Canon EOS 5D Focus Tracking Performance

King_Boru

King_Boru

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Hey,

Well, the time of year has come where I am looking to upgrade/sidegrade my equipment. Currently using a set of Nikon D200's and a stupidly sized bag of lenses. I just want to put one thing across, I am not brand biased and I am happy shooting with 2 different brands at any one time. Also, I would go and test one out but the local shop does not stock 'pro grade' dSLR's :thinking:.

As the title suggests I am looking at purchasing an EOS 5D with a set of lenses. My primary form of income is through aviation photography. One instantly jumps to the conclusion of Tornado's and Eurofighter's ripping past you at 500 mph but there is a lot of air to air and still work involved. Though, occasionally, you get a request for ground to air high speed low level passes. This is where the title of the thread comes in. I am not particularly interested in the frame rate as my panning work is pretty good. It is the continuous focus tracking speed I am looking at. Can those of you shooting with a 5D please tell me how it keeps up with moving objects? I know this can be lens dependent but please put that aside as I will be investing in top of the line L lenses (list below). The equipment will be purchased on a lease through my company so cost, to a certain extent, doesn't come into it.

  • 16-35 f/2.8
  • 24-70 f/2.8
  • 70-200 f/2.8 IS
  • 400 L (The extreme range, rarely used, more personal)

Why the 5D you ask and not a D3. Well, purely size. You are generally flying in Cessna's, Cirrus and cramped helicopters. Room doesn't come easy. I am also interested in the full frame advantage (easier wide angle coverage) and image quality for commercial / industrial prints.

Feel free to recommend alternatives but please remember that size is an issue.

Many thanks for your input.

King.
 
Surely the size difference between the 5D and D3 is not going to make any difference once you have the same (similar) sized lens on each. And you say about full frame advantage, the D3 is full frame. If you were shooting 2 different brands/systems then you'd need twice as many lenses, therefore taking up twice the amount of space you have available!
 
If it's good auto focus results you are looking for then the 1Dlll my be a better option. Pro Photo just did a test and the 1D came out better than the Nikon.But as you say space is a premium and the 5D is a lot smaller than the 1D

I've not had any problems with my 5D but then I don't do a lot of fast moving subjects. I must say though I don't think I've had any significant focus failures due to the camera failing to lock onto subjects.

I think you really need to try the camera out yourself, as you say. Have you tried hiring one for a couple of days. I think this may be the only way to find out, You may also want to include the 24-105 lens in you list of lens top evaluate. It does have a slightly longer reach than the 24-70 which I find usefull. The loss of 1 stop I don't find a problem, as the IS compensates for this
 
Yeah, I'm not convinced with the size issue, but it isn't me doing it.
It half sounds like you want fullframe but don't want to stretch to the cost of a D3.
All the evidence points to a 5D not being the ideal tool for the job you are doing, but I suppose if you can put up with a lower % of keepers, it'll do a job, I mean, its hardly a PAS.

The more I think about it, the less sense it makes to run two systems just for fullframe, with a body not designed for the task.

If it is cost, D300 seems logical
 
I would advise against the 5D for what you have described - it's a great camera, but the AF is not what it could be. The centre point is fine, but the outer focus points are very tightly grouped around the centre, and are unreliable enough to not really be worth bothering with.
 
Do you have a focus problem with the D200. ? If not ( and I say this as a Canon owner) why not go for the D3 using the cash saved from not buying a new range of lenses.
 
I obviously have no experience of the cramped conditions you sometimes have to work in; but I would have thought that the D3 would have been the obvious choice. Great IQ, 1st class focus tracking, super high ISO performance & full frame.
 
Id also say the 5D is not at all an ideal choice for your line of work, infact id go as far to say the 40D would be much more ideal, faster focus, cropped sensor means your can get more plane per pixel and so on. If your looking for even better, id also say D300.

The 5D is a great camera but is showing its age, its much more suited to landscape work etc.
 
I don't own a 5D but I have met two people who do whilst shooting low level aviation. They both thought that the 5D's AF performed on par with the 30D (at the time the 40D wasn't out). I own both the 30D and 40D and can say that the 40D's AF is better especially if you are making use of the cross type focus points, so the 40D would be better than a 5D if you can't consider the bigger form factor cameras.
 
combat squirrel said:
id go as far to say the 40D would be much more ideal, faster focus, cropped sensor means your can get more plane per pixel and so on.
Click to expand...

