Canon EOS-1D Mark IV Review

Following reported autofocus tracking problems that plagued the Mark III, it’s no wonder – Canon needs to win back the confidence of photographers who spent time sending their Mark III’s in for a fix.

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV features a version of the ID series’ APS-H sized sensor, offering the same 1.3x crop factor that will appeal to wildlife and sports photographers. The pixel count gets an increase to 16.1 megapixels, a 60% rise on the previous body. Built for speed, it can capture ten frames per second (fps), with a burst rate of 121 large JPEGS or28 RAWfiles.

Range-topping features continue with this season’s D-SLR must-have: extreme low-light performance, or knee-knockingly high ISO. EOS-1D Mark IV offers a standard ISO range of 100 to 12800. This can be expanded further to IS050 and 102400.

The potential offered for shooting hand-held in near-darkness, or freezing movement with slower lenses, is impressive. But there’s little point in giving access to such sensitive ISOs if the resulting pictures have grain the size of golf balls – or detail-smearing noise reduction. Here, we’re promised intelligent noise-reduction techniques to keep chroma and luminance noise to a minimum without sacrificing overall picture quality.

In line with the 5D Mark II, the EOS-1D Mark IV features full HD video capture. The EOS Movie function enables l,080p footage to be shot at 30, 25 and 24fps, and 720p capture at 60 and 50fps. Unlike the 5D Mark II, the 1D Mark IV offers manual exposure control, enabling you to be creative with aperture and depth of field.

The 45-point autofocus system is new, while the dedicated AF microprocessor and Al Servo II mode for tracking moving subjects should instil confidence. Reliability is said to be improved in low-contrast and extremely bright conditions, and 39 of the AF points are the more precise cross-type sensors.

The shell is relatively unchanged from previous bodies, although the buttons have been made more responsive to gloved fingers and the three-inch LCD gets both a reinforced protective cover and improved glare re
fitted around the buttons and seams for weather and dust proofing, and it comes with the EOS integrated cleaning system.

Tagged with: Canon • Digital Camera • EOS-1D • Mark IV • review

Filed under: Canon

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