The Canon 1D Mark IV - A Review of Our Experience Shooting with the Canon 1DM4

[MYTRB]

Canon DSLR's do my head in. D3s everything you want to adjust is at your fingertip so i'd personally be spending more :-(. If i was more accustomed to canon i'd buy it, looks sweet but i dont like chocolate!

[jase1125]

Interesting. I own both the 5DII and the 1D Mark IV and the high ISO performance is better on the 1D Mark IV. Other shooters have confirmed the same. Also, the 7D shoots at 8 FPS and not 7. The benefit of high FPS isn't sustained button presses. it is bursts where you burst about 5 to 8 shots and then do it again. I rarely meet anyone or any situation where you need a sustained 10FPS for 3 seconds where the buffer would be an issue. Only thing that beats it high ISO is the D3s.

[sasktank]

7d is 8fps

[gipukan]

Hmm, my 7D is fast so this 1D is faster hmm did i ever need that yet?........ Nice show guys I always get a remark when at 7 speed shutter speed that makes people around me want to see the results instantly.

[theheartoffood]

The moments when you're playing with the high fps are hilarious, especially considering that I was expecting something very instructional, serious and almost deadpan.

Nice work with the review :)

[nchomeier]

I'm a Nikon shooter myself and to me the Nikon D3s is the ultimate full-frame sports camera out there atm. However the Sony Alpha77 with it's 24,3mp sensor, and 12 fps is gonna give both Canon and Nikon some heavy competition on the sports/action photography world.. Otherwise is the 1D Mk IV a good crop-sensor camera! Would prefer the ISO sensitivity and the fps rate on the upcoming 1Ds Mk IV :)

[SLRlounge]

@nchomeier Yeah, the D3s is pretty ridiculous. Would be fun to do a side by side. I can't wait to get our hands on the 1Ds Mark IV, that should have some improved low light performance over say the 5DM2.

[stubones]

Please elaborate on this extra low light sensitivity the 5Dmk2 has over the 1Dmk4..??.

DXO mark scores are rubbish. The 1Dmk4 does not in reality have worse noise performance. I have tested both side by side and it was relatively equal with the 1Dmk4 actually being slightly better. I like your vids :), but sorry this one has to slide past and out of sight.

[SLRlounge]

@stubones Stubones, Arguing this won't change the facts. It's strange that from your own "side by side" testing you didn't come up with the same results. Our testing, online articles and forums, as well as in talking to the Canon reps themselves, all lead to the same conclusion; the 5DM2 gets around .5 stops of better noise performance than the 1DM4. Side by side comparisons are all over, so I don't think there is any point in doing another. Just google 5DM2 vs 1DM4 iso comparison to see some.

[stubones]

@SLRlounge This the first I've heard of this, and I've also spoken to Canon reps and chatted on forums about the two cameras. The 1Dmk4 sensor is currently the most efficient sensor in any Canon body. I've seen plenty 5Dmk2 vs 1Dmk4 comparisons and I'm afraid I havent seen this 0.5 stop superiority. My friend has a 5Dmk2 and we spent ages comparing dozens of files at the same ISO settings. In fact she was disappointed at the 5Dmk2 at low ISO's.. banding ya hear? :) its real!

[stubones]

@SLRlounge Sorry, theyre not facts. just opinions. The 5Dmk2 is also well know for low ISO banding not visible with the the 1DSmk3, its bigger older brother. Thedigitalpicturedotcom has a very good comparison btew the 5Dmk2 and 1Dmk4. it looks about even :) and this guy knows his business.

[SLRlounge]

@stubones Stubones, check your info dude. That site you referred does indeed have a great review and it confirms everything we stated. It also states "those not needing the fast performance... may find the 5D Mark II to be a better option... The 5D II's image quality is at least as good as the 1D IV (with higher resolution)" Looking at the side by sides show the 5DM2 is slightly sharper, better detail, finer grain at high ISOs.

[stubones]

@SLRlounge Dude :), he states that there is very little realworld difference which will not be noticed. At higher ISO the grain is even. I spent the last ten minutes looking. The slight add sharpness is from add res. I know FF in the past always trumped a crop, but the 1Dmk4 sensor is newer tech. If you're looking for genuine realworld superiority it will be the next gen 5D and 1DS body. We'll just have to agree to disagree. I still like your videos :)

[SLRlounge]

@stubones I agree with you 100%, there is little real world difference. The point of this type of review over a technical review is to help people understand the real world difference over than the paper scores, I only stated the paper scores so that people wouldn't argue the point. If I need low-light I go 5DM2, if I need FPS I go 1DM4. What I am trying to prevent, is people buying the 1DM4 over the 5DM2 because they think it will give them better image and low light performance when it wont.

[SLRlounge]

@stubones Friendly banter aside, we do very much appreciate your comments and participation, so keep it up!

