p.2 #1 · EOS 1DS Mark II vertical shutter button doesn't work.
The 5D mark II was a great camera and I think you'll enjoy it. One thing I do miss from it is the ability to swap out the viewfinder screen. I normally used the very matte screen for manual focusing, forget what it was called now but it was well worth it for shooting with wide apertures even in AF mode. Might be worth a look to see if you can still find those; I sold mine with the body when I upgraded to the 5D mark III and I remember the purchaser being politely confused as he clearly had no idea why anyone would do that!
AmbientMike wrote:
Might be hard to believe, but the 5D II used to be the cool new camera like the R5 II is today. I remember talking to one pro that sold prints for a living, that bought the 1Ds3, probably new, and he regretted not waiting on the 5D2, for the high iso capabilities. They shot part of Saturday night live using video on 5D2 (probably had attachments.)
At some point, I realized none or very few of the no name CF cards I had , hadn't failed, so I just bought name brand. Most of those still work, even today, only a couple have failed (knock on wood lol.) They can even repair themselves to some degree, although it's not 100%
They've been really tough, one got under the foot of the recliner, sat there 2-3+ years, eventually found it, its bent up but still works!!! Another got laundered, couldn't figure out the banging in the dryer, accidentally left one in my pocket!!! You might just buy 2-3 different cards, using different cards throughput the day, unlikely you'd lose more than one in a day, or get a compact laptop putting photos on (without deleting cards,) and maybe external drive, if you're concerned ...Show more →
I have never forgotten losing almost all my 5D mark II Sydney NYE fireworks photos (from a really good spot in a private building with views of the bridge and harbour) from I think 2010 or thereabouts, because my Transcend CF card failed (silently) at some point in the evening. Since then I've only ever bought name brand cards and usually the most premium option, on the thinking that Sandisk etc will have sorted the best performing batches into the more expensive product for the sake of their reputation and user complaints.
Murphy's law of course kicked in and in the subsequent ~15 years I have not had a single corrupted file on a CF and later CF express card. I do get the occasional corrupt JPEG on my SD cards but it's less than 1 in 10,000 on my R5 mark II. I shot full RAW plus JPEG backup to JPEG on the 5D3, R6 mark I and Fuji GFX 50R for over a decade afterwards...but with the coming of CF express I shoot RAW to CF express only and full size JPEG to SD on my R5 mark II and GFX 100 II. Fingers crossed I haven't jinxed myself there!
p.2 #2 · EOS 1DS Mark II vertical shutter button doesn't work.
_Refraction wrote:
The 5D mark II was a great camera and I think you'll enjoy it. One thing I do miss from it is the ability to swap out the viewfinder screen. I normally used the very matte screen for manual focusing, forget what it was called now but it was well worth it for shooting with wide apertures even in AF mode. Might be worth a look to see if you can still find those; I sold mine with the body when I upgraded to the 5D mark III and I remember the purchaser being politely confused as he clearly had no idea why anyone would do that!...Show more →
Ah yes, this was the Canon Eg-S Super Precision Matte focusing screen. I actually still have a pair of these (for some reason, haha). I agree that these were well worth seeking out if you did any manual focus work with the 5D2.
Oddly enough, I found a listing for this product on the Canon USA store, even though I imagine it has long been out of production. Here's what Canon says about this on its website:
"The Canon Eg-S Super Precision Matte Focusing Screen is an interchangeable focusing screen compatible with the Canon EOS 5D-Mark II camera. The Super Precision Matte screen improves the ease of focusing when doing manual focus, but is not recommended for use with lenses slower than f/2.8. With these slower lenses, the viewfinder will actually look darker than with the standard Eg-A screen."
When this screen is installed it affects the metering in the camera, so there is a custom function setting that must be changed to correct it.
The downside of using this screen is that it causes the viewfinder to become much darker when using slower lenses. So it really should be used with high speed primes or holy trinity zooms.
p.2 #3 · EOS 1DS Mark II vertical shutter button doesn't work.
Was very fortunate to find an 'Excellent Plus' condition 5D Mark II on Adorama with less than 2000 shutter actuations. Camera looks and feels practically new, and was able to update to the latest firmware. Time to flip through the instruction manual and pocket guide that were included in the box and get familiar with Canon controls and custom functions!
