Pro's & Cons for upgrading to a 5D

Hi,

I am debating on upgrading my current rig from a Canon 10D to a 5D. When I purchased my lenses, I anticipated on having compatable lenses just in case I upgraded. The lens in question that I have is a 16-35mm 2.8 lens which I was told is an older film lens. I also have a 15mm fisheye which should have no problems for the 5D. I do like the "crop effect" for macro as I own a 100mm and a wet dioptre. With that set up I can achieve 320mm with the 10D and it is a concern to me switching.

Ok my biggest problem is having the Canon 16-35 2.8 lens which will "not work properly". I'm a little confused and that statement and if any 5D owners can give me a bit of advice or direction, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks

Vance

How about taking the lens down to the local camera shop and trying it out on a 5D? That should answer most "will it work" questions relatively easily. Maybe take a memory card down as well and do some test shots using that combination. It would at the very least get you some hands on experience.

Hi Vance,

Welcome to Wetpixel.

I have a 5D and I have used it w/ most of those lenses (I have the 17-40 though).

The 16-35 will work just fine on the 5D - it's not just for film cameras. What you will notice though is that it will vignette in the corners, and it may also be softer than you are used to seeing. You can fix the vignetting by using the slider in Adobe Camera Raw's lens correction settings.

RE the macro - you have tradeoffs. You can stop down more w/o getting bluriness from diffraction, but you'll need a 150mm lens to get the shots you were used to getting w/ your 10D.

Cheers

James

I have a 5d with a 16-35 lens and it is very sharp except at the 16mm-18mm range around the corners. If you have an ikelite set up the new 16-35 wont fit any of the ports since it has a front thats 82mm.

I don't have a 5D, but have used it a few times underwater and it is a great camera. Particularly for wide angle, but i have seen many very nice macro shots from it too.

From your sig I see you have a Subal. If you get the Subal housing for the 5D - get the GS viewfinder - makes a big difference. I would also test that the Mk2 16-35mm fits the Subal port system before buying that lens. Could be tight - I don't know.

Alex

Alex makes a good point - the 16-35 II lens (the new one) takes an 82mm front filter - it's pretty tight into most housings. I can get it into my Sea & Sea housing, but it's tight.

You won't regret switching to the 5D - it's a spectacular camera with very smooth files and impressive high ISO capabilities. The only camera I've seen with anything close to it's high ISO performance is the 1DmkIII, which is a substantial increase in size and price over the 5D.

I moved to a 5D from a 20D, and I've been extremely happy. Hope this helps.

I do like the "crop effect" for macro as I own a 100mm and a wet dioptre. With that set up I can achieve 320mm with the 10D and it is a concern to me switching.

There are two ways to think about the "crop effect", increasing magnification or loosing field-of-view. Compared to the 10D, the 5D has twice the pixel count on a sensor that has 2.6 times the surface area, so the pixel size doesn't differ that much. In other words, the 5D has about the same number of pixels in the central are that corresponds to the 10D sensor. So in this case I think it is more appropriate to think of the 5D as gaining FOV instead of loosing magnification. You are always free to crop later in software.

Bart

Reminds me of the song about "bold headed man" which stated that going bold was not about loosing hair but about gaining face

I'm surprised that no one mentioned one big advantage of the 5D over the 10D. Your wallet will be much lighter which will help with those pesky airline weight limitations.

(I love my 5D, or at least I will love it again as soon as my insurance replaces it :-( )

Wow, that's really great news for me because I was kinda bummed to originally hear that the 16-35mm wouldn't work. As far as the 2nd generation 16-35mm, it's apparently too big for the 8" Subal dome port.

Thanks for all the tips, that really helps me to make a sound decision. It sounds like I certainly won't be dissapointed with the full frame sensor for macro since I now have 12+ MP to crop if necessary.

As far as the GS viewfinder, it's apparently cheaper if you order it straight from the factory with it installed. Thant's a good buying point for me.

You've all been tremendously helpful, now all I have to do is convince my wife to let me upgrade (which can be the most difficult)

I'm especially happy that I won't have to replace any lenses too.

Thanks a bunch

Vance