Barack Obama is will be the 44th President Of The United States of America in a few hours and Nikon just updated the firmware on my new best friend, the D3. Camera fans, January 20, 2009 is a good day.

(Before reading further, I advise you to put down any babies you might be holding and swallow that mouthful of cornflakes you’ve been munching.)

D3 firmware version 2.01 improves the “autofocus-response performance in focus mode C (Continuous-servo AF mode) with relatively dark subjects.”

Seeing as the AF performance in servo mode was one of the main reasons I sold my Canon EOS-1D Mark III and switched to Nikon, I’m very happy to see that good things can get even better.

Got a D3? Go get the windows version or the mac version of firmware 2.01 now.

Related posts:

1. Canon EOS-1D Mark III, this one goes to Eleven
2. Tip The Van
3. Nikon D3 Initial Thoughts

I’ve now used my new Nikon D3 for three separate shoots of three separate bands with three separate lighting rigs and my initial impressions are very favorable. As many of you know, I parted ways with my entire Canon system recently, including the infamous EOS-1D Mark III.  Since the D3 and 1D3 are direct competitors, I’ll restrict my comments to these two bodies.

Feel and Handling

Compared to the Canon 1D3, the body of the Nikon D3 feels smaller and oddly heavy with the 24-70mm attached. The 1D3 has a large squarish grip that inspires confidence despite feeling heavier on the left side of the camera than the right. With its heavily contoured profile the Nikon D3 feels smaller and more dense. Though I irrationally fear the D3 might tip over, the slightly smaller footprint gives the camera a pleasant weight distribution that does not shift when moving between landscape and portrait orientations. Though they don’t look so different side by side, actually holding the cameras is a very different experience.

Need protection? Wrap it in Rubber – The rubber used on the Nikon is soft and thick feeling compared to the hard grips on the 1D3. While a soft and contoured grip might seem like a good thing, I am almost positive that the rubber used on the D3 is less durable than its Canon counterpart. Only time and the PH balance of my skin will tell.

Can too many buttons ruin a suit? – The buttons of the D3 are larger by comparison and give the back of the body a busy look. Though it doesn’t win any awards for beauty, the D3 controls are very easy to manipulate and can even be used with gloves on. The same cannot be said of the Canon 1D3.

Where the D3 really bests the Canon is in handling, size and placement of the control surfaces, shutter and rear AF-ON button. To my surprise, the front and rear control dials on the D3 can be used to adjust aperture and shutter speed without taking your index finger off of the shutter release.

The D3 also features oversized AF-ON buttons on both grips – a feature that is important to anyone who thinks that shutter release and focusing are two separate actions that shouldn’t necessarily have anything to do with each other. The Nikon AF-ON buttons have a short throw that ends with a firm stop when the button is fully depressed. The action of the AF-ON buttons on the 1D3 feels overly soft and lacks a clear stopping point. Furthermore the feeling and position of the portrait and landscape AF-ON buttons are different which gives them a poorly implemented quality.

Gamepad versus Joystick – The multi-function controller of the D3 is sort of Canon’s joystick and Set Button all-in-one. Whereas Canon’s joystick is arguably their most immature control surface, the multi-controller is arguably Nikon’s best. Compared to the 1D3, hitting the diagonal focus points on the Nikon is very, very easy. (I don’t think Canon ever intended the joystick for use on the 1D3 as this feature was absent from the camera’s initial firmware.)

The Baby with the Bath Water – The placement of the Trash Button next to the Play Button is one of the only things that bothers me about the D3 controls. Did I mention that the Trash Button on the D3 is in the exact same place as the Info Button on the 1d3? Without going into detail, this coincidence has been initially very unfortunate.

Wider Throat – I’m finding that Canon lenses are easier to mount on the 1D3 than Nikon lenses on the D3. Some of this is certainly because I haven’t adjusted to the opposite mounting direction but I also think that the wider Canon EF mount and the little red bumps on Canon lenses are a big bonus.

Window on the World – Thanks to its 35mm sensor, the viewfinder on the D3 is larger and brighter than that of the 1D3. In addition, the D3 meter remains active in the view finder when adjusting the camera’s ISO setting (something that drove me crazy when using the Canon). In case anyone is confused – having the meter active in the viewfinder when making ISO adjustments allows the photographer to adjust the sensitivity without metering, guessing at the proper ISO and metering again.

