Thank you Canon!

[wq9nsc]

Thank you to the leadership, engineers, and market researchers at Canon for producing the next great generation of the 1DX family. 

Holding the line at a 20 MP sensor with the 1DX 3 while pushing the low light/high ISO performance is MUCH appreciated and this will be the primary reason I will purchase one before the high school football season starts in Fall.  I will be very interested in seeing how the new low pass filter improves sharpness as more sample photos are released but it certainly sounds like a winner.  The improvements in the AF system sound like they are dead on target for sports shooters.  I doubt if I will ever really utilize the increased frame rate or bufffer depth since both have been more than adequate with my 1DX and 1DX 2 bodies but I am extremely happy that the DSLR technology with its excellent battery life and zero lag optical viewfinder continues. 

I knew that there was a reason why I just agreed to briefly come out of retirement to take on a small consulting contract and I guess it was the anticipation that Canon would introduce an excellent new photography tool 🙂  I know that the design evolution of the 1DX 3 won't be everyone's "cup of tea" but for sports photography, especially in poor light, it looks like another home run.

Rodger

[shadowsports]

Hi Rodger,

I read about it last night.  Digic X...  sounds like a superbowl in the making.  Yes, won't be my cup of tea but I know you and Ernie will be all over it.  The 1K jump in price over the mkII is a little high in my opinion, but that is the price of admission and I'm sure we will see it at a lower price point when released.  Coming out of retirement was a good idea.  Cha-ching for Canon. 

I'm still waiting for the 5DV, which I hope will have an articulating screen.  (Smile).

[wq9nsc]

Rick,

I hope that the forthcoming 5DV meets your needs as well as the 1DX 3 will meet mine 🙂  I suspect the street price will show a steady slow drop after it has been out for some time.

I would wait longer for a price drop BUT my daughter has been recruited by the high school football coach for kickoff, point after, and field goal duty for the upcoming season after he walked by the soccer field and saw her taking practice penalty kicks so getting the shot in football became a little more personally important for me when her school plays!  It will be an interesting junior year for her starting next fall since she has just about run out of AP courses to take but doesn't want to graduate early because she wants her full four years of soccer, speech team, and now a couple of year of football.  Although shooting basketball isn't my forte, I found Anna had added a basketball game to my calendar with a note "to make sure that you stay in good photography shape for soccer season"  🙂

Rodger

[ebiggs1]

"I know you and Ernie will be all over it."

I am trying to think and see if, I need it.  If it were 10 years ago I would have my order in already.

"I would wait longer for a price drop BUT my daughter..."

I never advise a person, 'waiting' for a price drop which will almost with a certainly happen. I never did.  Just how many shots are you going to miss out on by waiting?  Aren't they worth something?  I guess, yes, otherwise why would you bother doing them?

You know we used to shoot with a totally manual camera, F1n, and a totally manual lens.  We got shots for sure but nothing like what is possible today.  The technology and certainly the state of the art tech in the 1DX Mk III is beyond the pale. I do wish I "needed" one!

[wq9nsc]

Ernie,

I had the mouse hovering over the pre-order box at B&H this morning but I really don't need the first production run.  But I will be hitting the order button in a couple of months.  Even if the price drops shortly, I wouldn't be surprised if the bundled card and reader disappear so there won't be a net price difference and for the build and capabilities that price is very reasonable.

I was thinking last night about how much easier action shots are with the incredible auto-focus capability of the current crop of high end cameras.  I really liked the simplicity and clear results of the split image focusing in my first Canon SLR MANY years ago but I couldn't imagine trying to do that now with sports.  High "drive" speed with nearly unlimited image buffer depth and incredibly good low light performance are important but the AF system/tracking was the game changer.

Rodger

[RobertTheFat]

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@ebiggs1 wrote:

"I know you and Ernie will be all over it."

I am trying to think and see if, I need it.  If it were 10 years ago I would have my order in already.

"I would wait longer for a price drop BUT my daughter..."

I never advise a person, 'waiting' for a price drop which will almost with a certainly happen. I never did.  Just how many shots are you going to miss out on by waiting?  Aren't they worth something?  I guess, yes, otherwise why would you bother doing them?

You know we used to shoot with a totally manual camera, F1n, and a totally manual lens.  We got shots for sure but nothing like what is possible today.  The technology and certainly the state of the art tech in the 1DX Mk III is beyond the pale. I do wish I "needed" one!

---

Ernie, your greatest pleasure is in trying new things. (Can you even count the lenses you've bought?) I remember when you swore you didn't "need" a 1DX; and we know how that worked out. But the 1DX3 is only a minor improvement over what you have now, so what's the point? If you buy another camera, it should be a mirrorless. I say wait for the R-2.

[ebiggs1]

" I remember when you swore you didn't "need" a 1DX; ..."

I am guilty.   I must say, I am super glad I did buy the 1DX. It is a fantastic camera.

"(Can you even count the lenses you've bought?)"

No, I can't.  I only seem to even remember some of them when somebody else brings up a specific model lens. Then it dawns on me, "Oh, I had one of those." I think there is still 18 or 20 on the shelf of my formerly stop bath stains walls in my darkroom/storage room. I need to count them!

"... it should be a mirrorless. I say wait for the R-2."

There will be no mirrorless in my present or future besides my G15 and G1X. Already changed formats too many times and at this point I am not up to another.

[John_SD]

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@RobertTheFat wrote:

---

If you buy another camera, it should be a mirrorless. I say wait for the R-2.

---

I agree with you completely, Robert. If one already owns the prior version of the great 1DX, what is the point of getting the latest and greatest iteration? Now, if one has many lucrative and high end assignments lined up, or can easily afford the expense with the eager agreement of his wife, that would be different. But for a retired guy just to tinker with?

No, you have it right. Go mirrorless. It is not only the future, but increasingly the present. And despite what some would say, more and more pros are already using mirrorless. And that is a fact. 

[ebiggs1]

"It is not only the future, but increasingly the present."

Well is it?  Yeah, it probably is but not so fast.  As long as they keep coming out with another Mk, I'd say shutters are still the norm.

"...despite what some would say, more and more pros are already using mirrorless."

I know of none!  Although my circle is growing smaller as we age all seem able to resist mirrorless.  There is no pro level mirrorless camera made. Not from Sony and not from Canon. You and I may know a Mom and Pop photographer that has bought in to mirrorless but hardly the trend of the real pro business.

[John_SD]

Ernie, pros in Asia and Europe, and many here in the US, have been using the mirrorless Sonys and Nikons. While the Sony A9 series and Nikon Z series are relatively newer cameras, they are finding favor with pros worldwide. This is not news. 

I myself have never personally known anyone who has visited the North Pole, but I know it's **bleep** cold up there.