Canon EOS 1Ds MKII OR 5D MKII

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GRECIAN

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Liam.
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I am not interested in video on my Camera as i have a HD camcorder.
I am looking to move to Canon as a friend of mine has a good supply of L glass i could borrow and buy different from him to give us both a wide choice.

I am wondering if i should go for a 1Ds or 5D MKII, this would save me a few pounds as the 1Ds is a used one with 9k shots and is for sale at £1,350, as opposed to £1,700 ish for a new 5D mkII.
Can anyone give me a heads up on any advantages the 5D has over the 1Ds
 
Depends what you want. The 5D MKII is an impressive piece of kit and very much the newer of the 2 camera's. ISO performance of the 5D would be significantly better, image resolution I would say on par if not 1D slightly better, the thing that lets the 5D down is its autofocus performance, so it really depends what you want to take images of. The 1D is also built like a tank and would far outlast the 5D, but that said, both camera's offer a great camera body to work with and you won't go far wrong with either.

Actually there's a thread on here showing the HD capabilities of the 5D MKII, its pretty impressive.
 
Oh wow seems i am not the first to have this dilema, thank you very much looks like i have some bedtime reading
 
When the 5D2 was announced I wasn't thrilled by some of the specs. The AF was a real let down and the frame rate and viewfinder blackout time was pretty lame - all inferior to my 50D and 40D. I also really didn't feel the desire for 21MP to process either. I did look at the 1Ds2 as an option but could not bring myself to buy into such old tech, especially lacking features I had already grown accustomed to such as the 50D's LCD screen and live view.

I decided instead to buy a 1D3. It was a good balance between the IQ of a larger sensor, and the build, speed and performance of a 1 series, with bells on. I did not and do not regret that decision.

More recently I decided to embrace full frame as well. With my sports/action requirements fully covered by the 1D3 I decided the 5D2 would better complement my high speed camera, beating the 1Ds2 for high ISO performance and including many other nice features, including live view and a decent screen. The video was something I was not bothered about, but hey, why not? The 1D3 is also a hefty brute, and not always nice to cart around for a casual day out, or on vacation. The 5D2 made a lot more sense as a companion. I did not need two 1 series lumps to lug about.

To summarise - Pick the 1Ds2 for build, AF, frame rate, customisation, operational speed, 1 series loveliness, heft. Pick the 5D2 for ultimate IQ, especially at high ISOs, video, live view, microadjustment, lovely LCD screen, lightweightedness and compactness. If you don't need to work fast or in harsh conditions then the 5D2 is almost certainly the better choice. I think.
 
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