POLL: Potential 1D X buyers - still 1D X or 5D Mark III now?

[krjc]

I want to keep for the life of product so the 1Dx is a good deal when number of shutter activations are taken into consideration.

[pwp]

This is a tiny bit premature! Neither camera has started shipping yet, been properly reviewed or had real world user feedback fed back into communities like this one.

When we have an informed position we'll be able to say whether or not to skip the 1DX and buy a 5DIII for half the price. Spec lists are one thing, but personally I prefer to read trusted reviews of genuine shipping copies.

Buy hey, this  really is enjoyable...this is a moment we have all been waiting for for much too long. For my style of shooting the 61 point AF is the killer spec. Being able to drop an AF point right onto a subject's eye without  doing the dreaded "focus & recompose" is gold. And it's not that long ago that 6FPS was fast!

I'm leaving my 1DX pre-order in place for now. But if the 5DIII is stacked with performance surprises I might just make the switch.

Paul Wright

[bigblue1ca]

...bought a lens instead

Yeah, me, too.  Had the cash for the 1D X, spent some on a 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6L IS a month ago.  Fortunately, I've re-accumulated a sufficient stack of cash for the 1D X.      Extra funds will be needed for the new flash and an L-bracket...

Hmmm.....40 too late to go back to university and become a scientist?   

[bigblue1ca]

...this is a moment we have all been waiting for for much too long.

Very true and I have to say I'm happy at this point to have the option at least thinking about two different options, that are both very good in their own right.

[briansquibb]

How about none of the above? Neither focus with an 800mm + !.4x? Then long live the 1D4. I wouldn't waste my money on either of these 2 manual focus cameras. I'd rather they left out the exposure meter than the AF with f8. To each his own, and these 2 cameras ain't mine.

I have a 600 f/4 which I expect to use with a 2x. Long live my 1D4

[wockawocka]

I had 2 1Dx's on order but the 5D3 has this over / the same as, the 1Dx:

Lighter, AF system practically the same, Higher MP

If it wasn't that I trusted pro bodies and their extra features more I'd probably cancel both orders and go purely 5D but I'll get one of each.

For weddings just how much 'noticeable' difference in IQ will the client see between both bodies?

[briansquibb]

For weddings just how much 'noticeable' difference in IQ will the client see between both bodies?

Very good question  -  I cant see the difference between the 1D4 and 5D2 for shots in reasonable light/flash. I would guess it will be pretty much the same for the 1DX and the 5D3 (printing at A3/16x10)

If the IQ are much the same then the choice would be made on the other IQ enhancing features such as the metering on the AF point, multiple AF point metering etc

A harder choice would be between a 1D4 and a 5DIII as they are not a million miles away in price.

We are talking use as a wedding camera here.

I appreciate that weddings can be done with other bodies too - but we are looking at the best Canon for the job. Even my old 40D would make a good job at a wedding, but just not the best.

[bigblue1ca]

This is interesting:

Canon has also evolved the sensor technology, reworking the internals of each pixel on the way to producing what is promised to be a considerably less noisy sensor than its predecessor (and the 5D Mark II was already pretty good in this respect). Westfall indicates that at moderate-to-high ISO sensitivities, the 5D Mark III has about a two-stop advantage over the 5D Mark II. As an example, he says, an ISO 3200 picture shot with the new model has roughly the dynamic range, noise and other characteristics of an ISO 800 picture shot with its predecessor.

He emphasizes that the bulk of the higher ISO image quality improvement comes from enhancements to the image sensor itself, as opposed to heavier-duty noise reduction being applied once the picture has been converted from analog to digital form. The only camera from Canon that will beat the image quality of the 5D Mark III at higher sensitivities, says Westfall, is the EOS-1D X.

http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/content_page.asp?cid=7-11675-12364

[waving_odd]

I had 2 1Dx's on order but the 5D3 has this over / the same as, the 1Dx:

Lighter, AF system practically the same, Higher MP

If it wasn't that I trusted pro bodies and their extra features more I'd probably cancel both orders and go purely 5D but I'll get one of each.

