Canon 1D Mark III Feature List and Commentary (Final)

[LRY]

Here's a bullet point summary of the camera's salient characteristics. My initial impression follows.





* ISO 50 to ISO 6400 (Expanded)

* Dual Digic III processors for the 10.1 MP sensor

* 1.3 lens conversion factor

* New 14 bit A/D converters

* Highlight Tone Priority helps improve highlight detail and nuance

* Self cleaning sensor

* Dust mapping

* Simpler rear button controls, simpler control usability.

* Shutter tested to 300,000 cycles

* Shutter release sound is quiet and unobtrusive

* Even more quiet "Silent" shooting mode

* "Silent" shooting mode

* Weather resistance

* 100% Viewfinder

* Three inch LCD monitor

* Live View mode for studio or other remote applications

* Live View mode's manual focusing magnification, 5x or 10x

* In-camera battery management

* Dedicated AF processor, 3x faster than 1D Mk II N

* AF Micro-adjustment compensates for front/back-focusing, lens by lens

* 10 frames per second shooting speed

* Burst rate up to 30 RAW or 110 consecutive JPEGs

* 63-zone metering sensor

* 45 AF points: 19 selectable cross-type sensors, 26 assist points

* Customizable AF behavior for assist points

* 57 Custom functions

* Lighter weight than predecessor

* Smaller size than predecessor

* Smaller battery, longer battery life than predecessor


And I'm sure I've left something out...

Canon have clearly aimed to build the ultimate DSLR for demanding professionals, and you have to hand it to them for pulling together all the items above. Rudy Winston, a support and marketing manager at Canon, walked us through each system in the camera, explaining how it was redesigned or rebuilt. I kept nodding my head thinking "yep, they've heard the suggestions and they've fixed it (supposedly)." Really, it was a bit mind-blowing to find so many things on my camera wish list checked off, one after another.

"It's nice that you guys made the shutter release so quiet," I said casually. "Oh, well check this out..." Rudy said, proceeding to introduce us to the new "Silent" mode. This camera drive mode releases one frame at a time and slows the mirror mechanism down so that the shutter release sound level is even lower than the already quiet normal level. The sound also has an unobtrusive quality (to me anyway); it's a kind of soft click-click that doesn't seem to draw attention to itself. In Silent shooting mode, you can even hold the shutter release down and the mirror mechanism remains locked up until you release it. This enables golf photographers, for example, to wait until the golfer's swing is complete before making more camera noise (sounds like: "click.....click"). Wedding photographers will definitely find the quiet mode useful, if not necessarily needing to wait for anything like a golf swing.

The Canon 1D Mark III is not just for sports shooters and wedding photographers however. We haven't seen images yet but anyone wishing for a camera that captures more subtleties of light will likely find the higher bit rate conversion to add a welcome depth and character to files straight out of the camera. Also, the rear control buttons have been "cleaned up" and there's less need for what Rudy called the "finger dance" of holding buttons down and turning dials. Faster and easier is always literally a feature for me even though it's a harder sell for the marketing department.

Is this camera for everyone? Of course not. Not everyone wants to spend so much for a camera, no matter how good it is. Not everyone wants to carry around such a big camera, even though it is smaller and lighter than its predecessor. Not everyone wants a DSLR. Heck, not everyone needs so much camera! But for those whom no-holds-barred speed, precision, and quality are paramount, the 1D Mark III looks to be the DSLR that meets and surpasses Canon's previous pinnacle of performance, the EOS 1V (film camera body). We shall see...
(Note: Sure enough, there are a few things missing from above, so please read SmartWombat's post on the 1D Mk III too.)