Canon 5D MKIII official owners/users thread, anything related to the 5D MKIII

Very jealous of all of you :( I'm busy offloading some micro 4/3 kit and saving up to replace my 7d with a full frame body. Was thinking about the 6D but after reading various websites and now this you have convinced me the 5d mk3 is the future :). The AF sounds superb !
 
I enjoy reading this thread.

Have many that now own the 5D Mk3 upgraded from the Mk2? Worth the up-grade? Would like to hear the experiences/views/thoughts.

Thanks...
 
I got the chance to properly road test the 5D MK III for the 1st time on Saturday with a pre-wedding shoot. This is coupled with my Tamron 24-70mm which I am quite impressed with!

apk3kw.jpg


I have to say shooting with the MK III was an absolute dream! It's sharp as a tack and renders colour amazingly!

The rusty colour on the posts is a prime example of how it renders the colour as there's no way in hell my 7D would have managed to bring out the tones, colour and detail in them like that!
 
theurbanclown said:
Nice first shoot!

I'm not including myself until the camera is in my hands. Just received the tracking number this morning from Panamoz.

What do you reckon? Wednesday?
Click to expand...

Thanks :)

I bought mine from HDEW so not sure but hopefully in the next few days!

Don't forget to change your camera in your profile on here once you have it... that in itself is a lovely moment! (y)
 
ajax_andy said:
Thanks :)

I bought mine from HDEW so not sure but hopefully in the next few days!

Don't forget to change your camera in your profile on here once you have it... that in itself is a lovely moment! (y)
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, I remember you saying. I'm thinking Wednesday or Thursday, not fussed either way as Friday will be my first real chance to have a play.

I can't, I don't want to make people jealous :LOL:
 
theurbanclown said:
Oh yeah, I remember you saying. I'm thinking Wednesday or Thursday, not fussed either way as Friday will be my first real chance to have a play.

I can't, I don't want to make people jealous :LOL:
Click to expand...

I hope you'll post some pics once you've had a play... it's a right of passage that you have to post a pic in as many places as possible just to wind up those who don't have one but dream of owning one :LOL:
 
ajax_andy said:
I hope you'll post some pics once you've had a play... it's a right of passage that you have to post a pic in as many places as possible just to wind up those who don't have one but dream of owning one :LOL:
Click to expand...

:LOL:

Its funny but i didnt realise how great this camera was until i actually used it. I think a lot of 5DMKII owners (for example) see the MKIII as a minor upgrade, albeit with some nice features, but once you actually have it in your hands and you take a few shots you appreciate it a lot more.
 
ajax_andy said:
I hope you'll post some pics once you've had a play... it's a right of passage that you have to post a pic in as many places as possible just to wind up those who don't have one but dream of owning one :LOL:
Click to expand...

Definitely.

Maybe I will, I deserve to - had to sell my car to get one :LOL:

Found anything you don't like about it yet? Coming from a 550d, I'm not sure about playback and delete buttons being on the left of the screen.
 
theurbanclown said:
Definitely.

Maybe I will, I deserve to - had to sell my car to get one :LOL:

Found anything you don't like about it yet? Coming from a 550d, I'm not sure about playback and delete buttons being on the left of the screen.
Click to expand...

You get used to those buttons very quickly IME. You can set one to automatically zoom in to the AF point at 100% to check focus etc, and the other can show the overall exposure etc. I think its a better way of doing things than on on the old camera's.

The biggest negative for me, coming from years with crop camera's, is the loss of focal length. This was a real eye opener for me. My 70-200, once my long reach lens, is now usable as a walk around lens, and i can still hit 200mm before ive got the framing im used to. Im not complaining though, all my lenses do seem to work better on this camera, the images have an almost 3D organic look to them IMO (im not really sure what all that means lol).
 
theurbanclown said:
Definitely.

Maybe I will, I deserve to - had to sell my car to get one :LOL:

Found anything you don't like about it yet? Coming from a 550d, I'm not sure about playback and delete buttons being on the left of the screen.
Click to expand...

Only thing so far is I found out mid shoot that the zoom buttons for the LCD screen have vanished and so I had no way of zooming in to check how the lighting / shadow fell properly on the couple's faces.

I know there IS a way of zooming in, but the way I've always done it on the 7D aint the same way... I need to read the instructions for this aspect I think.

That's my fault though for not reading up on that 1st and from the shoot I had I can say everything was 100% positive!

