some pre-buy technical Q's on 5D3 from a Nikon user

[azimuth]

Hi all,

my 1st post here, so be gentle! 8)

I'm coming from a Nikon DX nad in the process of upgrading to FF and today I was around during an important Canon event so I had the chance to try briefly the 5D3.

As all my lenses are DX and I won't use them in a nikon full frame body, I'd sell them anyway. So I'm evaluating both the "sides" of the fence.

5D3: very impressed for the quality of the body and the speed and reliability of the AF, the silent shutter mode, the high ISO performance. A bit less from the dynamic range and color rendition (even in raw) but I guess I cannot have everything.

Besides the normal differences in ergonomics I'm still perplex at some strange behaviours of the camera so here are the detailed questions (as Canon noob! :-\ ):

1) Is it normal that the AF point in the viewfinder blink red when in focus and then disappear?

2) camera in manual mode but with Auto-ISO on; it's not possible to have an exposure compensation, is it? I used the camera only for half an hour but I was not able to get it. I.e. : f/8 1/125 iso1600, I put +1 to exp comp and I still read: f/8 1/125 iso1600 . Why?

3) Auto-ISO on and I can choose the slowest shutter speed and the max ISO value from the menu system, and it's ok but then, if I have a zoom on, the suggested shutter speed doesn't change to reflect the actual focal value of the zoom and the camera gives me always the same pair of aperture and time, doesn't it? why?

4) Metering and AF: does the camera have a face-recognition AF mode (not in Live view but normal shooting mode)? So that it tries to track and catch the human faces when AF is in Auto?

5) And does the camera link the AF data to the metering, changing the exposure according to the choosen in-focus subject (face)? I didn't get any evidence of that in my short test this afternoon.

Thanks very much, I really need to understand how it works!

 

[ChrisAnderson]

I'm no expert but I do own a 5D3 and hope these answers are right - please feel free to correct me if they're not.

1) Yes, you'd have to re-focus to see the AF point again. Once you lock focus, a quick half-tap on the shutter illuminates the AF layer of the LCD again in red.

2) I believe EC is only available in AV/TV modes.

3) I've never seen this feature on my 5D3, although it makes perfect sense.

4) No face-recognition, that's in the 1DX

5) *correction, thanks Tron!* - Spot metering is not linked to AF point, that's reserved for 1D series. Evaluative metering IS linked to AF, however.

Hope that helps! I have my camera sitting right beside me (my precious) so let me know if you have more questions

 

[azimuth]

I'm no expert but I do own a 5D3 and hope these answers are right - please feel free to correct me if they're not.

1) Yes, you'd have to re-focus to see the AF point again. Once you lock focus, a quick half-tap on the shutter illuminates the AF layer of the LCD again in red.

is it related to this issue? http://www.canonrumors.com/2012/11/canon-eos-5d-mark-iii-blinking-red-af-point-information/

2) I believe EC is only available in AV/TV modes.

3) I've never seen this feature on my 5D3, although it makes perfect sense.

4) No face-recognition, that's in the 1DX

5) Metering is center of frame only, 1-series bodies have metering linked to AF Points.

Hope that helps! I have my camera sitting right beside me (my precious) so let me know if you have more questions

Uhm... ??? this is too bad ... basically all these functionalities are available in Nikon D800/600 ... which are in the same price range ...

1Dx is quite heavy, quite loud when it shoots, and incredibly expensive! :-\

anyway thanks for your contribute... btw ... is there any hacked firmware available out there that implements those functions!? just thinking it would be nice ...

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

If you are used to Nikon, you will be happier with it. I bought a D800, and it was a fine camera.

However, when it came to the lenses I tended to use a lot 24-105mmL, 100mmL, 135mmL, 100-400mmL, I could not find Nikon lenses to match the quality of the Canon lenses, much the price.

Trying to find the settings in Nikon's menu system was also frustrating.

That on top of having to spend 3X the time editing images caused me to sell it and go back to Canon. However, if I had been a Nikon user all along, those things would have likely not mattered.

