A short and subjective review of the 5D Mark III

[Andrei Morar]

Today i had the opportunity to spend about 1 hour with the 5DMark III and the 24-70 L II and I thought I would share my experience with you guys.

Let's start with the camera:
1. HOLDING THE CAMERA
I brought along my 5D Mark II and by comparison the new 5d is better built especially around the card door area.

The hand grip sits better in your palm due to the curvier shape of the body. I love the new lock on the mode dial that prevents your from accidentally switching from AV to Tv, for example. Great little feature!

The top LCD is also improved by being larger and displaying more items.

One major change from the 5D Mark II is image reviewing. My right thumb was constantly reaching for the magnifier button on the right side. It took me a few seconds to realize that the button was moved to the left side. This is a change that will require some adjustment time especially if you upgrade for the Mark II. On the other hand the new magnifier is faster and you can set the magnification level in the camera menu.

The viewfinder is brighter and visibly larger than the 5D Mark II's viewfinder. I wouldn't have thought 2% made such a big difference but it does!

The same goes for the main LCD. Bigger and, to my eyes, better at displaying colors accurately.

2. USING THE CAMERA
AF: Amazing! I was blown away how quickly and accurately the 5D Mark III and the 24-70 L II combo focused. No hunting, just instant focus as soon as you half press the shutter, regardless of the chosen focus point. I would like to mention that I did not have the chance and the time to test the AF in servo mode nor did I tweak the AF settings. In my opinion this is the biggest improvement over the Mark II.

High ISO performance: As I was not allowed to put my card in the camera I could only judge the image quality based on what I saw on the rear LCD. I did some quick and empirical tests at ISO 3200, 6400 and 12800. Obviously the Mark III is cleaner at 3200 and MUCH cleaner and 6400. I also noticed that ISO 12800 looks usable. Not so sure ISO 25600 would be really useful for wedding photography (in my case).

The new 24-70 L II:
Compared to the original 24-70 it's noticeably lighter and more compact. Unfortunately the weight reduction comes form using some kind of high grade plastic on the lens body which takes away from the robust feeling you get when holding the original 24-70 which is made of metal and glass. This is purely subjective and I'm sure It will be just as tough as the first 24-70. Cannot comment on the IQ of the lens as I wasn't allowed to put in on my camera and take pictures with it.

This is my short review. Hope you find it useful and keep in mind that I did not have the time to further test the camera.

Feel free to ask my questions!

 

[silat shooters]

Thanks for sharing! Good input, especially about the lens and how they achieved the lighter weight. Glad I was able to read your comments. It would have been disappointing to order the lens and be surprised by that change.

Sounds kind of like 100 Macro L construction. That's a lens that I don't 'love' the construction on but it works.

 

[Mark D5 TEAM II]

Hi, thanks for writing that. How is the viewfinder blackout time and shutter release lag time, I know it has been lowered from the Rebel-class spec of the previous two Marks, but is it really humanly noticeable or is it just another equipment measurbating number? Subjectively, how is the shutter release/re-cocking and reflex mirror movement sound? Noticeably different or same as Mk. II? TIA.

 

[awinphoto]

I have heard from review sites, body wise, it's like a full frame version of the 7D... Any thoughts on that? Do you feel that it's built as good as the 7d or even better? I understand compared to the 5d2, it's much better, but that really wasn't setting the bar real high to begin with. How was the sharpness of files? We've seen a handful of images/complaints from people on this forum and such saying images aren't that sharp/crisp... I understand you could only view from the rear LCD, but what are your thoughts on this?

 

[Andrei Morar]

Hi, thanks for writing that. How is the viewfinder blackout time and shutter release lag time, I know it has been lowered from the Rebel-class spec of the previous two Marks, but is it really humanly noticeable or is it just another equipment measurbating number? Subjectively, how is the shutter release/re-cocking and reflex mirror movement sound? Noticeably different or same as Mk. II? TIA.

Frankly, I have no idea about the figures of the blackout time.