I also think that the round, screw-type eyepiece and lockable diopter knob are nice features on the D3. If you’ve ever wondered why so many Canon press photographers have their eyepieces taped down to the body, it’s because they tend to come loose, crack and fall off. In the very worst case, the eyepiece will rub against your side, fall off and leave your carefully adjusted diopter to twist. When you bring the camera up to your eye to shoot, not only are you missing your eyepiece but you have a totally out of focus viewfinder. Guess who just missed the money shot…

Feel luck Punk? - The shutter release and the mirror blackout of the D3 are clear improvement over the 1D3. Although the two cameras are only tens of milliseconds apart in each of these specs, the difference is large enough that almost every Canon photographer I’ve let try my D3 is surprised at how quickly the camera acquires focus and shoots.

Is there a downside? Yes. The mirror slap of the D3 is like a machine gun and machine guns make Baby Jesus cry. The D3 also lacks the “silent” shooting mode found on the Canon 1-Series. I’m going to miss this feature the next time I’m caught at a quiet show without my blimp.

Image Quality

If all else is equal, the D3 is well matched to the 1D3 below ISO 1600. I’d say that the 1D3 is capable of extracting slightly more fine detail thanks to its higher pixel density but Nikon files have a certain three dimensional quality that only comes with a full frame sensor.

Above ISO 1600 D3 images processed with Nikon Capture NX 2 seem sharper, lower noise and move vibrant than those of the 1D3 processed with either Canon Digital Picture Professional or Adobe Lightroom. Though the 1D3 was no slouch above 1600 and there is little quantitative difference between the two cameras in terms of noise levels, the advantages of the D3 are clear to even the most casual of viewers at no more than 25% magnification.

While the D3 has a measurable advantage over the Canon in terms of noise, saturation, and dynamic range at high ISOs, the difference is fairly small.  My (completely) subjective feeling is that the increase in image quality at ISO 1600+ is greater than the sum of its parts. I think it has more to do with the film-like character of noise on the D3 than any combination of measurable factors.

I am surprised that in some of the worst conditions, the luminance noise pattern of the D3 still looks a lot like film grain. Under similar conditions, the luminance noise pattern of the Canon 1D3 looks mostly smooth with random “pits.”

Autofocus

(you knew I’d cover this, so quit your whining)
Looking over the full sets from three separate shoots with three separate lighting rigs, I am shocked by two things:

1) how few totally out of focus images there are

2) how many critically in focus images there are. In fact, there are so few unacceptably focused images from the D3 that the new camera has actually made it harder to finish editing.

While I have no doubt that there are many satisfied 1D3 users out there, everyone must accept that I was not one of them. For the record, the problem with the Canon 1D3 was not that it couldn’t take a perfectly focused photo (of which I have many). It was that it couldn’t do it reliably.

My copy of the 1D3 would regularly and unpredictably confirm focus incorrectly resulting in a poorly focused image. My best guess was that the camera’s autofocus system is easily confused and prone to hyperactivity. In AI-Servo mode, I worked around this problem by reducing the maximum frame rate to 8 and turning the cameras focus tracking to the slowest setting.  In Single-Focus mode I often pumped the AF-ON button to make sure the focus was locked before shooting. Even with these workarounds I shot many more frames than I needed because the camera continually demonstrated that it could not be trusted. I am very pleased to say that I have no such problems with the Nikon D3.

What do Inquiring Minds Want to Know?

Though switching to Nikon was not without its casualties (read no 85mmf/1.4  AF-S prime yet), I am very happy with my decision. If there is anything that I did not cover in this initial review, I’d happy write some more.

Want to condemn me for my brand disloyalty in a public forum? That’s fine too. =)

Related posts:

1. Nikon D3 Official High ISO Samples
2. FOCUS TECHNIQUE
3. Hello Nikon

I played with a production copy of the 5D Mark II recently and have updated my previous post of first impressions with a few off-the-cuff comments. Peep the article here.

Related posts:

1. Canon 5D Mark II & Concert Photography: First Impressions
2. Canon EOS-1D Mark III, this one goes to Eleven
3. How to Take the World's Best Concert Photos

After a lot of thought I finally decided to switch. I’ve been officially “back in black” since noon on Black Friday. I marched into a local camera store with all of my Canon equipment and walked out with Nikon.

I’ll be posting my thoughts on the differences between the two systems shortly.

Sayonara Canon, it’s been great. But obviously, not that great.

Related posts:

1. Nikon D3 Official High ISO Samples
2. Nikon D3 Initial Thoughts
3. UPDATED – Impressions of the 5D Mark II

3 years is an eternity in digital cameras today, but that’s just how long Canon users have waited for the  successor to the Canon 5D. After months of rumors, tons of hype and a clever ad campaign that implied that the camera would eclipse the competition, Canon has finally released official images and a lengthy list of specifications.