Working on that principle, i would also say that the Olympus E-3 is a possible contender.

Built-in IS (Body), Weatherproof, compact and fast lenses (50-200mm gives 400mm FF FOV at F3.5.
 
Dan, if you must get a Canon (and you must), you could do a lot worse than the 40D, havent looked back since i got mine, focus tracking with an L....(y)
Hope you and the family are keeping well, website looks good.
Dean:)
 
Pretty much more of the same from me here. I have the 5 and an old snaggle toothed 1D II. The image Q from the 5 is better and it's my body choice for all the work where I can't use Mamiya kit (lens needs mostly). If I think that the subject might not stay where I put it/find it whilst I'm shooting, the 5 goes back in the case and out comes the Mk II. The loss of file size and IQ is made up for by the fact that I just can't trust the 5 to nail the focus with anything like the accuracy.

You may well have the skill and patience to make up some short fall and get that keeper percentage where you need it. I like to think that I'm good at my job and will get the money shot with the kit I have to hand. I still love the feel of a camera I really trust in my hand when the chips are down and as much as I really respect what the 5 can do, it's never been that camera.
 
Thanks for the replies everyone. By the sounds of it the focus performance is not that good for moving objects. Size really is an issue, I know it sounds retarded but its true. I have grips for my D200's and with them attached they are just too clumpy for the majority of work. I'm sure Gord or Dinof have sat in a cramped cockpit before? If I were to go out and buy a FF D3 or 1DIII 1.3x crop body and actually lost the opportunity to get some photographs due their sizes I would be very disappointed.

I appreciate your feedback, looks like I'm going back to the drawing board. Though Chilli's put a good point across re the E3 and its size. I have looked into the 4/3rd's system in the past, maybe I should give it a second look. The articulating live view screen could be an advantage,...

Dean, everything is going really well thanks buddy! The family is doing well and the little one is nearly talking. Have been working hard with the local airport to get the work in which is starting to pay off :). Thanks for the website comments! I'll try and squeeze some time in to update the aviation work / share it here.

Thanks everyone.

Dan.
 
I'd probably go for the Nikon D300 over the 5D, i think you may struggle with the 5D's 3 FPS and the AF system on the D300 i imagine would track a lot better than the 5D's.
 
Sadly i've not figured a way to get myself into the back seat of a RAF fast jet yet but I have sat it a few. Space isn't as bad as you would expect, some civvy light aircraft are much worse.

You've tried it with your D200 + grip and it's been an issue for you so avoiding that size camera is a wise move.

Whilst the 5D 'only' has the performance similar to a 30D it doesn't mean it can't do the job. I've got fellow togs doing low level with 350D / 400D / 10D / 20D /30D cameras who still get the shots.

The 5D is not the best AF camera and the 40D does a better job for less money but what I think you need to ask yourself is how often do you need a fast AF in your line of work. I work suspect the advantage of FF, especially proper wide photos inside the cockpit, would be a big plus for you. Enough of a plus to accept a slightly worse AF tracking for the small number of times you need that type of shot.
 
I appreciate everyones feedback. A local pro is currently using a set of 5D's and he was kind enough to loan me one with a 70-200 f/2.8. It was quite funny because all I did was phone around until I found one,.. anyway. I used it for a week and my overall impressions were not that good. The image quality, viewfinder and full frame are great but the usability and overall menu system does not work with me. Thats answered that question then,... so what is there to do? First is blame EdinburghGary for posting his low ISO samples and secondly the missus. The missus just said get the D3 and try and work around the size issues. You have to appreciate it when your missus says its ok to blow $5200 dollars on a camera body and another $2000 on a bunch of primes.

So, last night I placed a D3 on backorder (not many here in Canada, the Nikon F6 is in more demand as film is still used a lot for wedding work here). There isnt much point in getting one state side as they really sting you here with import tax. Shame I couldnt convince the father in law to run one across as he is a CAN-AM trucker.

Anyhoo,...

Sits patiently waiting,...
 
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