New 50D vs Second Hand 1D mkII - Please Help!

hyakuhei

hyakuhei

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Robert
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Hi All,

I'm trying to weigh up which of these fine cameras I should purchase.

As you can see from my Sig I already have a bit of camera gear - I understand the difference between the crop of the sensors I just have a few questions about image quality, I know the 50D has way more megapixels but er, I don't really need more than 8mp (sure it would be nice though). What I would like is a faster max FPS for sports and LowFly photography and weather sealing.

How does the IQ of the two cameras compare? What is the ISO performance like on the two bodies?

Anything else you guys think I should know or should influence my decision?

Cheers
-Rob
 
I have a 1D MK iiN which I absolutely love. I use it mainly for sports and equine photography, where the 9fps is useful, but also general photography. I have printed up tp A3 and cannot see any signs of pixellation. If the image is sharp to begin with, there should not be a problem.
 
hyakuhei said:
How does the IQ of the two cameras compare? What is the ISO performance like on the two bodies?
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Will be similar IQ wise, it's the lens that denotes IQ more than anything...

They will be fairly similar ISO wise, the 1D will probably be better. With the 1D you get better FPS, weather sealing, loads of other features which are superior. Remember it's still a pro body, even if it's the previous generation of 1D.

Also remember that the AF is much better on the 1D. That 50D has 9-point, the 1D has 45.

Canon seriously need to ditch the 9-point AF on all their bodies on the xxD range and above in my opinion. I can't believe they didn't upgrade of the 5D's AF, really annoying, totally put me off buying one.
 
When the 60D, 70D, and any other future D for that matter comes about, I really doubt if the over saturated colours will ever match the 1D MK11
 
I went from the 30D to the 1D MKII and it is in another world...I can't compare against the 50D but you will not be disappointed with the 1D! :)
 
The 1D Mkii N is awesome - I've not used a 50D but its in a different league to the 30 and 40D.
 
I used the mk2 for over 2 years and it was a superb camera then and allways will be.
 
Great info, thanks for all the replies guys - lets see how much kit I can sell so I can raise the funds!
 
stop stop stop guys, some bad advice here! :p

The 50D has far better focusing than the 1Dmk2, despite it having less points it's much quicker, and that's before you even factor in the MASSIVE problem that the 1Dmk2 has when it has a speedlight on the top of the body (ie the half a second delay before it even starts to try and focus)

I've used the 1Dmk2 a LOT and my 40D (which shares its focusing with the 50D) is far better. My 1DS mk3 is better than both, but the 40D is closer to the DSmk3 than the Dmk2

All 9 points on the 50D are cross type from f5.6, with the centre becoming diagonal at f2.8. the cross typesare onyl avaialable from f2.8 on the 1Dmk2, and it's just a generally slower camera than the 50D!

Also the 50D has less noise.

It's a hard call as the body is really nice to use, but i still think id rather have a 50D than a 1Dmk2, it's getting long in the tooth now compared to the newer bodies!
 
Some interesting points for me to think about there, thanks Tom, well I say thanks but you've now un-made-up my mind :'(
 
Hmm, to be honest, I do a lot of studio work which the big clear screen will be good for me - gah! I hate cameras!
 
tom said:
stop stop stop guys, some bad advice here! :p

The 50D has far better focusing than the 1Dmk2, despite it having less points it's much quicker, and that's before you even factor in the MASSIVE problem that the 1Dmk2 has when it has a speedlight on the top of the body (ie the half a second delay before it even starts to try and focus)

I've used the 1Dmk2 a LOT and my 40D (which shares its focusing with the 50D) is far better. My 1DS mk3 is better than both, but the 40D is closer to the DSmk3 than the Dmk2
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I never once come accros this massive problem
with a speedlight on with 2 years constant use of the mk2.
I also have a 40d and I can tell you the the focus is nothing like the mk2, not even in the same league lol.
 