UPDATES – I had a chance to play around with the the 5D Mark II recently and now that the camera has officially hit stores, I’ve updated this post with additional thoughts.

As a concert photographer, the only question on my mind is:

“How well will the 5D Mark II perform in the pit?”

The following is my initial opinion of the camera as it relates to concert photography beginning with a list of the relevant specifications.

Canon 5D Mark II Specifications:

Full frame 21.1 Megapixel CMOS sensor
ISO 100-6400 (expansion from 50 up to 25,600)
9 AF points + 6 Assist AF points (Center point is cross-type and f/2.8 sensitive)
3.0” VGA (920k dots) LCD
New DIGIC IV image processor
UDMA compact flash support
3.9 frames per second continuous shooting
Optional Battery Grip BG-E6
73ms shutter lag time
145ms viewfinder blackout time
98% Viewfinder Coverage

IMAGE QUALITY

Canon has always made great sensors. There’s no arguing with the amazing enlargement potential of a native 5616 x 3744 pixel image.

Even though I haven’t field tested the camera yet, I think it’s fairly safe to say that with a default ISO range of 100 – 6400, the image quality of the 5D Mark II will be good. Canon’s standard sensitivity ranges are usually spot-on and there’s no reason to think that they’ve lowered their standards now.

There are however a few things to consider.

1) The 21MP Monster

Nevermind the marketing babble, cramming more megapixels into the same real estate results in more noise. Canon’s flagship 1DS Mark III, powered by the DIGIC III processor, is also 21MP and tops out at ISO1600 by default. Even at 1600, the image quality isn’t great.

Do the DIGIC IV processor and new sensor design of the 5D Mark II really improve performance two full stops without turning your image into an impressionist painting?

That a 21MP sensor can go up to an astounding ISO 25,600 is mind blowing. If the DIGIC IV processor can go to eleven and still produce a sharp image with good color and contrast I’ll be pleasantly surprised.

I would be more excited to see a lower MP count with correspondingly higher ISO potential.

UPDATE – Sample images have shown that the DIGIC IV is doing some skillful noise reduction in-camera. JPEG shooters should seriously rejoice. The RAW files may be somewhat of a disappointment to concert photographers as Canon’s Chuck Westfall was reported to say that the RAW performance of the 5DmarkII sensor as being similar to that of the 1DSmarkIII, which is only spec’d to ISO1600.

2) Pixel Binning?

Since the 1D Mark III, Canon cameras have been able to record images in sRAW format. Unlike Nikon’s DX mode that crops the active area of the sensor to produce a smaller image, sRAW uses the entire sensor. The advantage of a Nikon’s DX crop mode is that it trades megapixels for effective zoom reach. The possible advantage of sRAW for concert photography is far more intriguing.

Through a process referred to as pixel binning, whereby the data load of each pixel is compare to the pixels around it to achieve an average signal to noise reading, the 5D Mark II in sRAW could use the entire 21MP sensor to create a 10MP image with extremely low noise. Let’s see what DIGIC IV can really do.

UPDATE – The DIGIC IV does not employ pixel binning. 5DmarkII owners can expect a small improvement in noise when using sRAW.

USABILITY

There are a lot of factors that add up to a good concert photography camera. Among them, focusing characteristics, FPS, battery life, shutter characteristics and user interface are key.

UPDATE – After handling the 5D Mark II, my initial feeling is that the build quality is better than the original. Specifically, the finish feels nicer and the shut lines feel tighter. The high resolution LCD is a monumental improvement.

1) Focusing Characteristics

Honestly, the focusing specs of the 5D Mark II are the most personally disappointing part of the camera. With only 9 selectable AF points clustered at the center of the viewfinder, the photographer is forced to focus and recompose the image more often than not.

While not horrible on its own, focus and recompose is horrible for tracking a moving subject while maintaining a specific composition. I know a lot of concert photographers who make due with Canon’s 9 point system, but coming from the 1D Mark III, which has 19 selectable points, I have little interest in anything less.

Furthermore, I believe only the center point of the 9 AF sensors present on the 5D Mark II is cross-type and sensitive to f/2.8. This is particularly important to concert photographers who are regularly forced to shoot at f/2.8 or faster. Without getting into the details, the outer 8 AF points on the 5DmkII are several stops less accurate under normal concert conditions than the center point.

