Camera Labs

Some of you may remember I had a short time dabbling with a 5D classic in the past, and didn't keep it long as I didn't get on with it. So have things changed with the 5D2?

First up, I have to say the 7D as my main camera is the benchmark. The 7D isn't perfect by any means, but it is the nearest I have.

In the hand, the 5D2 reminds me a lot of the similar age 50D. You get the old little power switch under the wheel, instead of the big level next to the mode dial. The CF slot door isn't sprung like on the 7D which can save those fractions of a second when changing cards. But the biggest surprise was the body felt... plasticy. This is hard to describe, but there is something more rugged feeling in the 7D.

Looking through the viewfinder, you do get the bigger picture, and the tiny cluster of AF points in the middle. The AF wasn't as bad, since I'm used to the diamond layout with various models now. Pressing the shutter button you get the ker-chunk as a huge lump of mirror flaps around.

Two of the things that put me off the 5D classic were the screen and lack of live view. No problems here, where it works similarly to the 7D. The 5D classic I could share batteries with my then 50D. I now have a similar situation with the 5D2 sharing battery types with the 7D. Save me sourcing yet another type of battery!

In the field, I was a little disappointed to find like earlier Canon models, you can't set auto-ISO in manual mode. This is handy if you do want to fix shutter and aperture, but let the camera deal with the ISO. I was also disappointed with the flash, in that it didn't have one. I had also forgotten about that, where it is helpful to have fill at times.

I was dreading doing the next job: checking the focus of the fast primes. On the 7D, pretty much every fast prime would focus too close, and had to have varying degrees of AF micro-adjust to compensate. I was pleasantly surprised that most of those same lenses didn't need any adjustment. The Canon 35/2, 85/1.8, 135/2 were all fine. The 50/1.8 did need adjustment though, as did the Zeiss 2/50 makro.

While I bought it for use with fast primes, I still find myself trying it on wildlife. Shallow DoF never really worked well for me there since you never have enough of the subject in focus with "slow" lenses, never mind fast primes. I find myself in the curious position of working out the crop equivalent focal length. The 70-300L is now equivalent to a 44-188 f/2.5-3.5 lens. So short! But thanks to the low pixel density it makes it easier to have pixel level sharpness, so you can still crop well.

Of course, it is still very early days for me with the 5D2. I haven't managed to peel myself away from sticking in my comfort zone and breaking out to the fast prime fun I bought it for.

Depending on my mood and the weather, tomorrow I'll be going to one of two locations where I'll be attempting to flex my landscape skills with the tilt shift, and perhaps find something to use the fast primes on while I'm there too.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

What an excellent list of thoughts on the 5D2 and the 7D.

I havent used AF adjustment on my 15-85mm lens for my 7D though - you mentioned that some lenses need adjustment - what do you do, and how can you tell if the lens needs an adjustment? Personally I cant tell how sharp a lens is when I dont have any other source to compare.

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1) Olympus OM1 [Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8]
2) Pentax MZ-60 [Sigma 28-90 & 100-300]
3) Canon 7D [EF-S 15-85 & 70-200mm f/4 IS]

Leo's Flickr Page

Testing for misfocus is dead simple. Point it at something, and take a shot! As the depth of field gets narrower, any error here becomes more noticeable. If you don't see a problem, there isn't one. If you do, it's easy enough to adjust the value to correct it.

Of course care needs to be taken in preparing for the test. Use a big enough contrasty flat surface parallel to the sensor, and next to that I put a slanted ruler which helps indicate the degree of error, if any. Look up the lens align product and basically you can improvise something like it easily enough.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Thanks for the info, I hope your 5D2 works out for you since I know it probably cost you a bit. I know I asked in a diff post about getting a 5D and I think this helps me keep my original idea that if and when I do decide to move up from my T2i it will be to a 7D. Take care, Merry Christmas

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

Nice. As a 50D owner, I've thought which avenue is better... 7D or 5d MkII. As impressive as the 7D is, I'd get the 5D MkII. The photos it could provide versus my 50D outweigh the advantages of what a 7D could offer. (50D plus 5D far more enticing than 50D + 7D.) Kudos.

Good posts, popo. Your thoughts are useful, as I wonder whether to purchase one of the clean, pre-owned 5D cameras I see with some frequency at local dealers, save for a 5D2, or, perhaps, just wait and see what the 5D2's successor offers.

I may, of course, do none of the above, as my 40D and 7D DSLRs, and 35mm Nikons, really do keep me occupied. I may wait until retirement to purchase any FF digital.

Leo, a way to tell if your 7D needs MFA is to set your camera firmly into place, and focus on something flat, with a pattern that has sharp edge detail, that is perfectly parallel to your 7D's sensor. Let the camera auto-focus, then switch to MF, activate Live View, and see if the image can be sharpened by adjusting manual focus. (Keep in mind that this can vary somewhat with distance!)

MOST cameras and lenses do not require MFA! One of my two 7D bodies would need MFA with most of my lenses, but it is so perfect with my 100mm 2.8L Macro, that I leave it alone. My 100L Macro stays virtually welded to that particular 7D, and all is well; that is one of my work-horse lenses. My other 7D experiences usage with more lenses, as it seems to be sharp with everything.

