Canon 1D Mark III BEST DEALS
The Canon 1D Mark III became available in 2007. The Canon 1D Mark III was originally sold in a body-only configuration at a suggested retail price of $4,999. That price has dropped considerably now that the successor to this camera, the EOS-1D Mark IV has become available. Use my affiliate links below to compare prices and availability at the most prominent Internet camera retailers.
When it came out in 2007, Canon's flagship 1D Mark III was the most advanced EOS Digital SLR ever produced. It has a 10.1 megapixel CMOS sensor (APS-H size) and was the first in the 1D series to have Canon's EOS Integrated Cleaning System and a 3.0-inch LCD monitor with Canon's Live View technology. The 1D Mark III features a redesigned 100% viewfinder, a 45-point AF system, and can shoot up to 10 fps continuously with a maximum burst of 110 shots. Dual "DIGIC III" Image Processors work in tandem to speed up every process while refining image quality. Compared to its predecessors, the new, lighter body has improved weather sealing and shutter durability.
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1D Mark III
Body Only
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Canon EOS 1D Mark III Features
New from Canon, the EOS 1D Mark III 10.1-megapixel digital SLR camera.
EOS 1D Mark III Best Benefits
- More Megapixels
- EOS Integrated Sensor Cleaning System
- Better Controls
- Bigger LCD Screen
- Better Batteries and Lighter
- Faster Autofocus
- Fast Shooting at 10 fps
- Live View Mode
- Better sensitivity for low light situations
EOS 1D Mark III Compared to the 1D Mark II
The EOS 1D Mark III is a major upgrade from its predecessor, the 1D Mark II. I owned both, but recently sold the 1D Mark II, which I used mostly for wildlife and bird photography. The EOS 1D Mark III is even better for wildlife because it's easier to use and it's faster. But the extra megapixels and the faster buffer make it more versatile than the 1D Mark II, so I also use it for landscape photography and High Dynamic Range (HDR) and HDR panoramas.
Here are the biggest improvements from my perspective.
New Controls
The control buttons on the back of the 1D Mark II were very unintuitive, especially the "Select" and "Display" buttons. I constantly hit the wrong button and had to start over. The EOS 1D Mark III is a big improvement there, although I still have some trouble rememembering how to change the white balance, or change from the CF memory card to the SD memory card, but that's probably because I don't do that very often. Another huge improvement is the menu system, and how much easier it is to get through the menus using the thumb dial or the dial up by the shutter button. Once you get the hang of it, it makes a lot more sense than the 1D Mark II. The new joystick is really helpful too. I use it mostly for picking autofocus points, quickly going back to the center focus or all focus points, and for zooming into certain sections on the preview image. These activities are much faster and easier than it is using the thumbwheel on the 1D Mark II.
Bigger LCD Screen
The EOS 1D Mark III has a much bigger LCD screen, so it's easier to see the menus, as well as the preview images. On the old 1D Mark II, it is hard for me to see the "blinkies" (areas that were blinking to indicate overexposure) on the tiny screen. Now those are much easier to see, and being able to see the preview image and the histogram next to it is a nice feature. Another feature tied into the LCD screen that I really appreciate, since my closeup vision is not as good as it used to be, is that you can press on the "Info" button to see a magnified version of the camera's settings. No more squinting or searching form my reading glasses to view the tiny LCD on top of the camera.
Better Batteries
The new Lithium-Ion batteries are much lighter than the Ni-MH batteries on the 1D Mark II, and they seem to last longer. The Ni-MH's had to be cycled properly, otherwise they'd get a memory effect, and slowly would lose the capability to fully charge. One of my batteris (aftermarket brand) totally lost its ability to retain a charge. The battery latching mechanism on the 1D Mark II is also a little hokey, and aftermarket batteries were known to not seal properly, and/or in my case, lose their ability to lock into the body. The weight of the new EOS 1D Mark III body without batteries isn't much different than the 1D Mark II, but the light weight and smaller size of the new batteries makes a noticeable difference in the total weight.
Live View LCD
Canon makes this out to be a big deal, but I never use this feature. For one thing, it's still not easy to view the screen in bright sunlight, although it's better than the older cameras and you can adjust the brightness some. And I find that it's nearly impossible to judge whether an image is in focus. That's one of the gripes I have with the HD Video feature on the newer cameras (EOS 7D, 1D Mark IV, 5D Mark II, and the Rebel T2i) - it's really difficult to check focus while you're shooting video because you have to do it via the Live View screen. If you're using a long lens with short depth of field, focus is critical and Live View doesn't give you a way to feel confident that the focus is correct, unless you want to trust the autofocus system (not a good idea with really long lenses where you only have an inch or so depth of field).
Sensor Cleaner
The thing that's probably the hugest improvement on this camera, that's well worth the price of the upgrade, is the EOS Integrated Cleaning System! No kidding, this makes a gigantic difference in how much I have to work in PhotoShop to take out dust spots in my images. With the old 1D Mark II, I always had to carry around a bulb blower to blow dust out of the mirror chamber and off the sensor every time I changed a lens. But it never seemed to get all the dust out, it just seemed to move it around. So then I'd have to use sensor swabs and cleaning solutions to try to do the job right, without leaving smears on the sensor. Most photos required dozens of specks to be removed in PhotoShop. Now, on the EOS 1D Mark III , I just flip the Power switch off, then on, and it vibrates the specks and spots away! I no longer have to mess with sensor swabs and chemicals, because it never seems to get dirty like the older model did. When there's dirt that's too tough for the cleaning system to handle, I now use a new lens pen (after knocking off their cleaning powder), which is a lot easier than the sensor swab route and is pretty much the accepted way to clean grunge sensors nowadays (as long as it's done carefully).
Auto Focus
When the camera first came out, there was a big debate going on about the quality of the autofocus. In certain situations it was argued, the autofocus wasn't tracking moving objects as well as it should. The critics and Canon went back on forth on it for a few months, until finally Canon admitted there were some problems and came up with a (free) fix for the problem for all those affected. I bought one of the first EOS 1D Mark III's that in theory has this problem, but I never sent mine in for the mirror replacement because I felt that it focused any differently than my old 1D Mark II. They say the problem was more prominent on some bodies than others, so maybe I just got a good body.
Dual Digic Processors and new CMOS Sensor
The dual Digic III processors are touted as a big deal, but I'm not sure I saw much difference in the quality of my images, other than at higher ISO's. There's definitely less noise at ISO 800 on the EOS 1D Mark III than there is with the 1D Mark II. When you're shooting wildlife with a 600mm lens, and it's an overcast day, shooting at ISO 800 or 1600 can save the day.
Canon EOS 1D Mark III Accessories
You'll also want to purchase memory cards.
8GB Compact Flash cards
Another good idea is to have at least one extra battery - this camera uses the
Canon LP-E4 Battery Pack
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