GEAR TESTS: CANON 5DSR

Chris Parsons Nauticam Team Member

This camera provided a nice surprise when we found out it would work in the Nauticam NA-5DMKIII housing. The Canon EOS 5DSR is an imaging beast, capturing an amazing 50 megapixels. And in another nice surprise, I got to shoot one for a couple of dives at the Digital Shootout.

Shooting the 5DSR is totally familiar - it feels and shoots just like the 5D Mark III. The sound of the shutter is the main difference I noticed when shooting it. The fps is a little bit slower on the 5DS than on the 5D Mark III, but not that noticeable, and not really an issue for most types of shooting underwater.

The NA-5DMKIII housing is well tested... there are a lot of these housings in the field, working every day to bring home the images, and we are pleased that it will get extended life with this camera. It was nice to have the Nauticam vacuum check system on the housing to take this $3500 camera on its maiden voyage underwater.

Looking at my images, I am impressed with the quality of the shots where I nailed the focus. The detail is incredible without artifacts. However, I think this camera (similar to the Nikon D800 series), kind of changes the definition of acceptable focus. I definitely had shots that I thought I got the focus close enough, but looking at the image at 1:1 I can see that is not the case. If I drop back to 1:2 it's not so bad. This is just the nature of getting more and more resolution... you'd better get the focus right - but when you do, you'll be rewarded.

Lenses are going to be crucial with this camera; viewing the images at 1:1 you will see the flaws in your lenses. I chose to use the Canon EF 100mm 2.8/L macro lens + Nauticam SMC for macro, and the Canon 8-15mm for wide. Don't even think about using your Tokina 10-17mm. If you do, I will personally send the pixel police out to confiscate your camera. This sensor is just going to demand good glass (check out the test we did with the new Canon 11-24 [link: http://www.nauticamusa.com/news/2015/5/29/canon-11-24-4l-usm-lens-support-testing]). Again, the nature of getting more and more resolution.

The Whip Coral Shrimp shots are uncropped, using Nauticam SMC. The 3rd is a crop, but even at that much crop you are left with 20 megapixel, plenty for a nice print. The Sargent Major eggs are shot with the 100mm + SMC + SMC Multiplier. The second is a 1:1 (or thereabouts) crop showing the detail at that level.

Bottom line - Canon 5D Mark III shooters now have a great option to go big on megapixels.

Jim Decker CEO

We were very fortunate to have Ed Meyers from Canon bring along a pre-release Canon 5DSR with him to the Shootout. It is a whopping 50MP, making it the highest resolution full frame camera ever. The "R" designation indicates that the low pass filter has a canceling filter in front of it, leading to shaper images, but with less susceptibility of moire patterns.

Those with a 5D MKIII housing can rejoice, as the 5DSR is completely compatible with the 5D MKIII housings. As such, there's really not much of a difference shooting with the 5DSR, it just has a higher pixel count for those that want the ultimate resolution. In the limited time I had with the camera, before I was descended upon like prey at a hunt for others to try, the pictures are absolutely amazing at the higher resolution. You need to be careful to really nail the shot, especially focus, so you can take full advantage of all 50MP worth of resolution. I had a few shots where everything looked great, but when zoomed in to 1:1 on the computer screen, you could tell some elements were ever so slightly out of focus. It would have never been noticeable on a 5D MKIII. So if you get this camera, take looking at 1:1 with a grain of salt as you will probably drive yourself nuts obsessing over all the detail you would normally never have seen.

Shot Information about the Wreck Image
One of the biggest worries of 50MP of resolution is what the noise level is like. This ambient light shot at ISO 640 holds up really well and is totally usable with lots of detail.

Shot Information about the Eeel Image
After being burned on a few shots being just barely out of focus with 50MP of resolution, I made sure I had this surprise shot of a Green Moray Eel in focus. The detail in the skin of the eel is amazing.

Jean BruneaU Aquatica Technical Advisor

We had a Canon 5DS camera on hand for the Roatan Digital Shootout. Bottom Line… INSANE! With 50 mega pixels, this has got to be the ultimate macro camera, with such surrealistic cropping potential. It is now confirmed that the Canon 5DS, 5DSR and 5D Mk III share the same physical body type, giving owners of 5D Mk III housing an extended lifecycle. What is there to be said about the A5D Mk III housing that hasn't been said already? It is still one of the most rugged workhorses out there and scores of professional and pro-sumer users are putting this housing through its paces on a daily basis. This housing is always a favorite at these types of events. As demo gear for the attendees, this was setup for macro or for wide angle, the latter taking advantage of our innovative port extension which has a manual focusing control knob integrated in its design.

The A5Dsr Housing will be based on the same A5D Mk III, and shipping very soon. It is a sound design that delivers reliable results on and on. The main difference being the addition of Ikelite internal TTL circuitry as an option, and with the ISO extended lever being a standard feature on this upcoming version.

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