Opinion: Upgrade to a 5D?

greeches

greeches

Veteran
I currently have a T2i and love it. I'd like to delve into the world of the full-frame (for my lens sake) but not sure if its worth it to upgrade.

I'd keep the T2i, but gain the 5D. Then I'd have to get battery grip, batteries and some CF cards...

Is it worth it? I shoot commercial, music video, family and vacation footage mainly, some paid, but not tons of work.

I really like the DOF options of the full frame as well as being able to use my full lens-range without crop factor.

Opinions?

Thanks!
 
The 5DII, CF card(s), and a battery grip would put you around $3,000. If you're not doing the work to rationalize that purchase, then it's probably safer to keep rolling with what you have. If that money would be an investment (i.e., you make your money back), go for it. But only you can know that.

I haven't been around a 5DII much (two small shoots where I was grip or electrical), but after talking to people who have shot with it, it's been hot and cold. Some people love the full frame; some hate it because the DOF is so, so shallow, almost too shallow to function, especially in less light. Also, it is a two-year old camera, a year or more older than the 7D, 1DIV, and T2i, so it suffers from being the guinea pig HDSLR. That said, it's still very good, but it doesn't have as user friendly a layout as the 7D or T2i, as I am told by a DP I know who shoots with all of them.

Hope that helps some. Wish I could add more.
 
^^ Good points. I kinda do feel that the 5D is getting long in the tooth. Its not a necessity right now.

Thanks for the ideas!
 
If you are doing mostly video, take that money and put it into some nice lenses instead. An L series lens at f1.4 on your t2i is more than small enough DOF for you with video on the t2i. I have yet to ever see a real professional video with DOF anywhere near what most people use on these DSLR's, so the difference on the 5D is probably not going to benefit you.
 
I too feel like the DOF on the T2i is frustrating at 1.8 or anywhere around there, I couldn't imagine if that was amplified. If I needed full frame for any specific purpose, I'd rent it. Otherwise, if I had to upgrade from the T2i, the equally $1,000 priced 60D would be my instant choice; The T2i has the same quality you're going to get out of any of these cameras and to me, the money lies more in the features, in which the 60D is packed with more things than any DSLR thus far. It also has a more professional body, for those who want more of an on-set feel.

I guess each camera still has a trade-off, MKII has full-frame, 7D has a somewhat weather-proof body, T2i is a tiny portable camera, and the 60D has tons of useful knick-knacks. The main negative about the T2i IMO is that the crop feels a bit restricting somehow, but on my buget I wouldn't pay $2,000 or so to get that corrected. I say it's better to truly master the art of filmmaking, it makes the biggest difference. I usually say that anyone who has money to spend probably has something much more important to spend it on.
 
I'm the same boat - own the T2, but would love the MarkII. Problem is, it's still the same price as it was 2 years ago, and yeah, it's getting long in the tooth.

My solution has been to concentrate on getting new glass - glass that will work for either the Mark II or Mark III (or whatever they call it) - and get what I can from this amazing little camera.

One other thing, even when I upgrade, I doubt I'll sell the T2 - just love the little guy - and it should be a nice B cam.
 
I had actually pulled the trigger on a 5d on ebay (coming from a t2i) and had the chance to shoot on a 5d right before it was shipped. Thank god I did! I cancelled my order as soon as I could. You really aren't gaining much when you look at it as a whole. Theres a cheaper alternative to every perk the camera supposedly brings. Want better lowlight/buy a faster lens or just buy and use more lights instead(you can buy an arri kit for about half the price of these and you still have $ left over), want more dof/buy a faster lens or get a zoom and zoom in more and just back up, want full frame to take advantage of your lenses/back up or buy a lens that gives you that view on a crop sensor. Granted this is my opinion but I was highly let down by the footage. I suggest you either rent one or find someone who has one and borrow/try it first.
 
You absolutely have to know what you're doing if you're going to use a 5D - it's completely unforgiving. It's enormously capable with the FF sensor but there are pros and cons to shooting FF for video, I think the combination of a crop sensor and a ff sensor for video is a good idea personally, but there will be a significant learning curve to getting good images out of the 5d, in my opinion you really need to have years of photographic experience, and hopefuly with ff35/35mm film (stills) before diving into the 5D for video - there's a lot you need to know before you shoot moving images with a 5D at a large aperture. From a usability standpoint, the way you *think* about focal lengths/apertures is really key here. Having been a photographer since well before the EOS film camera days, I've always thought, and still actively *think* if FF35 stills terms - crop sensors completely screw with my head - I've gotten used to it with the GH13 and 7D, but it still doesn't feel *right* to me - but in some ways it's easier to go from FF-crop than crop-FF, but that's just my opinion. All that said don't give up having a crop camera, the ability to use fast lenses and still have reasonably deep DOF is an enormous plus and makes these tools very useful - that's primarily why I chose the GH13 for the film I'm working on now, but there have definitely been situations in which I really wished I had a 5d on set - in the next wave of shooting we're about to undergo we'll actually have a GH13, 7D and a 5D mkII all at our disposal and we may even have all 3 running simultaneously for some of the scenes.
 
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The only reason to consider a 5D is to get the full-frame shallowness. IMHO, I like the 7D better. The shallowness of the 5D is cool, but with no good solution for HD monitoring, ur gonna end up screwing urself, finding out too late that some of ur footage is out of focus.

Stick with the t2i, and invest in fast lenses. The lenses will always be useful, and they hold their value well.

Better yet, invest in getting a new project off the ground!!!
 
i just dont get what it is with filmakers and this supposed "fullframe". Fullframe on the 5d is ONLY in regards to stills. the 7d and t2i and extremely close to super 35 film ( and even closer to RED)...which is what you would be shooting if u were shooting film. So this "crop" ONLY applies when we talk stills.

