Last update (Apr 06, 2009): Stunning bird photos by tylerken with the 500/4L.
This page is a collection of photo samples taken with the Canon EOS 1D Mark III digital SLR camera, plus related image galleries, user pictures and other examples that I’ve come across in forums, online communities, blogs and related websites.
This should help in determining if the image quality of the 1D Mark 3 meets your expectations.
Bear in mind that the majority of these photos are re-sized, and may have gone through post-processing, retouching or other edits. I just thought that it would be interesting to see, at a glance, what Canon 1D3 owners and users are shooting with their camera.
Full-sized images, where available, will assist with judging the image quality.
Full attribution is given by linking to the source and where available, the author’s homepage or photo gallery.
Stunning bird photos by tylerken with the 500/4L
Tylerken used the Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM Super Telephoto for this series of bird photos.
Reach was enhanced using a 1.4X TC, possibly the Canon EF 1.4X II Extender.
The bokeh and sharpness of this lens is mind-blowing, here are a few of my favorites from tylerken’s post:
- Reddish Egret — image 1 (superb bokeh here), image 2
- Egret in flight — tylerken’s technique ensured that the camera’s AF (autofocus) was not distracted by the busy background.
- A pair of American Avocets — stunning blurred background bokeh strikes again.
- The great take off.
1D3’s AI Servo Mode Any Good?
Brianz posted up this excellent series (best of its kind that I’ve seen so far) of running dogs shot at the Piedmont Park (Atlanta).
Lens used was the Canon EF 200mm f/2.8L II USM. He finds that the quality of images he gets with the 1D Mark III in AI Servo mode to be equal to what he obtained from the Canon EOS 30D in Single Shot mode.
The screen shot below is taken from page 83 of the Canon EOS 1D Mark III owner’s manual, and describes the AI Servo AF function:
Brian shared his AF setup for the shots — the relevant C.Fn settings were activated for focus point expansion and limiting the number of manually selectable focus points. Read the EOS-1 Class Digital SLR handling document for more information on AF options.
Airshow at Jones Beach
BlueReptile captured these photos of Thunderbirds with his new Mark III camera. 100% crops from the images are here.
The buffer limit of the camera was never reached during the shoot, due to the 10 fps (frames per second), 110 JPEG buffer (30 for RAW), compared with the older 1D Mark II N which does 8.5 fps for a burst depth of 40 JPG / 20 RAW.
The 1D3 was coupled with a Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L IS USM and 1.4X teleconverter (current version is the Canon Extender EF II (1.4x) Lens Converter).
Trivia: the whole setup weight about 7 kg (camera: 1335 g, 400 2.8 lens: 5370g, 1.4 TC (teleconverter): 220g).
Flower Photos
Dicecco Digital Design has a gallery of 1D3 flower photos on Flickr.com.
Direct links to the high ISO photos: 1st ISO 3200 picture | 2nd ISO 3200 photo | Flower shot at ISO 800.
Be sure to click on All Sizes to view the images at the largest resolution. The high ISO shots are pretty indicative of the astounding high ISO performance of the 1D3 camera.
Lens used was the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro.
There’s also a demonstration of the 1D3’s Highlight Tone Priority mode which assists in preserving highlights in scenes of high contrast — compare Off (read also the photographer’s comments) vs On.
More information on this mode can be found at Imaging Resource. In particular, note that the use of this mode automatically sets up ISO 200 as the minimum value the camera can go down to — see below the screen shot of pg 164 of the 1D Mark III user guide which describes the setting of this mode in Custom Function II — 3:
Two Portraits
Prepare to have enough bandwidth to view two full-sized portraits (approximately 8 MB each) photographed by Justin Lee.
Links to: First portrait | Second portrait.
Both photos were shot at ISO 1000 with the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM lens stopped down to f/2 and the 1D Mark III in Portrait mode. The RAW files were converted to JPEG using the supplied Digital Photo Professional software.
He has also hosted a series of indoor test shots snapped at ISO 200 to ISO 6400 under fluorescent lighting — great for evaluating the low image noise levels of the MK3.
Skateboard Action
David Probst did a fantastic job shooting this skateboarding action sequence.
Lenses used were the Canon EF 15mm f/2.8 fisheye and the now-discontinued Canon EF 200mm f/1.8L USM (costs about $4,000 used and perhaps cheaper at eBay). I especially liked the creative use of the wide perspective offered by the 15mm focal length.
David shares some tips on how he shot the photos and comments on the sharpness of the EF 15mm lens.
Feels good to upgrade from the EOS 10D
Unlike a number of enthusiasts, Brahm Goodis saw it fit to not be caught up in annual upgrade cycles, while churning out fantastic pictures in the process.
He’s finally upgraded to a 1D MK3, and celebrates by posting two landscape photos shot with a newly-acquired EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Lens.
He’s also noticed how much wider the field of view is with the Sigma 10-20mm lens (Canon mount) on the 1D3’s 1.3x crop compared to the 10D’s 1.6x crop sensor.
Miscellaneous photos
- SF Bay Area Birds with the EF 100-400mm lens.