Camera Canon Eos 1Ds Mark III SLR

Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III Digital SLR Camera Review

It is always exciting to hear that your most-used piece of photography kit is being replaced with a new and improved model - as was the case for me with the announcement of the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III. The 1Ds III is Canon's ultra-high-end DSLR, delivering top-of-the-line image quality from a top-of-the-line shooting system matched to a top-of-the-line physical structure.

If you read the Canon EOS 1D Mark III Review (Canon's other current-at-this-time 1-Series DSLR), you are going to think that much of the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III review sounds familiar. And for a good reason. These two redesigned-from-the-ground-up cameras are mostly identical with the exception of a few significant differences - including the sensor size/resolution (and associated parts including the viewfinder) and the max frame rate/buffer depth. Here is how they and the other current Canon DSLRs compare in these and other regards

Each of Canon's 1Ds bodies to date have been introduced with a new sensor having the highest resolution available at that time (the prior-model 1Ds Mark II is still the second highest resolution DSLR). And as usual, the new sensor gets a significant amount of the fanfare in this latest 1Ds iteration. No current DSLR compares to the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III in regards to its ultra high 21.1 megapixel full frame resolution.

Going from the 1Ds II's 16.6 MP to the 1Ds III's 21.1 MP sensor is not a huge resolution jump, but it makes a nice difference - more than I expected. I think the ISO 12233 resolution chart tool shows this difference the best.