Sweet mother of god, it's a monster:luvlove: I needed a camera what could focus faster than my 10D, had a voice recorder built in and have a decent m/drive.

The 1D has all of those and I only paid £650 for a camera with 42k clicks and a 6 months shop warranty. I'm a happy camper. My 10D and grip will sell for about £450 on ebay so it's a £200 upgrade, well worth it.

The menu systems are totally different but focus speed (main reason) is insane. It's so much quicker than I expected. My 10D was always fine until I tried to take footie and rugby pictures. That's where it struggled.

Anyway, off the bed now, got a long day at work to play tomorrow :D

Darren

Congrats :) Lightning fast AF and you can knock nails in with it too :D

Do persevere with the menus and control system; I found it all rather fiddly and disorientating at first, because it's so different from my previous camera (D30). The nice thing about it, which I hadn't fully appreciated until I borrowed a 350D, is that you can change all the important settings without going into the menus at all - everything's instantly visible in the top LCD.

The downside? Now there are no excuses. But, my focused-and-sharp rate for motorsports went from about 30% with the D30 to 90%+ with the 1D, and it's hard to argue with that.

Trouble is, it's a shame to put anything other than an 'L' on the front - the 24-70 f/2.8L is beautifully balanced on this camera... ;)

Thanks Andy,

The menu's did confuse me at first because the shop 'forgot' to send the instruction manual so I had to learn the navigation by guess work. Manuals, charger etc. arrive tomorrow. Monkeys

95% of the time, the 1D will have my 300mm L on it's front.

Darren

If you don't mind me asking, where on earth do you get 1d's for £650 :eek:

London Camera Exchange www.Lcegroup.co.uk. I noticed it on Friday when I got back from holiday, called them Saturday morning, asked a few questions and reserved it and then paid for it on Sunday with my Credit Card. This was the camera I bought (http://www.lcegroup.co.uk/item_details.php?second_hand_equipment_id=13421).

On the Lcegroup homepage it shows another 5 star 1D for £749.99. They go very quick at this price but some people (including camera stores) honestly do not know their true value. I could sell the 1D I just bought for about £8-900 on eBay as they go for silly money.

Darren

Actually I've been a bit disappointed with 1D resale values on fleabay over the last week or so - they are only going for the £600's as a rule. One or two from the Canon outlet went for £1500ish a couple of weeks back, though :eek:

Frankly I'm amazed they're so cheap - the MKIIN is still £2250 and, aside from the resolution difference, there's really not much in it in terms of performance. That's why I'm still debating whether or not to upgrade (though I did bid on a refurb on Monday but lost out :( )

There is one with an hour to go sitting at £475

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Canon-EOS-1D-4MP-Digital-EOS-Professional-SLR-Camera_W0QQitemZ140028929292QQihZ004QQcategoryZ313 88QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

The 1dMkii is only £1500 buy it now :Suspiciou

Lighting, I'm guessing you are talking about this (http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Canon-EOS-1D-MkII-DSLR_W0QQitemZ150034659967QQihZ005QQcategoryZ31388 QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem.)

This is the cheapest I have seen a 1DMKII go for.

Darren

Whilst you are here Andy, How long do your 1D batteries last? I'm not sure if I've got a duff or is about 250 shots about right?

Do you have after market batteries or the canon genuine batteries?

Thanks
Darren

They don't last all that long despite the size and weight - it's one of the things that the MkII improves on.

I bought my 1D s/h too; I have the original battery that came with the camera when it was new, plus two more that I bought brand new at the same time. The original battery in particular does get tired quite easily.

Mine are all Canon original batteries, there weren't any 3rd party clones available when I bought my 1D. I don't think it's anything terribly special inside - in fact it's full of AA NiMH rechargeables - but the Canon battery pack does include rubber weather seals and I'm not sure whether all the 3rd party clones do.

I think the weather seals are the only difference. I might pick up 2 3rd party batteries and then when I've got some money again, I'll buy a canon weather sealed battery.

Darren

How much better would a 1DMK2 be over a 30D and what would the advantages be for me ? I am into motorsports, nude photography, contained wildlife etc.


Thanks for any input, at £1500 i'm tempted, especially after getting L series lenses :)

Compared to the 30D, the main benefit you'd see from a 1DmkII would be much faster and more reliable AF, essential for fast moving or unpredictable targets. The higher frame rate (8.5fps vs 5) might be useful too, especially for shooting things like car crashes where you don't quite know what's going to happen where and when.