Glad that you asked me about the shutter sound because I realized I forgot to mention it in my review. The shutter in normal mode sounds more mushy, distinct from the 5D Mark II. It seemed also a little less loud.
What I want to mention is the silent shutter feature. AMAZING! Activate it and the camera shutter is barely audible and, in my opinion, is less loud than using Live view on the Mark II. I can see a lot of usages for this features (photographing asleep babies, classical music concerts etc)

 

[Andrei Morar]

I have heard from review sites, body wise, it's like a full frame version of the 7D... Any thoughts on that? Do you feel that it's built as good as the 7d or even better? I understand compared to the 5d2, it's much better, but that really wasn't setting the bar real high to begin with. How was the sharpness of files? We've seen a handful of images/complaints from people on this forum and such saying images aren't that sharp/crisp... I understand you could only view from the rear LCD, but what are your thoughts on this?

To me the 5D Mark II that I own is perfectly built. I have been using it for 3 years through rain, snow and it did it's job. The Mark III seemed more compact, more 7D-like with it's rounded shapes and certainly very well built.

As far as sharpness is concerned the 24-70 L II + Mark III combo gave me some sharp results judging from the LCD. I shot at 2.8 at 24mm and when zoomed at 100% the image was very sharp.

 

[Andrei Morar]

Thanks for sharing! Good input, especially about the lens and how they achieved the lighter weight. Glad I was able to read your comments. It would have been disappointing to order the lens and be surprised by that change.

Sounds kind of like 100 Macro L construction. That's a lens that I don't 'love' the construction on but it works.

At first I was let down at finding that the lens is made of plastic. I was thinking plastic=low quality build. But when the rep argued that we are talking about high-grade plastic, the kind that's nearly unbreakable I began to see the advantages: equally tough as metal (and possibly tougher) and much lighter.

I can tell you that at weddings my hands get tired after 10 hours of using the 5D Mark II with grip + 24-70 I + 580 EX II.

 

[awinphoto]

I have heard from review sites, body wise, it's like a full frame version of the 7D... Any thoughts on that? Do you feel that it's built as good as the 7d or even better? I understand compared to the 5d2, it's much better, but that really wasn't setting the bar real high to begin with. How was the sharpness of files? We've seen a handful of images/complaints from people on this forum and such saying images aren't that sharp/crisp... I understand you could only view from the rear LCD, but what are your thoughts on this?

To me the 5D Mark II that I own is perfectly built. I have been using it for 3 years through rain, snow and it did it's job. The Mark III seemed more compact, more 7D-like with it's rounded shapes and certainly very well built.

As far as sharpness is concerned the 24-70 L II + Mark III combo gave me some sharp results judging from the LCD. I shot at 2.8 at 24mm and when zoomed at 100% the image was very sharp.

Thanks for the quick reply! In regards to the 5d2s weathersealing, it's been said to be similar to the xxd but the 7d raised the bar a bit... Anywho I'm pleased that you felt it was better. Do you know if the battery and card doors are spring loaded and lined like the 7D or are they just simple hinges like the 5d2? I hope it doesn't have the weird affect the 7d does when you take out it's battery, the LCD overlay in the VF goes dark and blurry and you cannot focus/use the camera other than being a paperweight until the battery is reinserted.

 

[Andrei Morar]

I have heard from review sites, body wise, it's like a full frame version of the 7D... Any thoughts on that? Do you feel that it's built as good as the 7d or even better? I understand compared to the 5d2, it's much better, but that really wasn't setting the bar real high to begin with. How was the sharpness of files? We've seen a handful of images/complaints from people on this forum and such saying images aren't that sharp/crisp... I understand you could only view from the rear LCD, but what are your thoughts on this?

To me the 5D Mark II that I own is perfectly built. I have been using it for 3 years through rain, snow and it did it's job. The Mark III seemed more compact, more 7D-like with it's rounded shapes and certainly very well built.

As far as sharpness is concerned the 24-70 L II + Mark III combo gave me some sharp results judging from the LCD. I shot at 2.8 at 24mm and when zoomed at 100% the image was very sharp.

Thanks for the quick reply! In regards to the 5d2s weathersealing, it's been said to be similar to the xxd but the 7d raised the bar a bit... Anywho I'm pleased that you felt it was better. Do you know if the battery and card doors are spring loaded and lined like the 7D or are they just simple hinges like the 5d2? I hope it doesn't have the weird affect the 7d does when you take out it's battery, the LCD overlay in the VF goes dark and blurry and you cannot focus/use the camera other than being a paperweight until the battery is reinserted.

I didn't think to open the battery door so I have no idea how it was. The card door was taped by the rep to prevent you from taking out the card and inserting yours. Can't say I wasn't tempted to do that )
What I did notice is the rubbery cover over the CF and SD door. Much better than the 5D Mark II.