Amateur Photographer Magazine

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I have had a 5D for a year and I have been MASSIVELY disappointed. I have used Canon film SLRS for the last 10 years and at least 90% of my shots were sharp and quality. With my 5D I would say 90% are out of focus, soft or blurred. I thoroughly hate it - e.g.: it's a bright day and I take a pic of two smiling friends. The LCD is so pants it looks okay. But when I get home it is so blurred to be unusable (though the rubbish LCD makes everything look soft, and as I say, most shots are). This is so common with this camera. I am tempted to send the camera to be looked at by Canon because there is something very wrong with it. Medium format quality my backside.

One of the problems I have found is that the mirror slap is massive and is probably exacerbating the blurring problem. The weight of the camera with a 24-105mm lens doesn't help too. But I have taken shots on a tripod and the focus is wrong or the corners are soft or the shot is simply blurred.

So I am looking for a lighter, smaller DSLR camera. The Canon 40D is only marginally lighter than the 5D which is not helpful and the 450 may be too much of a downgrade, though at this stage I'll take anything that gives me something resembling sharpness. The Nikon D300 is also a bit on the heavy side.

I have a number of Canon lenses, but I am willing to trade them in for a different system if need be.

The Olympus 510 appeals with one caveat - the small viewfinder. Having a large viewfinder really helps as I wear glasses and I like to manually focus at times.

Nikon's D60 is another option, I fear the D300 may be on the heavy side, though I did find the shutter to be quicker and lighter than the 5Ds.

Any thoughts appreciated. Cheers.

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I do not know what is your level of photography and without wanting to patronise or anything of the kind it may be down to you using a faulty camera for a year and not knowing the cause of the problem (i.e. you may need the camera AF re-calibrated) or your technique.

The reason why I say this is that coming from a 5D and even thinking of going to either an Olympus E510 or a Nikon D60 is a massive, massive step down, too much for an enthusiast much much more for a pro or someone considering going pro.

Also, it is common not only with the 5D but with many other cameras, that the pictures look sharp on the 2.0 - 2.5 in LCD and then they are not. There is only so much a small screen can show you. If you look at the pictures on a 17in screen then you will definately notice obliterated or blurred out detail.

Yeah the 5D may have a louder heavier mirror, but so is the size of the shutter and sensor it covers.It will always be louder than your regular DSLR, but I don't think is that bad or even that audible (I have heard 5Ds shooting right next to me and I would say they are quite well dampened).

Don't get me wrong I am not a Canon fan, but forgive me for saying this, I don't think the fault is directly with your system (ok, yes you may have got a dud that may need calibrating), but being one year with a camera which you say it's giving you blurry photos all the time, it makes me wonder at what level your photography is.

Sometimes, there is such a thing as too much a camera for you.

PS: I just noticed on your post that you wear glasses, you may have to adjust the dioptre which is something that I for example forget as in some cameras it can get accidentaly de-adjusted when you pack them in the bag.

I hope you sort it out.

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Regards,


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