CANON 5D MARK II REVIEW - PAGE 1 - PAGE 2 - PAGE 3

1080P VIDEO! WOW! With the 5DII you get full HD 1080P video, and the ability to use some kick butt lenses for that hi res video. Only problem with that is once you start rolling, you have manual focus only, and the built in mic leaves a lot to be desired.

I have seen some incredible video from others using the 5DII, so I know it is capable of producing some SWEET low light video. Below is a small video I put together using the 5DII. Nothing great, and yea, you can now laugh at me but I figured I had to give the video a try since I had the camera for a while! *BTW, You CAN add an external mic to the 5DII for better audio.* I shot inside an old abandoned factory as well as made up a little song to help promote this review on youtube! I know you can not see the full quality from a youtube video, but it can show that the 5DII works great as a video camera.

Click on the HD button in the embedded player above to watch in higher quality!

The video quality is just superb, and amazing in lower light. No grain, no washed out colors and the built in mono mic works pretty good for what it is. The color with video is the best I have seen, even better than a $4k Sony HD camcorder I once owned. I can see many buying this just for the video capability! Keep in mind, that factory I was in was actually kind of dark! The 85L on the 5D seemed to lighten it up, and there is NO GRAIN in the video!

I also like that the video is recorded as .mov files and play GREAT on my macbook pro. I love these new cams out these days like the 5DII and Leica D-lux 4 that record in HD and record with .mov files. I can just drop the files into Imovie, edit, and export to youtube! Easy as 1-2-3!

If you want to record video on the Canon 5D MKII, here are the steps you need to follow:

1.Go to the rear of the camera and press the “LIVE VIEW” button. This will bring up the LCD with a “LIVE VIEW” of the scene you are recording.

2.You can now manual focus, or AF by pressing the AF button.

3.DO NOT press the shutter button to start recording! (I made this mistake) You press the “SET” button to start the recording. You will see a red dot in the upper right showing you it is in fact recording. Press SET again to stop.

The video quality is fantastic but remember, you can not AF while shooting so if you move, your subject will be out of focus. With the 5DII, you need to look at video making much like movie making. Set up your scene, have your camera on a tripod, focus, shoot and then move to the next scene. The sensor in the 5DII is much larger than a typical camcorder. This is why the 5D can shoot in low light and still give a clean, colorful, quality recording.

21 MEGAPIXELS? SHOW ME SOME CROPS MAN!

The old 5D was 12MP and it was good. The new 5D is 21MP, and it is also good. One thing about the old classic 5D was its sharpness and the superb quality of its images, even when viewed at full size. The new Mark II also has great quality, as well as keeping the files nice and sharp, WHEN YOU SHOOT RAW. There has been talk of softness on some forums, and it *may be* a little softer (or waxier)  than the old 5D at 100%, but who really views the files at 100%? C’mon people, let’s stop the pixel peeping craziness!

MANY people who own a 5DII will use it for posting images online. For that it is crazy overkill, but many will do it as a big part of photography for many is the sharing of the images, the critiquing and participating in the “community” - I do this as well and have been for YEARS. Its fun, and even gives us motivation to shoot sometimes.

For those who want large prints, the 5DII will be awesome. Print it and it will look amazing. Pixel peeping is OK to see how your camera performs, but it not something that one should be obsessed with. The 5DII can and does deliver the goods, but it is not the god of crispness. My M8 gives me MUCH crisper, more RAW, edgier looking files. Wether you like the look of the Canon 5DII files will be personal preference.

FACT: THE CANON 5DII CAN DO JUST ABOUT ANYTHING YOU NEED IT TO DO. All DSLR’s these days can give you phenomenal quality. A Canon XSI, 50D, or 5DII. A Nikon D40, D50, D90 or D300/D700. The differences between cameras these days comes down to color, tone, dynamic range and how it renders an image. Basically, as already stated, personal preference.

With that, here is an image and 100% crop using the 35L at 2.8.

100% CROP - 35L, 2.8

And now one from the 85 L at 1.2

100% CROP - 85L, 1.2

As you can see, the 5DII is no slouch. At 21MP, it is a MONSTER image-taking machine. A tool for the true artist who wants a full frame camera that can do it all. The 5DMKII’s closest competition is the Nikon D700 but the Nikon D700 has no video capability. The 5DII does. Canon has created a camera that should last for SEVERAL years before they need to upgrade. It’s like the swiss army DSLR!

