The Canon EOS 5D Mark II

At $2699 for just the body, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II is more expensive by far than the Nikon D90.  However, its performance also is in a different league, so there is no doubt it will capture the attention of professionals and advanced amateurs.

The 5D Mark II is a pro-level DSLR still camera with a full-frame 35mm sensor (36x24mm).  The sensor’s native resolution is 5616x3744, or 21.1 megapixels.  Picture data is recorded to a CF flash card, and can also be downloaded to a computer through a USB2 port.

The camera has the classic DSLR form factor, with an L-shaped body, a large grip for the right hand, capped by a shutter release button.  The lens mount accepts all full-frame Canon EF lenses and teleconverters.  The focal multiplier is 1x for these lenses.  The camera does not work with lenses designed for smaller sensors, as they will vignette the frame.  A hotshoe on top of the viewfinder housing allows external flash units (such as Canon Speedlights) to be used.  There is no built-in pop-up flash.  The back has a large 3” LCD display screen.

The 5D Mark II has a wide ISO range of 100-6400 across all resolutions, and this can be extended to 50, 12800 or 25600 at reduced resolutions.  It has a 3.9fps burst framerate, with a 13-frame buffer.  It can record still pictures in either or both the compressed (JPEG) or uncompressed (RAW) formats.  It has 14 bits of dynamic range in the RAW format.  (In JPEG format, dynamic range is limited to 8 bits.  This is inherent in that format, and a limitation common to all cameras that use it.  This is why, in critical work like fashion, architectural and commercial photography, RAW is the preferred format.)

The feature making the biggest splash is video capture.  The 5D Mark II is the second true DSLR to offer that feature, having been upstaged by the Nikon D90 a month or so earlier.  While it was second to hit the market, it definitely trumps the earlier competition on features and performance.  Unfortunately it shares some of the problems too.

Canon's WFT-E4a wireless transmitter

 
Video can be recorded to the CF flash card.  (The card should be UDMA-compliant and have a data transfer speed of at least 8MB/sec.)  Or, with an optional WFT-E4A Wireless File Transmitter, video can be streamed through that unit’s USB2 port directly to an external hard disk or computer.  Video is recorded at full HD resolution (1920x1080 at 16:19 proportions) or VGA resolution (640x480 at 4:3 proportions).  Only a 30fps frame rate is supported.  The FAT32 file system used on the CF card limits the maximum video clip length to 4GB.  However, the camera also limits HD video duration to 12 minutes per clip, and VGA to 24 minutes, due to thermal concerns (chip temperature rises).

To prepare to record a video, one goes into the Tools menu to enable Movie recording and to set the desired resolution (HD or VGA).

To actually record video to the CF flash card, one presses the Live View button to the left of the viewfinder.  The image from the sensor appears continuously on the LCD screen, overlaid with a semitransparent mask to indicate the active area that will be recorded in the movie clip.  One then points the camera at the subject and uses either manual or autofocus to focus the lens.  (The screen display can be magnified 5x or 10x to aid manual focus.)  One presses the SET button (in the center of the navigation wheel to the right of the viewfinder) to start recording video.  Pressing the SET button again will end recording of the video clip.

Once you enter video recording mode, autofocus is possible, but not recommended because it is slower than normal; manual focus is best if the subject distance changes.  Only evaluative metering can be used in video mode, no manual exposure control is allowed.  The camera will adjust internal settings in the following order of priority, to maintain proper exposure:

·         ISO (over the range from 100 to 12800)

·         Shutter speed (over the range from 1/30 to 1/125 sec)

·         Aperture

The rationale here is to give preference to those methods of exposure control that create the least audible interference for the internal mike, according to Canon’s Chuck Westfall.  (Never mind that a pro is not going to use the internal mike!)  Anyway, forearmed with this knowledge of the camera’s algorithms, you can influence its choice of aperture.  If you point the camera at something very dark when you start the video it will tend to open up the aperture, and then try not to change it after that.  Likewise, pointing the camera at something bright at the start will tend to close down the aperture, after which the camera will again try not to change aperture except as a last resort.  This is fortunate, since aperture control is key to depth of field control, which is one of the most compelling reasons to use this camera for video!

If desired, exposure can be locked during video to keep it from changing.  You can also apply Exposure Compensation to lighten or darken the video.

