5D mkII - what a disappointment...

specialman

specialman

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Pat MacInnes
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A guy at work has just spent a small fortune on new gear, the centrepiece being a gripped 5D mkII (he also got a 24-70 f/2.8, 100-400mm IS and a 17-40mm - lucky sod :)) and although I'm severely impressed by the performance capabilities of a full frame 21mp sensor with such sweet lenses, after a bit of use I'm not at all convinced.

Why? I use a D200 and it's got great handling, no doubt about it - ISO and WB button in the right place, a rear command dial that's right on your thumb (and a front dial right on your index finger) and it's generally as easy to use under pressure as you'll get – but the 5D's handling and button configuration just seems so clumsy and badly designed that I just can't see it as a serious outdoor photographers camera. It's fine for the studio where you can take your time but watching everyone in the office playing with it (they all use Canons by the way) is painful to say the least, and that's purely down to button configuration.

Changing modes is a fiddle - Canon still haven't managed to fit a smooth dial wheel to its cameras - and the ISO/WB/AF buttons are just too small, plus fiddly when you need to change settings because of the clunky command dials.

Although the handling is pretty good compared to smaller cameras (none of which can rival its IQ though), alongside something like a 30 or 40D it doesn't seem that much of a step up. Okay, grip it up and it is substantial and more like a 1D or a D2/3 but the plastics, although tough, just feel a little clinical without and real texture or feel.

Before you think 'oh yeah, a Nikon fanboy', I used Canons for 10 years and never thought twice about their great design, especially in the olden days when models like the 5 and the 3 were the dog's bits. Plus, I'm not convinced about these gimmicky add-ons like HD video we're seeing on the likes of the D300s and the D90. However, looking through the selection of DSLRs there are out there, Canon just don't seem to be taking any great strides to improve how digital SLRs should feel in the hand in general, more taking technology further but with bad design as the trade-off. Is that really what the leading consumer brand should be all about?

I am rarely disappointed when it comes to modern digitals –*after all, they're so much more than we could have even imagined back when we were slaving away in the devving rooms at the lab - but for such a large investment of money, not to mention the furore that the release of this model created when it was originally mooted and announced, it really does seem like a bit of a anti-climax of great proportions.

I'll probably be linched by a few 5D and EOS users but sorry, I'm just no impressed by the design of what's supposed to be a class leader...
 
I think you would get used to all the things you have commented on if you gave it a while. I'm a Canon person and I recently used a friends Nikon and thought it was terrible compared to my 40d. My friend feels the opposite.

So while I have no desire to lynch you, I do think you are one crazy boy who needs to spend a bit more time with Canon.

Go on, come back in to the light. You know you want it. Go on, you know you want it!!! :)
 
Badger UK said:
I think you would get used to all the things you have commented on if you gave it a while. I'm a Canon person and I recently used a friends Nikon and thought it was terrible compared to my 40d. My friend feels the opposite.

So while I have no desire to lynch you, I do think you are one crazy boy who needs to spend a bit more time with Canon.

Go on, come back in to the light. You know you want it. Go on, you know you want it!!! :)
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+1

There may be reasons to complain about Canon but this is not one of them in my opinion.
 
I've been a canon user for 35mm kit since the eos100 was released and have been happy with many models. It does take time to get used to a wholesale swap and can often feel very uncomfortable to start out.

Saying that, someone let me have a play with a D200 a couple of years back and I loved it instantly.
 
Like others I cannot fathom Nikon at all and while you may find Canon buttons clumsy, I feel exactly the same way about Nikon buttons and menus. Might as well be in heirogliphics! :)
 
specialman said:
the 5D's handling and button configuration just seems so clumsy and badly designed that I just can't see it as a serious outdoor photographers camera. It's fine for the studio where you can take your time but watching everyone in the office playing with it (they all use Canons by the way) is painful to say the least, and that's purely down to button configuration.
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When Canon launched the 5D they did everything they could to get a full frame sensor into a body cheap enough for enthusiasts. They managed it, but the compromise came with the features and handling and I think they've done the same with the 5DII.

I've always maintained that if all you want to shoot is landscapes or possible studio work then the 5D is fine, but if you wnat to shoot anything more dynamic it falls down with poor AF and fps amongst other things. The 5DII is better, not quite so basic, but you've got to make the trade off of a 20MP+ sensor for handling and features.
 
How exciting, another Nikon user comes to bash the almighty Canon. :)
 
Never had a problem its second nature to me i don't have to stop and think and ive got 3 different Canon bodies i think it's what you get use to hell after the 1d mk 11 all the newer models are easy and im not knocking the 1d mk 11 ive still got mine and use it.
Regards
Lost
 
i use both canon and nikon and find both systems intuitive and easy.

I guess im more evolved in the brain deparment than some then. Figuring out how to push buttons is very hard i know :p
 
I have the original 5d and tbh I cant think of a reason for the button layout to be changed, i can change all the major settings in a quick enough time to react to changing situations without moving the camera away from my eye. Obviously that level of familiarity comes with time and use. A friend of mine has a d70 and i feel as you do about his buttons as you do with the canon.

sure i'd love the 45point AF, and 10 fps per second, but i'd be stepping up to a 1 series then with a whole new and alien to me button layout.
 
i had a play with my uncles d200 a few weeks back -- all the grip material was peeling away and hanging off. I have a 5d that came out around the same time and everything is as it was when new. the button layout is like changing cars, it's going to feel weird compared to what your used to, but doesn't mean there's a design flaw.
 