I think you have to be realistic about the 1D series 2 models - it's dated technology. Yes - it's a fantastic feeling camera compared to any XXD body, but a lot of the internal elements have been surpassed by later models - the 40D getting the Digic3 Processor and the 50D getting the Digic 4 Processor which are bound to make huge differences apart from the increased pixel count in both cameras.
 
tom said:
just do a google for it then malla :p ive used 2 different bodies and both of them had the same problem and when researching it found MANY complaints of the same thing from both 1Dmk2 and 1Dmk2n users.

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=53233 <-- thats just one
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Like I say, I have never had this problem with my mk2 when using flash but nor did I use CF17 (AF expansion) witch seems to be the problem when using flash.10d or 20d do not have this function thas why scott never had a problem with the 10 or 20d.
 
malla ive tried it with af expansion both on and off, on 2 different 1Dmk2s (spent about an hour testing it, and have shot a good 5000 shots through 1Dmk2s in real usage), and both were really really slow to react with a 580exmk2 on top. Ive also owned a 20, 30, 40, and now a 1DSmk3, and the focusing of the 40D when you actually compare it side by side with a 1D is just as quick in good light, and quicker in worse light, as the 1Dmk2 has no diagonal type sensors and was hunting more, the 40D would lock on in very dark situations far quicker.

Don't get me wrong, i'm not someone trying to defend a camera just because i have it, it's not even my main camera and i DO own a 1 series, so it's not biased crap :p it's just real world experience from using lots of different cameras.
 
My experience is the opposite to Tom's. I've got the 1DMkII and the 50D and the AF on the 1DMkII is more selective.

An example of what I mean here;

I have an old branch/twig perch setup in the garden with the background some way behind it. The 1DII will pick the branch up everytime but the 50D looks straight through it and locks onto the background. If I manually focus the 50D on the perch then it'll stay there using AF but it simply doesn't find it unaided.

My assumption is that the 50D's AF sensor regions are larger than the 1DII's or that they need more contrast to work.

In short (based on my usage so far) the 50D's AF is more flexible but less sensititve....based on using the 600/4

Bob
 
Funny i dont rate the 40d's AI servo to be any where near as fast or as acurate as the 1dmk2 on any lens above f4. The 40d does seam pretty close when using the 70-200mm f2.8, with subjects moving towards them, but more or less forget anything moving away from you. Also proved by the hit rate being higher on the 1d on the 400mm, even when fitted with the 1.4tc.

Static stuff there is not a great deal in it tbh but thats just opinion. Although I have found the same as Canon Bob on the 40d too, so maybe a trait of the 9 point AF being used.
 
i cant say ive compared them in AI servo which i suppose would show a larger difference!
 
My experience on shooting fast jets with my 1D Mk II v my 40D has been the 1D's AF is a lot faster to gain a lock and less likely to lose the lock.

In this setup you are also using the centre point so the cross type points on the 40D are of no help.

In low light situations with all points enabled the 40D makes up a lot of ground on the 1D and maybe even overtakes it with f/2.8.

In the noise stakes the 40D does win but it isn't a big difference, it's not something I've had a problem with.

The 8 / 8.5fps is great but to be honest anything above 5fps gets the job done. More important (for me) is the buffer size which is bigger than both the 40D and 50D.

It's not all plain sailing though......

The screen is absolutely aweful; both in terms of size and quality. I've owned a 20D in the past so I knew (roughly) what it would be like in terms of size but the first few shots I though were soft when viewed on the LCD but when on my PC they were fine. Since then I've only used the screen to check framing, the rest gets done on the PC.

The two button controls are a pain in the ass. You do get use to it but it just compounds the problems of using the screen when you have to use two hands to zoom and move around the picture.

The 1.3x crop factor means I lose some 'reach' and forces me from 300mm to 400mm.

hyakuhei, I'm sure you would love the 1D for low level work but in the studio the screen alone will drive you mad. Get the 50D.
 
I bought a 1DsMkII to add to a 5D just for the autofocus alone.

The step from the 9 to 45 focus points and the speed of the focusing was worth every penny, never mind the 16mp.

If you want to use it solely in the studio then buy a 50D or even a 5D MkII. If you want to shoot anything that moves any faster than a snail, buy a 1 series. They truly are phenomenal.
 
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