Why I Love My 5D Mark IV: The Beyond Incredible Imaging Sensor. And So Much More...

What’s Up?

Good news. I am heading to South America with bells on this afternoon, Wednesday OCT 12, 2016.

Gear Questions and Advice

Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of the folks whom I see in the field, and on BPN, are–out of ignorance–using the wrong gear, especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads… Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

The Streak: 334!

Today’s blog post marks a totally insane, irrational, illogical, preposterous, absurd, completely ridiculous, unfathomable, silly, incomprehensible, what’s wrong with this guy?, makes-no-sense, 334 days in a row with a new educational blog post. There should be no end in sight until my big South America trip next fall. Or not… As always-–and folks have been doing a really great job recently–-please remember to use our B&H links for your major gear purchases. For best results use one of our many product-specific links; after clicking on one of those you can continue shopping with all subsequent purchases invisibly tracked to BAA. Your doing so is always greatly appreciated. Please remember: web orders only. And please remember also that if you are shopping for items that we carry in the new BAA Online Store (as noted in red at the close of this post below) we would appreciate your business.

This image was created on my pre-IPT scouting trip to Fort DeSoto County Park on the late afternoon of Friday, September 23, 2016 with the Induro GIT 304L/Mongoose M3.6-mounted Canon EF 600mm f/4L IS II USM lens, the Canon Extender EF 2X III, and the new Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. ISO 800. Evaluative metering + 2/3 stop: 1/1250 sec. at f/10 (mighta coulda been +1 stop). Daylight WB. I selected a single AF point three to the left of the center AF point (Manual selection)/AI Servo/Shutter Button AF as originally framed was active at the moment of exposure. The selected AF point fell just about on the middle of the bird’s bill; see the DPP 4 screen capture below. LensAlign/FocusTune micro-adjustment: -1 Short-billed Dowitcher in basic plumage preening

Why I Love My 5D Mark IV

• 1: The newly developed 30.4MP full-frame CMOS sensor paired with a DIGIC 6+ image processor that balances fine detail and resolution with low-light performance is, in my words, beyond incredible. It produces the cleanest image files I have ever seen. Check out the virtually noise-free sky blue, smooth as a baby’s tush background in the 100% crop below. And with the vast improvements in the imaging sensor, the fine detail in the 5D IV’s 30mp files is comparable to the 50mp files from the 5DS R.
• 2- Because I routinely use the 2X III TC with a variety of f/4 super-telephoto lenses, the fact that the 5D IV offers all AF points and all AF Area Selection Modes at f/8 is a huge plus for me over the 5DS R. And the same goes for the 100-400II/1.4X III combo.
• 3- Crop-ability. Because of its large, high quality image files, sharp 5D Mark IV images can stand up well to relatively large crops (as seen with today’s featured image).
• 4- 7 frames per second.
• 5- An improved AF system that does not require much of a learning curve for those familiar with previous Canon DSLRs. Best of all, AF with the 2X III TC is fast and sure and accurate.
• 6- As compared to the EOS-1D X Mark II, Canon’s blazingly fast flagship body, the 5D IV offers lighter weight and lower cost. Not to mention far superior image quality.
• 7- The high ISO performance of the 5D IV at least rivals that of the vaunted high ISO king, the EOS-1D X Mark II. Control of fixed pattern noise with the 5D Mark IV is outstanding.
• With the pixels on the 5D IV packed less densely than the pixels on the 5DS R, unsharpness due to gear shake and subject movement are no longer exacerbated as they were with the 5DS R. In fact, the sharp images with my 5D Mark IV are sharper than anything I have ever done before; they seem to leap off the display of my Macbook Pro with Retina Display.

The Actual Weights

With a Delkin 64gb e-film Pro Compact Flash card in each body, these are the weights:

5D Mark IV alone with one battery: 2 pounds

5D Mark IV with the battery grip and two batteries: 3 pounds, 1/2 ounce.

1DX Mark II: 3 pounds, 6.5 ounces.

The crazy thing is that even though the 5D IV with the grip and the extra battery weighs only six ounces less than the 1DX II, the 1DX II seems at least a pound heavier because of its much larger size and bulk. The 5D IV is much smaller physically yet fits beautifully in my hand with or without the grip.

Summing Up/Case Closed…

In mid-September, I sold both of my 5DS R bodies and purchased two 5D Mark IV bodies. I envision using the 1D X Mark II for bird photography only in pure flight situations where its faster frame rate is somewhat of an advantage. And as an expensive back-up body.

If…

If what you read here on the blog today or in previous blog posts inspires you to purchase a Canon EOS 5D Mark IV, please consider using my B&H affiliate link for your purchase. Doing so will not cost you a penny and is a great way to thank me for my efforts here on the blog and the time spent answering your gear and photography related e-mails.

The DPP 4 Screen Capture

The DPP 4 Screen Capture

With the cursor on the whitest part of the belly when I made the screen capture, note the very nice RGB values: 235, 235, 227, despite that fact that the image looks a bit under-exposed on the histogram. Note the illuminated red square showing both the selected AF point and the fact that is was active at the moment of exposure. As noted above, having all AF points (and all AF Area Selection modes) available at f/8 is a huge plus especially for me because I use the 2X TC so often. Those with good eyes can see that I increased the exposure 1/6 stop (+.17) via the Brightness slider and that I moved the color Fine Tune three notches to the left toward blue. I have been utilizing the color Fine Tune control more and more lately.