UPDATE – It’s been confirmed that the 5D Mark II shares the same AF module of the original 5D. In a recent interview with dpreview.com Canon’s Director and Chief Executive of Image Communication Products Operations, Masaya Maeda had the following to say:

“Firstly the market’s evaluation of the 5D’s AF system has been very positive; there have been no complaints from users, with everyone saying it’s very good. Given that, to a certain extent, we think we shouldn’t change it. And also there’s some limitation with size; the AF sensor in the 50D is very big; the one in the 5D is much smaller. If we wanted to have all cross-sensors in the 5D Mark II, it would mean we might have to sacrifice the compactness of the body. It’s all a question of balance of features and benefits.”

“No complaints from users” and “compactness of the body”?

My own impression of the 5D Mark II auto focus was that under normal conditions, it’s totally fine. It feels slower than that of the 1DmarkIII when used with a Canon L lens, but no so slow as to be a problem at all. That being said, would definitely stick to using Canon glass on the new 5D as third party lenses tend to focus more slowly – not to mention that the 21mp sensor will totally spank crappy lenses.

Comparison:

Canon 5D Mark II – 9 AF points (Center point is cross-type and f/2.8 sensitive)
Canon 1D Mark III – 45 AF points (19 selectable, 19 cross-type and f/2.8 sensitive)
Nikon D3/D700 – 51 points, 15 cross-type and f/2.8 sensitive)

With both the 1D Mark III and 1DS Mark III released with less than perfect auto focus performance, I know a lot of people were hoping for a more aggressive AF specification on the 5D Mark II. I personally would have paid an additional $500 for more pro-spec AF.

2) FPS (Frames Per Second)

The 5D Mark II shoots at a conservatively stated 3.9 FPS. This is fine for day to day shooting but may fall short of capturing the subtle changes of expression present in a lot of live performances.

I find that shooting in bursts of three shots produces the best yield when focusing on facial expressions and arm movements. My personal sweet spot for the three shot burst is 6-7 FPS. Again, I would trade a few megapixels to get to 5FPS.

UPDATE – My impression of the 5DmkII frame rate is similar to that of the AF in that 3.9FPS is neither fast or slow and how well it suites any specific photographer will depend highly on what she/he is used to. Coming from the 10FPS of the 1DmarkIII, it’s slow.

3) Battery Life

The 5D did not have stellar battery life. It wasn’t as horrible as the Nikon D200, but you’d still need a couple of spares to get your through an entire day of shooting. I hope new 1800 mAh battery is more than enough to compensate for the more powerful processor and heavier sensor load. It would be nice to see Canon take a hint from Nikon an allow the use of the 1-Series batteries via the optional grip.

One of the best things about using a 1-Series camera is not having to worry about battery life when shooting all-day festivals or events.

4) Shutter Characteristics

With a 73ms shutter release and a 145ms viewfinder blackout, the 5D Mark II isn’t exactly quick to take a photo. Although 73ms doesn’t seem like a long wait from the time the shutter is depressed to the actual exposure, I’m of the opinion that every millisecond counts when it comes to capturing the decisive moment.

The slower the shutter release time, the longer it takes for the camera to fire. The longer viewfinder blackout the longer it takes for the mirror to return to the angle necessary to see what you’re shooting. Obviously both of these things have a pretty big bearing on the handling of the camera even if they don’t impact image quality at all.

Comparison:

Canon 5D Mark II – 73ms shutter release and a 145ms viewfinder blackout
Canon 1D Mark III – 55ms shutter release and 80ms viewfinder blackout
Nikon D3/D700 – 41ms shutter release and 74ms viewfinder blackout

Even though it’s not at all related to performance, photographers often overlook the amount of noise the shutter makes when firing. The recent crop of Nikon cameras have really violent shutter actuations that might be a problem when shooting quieter performance like classical music, theater or dance. Although there are plenty of after market camera covers designed to muffle the shutter, who wants to put a sweaty oven mitt on their hand for two hours?

Let’s hope the 5D Mark II is quiet.

UPDATE – It’s quiet. Not as quiet as an APS-C camera, but not as loud as say, a Nikon. You’d still need a blimp to shoot dance or classical music . The silent shooting mode of the 1-Series bodies is still king in terms of mirror slap.

5) User Interface

Canon has made huge steps forward in terms of the user interface as of the 1D Mark III but it wasn’t perfect. One of the main complaints was the quality of the LCD. Specifically, it’s fuzzy enough to make critical focus confirmation almost impossible.

Canon users suffer no more.

