile is those points were useless in low light

[Woody]

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

I don't think Roger Cicala was being consistent in the above article.

If we list the AF standard deviations of previous Canon cameras tested by Roger using the new 28 f/2.8 IS USM, this is what we get:

1DsIII 29
5D II 38.5
50D 34
7D 41
1DIV 22
60D 34
T3i 41
1Dx 17
5D III 17
T4i 29
6D 28

If we group them according to AF consistency of the center point, this is the result:
Tier 1: 1DX, 5D3... 1D4 trailing slightly
Tier 2: 6D, 1Ds3, T4i... 50D, 60D trailing slightly
Tier 3: 5D2, 7D, T3i

So, yes, the 6D beats out the 5D2 (and the 7D too... consistent with my experience).

[Marsu42]

I don't think Roger Cicala was being consistent in the above article.

I'm not saying that he is wrong (and the lineup seems logical), but he only used one lens and also was fairly quick with the 6d af test - more samples might have given another sd, because looking at the graph there are 1-2 shots very much out of bounds which have been non-representative. But the main point remains: Very usable (center only), better than 5d2, worse than 5d3.

[verysimplejason]

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

I don't think Roger Cicala was being consistent in the above article.

If we list the AF standard deviations of previous Canon cameras tested by Roger using the new 28 f/2.8 IS USM, this is what we get:

1DsIII 29
5D II 38.5
50D 34
7D 41
1DIV 22
60D 34
T3i 41
1Dx 17
5D III 17
T4i 29
6D 28

If we group them according to AF consistency of the center point, this is the result:
Tier 1: 1DX, 5D3... 1D4 trailing slightly
Tier 2: 6D, 1Ds3, T4i... 50D, 60D trailing slightly
Tier 3: 5D2, 7D, T3i

So, yes, the 6D beats out the 5D2 (and the 7D too... consistent with my experience).

I think it's the same as Roger Cicala's comment later in the thread.

On December 1, 2012 at 6:55 AM
LensRentals Employee
Roger Cicala said:

Ralph, I guess I was writing from the ‘is the 6D as good as the 5D III. The standard deviation the 5DIII and 1Dx were in the teens, which is exactly where live view or careful manual focusing is.

The 6D at 29 is actually almost exactly the same as the T4i, so it’s not as good as Live View. But it is better than the 5D II and other older cameras.

And, of course, with most of the lenses in the lineup the difference doesn’t show up, only the newer lenses are capable of the more accurate AF.

[Woody]

I think it's the same as Roger Cicala's comment later in the thread.

Thanks for pointing that out. Anyway, I am happy as long as 6D single shot, center point AF consistency is better than 7D. The latter drove me crazy with its inconsistent single shot AF performance.

[verysimplejason]

I think it's the same as Roger Cicala's comment later in the thread.

Thanks for pointing that out. Anyway, I am happy as long as 6D single shot, center point AF consistency is better than 7D. The latter drove me crazy with its inconsistent single shot AF performance.

me too!  as much as I love my 500D, switching to a 6D is sweet.  I just need to brace myself till next year.  I don't want to be an early adopter.     I need to convince myself that I need to wait a little bit more just like what I did with my 500D.  I'm really tempted so much already.  I've got to focus on my new lighting equipment instead...

[hemidesign]

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

I don't think Roger Cicala was being consistent in the above article.

If we list the AF standard deviations of previous Canon cameras tested by Roger using the new 28 f/2.8 IS USM, this is what we get:

1DsIII 29
5D II 38.5
50D 34
7D 41
1DIV 22
60D 34
T3i 41
1Dx 17
5D III 17
T4i 29
6D 28

If we group them according to AF consistency of the center point, this is the result:
Tier 1: 1DX, 5D3... 1D4 trailing slightly
Tier 2: 6D, 1Ds3, T4i... 50D, 60D trailing slightly
Tier 3: 5D2, 7D, T3i

So, yes, the 6D beats out the 5D2 (and the 7D too... consistent with my experience).

I think it's the same as Roger Cicala's comment later in the thread.

On December 1, 2012 at 6:55 AM
LensRentals Employee
Roger Cicala said:

Ralph, I guess I was writing from the ‘is the 6D as good as the 5D III. The standard deviation the 5DIII and 1Dx were in the teens, which is exactly where live view or careful manual focusing is.

The 6D at 29 is actually almost exactly the same as the T4i, so it’s not as good as Live View. But it is better than the 5D II and other older cameras.

And, of course, with most of the lenses in the lineup the difference doesn’t show up, only the newer lenses are capable of the more accurate AF.

I was right... I did so many test from both cameras, 6D is a phenomenal camera..
Another thing, the ISO from 6D in 6400, looks like the 5Dmk2 in 1600... YES.. my numbers were right!
I'll post some photos later for comparison...

[wickidwombat]

outer points anyone? vs the 5Dmk2 outer points

[Area256]

Keep in mind that the 5D2 center point will only be cross type with f/2.8 and faster lenses, otherwise it's just a horizontal line sensor.  With the 6D you get cross type at f/5.6 and faster, and improved accuracy at f/2.8 on the vertical line sensor.  That to me will be the biggest difference between the 5D2 and the 6D, since I have a lot of f/4 glass, and I'd like to have a cross type point for those lenses.   

Also I think the f/5.6 type AF points tend to be faster than f/2.8 points for getting the focus into the right general area, so even if you had an f/2.8 lens on the 5D2 and only hit vertical contrast it would in theory be slower than the 6D will be - which can use the f/5.6 to get focus into the right zone, and use the f/2.8 to fine tune.

Also into the realm of speculation looking at the AF diagrams on the Canon website, the AF points on the 5D2 don't seem to extend out from the focus squares as much as the ones on the 6D.  Although I could just be reading things into the diagram...

[MichaelTheMaven]

I now own all three cameras, the 5DIII, 5Dii, and 6D.

The 6D's optical focusing system is significantly better than the 5Dii's, but it the 5DIII is ridiculously good. Even the outer points did very, very well in my first tests. Will try to do some low light testing on the 6D tomorrow.

5DIII > 6D > 5Dii

Let me know if you guys have anything specific you want me to test out!

MM

[brianleighty]

My final words are.. the center point from the Canon 6D might be better for accuracy from any Canon camera ever build.. believe me, this thing is very powerful..

Hmm. LensRentals did a controlled test and the results don't support your enthusiasm.
In terms of AF accuracy, the 6D is closer to the 5DII than the 1DX/5DIII.

Some others have already commented but I thought I'd also point out that Roger wasn't really testing for AF accuracy on it's own, this article is related to all the previous ones where he's comparing contrast live view focusing vs phase detection AF. Even the lowest level 6D shot is still obviously very much in focus. It just isn't "perfect". So the real answer is without further testing this test doesn't prove anything other than the 5D mark III and 1DX do better with newer lenses than the 6D which isn't that huge a deal. What needs to be tested is how the camera handles in low light and low contrast situations. I look forward to hearing more about this.