For weddings just how much 'noticeable' difference in IQ will the client see between both bodies?

I've switched my pre-order of 1D X to two 5D III's.  It looks like by the time the general public is still waiting for their 1D X pre-order to be filled, I might have been actually having fun with 5D III for at least a month on client assignments.

I'm also considering to get one of each and I'm pretty sure a used 5D III within the first 6 months will still be a hotcake.  One of my 2 5D III's is more likely to be the stop gap before getting 1D X.

[sublime LightWorks]

Still not fully committed to the 1D X, but strongly leaning that way so voted accordingly. Reserving final judgement until after the official announcement.   I don't feel the need to wait for reviews - I'm sure both cameras will be excellent.  What I'm waiting for is the tech articles from Canon, similar to what they did for the 1D X, with the details of the systems, particularly AF and metering.  I'm not bothered by the lower MP count of the 1D X, there's really not a huge difference between 22 MP and 18 MP (but on the other side of the fence, the difference between 36 and 16 MP would make for a harder decision).  Aside from the obvious features of double the fps and a stop more ISO, there are a few minor things that incline me to the 1D X:

• I prefer two CF to one each CF + SD
• Integrated grip (annoyed by the flex of the separate grip)
• Spot metering linked to any AF point
• Customizable limits on shutter speed and aperture
• Higher flash sync speed

Note that some of those are assumptions, which is a big reason I'm waiting for official information.

Ultimately, though, it may be as simple as the fact that the 1D X is 'the best', and I want 'the best'...   

Interestingly enough, if you pop over to the Canon USA website and click over to the 1Dx page, you'll see this note buried at the bottom of the page:

*The EOS-1D X has not been authorized as required by the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. These devices are not and may not be offered for sale or lease, or sold or leased, until authorization is obtained.

I've never seen that before on any camera listing.  I'm wondering if it's possible to see if the FCC has approved other cameras in the past (like the new 5D3 for example), or does the the 1Dx have something in it that requires an FCC approval.

[briansquibb]

I've never seen that before on any camera listing.  I'm wondering if it's possible to see if the FCC has approved other cameras in the past (like the new 5D3 for example), or does the the 1Dx have something in it that requires an FCC approval.

Like WiFi?

[smirkypants]

waiting on f8

[bigblue1ca]

I've never seen that before on any camera listing.  I'm wondering if it's possible to see if the FCC has approved other cameras in the past (like the new 5D3 for example), or does the the 1Dx have something in it that requires an FCC approval.

Like WiFi?

That's what I was thinking, but not being an American I have no clue if the FCC regulates WiFi bands/devices?

[sublime LightWorks]

I've never seen that before on any camera listing.  I'm wondering if it's possible to see if the FCC has approved other cameras in the past (like the new 5D3 for example), or does the the 1Dx have something in it that requires an FCC approval.

Like WiFi?

Yes, but that's an option on most of the camera's, and it is an external option here.  You would think that would be stated on the Wifi module, not the camera.  You don't need the module to operate that camera and it's not built-in.

It's just funny I had never seen that on any previous camera announcements, and I'm wondering if it does not have current FCC approval, if that's the delay.  Think about it, would you roll these off an assembly line if they weren't approved yet for FCC radio noise interference?  And if you did, and found out you had to make a pretty significant shielding change, then what?

Sell the failing ones overseas?  But you could not use them in the US....

This is kinda interesting, because if the line has not started producing them yet pending FCC approval, it might be a lot longer than April/May for them to start showing up.

[sublime LightWorks]

I've never seen that before on any camera listing.  I'm wondering if it's possible to see if the FCC has approved other cameras in the past (like the new 5D3 for example), or does the the 1Dx have something in it that requires an FCC approval.

Like WiFi?

That's what I was thinking, but not being an American I have no clue if the FCC regulates WiFi bands/devices?

Yes the FCC does regulate that, but as I mentioned in another reply above, the wifi is in an optional module, not in the camera.  I would not have expected to see such a statement on the camera itself.