Color Spectrum, Sharp Focus, Speed, Physical Design, Display, Reliability, Support

Weight

In my opinion the Canon 1D mark III is the quintisential profesional DSLR. It's designed for shooting pictures and it is the best bang for the buck on the used market. With over 11 f stops of dynamic range and 10 fps speed, it captures the moment, every time, all the time. Currently a used mark III in excellent condition will set you back around $1000, nothing compares at this price. When you compare the color and sharpness between the Mark III and a more modern, highter megapixal camera in the same price range, the 1D Mark III wins everytime. Why? The sensor, digi-3 processors (two), and features. I compared the pictures between the 1D Mark III, a Nikon D90, and a Canon 7D and every shot was better on the 1D Mark III. But only 10 megapixal? Don't be fooled by megapixals. You have to tripple the megapixals to see a diference. Unless you are going past 20x30 inch pictures, this is a better camera. Did I say it's fast? AND accurate. Canon had a focus issue with the 1D Mark III series that they corrected. Owners can send them to canon for the correction. The focus issue had to do with low light issues. The later models with higher SNs had none of these issues. For $1000, you can find late model 1D mark IIIs in pristine condition. The only downside is the weight. It's a heavy camera, but it feels good in your hand and is the most solid camera I have ever owned. The difference in price between the 1D Mark III and the Mark IV is over $1000, and I did not buy a camera to shoot video.

Similar Products Used:

Canon 1D mark II, 1D mark IIn, Canon 7D, Nikon D90

Crisp images
Superb colour
Egronomics
Rapid, accurate AF
High ISO performance
Build
Speed and burst rate
Battery life
AF microadjustment

Heavy (but significantly lighter than its predecessor).
Liveview is MF only.
auto ISO is available but setup is rather obscure.

A fantastic camera in all respects. Better IQ than my 5D, handles superbly, speed to burn and the AF is faultless. Feature packed and much easier to use than previous 1 series cameras. The 1.3 crop is an ideal compromise IMO unless ultrawide is your main interest. The early AF problems have never been an issue for me, rapid action, low light, ultrafast lenses, all weather conditions AF if accurate, rapid and precise. A truly great camera.

Customer Service

Not required

Similar Products Used:

Eos 30D, Eos 5D

Speed, autofocus, image quality, details at high ISO's. Easy to use and access menus and controls. Build and water sealing are superb and the dust shaker really works.

None really, except I do miss a built in flash. I know none of the 1d cameras have ever had one, but I do a lot of close up photography and it really comes in handy.

Solid camera that feels solid in every way. This camera will make you a better photographer. The autofocus is fast and accurate. The pictures right out of the camera in RAW are sharp with vibrant colors. By contrast the photos right out of the D3 are soft and the colors artificial and plastic looking. I find I am doing much less post processing with this camera. The IQ and detail even at high ISO's are amazing. Canon reworked the menu system for this camera and it is a lot easier to use than the previous Mark II's. I love the "My Menu" where you can put functions you use often, like mirror lock up to access easily. Plus you can program the buttons on the back to do other things, for instance, using the autofocus button to spot meter.

Nikon users brag about being able to turn the camera on while holding it with one hand and bringing it to the eye, but they never like to talk about having to take their eye away from the viewfinder to make any changes. With the Mark III while looking through the viewfinder, I can change exposure, aperture, speed or ISO. The LCD on the rear, at least on mine, looks to be much sharper than the one on the 40D. I also love the big bright viewfinder after looking through the dark, dingy 40D viewfinder.

Customer Service

Haven't had to use it yet.

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic FZ20, Canon 30D, Nikon D300.

Low noise in high ASA settings. What more can I say. Very impressive.

I shot a 30 second exposure at 6400 ASA to test it and the noise was almost nill. That makes me really look forward to shooting a body building show.

The lighting is usually good for 1250 ASA 200th of a sec at f/3.2 so I am looking forward to shooting 3200 ASA. This camera has less noise at 3200 ASA than the MkII did at 1250.

I have had some focus issues with a Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 lens I bought with it. Shooting a series of shots the focus seems to wander. The result is the first shot will be sharp but later images will go out of focus. I think it is the lens.

My standard 70-200 f/2.8 L IS Canon lens is flawless. It has been my preferred lens for a long time now.

I had to wait to buy this because apparently Canon pulled them all back to fix some issue and none of the local stores had them for a couple weeks.

I picked this up in the morning and shot a wedding as an assistant that afternoon. If I had been te main photographer I'd have had to use my MkII.

Experience with the MkII is helpful as the layout is very familiar feeling and easy to adapt to.

I normally shoot body building shows so am looking forward to the next event.

I have shot two weddings, a couple of burlesque shows and some on stage musicians.

All in all the camera is exactly what I expected. Solid, competently executed and easy to use.

Customer Service

My past experiences with Canon leads me to expect good service. I have the advantage of having a certified repair center half a mile away. It is always nicer to look the person in the eye.

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS 1D MkII
Canon 30D
Nikon D2H
Nikon D1X
Canon D30

Big screen.
Simple buttons.
ISO in viewfinder.
Well balanced.

I'd prefer white balance to be a button rather than menu choice.
Not really a 'weakness' but this is a heavy camera and not for those with weak arms.

After placing my order, I started seeing these dreadful reviews and was questioning my purchase. Nevertheless, I let the order stand and received my Mark III after a 6-8 weeks wait. Well, I'm glad I decided not to cancel it! This is a superb camera! I have not experienced any problems. The low level of noise at high ISO is amazing. At low ISO, there is virtually no perceptible noise.

I've shot a 3 day music festival, several concerts and a studio shoot and am just amazed.

Customer Service

Great--called when when it was shipping. Offered to buy back my older equipment.

Similar Products Used:

10D, 30D

I hear it does 10 frames/second

no frames/second

Can't give a full review because right out of the box I was given the dreaded "Error 99". After 1/2 hour with tech support, I was told the camera was defective and that it needed to be sent back to Canon for repairs.

At $5,499 one would think that the camera would at least work for 1 photo.

Bottom line, service from Canon COULD have made up for frustration, but they really don't care. At first they even wanted me to pay for the postage to return it to them!!!

Thanks Canon, see you in court....

Customer Service

Horrible.

Fast shutter speed....10fps
Larger 3 inch LCD
MORE Focus Points...great feature!

Menu Structure
LCD Display

After coming away from having and shooting action and sports with my Mark II N, I did not think there could be huge room for improvement, but shooting wise there was and the camera rocks as a camera goes. Although I am sold on the technical sides of the camera, there are a few things which I am not sure if I am liking so far. The LCD, although now 3 inches, seems to be a bit different and harder to see/view than the previous model. I am not sure and have to shoot more to really come to a conclusion. Another thing which I am not sure about is the custom functions and how they are laid out in the menus. I am not sure I like the custom functions in sub menus they way they are. For example, the auto focus custom functions are in one menu, etc. I liked being able to just cruise through all the custom functions personally like on the 1Ds or IIN. All in all I love the camera, but I think they can fine tune some things for sure! The live view seems pretty pointless to me, but some may use it I guess. I just do not know why you would not shoot tethered to a notebook or computer and be done with it.

Similar Products Used:

Canon Mark II 1Ds
Canon Mark II N