50D to 5Dc: a dumb idea?

Not at all. The 5Dc camera has the most active archive pictures in POTN. And they keep on posting those beautiful images everyday. I have both and i used the 5D more than the 50D.

Old technology yes, but amazing picture quality. I learn how to be patient and compose my subject well with this camera. My computer is not crying for more memory. If you are careful in inter-changing lenses. The dust issue is not a problem.

You will instantly notice the age of the 5dc upon using it. Once you get over that bit of a shock and look through the VF, you will also be awed by the big bright view of your compositions.
Then you press the somewhat vague feeling shutter button. Scchhhducccth! You initial thought would be "WTF?! Did something broke?!" Nope, that's the oversized shutter flipping. Your hand will also feel the reverberation. It's a funky feeling.

Then you wait....and wait. Wondering when will that image show up on the tiny LCD screen. And when it finally does, you will wonder "I can hardly see anything!".

Nevermind that who chimps anyways eh? So you eventually transfer all the image files of girlfriend to your computer. When the images load on your favourite RAW converter, you stare at the images.... and wonder "Whoa."

The addiction begins.

I still love my 5Dc. I use it heavily for weddings. Use it alongside my 1D mk III and find I use the 5D a bit more than the 1D.

5Dc is slow. but IQ is still tenable.

If IQ is your main reason then I say go for it I bought mine 3 years ago, and till today I still don't think upgrading to 5dm2 is worth it. (and yeah the 5d3 is too expensive...)

melcat wrote in post #14100581
It is apparently only the early production 5D cameras that had the green cast on the LCD screen. My late production one doesn't.

Whichever sensor size you choose, I think you should *stick to it*. In the long run, the lenses will cost more and you will be sinking time into learning their flaws.

If I were you I would be guided by what I thought Canon would be offering for bodies and lenses in the chosen sensor size during however long I expected to keep it. It seems that they mean to move full frame bodies upmarket. If the 5D you buy now won't last you out, do you have the budget for a replacement later?

I would have the income for a replacement down the road, for sure.

I want one that is in really good condition, but the ones that are popping up currently I can't buy because my 50D hasn't sold. I'm out of town so I can't even list it yet.

A few questions...

1. What lens/lenses are you using with the 50D?

2. What lens/lenses would you use with the 5Dc?

3. If you are shooting with the highest quality lenses on your 50D; are you getting very good o excellent image quality?

If you are shooting with top line lenses and are not getting high quality imagery, I don't think that the 5Dc will be the magic elixer which will improve your imagery.

If you are not shooting with the highest grade lenses on your 50D. Perhaps an improvement in glass might make a more significant difference than a change in cameras.

Hi, a 50D user here, love that camera.
Reliable, quick, responsive, whatever. Never failed me, accompany me everywhere, even some paid gig. But, for some reasons I can't forget the thought of full frame sensor.
So, last Saturday I picked up a late production 5Dc, well not the latest of the late, Canon website said warranty starts at October 2007 and the serial number starts with 2 (they say 2-series have better LCD and no mirror/shutterbox issues some people experienced with their 5Dc) so that's good enough for me.

I ran some tests immediately, including high ISO noise etc.
At ISO 1600 and 3200, I think they are about the same. But what's different is the shallow DOF and lovely colors that the 5Dc renders. It produces lovely tones, almost pastel or creamy like.

See below, would you be able to tell the difference?

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/jwicaksana/6849​599528/

delhi wrote in post #14102824
You will instantly notice the age of the 5dc upon using it. Once you get over that bit of a shock and look through the VF, you will also be awed by the big bright view of your compositions.
Then you press the somewhat vague feeling shutter button. Scchhhducccth! You initial thought would be "WTF?! Did something broke?!" Nope, that's the oversized shutter flipping. Your hand will also feel the reverberation. It's a funky feeling.

Then you wait....and wait. Wondering when will that image show up on the tiny LCD screen. And when it finally does, you will wonder "I can hardly see anything!".

Nevermind that who chimps anyways eh? So you eventually transfer all the image files of girlfriend to your computer. When the images load on your favourite RAW converter, you stare at the images.... and wonder "Whoa."

The addiction begins.

So true.

The difference as compared to what?

MakisM1 wrote in post #14123433
The difference as compared to what?

I merged two images there, left and right.
Maybe you can tell the difference in DOF, in color rendition, in terms of noise?
Mind you all good folks here, that so-called test was done just for fun.

the right side is 50D, and it probably is much closer than what you actually see with your eyes, am i correct?

dickson918 wrote in post #14123999
the right side is 50D, and it probably is much closer than what you actually see with your eyes, am i correct?

Correct, the right side is 50D, but can you please elaborate what you mean by 'much closer than what you actually see with your eyes, am i correct?'
Just so I can get the right understanding.

jwicaksana wrote in post #14124156
Correct, the right side is 50D, but can you please elaborate what you mean by 'much closer than what you actually see with your eyes, am i correct?'
Just so I can get the right understanding.

I meant the color rendition/AWB is closer to your eyes, not "than" my bad.

Jonathan. Could you please post shooting data from these two shots, including focal length etc - as they have been merged from different sources, this doesn't show up. The merged image is rather a good illustration of DoF between the two formats and is often a topic discussed on here. I assume you adjusted focal length as accurately as possible but retained aperture and ISO?

dickson918 wrote in post #14124272
I meant the color rendition/AWB is closer to your eyes, not "than" my bad.

Yes that's true, the 50D gives off more accurate color rendition IMHO, while the 5D gives a slightly warmer/yellower/greeni​sh tinge to it, I dial Magenta +2 or +3 on my 5D to get rid of the green hue. Check out the top of the hi-fi, it's green, not black.:p:p

JohnB57 wrote in post #14124397
Jonathan. Could you please post shooting data from these two shots, including focal length etc - as they have been merged from different sources, this doesn't show up. The merged image is rather a good illustration of DoF between the two formats and is often a topic discussed on here. I assume you adjusted focal length as accurately as possible but retained aperture and ISO?

John, the details are available on my flickr page, but I'll just post it here:
Technical details:
Aperture Priority
f/2
ISO 800
Custom WB @5200K

So yes, I retained aperture and ISO, and also I dialed in custom WB.
I used EF 50 1.8 II on the 50D (x1.6 crop = effectively 80mm), and EF 85 1.8 on the 5D. Both are f/1.8 lens, so both are stopped down 1/3 stop.
I was thinking I should use the same lens then move the 5D closer, or shoot from the same distance then crop, but then I thought, if I move the camera, I won't get the same framing, and it may affect perspective and/or DOF, as DOF is related to camera to subject distance.
I hope you guys find this beneficial, and please leave your comments/suggestions here or (preferably) on my flickr page so I know what to do the next time I'm comparing lenses/formats.