A few key points I noticed were:

1) The DOF is much more noticable. I'd read it was and that shooting f/1.4 on a crop was more like f/2.8 on a FF (or something like that)... either way with the added sharpness of the FF and the greater impact of DOF you end up with some beautiful bokeh mixed with sharp subjects.

2) I accidently blew a bit of the sky in one shot... opened in adobe bridge and selected the little arrow that shows blown areas as red. Slid the recovery slider a bit to the right and it litterally gobbled up the red. All blown areas were fixed and no impact on any other part of the pic... it blew my mind! The 7D would have maybe fixed of a little bit of the blown area but also made the skin tones go a bit 'off' in the process. The MK III just laughed in the face of the blown sky!

3) A like a punchy high contrast image.. on the 7D I always boosted the contrast by a fair bit. On this body I either didn't need to at all, or only a teeny tiny bit.

4) It's kind of too sharp at times. I foud myself softening things like the creases on the guys trousers as they were so bloody noticable! :LOL:

5) Colour is rendered / captured beautifully

There's probably other things I could rave about too but I'll let you work out the rest for yourself :)

All I can say is no negatives at all (other than my own lack of knowledge RE zooming in the LCD screen) and LOADS of positives!

Are you excited yet? (y)
 
Last edited:
dave_bass5 said:
You get used to those buttons very quickly IME. You can set one to automatically zoom in to the AF point at 100% to check focus etc, and the other can show the overall exposure etc. I think its a better way of doing things than on on the old camera's.

The biggest negative for me, coming from years with crop camera's, is the loss of focal length. This was a real eye opener for me. My 70-200, once my long reach lens, is now usable as a walk around lens, and i can still hit 200mm before ive got the framing im used to. Im not complaining though, all my lenses do seem to work better on this camera, the images have an almost 3D organic look to them IMO (im not really sure what all that means lol).
Click to expand...

Ahh, good to know. Sure it won't take long, it's hardly a radical change.

I'm not sure loss of focal length will bother me, if anything I need it as I've been used to using my 50mm on a crop and things often end up being tight.

I will have my 85mm 1.8 if I still want similar length, keep the 50mm and have added the 35mm 1.4L. I think that will cover most situations for me - will be interesting to see the difference.
 
ajax_andy said:
Only thing so far is I found out mid shoot that the zoom buttons for the LCD screen have vanished and so I had no way of zooming in to check how the lighting / shadow fell properly on the couple's faces.

I know there IS a way of zooming in, but the way I've always done it on the 7D aint the say way... I need to read the instructions for this aspect I think.

That's my fault though for not reading up on that 1st and from the shoot I had I can say everything was 100% positive!

A few key points I noticed were:

1) The DOF is much more noticable. I'd read it was and that shooting f/1.4 on a crop was more liek f/2.8 on a FF (or something like that)... either way with the added sharpness of the FF and the greater impact of DOF you end up with some beautiful bokeh mixed with sharp subjects.

2) I accidently blew a bit of the sky in one shot... opened in adobe bridge and selected the little arrow that shows blown areas as red. Slid the recovery slider a bit to the right and it litterally gobbled up the red. All blown areas were fixed and no impact on any other part of the pic... it blew my mind! The 7D would have maybe fixed of a little bit of the blown area but also made the skin tones go a bit 'off' in the process. The MK III just laughed in the face of the blown sky!

3) A like a punchy high contrast image.. on the 7D I always boosted the contrast by a fair bit. On this body I either didn't need to at all, or only a teeny tiny bit.

4) It's kind of too sharp at times. I foud myself softening things like the creases on the guys trousers as they were so bloody noticable! :LOL:

5) Colour is rendered / captured beautifully

There's probably other things I could rave about too but I'll let you work out the rest for yourself :)

All I can say is no negatives at all (other than my own lack of knowledge RE zooming in the LCD screen) and LOADS of positives!

Are you excited yet? (y)
Click to expand...

Probably even more excited than I should be. I'm like a child, and I'm sure people who have owned full frames for years are reading this and thinking "get over yourself".

Sounds fantastic, along with the my own conclusion after hundreds of hours of research.

DOF may need a bit of getting used to. I also am not a fan of overly sharp images, so will probably tone that down.
 
dave_bass5 said:
You can set one to automatically zoom in to the AF point at 100% to check focus etc,
Click to expand...

Say what?

