Buy now a 5D MK II or wait...?

[mrcrsr]

Hi!

I've got a big problem. I thought that in the first half of 2011 comes out a new 5D camera... but it won't :-(
I have got only ONE body. The 7D. Nice camera. good pictures (good job canon). So, I decided to buy a second body but this time with a full frame sensor.
What would you do? Waiting until end 2011 to buy a new 5D (not sure that a new body will come out) or buy now the 5D MK II and sell it when the new 5D comes out?

greets from france
Jean-Luc

[Portpix]

I have one and am thinking of buying another one.  Sure the 5D3 will be better (maybe), but the 5D2 does a fantastic job (I do weddings) and its priced for great value atm.  Don't worry about the 5D3, it will be away off and priced at a premium for a while until the novelty wears off, the 5D2 will serve you very well.

[torger]

It depends :-). If you are a bit of a technical nerd and want the-latest-and-greatest it is not so fun to buy a full frame camera now, since all of them are showing some age compared to the newest APS-C models. However, if you care more about making pictures buying a 5D now makes sense. And we don't really know when the next 5D comes out, and what price tag it will have. I would not be surprised if it slips into 2012...

Anyway, the big thing is the format, the shallower depth of field etc, the next model won't radically change how you make pictures. If you feel you need the format now, just buy.

And your 7D is a very nice complement to 5D.

I'm myself in about the same situation, however I'll wait to the next model, but that's since I need to save up money anyway, so I almost hope that it won't come until 2012...

[kubelik]

a large piece of this decision comes down to how much the 5DII is needed right now.  are you making money off of your photography?  does your photography business have some qualitative need that really demands a full frame camera?

normally I'm of the mindset that, the general answer to these questions is always:  it's a good camera, go buy it.  but in your case, you already have a very capable body in the 7D, so I don't know that that's the correct answer.

if it's just a hobby for you, then is $2500 an amount you're willing to shell out, knowing that it's >75% likely that a replacement will come out within the next 12 months?  if you think that's going to leave a really sour taste in your mouth, and you still love your 7D (which you should, it's beautiful), then just wait and see how it turns out.  maybe the 5DIII is out of your price range so you end up with the 5DII anyway in the end.  maybe you realize you don't need either but that $2500 could net you a really awesome lens (or two).

it's always hard to give advice without know what the goal is, in terms of shooting.  are you a generalist?  a portraitist?  a journalist?  or into wildlife?  all those make a huge impact on the choice of what to do.

[UngerPhotography]

The 5D MkII is a great camera. What you need to determine is if you need a FF camera or just want one. If you absolutely need on, then by all means, get the 5D MkII now. If you just want a FF camera, then wait. Just know that the 5D MkIII will cost you a bit more when it comes out compared to picking up a MkII now.

[papa-razzi]

I put off purchasing the EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 for a year because the new 24-70 with IS was going to be announced - and it wasn't - a couple of times.  After it wasn't announced again at the end of last year, I decided to go ahead and purchase the 17-55 before the rebates expired.  Otherwise I'd likely be waiting about another year.  I should have just gone ahead and purchased the 17-55 a year ago when I knew I wanted a fast lens in that focal length range.

Bottom line, we have rumors, but nothing solid from Canon about what they are doing with the 5D MIII or when.  Look at all the unhappy xxD campers who waited for the 60D and it ended up being nothing like what they had expected.

If you are happy with what you have and don't realy need a FF camera then wait.  If you really will use it now, then buy it.
My 2 cents.

[Nice Guy]

Im in a same situation >< im a student and i want to upgrade to a full frame camera for this summer cuz i will be doing a lot of traveling and i love photography..so saving up 2-3G is a lot for me. I was hoping that they will announce the spec by the beginning of the year so i can decide if i want to buy a 5DMark2 or 5DMark3
Hopefully they will officially announce it before may =D

[CR Backup Admin]

Im in a same situation >< im a student and i want to upgrade to a full frame camera for this summer cuz i will be doing a lot of traveling and i love photography..so saving up 2-3G is a lot for me. I was hoping that they will announce the spec by the beginning of the year so i can decide if i want to buy a 5DMark2 or 5DMark3
Hopefully they will officially announce it before may =D

I have a 5D MK II and love it, but for traveling, weight is important, and so are lenses.  I'd recommend that you consider the package as a whole, lenses, body, flash, extenders, figure out what you need.  You will get more milage out of a T2i/ 60D plus good lenses than a 5D MK II and no money left for good lenses.

Good lenses do not need to be "L" lenses, but determine what you need in advance, since the lens part can cost 3X the camera body.

[Gothmoth]

the mighty crystal ball says.... wait.   

[ronderick]

You can also consider buying a 5D2 after they release the 5D3.

I'm sure those clearence sales would offer great prices... It's a good way to get
a really affordable FF body.

[Justin]

You don't have a big problem friend. 

As others have said it all depends on what photography is to you. I'd probably wait till the spring rebates and that will help you clear the rumors hurdles of early 2011-April 2011 announcements. If you don't hear a thing by then, go ahead and buy the 5D2 on rebate and enjoy. A year later, you can sell the thing for probably 70% what you paid and put that toward the refreshed model.

[Flake]

I would say that there are a number of potential pitfalls in waiting for a new camera, not least the recent production problems which have delayed so many lenses.

If the camera were announced tomorrow it would be quite a few months before the first ones started appearing at the dealers, and those will be taken by the probably substantial pre orders, at full price, even when models do reach the shelves the price stays high because retaillers know they can sell them for that, after about 12 months the price starts to settle down to more realistic levels.

Then there's the software problems in that it always seems to take Adobe months to release a new ACR as they want a batch with a few new models in it, other software vendors also seems to do this.

From what the reviews say there's not much you can't do with the 7D that you can with the 5D MkII and remember that the FF sensor is merciless when it comes to lens defects !

I find that as a 5D MkII owner when would be the right time to sell and buy without losing too much is a much more difficult question.

[jeremymerriam]

I own a 5D and mamiya645.  I shoot digital for jobs and shoot film for personal, some portraits and fashion.  I really need and update because I do get wedding gigs and could benefit from a 2nd body.  I have been holding off the past 6 months waiting to see what the next FF camera is.  A lot of my work could benefit from better ISO settings due to my line of work (hospitality, venues, events, etc).  I could go out and buy a 5dmark2 and then sell it once the 5dmark3 makes it the market it but that is about 1k in lost money.  The question is really whether you need a second body now and whether your portfolio value can hold off until the mark3 comes out.  Honestly, I should have bought the mark2 months ago because of the sheer amount of jobs I am doign right now, I could have a stronger book.  I am kicking myself but at this point, I am going to wait. 

The next Canon will be my last until it doesn't work anymore.  I have never been satisfied with the AA filter and the DR.  I will end up investing in a digitalback to satisfy my cravings of shooting film but to also save me the time of dealing with processing film and scanning it.