1DmkIII...too old?

The only reason I sold my 1d3 was because I bought the 5d3 and didnt need two bodies. Had the 1d3 for AF since I didnt trust my 5d2. Not so with the new 5d3. 1d3 is a great camera and produces beautiful images. I had it for a short time, I know there is something magical about that particular series. You won't be disappointed.

I just bought a 1d3 from another POTNer. I have barely warmed it up, but I'm extremely excited. My limitations with my current (not selling) 550D are AF speed and shutter speed. I was considering used 7D or well used 1d3. The 25% faster frame rate and seemingly much faster buffer clear made the difference for me. The AF between the two seem comparable, although some folks seem to have a love/hate relationship with the 7D focusing.

All-in-all, I'm not expecting individual favorite images to be much better on the 1d3, but I am expecting them to be more frequent, and much easier to acquire

At any rate, I can't wait to get out there and start shooting. I have a family Tri to cover next weekend... I'm excited.

Thanks to all for the responses...much appreciated.The see-saw is weighing heavily on the 1d3 side. I'll decide by next month...first or second week should have enough funds to purchase.

I'm learning my MK IIn right now but when I tell people that this is the camera that was at the Superbowl
six yrs. ago. Well there you go. The Mk III is even better than mine in many ways so I will buy the III
someday. Used equipment is an incredible value in my opinion with quality lenses holding value and
bodies becoming avail. at reasonable prices after a few years. D3's will drop in price when the 1DX
starts being easily avail.

I have had a 1DMKIII since it came out. I love the camera. I have used the camera for editorial, photojournalism, and advertising. I have never had a complaint about image quality. I have had to rent cameras that produce bigger files though for some of my bigger jobs.

I still run two 1DMKIIIs, along with a 1DMkIV. I have no issues with them and they are still making me money.

The IQ I get with a 1DMKIII and good glass is excellent..

Ok, first light today. Goodness:

https://photography-on-the.net …p?p=14709468#po​st14709468

I switched to 1D3 from 7D.
I'd say ISO is comparable over 1000 but below the 1D3 is cleaner. Also, at any ISO setting the 1D3 takes more abuse in PPing. AF between the two bodies is comparable, hard to select a winner. 1D is obviously better built and has better weather seals. As for the sensor format, I like it. 28mm becomes 35, 100 becomes 135 and 35 falls just shy of 50. The only lens I strugle to replace is 55 from APSC crop which relates to 85 on FF...

All in all I doubt you'll be disappointed with 1D3. It's a stunning value for the money these days, and it will hold it's value for longer than 7D or any xxD body.

My 2p

To the poster who said his autofocus hunted on the 1D Mark III, play around with the settings. Mine doesn't hunt and snaps right into focus, even in low light. I notice one setting you mentioned, that caused me problems, was turning on focus assist. At first I had it on and realized it was causing me problems with birds in flight. Once I turned it off the autofocus went from hit or miss to being accurate every time with fast moving objects.

To the OP, the Mark III is a great camera that's built like a tank and offers a lot of customization. It's 10 mp sensor behaves like a bigger sensor, so don't let that run you off. Get one at a great price while you can. Once you've had a 1D in your hands you'll be spoiled and ready when the price of the Mark IV's come down.

Jon_Doh wrote in post #14710707
To the poster who said his autofocus hunted on the 1D Mark III, play around with the settings. Mine doesn't hunt and snaps right into focus, even in low light. I notice one setting you mentioned, that caused me problems, was turning on focus assist. At first I had it on and realized it was causing me problems with birds in flight. Once I turned it off the autofocus went from hit or miss to being accurate every time with fast moving objects.

Still learning my way around the 1d3: what's "focus assist?" Is this AF expansion, which uses the assist AF points?

Jon_Doh wrote in post #14710707
To the poster who said his autofocus hunted on the 1D Mark III, play around with the settings. Mine doesn't hunt and snaps right into focus, even in low light. I notice one setting you mentioned, that caused me problems, was turning on focus assist. At first I had it on and realized it was causing me problems with birds in flight. Once I turned it off the autofocus went from hit or miss to being accurate every time with fast moving objects.

I'd be that poster - I've looked several times for settings that might effect the AF speed, and I have the setting (can't recall the CF# at the moment) where it hunts down to the lowest "twitchiness".

Do you mean focus assist from an external speedlite? C.FN III-14?

EDIT: I've used this assist a couple of times, and would be hesitant to shut it off unless it made a big difference in AF.

Love the Mark III. Per pixel noise is very close to the Mark IV. Teamspead did a comparison and the Mark III is comparable to a Mark IV IQ wise with the exception the Mark IV has more pixels for cropping. It is a fantastic camera and I would trade up to it from a 50D without hesitation.

Take a look at the following thread and you may be surprised:

https://photography-on-the.net …105&highlight=m​ini-review

I think it is a great camera. Mine has served me well. I have a 1dmk4 and the IQ is very close. Though I have it up for sale, if it doesn't sell I have no issue with keeping it as a backup. I take many pictures around water, so it is always good to have a backup. It survived a skunk scare, but that is another story.

Cheers, Steve

I'll probably own another, just reading through this thread makes me miss it.

archer1960 wrote in post #14701960
Why is the 1.3 crop factor so important? To me, it would be in the no-man's land between FF and 1.6: too close to either end to be much of a gain.

You sound like a guy who's never used a 1.3 crop. True?