EOS 6D launch and effect on 5D MkII & MKIII

[Myth]

With the 6D due to be launched in the coming weeks what does everyone think will happen to the 5D MK II? Will it disappear? Quickly, or be phased out gradually? Possibly a reduction in price for the MK II so that it is not too close to the 6D price and competing with it?

The 5D MKIII has been gradually dropping in price but must be about to reach a limit so that it doesn't compete with the 6D? Presumably this limit will need to hold for a good 6 months to allow the 6D to capitalise on profits from initial sales? i.e., no further price drops on the 5D MKIII for a while...

Is there a market that can support all 3 cameras? !

I recently spoke to a sales person at a camera event who suggested that there may be a market for all three cameras and that Canon had no plans to cease production of the 5D MKII. But at a relatively close price point to the 6D this surely cannot be good for sales of either camera?

 

[darrellrhodesmiller]

i think it will partially depend on the camera... and the reviews.
i think they are very different cameras... the 5d mk III is one hell of a camera.. but at the price point its out of a lot of peoples reach. the 6D will fill a really good part of the market if its sensor performs well. i think market price is 2000.00? or 2100.00? meaning sale/retail will be 1700 to 1800.00 its still not a cheap camera but given that its full frame with GPS and some other interesting features... there will be a market.

Car manufacturers have always had multiple cars with many of the same features but things that make the models stand out. i see this no different. as of now if you're a canon shooter you have a 5d mk II which is a good camera but 5 yr old technology and the 5mk III, and the 5DX.. as great as the high end market is.. There are far more amateur.. semi-pro, and soccer moms that want a nice camera. but dont need a high end full frame for $3000.00+

 

[gngan]

Just got an e-mail from Canon Hong Kong for pre-ordering 6D with kit lens (24-105 F4; not the rumor 24-70 F4). It cost HKD$21580 which is around USD$2767 but it was sold out when i checked. Only 50 pre-order.

I am in the market for FF and is pretty set on the 5D III but the price has gone up a little so i will wait until the price drops a little.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

The 5D MK II is going away soon. Get one while you can.
Two things are hurting camera sales for every manufacturer. The world wide economy, and increased competition. Its not getting better right now, so prices will keep dropping.

 

[RLPhoto]

I feel great about the 6D! It snagged me a new 5D3 for 2500$ 8)

 

[RC]

Canon succeeded. The 6D sent me to the 5D3. Coming from a 7D, I could never be happy with a 6D.

 

[Gino]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

 

[azizjhn]

For me definitely i will Get the 6D over 5D MK II : (HDR - Multiple exposure - better autofocus - better low light performance - ability to update lenses like 40mm pancake - WiFi - GPS - smaller size)

Things i wished for (7D autofocus system but since it has features like acceleration & deceleration tracking system Etc... i guess it will be far better than my T2i - No built in flash but i will get EX90 since it has master function wireless trigger)

regarding dual card slots i don't really care but better have it than not.

 

[Myth]

Thanks everyone for your useful comments. I am in the market for a FF camera, stepping up from a 550D, so a big leap.

I've used a rented 5D MK II a few times and found it to be a good camera both for stills and video. I'm hoping to stretch to purchase a 5D MKIII (body only) by the end of 2012. A big stretch for me but it should cover all my needs now and for the foreseeable future.

I think i'll wait until the 6D launches to see what happens to 5D pricing. If the 5D MKII drops in price then I might be tempted to purchase and use the savings for a 135mm/ F2 lens, or hold onto the money i've saved so that eventually when in a year or two the MKIII drops lower in price I can consider a purchase to enable me to have a second camera.

I doubt I would purchase a 6D intially as Canon's recent QC has not been up to scratch and i'll be surprised by the end of the first 6 weeks of sales if some user hasn't found a bug.

I've been saving since the 5D MKIII launched so another 4 weeks shouldn't hurt too much. I'm just glad I didn't purchase earlier this year. I don't make a living from my photography so the price drop would really have hurt...

thanks

 

[cinema-dslr]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

I am fascinated as to why people feel a second card slot is worth a dime, I have had one for years and rarely use it, even then it is only for an Eye-Fi, something I could easily live without. Why do people value a second card slot so highly?

for example:
dual slots can be used as a raid setup so writing the same to both cards , that way you don't have to pull all your hair out of your head when a card goes corrupt
or shoot jpg on one and raw on the other so on events you can ofload the jpg's quickly and keep the raws as backup

 

[Gino]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

I am fascinated as to why people feel a second card slot is worth a dime, I have had one for years and rarely use it, even then it is only for an Eye-Fi, something I could easily live without. Why do people value a second card slot so highly?

I usually shoot RAW to the primary card slot and jpeg to the secondary. I'd hate to lose a priceless moment to a memory card failure....I know it rarely happens but it does happen (even with Sandisk Extreme Pro cards)! So, to me a 2nd memory card slot is way more important than GPS or WiFi!!!

