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Buyer's Guide Cameras SLRs Over $2,000 Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III
Buyer's Guide Cameras SLRs Over $2,000 Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III
 
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Canon EOS-1Ds Mark IIIESTIMATED STREET PRICE: List Price: $6,999 (body only)While many of the features of the Canon EOS-1Ds Mark III have trickled down to the 5D Mark II, the EOS-1Ds Mark III model still offers photographers professional features and functionality that the 5D Mark II does not. The 1Ds Mark III is the flagship D-SLR of the Canon EOS line, and as such, everything about it is designed to offer top-of-the-line performance, speed and image quality.
The 1Ds Mark III is designed for use in the studio or out, with a body environmentally sealed to protect against dust, dirt and the elements. Rubber O-rings and rubber seals line the controls, buttons and compartments, and when used with rubber-sealed Canon L-series lenses, the lens mount is protected, too. The EOS Integrated Cleaning System also uses ultrasonic vibration on the low-pass filter to remove dust, and a Self-Cleaning Sensor Unit activates when the camera powers on or off. The 1Ds Mark III has finely detailed 45-point autofocusing (19 cross-type and 26 assist points) compared to 9 autofocus points (1 cross-type and 6 assist points) in the 5D Mark II. The cross-type sensors are able to detect along both horizontal and vertical axes. With the Multi-Selector button (or through the menu), users are able to select a single focal point, all 19 points, or one of two nine-point AF groups. In automatic AF, while determining focus, selected AF points will flash red once focus distance has been metered. 14-bit A/D conversion with 14-bit CR2 RAW files provides top-quality color, tonality and hue. sRAW is also available as a capture mode for smaller files at 5.2 megapixels. Though surpassed by the newer 5D Mark II’s maximum ISO of 25,600, the 1Ds Mark III’s maximum of 3200 is still very good and was exceptional at the time of its release. Internally, the 5D Mark II includes four levels of high ISO noise reduction, advantageous since the ISO range of the 5D Mark II has been extended from 50-3200 in the 5D (in expanded modes) to 50-25,600 (in expanded modes), the highest to date in Canon’s EOS cameras. The latest DIGIC 4 processor from Canon provides a bump in speed from 3 fps with the 5D to 3.9 fps in the 5D Mark II. Color depth also has been improved—the 5D offered 12-bit A/D conversion, while the 5D Mark II is 14-bit. |
STANDOUT FEATURE: High-definition 1080p video capture—most other video-capable D-SLRs only offer video resolution in 720 HD.
VERDICT: HD video and a boost in resolution from 12.8 megapixels to the 5D Mark II’s 21.1-megapixel full-frame CMOS sensor make this a worthy successor to the excellent 5D.
 Canon EOS-1D Mark III Announced in February 2007, the Canon EOS-1D Mark III has been the go-to camera for many professional Canon shooters for close to three years now. With an incredible 10 fps and maximum burst rates of 30 RAW files and 110 high-res JPEGs, the 1D Mark III still maintains its title in this class as the fastest RAW shooter, thanks to two DIGIC III processors. While the 10.1-megapixel, APS-H sub-full-frame CMOS sensor is somewhat outdated in this class of camera, the resolution is still enough for many users, and a 14-bit image-processing pipeline also provides excellent color and tonality. Other key features include a 45-point AF system with 19 selectable cross-type AF points, an expandable ISO range up to 6400, 300,000-cycle shutter durability and a weather-resistant body design. List Price: $3,999. |
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