5Dc as backup for 6D for a concert this weekend

Howdy folks,

I have been contacted by a friend of mine who runs some mid level rock shows in my area to shoot a concert this Friday. I used to shoot for his shows all the time before he got busy roadying for some of the bands he works with and I got busy with school/work, so we have been a little out of touch recently.

I would normally rent another 6D or a 5Dii with a 70-200 f/2.8 as a second body. However I don't believe there is time to get one shipped in and the only local brick and mortar store we have basically charges you up front for the entire cost of a rental body and then refunds you everything but the rental fee when you bring it back which is out of the question right now.

I have a friend who has offered to lend me his 5Dc for the evening. I am thinking of taking him up on the offer, pairing the 5Dc with one of my fast primes and sticking my 24-105 on my 6D. Do you guys think this is a setup that can work, or should I rethink my strategy.

My main question is with the low light focus and iso performance of the 5Dc, never having used one I don't really know how well it performs in low light. Are iso 1600/3200 usable? I'm a center point and recompose kind of guy, and I may be able to get away with using the focus assist beam on my 622c's if that neccessary.

Another big plus is that the camera is for sale, and if I like it I can scoop it up after the gig. So any heads up I need going in that you guys can think of?

Comparing the 5Dc to the 60D/7D generation: the 5Dc will be marginally better at 1600. The 5Dc's AF-system is atrocious in that lighting. The 60D/7D will focus better in that light AND give you better shots at ISO higher than 1600. I push my 60D to 6400 regularly, and 12,800 if needed. IMHO, pairing the subframe sensor with a fast glass is your best option to back up the 6D, which by the way, would be my body of choice for that shoot.

I shot a 5Dc for seven years and did many weddings with it. It is a great camera, and I had no hesitation in shooting at 3200 ISO whenever the situation called for it. Email me at djphoto@vol.com if you would like to see a full-size file.

Thanks Dave that looks very acceptable to me, glad to hear someone with experience who has confidence in the classics high ISO capability.

The 5D and 5D2 share the same basic AF system I believe, so however you use your 5D2s in the past should work for the 5D.

I'm about to shoot a concert with my 5Dc for my college yearbook. I am curious to see what else people think. 135L and Sigmalux 50 1.4.

As mentioned the 5d's focusing is the same as the 5dII. 3200 is usable.

TeamSpeed wrote in post #16788186
The 5D and 5D2 share the same basic AF system I believe, so however you use your 5D2s in the past should work for the 5D.

Awesome I would say I am well covered then, never had a problem with a 5Dii as of yet.

GregoryF wrote in post #16788198
As mentioned the 5d's focusing is the same as the 5dII. 3200 is usable.

Sweet! I'm really hoping this shoot goes well, its a couple of national touring bands so the opportunity is there.

Hunter Kelley wrote in post #16788194
I'm about to shoot a concert with my 5Dc for my college yearbook. I am curious to see what else people think. 135L and Sigmalux 50 1.4.

I'd be more than happy to post my impressions after I have my shoot friday.

The 5D2 is probably about 1 stop better than the 5D though. So you should be fine if you used ISO 6400 on the 5D2, the 5D will basically look like that at 3200. Also though, you do lose cropability, because you are going from 21mpx to 12mpx. Make sure you fill more of the frame if possible on the 5D to compensate.

Thank you! would be great to see how they come out

TeamSpeed wrote in post #16788232
The 5D2 is probably about 1 stop better than the 5D though. So you should be fine if you used ISO 6400 on the 5D2, the 5D will basically look like that at 3200. Also though, you do lose cropability, because you are going from 21mpx to 12mpx. Make sure you fill more of the frame if possible on the 5D to compensate.

Thanks, I almost never find myself doing much heavy cropping but its a good thing to keep in mind. For concerts I usually find myself somewhere in the 3200-6400 range but that's with slower zooms, I've never tried to use my 35 1.4 or my 85 1.8 in a concert environment. I'm hoping to be able to use one of those as close to wide open as possible on the 5D to compensate.

solepatch wrote in post #16788275
Thanks, I almost never find myself doing much heavy cropping but its a good thing to keep in mind. For concerts I usually find myself somewhere in the 3200-6400 range but that's with slower zooms, I've never tried to use my 35 1.4 or my 85 1.8 in a concert environment. I'm hoping to be able to use one of those as close to wide open as possible on the 5D to compensate.

Just make sure you know your working distance to see how much of the subject you are getting in focus. The LCD on the 5d is terrible, and is so bad that I have trouble telling if something is actually in focus/how much of something is in focus.

I have heard that it was bad, I'll be sure to keep DOF and working distance in mind during the shoot. Thanks for the heads up.

It's not that it's really bad, but it's small and the colors seem inconsistent from one person's 5D to the next. It is best used as a histogram, but that's typically true for most cameras.

But hey, for those of us that get by with the 1.5 inch 10D or 1D screens, it sure seems great!

Haha its all about what your used to I guess.