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Mark III - someone claims to have Firmware 1.1.1 as of today!
Slobodan Juric, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Saint Petersburg | FL | USA | Posted: 12:15 AM on 08.26.07 |
->> Someone just e-mailed me who is a Sportshooter member and also on the dpreview site - made me aware that someone claims they have their hands on firmware 1.1.1 which claims to fix AF issues and Error 99 message. The person also says the public release is September.
Hope this has an ounce of truth - but I doubt it for now at least. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 12:23 AM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> I have had no autofocus issues with my mark lll's.....are you sure you know what you're doing when you set p your camera? |
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Wayne McAtee, Photographer, Assistant
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Hesperia | CA | usa | Posted: 12:29 AM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> Chuck, I have issues with the one have, If you have a trick set up will you share it us that dont know what we are doing. Thanks for the help. |
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Slobodan Juric, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Saint Petersburg | FL | USA | Posted: 1:03 AM on 08.26.07 |
->> I find that some people aren't picky as the rest of us for sharpness. That's probably the problem here with auto focus issues. It's been pretty much proved by Rob Galbraith's research and constant testing that the problems are in ALL CAMERAS most likely.
Dude - the pictures aren't crisp as Mark II N. It's a problem. |
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David Seelig, Photographer
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Hailey | ID | USA | Posted: 1:12 AM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> So far I have one that jumpes in and out of focus and one that does not but i have not shot both in the same situiation that makes one jump. David |
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Alex Menendez, Photographer
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Orlando | FL | USA | Posted: 8:42 AM on 08.26.07 |
->> Chuck,
Wanna trade? I'll even pay for shipping....
Alex |
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Tom Weis, Photographer
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Brooklyn | NY | United States | Posted: 9:32 AM on 08.26.07 |
->> Trust me, Chuck, it's not a matter of custom functions. My first 1DmkIII could not focus correctly. Period. My 5D was a million times better at AI servo. My second 1DmkIII focuses great! Right out of the box - no CF tweaking needed.
Those who think the 1DmkIII focus issue is simply a matter of the "correct" CF setup, or attribute it to user error are lucky enough to have a working sample and/or are in denial about the issue. I didn't want to believe I'd just spent $4500 on a paperweight either. Canon's been making AF systems for what - two decades? How could they f**% this one up? Well they did.
The 1DmkIII seems to be a hit or miss proposition when buying one - some focus correctly and some don't. So I think it's gotta be a manufacturing issue or a quality control issue.
Personally I feel that Canon should recall the cameras from anyone who feels they have a bad 1DmkIII and replace the AF system at no charge.
My 2 cents. |
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David Seelig, Photographer
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Hailey | ID | USA | Posted: 10:30 AM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> If canon had a fix firmware wise they would announce now not wait. too much bad press they do not need. |
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Yamil Sued, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Peoria | AZ | USA | Posted: 12:12 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> David, I have a feeling that they are field testing it, to make sure that they are actually solving the problems, all of them, not just one or two.
And when RG gets the Firmware, he likes it, so all his followers and disciples at DPR will like it too :D
Y |
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Phil Hawkins, Photographer
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Fresno | ca | usa | Posted: 2:11 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> Read all of Galbraith's narrative... He says the problem is in full sunlight. In low light the problem does not exist. If someone says they don't have a problem with AF, they are probably shooting indoors. Still, I agree, you don't pay $4,500 for a camera and not have it work perfectly all the time, especially when 95% of your customers are professionals. Makes me wonder what the 1Ds MKIII is going to do? or the 40D?
Phil |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 2:32 PM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> phil, I must be lucky. both my lll's work great indoors or out. they focus way fast, lightning fast. |
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Jordan Murph, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Honolulu & Los Angeles | HI/CA | USA | Posted: 3:05 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> Why do so many of you take what Robert Galbraith says like it the ultimate truth with no exceptions? Not very journalistic.
I know more than one person that have tack sharp Mark IIIs: daylight and night. I also know some people who have really wacky ones: daylight and night.
It's pretty funny that people think Mr. Liddy doesn't know what he's talking about with his OWN camera. But you know, "some people aren't picky as the rest of us for sharpness."
C'mon |
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Slobodan Juric, Student/Intern, Photographer
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Saint Petersburg | FL | USA | Posted: 3:43 PM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> Jordan - same goes for people making comments about others suggesting they do not know how to operate the camera. If you're going to go the "journalistic" way of argument - include both sides. |
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Sol Neelman, Photographer
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Portland | OR | USA | Posted: 4:04 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> When I'm taking pictures, I always assume some level of user error. So I gave both my Mark III bodies two months. Overall, the cameras were great. Aside from the all-important AF, a huge deal-breaker.
