Canon EOS-1D Mark IICanon doubles the resolution of their speed demon SLR, while actually increasing its speed and cutting image noise. Amazing!<<Video, Power, Software :(Previous) | (Next): Reference: Datasheet>> Page 15:Test Results & ConclusionReview First Posted: 01/27/2005 |
Test Results
In keeping with my standard test policy, the comments given here summarize only my key findings. For a full commentary on each of the test images, see the Canon EOS-1D Mark II's sample pictures page.
For a collection of more pictorial images from the Canon EOS-1D Mark II, check out our Canon 1D Mark II photo gallery.
Not sure which camera to buy? Let your eyes be the ultimate judge! Visit our Comparometer(tm) to compare images from the 1D Mark II with those from other cameras you may be considering. The proof is in the pictures, so let your own eyes decide which you like best!
As with all Imaging Resource product tests, I encourage you to let your own eyes be the judge of how well the camera performed. Explore the images on the pictures page, to see how the Canon EOS-1D Mark II's images compare to other cameras you may be considering.
- Color: Good color overall, JPEGs have problems with
some highly-saturated colors. (Use RAW mode, DPP software for critical work.)
The Canon EOS-1D Mark II produced very accurate color overall, though
it tended to undersaturate greens and yellows, and had difficulty with out-of-gamut
colors, particularly reds. For the most color-critical work, particularly
if your subjects involved very bright reds or blues, I strongly recommend
shooting in RAW mode and converting the images to JPEG using Canon's Digital
Photo Professional software. (As opposed to using JPEGs from the camera, or
converting the RAW images using EOS Viewer Utility.) Apart from its handling
of extreme red/orange hues though, I found the 1D Mark II's color to be quite
acceptable and natural-looking. The camera's range of white balance settings
was flexible enough to handle most of my test lighting, so that I got nearly
accurate results outdoors and in the studio. Skin tones were slightly pink
and reddish in places, and the blue flowers of the bouquet in the Outdoor
Portrait were dark and purplish. On the Indoor Portrait (without the flash),
the camera's Manual white balance setting did a great job, though I often
chose the Auto setting in the studio. A good performance overall, and color
saturation held up well at very high ISO settings, something not all d-SLRs
manage.
- Exposure: Accurate exposure - less than average exposure
compensation required. Good dynamic range. The EOS-1D Mark II's exposure
system performed well most of the time, with good results even under the high-key
lighting of the Sunlit Portrait. Contrast was just slightly high outdoors,
but was easily adjusted and the midtones still had good detail. Both indoors
and out, the camera required less than average exposure compensation. Dynamic
range was very good, particularly with the camera's internal contrast setting
adjusted to its lowest level.
- Resolution/Sharpness: Very high resolution, 1,600 -
1,800 lines of "strong detail." The Canon EOS-1D Mark II performed
very well on the "laboratory" resolution test chart. Test patterns
looked clean even at resolutions as high as 1,200 lines per picture height,
in both horizontal and vertical directions. I found "strong detail"
out to at least 1,800 lines along the horizontal axis, 1,600 lines vertically.
"Extinction" of the target patterns didn't occur until somewhere
past 2,000 lines. Using its "MTF 50" numbers, which correlate best
with visual sharpness, Imatest showed an average uncorrected resolution of
1203 LW/PH, and a resolution of 2032 LW/PH when normalized to a standard 1-pixel
sharpening. The rather low uncorrected number reflects Canon's extremely conservative
approach to in-camera sharpening. On the other hand, the very high normalized
figure shows some of the value of this conservative approach, as there's exceptional
detail to be found via post-capture sharpening.
- Image Noise: Very low image noise, with very fine grain patterns.
Numerically, the EOS-1D Mark II's noise levels are right in line with other
high-end digital SLRs, but the numbers tell only part of the story. Particularly
at very high ISOs, the very fine "grain pattern" of the 1D Mark
II's noise makes it much less objectionable than that of competing cameras,
even some with lower absolute noise magnitudes.
- Night Shots: Excellent low-light performance, with good
color and exposure at the darkest light levels. At f/2.8, AF works down to
about 1/10 foot-candle. The EOS-1D Mark II did an excellent job in the
low-light category, and produced clear, bright, usable images down to the
1/16 foot-candle (0.67 lux) limit of my test, with good color at all of the
ISO settings tested. The EOS-1D Mark II has a Noise Reduction option to help
control image noise, but I didn't see too much different with and without
Noise Reduction enabled. Even at ISO 3,200, noise was quite low, but the Noise
Reduction option didn't seem to affect the amount of image noise much one
way or another. (I suspect it might have more effect on exposures longer than
the longest I used here.) The 1D Mark II's autofocus system is also quite
sensitive, able to focus at light levels as low as 1/10 foot-candle, with
an f/2.8 lens.
- Viewfinder Accuracy: Excellent accuracy from the TTL
viewfinder. Unlike many lesser SLRs, the EOS-1D Mark II's through the
lens (TTL) viewfinder offers very accurate framing, as I measured approximately
99 percent accuracy in my testing. An excellent job! (I can't understand why
manufacturers don't make all SLRs with 100% viewfinders.)
- Shutter Lag and Cycle Time: Incredibly fast shooting, in all respects.
No question about it, the EOS-1D Mark II is the fastest pro SLR we've tested
to date. Every parameter is fast, from shutter lag and AF performance to shot-to-shot
cycle times. It does take advantage of fast memory cards to clear its buffer
memory more quickly, but the difference between 4x and 80x cards is only about
20%. More interestingly, its SD card interface seems to be consistently slightly
faster than the CF slot. (Bottom line though, the 1D Mark II has such a large
buffer and clears it so quickly with almost any modern memory card, card speed
and buffer clearing aren't likely to be an issue for the majority of users.)
- Battery Life: Really excellent battery life. Canon made great strides in power consumption with the 1D Mark II over the previous 1D model. When the camera is on but the shutter button isn't being pressed, it goes into a "semi-sleep" mode, and power drain drops to only 50 mA, which would translate to nearly 31 hours of run time with a fully-charged battery. Even in its "full-on" active state, battery life is over 10 hours. Pros shooting in continuous mode with a power-hungry IS lens could need a spare battery, but for the vast majority of users, the standard NP-E3 pack that comes with the camera should be more than sufficient.
Conclusion
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