The only button I'm interested in is the shutter release, and it doesn't get a mention. Where is it?

I'll probably be linched by a few 5D and EOS users
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Probably a few Nikon owners as well. :D
 
It all comes down to personal preferance, I used canons in the 80s and didnt like the feel of Nikon but for dSLR I prefer the Nikon over Canon I cannot see why the shutter speed dial is away at the top on canon and not positioned ergonomically for the finger to rest on it naturally.
To change shutter speeds means moving your grip and missing a shot "potentially" whereas the nikon dial is in the correct place and can be altered without taking your eye out of the viewfinder but like I say its a personal thing if it feels right in your hand then its right
 
gotta be cos you're used to a different layout, the way we use our cameras becomes so second nature that changing how to use them makes us consciously think about how to do something - which is slow and crap

so a lesson learned, the conscious mind is crap :D:D:D
 
Dangermouse1964 said:
It all comes down to personal preferance, ... I say its a personal thing if it feels right in your hand then its right
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I have 5d2 and I went to play with d700 the other time..I was lost like a small child in a fog...everything was wrong..could not get in to grips with Nikon buttons....
so to be honest I find it silly to rant about butons setting...
 
I've always found the ergonomics on Canon dslrs not to be as good as those on Nikon, but I'd imagine you'd get used to thd differences pretty quickly....
 
Surely if you are used to Nikon, Canon will feel clumsy and alien. If you are used to Canon, Nikon will feel awkward and confused. I like to think that these two companies with their millions of pounds of research and development and a fierce competitor in one other, will both ensure that their respective system is as best designed as possible. For the record, my mate let's me hold his 5DmkII and whilst I felt as you do, it's not due to a lack of quality, it can only be a lack of familiarity.

All IMO.

Gary.
 
Tis true, the Nikon buttons are placed in the right places. Even the 'on' button is clumsy on Canons. A friend just lets his 50D go into standby because it's so bothersome turning the camera off and on (they go into standby right?) ;)
 
Isn't this just a bit like moving from a LHD auto car to a RHD manual?

Odd, but you'd soon get the hang of it - or you'd crash (metaphorically for cameras & literally for cars :D)

My best buddy uses a 5D and he says it's a bit fiddly too, but only in some things like setting a custom WB which is a 1 button press on my Nikons and a bit of wheel spinning on the 5D - but that's no real hardship is it

Even from the early film days Nikons just felt 'right' to me, and obviously still do, and I've never felt as comfortable with a Canon

Bit like women really, I like the feel of a good woman whereas a 'good' bloke has features I just don't feel comfortable handling ;)

DD
 
DiddyDave said:
Bit like women really, I like the feel of a good woman whereas a 'good' bloke has features I just don't feel comfortable handling ;)
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joe_pesci_4.jpg


Are you saying all Canon users are gay?? Is that what you said, huh??

:D

A.
 
specialman said:
I'm not convinced about these gimmicky add-ons like HD video we're seeing on the likes of the D300s and the D90.
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I think the HD video is amazing. It gives proper film making tools for little cash. These cams are becoming the standard for indie film making. For me they offer an ideal solution. If I am out shooting photos of skating and a second angle of a trick is needed. I can film Pro quality with ease. It is not a purist thing I am sure, but offers a new dimension, and is not at the expense of image quality, so why not have it?
 
Markk said:
Even the 'on' button is clumsy on Canons. A friend just lets his 50D go into standby because it's so bothersome turning the camera off and on (they go into standby right?) ;)
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You friend doesn't turn his camera off because it's too bothersome? Amazing. It's a little switch on the back of the camera. How easy would it need to be for him to bother with it? It's not exactly like digging holes in the road. Or is he just massively, incredibly lazy. I wonder how he finds the enthusiasm to get up in the morning. :) Maybe needs a man to come round and switch his camera off for him.? I'll do that for minimum wage if he would like to PM me. Hahahaha :)
 
It takes time to get used to any camera.
I would not judge it until the controls were 2nd nature.
 
It's all about what you're used to i recon. I've only ever shot with Canon and haven't ever had a problem with where the buttons are. I have the mkii and i love it, as you say the iq is superb and that's what matters to me. :)
 
ding76uk said:
These cams are becoming the standard for indie film making.
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Pfft. Only if recording at 30fps and the jumping and dropping frames when converting to 25p for PAL isn't a problem for you.

I don't think dSLR's are anywhere near good enough for video production. Yet.
 
Flash In The Pan said:
I've always found the ergonomics on Canon dslrs not to be as good as those on Nikon, but I'd imagine you'd get used to thd differences pretty quickly....
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A sensible post! (I knew you could do it Flash) (y) :LOL:

But seriously, you're right. I feel the same way about Nikons, but it's only because I'm used to the Canon layout. I've no doubt that it wouldn't take long to get used to a Nikon if I had to.
 
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