That's the spec sheet shuff, but there's more to it than that. The 1D feels nothing like a consumer camera to hold - it's really heavy and feels more solid than any other product I've ever handled. The bigger sensor means a bigger and brighter viewfinder. The controls are quite different, which you may find you hate at first but grow accustomed to over time and then get to like.

I've no idea how they compare for ultimate image quality - there's probably not much in it TBH. Both are excellent.

If anyone else fancies a 1D, mine just became available - boxed, complete and yours for £650. It has a tripod mark on the base and a few other tiny cosmetic blemishes, but it's otherwise in excellent condition. It's been my reliable companion for the last 3 years, most of which it's spent on a shelf in a padded bag.

Best of luck with the sale, if you had posted a week or so ago it would be sold by now :D

Darren

Really sorry mate, I was thinking of you all the time I was writing that :(

How are you getting on with yours?

I bloody love it. The viewfinder is great, the focus speed is insane, the voice recorder is v handy and the colours straight from the camera amazing. All in all, I'd recommend one. I also love the high speed buffer. My better than the 10D.

There are a few downsides I noticed however.

1. My memory cards fill up far far quicker. I've never filled 2GB in 90 minutes of football before, but with the 1D, they were gone so quick. I need to buy some more me thinks
2. Along with my 300 L, my arms are going to be like tree trucks by the end of the season. I knew of was heaver than a 10D so it's not really a complaint, more an observation.
3. I keep wondering what it would be like if I had 2 of them now :D

Anyone who is considering a 1D should just bite the bullet and do it. You'll love it.

Here is a picture from yesterday
http://www.darlodge.nildram.co.uk/uploads/1.jpg

Darren

Cool :cool:

If you need more memory cards, note: there's a promotion running now where you get a free copy of Capture One LE with every Sandisk Extreme III card - but only if you buy a card that comes in the specially marked packaging. The promotional cards were released a few weeks ago and haven't necessarily reached retailers yet.

I need a couple more cards myself, but I'm going to wait a few weeks until I can be sure of getting the promotional packs. C1 gets good reviews from users.

If you'd rather use a different card, it's worth checking out the CF / SD Performance Database (http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=6007). I'm a Sandisk fan myself, but there are other perfectly good cards too, of course. In the 1D, the Ultra II cards are barely any slower than Extreme III, but they are a bit cheaper. The best deals I've found are on www.amazon.co.uk (http://www.amazon.co.uk)

Also, beware of counterfeit Sandisk cards (http://reviews.ebay.co.uk/FAKE-SanDisk-Ultra-Secure-Digital-Cards-Exposed_W0QQugidZ10000000001254881?ssPageName=BUYG D:CAT:-1:SEARCH:1) on Ebay.

Thanks Andy.

I'll keep my eyes open.

Darren

Welcome to the club :)

As soon as you use one, there's no going back....

2. Along with my 300 L, my arms are going to be like tree trucks by the end of the season. I knew of was heaver than a 10D so it's not really a complaint, more an observation.


Wimp :D - I use a 1D mkIIn with a 200 f1.8 and a 1.4x for most of my soccer, hand held all the way - arms like pencils :D :D :D

Gareth ;) (glad you like the camera, great isn't it :thumb: ) :)

200 f1.8

Does the 200 1.8 match all the hype? I'd love a go on one. There are strong rumors that a 200 1.8 IS might come out to rival the Nikon 200mm 2.0. I don't usually buy into the whole rumor thing, but I like the sounds of it, but it will be way out of my price range :rolleyes:

Oh, Gareth, were are your pictures? Can I have a browse?

Darren

The 200 f1.8 is one of the best lenses Canon have made - shame they discontinued it as Nikon released the 200 F2. I've used mine for 10 years.

I'll PM you some of the footie pics later in the week - The boss may not like them on posted on a website,

Cheers

Gareth

Cheers Gareth,

Don't you have a 400 2.8 as well or was that someone else on here.

Darren

I was due to get one a few months ago, but had to replace one of the cameras and get the 24-105 - put the 400 on hold for a month or two.

It's a hard life :rolleyes: :D

Darren

It's a hard life :rolleyes: :D

Darren

Its an expensive life !!!!! :D