why only 3 fps on 5d?

It seems like Canon could add more FPS to the 5D but they don't because they want to sell their 1-series bodies...

is that the only reason? is there any technical reason? i just don't understand, why only 3fps?

How about a big ole sensor? Take the 1Ds mk II, a full frame sensor and also a "slow" camera.

Just looked it up: the 1Ds mk II offers 4 fps and the mk III yields 5 fps.

Not a sports camera, different strokes for different folks.

maybe at the time it came out, thats all they could get that huge sensor to shoot at.... I dont really know why it isnt faster though..

Smaller buffer memory larger file size and capacity of DIGIC 2 to process the data. 1DMKII have almost 2/3 the pixel as 5D and cost about $1000 more.

Deja Vu...

It was pointed out in the other thread that the other cameras with large sensors and high FPS rates have 2 processors. The 5D only has one and likely cannot handle the data throughput of anything more than 3 FPS

Bigger sensor, 12.8MP, Digic II chip?
If you look at the 1DMKIII, it's got 2 Digic III chips...

Never thought it was a bad thing...

I suspect, though I haven't seen this mentioned anywhere, that the DiGiC processors, like computer CPUs, come in several speed levels. The 1D models would have the fastest, the midrange DSLRs would have the next, and the PowerShot line have the slowest (but include movie capabilities on the chip).

The 5D's 12 MP at 3 fps works out to about 36 MP/sec. The 30D's 5 fps 8 MP sensor is about 40 MP/s. I'd suspect that this represents max. throughput of that level DiGiC. Canon might have been able to squeeze another 1/3 fps out of it, but that's not really worth trying for. You'll see similar correspondence in the numbers between the 1D II and 1Ds II (66-69 MP/sec throughput), and the 1D III/1Ds III (50 MP/sec, but with 14-bit pixels rather than 12). Applying this to the 40D and any rumored 5D successor, and assuming an increase in pixel count for the new model, the next "5D" would probably be around 15-16 MP and 4 fps for 65 MP/sec throughput.

I have noticed this question several times on several forums, why only 3fps? well the camera is over 2 years old on the market and older than that when you talk about development stages. At the time the 5D was released perhaps that was the fastest fps canon could reach and maintain solid IQ at the price range they wanted to market the 5D at. Now 2 years later we see camera's at half the cost that shoot with 2 times the fps. Things we need to remember are two years is a long long time when it comes to electronics. Also the camera's that are shooting at higher frame rates are not full frame camera's yes, the 1dsM2 and so to be released 1dsM3 both have higher fps but they also sport 3 times the price tag. The 5D is a fine piece of equipment, is it fast? No it wasnt built to be and thats why I opted for a newer camera that was faster. Will the next gen 5D be faster? I would take a guess and say yes but will it shoot at the speeds like the 40D or Mark3 odds are no. Just my 3 cents.

I'd assumed the full frame cameras are slower because their mirrors are larger. Takes some time to slap that big mirror up and down, y'know...

-js

The truth is that the designers and engineers at Canon could have easily designed the 5D to work at 5 or even 6 FPS but they didn’t because they love visiting forum like this and reading post after post of people whining about how the 5D is sooooooooooo slow!

Buffer size. Can't just fire off 20 shots and hope it keeps up in RAW @ 12mp an image. Inertia. It's a bigger mirror, the high FPS demands high quality parts for that kind of reflex action. It cuts costs obviously.

Competition. Company says: "They do 3, we'll do 4, 4, we do 5. They do 5, we do 6. Our high end camera that we make a bundle on does 8, so don't surpass it."

bottom line, 5D not made for fast shutter actuation. portraits and landscapes are the bread and buttah for the 5D

number six wrote in post #4112526
I'd assumed the full frame cameras are slower because their mirrors are larger. Takes some time to slap that big mirror up and down, y'know...

-js

All 1 series bodies have a "full size" mirror, even the 1.3 crops. Film bodies, like the 1N and 1V series, were capable of 6 and 10 FPS respectively with a booster grip mounted. They, of course, also have a "full size" mirror. The mirror size is not an issue. Processing speed, buffer size (and speed), and amount of data to process = max FPS available.