How do I do this? This sounds amazing and I had no idea this was possible on any camera at all!

:help:


Also the 3d thing you mentioned I think is a mix of the greater contrast the MK III produces and also the greater effect the DOF has coupled with super sharp subjects
 
I was coming from a 60D with 15-85, and getting a 24-105 as my main zoom helped soften the blow. I really only notice it now on my longer zoom.
Ive really gotten in to my primes now. I had a 85 f/1.8 but sold it last year, it seemed an awkward FL so i never really used it, before getting the 5D. Now i have a 100 f/2 and its become my go to lens, It just feels right on this camera's, whereas on my 60D it seems a more a specialised focal length, like the 85 did. Im really gla di kept my 50mm f/1.4 as well.
I do want a 35mm lens, but might hold out for a 35f/2 IS later this year.
 
theurbanclown said:
Probably even more excited than I should be. I'm like a child, and I'm sure people who have owned full frames for years are reading this and thinking "get over yourself".

Sounds fantastic, along with the my own conclusion after hundreds of hours of research.

DOF may need a bit of getting used to. I also am not a fan of overly sharp images, so will probably tone that down.
Click to expand...

Yeah I was like that... still am really. When it arrived I was late for work as I spent 5 minutes just staring at it with wonderment and taking photos of it with my iPhone :LOL:
 
ajax_andy said:
Say what?

How do I do this? This sounds amazing and I had no idea this was possible on any camera at all!

:help:
Click to expand...

RTFM lol.

Just kidding. Go in to the playback menu, 3rd screen along, Magnification. Set it to Actual size (from selected pt).

ajax_andy said:
Also the 3d thing you mentioned I think is a mix of the greater contrast the MK III produces and also the greater effect the DOF has coupled with super sharp subjects
Click to expand...

Definitely. Ive felt the same about my old 17-55IS in good light but there just seems something fantastic going on with the 5D all the time. :)
 
dave_bass5 said:
RTFM lol.

Just kidding. Go in to the playback menu, 3rd screen along, Magnification. Set it to Actual size (from selected pt).



Definitely. Ive felt the same about my old 17-55IS in good light but there just seems something fantastic going on with the 5D all the time. :)
Click to expand...

Awesome I'll check that out! (y)

Yeah the 17-55mm is a great lens. I was sad at first about not being able to use it anymore, but tbh now I have the MK III I couldn't care less... it's a wonderful thing!

Going to shoot a gig in March with it and can't wait to use the super high ISO's for a real proper test in a real life situation
 
dave_bass5 said:
I was coming from a 60D with 15-85, and getting a 24-105 as my main zoom helped soften the blow. I really only notice it now on my longer zoom.
Ive really gotten in to my primes now. I had a 85 f/1.8 but sold it last year, it seemed an awkward FL so i never really used it, before getting the 5D. Now i have a 100 f/2 and its become my go to lens, It just feels right on this camera's, whereas on my 60D it seems a more a specialised focal length, like the 85 did. Im really gla di kept my 50mm f/1.4 as well.
I do want a 35mm lens, but might hold out for a 35f/2 IS later this year.
Click to expand...

I do like my primes. The 85 is too tight for me on a full frame, only bought it with the intention of going FF and using for portraits. 50mm was perfect for portraits on the crop, now I imagine it will be more an everyday lens- shot a whole wedding with it once.

If I'm honest, the 35mm was a rash buy but I'm sure I'll use it a lot. I think I just wanted some L glass :)

ajax_andy said:
Yeah I was like that... still am really. When it arrived I was late for work as I spent 5 minutes just staring at it with wonderment and taking photos of it with my iPhone :LOL:
Click to expand...

Haha! I'll have my 550d to take photos of it, then that little boy will be left to sit in the corner, never to be used again.

You not doing weddings full time then, yet? Thought you did.

Auto iso and being able to set a min shutter speed is something I'm really looking forward to using quite heavily.
 
No problem, there are quite a few little features that dont seem to do much until you start messing with them, thats when the camera really starts to become something special.
My 5 year old 17-55IS was the main thing stopping me from even looking at going FF. I only got rid of mine as i wanted something a bit smaller and lighter, so got the 15-85. A year later when i tried to get another 17-55, and couldn't find a good copy i thought what the hell and got the 5DMKIII. I hadn't even read a review of it, it just seemed to be the camera to go for (and i didnt like my mate 5DMKII as it felt quite restricted compared to my 60D). It was a moment of madness, i couldn't afford it (CC job) and never really felt i wanted it but i have no regrets at all.

