1D Mark III for Weddings?

futureal33

futureal33

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Afternoon all

I am currently shooting weddings with a 5D Mk1 and 5D Mk3 in combination. I use a variety of prime lenses which generally means I need to use both caneras together at the same time on a double strap.

So far, this combination has worked really well, albeit with a couple of minor things I'm not 100% happy with on the 5D Mk1:

Auto focus on outer points - this is the main issue
Screen - minor point, but sometimes checking focus is correct can be difficult
Noise - generally not a problem but I try to keep below 1600.

I am considering upgrading the 5Dmk1 to a 1D3 purely for the AF, and hoping I gain a little bit in other areas too...?

Just wondering if anyone here uses the 1Dmk3 for weddings and could give their opinion?
10mp is enough for me - in fact I usually shoot my 5Dmk3 in sRAW anyway at weddings.

The only thing putting me off the 1D3 is the 1.3 crop - having never used a 1.3crop before I just don't know how I will get on. It may screw my focal lengths up a bit.
It will be used with any of the following lenses

35L
50 1.4
85 1.4
135L
24-70
17-40 L

I would need some reconsidering of which lenses to pair together, but that's another story!

Thanks for any feedback / help
 
Big disadvantage with the 1DS II is the battery life!
 
I've read some much about the 1DsII vs 1DIII and have settled on the 3 for the following reasons

Menu and two button operation (in particular the focus point selection method)
High ISO - native 1600 is just too low. Performance on the DIII looks better too
AF - the 1DIII has cross X sensors all the way round the VF - not just the middle
Battery life - heard it not great
Screen - I'd like to be able to check pics accurately and 2" isn't enough

It really has been tough deciding on 1DsII vs 1DIII but I think the III just offers an all round better package, with the only drawback being the 1.3x crop :-/

Also - the 1DsIII has been considered but its 2nd hand price is the same as a new 5DIII which is better - so that's a no go
 
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a1ex2001 said:
If it were me and my business I'd get another 5d mkiii.
Click to expand...

or a 5D MKII.

Personally having shot 1D MKIIIs across a season of weddings back in 2008 I wouldn't trust them. Even with the hardware and firmware fixes mine were poor, and unreliable. Unless you could extensively test it I wouldn't buy one on spec.

There wasn't an alternative at the time, and so I switched to Nikon, now you have the 5D MKII, MKIII and the 1D IV, 1Dx I would't make a backwards step. If funds are an issue then the 5D MII should be around the same as a 1D MKIII.
 
Hi,
I have the 1d mkiii which i have recently purchased and used it at one wedding so far, along with a 5d classic, and i also mainly use prime lenses.

So far this is what i have found:

The 1d is far better than the 5d at focusing, especially the outer edge focus points. It is very customisable (if thats a word) and has the added bonus of having two memory card slots, where you can record the same image to both as a backup in case of a card failure.

The battery on this is also great, i shot over a 800 images with it, and it still had 60% life left in it.

From the files i have looked at the 1d handles noise quite a bit better than the 5d, usually only go to 800 on the 5d but was using 3200 happily on the 1d

I do not think you will be disappointed if you upgraded the 5d classic to the 1diii. Also i found that having a full frame and a 1.3 crop was useful as it effectively doubles your lenses giving the different crop factors.

Cheers

Pete
 
I'd get a 5DMKII as the IQ and ISO wins over the 1D3 and personally, I wouldn't be able to live with the two different crop factors. My lens choices are geared towards my shooting style and I'd always be reaching for the 5DMK3. 1DS2 is nice but the screen, buffer and image review delay will frustrate the hell out of you. I've now settled on the 1DSMK3 and can't see myself changing for a while.
 
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markmullen said:
I'd recommend a 1Ds2 instead, same AF performance but full frame.
Click to expand...

Overall 1DsII has an edge, where clean and sharp 16mp files play a big part. But it doesn't shoot 10fps (only 4),while 1diii has a silent mode (!) and in the very low light, mkiii has faster af and one step higher iso. As weddings don't really need 16mp the playing field is more level than in landscapes or real estate.

AF is great on both:

1DIII 85mm f/1.8 AI Servo (all points) and pin sharp

I tend to put a little longer glass on 1D, so 1.3x isn't really noticeable

admirable said:
Big disadvantage with the 1DS II is the battery life!
Click to expand...

it's true, but you can take more than one battery! Two in a day is usually enough. Some 3rd parties made 'bigger' batteries (after all its 8xAA in a plastic shell) so that's another way to deal with it; or cough up for 5DIII
 
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Initially I thought 5d2 but then remembered you were looking for better AF, so then thought 1d3, but crop factor was an issue ...

I then thought about familiarity of using two different bodies with different button layout, especially when that once in a lifetime moment occurs at a wedding.

I'd save up and get another 5d3....persevere with what you have until then....you have one already so you know how good they are.

The positives of going this way are just too many not to.
 
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