Still today Canon guys told me about the f/8 focus and the way focus works, they preferred to do it this way because an f/8 sensor is bigger than an f/5.6 thus they wouldn't have been able with the actual technology to stuff so many focus points on the sensor.
Sorry, but you either misheard, or more likely, the Canon rep was talking BS and doesn't understand such things, either. An f/8 sensor has a narrower baseline than an f/5.6 sensor, so it actually takes up less space on the sensor. Doesn't mean they could fit them in, but that's reality - the narrower the aperture, the more tightly spaced the lines.
To see what I mean, compare an f/2.8 sensor with an f/5.6 sensor - see the diagram below, look how far apart the f/2.8 lines are compared to the f/5.6 lines.
Well sensors aren't just about their sensitivity, but also the type of sensors, points, cross type, diagonal and so on. Apparently they couldn't fit it with this kind of configuration to keep the focusing system as good as the new one.
If an f/8 sensor was always smaller, don't you think they could just put all f/8 sensors accross the whole frame? It would have been awesome, but probably they don't work as well as f/2.8 or f/5.6 sensors.
@briansquibb: wow so you take pictures to birds at 1200...using a flash?
I totally understand taking pictures at birds with 1200...but really quite difficult if handheld...but I don't get the use of a flash for wildlife at 1200mm.
So you prefer taking pictures at high ISO up to 1600 with the 1D4 instead of using the 1Ds that you say you use only up to 400ISO ??
I don't talk rubbish, tell me where I misquoted you, I can't read your mind I just read what you write.
What is that you don't like about the graphs beside denoting how the 5D2 is better than the 1Ds3?
In SNR 5D2 is better than 1Ds3 at every ISO settings.
In dynamic range 1Ds3 is slightly better than 5D2 at ISO 100, then becomes equal at ISO 160 and then 5D2 wins on all the other ISO settings.
Tonal range they're pretty much the same with the 5D2 slightly better.
This is what the graphs say.
By the way as matter of a fact I tried the 5D3 today and is an AWESOME camera. It totally beats 1Ds3 and 5D2, it is soooooooooooo AWESOME! You should really try it. I tried also the 1DX, but due to the price is not for me. Maybe one day I'll get the 5D3, but I see the 1DX far away at the moment.