EVERYTHING ELSE & MY CONCLUSIONS

Another great feature of the 5DII is its sensor cleaner. Improved over the old version, the 5DII built in dust buster keeps the dust away. The picture styles are also useful if you shoot JPEG (which I do not recommend). You can dial in tone curves for standard, portrait, faithful, landscape, natural, and monochrome. Canon has now added a button on the back to bring these up on the LCD.

The Battery life is GREAT. I would shoot all day long and even shoot video and when I arrived home it would still show nearly full! The battery life is incredible. Buy an extra and you can shoot for a LONG time before running out. I got about 1000 shots per charge with video use and chimping.

The 5DII accepts Compact Flash cards and I shot with a Lexar 16GB without any issues. The camera was fast and never made me wait to shoot. While it keeps the same AF system as the 5D, Canon says it has improved its speed and accuracy due to its new Digic IV processor and I believe it. The AF never failed me, even in near darkness. It locked on and the resulting shot was IN FOCUS, every time. Now, keep in mind, I only shot static subjects. When I tried shooting a moving subject I did not have the best of luck. The D700 still has much better and faster AF.

My old 5D had MANY missed shots due to the slow, dodgy AF. With thousands of shots taken on this 5DII, not one was out of focus unless it was moving :)

So, the million dollar question. Would I dump my M8 for the 5DII? No, but only due to its small size, light weight and the fact I that I am in love with Leica lenses and that crisp, raw, edgy look I can achieve. (Oh yea, and I do not have an extra $5k laying around for the 5DMKII body and lenses though I would like to have a 5DII for its gorgeous video capability).

The 5D is really a much more versatile camera than the M8. Its got AF, its speedy, its low light ability is CRAZY good and the full frame sensor gives you some super creamy, super smooth files. BUT the size of the camera, for me, is overkill. Just to large, and I would never use it! Usability Factor for me was low, but man, the images are gorgeous.

Most people reading this will have no issues with DSLR sizes or weight. So, this turns into a battle between the D700 and 5DII. I have now shot both and I really like both. The D700, to me, has the more ergonomic and better built body and I prefer Nikon controls as I have usually been a Nikon shooter. That is what I am used to. But the D700 is almost HALF of the 5D Mark II’s resolution! 12 vs 21! Still, 12 MP is plenty for most shooters. I am happy with 10, but under that and it starts to get iffy. I can say the 21Mp of the 5DII is beautiful and the files are very rich.

For portraits or weddings the choice is clear. The 5D won me over for its nice skin tones, and creamy look for portraits. I would choose the 5D over the D700 if my main gig was shooting weddings or in-studio portraiture.

For landscape, or sports I would prefer the D700 for its more vivid, punchier colors and crisper look, though the Mark II would also do landscape VERY well.

I do feel Nikon has the edge in lens quality these days. The 35L had some soft corners even when stopped down to 5.6 (lens review here) and did not seem to be as vibrant with its rendering as the Nikon glass I have owned. The 85L, well that is a different story. (review)

For owners of the 5D, 40D or 50D who want to upgrade without going to a 1d series body, the 5DMKII is a WINNER. I could find no faults in its operation or image quality. Just the AF tracking on fast moving subjects. I feel Canon could of taken this chance to improve this. Maybe they also consider this mainly a portrait, wedding and studio camera as it does excel at this.

It truly is a semi-pro body in a smaller package. My complaints were minor and would not bother most serious shooters. In the end, its about image quality and the 5D Mark II delivers it while keeping the same signature “Canon” look to the images. The added video features push it over the top IMO. I love the 5D video.

I had fun with my time with the 5D MARK II, and recommending it is a no brainer! If you are a Canon shooter, what are you waiting for? The video quality is almost worth the price of admission alone (when used with nice lenses like the 85L)

If you enjoyed this review and are planning on buying a 5DMKII, I HIGHLY recommend B&H Photo. I have purchased ALL of my camera gear from them over the past 10-11 years and have always had AMAZING service. They offer a great return policy and have the fastest shipping in the business.

CLICK HERE TO GO DIRECTLY TO THE B&H 5DII PAGE

To check out the 5D MKII page at B&H just CLICK HERE. If you buy yours there after clicking the link, you will help to support this site and keep it growing! That would be insanely cool, and would help me out tremendously! If you are lucky enough to click the link and find that the camera is IN STOCK, I would snag it quick as they are selling out right now within a couple of hours.

Also, the 85L B&H page is here if you are interested in this incredible lens.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to e-mail me at the e-mail me link above! Thanks for reading this write up of the Canon 5D MKII! I hope it was useful for you!