 

[Chuck Alaimo]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

I am fascinated as to why people feel a second card slot is worth a dime, I have had one for years and rarely use it, even then it is only for an Eye-Fi, something I could easily live without. Why do people value a second card slot so highly?

for example:
dual slots can be used as a raid setup so writing the same to both cards , that way you don't have to pull all your hair out of your head when a card goes corrupt
or shoot jpg on one and raw on the other so on events you can ofload the jpg's quickly and keep the raws as backup

I disagree regarding card slots. Dual cards I'd say is more of a 'pro' feature. The average user is the type that will shoot in jpeg only, and consider 100 shots a huge amount, filling up a 16 gig card may take weeks. Also, the importance of files --- pro's need that redundancy, the casual user does not (yes they do want it, but no, it is not a NEED.). Now the pop-up flash I can see being useful and wanted for the casual user. that's my overall problem with the 6d --- it's kind of pro, but really not, and kind of casual, but really not.

 

[Gino]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

I am fascinated as to why people feel a second card slot is worth a dime, I have had one for years and rarely use it, even then it is only for an Eye-Fi, something I could easily live without. Why do people value a second card slot so highly?

for example:
dual slots can be used as a raid setup so writing the same to both cards , that way you don't have to pull all your hair out of your head when a card goes corrupt
or shoot jpg on one and raw on the other so on events you can ofload the jpg's quickly and keep the raws as backup

I disagree regarding card slots. Dual cards I'd say is more of a 'pro' feature. The average user is the type that will shoot in jpeg only, and consider 100 shots a huge amount, filling up a 16 gig card may take weeks. Also, the importance of files --- pro's need that redundancy, the casual user does not (yes they do want it, but no, it is not a NEED.). Now the pop-up flash I can see being useful and wanted for the casual user. that's my overall problem with the 6d --- it's kind of pro, but really not, and kind of casual, but really not.

I went on a fishing trip with my grandpa a few years ago and I took several hundred photos with my Nikon D700...the memory card I used was a Sandisk Extreme 8GB. I still don't know what happened, but when I went to download the photos, the memory card somehow got corrupt and all the photos were lost.

My Grandpa died last year, and I sure wish I had the photos from that fishing trip....if the Nikon D700 had a 2nd memory card slot, I would have those photos!

Now, do you get the picture of why I think a 2nd memory card slot is so important....you can't replace the moment of when a photo is taken! This has nothing to do with 'Pro' vs. amateur features!

 

[Chuck Alaimo]

The two things that the 6D is lacking that I think are important to a amateur/prosumer photographer are a second memory card slot and a pop-up flash. I just purchased a Nikon D600 for my father, rather than the 6D, because the D600 had the second memory card slot and a pop-up flash.

I could care less about WiFi and GPS....and video for that matter! I think Canon should have designed this camera geared toward purely still photography, and left out the video, which would have kept down the retail price and Canon might have been able to price it around $1,500. The Nikon D700 doesn't have video, and look at how many still love that camera!

I am fascinated as to why people feel a second card slot is worth a dime, I have had one for years and rarely use it, even then it is only for an Eye-Fi, something I could easily live without. Why do people value a second card slot so highly?

for example:
dual slots can be used as a raid setup so writing the same to both cards , that way you don't have to pull all your hair out of your head when a card goes corrupt
or shoot jpg on one and raw on the other so on events you can ofload the jpg's quickly and keep the raws as backup

I disagree regarding card slots. Dual cards I'd say is more of a 'pro' feature. The average user is the type that will shoot in jpeg only, and consider 100 shots a huge amount, filling up a 16 gig card may take weeks. Also, the importance of files --- pro's need that redundancy, the casual user does not (yes they do want it, but no, it is not a NEED.). Now the pop-up flash I can see being useful and wanted for the casual user. that's my overall problem with the 6d --- it's kind of pro, but really not, and kind of casual, but really not.

I went on a fishing trip with my grandpa a few years ago and I took several hundred photos with my Nikon D700...the memory card I used was a Sandisk Extreme 8GB. I still don't know what happened, but when I went to download the photos, the memory card somehow got corrupt and all the photos were lost.

My Grandpa died last year, and I sure wish I had the photos from that fishing trip....if the Nikon D700 had a 2nd memory card slot, I would have those photos!

Now, do you get the picture of why I think a 2nd memory card slot is so important....you can't replace the moment of when a photo is taken! This has nothing to do with 'Pro' vs. amateur features!

I still disagree. It's still an issue of needs vs wants. I'm not trying to say that saving special moments isn't important, but - there is a clear difference between you hanging with you grandpa (and please do realize I'm not minimizing how important that is to you), as opposed to hiring a a photographer to come shoot you and your grandpa. The hired photog NEEDs the backup, because that is his/her job. You WANT the image.

