What are the main differences between the Canon 5D Mark II and 5D Mark III?
Asked 11/5/2012
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2 answers
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I currently use a Canon 5D Mark II and am considering upgrading to the 5D Mark III. What are the most important real-world differences between these two cameras for still photography and video?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
2 Answers
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That is any easy thing to found out :) Just compare the cameras. Here I've done it for you.
As you can see there are several differences. 22 MP vs 21 MP which is really pretty much the same and so is 0.2" difference in LCD size. What is much more significant:
- The 5D Mark III has a 100% coverage viewfinder. With the Mark II you can never see exactly what will be in your images through the viewfinder.
- The ISO range reaches 25600 vs 6400 (or 102400 vs 25600 expanded) which hints that the 5D Mark III is better in low-light and actually it is.
- The Mark III shoots 50% faster, 6 FPS vs 3.9 FPS and for longer.
- The Mark III also has an updated and much faster autofocus system. This fact is not shown in the comparison but you can see that it has 61 AF points to work with which is great for tracking moving subjects.
Originally by user1620. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1620
13y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The biggest upgrades from the 5D Mark II to the 5D Mark III are autofocus, speed, and low-light performance.
For stills, the Mark III adds a much more advanced AF system with 61 AF points, which is a major improvement for tracking subjects and for composing without always needing to focus-and-recompose. It also shoots faster at about 6 fps versus 3.9 fps, has a 100% viewfinder, a quieter shutter mode, slightly better ergonomics, and some menu/customization improvements.
Image resolution is only a small change (about 22 MP vs 21 MP), so resolution alone is not a strong reason to upgrade.
In low light, the Mark III offers a wider ISO range and generally better high-ISO performance, so it handles dim conditions better.
For video, the Mark III improves moiré/aliasing behavior and adds features such as clean HDMI output (with firmware support), timecode, and All-I compression.
In short: if you want better autofocus, better high-ISO results, faster continuous shooting, and stronger video features, the 5D Mark III is a meaningful upgrade. If you mainly care about megapixels, the difference is minimal.
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