The high resolution LCD screen added to the 5D Mark II promises beautiful image previews with excellent focus confirmation. Canon has also added a passive light sensor that automatically adjusts the brightness of the LCD to make it more readable outdoors. Huzzah.

UPDATE – The LCD is a massive massive improvement over the screens on the current 1-Series bodies and it totally spanks the crappy little thing on the original 5D.

The camera also sports a huge and bright viewfinder with 98% frame coverage. It goes without saying that a having bright viewfinder when shooting dimly lit shows is a huge aid to composition.

UPDATE – Yup, it’s big and bright.

Conclusion

The 5D Mark II looks like an amazing studio and landscape camera for photographers on a budget. However, after these comments, it’s no surprise that I question the suitability of the Canon 5D Mark II for concert photography.

(To be fair, I question the suitability of most cameras in this regard but I was hoping that the successor to the 5D would be specified in more equal terms with the Nikon D700.)

The fact of the matter is that the 5D Mark II surpasses the Nikon D700 and even the Nikon D3 in a number of areas, megapixels and HD video among them. It’s too bad that the strongest features of the camera have almost nothing to do with shooting rock shows.

My biggest fear is that Canon has put too much energy into the megapixel race and very little energy into improving other features of the camera that really affect the feature set and user experience.

Ultimately, my final judgment on the 5D Mark II will have much more to do with the feeling of camera in-use (and the image quality) than any spec sheet or Canon white paper. I plan on taking the camera for a lengthy field test as soon as it is available. Until then, we all have to wait to see what other new toys PMA has in store.

Feedback and comments are welcome.

UPDATE – The results are in and the facts don’t stack up well for the 5D Mark II as a concert camera. This doesn’t mean that amazing concert photos won’t be made with it – it just means that there are better tools for the job.

I personally had a lot of hopes for this camera as a smaller FF backup to my 1D Mark III. The specifications of this camera were a significant factor in my recent decision to switch to Nikon.

Related posts:

1. UPDATED – Impressions of the 5D Mark II
2. Canon EOS-1D Mark III, this one goes to Eleven
3. Your Concert Photography Tutorial

Do you like good music? Will you be in NYC this Friday, September 19th at 8pm? Yes? Then be sure to swing by Ars Nova at 8PM for some of the sexiest neo-soul to ever caress your earlobes. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you my client, my friend Arthur Lewis.

Arthur’s solo EP entitled If We Were, hits iTunes and select stores September 30th on Rock Slinger Incorporated. The performance promises to be Arthur’s best yet. I’m told he will have advance copies of the album on hand.

Tickets: SmartTix.com
Myspace Mp3: Arthur Lewis
Facebook: Event Info

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1. Arthur Lewis
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3. Arthur & The Geniuses

What is possibly just as exciting as the D3′s ISO performance is the debut of the new EXPEED processor which, from the look of the samples, produces JPEG files that are higher in quality than any Nikon camera to date.

In my opinion, prior to the D3 and the D300, Nikon’s three main weaknesses were:

1) High ISO performance

2) Lack luster in-camera JPEGs

3) No VR telephoto lenses.

It seems like they’ve checked all of these off the list in one fell swoop.

I expect that the future will bring updated AF-S versions of a few key prime lenses as well as a new weather sealed version of the SB800, similar to the finish found on the Canon 580EX II.

The official Nikon samples are available for download here.

Related posts:

1. Hello Nikon
2. Nikon D3 Initial Thoughts
3. Canon EOS-1D Mark III, this one goes to Eleven

According the EPA, the average rock concert produces around 112dB of sound; enough to damage your hearing in a matter of minutes.

Ever since my rave-going days, I’ve known that I need to wear earplugs in order to avoid a muffled ringing skull at noon the next day. For dancing and bone crushing beats, cheap heavy foam ear plugs did the trick. Of course, the cheap ones work less well when you actually want to hear the music and vocals without the muffed mess. Enter the Etymonic ER-20 High Fidelity Earplug.

Using the same technology found in Etymonic’s $200 custom Musicians Earplugs, the ER-20s are a steal at only $12 from the company website. Unlike foam earplugs that block all frequencies almost equally, the ER-20s are specially designed to to truncate the highs and lows while leaving much of the music and vocals quieter but decidedly clear.

As a regular concert goer as well as music photographer, I’ve been very impressed with the ER-20′s ability to retain a lot musical detail while offering a good amount of protection. They are about as comfortable to wear as a pair of in-ear headphones and can be worn comfortably for hours.