One body went in for a new shutter after 3 weeks; both went in for focusing errors - along with lenses to pair them with. When Canon claimed to have the problem fixed, I wanted to believe them. But I didn't feel the firmware upgrade truely fixed the problem. Galbraith gave me reason to think I wasn't completely nuts. I returned both cameras and bought a Mark IIN instead.
Even if the sketchy AF were to be solved, I was worried the resale value would plummet when the next generation came out. Why would anyone invest close to the $4500 for the original series of Mark III cameras? And I had two.
The timing is awkward with the Mark II bodies being discontinued. I didn't want a 5D, not for sports. And folks seem to be wising up and buying Mark IIN bodies until Canon figues things out. I was very fortunate to land a used Mark IIN on short notice via SportsShooter.
I'm in Munich, having shot one of my best friend's weddings on Saturday. The Mark IIN kicked ass. So much so, I never worried about the AF - not once - something I could never say with the Mark III.
For what its worth,
Sol
PS I still have a spare Mark III battery to unload if someone is interested... |
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Eric S. Swist, Photographer
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The Woodlands | TX | USA | Posted: 5:35 PM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> How did the shutter go out in a Mark III body after 3 weeks? It's rated to 300,000 actuations. |
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Michael Fischer, Photographer
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Spencer | Ia | USA | Posted: 5:48 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> Eric-
Rated and guaranteed aren't the same thing. You'll get some guys who will go 500,000 and others...
My how things change so quickly.
The guys in Melville must be hugging themselves at their good fortune. It just goes to prove that nothing goes up forever.. or, for that matter, down. |
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Yamil Sued, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Peoria | AZ | USA | Posted: 5:50 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> Jordan said:
"Why do so many of you take what Robert Galbraith says like it the ultimate truth with no exceptions? Not very journalistic. "
Hey man, I dared to take RG's commandments in vain at DPR and I was tarred and feathered!! Some DPR Tools Worship RG. It was funny, when the last Frimware Upgrade (1.1.0) came out, everybody loved it, until RG came out with his set of problems, that same day, the same guys that loved it before, started having problems!! Go figure!!
I'm not saying that the problems "DO NOT" exist, I'm saying that everyone should make up their own minds, not wait for RG to make to come down from the mountain with the Tablets!!!
Y |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 6:04 PM on 08.26.07 |
| ->> didn't mean to piss anyone off. it's not like I think I follow directions all the time. maybe I'm the lucky one, my cameras work. I have just find it hilarious on this site how folks jump to conclusions about gear (check out the nikon D3 threads and what people are saying and the camera won't be released for two more months) anyway. I set my camera up with a single focus point (in the middle) and slowed the servo down to the 1/4 setting. and I've been shooting night, day, hot, cold....and mine works all the time. at high speed servo, low speed servo and single punch. |
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John Blankfort, Photographer
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Monterey | CA | USA | Posted: 7:49 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> I thought my two Mark III’s worked great also. Went out, shot some speeding cars… Then a few football practices and all was good. I thought that RG and a bunch of other people were full of crap.
However, after shooting three football jamborees I now think that the AF is marginal. It’s OK, but not great backlit and under lights, but really flawed in the sun. Tends to be more noticeable if you are trigger happy and fire off a burst of about 5 to 10.
I’ve swapped bodies, played with the settings and really not much difference. It might have to do with shooting style as to why some cameras work and other don’t.
I’m debating on if I should send one body in, or wait for a firmware and/or hardware fix. The cameras are a joy to use, just the AF is goofy. |
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Dan Root, Photographer
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Portland | OR | USA | Posted: 9:08 PM on 08.26.07 |
->> I returned three weeks ago from the UK shooting a soccer tournament. I have my own Mark III, and a Mark III that I rented. I shot almost 14,000 frames, in all sorts of light. I use to have a Mark IIn. The Mark III blew the pants off my old camera. I never was too sure about my Mark IIn. It was to Canon several times, but the AF never worked right. I even shot skateboarder Shaun White last week. I was at f/2.8 and 2500 ISO with a 70-200 lens. The camera did great. Sure it missed a few frames, but I was very happy with the results. I don't know what is happening out there. I don't doubt that others are having problems. I think that if you buy one, you talk with your Canon dealer before you buy the camera, agree that you can take it back for a full refund after a certain amount of time, and go out and test the darn thing.