If the want is that important then you make the financial sacrifice and buy something with 2 slots (i see by your sig you have a mk3, which means you have 2 slots). If you want that then you buy something with it. I'm more or less arguing the premise that dual card slots is a casual consumer NEED, and will sway buyers. I don't think that will - when it comes to the 6d what will make the difference is what the images from that camera look like - and whether or not your invested in a 'system' or not. That's why I feel like the 6d's flaw is it's not pro enough to be pro, but, it's not amateur enough to be amateur...

All that said, lets see this thing in the wild. I am on the fence between a 6d and a second mk3. For weddings I want both my bodies to be on a similar level in IQ. I liket he idea of a smaller second body because of the weight - i have no issue with a heavy camera - but, at the end of the night, i could see it being very nice to roll with a 6d + 16-35mm lens, that is if the images from it will look similar to the mk3....

 

[Loswr]

I still disagree. It's still an issue of needs vs wants. I'm not trying to say that saving special moments isn't important, but - there is a clear difference between you hanging with you grandpa (and please do realize I'm not minimizing how important that is to you), as opposed to hiring a a photographer to come shoot you and your grandpa. The hired photog NEEDs the backup, because that is his/her job. You WANT the image.

So...all those photogs who shot weddings with a 5DII, 5D...or ~gasp~ film...were not doing their job? It's as much of a WANT for a hired photog. This is sounding a little like M.ST's statement in another thread, "You don´t need a FF camera for private use." If it's a critical shot, it's a critical shot - regardless of whether or not you're getting paid for it.

 

[Chuck Alaimo]

I still disagree. It's still an issue of needs vs wants. I'm not trying to say that saving special moments isn't important, but - there is a clear difference between you hanging with you grandpa (and please do realize I'm not minimizing how important that is to you), as opposed to hiring a a photographer to come shoot you and your grandpa. The hired photog NEEDs the backup, because that is his/her job. You WANT the image.

So...all those photogs who shot weddings with a 5DII, 5D...or ~gasp~ film...were not doing their job? It's as much of a WANT for a hired photog. This is sounding a little like M.ST's statement in another thread, "You don´t need a FF camera for private use." If it's a critical shot, it's a critical shot - regardless of whether or not you're getting paid for it.

Neuro --- I get that and totally agree. And I am not totally disagreeing with gino either - I agree that dual cards is desirable - what i don't agree with is that its a deal breaker necessity for the causal consumer user. I also agree with this too ---

"Now, do you get the picture of why I think a 2nd memory card slot is so important....you can't replace the moment of when a photo is taken! This has nothing to do with 'Pro' vs. amateur features!"

Not really no, give lots of people two card slot options and half the time most will only use one anyway, for those that do use both slots I would expect a large percentage of the time they will have the write to card options configured to not duplicate anyway! Writing to two cards hits write speed so affects burst number and speed, not necessarily initially, but once the buffer is close to full it sure can take some time to write all that info out again, twice.

Further, I would only take a stab at numbers but as for card failure, I'd put camera loss and theft, people losing the actual card, or a multitude of other factors as having a bigger impact on image loss. Sh*t happens, there is a very good reason that big productions shoot tethered and make on the fly backups.

Again, I am not arguing the idea that dual cards are desirable, just that it's a super important feature to the general consumer - where it may be a deal breaker to a pro who wants to backup their files as they shoot.

 

[Loswr]

@ Chuck - makes perfect sense, thanks!

 

[Myth]

Interestingly I received a photographic trade magazine today and the most notable thing is the omission of all mention of the 5D MKII !!

:'(

 

[Gino]

So answer this question, do you ever back-up your computer to make sure you don't lose the important files/photos you have saved??? Having a 2nd memory card slot is the same thing when it comes to a camera! I guess we're not going to agree on the importance of having back-up files!

My point is from a retail price standpoint, I'd much rather have a camera with a 2nd memory card slot and pop-up flash vs. a camera that had one card slot and no pop-up flash, but had GPS and WiFi. If you talk about the "wants v. needs", how many people really need GPS and WiFi?

Also, I don't think most people who own a DSLR bought it because they wanted the video feature, so it is also a feature that Canon could of left out of the 6D, and that would have kept down the cost.....it would have drove those that wanted video toward the 5D MKIII.

 

[Gino]

So answer this question, do you ever back-up your computer to make sure you don't lose the important files/photos you have saved??? Having a 2nd memory card slot is the same thing when it comes to a camera! I guess we're not going to agree on the importance of having back-up files!

My point is from a retail price standpoint, I'd much rather have a camera with a 2nd memory card slot and pop-up flash vs. a camera that had one card slot and no pop-up flash, but had GPS and WiFi. If you talk about the "wants v. needs", how many people really need GPS and WiFi?

Also, I don't think most people who own a DSLR bought it because they wanted the video feature, so it is also a feature that Canon could of left out of the 6D, and that would have kept down the cost.....it would have drove those that wanted video toward the 5D MKIII.

When it's all said and done, Nikon delivered what I wanted in the D600 with the dual memory card slots and pop-up flash for the same price as the 6D, and that is why I purchased the D600.