The ER-20s are available in two sizes and a variety of colors. Each pair comes with a flexible plastic case; an optional neck strap is also available.

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PHOTO: EOS-1D Mark III, 24-70mm f/2.8 L , ISO6400, 1/160 @ f/3.5

Sweet and sassy throughout their set, the Puppini Sisters, who list both the The Triplets of Belleville and Marylin Manson among their influences performed an, at times tritely scripted, but ultimately delightful show. Backed by a single guitar, drums and upright bass, the trio sang a selection of covers from their album “Betcha Bottom Dollar” as well as original work from their sophomore release due to hit UK shelves this October. As an interesting cultural aside, the primary fanbase of The Puppini Sisters seems to consist of a more mature demographic than that what frequents most NYC music venues. With more octogenarians in attendance than twenty-somethings, it is likely that a significant portion of the crowd had not heard of The Smiths, Blondie, or Kate Bush (all artists whose work The Puppini Sisters cover).

In the end, with broadway-class vocal talent (x3), little production to hide behind and a smidgeon of kitch sprinkled here and there, The Puppini Sisters offered up a classic sound that appeals to young and old alike.

PHOTOGRAPHY COMMENTS:

Though I’d heard that many shows at B.B. Kings were seated, I was admittedly unprepared for the lack of a press pit and how shooting the entire show from a stationery, seated position would affect composition. The seating arrangement however was not the only first of the night. This show was also my first shooting with a Canon camera, namely my new EOS1D-Mark III. And, since I like putting it all on the line, this was also the first time I’ve ever used shutter priority.

Though B.B. Kings is one of New York’s more modern venues, the lighting varied as much as two-and-a-half stops from one side of the stage to the next. This was, on the whole, weak enough to warrant the use of ISO 6400, 1/160 and f/2.8. for the entire show.

PHOTO: EOS-1D Mark III, 24-70mm f/2.8 L , ISO6400, 1/160 @ f/2.8

Since attaching my trusty Nikkor 17-55mm f/2.8 to a Canon body wasn’t a good option, I opted instead for Canon’s standard zoom, the 24-70mm f2.8 L. Since the 1D3 uses a 1.3x APS-H size sensor, this presented me with a slightly tighter field of view than I am used to using from the pit. As seen above, the 24-70mm range works well for 3/4 length shots of single performers, but lacks enough on the wide end to prevent full body shots.

PHOTO: EOS-1D Mark III, 24-70mm f/2.8 L , ISO6400, 1/160 @ f/2.8

Given my extremely restricted shooting position, the tele end of the range proved very useful for reaching performers at the back as well as opposite ends of the stage.

PHOTO: EOS-1D Mark III, 24-70mm f/2.8 L , ISO6400, 1/80 @ f/2.8

PHOTO: EOS-1D Mark III, 24-70mm f/2.8 L , ISO6400, 1/100 @ f/2.8

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With an ISO range from 50 to 6400, 19 area AF system, light-weight lithium battery good for over 3,000 shots and a shooting speed of 10 FPS, the 1D3 is the best available tool for action photography. The 14bit processing of the 1D3 is particularly promising for the high contrast lighting present in concert photography. Even thought the jump from 12bit to 14bit doesn’t sound like much, it increases the maximum number of tonal steps from 4,096 to a whopping 16,384.

Despite the long list of industry leading specifications, the release of the 1D3 has not gone smoothly. Like the Nikon D200, Canon 5D, and the Leica M8 before it, the 1D3 is rumored to have a few early-production bugs; the foremost being that the AI-SERVO is easily fooled in bright situations when the contrast of the background is greater than the contrast of the subjected being tracked by the Auto-Focus. Initially, I suspected that this would present a huge problem for concert photography where contrast levels can vary drastically from one second to the next. So far my fears appear to be unfounded.

Though I’ve only had the camera for 8 days, I’ve already logged several thousand shutter actuations under a diverse set of shooting scenarios. With the new firmware installed, I haven’t noticed any problem with the AF system. Though I am sure that problems do exist, I suspect that they are limited to very specific situations. Let’s just say that I won’t be photographing any high school track meets on sunny afternoons until Canon gets things sorted.

Problems aside, I’m delighted to say that the image quality at ISO 6400 is fantastic. A quick pass of Noise Ninja produces a file with no visible chroma noise and a level of fine detail retention that will make anyone owning a D2X want to cry.

Related posts:

1. Canon 5D Mark II & Concert Photography: First Impressions
2. UPDATED – Impressions of the 5D Mark II
3. Nikon D3 Official High ISO Samples