Second 5D Mark IV or a 5DsR

[bdunbar79]

Hello forum members! It's been awhile since I've posted. I'm going to be getting into other areas of photography besides sports, and wanted to see your opinion. I recently took a 5D4 out to shoot sports along with my 1Dx's, and I was blown away by the IQ on the 5D4 vs. the 1Dx. Indoors the IQ wasn't even close. I would like to sell one of my 1Dx's and buy either another 5D4 or a 5DsR. My other question is, does the added DR of the 5D4 outweigh the extra MP of the 5DsR? Thanks in advance!

 

[Deleted member 7828]

I own and use both cameras...different uses for each, honestly so I couldn't tell you. Each camera has its own pros and cons. I will say for general everyday shooting, I prefer the 5D4... and note that the 5DSR is a significantly slower camera (FPS, shot-to-shot) in use than either the 5D4 or the 1DX. It is also not quite as good at high ISO...but in well-lit scenarios, if you put a good lens on it, it's unrivaled in IQ. I prefer the OOC colors of the 5DSR to the 5D4, the 5D4 has a flatter (more neutral) output but that's not necessarily bad. It does mean more work in post for images where I want more vibrant colors though. If you're blown away by the 5D4 IQ, the 5DSR is on another level altogether, except in the dimmest lighting. But again, you do have to own and attach a top-notch lens to it in order to truly realize its resolution. IOW, a 24-105 ain't gonna cut it...

Here's my general breakdown...if you do more of the following, what I would lean toward:
Still Portraits, Landscapes - 5DSR
Event Shooting, HDR, Travel & Sports - 5D4

 

[bdunbar79]

Thank you Alan. Yes work has changed some. I still will do sports, but not as much, as my duties will be split 50:50 between sports and portrait-work. My plan is to still keep 3 bodies, but I'm ok with sacrificing fps with a 5D4 instead of a 1Dx. It didn't work too well for me with volleyball and soccer, at least, not as well as the 1Dx, but I can manage it by forcing to practice better technique perhaps. I would love to do headshots and senior photos with the 5DsR (I have glass) but wasn't sure if the sensor design change of the 5D4 trumped the MP's on the 5DsR. It sounds like at reasonable ISO's, it doesn't. Thank you!

 

[[email protected]]

I went through same debate. I sold 1dx Mark 1s for a 5D4 + another body. That was to be either another 5D4 or a 5DSR. I was initially dead set on getting the 50mp monster, but after borrowing one from Canon through the CPS program, I realized a few things:
1) It's feel and interface is more akin to the 7D Mark II era. It's better than the 5D Mark III, but not at all like the 5D4. This includes the absence of some features that had even come out before the 5DS series did. I found that a bit frustrating.
2) It's, as you noted, a bit slow. Fine for my macro work, but not for most of what I shoot.
3) 800 is high ISO for that camera, if you're hoping to take best advantage of the megapixels. Past that point, you may well do better with the 5D4.
4) The 5D4's files are pushable in a fashion that was unlike those from other Canon sensors. A file that might look better out of camera from the 5DSR might not look as good as that from the 5D4 after post processing.
5) Here is the big reason why I chose a second 5D4: the controls were different enough between the cameras, that I would not be able to make them interchangeable in shooting. I couldn't grab one that had the right lens on it and start shooting. I'd, instead, need to be thinking about which lens to choose to take off and put onto which body, etc., every time. Having identical bodies allows a certain fluidity of process that's important for events and other genres where you need to very quickly take advantage of found opportunities. I later found I did not regret this.

This is not to say that there hasn't been something lost. Those 50mp files were amazing when I had the camera locked down on a tripod and in good light. That's just not a frequent thing for me.

 

[AlanF]

The iso performance depends on the RAW converter and noise reduction software. DxO Photolabs with PRIME noise reduction works exceedingly well on the 5DSR, far better than DPP or Adobe, and extends the usable range. If you are not that worried about fine detail or need faster bursts and response, go for the 5DIV. If you are trying to grab all extra resolution, then it's the 5DSR. They are both very fine cameras.

 

[Deleted member 7828]

800 is high ISO for that camera, if you're hoping to take best advantage of the megapixels. Past that point, you may well do better with the 5D4.

Actually, I would say that it’s been my experience that the 5DSR outperforms the 5D4 in pure detail capture all the way up to 6400. But it is true that the gap closes, sometimes rapidly, as you approach 6400. Where the 5D4 wins out is in color retention in very low light. The 5DSR may show distracting color noise as low as 3200, while the 5D4 will keep that under control all the way up to 12,800. Your low-light, high ISO shots will show more accurate colors on the 5D4. That is the trade off vs. more detail.

 

[bdunbar79]

Thank you for all the responses everyone! I really appreciate it!

 

[dak723]

For portrait work I would NOT choose the 5DsR. More detail (including every pore and every small hair on a person's face) would be the last thing I want, but that is just my personal opinion.

 

[Deleted member 7828]

Fair point, to each his own. Personally, I'd rather have too much detail than not enough, since you can always remove detail but you can't add it back. This is part of my beef with low-pass filter implementation, although I understand and realize that in certain shooting situations, it can be nice to have.

 

[Larsskv]

I had the 5Ds before getting the 5DIV. I find the 5DIV to be a better all round camera. It is a little better in so many ways that the total user experience is significantly better with the IV. The touchscreen, the dual pixel AF in live view, and the generally faster and more responsive operation makes the IV better. The files are better as well, in terms of ISO and DR.

I find 30 megapixels to be a sweet spot resolution wise.

50 megapixels slow down both the camera and your computer, and post processing. Further, it demands more out of your lenses. Lenses you like on a 20 megapixel camera might show significant weaknesses on the 50 megapixel camera.

My honest opinion is that if you don’t have a particular need for 50 megapixels, then go for the 5DIV.

All this said, I agree that you can get amazing images and IQ from the 5Ds/r. And it is good in terms of ISO, if you downsize the files.