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Canon 7D/5D/40D/1D2N; Nikon F6, FM3A, & Coolpix A; Canon 40mm Pancake, 135L, 50L, 35L, pre-II 50mm 1.8, 100mm 2.8L Macro, 10-22mm EF-S, 28-135 EF, 400mm 5.6L; Nikkor 50mm 1.2 AI-S, 50mm 1.4G, 50mm 1.8D, 16mm 2.8D Fisheye, 180mm 2.8D, 100-300mm 5.6 AI-S; Tokina 17mm & 100mm 2.8 Macro

There have been a number of useful threads on this topic and this is one more. Rather than reiterate everything else I have said on other threads let's just say I hope the 5D mk3 makes up for the difficiencies of the 5D mk2.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.

Just got back from the family meet, where I did take the 5D2 and a bunch of primes to use. Lessons I got include:
* I need to look more closely at what primes to use. I suck at MF, so the only AF lenses I had for "portrait" were 35mm and 85mm. I like the look of the 85mm, but it was rather tight indoors, where I had to then switch to the 35mm for close up. I think if I had taken the 50mm it would have been in the sweet spot. I have never really tried portrait before.
* AF was difficult too. Even with f/2 or faster lenses, the 5D2 was struggling to find lock, on a surprisingly fast moving baby. The lighting was quite poor, I didn't have flash. Note: bring a flash next time!

I think the 50mm f/1.4 just went up on my "to buy" list quite a bit, and the 35mm f/1.4 too but that can wait a bit later. The f/2 is just too loud during AF.

Side note: my niece's husband has defected from his Canon (xxxD class) and now has some big Nikon! Everyone was also using their cameraphones a lot too. They are very much more into facebook than I am.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Sounds familiar.
I have struggled with the 7D and primes when indoors, ie capturing at kids party and family get togethers. A bit surprised that the 5D still has the same issues, not that I should be when I think about it, its all about light in the end. DOF was also more of a problem than benefit in this case.
Stuffed up way too many shots of my niece when using the 50 1.8 in low light.

I now find the 15-85 with external flash the best option.

I guess to use the 5D/7D indoors without an external flash, you need a studio type environment or at least bright sunlight coming in a window.

Still if money was no object, would love one. Its dof in the 40-140 range I am chasing. This would make a 5D and a 70-200 2.8 ideal. The 70-300 L might be enough for that on a 5D II

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Canon Powershot S95, Canon 7D, 15-85, Canon 85 1.8 USM, Sigma 30 1.4, 50mm 1.8, Canon 100 2.8L IS Macro, Canon 70-300L IS USM+Kenko 1.4 Pro 300DGX, Canon 430EX II and RS 4 Classic

It is amazing how fast those little babies can be. Yeah, I settled on the 35mm f/2 just for cost at the moment, but yes, that thing is loud. It is hard to get cute shots of my new cats. I'm not sure the 35mm f/1.4 will be in my budget for a while. I'm shooting for the 15-85mm first then I may go for the 28mm f/1.8 or the Sigma 30mm f/1.4

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

Good choice. Like your 85mm the 50mm is a bit too tight indoors on my crop frame 40D. It would be good with the full frame 5D.

As you say the autofocus on the 5D is disappointing. Certainly about time Canon updated it on the 5D mk3.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.

Yeah, with the narrower DoF, manual focusing primes wide open would be hard.

Do you have the optional focusing screen?

I haven't done a side by side comparison, but the light was so bad I'm not sure if the 7D would have done any better had I used it that time. In a quick scan of the output it seems ok, but I'll reserve judgement until I get home and have a real go at editing it.

I think I have the other focus screen, originally bought for the 5D classic but I believe it is the same one for both. Not fitted it yet as I'm still learning the camera feel "out of the box".

Forgot to mention, before Christmas day I did venture out to the windswept countryside of Dartmoor to attempt some landscapes with it. I still suck compositionally. Initially I started with a 24mm, but after a while I realised I think 35mm worked more for me at the time.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

As a proud owner of the canon 50/1.4 I must say that it doesn’t improve much on a Canon’s focus locking abilities. Sometimes it’s almost impossible to achieve a focus lock indoors without the flash focus assist beam. Outdoors it’s better even at night, it seems that indoors the contrast is much lower and my camera fails to focus lock in low light. I’m still envious of Nicon’s focus assist beam, I’ve directly compared them and Nicon wan every time. I’m using the external’s flash assist beam that casts a red light grid on the subject for the camera to focus on. It works even if I disable the flash in the camera menu.

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Radu
Canon PowerShot S100
Canon 50D , SIGMA 10-20 f3.5 ,Canon EF 24-105 L IS USM, Canon EF 100/2.8 macro Canon EF 50/1.4 ,Canon EF 85 f1.8,Canon EF-S17-85 4-5.6 Old Tamron 28-300 inherited from my Canon Rebel G film camera
Canon580EXII
http://www.errre.net

On the old analog EOS cameras there was a light like those... don't know why they removed them - they can't be so expensive... That's one of the reasons for always carrying a pocket lamp around. In the darkness outside I use a laser + live view, manual focus.

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Canon EOS 500D + Canon EOS 5D Mark III
Canon EF 24-105mm 4L IS USM + EF 100-400mm 4.5-5.6L IS USM + EF 100mm 2.8L Macro IS USM + Sigma 12-24mm 4.5-5.6 EX DG HSM + Canon Speedlite 580 EX II + Nissin Speedlite Di 466