Taming the beast: a tutorial for Canon’s AF system

We know that while being an advanced (possibly the most advanced available) and powerful Auto-Focus system, the AF sported on the [shoplink 2431]EOS 5D Mark III[/shoplink] and [shoplink 4119]EOS 1D X[/shoplink] can be confusing and overwhelming. Even Ken Rockwell wasn’t able to cope with it :-). There is a comprehensive guide released by Canon (right click here and save as) and oriented to all the photographers that want to master the AF system on their 5D3 and 1DX bodies. It’s a 40 pages document, and if you are looking for something more tutorial-like, then I have a good link for you.

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Panasonic thinks Canon will release a mirror-less camera in 2012

Canon mirror-less concept by D. Riesenberg

In an interview with Amateur Photographer, Panasonic UK’s Lumix G product manager Barnaby Sykes said that “Panasonic expects Canon to launch its first CSC in 2012.” There is one more interesting analysis made by Mr. Sykes: “the continued loyalty of many photographers to major camera brands such as Canon, owing to their long photographic heritage, continues to pose a ‘massive challenge’ to Panasonic, despite the firm’s success in the CSC arena.“. In other words: Canon user prefer to wait for Canon to releaser their own mirrorless system instead of jumping the ship by using one of the current mirrorless systems.

And while we are talking about a Canon mirror-less camera (I expect it to be announced at Photokina), have a look at the interview a Canon manager gave to Japanese magazin impressjapan:

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More on Canon’s light-leaking issue

The possible light-leaking issue of the [shoplink 2431]EOS 5D Mark III[/shoplink] is making people curios. And while it is true that if your cam is working as expected (and as it should) with mounted lenses there is no “real issue”, it is still worth to trace down this thing. Let’s see it from a hacker’s perspective: it is not a problem you should be worried about, nevertheless I want to know if it is there. And then: is the 5D Mark III the only canon digital body that is (possibly) affected by the light-leaking issue I reported in my previous post? At canonrumors they decided to test all the Canon bodies they have in stock. Results in short…:

  • EOS 60D no issue
  • EOS 7D no issue
  • EOS 1D Mark IV – some issues and no backlight issue on one body, no issues on another body
  • EOS 5D Mark II – same issue in direct sunlight, no LCD backlight issue, no flashlight issue
  • EOS 5D Mark III – reported issues confirmed, but then… (quoting CR):
    • «The final test I did with the 5D Mark III was take the lens cap off and meter off a relatively neutral wall. I turned on the backlight and nothing changed. I then pressed a 130 lumen flashlight up against the top LCD and the exposure didn’t change. I also ran the flashlight around the camera body and absolutely nothing changed»
Once more: this is not an issue that should make you return your 5D Mark III or make you change your mind about this outstanding camera.
[via CR]

Does the EOS 5D Mark III have a light-leaking problem?

This is an issue that is heavily discusses in forums and on the web. People are reporting that their 5D Mark III’s are leaking light through the LCD panel on the top of the camera body. The leak seems to affect metering. There is a way to test if your body has the problem: put the cap on the body and cover the viewfinder, then put the cam in “P” mode at ISO 800 and turn on the LCD backlight. If the leak is present, the shutter speed will change after having turned on the backlight. Unfortunately there is more. The same issue seems to show up if a flashlight is firing on top of the LCD panel. And finally: there is also some people reporting that direct sunlight or strong light coming from top to down is also affecting the metering. I have two videos explaining the issue.

The test procedure summarized:

  • Remove lens and place the body cap on the camera
  • Apply the viewfinder cover on the viewfinder (to block any light from entering the camera)
  • Set ISO to 800 and camera mode to “P” (should set a shutter speed of approx. 10 sec)
  • Either turn on a flashlight near the top LCD panel or turn on the backlight for the top LCD panel
  • If light-leaking is present, the shutter speed will change to 5-8 seconds

Here the videos…

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New EOS 5D Mark III real-world sample pics, various lenses used

Dpreview just posted a gallery of real-world sample images shot using a production-standard Canon EOS 5D Mark III.

We’ve been out shooting with a range of lenses and in a variety of lighting conditions with Canon’s latest full-frame DSLR, superseding our preview gallery that was shot with a pre-production camera. The gallery includes some shots processed with Adobe Camera Raw and a shot using the camera’s multiple exposure feature.

See the gallery here

 

Adorama TV reviews 5D Mark III, and comparison with D800

AdoramaTV Pro puts Canon’s and Nikon’s newest Full Frame pro DSLRs, the [shoplink 2431]5D Mark III[/shoplink] and D800, head to head in a video shootout. In the video moiré on the 5D Mark III looks much better controlled than in the D800. Another thing that caught my attention was to see how much detail the 5D maintains at high ISOs (>6400) while well controlling the noise.

They compare:

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