Audio is provided by a built-in monaural microphone, located just below the “EOS 5D” logo on the front of the camera body.  If using it, one has to be careful not to cover up this microphone with the left hand.  The microphone tends to pick up operating and handling noises from the camera.  Fortunately, it is not the only source of audio provided; Canon had the good sense to also provide a stereo input jack for external audio.  Using this input with any of several available XLR adapters or mixers makes a passably usable audio system.

Video is encoded in H.264 (AKA “MPEG-4 level 10”, or “AVC”) format.  This is a highly efficient format with both intraframe and interframe compression.  Audio is not compressed, it is kept in 16-bit linear PCM format, and merged with the video into a .MOV file.  Each clip is recorded in a separate file.  The maximum clip duration is about 12 minutes at HD resolution, or about 24 minutes at VGA resolution, or 4GB, whichever comes first.  (You can record multiple clips and combine them into a movie later, with video editing software, but that’s outside the camera.)

The AVC video format is not as widely supported by video-editing applications as the older, uncompressed DV format, so one should verify that one’s editor can import the compressed format.  It may take a while for the software to catch up with the hardware in this case.

Because the 5D Mark II uses a CMOS sensor, with a rolling shutter, it is, like the D90, susceptible to various motion-capture artifacts.  If the camera is panned rapidly, or if a subject moves rapidly across the field of view, the subject may appear to tilt (an optical illusion called “skew”).  If the subject motion changes rapidly, as in handheld camera shake, the skew can turn into a jellylike “wobble” of the image, often quite nauseating.  Under certain types of lighting (fluorescent, or sodium-vapor) with pronounced flicker, dark banding artifacts might show up in images.

Summary of key specifications and features:

·         36x24mm sensor (fullframe 35mm size)

·         5616x3744 pixels native resolution (21.1 megapixels)

·         Supports video resolutions of 1920x1080 and 640x480, all at 30fps

·         H.264 (AVC) video format recorded in .MOV file

·         Max video clip length is 12 minutes for HD and 24 minutes for SD

·         Max video clip file size is 4GB

·         Records to CF flash card

·         Can record to external hard drive with optional attachment

·         Records audio from built-in monaural microphone or external stero jack

·         Outputs video to A/V or HDMI connectors for realtime display

·         Interfaces to computer through USB 2.0 port

·         Supports ISO 100-6400 at all resolutions, and 50-25600 at reduced resolutions

·         Has a hotshoe for external flash

·         Has both an optical viewfinder, and a 3” LCD screen with live preview mode

·         MSRP (suggested retail price) is US $2699.00

 

Strengths:

·         Access to broad Canon line of lenses and speedlights

·         Large sensor offers low noise and potential for shallow depth of field

·         Fullframe sensor does not vignette image from wide angle lenses

·         Video can record external audio inputs via a stereo jack

 

Weaknesses:

·         Built-in mike is monaural only

·         Built-in mike picks up operating and handling noises

·         Noticeable rolling-shutter artifacts under certain conditions

·         Slow autofocus in video mode

·         No manual exposure control in video mode

·         30fps is only supported video frame rate

 

Comparing the EOS 5D Mark II to other video options:
· Compared to the Nikon D90, the Canon 5D Mark II has the full HD mode, and they run at different frame rates.  They both have limited manual controls in video mode.  The 5D Mk II has an external audio input, unlike the D90.  Both have excellent low-light response.  Both have access to superb lens systems and the potential for shallow depth of field.  The 5D’s sensor is larger, the same size as a type 135 film (35mm still) frame, whereas the D90’s sensor is about the size of a much smaller frame of 35mm movie film (which runs vertically rather than horizontally).

· There is little comparison between the 5D Mark II and a real camcorder.  The camcorder wins handily.  The DSLR has an edge in low light response, lens interchangeability, and shallow depth of field, but nowhere else.

· The 5D Mark II fares much better in comparison with typical P&S cameras, most of which have even more limited audio capability, poor low-light response, hopelessly wide depth of field, and no lens interchangeability.  In situations where rolling-shutter artifacts might show up, though, even a CCD-based P&S camera might work better.

The Canon EOS 5D Mark II is a killer still camera.  For movies, it does certain things even better than a dedicated video camera.  However, in a few situations it is nearly useless for movies.  It also does not offer nearly the degree of control or ergonomic refinement as a camera designed specifically for video.  So, in general, it is not a replacement for a dedicated video camera, but a supplement.