It seems like im starting again with lenses though, but thats part of the fun i guess.

I got my 100 f/2 for gig photography but so far ve not taken any gig shots, its a
fantastic night walkabout lens though.
 
ajax_andy said:
Yeah I was like that... still am really. When it arrived I was late for work as I spent 5 minutes just staring at it with wonderment and taking photos of it with my iPhone :LOL:
Click to expand...

These posts aren't helping- I had better get some serious saving done and retire my 7D 😏
 
theurbanclown said:
I do like my primes. The 85 is too tight for me on a full frame, only bought it with the intention of going FF and using for portraits. 50mm was perfect for portraits on the crop, now I imagine it will be more an everyday lens- shot a whole wedding with it once.

If I'm honest, the 35mm was a rash buy but I'm sure I'll use it a lot. I think I just wanted some L glass :)
Click to expand...

Im doing my daughters wedding in may, my first (and last) ever wedding, and im so glad i have the 5DMKIII. I was going to rent a 85L but i feel my 100 f/2 will be fine.
I may still rent, probably the 35L as i hear great things about it. I'd prefer that for a wedding but the 35 f2 IS as a regular lens so i wont buy the L.


theurbanclown said:
Auto iso and being able to set a min shutter speed is something I'm really looking forward to using quite heavily.
Click to expand...

Probably the most useful feature ive found. I had a 40D for a few years, and only found out it had (limited) Auto ISO a month before selling it, but i never used it. When i got my 60D i used auto all the time but my compact had the minimum shutter speed feature and i found that so useful. Now i have both in a DSLR and cant bring myself to use manual ISO unless im using a tripod or shooting in a controlled environment.
 
theurbanclown said:
You not doing weddings full time then, yet? Thought you did.
Click to expand...


No sadly I still have the 9-5. Will be a little while yet before I can jump to being full time. Plan is to drop some days at work and try build up some commerical / pr work on those days to supplement the wedding income.

I don't really want to just do weddings full time as think i'd become stale quickly. I like to shoot lots of different things and be challenged so it keeps me fresh and always learning / improving.

Also I'm still buying daft purchases like the MK III so all my money from photography keeps disappearing the moment I get it :LOL:
 
dave_bass5 said:
Im doing my daughters wedding in may, my first (and last) ever wedding, and im so glad i have the 5DMKIII. I was going to rent a 85L but i feel my 100 f/2 will be fine.
I may still rent, probably the 35L as i hear great things about it. I'd prefer that for a wedding but the 35 f2 IS as a regular lens so i wont buy the L.




Probably the most useful feature ive found. I had a 40D for a few years, and only found out it had (limited) Auto ISO a month before selling it, but i never used it. When i got my 60D i used auto all the time but my compact had the minimum shutter speed feature and i found that so useful. Now i have both in a DSLR and cant bring myself to use manual ISO unless im using a tripod or shooting in a controlled environment.
Click to expand...

Never used auto ISO but might give it a go at some point... could be quite handy although I like to be in full control all the time so letting the camera do anything for me scares the hell out of me lol

I'd use a zoom for weddings... primes would be quite restrictive IMO. I know some togs only use primes for weddings but it you don't normally do them a zoom (24-70mm) will help you out no end on the day :)
 
ajax_andy said:
Never used auto ISO but might give it a go at some point... could be quite handy although I like to be in full control all the time so letting the camera do anything for me scares the hell out of me lol

I'd use a zoom for weddings... primes would be quite restrictive IMO. I know some togs only use primes for weddings but it you don't normally do them a zoom (24-70mm) will help you out no end on the day :)
Click to expand...

Yeah, the main reason i got my Tamron 24-70 f/2.8 was for the wedding. I dont know if ill still have it or the Canon 24-70 f/2.8 II by then but it will be my main lens during the day.
I play in a wedding band and get to see a lot of wedding receptions, I'd say the top two lenses used for most fo the evening (i always try and and have a chat with the photogs) seem to be either a 24-70 F/2.8 or 85L, with a 35L on another body.
 
ajax_andy said:
Never used auto ISO but might give it a go at some point... could be quite handy although I like to be in full control all the time so letting the camera do anything for me scares the hell out of me lol

I'd use a zoom for weddings... primes would be quite restrictive IMO. I know some togs only use primes for weddings but it you don't normally do them a zoom (24-70mm) will help you out no end on the day :)
Click to expand...