[stubones]

@SLRlounge Absolutely, I've enjoyed the banter, no malice intended at all :) and your vids are very enjoyable and informative too. Keep up the good work :) I think lowlight wise there is nothing in it, but if someone is just shooting natural light weddings/portraits for eg, the cheaper ff body is certainly a better option. The 1Dmk4 is just a great all rounder that costs a small fortune! Thanks again for the chat :)

[stubones]

@SLRlounge Oh yeah and dont forget the Nikon D3/D700/D3S craps on both of them high ISO noise controlwise LOL :) All hail Lightroom!

[SLRlounge]

@stubones lol, yeah, Nikon is still the reigning low light champ.

[savillephotographer]

@stubones ...Ya know, that's what always makes me laugh when I hear people "taking offense" over the difference between two Canon DSLR's in low light performance. Because if low light were really THAT important, you'd buy a Nikon D3s. My point is, that personal preference has many facets and they shouldn't be taken out of context.

=Matt=

[stubones]

@savillephotographer True Matt, The D3S sensor is remarkable. canon will have to go some to equal or best it. I cant wait to see what the new generation of bodies has in store for us. Let battle commence! take care :)

[SLRlounge]

@stubones Also, don't confuse comparisons that have different in or out of camera noise reduction software applied. With no in camera noise reduction, the 5DM2 slightly outperforms the 1DM4. This all I am going to say on the subject, no point in arguing, your own link proved it. Here it is if anyone wants to see - go to the digital picture (type on google) then look for 1D Mark IV Review on the site itself. Enjoy!

[stubones]

@SLRlounge I did look at the site, I spend a lot of time on it. The kodak colour charts (obviously with No NR applied so dont look at those :) ) show Its pretty even as I said, especially at ISO 3200 and 6400. Please dont take the DXO mark scores seriously. Their tests and methods are regarded with scorn by most photographers. The results speak badly for themselves. Cheers dude, thanks for the debate! oh and enjoy your awesome AF, focus and recompose!

[SLRlounge]

@stubones lol, just saw the last line of this comment, the "enjoy your AF, focus and recompose." That's just cold brotha, just cold.... and completely accurate, haha ;)

[stubones]

@SLRlounge Sorry, I couldnt resist :))))) must try harder...! I was very close to pulling the trigger on a 5Dmk2 a couple of weeks back. If I wasnt spoilt with the great AF on the 7D and the 1Dmk4, the 7D would have been history. I think the 5Dmk3 (i assume it will be named that) will address the woes of those who want better a better AF system in the 5D body.

[ashkibala1]

could you give me the length and width of those frames behind you? and which company printed them for you? they look great.

[SLRlounge]

@ashkibala1 Not sure for the sizing, but we do all of our canvases through Pixel2Canvas.

[ashkibala1]

Do you guys have a competition and do you give products for free? :)

[SLRlounge]

@ashkibala1 We do have competitions, follow us on Facebook to see when we release new competitions.

[SLRlounge]

@ashkibala1 We do have competitions, follow us on Facebook to see when we release new competitions.

[yangboi88]

hey good review...need more tech review. However, It would be nice if you guys show some of the pictures you shot with, especially a comparison between this camera and the 5DMKII.

Other than that. Video reviews are good.

[savillephotographer]

Hopefully, next time you get a loaner from Canon it will be a 1Ds mk3, and you can see whether or not there is a real-world difference between the ISO performance of the 1Ds mk3 and the 5D mk2...

[savillephotographer]

The Nikon flagships, unfortunately, do not have an AF assist capability either, not without a speedlight or speedlight commander. (SU800, aka STE-2 on Canon) It is ONLY the D700 that has the full-frame sensor AND an AF-assist beam. Although really, I've never needed it and I usually just leave it off. In pitch-black situations where I truly do need AF assist, I'm always using a flash anyways...

[SLRlounge]

@savillephotographer Oh, hilarious. I have only shot on the D700 in the Nikon line up, I just assumed all of the Nikon cameras have the on-board AF assist. Thanks again saville. Canon's auto focus in general is really quite lacking when compared to Nikon. It makes sense that on a Nikon you would only need the AF assist in very dark situations since its focus system is just stronger. On a 5D Mark II for example, in low light it even has trouble focusing. So on-board AF assist would rock.

[SLRlounge]

@savillephotographer Oh, hilarious. I have only shot on the D700 in the Nikon line up, I just assumed all of the Nikon cameras have the on-board AF assist. Thanks again saville. Canon's auto focus in general is really quite lacking when compared to Nikon. It makes sense that on a Nikon you would only need the AF assist in very dark situations since its focus system is just stronger. On a 5D Mark II for example, in low light it even has trouble focusing. So on-board AF assist would rock.

[savillephotographer]

The 45 point AF system is completely different from the 7D, the only components shared may be the software / firmware used to do the focusing. The 7D's focus system, mechanically, is completely different. It does however come quite close in performance.

[SLRlounge]

@savillephotographer Thanks saville for the note. I had heard it was the same, but I figured one of you smart peeps out there would chime in on the subject ;)

[TheForthemankind]

which camera were u using for this shooting ?

[SLRlounge]

@TheForthemankind We used the 5D Mark II w/ a 50mm F/1.4 @ F/4 to record the review.