Upgrading 5D Mark II

[Dave54321]

I shoot skiing and landscapes for large prints. I require a full frame sensor because I shoot wide angle with a 16-35 Mark III.  I have a hard time caputring quickly moving subjects in focus when using my 5D Mark II, am deciding between purchasing a 5D Mark IV, 5DS, or 5DS R.  

I hear the new cameras have a focus system that will track a moving subject (skier) and maintain sharp focus as they pass by quickly.  Is this feature included with all 3 of the camera bodies I am considering?  Do these cameras monitor your eye and focus where you are looking?

If the 5DS and 5DS R both have a superior focus system for sports, then I will go with one of them because I'm excited about the 50.6 MP for making large prints.  Is one of these better than the other for my intended use?

Thank you!

[Waddizzle]

If you want to shoot sports, I would go for the 5D4, which has a wider ISO range.  If I had a 5Ds, I would most likely only use it on a stationary tripod, not for handheld sports photography.

[Dave54321]

Thanks.  The sopecificstions about ISO between these cameras is clear, and all ISO ranges work for shooting daytime skiing.  It's a bummer that no one could answer the specifc questions I have about the focus tecnology.  It appears that Sony makes a body that has the features I need

[Waddizzle]

---

@Dave54321 wrote:

Thanks.  The sopecificstions about ISO between these cameras is clear, and all ISO ranges work for shooting daytime skiing.  It's a bummer that no one could answer the specifc questions I have about the focus tecnology.  It appears that Sony makes a body that has the features I need

---

I thought I answered your question.  The 5D4 is better for sports.

As far as Sony goes, I suggest that you read the specifications a little bit beyond megapixels.  Your Sony has an upgraded battery, and is now rated to over 500 photos on a single charge, which is a 50% improvement over its’ predecessor.  Meanwhile, you can expect to get 1000-1500 shots, if not more, from a Canon 5D4.

You really should look beyond megapixels.  If the Sony was so great, then why do professionals prefer Canon and Nikon?

[TCampbell · Accepted solution]

The 5D III, 5Ds, and 5DsR all have the same focus system.  Canon has a 47 page guide on just the auto-focus system alone and it's ability to do focus tracking.  It's a VERY good system.

Some improvements were made to the system for the 5D IV... 

Basically on a 1DX II, the focus system links the metering to the ability to follow focus BECAUSE the 1DX II has a ton of metering points.  The 5D III, 5Ds, and 5DsR do not have nearly as many (but the 5D IV does).  So on the 5D III, s, & sR the ability to track subjects just isn't linked to the metering -- but it's still a very good system.

On the 5D IV, the camera's metering system not only has more metering zones, metering also factors in RGB + IR awareness... this means that it can also track subject movement because it's not only color-aware.. it's also aware of the IR.  As a "warm" skier is moving in front a "cold" background... it's particularly easy for the camera to track that.  I have not specificially tested this with my 5D IV... but I have to imagine that tracking skiers on snow is probably easier than most other subjects due to the massive difference in temperature.  

The cameras do not monitor your eye.  I seem to recall Canon had one camera that did that many many years ago.  

BTW... if you plan to use a 50 megapixel camera so you can produce really large prints... keep in mind you'll also want top quality lenses to go with it.  

[Dave54321]

Thank you Tim -- This is EXACTLY the information I was looking for. I greatly appreciate it!!!