A 100% crop of the master TIFF file

A 100% Crop of the Master TIFF File

Whaddya think? The fine feather detail looks excellent to me but it is the smoothness of the background–without any noise reduction other than the noise reduction during the DPP 4 RAW conversion, that blows me away. Check out the tiny feathers on the top of the head. And all that with the 2X III TC…

The 5D Mark IV and Bears…

With so many bears having dark fur, the 5D IV would seem to be the best-ever bear boat camera body… I will, however, have to wait a while to experience that. Scroll down if you would like to join me in Alaska.

Images and card copyright Arthur Morris/BEARS AS ART 🙂

2017 Bear Boat Coastal Brown Bear Cubs IPTs: July 18-24, 2017 from Kodiak, AK: 5 FULL & 2 Half DAYS: $6699. Happy campers only! Maximum 8/Openings 3.

Join me in spectacular Katmai National Park, AK for six days of photographing Coastal Brown Bears. Mid-July is prime time for making images of small, football-sized cubs. The cubs, and these dates, are so popular that I had to reserve them three years in advance to secure them. There are lots of bears each year in June, but the mothers only rarely risk bringing their tiny cubs out in the open in fear of predation by rival bears. In addition to making portraits of both adults and cubs, we hope to photograph frolicking and squabbling youngsters and tender nursing scenes. At this time of year, the bears are either grazing in luxuriant grass or clamming. There will also be some two- and three-year old cubs to add to the fun. And we will get to photograph it all.

We will live on our tour operator’s luxurious new boat. At 78 feet long its 24 foot beam makes it quite spacious as well. And the food is great. We will likely spend most of our time at famed Geographic Harbor as that is where the bears are generally concentrated in summer. On the odd chance that we do need to relocate to another location we can do so quickly and easily without having to venture into any potentially rough seas. We land via a 25 foot skiff that has lots of room for as much gear as we can carry.

Aside from the bears we should get to photograph Horned and Tufted Puffin and should get nice stuff on Mew Gull, Glaucous-winged Gull, Black-legged Kittiwake, Harbor Seal, and Steller’s Sea Lion as well. A variety of tundra-nesting shorebirds including Western Sandpiper and both yellowlegs are also possible. Halibut fishing (license required/not included) is optional.

It is mandatory that you be in Kodiak no later than the late afternoon of July 17 to avoid missing the float planes to the boat on the morning of July 18. Again, with air travel in Alaska (or anywhere else for that matter) subject to possible delays, being on Kodiak on July 16 is a much better plan.

Barring any delays, we will get to photograph bears on our first afternoon and then again every day for the next five days after that, all weather permitting of course. On our last morning on the boat, July 24, those who would like to enjoy one last photo session will have the opportunity to do so. The group will return to Kodiak via float plane from late morning through midday. Most folks will then fly to Anchorage and to continue on red-eye flights to their home cities.

What’s included? 7 DAYS/6 NIGHTS on the boat as above. All meals on the boat. National Park and guide fees. In-the-field photo tips, instruction, and guidance. An insight into the mind of two top professionals; we will constantly let you know what we are thinking, what we are doing, and why we are doing it. Small group image review, image sharing, and informal Photoshop instruction on the boat.

What’s not included: Your round trip airfare to and from Kodiak, AK (almost surely through Anchorage). Your lodging and meals on Kodiak. The cost of the round-trip float plane to the boat and then back to Kodiak as above. The cost of a round trip last year was $550. The suggested crew tip of $200.

Have you ever walked with the bears?

Is this an expensive trip? Yes, of course. But with 5 full and two half days, a wealth of great subjects, and the fact that you will be walking with the bears just yards away (or less….), it will be one of the great natural history experiences of your life. Most folks who take part in a Bear Boat IPT wind up coming back for more.

A $2,000 per person non-refundable deposit by check only made out to “BIRDS AS ART” is required to hold your spot. Please click here to read our cancellation policies. Then please print, read, and sign the necessary paperwork here and send it to us by mail to PO Box 7245, Indian Lake Estates, FL 33855.

Your deposit is due when you sign up. That leaves a balance of $4699. The next payment of $2699 will be due on September 15, 2016. The final payment of $2000 is due on February 15, 2017. We hope that you can join me for what will be a wondrously exciting trip.

Please Remember to use my Affiliate Links and to Visit the New BAA Online Store 🙂

To show your appreciation for my continuing efforts here, we ask, as always, that you get in the habit of using my B&H affiliate links on the right side of the blog for all of your photo and electronics purchases. Please check the availability of all photographic accessories in the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store, especially the Mongoose M3.6 tripod head, Wimberley lens plates, Delkin flash cards and accessories, and LensCoat stuff.

As always, we sell only what I have used, have tested, and can depend on. We will not sell you junk. We know what you need to make creating great images easy and fun. And we are always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail.

I would of course appreciate your using our B&H affiliate links for all of your major gear, video, and electronic purchases. For the photographic stuff mentioned in the paragraph above we, and for everything else in the new store, we, meaning BAA, would of course greatly appreciate your business. Here is a huge thank you to the many who have been using our links on a regular basis and those who will be visiting the New BIRDS AS ART Online Store as well.

Facebook

Be sure to like and follow BAA on Facebook by clicking on the logo link upper right. Tanks a stack!

Typos

In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right 🙂