Canon 5D Mark III review

The Canon 5D Mark III has been around for quite a while now so we have updated this review with lab tests that compare it with its current competitiors; the Nikon D810, Sony A7 and Canon EOS 6D.

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By the time Canon actually announced the EOS 5D Mark III on March 2 2012, its specification seemed almost a bit of a letdown, especially priced at £2,999 in the UK and $3,499 in the US for the body only.
But while it might not have the headline-grabbing 36MP pixel count of the Nikon D800, Canon's latest full-frame camera has lots to offer enthusiast photographers.

Specification

With 22.3 million effective pixels, the Canon EOS 5D Mk III's sensor only has 1.2MP more than the 21.1MP Canon EOS 5D Mk II that it replaces, but it has 4.2MP more than the 18.1MP Canon EOS-1DX at the top of Canon's DSLR lineup.
Whereas the Canon 1DX has two Digic 5+ processors, the 5D Mk II has one, which in combination with its eight-channel readout means that it has a top continuous shooting speed of 6fps.

This is half the rate of Canon's top-end camera, and it may disappoint those hoping for something in the region of 8fps or more. It's a big jump from the 3.9fps of the Canon 5D Mk II, though, and the burst depth is an impressive 18 raw images or 16,270 JPEGs (when a UDMA 7 card is used).
Sensitivity may be set in the range of ISO 100-25600 in 1/3-stop or whole stop increments, and it can be expanded to include L: ISO 50, H1: ISO 51200, H2 ISO 102400
The Canon EOS 5D Mark III has the same 61-point wide-area autofocus system as the flagship Canon EOS-1DX. This is a big improvement on the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, which has nine user selectable AF points and six assist points, giving a total of 15.

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Of these 61 points, 41 are cross-type and five are dual cross-type points, which is good news for accuracy. The customisable AF presets introduced in the Canon EOS-1D X are also available, which Canon claims helps when shooting more challenging subjects.
It doesn't offer the f/8 sensitivity of Nikon's latest system though - it only extends to f/5.6, which restricts the use of teleconverters.
Predictably, Canon has upgraded the metering system to its iFCL metering. Existing Canon EOS 5D Mark II users may find it takes a little getting used to as it reacts in a similar way to centre-weighted metering and puts greater emphasis on the subject under the active AF point.

In some situations this is a blessing, but with exceptionally dark or light main subjects the results may not be the same as the Canon EOS 5D Mk II would produce in its evaluative metering mode.
Its video capability was one of the big successes of the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, and Canon hasn't changed much of its specification for the Mark III version, but there are some significant improvements.

Firstly there's the introduction of a live view/movie switch on the rear, like on the Canon EOS 7D, to speed up movie activation.
There's also a headphone socket for monitoring the stereo audio, which can be adjusted in the same way as that on the Canon EOS-1DX.
Until now Canon hasn't had a DSLR with in-camera HDR recording, but the Canon EOS 5D Mk III is capable of recording and merging three shots to produce a high dynamic range image.

This is extremely useful, since it records all three shots as well as the processed HDR image, and if you shoot raw and JPEG images simultaneously, you'll find you have a total of seven images, including three raw files that you can process yourself if you wish.
Another difference between the Mark 2 and 3 versions of the Canon EOS 5D is that the newer camera has two card ports, one for compact flash and the other for SD format cards. There's no XQD card port.

Performance

The Nikon D800 is viewed by many as the natural competitor for the Canon EOS 5D Mark III. Given its class-leading pixel count, it's not really a surprise that the Nikon D800 is capable of resolving more detail than the 5D Mark III.
What is a little surprising, however, is that the Nikon camera also produces raw and JPEG images that have a higher dynamic range when the lower sensitivity images are used.

We might have expected this to be the other way around, given that the pixels on the Canon EOS 5D Mark III's sensor have more space.

It is only when the sensitivity of raw files is pushed to ISO 800, or the JPEG sensitivity is ISO 3200 or higher, that the Canon EOS 5D Mark III's dynamic range is higher than the Nikon D800's.
Nevertheless, the Canon EOS 5D Mk III is extremely capable, and it resolves an impressively high level of detail in both raw and JPEG files, which only really starts to dip when the sensitivity is pushed to ISO 25,600.
Our tests also show that from around ISO 100 and above, the Canon EOS 5D Mark III has a slightly higher signal to noise ratio than the Nikon D800, so images have less noise.

However, as is usually the case, noise becomes quite noticeable when the upper sensitivity expansion settings (ISO 51,200 and ISO 102,400) are used, so these are best reserved for emergencies.
We also found that at the top settings, the camera can struggle to render tonal gradations in some red subjects, and small patches of uniform tone appear, giving parts of the image a posterised appearance.

