Canon 6D review

[michaelstringer]

The two biggest considerations for planning my next body are bulk and AF performance with both moving and low-lit subjects.  I had heard that the 5DIII tracks moving subjects very well, but not that it's horribly slow in low light.  The dpreview.com review of the 5DIII seems reasonably satisfied with its low light focusing speed and accuracy, though I understand it's just one opinion based off limited experience so it should be taken with a grain of salt.

If the 5DIII really has trouble in low light, that's a pretty serious blow against it, and would bias me strongly towards the cheaper and lighter option.  Of course the number, utility, and coverage of the 6D's AF points can't compare to the 5DIII's, but speed in low light matters to me as well. 

All that said, I'm coming from a 400D/XTi, which is one of the reasons I'm concerned about size and weight.  Would any aspects of either of these autofocus systems seem like a step down compared to the Rebel?  E.g. do the 6D's AF points actually cover a smaller portion of the frame compared to the Rebel's 9 points?

I think you may have misread my review (or I wasn't very clear). The 5D IIIs AF is excellent and fast in all situations - including low light. Very low light is obviously more of a challenge but mostly it locks fine. The 6D however has a slightly better centre point in near darkness - it locks a bit quicker and doesn't seem to hunt at all (yet).

I haven't used the 400D but the 6D focus points are reasonably well spread. For example in portrait format the top point is quite close to a person's eye if filling the frame with a face. In practice the focus points are well placed (for my use).

[aalbert]

Michael - thank you for taking the time to do the review... I bought a 6D a week ago, and have been quite happy with what little testing I have been able to do, and your observations confirmed many of mine.

Thanks again.

[michaelstringer]

Michael - thank you for taking the time to do the review... I bought a 6D a week ago, and have been quite happy with what little testing I have been able to do, and your observations confirmed many of mine.

Thanks again.

No problem.

[BL]

2.) Have you missed that 1/8000 shutter speed ?

i don't believe 1/8000 will be missed by many, or if the exclusion will even be noticed.

just out of curiousity, i did a metadata search through my archives and found a handful shots at 1/8000 - images shot at 1.2 or 1.4 in broad daylight for DOF, when i really should have been using an ND filter

[hemidesign]

2.) Have you missed that 1/8000 shutter speed ?

i don't believe 1/8000 will be missed by many, or if the exclusion will even be noticed.

just out of curiousity, i did a metadata search through my archives and found a handful shots at 1/8000 - images shot at 1.2 or 1.4 in broad daylight for DOF, when i really should have been using an ND filter

I don't think you going to miss the 1/8000.. the 6D you can shoot at 50 ISO... (50~4000 or 100~8000, is almost the same)
IMO, the 6D has the best AF from any camera from Canon to date, the camera can focus DEAD ON using the center point which I use 99.99% of the time, and I don't shoot moving subjects, like sports or anything similar...
Buying this lightweight and solid camera, best AF center point, and the best ISO performance from any Canon camera?..  its a winner for sure.. that's why I bought 3..

[beansauce]

According to the 6D manual, AF points are selectable by using both wheels to move the AF point both vertically and horizontally to the desired position. Yes, the joystick is nice, but you still have this option; which may be faster.

[dswatson83]

Another slightly more comprehensive review : http://www.learningcameras.com/reviews/4-dslrs/91-canon-6d-review

Also a comparison with the 5D mark III: http://www.learningcameras.com/reviews/4-dslrs/92-canon-6d-vs-5d-mark-iii

Some different observations as well...not really on performance but on usability.

[eyeland]

Funny how the mind works...
Before the 6D, I had decided that investing in a 5Dmk3 Kit would be out of the question until I start (hopefully) earning a bit more than crumbs from my productions. After first getting overly exited about the 6D and then slightly disappointed, I find myself much more prone to pull the trigger on the mk3

[curby]

I think you may have misread my review (or I wasn't very clear). The 5D IIIs AF is excellent and fast in all situations - including low light. Very low light is obviously more of a challenge but mostly it locks fine. The 6D however has a slightly better centre point in near darkness - it locks a bit quicker and doesn't seem to hunt at all (yet).

Thanks for the clarification, but it was actually others in this thread that were complaining about the 5D3's low light focusing performance.  =)