A lot of you out there who are interested probably saw a bunch of the specs and images already, but I thought I'd provide a little wrap up. If you want to talk about this camera and flash being "highly anticipated," you'd be making the understatement of the year. Some out there are already questioning Canon's choice to not increase the resolution of the camera, but there is some logic behind this. As someone who is in the process of switching to a Canon system, I am very pleased by the specs on the 5D Mark III. It looks like the camera I wanted Nikon to make while I was still a Nikon shooter. I'm not going to roll out another copied/pasted spec sheet for you or just throw up a bunch of camera porn, but rather provide some insight on what I think some of the most important features are and why. If you are looking for a raw spec/data sheet, here is a link to Canon's official press release on the 5D Mark III, Speedlite 600 EX-RT, and ST-E3 Transmitter. So now the question has to be asked, "When is the 5D Mark IV coming out?" ;)
5D Mark III and 600 EX-RT Announcement - What's hot!
1. New 22.3 Megapixel CMOS Sensor
While some people out there are already whining about Canon's "meager" increase of one megapixel from the 5D Mark II, I'm here to tell you that one megapixel makes a HUGE difference. No I'm only joking. The big deal here is actually the high ISO image quality that is going to result from the new sensor. It features 8-channel readout and when combined with the processing power of the DIGIC 5+ processor, the 5D Mark III gains TWO STOPS of SNR (Signal to Noise ratio) improvement from the 5D Mark II. This is of course going to be hard/impossible to see at some of the lower ISOs, but according to Canon, ISO 25,600 on the 5D Mark III is going to look like ISO 6400 did on the 5D Mark II. That in itself is a huge achievement. By amalgamating the 1D and 1Ds lines with a 18 MP full frame sensor and barely increasing the resolution from the 5D Mark II to 5D Mark III, Canon is signaling the megapixel war is over and in my opinion its about time. While I don't expect the 5D Mark III to be quite as impressive as the 1DX at high ISOs, the two stop improvement will be more than enough for most photographers.
2. New 61-Point AF System and 63 Zone Dual Layer Metering
It was no industry secret that the AF system in the 5D Mark II was getting to be a little long in the tooth. While most 5D shooters were able to compensate for this by changing their techniques, it was time for an upgrade and Canon delivered big time by using the same or similar advanced 61-point system that is found in the 1DX flagship. 41 of the 61 AD points are crosstype AF sensors and 21 of the middle of central points are crosstypes. The center point itself is still the most sensitive and will be able to lock focus all the way in very dim -2EV lighting when using a f/2.8 lens. The metering system inside the 5D Mark III is a dual layer 63 zone system (similar to the 7D) that will provide for much accurate metering when compared to the 5D Mark III. The transparent LCD overlay in the 100% viewfinder will make changing focus points while composing a breeze. The faster frame rate of 6 fps isn't that exciting to me as I don't shoot action/sports, but it is a nice bump from the 5D Mark II's 3.9 fps rate.
3. Overall Construction and Design
As you can see from the images, the 5D Mark III takes on many of the same designs that Canon has used in the 7D and 60D including rounder corners and a relocation of the ON/OFF switch. Canon has also strengthened the build quality from the 5D Mark II. The new 5D Mark III features a full magnesium alloy chassis with total weather sealing. Every single little gap/button on the camera is reinforced to reject dust and moisture. Additionally Canon doesn't include silly-pop up flashes on their high-end cameras. If you want a decent small flash check out the 270 EX II. Otherwise be happy that your camera is totally weather sealed, unlike the Nikon D700/800 which leave a major sealing weak spot on the top of the camera where the pop-up flash opens. Although I never saw someone drop and break a 5D Mark II, there certainly was a plastic feel to the body, but those days are gone. I would say the build is probably closer to the 7D than the 1D series, but the 7D is one tough camera. The new 3.2" TFT LCD is packed with over 1 million pixels and continues Canon's excellence in LCD quality. Again this is a great example of Canon being sensitive to their customer's demands and complaints.
