It took me some time to get aware of this: The price for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III jumped up to $3499 for the body only and up to $4099 for the kit with the EF 24-105mm f/4L IS lens. That’s at least $200 more than the previous official price. Is this related to the fact that the latest Magic Lantern hack transforms the 5D3 in a powerful video equipment? Just kidding…

Good time to check for deals on eBay, see the list below. However, the Canon Direct Store is selling Canon EOS 5D Mark III bodies for $2799 (click here). Too see all refurbished Canon DSLR on sale at the Canon store click here, to see all refurbished lenses on sale click here. The refurbished lenses have discounts up to 50%, as the EF 40mm f/2.8 STM pancake lens which is sold for ridiculous $79.99 (click here).

Canon EOS 5D Mark III world wide price check:

Australia: Amazon, Adorama, B&H, Digitalrev, eBay.au
Austria: Amazon.at, DigitalRev, eBay.at
Belgium: Amazon UK, DigitalRev, eBay.be
Canada: Amazon.ca, DigitalRev, Adorama, B&H, eBay.ca
China: Amazon.cn, Digitalrev, eBay
Denmark: DigitalRev, eBay
Finland: DigitalRev, eBay
France: Amazon.fr, DigitalRev, eBay.fr
Germany: Amazon.de, DigitalRev, eBay.de
Hong Kong: Amazon, Adorama, Digitalrev, B&H, eBay
Ireland: Amazon.uk, DigitalRev, eBay.ie
Italy: Amazon.it, DigitalRev, eBay.it
Japan: Amazon.jp, Rakuten, DigitalRev, eBay
Netherlands: Amazon, DigitalRev, eBay.nl
Norway: DigitalRev, eBay
Poland: DigitalRev, Redcoon.pl, eBay
Singapore: B&H, Adorama, Digitalrev, eBay
Spain: Amazon.es, DigitalRev, Redcoon.es, eBay.es
Suisse: Amazon.de, DigitalRev, eBay.ch
Sweden: DigitalRev, eBay
Thailand: Amazon, DigitalRev, B&H, Adorama, eBay
United Kingdom: Amazon.uk, Warehouseexpress, DigitalRev, eBay.uk
USA: Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses

Yesterday I reported about the latest hack for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III (price & specs) by the skilled Magic Lantern team (the forum discussion is going on here). The Magic Lantern hack is definitely going to change a few things in the videographer world: an EOS 5D Mark III becomes the most advanced 14-bit RAW recording system people can get for around $3000 (less than EUR 3000). For those who still don’t know: the Magic Lantern hack makes 14 bit RAW video output at 24fps feasible on the EOS 5D Mark III. The performance is amazing when compared to the 8-bit H.264 footage output (without the hack). Given the success of yesterday’s post I would like to post a follow-up.

First of all, a guide on how to install the Magic Lantern hack on your EOS 5D Mark III, provided by cinema5d. Get the Magic Lantern package (File –> Download) and follow cinema5d’s instructions.

Next, for all of you who are concerned that installing the Magic Lantern hack could brick their DSLR, have a look at Joe Marine’s article at nofilmschool. Hint: It will not brick your sensor. Be confident. While it is true that the hack is in its early stage, and that there will be random crashes and failures, there is no risk to ruin the sensor of the 5D Mark III (this was a concern by some users). The sensor does not have to do more work when using the hack.

Finally, at diyphotography they posted an article about why Magic Lantern Raw video is the best thing that happened to Canon.

More and more videos that show the impressing performance of the Magic Lantern hack show up. Below you’ll find a selection. Have fun!

Canon EOS 5D Mark III price check: Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses

5D mark ii Magic Lantern RAW test (low light, high ISO) from Jon Andreas Sanne on Vimeo.

14-bit RAW on Canon 5D Mark III vs. factory default with CineStyle – Dynamic Range from Saad Rabia on Vimeo.

A RAW in the park. (Canon 5D mark III with Magic Lantern RAW module – short test) from Johnnie Behiri on Vimeo.

The latest hack for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III (Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses) by the skilled Magic Lantern team is going to change a few things. For those who still don’t know: the hack makes 14 bit RAW video output at 24fps feasible on the EOS 5D Mark III. The performance is amazing when compared to the 8-bit H.264 footage output (without the hack).