Just an added note. If anyone uses a 1.4 extender on a Mark III, Canon recommends that you use the center point only. I read this in the Canon literature. I also came across a web page that said choosing all 45 points gets better results than picking out a single AF point. I did that while shooting skateboarding indoors, and had great results, but I did not check it against choosing a single point. So take this with a grain of salt.
This is not intended to start a debate, just a reporting of how the camera is working for me.
Let's hope Canon gets it right for all of us. |
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Yamil Sued, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Peoria | AZ | USA | Posted: 12:49 AM on 08.27.07 |
->> Dan,
You make a great point.
Make sure that you test the Body thoroughly, with the possibility of a return and full refund.
I'm very interested on the full resolution on this issue, I'm not going to buy if the issue continues, but at the same time I want to make sure I test it myself!! My CPS loaner has been set up, I'll have it soon for some 2 weeks of T&E!!
Y |
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Jody Gomez, Photographer
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Murrieta | CA | USA | Posted: 2:07 AM on 08.28.07 |
->> I took my Mark III, Mark IIn, 300 2.8 and 70-200 2.8 to Canon on Friday to have the lenses calibrated to the IIn and the III (hopefully) repaired. Since my football season starts this Thursday, I figured I would get everything cleaned and dialed in and see how it goes for me.
I will say this about the Mark III - for nighttime sports, it's the first camera I grab. For daytime, I grab the IIn. So hopefully when I get my gear back on Wednesday, all will be perfect.
:~) |
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Ramiro Reyna, Photographer
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Katy | TX | US | Posted: 8:11 AM on 08.28.07 |
->> Just a heads up Jody,
I sent one of my bodies in 2 weeks ago returned last week, after testing and using it to shoot some football scrimmages, it's still hosed. I have another MKIII that NOW needs work, but I am not spending any $$ on overnight shipping if they can't get it right the first time. It does not matter if its day or night, AF still not as good as my MKII. I shot some Texans/Cowboys last weekend and over 1/2 of my images where OOF, I even raised the ISO to 1600(which is pretty darn good) in order to get 1/800, 3.2 but still shot lots of junk. |
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Jody Gomez, Photographer
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Murrieta | CA | USA | Posted: 2:06 PM on 08.31.07 |
->> Well, I picked up my Mark III from Canon yesterday and went straight to the two football games I had to shoot (back to back). The first game started at 4 and the second at 6, and it was 106 degrees when the first game started. It was extremely bright and contrast-y and around the third quarter of the first game, extremely back lit. The Mark III performed flawlessly! It was unbelievable, and I am so happy I sent it in. I actually look like I know what I'm doing now! :~)
For those of you who haven't had good luck sending in the Mark III's to Canon, try sending them to the Irvine facility. They have one guy who works on nothing but these. He made some adjusts to the focus and this thing is finally everything it claims to be. I'll be posting an update from the games on my member page in a bit.
Jody |
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Wade Barker, Student/Intern, Photographer
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College Station | TX | USA | Posted: 3:13 PM on 08.31.07 |
| ->> If I could only be without my gear for a week in the middle of football/soccer/volleyball season. CPS needs a facility in Texas! |
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Adam Bird, Photographer
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Grand Rapids | Mi | United States | Posted: 7:41 PM on 08.31.07 |
->> I've got my Mark III, and after 13k frames (13,826 as of this moment) I've only had a few images not work out with autofocus, almost all of them were suprisingly, static subjects, and it's the first camera I reach for. I also love my Mark II, but the image quality just lacks the same punch as the Mark III.
One thing that I do notice is how much darker the Mark III is from my Mark II- I can use the same 300 2.8 on one and the other, but the Mark II just seems brighter, by about 1.3 stops or so. A pretty big difference... |
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Alex Menendez, Photographer
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Orlando | FL | USA | Posted: 9:07 PM on 08.31.07 |
->> I am still having AF/tracking problems with the MarkIII on all lenses and focus points, even after the last update.
What pisses me off is that to get it fixed I have to ship it to Canon, boxed up tight with extra insurance in it. How many times do I have to spend $145.00 to overnight it after spending the original $4700.00 for this camera?
If Canon knows that there is a problem why wouldnt they just swap the bad cameras for a new one, its less than 90 days old...?