4. Improved Video Functionality
When Canon released the 5D Mark II, HD video capability was included in the camera as an interesting afterthought. No one at Canon expected the 5D to revolutionize the video and film making industries. Like the 1DX, the 5D Mark III can now record clips up to 29 minutes and 59 seconds, instead of being limited to 12 minutes like the 5D Mark II. Just like the Nikon D800, there is an additional headphone jack that allows you to monitor audio while recording. 64 steps of manual audio level adjustments will allow for extremely precise audio level monitoring and fine tuning. Of course Canon also brags about improved overall video quality with less of a rolling shutter effect, less moire, and less artifacting. Additionally the 5D Mark III offers two types of compression modes for video; ALL-I which is the preferred compression format for editing, and IPB compression for more efficient (smaller) file size. There is finally 720/60p shooting which was missing from the 5D Mark II. I don't see anything about true uncompressed stream through HDMI and quite frankly I am surprised. Perhaps Canon wants to save some features for the C300 system. I for one don't care about this kind of feature, but I saw at least a couple folks whining about it on planet5, so I thought I'd mention it.
5. A Few Other Features
I am not too crazy about the added SD card slot. I am sure there are plenty of 60D/Rebel shooter out there who will be upgrading, but I am sure there are just as many 5D I/II shooters grumbling about having to buy a different type of card. Really SD cards aren't too expensive these days, so I am not going to complain about it. I just wish that it was dual CF. Canon has also added in-camera HDR and a few new multiple exposure settings. HDR will also be available in the Canon's new version of DPP. It will be interesting to see how the 5D III and the new software process HDR images compared to say Photoshop or NIK HDR Efex. Again I don't do a lot of HDR because I don't care for the look, but I know a lot of people out there will be interested in this. Hey if it can do a decent job making a natural looking image with increased dynamic range, I'll be more than happy to give it a fair shake. "Comparative Playback" is one of the less exciting, but more practical features on the camera. The 5D Mark III's big gorgeous screen can be used in Comparitive Playback mode to view two images at once! Sound boring? Well you can also view crops of two images at once to check sharpness/focus. Sounds like something that should have been on DSLRs 10 years ago, but kudos to Canon for including it. There is a new wireless file transmitter and GPS tagger, which are offered as expensive accessories, but those are things I really don't care about and I don't say that in a condescending way. I am sure there are some of you out there who will make great use of these products, they just don't interest me. You can read more about them on Canon's website.
6. Speedlite 600 EX-RT and ST-E3 Transmitter
This new flagship flash and radio transmitter fall under the "Its about time" category. The new Canon 600EX Speedlite has built in radio functionality, meaning it can be triggered by another 600 EX-RT or the ST-E3 transmitter via radio signal/frequency. What does that mean? No more dangling walkie-talkies off of your flash to fire them via radio. What about you lazy n00bs out there who need TTL off-camera flash? Well the good news is you won't have to be dropping several hundred dollars on not so reliable TTL radio transmitters because the 600 EX-RT/ST-E3 can also do eTTL. The original 1D and 1Ds are the only cameras that won't be compatible with wireless TTL. If you are using the 1DX or 5D Mark III you will also have the option of using HSS (high speed sync). This is all very cool stuff and I commend Canon for finally being the first to have the stones to do it. The ST-E3 transmitter (600 EX-RT can be used as a radio master as well) range is about 100 ft and you can trigger up to 15 cameras (yes both units can be used as camera remotes too!) or flashes in 5 separate groups. Many of the ST-E3's functions can be changed in the flash menu on either the 5D Mark III or 1DX. The 600 EX-RT will still support the old IR flash system that was found in the 7D, 60D, etc... but the ST-E3 does not, it is purely a radio transmitter for new cameras/flashes. Beyond the cool factor of radio transmission here, let's not forget that the 600 EX-RT is also Canon's latest and greatest on-camera flashgun. The back has been redesigned and the button are back-lit. *Collective cheer from wedding photogs who shoot receptions in dark halls* The zoom range has been expanded to cover focal lengths from 20-200mm and there are now dedicated smart gel filters (like Nikon has done for a few years now) that will communicate with the flash to help improve exposure and WB accuracy.