Despite these issues, the Canon EOS 5D Mk III is capable of producing some very impressive results in low light.
When shooting some BMX riders in dim light, for example, the sensitivity was pushed to ISO 12,800 and the JPEG results look very good at A3 size.

Even at 100 per cent on the computer screen, images look respectable, with only a slight mottling of luminance noise and some softening of some fine details. Raw files, of course, can be processed to reveal a bit more detail provided you don't mind a bit of texture.
Canon produces one of the best white balance systems around, and the one in the Canon EOS 5D Mark III doesn't disappoint. When set to the automatic setting, images look natural and generally retain the atmosphere of the shooting conditions.

The Standard picture style is a great option for most situations, but others such as Neutral, Faithful, Monochrome, Portrait and Landscape are on hand, along with three custom options, if you want a different look.
One of the key selling features of the Canon EOS 5D Mark III is its impressive AF system, which is very similar to the Canon EOS-1DX's (except it doesn't detect colours or faces), and it has a dedicated menu section.

However, this means that existing Canon EOS 5D Mark II users have a steep learning curve when shooting sport and action scenes.
There are six AF Area Selection modes, including Spot AF (Manual Selection), Single-point AF (Manual Selection), AF Point Expansion (Manual Selection), AF Point Expansion (Manual Selection, Surrounding 8 Points), Zone AF (Manual selection of Zone) and 61-Point Automatic Selection AF.

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On top of this, the the AI Servo (continuous AF) mode characteristics such as tracking sensitivity, acceleration/deceleration tracking and AF point switching can be adjusted.
Helpfully, there are a number of sport-orientated 'Case Studies' or setup arrangements that enable users to select the correct options for the subject.
According to Canon UK's David Parry, Canon is working on other non-sports case studies that should be available in the future.
We found that the AF system is fast and accurate. It did a good job of keeping up with skateboarders and BMX riders in subdued light in this test.

Wildlife photographers may find the Canon EOS 5D Mark III's Quiet Mode useful, because unlike other quiet modes, it doesn't rely on the mirror being held up after the shot has been taken. Instead the mirror moves more slowly, and a new mechanism dampens the movement to reduce the noise.
The end result isn't silent, but it's much quieter than in normal shooting mode, and it enables a maximum continuous shooting rate of 3fps
Sample images

The iFCL metering performed well here, the highlights in the petal have not burned out.
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Although the LCD screen has a wide viewing angle and reflections aren't a major issue, when you are shooting from very low angles it is impossible to see the subject without lying flat on the ground.
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The 5D Mark III has a wide dynamic range, but it can't capture detail in both the dark shadow and the sky here - one for HDR mode.
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HDR Mode sequence images

Normal exposure - the left side of the sky has burned out
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The over-exposed shot taken as part of the HDR sequence.
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The under-exposed shot taken as part of the HDR sequence.
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The in-camera HDR result, there are no true blacks or whites in this image, but the end result is natural looking.
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High ISO, 6fps sequence

Aesthetically, this and the other images in the sequence would benefit from cropping, but we have included the full scene so you can examine the whole image. The camera managed to keep the cyclist in focus from the approach, to take off and throughout the jump and landing.
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This image has been shot at ISO 12,800 and really shows the low light capabilities of the 5D Mark III. Best seen at high res, an impressive amount of detail has been rendered.

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Colours directly from the 5D Mark III are represented well, as shown in this image shot in Auto White Balance.

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This is another image that shows the impressive color rendition of the 5D Mark III, shot at Auto ISO, the camera has coped well in a dark (indoor) situation.

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This image shows the incredibly shallow depth of field effects that can be achieved when using a full-frame camera (shot at f/2.8)

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Shot at ISO 8000, if you look closely at the high res image you can see how much detail has been resolved in the fabric. An impressive amount that would be more than usable for most photographers.

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The 5D Mark III has 61 autofocus points, and we've found that it is able to lock onto the subject quickly and easily, even in low light and difficult scenarios.

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Even at incredibly high ISOs such as ISO 20,000 as seen in this picture, the images remain usable - again it's best to have a look at the high res image to truly get a feel for how well the noise has been controlled.

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For comparison, this image has been shot at the camera's highest possible ISO setting (Hi2), which is ISO 102,400.

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This image was shot using the Canon 100mm Macro 'L' lens. Selecting one of the 61 autofocus points allows you to hone in on fine detail.

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Autofocus settings can be changed to use zone AF, which clusters together autofocus points into zones selectable via the joystick on the back of the camera.

source:-Canon 5D Mark III review