5Duel Part 3 of 3 ... FOCUS Jan 17th | filed in: Photography tips

So far, the 5Deux has performed very well against its predecessor.
For the third installment of THE DUEL, though, the 5Duex loses some ground.

For today's comparison, I am focused on focus.

I've come to the conclusion that the 5Deux has A.D.D.
Sometimes it focuses very well.
Other times, it's slightly disappointing compared to results from the old 5D.
I know the 5Deux can focus well, because I've got proof,
it just doesn't focus well ALL of the time, which is annoying.

Here's a shot of Zak & Jack from the 5Deux:

Here's the same shot with 100% zooms on some in-focus details:


and the same shot from the old 5D:

with the 100% zoom details:


There are times, though, that the old 5D did a much better job focusing.

From the 5Deux, notice the lack of sharpness in the denim & in the XO's of the shirt:


from the old 5D:

noticeable difference, isn't it? ... sigh...

one more example...
5Deux:

and some 100% details:


old 5D:


both of the "insets" are 100% crops of the image.
The old 5D is has a lower-megapixel sensor, so the 100% crop covers mom's whole jacket.
The 5Deux has more pixels, so a 100% crop of her jacket wouldn't have fit
on my blog-friendly image here.
The denim on the old 5D's image is visibly sharper, though.

I'm disappointed that the focus from the old 5D is consistently better.
The 5Deux definitely focuses faster,
but I'd rather have it a little slower and SHARP ALL THE TIME!

I've seen other photographers say that they've had similar results,
so I guess this is pretty common among 5Deux owners.

So, my summary is sadly wishy-washy.
I love the way the 5Deux meters.
I love the speed of the AF, too.
I love the 3.9 frames-per-second for when I'll be doing sports this year.
I love the more robust build & improved weather sealing (not like a 1D, but pretty good).

...but (BIG BUT)...
The focus isn't consistent.
I saw good sharp results, but not in every picture.
True, not every picture I take will be in perfect focus at 100% zoom with any camera,
but the amount of shots with really good sharp focus is lower on the 5Deux.

I'd like to do some manual focus experiments, do my best to get tack sharp focus
on both cameras with manual focus & look at the images at 100%.
I may be able to chalk a bit of this up to "Operator Error," too.
I've been taking pictures with Canon SLRs for a very long time,
but nobody's perfect, and it could be that I'm not doing a great job with the
"focus and recompose" method. I find myself a litlte sloppy with that sometimes.
The old 5D is definitely more forgiving. I have room for improvement for sure!

In conclusion,
the 5Deux did not walk away with a clear decisive victory because of the focus issue.

I'll keep shooting with it, though, because the results are good... great even!
I should probably be more picky and have this focus issue be a "deal breaker,"
but I love the results & the other 5Deux benefits too much.
The focus issue is really clearly visible when you look at images at 100% or bigger,
and even then, the images aren't ruined. They're still very very good.

Hopefully as I keep shooting & keep improving, I'll get more consistently tack sharp images.
And perhaps a firmware update will come out from Canon to help me, too!

Thanks for bearing with me through this 5Duel adventure!
I'll keep posting images and let you know if the 5Deux & its ADD continues to plague me.

Now that I've finished my big 5Duel blog project, I've got a favor to ask you:
If you're a member of OSP (OpenSourcePhoto), go check out the SITE OF THE YEAR CONTEST!
My site, designed by Nick at Spilled Milk, is in the running!
Check out all of the awesome sites there, and vote for the one you think is the AWESOMEST!
(that's a word, I just made it up. so there)

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

~Carey