A bit more about the Canon EOS-1D X Mark III [CR2]

Sep 26, 2018
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It's interesting that opinions on third party batteries tend to be either 1) I bought one that had an issue, therefore all of them are bad and 2) I bought one and it works well, therefore all of them are OK.
I wish some "real" brand name would make third party camera batteries, like Everready or similar, instead of mystery Chinese brands.

A lot of Chinese batteries tend to be near-identical to name-brand batteries except for quality control. People underestimate the importance of QC, but manufacturing is only half the battle. Unless you're evaluating your quality to 1) improve your processes and 2) make sure defective products don't reach customers, you'll end up with wildly different reviews based on peoples' luck. Some people will have terrible experiences, and some will wonder what all the fuss is about.

So, if the knock-off battery is 1/3rd the price of the Canon, you are basically gambling that there's a 1 in 3 chance that the battery you get will perform as well, or you're willing to accept that it may perform 1/3rd as well. The extra price you pay to Canon is largely for the guarantee that you don't have to mess around, and you can just be pretty sure you're getting something good in the first place.
 
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slclick

EOS 3
Dec 17, 2013
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This exactly. I’m sure it’s going to be a very good camera for a specific target audience (for example the news agencies, sports photographers, etc), but we’re reaching the limits of what can be done with dslr’s. Mirrorless has a lot more upward potential.
Is that like waiting for the flying cars that were once promised to us? Do you really have tangible data of how revolutionary ML is soon going to be over DSLRs? I cannot for the life of me think it's anything other than evolutionary. What did they say on Team Sky? Marginal Gains.
 
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knight427

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Aug 27, 2018
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So, if the knock-off battery is 1/3rd the price of the Canon, you are basically gambling that there's a 1 in 3 chance that the battery you get will perform as well, or you're willing to accept that it may perform 1/3rd as well. The extra price you pay to Canon is largely for the guarantee that you don't have to mess around, and you can just be pretty sure you're getting something good in the first place.

Without evidence, I would guess that this divide is highly correlated to pro versus amateur. As a hobbyist, everything I do in photography is "messing around." Ideally I mess around figuring out how to make better photographs, but if I can save some money in exchange for a bit of risk of extra messing around on gear, then so be it. Obviously I'm going to do some homework to minimize this risk (again, more messing around b/c I'm not giving up pay to do all of this messing around).
 
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Powering via USB in addition to the battery would be welcome across all (the higher-end) bodies. Not even talking about charging the internal battery during this. Using a battery adapter like Tether Tools or even Canon's own AC adapters should not be necessary. And when there's a major issue, you basically lose everything since the camera shuts down - no internal battery for "backup" purposes. USB power would solve this entirely if it could switch back to the internal.
 
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Sep 26, 2018
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If they are supposed to be shooting this thing at the Tokyo Olympics isn't it waaaaaay late for a development announcement? Kind of time for a release announcement isn't it?

It's not like they've just started developing the thing, it's that they are disclosing a development that is already far underway. They want to announce an upcoming product without giving a firm date.
 
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Let me help.

1) Less money is less money than more money, which leaves you with more money to spend on things that leave with you with less money.
2) Not everyone has had bad luck with third party batteries.
In my honest opinion I would rather have an original battery or accessory. At the same time, I've never had an issue with the 3rd party batteries I received from B & H when I purchased a camera. I think it may be hit or miss with 3rd party batteries. Just my opinion. Again I'll take an original over a third party. : )
 
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PFloyd

EOS 80D
Aug 20, 2019
8
6
While I love to save money, and I'm sure 3rd party batteries can deliver similar performance to genuine Canon batteries, my biggest concern with using 3rd party batteries - at least in cameras still under warranty, is damaging the camera and voiding the warranty. I'm sure the chances of something like that happening are remote; nevertheless, is it worth taking that risk on your new $3K-6K camera in order to save $30 or $40?
 
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Can't understand someone paying $6,000 for a camera and then trying to save a few bucks using an inferior third-party battery.

I just hope it has the same interchangeability as the LP-E6N. (Battery compatible with previous 1Dx series and camera can use older model batteries as well)
This exactly. I’m sure it’s going to be a very good camera for a specific target audience (for example the news agencies, sports photographers, etc), but we’re reaching the limits of what can be done with dslr’s. Mirrorless has a lot more upward potential.
I have the 1DXii and 61 points is fine. I thought I wanted more (I have the R as well), but actually when you want to scroll across the AF area to get from one side to the other, having a lot more points might either slow the process down or make it harder to select the exact point you want quickly. Either way, I am
I have 2 original batteries for an insane 150€ markup each. And one third party 40€ battery.
One of the batteries has some problems where it causes camera shut downs and even jumps from 40% to zero. Fun fact... it is NOT the cheap battery...
Also, the battery life while shooting is in my experience similar and sometimes even worse than on my 5D IV (I use both together for wedding photography).
Overall I must say I am very disapointed in the battery and reliabiliy of my 1D. The 5D feels somehow better field tested (not surprising, giving its selling numbers). Also, I never had any problem with any third party battery on my 5D.
That’s odd. I have shot 10 hour weddings with a 1DXii and 5D4. The 1DX often has about 50% battery left and the 5D4 uses about a battery and a half. I am a pretty heavy shooter too. I can’t say I have ever had reason to complain about the battery on the 1D camera, it’s always been excellent and I have never had to use the spare battery that I pack with the kit.
 
