Canon 1D MK IV Customisation

[jayson]

On the Canon 5DMKII/7D you have C1,C2 and C3 on the dial,
How do you to this on the Canon 1DMKIV ? It seems to only have 1 set of quick settings and everything else has to loaded from previously saved configs.
No time for this.
I want to be able to switch quickly from EXTREMELY FAST ACTION (Bird in Flight), to ACTION (animals in motion) to LANDSCAPES (sunsets & lion resting under a tree ) while in the bush.

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated. J.

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Jayson, what settings are you looking at changing each time for the different shooting situations?
cheers
Grant

[jayson]

Mostly need to change drive mode (Single, High Speed,Low Speed), AF Mode (Single, Al Servo), Shooting Mode (Av at 4,8 or 22) or Tv, AF-Point (Single centre point or auto)
I do a similar switch on my 5D as C1,C2,C3 and its a quick switch.
The apply basic settings only allows one additional set and u have to go into the menu to do this. New to the MKIV but finding my way slowly.
It would be nice if the mode switch had a c1,c2 and c3 setting.
Thanks for helping.

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Jayson
Not sure how much I will be able to help. As far as I am aware the camera doesn't have exactly the same C1, C2 options like the 5D and 7D.
Not sure if you know the AF shortcut...to switch between All AF points, and a single selected point, just push the top right button on the back of the camera with your thumb, it has a magnifying glass on it with a Plus sign, then push the AF Joystick/Multicontroller dead centre..that will cycle between single point and all quite quickly.
If you like to use the AF joystick to move your AF point around as I do, or select your AF point, then there is a shortcut in the menu to bypass pressing that rear button to first activate it, it is C.FnIII, option 3.
I also set up the My Menu (the green one) with a set of the 5 most commonly used menu items for the style of shooting that I am doing..so right now for wildlife, the My Menu on my Mk4 has the following: Battery info, Selectable AF point, Ai Servo Tracking Sensitivity, Ai Servo 1st/2nd Image priority, Format as the five most used options for me. That way I don't have to dig through menus.
I also leave the camera in Ai Servo...no need to switch to One Shot for a static subject, just place any one of the 45 AF points over the subject. I also have one of the rear buttons configured to stop focus..in the uncommon event that my subject falls outside of the AF grid, I just focus with whatever point I have selected, then push in that button to stop Ai Servo focus, recompose, and take the shot whilst holding the button in. Soon as I let go, I have Ai Servo focus enabled again, ready to go.
Also, you might find it easier to learn to just control your shutter speed/or aperture by staying in one semi-auto mode, like AV, and just spinning the control dial to the desired aperture...with practice this can be accomplished pretty rapidly ,and without lifting your eye away from the viewfinder.
Not trying to prescribe to you how to shoot your camera, but given what you have written, you might find it pretty frustrating otherwise using the Mk4 in the manner that you described above?
Then, for anything that you might wish to change for different shooting situations that is in the Custom Functions menus..you can create three different sets of Custom Function options that you can choose from...to do this just press Menu, scroll across to the orange Custom Function menu, enter, and then scroll all the way down on the Custom Function screen till the bottom, below where it is written: "Clear all Custom Func. (C.Fn)" and then on the last line, go into the option named: ""C.Fn Setting Register/Apply

Hope there is something useful there..
cheers
Grant

[jayson]

Thanks it does help. Familiar with some of the items you mentioned. Just wanted to make sure I was not missing the obvious. Only had the camera for a few days. I was hoping for a 1-click switch to my favourite settings.. I will setup the My Menu for action. Are you aware of any guides, other than the manual that will help one get the most out of an investment in a 1D ?

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Jayson
Arthur Morris has written one online, you can find it via his blog which is called Birds As Art, sorry I dont have the exact link to it right now. Also I have written a field review on it with some emphasis on getting to understand what all those fine tuning functions enable you to do with the autofocus. This is the link: http://www.grantatkinson.com/Other/R...754589_P95GjH/
Just send me a PM with your email address and I will find some other links and email them to you..just need to go back and find them again.
cheers
Grant

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Jayson
I sent you a PM here on ODP with some further reading...not sure if you received it?
cheers
Grant

[jayson]

Thanks Grant. I did receive it and it has been extremely useful. Lots to learn .
Slightly off the topic, what are your thoughts on the 1DMK4 vs 5DMK3 for wildlife and low light events.

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Jayson
I am only partially qualified to answer this, as I have tons of wildlife experience with the 1Dmk4, and the 5Dmk2 but nothing real with the 5D3 yet. For sure, the two cameras are much closer in terms of performance than the 5D2 was, compared to the Mk4, and perhaps the difference between the two bodies now much less significant in terms of whether one is really that much superior to another. That said they are still different cameras and from what I have read online and seen in results from a few very good photographers, I would say the main differences as follows when shooting raw:
For very low light, the 5D3 looks to be about 2/3rd to one stop cleaner in terms of noise.
AF- the 5D3 looks to be better in this regard, although the Mk4 is still pretty good.
Frame rate and buffer - superior on the 1Dmk4.
One of the main differences is different pixel pitch. For subjects that are too far off at max focal length, if you are having to crop to get your image to desired proportions, then the 1Dmk4 has smaller pixels, and it has an advantage in this regard. How important that advantage is will depend on what you are doing with your images...very heavy crops can still be fine for web resolutions.
Soon as I get my 5D3 I will be able to write a full field review.
cheers
Grant

[jayson]

Slightly off topic, but does anyone know of which bags fit the 1DMKIV with 70-200L f2.8 attached ? I need a day trip bag but given the height of the camera cannot located anything for day trips. (Camera + 2 lens).

[Grant Atkinson]

Tamrac Expedition 7 works well, can hold the camera with 70-200 plus hood attached, ready to pull out and shoot. Plus several other lenses and even another body if need be.
That bag also has plenty of good thick protective padding. Ours is a few years old so no longer sure if that is the exact model designation any more
cheers
Grant

[Nqina Dlamini]

Wow Grant you are a very helpful soul. I've never owned a professional body (1D/similar) I find them incredible intimidating. Your short explanations make them a little less intimidating (to me at least).

[Grant Atkinson]

Hi Nquina
Glad to share what works for me, and the 1D bodies are intimidating in price, and perhaps weight, I guess, for some users, but in actual use they are roomy, responsive, fast, and generally a real pleasure to use. Good news for us is that with new models pushing down used body prices, it becomes easier for more people to get their hands on them. Many shooters still taking fantastic imagery out there with the 1DmkII, the 1Dmk3, the 1DSmkIII and these cameras all offer good performance, specially in the fields that they may be best suited to.
Also, though they have fairly complex AF systems that are highly configurable for particular types of AF situations, it really remains up to the user as to how much they want to get into learning to understand the AF settings. Leaving them on the default settings will give you great results in a wide variety of situations, you don't have to go learn that stuff if you don't want to.
Also, the AF complexities are filtering down the line, the 7D has very similar AF custom functions to the 1Dmk4, and the 5D3 has a pretty complex AF setup option bank as well.
cheers
Grant