 

[tron]

Evaluative metering IS LINKED with AF point

 

[Dwight]

Hi all,

my 1st post here, so be gentle! 8)

I'm coming from a Nikon DX nad in the process of upgrading to FF and today I was around during an important Canon event so I had the chance to try briefly the 5D3.

As all my lenses are DX and I won't use them in a nikon full frame body, I'd sell them anyway. So I'm evaluating both the "sides" of the fence.

5D3: very impressed for the quality of the body and the speed and reliability of the AF, the silent shutter mode, the high ISO performance. A bit less from the dynamic range and color rendition (even in raw) but I guess I cannot have everything.

Besides the normal differences in ergonomics I'm still perplex at some strange behaviours of the camera so here are the detailed questions (as Canon noob! :-\ ):

1) Is it normal that the AF point in the viewfinder blink red when in focus and then disappear?
Yes. User selectable setting. Can be changed to 'Auto', 'Enable', or 'Disable'

2) camera in manual mode but with Auto-ISO on; it's not possible to have an exposure compensation, is it? I used the camera only for half an hour but I was not able to get it. I.e. : f/8 1/125 iso1600, I put +1 to exp comp and I still read: f/8 1/125 iso1600 . Why? Nope, only on 1-series cameras.

3) Auto-ISO on and I can choose the slowest shutter speed and the max ISO value from the menu system, and it's ok but then, if I have a zoom on, the suggested shutter speed doesn't change to reflect the actual focal value of the zoom and the camera gives me always the same pair of aperture and time, doesn't it? why? The camera assumes that you chose min. SS based on your current focal length. Since min SS values are fixed on the camera's menu, SS doesn't adjust when focal length is adjusted. Is it a bug? No idea. Is it something that can be fixed in firmware? No doubt.

4) Metering and AF: does the camera have a face-recognition AF mode (not in Live view but normal shooting mode)? So that it tries to track and catch the human faces when AF is in Auto? 5DM3 does not have face-recognition AF in normal shooting mode; i.e. OVF.

5) And does the camera link the AF data to the metering, changing the exposure according to the choosen in-focus subject (face)? I didn't get any evidence of that in my short test this afternoon. 'Evaluative metering', yup. 'Spot', nope. Again, a 1-series feature/perk.

Thanks very much, I really need to understand how it works!

If you're set on FF, do know that ergonomics should play a major role in your decision-making process. See and feel which camera molds onto your hand better. Check out D600/D800/D800E. If you're a Nikon shooter, you might feel that Canon sits differently in your hand. I'm obviously a Canon shooter...I love Canon's menu system (especially on the 5DM3 and 1D X) and I love the way Canon's 5-series (with a battery grip) and 1-series cameras rest in my hand. YMMV.

 

[Dwight]

I'm no expert but I do own a 5D3 and hope these answers are right - please feel free to correct me if they're not.

1) Yes, you'd have to re-focus to see the AF point again. Once you lock focus, a quick half-tap on the shutter illuminates the AF layer of the LCD again in red.

is it related to this issue? http://www.canonrumors.com/2012/11/canon-eos-5d-mark-iii-blinking-red-af-point-information/

2) I believe EC is only available in AV/TV modes.

3) I've never seen this feature on my 5D3, although it makes perfect sense.

4) No face-recognition, that's in the 1DX

5) Metering is center of frame only, 1-series bodies have metering linked to AF Points.

Hope that helps! I have my camera sitting right beside me (my precious) so let me know if you have more questions

Uhm... ??? this is too bad ... basically all these functionalities are available in Nikon D800/600 ... which are in the same price range ...

1Dx is quite heavy, quite loud when it shoots, and incredibly expensive! :-\

anyway thanks for your contribute... btw ... is there any hacked firmware available out there that implements those functions!? just thinking it would be nice ...

The value of the features/functionalities in either brand is subjective. It's all up to the photographer's discretion and perception of what he/she values the most. No perfect camera...never will be. On another note, funny you had mentioned the 1D X being "quite loud when it shoots". It's a niggle I have with mine compared to my 5DM3's über silent "Silent mode". As far as I know, there is no stable ML version that'll work on the 5DM3. I don't keep myself abreast on ML so I could be wrong.

 

[bycostello]

face detect is only in live view mode

 

[RLPhoto]

Read the manual.