This ground-breaking Magic Lantern hack transforms the EOS 5D Mark III in a sophisticated, professional video equipment. For instance, check the low light performance with the Magic Lantern hack compared to H.265 (source: EOSHD)

Isn’t it impressing? But there is more to be happy about. Below you can see some videos made by Saad Rabia that show the difference. Have a look how the Magic Lantern hack increases the sharpness and details of the video. Sure, the Magic Lantern hack it is not yet fully mature, but this is just a matter of time. As nofilmschool puts it:

There are a few bugs to work out at the moment, especially since this is so early in the life of the hack. Right now there is no audio in-camera and clips are limited to 4GB (which is about a minute of footage), but the focus has been on actually getting it working and stable before moving on to the other issues. The 4GB limit is not actually even a hardware limitation, it’s just the way the code is at the moment, so we will definitely see longer clip lengths. For the best quality, 1000x speed cards are recommended [...]

[via nofilmschool and EOSHD]

This video from Stefan Czech tells you everything you want to know about the new Canon EOS 5D Mark III (price & specs) firmware update (1.2.1), HDMI, and the Atomos Ninja 2. More information can be found in the planet5d forum.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III price check: Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses

Timeline:

00:01:15 Feedback on Canon 5D Mark III

00:01:48 Introduction to Clean HDMI Out

00:02:05 Firmware (3 Focus)

00:02:16 Definition of Clean HDMI Out (Guidelines)

00:03:28 Introducing Atomos Ninja 2

00:03:59 Transmitting HDMI Signal and Timecode

00:04:30 Delivering Sound from HDMI Signal to External Recorder

00:06:05 What is Atomos Ninja 2? (How it records)

00:06:50 Two codecs of Ninja 2 and what works best for you

00:09:24 Storage explained

00:10:35 ProRes codec explained

00:11:46 Internal recording signal vs External recording signal

00:12:56 Ninja 2 as field monitor (Peaking)

00:13:50 Aperture Adjustment explained (Zebra)

00:14:38 False Color

00:15:00 Watch, edit and export recordings using Ninja 2

00:15:36 Difference between footage recorded on 4:2:0 and 4:2:2

00:16:40 Sample color enhancement

00:18:13 Menu selection and adjustments in 5D Mark III before attaching to HDMI device

00:20:15 Attaching Hard Drive to Ninja

00:21:02 Setting up Ninja 2 for the first time

00:25:32 How to record externally only on Ninja 2 (Magnification tricks)

00:27:49 Tips when recording longer footage using Ninja 2

00:28:49 Ports, Power source and Battery options of the Ninja 2

00:30:03 Using a wireless transmitter for the audio system (Audio recording explained)

00:31:20 Using Zacuto Pincher to secure camera

00:32:08 Using a Steadicam with the Ninja 2

00:34:22 Canon and Atomos working together to create Ninja

00:35:20 Product Price and content included with Ninja 2

00:36:56 Availability of Ninja 2 and special deal from Atomos

00:37:23 Hard Drive and HDMI Cable not included in the package

00:37:33 What HDMI cable to use

The skilled hackers at Magic Lantern discovered another hidden feature that can be activated on the Canon EOS 5D Mark III (price & specs).

At first they announced that they found a way to output RAW CineDNG on the EOS 5D Mark III and EOS 5D Mark II (price & specs). But it was not possible to record more than 12 fps at 1080p because of buffering issues. Later they announced that there is a way to record almost 1080p at 24fps (which can be cropped to 2.35:1 aspect ratio) as long as you are using a 1000x memory card.

This a major breakthrough for the ML team.There is a substantial difference between RAW video mode and regular H.264: more dynamic range and resolution at first instance.

Check the videos. The video above is RAW output, the video below was recorded in H.264 ALL-I with Cinestyle profile.

[via nofilmschool]

Dave Dugdale made this video where he compares the Canon EOS 6D (price & specs) with its bigger sibling, the Canon EOS 5D Mark III (price & specs).

Canon EOS 6D price check: Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses
Canon EOS 5D Mark III price check: Amazon, B&H, Adorama, Canon USA, J&R, Digitalrev, eBay, rent it at Borrow Lenses