And for those of you with the good version, I am happy for you, but if you do not own the MarkIII then please don't respond with a "user error" on this post, I can tell you EVERY control on this camera as I have tried them all, I shoot with manual focus an average of 3 times a week with this rig. Football is very hard to shoot manually and I have now relegated my NEW camera to extreme wide shots away from the action.
Oh yeah, this is the same camera that was shipped back for ERROR 99 when I first got it.
I don't know what the new firmware is suppose to do, hopefully it will fix my problems without messing up everyones working version. Only time will tell.
alex |
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Michael Rogers, Photographer
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Kailua | Hi | USA | Posted: 9:36 PM on 08.31.07 |
| ->> I'm wondering with all this "mine works great vs mine doesn't" to maybe manufacturing and assembly isn't up to snuff at the plant!?, and there are good and bad samples out here...mine went in for focus issues, the "Focus Assemby" was adjusted, has had the firmware upgrade to 1.0.0 and does now work better than it did out of the box, but it still has issues and if I have to get the shot, I'll grab the Mark IIn for now. I remember when the 1D Mark II first came out, it was horrible for focus, but, Canon fixed it, and I'm sure Canon will get a handle on this problem too... |
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Wayne McAtee, Photographer, Assistant
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Hesperia | CA | usa | Posted: 9:13 PM on 09.01.07 |
->> Jody What firmware did you come home with?
Wayne |
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Dan Root, Photographer
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Portland | OR | USA | Posted: 12:02 AM on 09.02.07 |
->> Adam,
Just so you know, they made the focusing screen darker on the Mark III so it is easier to manual focus. Hmmmmmmm..... |
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Jody Gomez, Photographer
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Murrieta | CA | USA | Posted: 12:54 AM on 09.02.07 |
->> ->> Jody What firmware did you come home with?
Wayne - 1.1.0, the same as what was in there when I took it in.
:~)
Jody |
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Matti Matikainen, Photographer
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Helsinki | - | Finland | Posted: 5:54 AM on 09.02.07 |
->> One Finnish shooter who is in Osaka and has 1.1.1 beta, told that Mark III is now better keeper and it doesn´t go back and forth so much anymoore. But overall he is not sure if it is true or is it just a feeling. But the possible fix is just for one focus point servo shooting. The major question is that the 45point focus is still what ever and will it be fixed soon or not at all. I personally don´t need 45 point focus but I know many who use it. In Finland Canon doesn´t comment anything about focus "possible" problems in Mark III. But if Canon admit the problem -legally in here you would be the winner and
in that case you could bring your Mark III´s to Canon and say "you have been selling me an bad products and I want my money back- by the law "bascilly" they must do it. So personally I don´t think that Canon will say in public that Mark III has a problem. In our office we have both very good ones, at servo good frames 95-99%- and very very bad ones only 1 or 2 out of 20 is in focus. Yesterday I tested them all and now having very good data about every Mark III, I am going to Canon service to say what can you really do with bad ones. Can you adjust the focus do you change some parts-can you do it,do you have parts or knowledge to do something.Anyway the product has been out about three months
,one forth of an year - in business that is long time. On my personal opinion is that too much time has now been given to Canon to get the focus fixed.
-In first shipment ever in Finland I got one, which is a good one sn.50xxxxxx-so i didn´t belive Rob Galbraith so much at first. Second 52xxxxxx is total grap if we talk about servo focusing. So in every patch there is good and bad ones. But as said every Mark III has been tested as RG tested his and little bit moore -subject stabil no movement.
So now I am an believer of the fact that there is moore than
a sortware problem. And final comment is: I can be happy that I have in this mess a Job with capital j but oh those freelancer whose future is depending on every job and now buying a camera which may not focus right -in the situation where every other possible cameras work -and you miss it all
it can be the end of your career which me not have been even started. |
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Chuck Liddy, Photographer
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Durham | NC | USA | Posted: 6:24 PM on 09.02.07 |
| ->> just updated my page with images from the duke/uconn game shot with the mark lll's. cameras performed flawlessly.....had the fewest out of focus frames ever...I mean ever. and the photos were so sharp I didn't use unsharp mask at all. both cameras with all lenses 16-35mm, 70-200mm, 300 2.8 w/ 1.4 extender....all worked terrific. the files are awesome, best cameras I've ever seen. |
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Wayne McAtee, Photographer, Assistant
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Hesperia | CA | usa | Posted: 6:00 PM on 09.07.07 |
| ->> Jody, Did they set you CF 3-7 AF Microadjustment? |
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