The 5d sensor is only comparable to Vista Vision which is 65mm film. I luv my 7d sensor....makes me feel i have a little film camera :D

play around with this link. plug in the different camera sensors and compare it to film

http://www.abelcine.com/fov/

edit: the 7d sensor is actually slightly bigger than RED one.
 
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FF is quite a bit larger then "normal" 35mm style sensors... which explains why the Mark II is by most accounts about 2 full stops faster then the rest of the line-up.

One factor not mentioned - many producers will not hire you if you say "I run a T2" setup, and in fact my not even know what it is. But virtually all producers know the MarkII and know it's been used by big name users/shows. For many producers, the MarkII is the bottom of what's acceptable - with RED and high end Sony/Panny cams still being king.

But the Mark II still, in their minds, in the same league.
 
jdv said:
FF is quite a bit larger then "normal" 35mm style sensors... which explains why the Mark II is by most accounts about 2 full stops faster then the rest of the line-up.

One factor not mentioned - many producers will not hire you if you say "I run a T2" setup, and in fact my not even know what it is. But virtually all producers know the MarkII and know it's been used by big name users/shows. For many producers, the MarkII is the bottom of what's acceptable - with RED and high end Sony/Panny cams still being king.

But the Mark II still, in their minds, in the same league.
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I would assume a producer would hire you based on your work and if it was based on a t2i then you will be fine. With that said I would tell the op to invest into another area instead of the 5d. The t2i is an excellent camera and an even better price, save that money for a rainy day!
 
Movie/commercial producers I've dealt with also want to know what gear you run. You might be God with a Mark II or EX-3 or a HVX200, making some amazing images, but if they've already rented a RED package and you've never used RED, you're out.

These same people will know what a Mark II is - no need for any explanation. It has a certain street cred that the T2 doesn't have. Not saying it doesn't deserve it though....
 
jdv said:
Movie/commercial producers I've dealt with also want to know what gear you run. You might be God with a Mark II or EX-3 or a HVX200, making some amazing images, but if they've already rented a RED package and you've never used RED, you're out.

These same people will know what a Mark II is - no need for any explanation. It has a certain street cred that the T2 doesn't have. Not saying it doesn't deserve it though....
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I was going to reply to this post, but we just don't agree nor see eye to eye. Perfect example and I will end it like this.


Someone was hired to shoot a Music Video because of him having access to a RED . When it came time to edit and deliver the project that said person could not deliver a quality product. Having only really used DSLRS before and my work getting out there I was somehow contacted to see if I could edit the project ( which I did ) and then turned around and did future work with the client on a DSLR. Now this is a real world example which happened to me, so that's the reason I speak the way I do. I'm also more than sure that in the right hands RED or most cameras would look better than an HDSLR, but I just noted this story to give you some perspective on how things work sometimes.

If Phillip Bloom showed up on a set with a t2i and I showed up with a more expensive camera, you can make a pretty good bet that Phillip is going to get the job.......
 
I bought a 7D and it's great. It mounts both EF and EFS lenses. It's like having a little film camera around. It offers two slomo modes, 30P and 60P, I shoot 24P. I can't say enough good things about it. I make films, short films for now, and the results we've gotten out of this camera are outstanding.

True, I was a little sore when the 550D and the 60D came out but I never suffered buyers remorse, the 7D has proven itself in combat. Theyr'e all a little bit different, at least from what I read. I dont' think I'd make the move over to a 5D next. I'd rather rent a Red or an Alexa, but I think I might miss the portability of this camera. RED seems like a more logical move. I feel like I'm shooting 16mm sometimes with the 7D. Maybe not good enough for theatrical, at least in my hands.
 
@Greeches

Glad you got what you needed!


WhiteMonkey said:
I feel like I'm shooting 16mm sometimes with the 7D. Maybe not good enough for theatrical, at least in my hands.
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The size of the 7D's sensor may be close to the size of 35mm movie film, but just keep in mind that the 7D doesn't have anywhere near the sensitometry of film, even 16mm. Moving to a 5DII would not be an improvement in that regard either since Canon DSLRs use a 4:2:0 H.264 compression. The change in sensor size only provides a difference of perspective.

Your renting a Red or Alexa - now that would be a step closer to film. :)
 
other than sensor size which equates to better low light and shallower DOF performance, the 5D is basically the same as the lowly T2i; SD out during record, same options for audio/video formats, no manual audio controls, etc. if you need manual audio, go with the 60D; if you need HD out during record (which IMO is FAR more useful; you can ALWAYS add an external audio recorder, but you can NEVER see HD during record with the 5D MkII, 60D, or T2i) go 7D.

Given the choice of upgrading to a 5D, 60D, or 7D from our 3 T2i's, i would easily pick the 7D, hands down.
 
Zissou,

I think the latest firmware for 5D allows manual audio. I could be wrong. ;-)

But having that HD out for proper monitoring? That I very much agree on.

Of course a lot of shooters in these forums with this camera are at different levels in their game, so they might make do with the focus zoom assist, others with an lcd finder, so the t21,5d,60d is just fine.

For me, whose gone past forty, and eyesight with a grade of 800 with astigmatism, I found a lot of my shots a pinch off focus at wide apertures just relying on a finder, or a cheap SD monitor.

I recently invested in a hires hdmi monitor and with the output from 7D at constant hidef even during record spelled the difference. My recent shoots got nailed on focus 97 percent of the time. The remaining 3 percent are those I have to shoot underwater with no monitor attached.

I am however, crossing my fingers for "the 5D upgrade".
 
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