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It's interesting that opinions on third party batteries tend to be either 1) I bought one that had an issue, therefore all of them are bad and 2) I bought one and it works well, therefore all of them are OK.
I wish some "real" brand name would make third party camera batteries, like Everready or similar, instead of mystery Chinese brands.


If you want REAL power to your camera, get an adapter or make on yourself (our engineers did that for the 1DxMk2's! which use NP-1b camcorder battery types used on the BIG TV NEWS CAMCORDERS.

see below:


Our engineer made a box adapter that has TWO of the NP-1b's with lower and upper screw holes so we can still put the 1d's/5d's on tripods but we can easily slide out (i.e. Hot Swap) one battery while the camera draws from the other.

You just need to solder in some power supply circuits to make sure the power supply is correct for the 1Dx2 when you plug in the power adapter that uses a blank LP-e19 as the connection between the 1Dx2 and the under-camera NP-1b battery box. We 3D printed the under-camera case out of ABS plastic so it is TOUGH as nails and waterproof! We also had to modify a blank LP-e19 (Li-Ion cells taken out!) to run a ruggedized and braided double-shielded power cable to the camera!

Canon LP-E19 batteries are 10.8 Volts at 2.75 Amps so total wattage available for draw is only 29.7 watts for about 1200 photos, so using the TWO NP-1b's in series gives you about 4x the runtime when run in the real world or about 4800 photos using our custom-designed system!

At 65+ Watts for each NP-1b battery, the the 130 watts of total available power draw makes for runtimes that are utterly STUNNING!!! ....AND.... the extra weight of the batteries actually make the cameras more stable in hand so I get more of the "Keeper Shots". I have really big hands so all the extra weight doesn't bother me.

There are also versions of the NP-1b that are 95 Watts but at $400+ US they are a tad expensive but you do get 7500 photos (i.e. 2 NP-1b x 95 watts each) in the real world on the 1Dx2! Using the cheaper 70 watt NP-1b ($210 US!) is our sweet spot in terms of total power and runtime availability vs cost.

.
 
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Mirrorless is not there yet. I am still trying to get used to the focussing an tracking system. Of is not as nearly as good as the 1dx or the 5d IV. Try to get birds or even kids with the r. It is hard .... to catch a sharp picture with all that mouvement.
You mean Canon mirrorless is not there yet. Try the A9 AF it's much better than 1DX and 5D4 and I know I've owned both for many years. EOS R is pretty sad effort on the AF front, don't let that cloud your judgement. I think even M6 II will be a big improvement for you.
 
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Jethro

EOS R
CR Pro
Jul 14, 2018
996
1,037
If you want REAL power to your camera, get an adapter or make on yourself (our engineers did that for the 1DxMk2's! which use NP-1b camcorder battery types used on the BIG TV NEWS CAMCORDERS.

see below:


Our engineer made a box adapter that has TWO of the NP-1b's with lower and upper screw holes so we can still put the 1d's/5d's on tripods but we can easily slide out (i.e. Hot Swap) one battery while the camera draws from the other.

You just need to solder in some power supply circuits to make sure the power supply is correct for the 1Dx2 when you plug in the power adapter that uses a blank LP-e19 as the connection between the 1Dx2 and the under-camera NP-1b battery box. We 3D printed the under-camera case out of ABS plastic so it is TOUGH as nails and waterproof! We also had to modify a blank LP-e19 (Li-Ion cells taken out!) to run a ruggedized and braided double-shielded power cable to the camera!

Canon LP-E19 batteries are 10.8 Volts at 2.75 Amps so total wattage available for draw is only 29.7 watts for about 1200 photos, so using the TWO NP-1b's in series gives you about 4x the runtime when run in the real world or about 4800 photos using our custom-designed system!

At 65+ Watts for each NP-1b battery, the the 130 watts of total available power draw makes for runtimes that are utterly STUNNING!!! ....AND.... the extra weight of the batteries actually make the cameras more stable in hand so I get more of the "Keeper Shots". I have really big hands so all the extra weight doesn't bother me.

There are also versions of the NP-1b that are 95 Watts but at $400+ US they are a tad expensive but you do get 7500 photos (i.e. 2 NP-1b x 95 watts each) in the real world on the 1Dx2! Using the cheaper 70 watt NP-1b ($210 US!) is our sweet spot in terms of total power and runtime availability vs cost.

.
All of that and voiding your camera warranty at the same time - the benefits never end!
 
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Ozarker

Love, joy, and peace to all of good will.
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Jan 28, 2015
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The Ozarks
Mirrorless is not there yet. I am still trying to get used to the focussing an tracking system. Of is not as nearly as good as the 1dx or the 5d IV. Try to get birds or even kids with the r. It is hard .... to catch a sharp picture with all that mouvement.
Strange. I get all kinds of sharp photos chasing a 2.5 year old around that is camera shy. Many, many more than I ever did with my 5D Mark III. I turned continuous focus on and use eye-AF. Voila! Even get the little pores the eyelashes emanate from and can see myself clearly in his brown eyes.



 
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