Thanks to www.BookaTrack.com for the picture
It’s been over a year since I first received my Canon 1D mkIV and you’ve probably read my previous blog entries about it. I’d previously owned 1D mkII, 1D mkIIn and 1D mkIII bodies and it’s fair to say that Canon has pulled out all the stops with it’s 1D mkIV body. But, there’s a catch..
There had been a few noises made on various forums and websites when the Canon 1D mkIV first became readily available, but it all turned out to be hot air probably aimed at increasing website traffic. Both Sally and myself have moved across to using 1D mkIV bodies, with the only problems we’ve had to date have been caused by not being able to use the cameras as much as we would of liked at the maximum quality setting due to the various companies we’ve been working for during the last year not wanting massive picture files.
By now you’re probably wondering what the catch is. Well, the other weekend I was lucky enough to shoot with a Canon 1D mkIV body attached to the latest version of Canon’s 70-200mm F2.8 IS II L-series lens, and boy do this camera/lens combination get on like a house on fire. I thought the original Canon 70-200mm F2.8 IS L-series lens was amazing, but this latest version ups the game in every area. The image stabilisation works better and is quieter in operation. It’s hard to tell whether the lens focuses quicker or not, but the images are noticeably sharper at all focal lengths. I didn’t have a 1D mkIII body to hand when I borrowed the lens so I couldn’t compare the two systems but I could easily tell the difference between the mark 1 and mark 2 versions of the lens as I have the mark 1 version. I wouldn’t say it’s worth trading your old version in for the new version as the retail price of the newer version is sky high but if you’re looking to buy a 70-200mm L-series lens it’s worth saving the extra for the mark 2 version.
So it would appear that the Canon 1D mkIV works well with both old and new Canon L-series lenses. As you know, I never really had an issue with the focusing performance of the Canon 1D mkIII with all the problems I had being either consistency of exposure (easy to work around) or failures with the lens eject button (complete pain which cost me hundreds). The focusing performance with the Canon 1D mkIV body is actually more consistent and the exposure much more predictable (i.e it doesn’t change when held in portrait or landscape modes) than the Canon 1D mkIII so I’ve ended up in the situation where by I end up with loads more keepers which is both good and bad.
On the subject of video, I have to admit that this area is still very much work in progress. I think to explore the HD video function further I’ll have to pair up with someone who has experience with directing videos and editing them together. The HD footage shot with a Canon 1D mkIV body is very detailed, sharp and clear but I have real issues trying to edit it together into something worthy of posting.
So to summarize, the Canon 1D mkIV is a truly amazing digital SLR body which really opens your eyes to what is really possible when used with Canon’s latest issue L-series lenses. The 1D mkII, 1D mkIIn and 1D mkIII bodies were all very good in their own way, but the 1D mkIV is simply sensational.