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Upgrade from 60d to full frame
I an amateur thinking about upgrading to a full frame and looking at a used Canon EOS 1D Mark II N. For the low price, am thinking I could learn to use a full frame and then upgrade later to a new version. Is my thinking right on this? I love the 60D and since getting my 70-200 2.8 (Non is) have gotten some great action shots of my kids.
Any input is appreciated.
Any input is appreciated.
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I still have 2 - copies of the Canon 1D MKII (same imager and same image processor as the 1D MKIIN). The Canon 1D MKIIN is a fine body and has a wonderful autofocus system. It would mate extremely well to a Canon EF 70-200mm, f2.8L USM.
It's not a Full-Frame (FF) body, but rather an APS-H/Crop 1.3x imager. It does require FF lenses, so basically use any EF series lens, but not the EF-S lenses, to fit the body. (Again, the EF 70-200mm, f2.8L USM works great on the 1D MKIIN.)
The 1Ds MKII is the FF version of this generation body.
ISO 1250 is about as far as you want to go on a 1D MKIIN, although ISO 1600 will work in a pinch and with some post-processing (mostly for noise reduction). ISO 3200 should be reserved for emergencies and small prints.
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Does full frame matter when shooting mostly sports? That is where I spend most of my time shooting. And it is outdoor lacrosse or football, usually a Saturday so lighting isn't an issue.
For outdoor and daylight sports, a Canon 1D MKIIN is hard to beat for AF speed and AF accuracy, meaning that it is still very appropriate. I prefer the APS-H/Crop 1.3x format for sports.
Compared to a FF body, the 1D MKIIN has somewhat of a built-in teleconverter. Your 70-200mm, f2.8L will still seem fairly close to the view you have with your 60D. A killer lens combination is your 70-200mm coupled with a 300mm, f4L USM. (Rent the 300mm for playoffs, to handle the end zone/goal action.)
You can still get the Sports Illustrated recommended settings here:
http://www.siphoto.com/?canon1DM2N.inc
One "quirk" of the 1D MKIIN is that it doesn't understand UDMA memory cards. It's best to use older CF and SD cards up to 2GB. The Sandisk (old) Ultra II, Extreme and Extreme III cards work well in 1 and 2 GB sizes. (Most of these cards you will only find on the used market.) The latest 1D MKIIN firmware allows using SDHC cards too (although SDHC cards will write slowly, I believe.).
http://web.archive.org/web/20060222021546/http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=6007-8200
http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/support/consumer/eos_slr_camera_systems/eos_digital_slr_cameras/eos_1d_mark_ii_n#DriversAndSoftware
Alternately (instead of old Sandisk), you might try a new Transcend 2 GB 133x CF card (I have not tried these myself):
http://www.amazon.com/Transcend-133x-CompactFlash-Memory-TS8GCF133/dp/B000W05O5O
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I went ahead with the camera and for the money will play around with it for a while and think about upgrading some time later. My daughter (age 14) is very in to photography right now and now we will have two cameras to go shoot with. Thank you so much for your insight!
My point is that after moving to full frame I soon found myself wishing for the big dog - the 300/2.8. I got it, but only because photography is a side business for me and the gear pays me back. If it didn't I would have a 7D and a 70-200/2.8 for field sports. Your 1DIIN purchase was smart - by the time you're ready for more hopefully a 7D Mark II will be out.
An "accurate" reproduction of a scene and a good photograph are often two different things.
any 1D model is a good upgrade if you mainly shoot sports