To be honest, all I'm ever interested in controlling is the aperture. With the mark III being able to handle high iso well, if I know the shutter speed is never going to create any motion blur, I'm free to concentrate on framing and aperture. Perfect. Although I know those blasted Nikon users get the added luxury of being able to set different min shutter speeds for individual lenses.

I get what you're saying about not doing weddings full time, I just thought I read something you put on here that suggested full time was the plan. Probably me being an idiot.
 
Ha ha ha - I know it's the future, just got to convince she who must be obeyed lol. I have volunteered to do a wedding in September so need to get one well beforehand to "practice" with ;)
Got the glass ready to match it just need a body now!
 
Hi everyone. Finally started using my 5DIII for some filming, after wanting to for ages but never actually getting around to doing it.

I put together this little 2 min film of my 11 month old daughter last week, using iMovie on the Mac. Really impressed with the software as it's very easy to use, but even more impressed with the camera!

Manual focusing is quite tricky at wide open apertures but well worth the bokehlicious bg's.

I strongly recommend switching over to Live View for a little play around!

Anyway, here's my first ever 'Movie' using this camera. Won't be my last ;)

http://vimeo.com/58557190
 
theurbanclown said:
To be honest, all I'm ever interested in controlling is the aperture. With the mark III being able to handle high iso well, if I know the shutter speed is never going to create any motion blur, I'm free to concentrate on framing and aperture. Perfect. Although I know those blasted Nikon users get the added luxury of being able to set different min shutter speeds for individual lenses.

I get what you're saying about not doing weddings full time, I just thought I read something you put on here that suggested full time was the plan. Probably me being an idiot.
Click to expand...

No you're right I don't think I specified before that I was hoping to do lots of different things... It's definitely the long term plan but who knows what will happen. Weddings are certainly easier to get in to so I imagine they'll be the bulk of my work with the commercial side taking a few years to build up to anything sizeable.

I'm a qualified IT lecturer by trade (although I don't teach at the moment) so would love to do a day a week teaching photography too at some point. Lots of plans but happy to let it grow organically.

I'd say I'm looking at 12-16 months before going part time at work and then 24-36 months before full time photography if everything falls in to place. In the mean time I'm just investing every penny back in to the business so it's future proofed in terms of equipment for a few years at least once I go full time :)
 
ajax_andy said:
Only thing so far is I found out mid shoot that the zoom buttons for the LCD screen have vanished and so I had no way of zooming in to check how the lighting / shadow fell properly on the couple's faces.

I know there IS a way of zooming in, but the way I've always done it on the 7D aint the same way... I need to read the instructions for this aspect I think.
Click to expand...

You worked this out yet Andy? The zoom magnification is controlled by he small scroll wheel next to the shutter button. I have mine set to 100% to the focus point to check focus, then soon out from there for anything else.
 
Phil Hammond said:
Hi everyone. Finally started using my 5DIII for some filming, after wanting to for ages but never actually getting around to doing it.

I put together this little 2 min film of my 11 month old daughter last week, using iMovie on the Mac. Really impressed with the software as it's very easy to use, but even more impressed with the camera!

Manual focusing is quite tricky at wide open apertures but well worth the bokehlicious bg's.

I strongly recommend switching over to Live View for a little play around!

Anyway, here's my first ever 'Movie' using this camera. Won't be my last ;)

http://vimeo.com/58557190
Click to expand...

I really liked that video, will be attempting to do something similar myself. I've never used iMovie but will have an attempt.
 
Mani Gill said:
I really liked that video, will be attempting to do something similar myself. I've never used iMovie but will have an attempt.
Click to expand...

Cheers Mani. Yeah, have a little play around and you'll soon pick it up. YouTube is great for 'how to' vids if you get stuck! :)
 
Really liked that video Phil and will have a go myself now after seeing that! So do you autofocus and then start shooting? Can you hold the backbutton focus down to keep it autofocussing and keep it in ai servo mode?
 
dubcat said:
Really liked that video Phil and will have a go myself now after seeing that! So do you autofocus and then start shooting? Can you hold the backbutton focus down to keep it autofocussing and keep it in ai servo mode?
Click to expand...

Cheers Dubcat (y)

I didn't use autofocus at all, completely manual. Not sure how well auto focusing works, will have to try it and see!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top