k5 vs 5Dmk2 autofocus

oliver939 · 03-08-2012, 06:11 AM

Hi,

I am a k5 owner but since the recent canon news (5Dmk3), I'm finally looking toward buying a fullframe 5Dmk2 (second hand) that are becoming more and more affordable now.

The main complaint I could read about the 5Dmk2 is its autofocus and I''m wondering up to which extent does the 5dmk2 can compare with a k5 autofocus.

Is it comparable, is the 5Dmk2 much faster (but so-called slow for a "pro" FF camera) or is the k5 faster (being a much recent product)?

Sorry to ask this here but I'm sure more people know teh 5Dmk2 here that people know teh k5 on a canon forum

Thanks

morpho · 03-08-2012, 07:03 AM

Not that i have a 5Dmk2, but what are you planning on photographing?

mr.wizard · 03-08-2012, 07:09 AM

im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2
and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000
Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5

kenyee · 03-08-2012, 07:39 AM

The main problem is the only reliable AF point on the 5DmkI and 5DmkII is the center AF point according to a few Canon friends who have had both (same AF system in both). So if you're doing portraits/weddings, you focus/recompose.

One time I was shooting w/ one of these friends and we were doing a sun flare shot for a model and he was asking if I had trouble focusing (K10D at the time IIRC with the old FA50/1.4 mounted to get the max flare)...I had no problems, but apparently he did :-)

That said, the AF points are smaller than Pentax's AF points which are a lot bigger than what your viewfinder indicates, so if you're using the 85/1.2 w/ narrow DOF, you'll have a better time hitting the eye than you would w/ a K-5.

You'll have to learn its quirks like most AF systems. Just be aware that most Canon owners will gripe about it, so it really is that bad. Canon's reputation for having great AF systems really comes from their 1D sports lineup...

Franky2step · 03-08-2012, 02:07 PM

I switched from the 5D MKII last summer and can honestly say the difference in auto focus is nothing. Neither camera comes close to my old Nikon D300, particularly the 51pt 3D focus mode. Manual focus is another matter altogether, the 5D MKII with EG-s screen is the bees knees!

toooldtocare · 03-09-2012, 12:51 AM - **1 Like**

I also switched last summer, both focus about the same. I cannot tell much differences in quality of the photos either. One thing that is different is the size and weight, the Canon is huge and heavy. Shooting weddings with the 28-70mm L series lens wore me out.

oliver939 · 03-09-2012, 06:57 AM

thanks for all the answers.

Frogfish · 03-09-2012, 08:54 AM

Originally posted by mr.wizard

im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2
and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000
Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5

I really like snap sort for getting quick facts on specs .. but you really can disregard their 'winners' since they tend to allocate spurious marks for certain features (e.g. video always gains big marks though some shooters never use it) !

WerTicus · 03-10-2012, 09:14 AM

The K-5 surpasses the mk2 in pretty much every way possible. I dont know why you'd actually want one since you have a superior camera.

Frogfish · 03-10-2012, 10:56 AM

Originally posted by WerTicus

The K-5 surpasses the mk2 in pretty much every way possible. I dont know why you'd actually want one since you have a superior camera.

You mean apart from much lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 1,162 ISO ? Or maybe it's the higher true resolution 21 MP vs 16 MP ? Or maybe you mean the significantly larger viewfinder of FF cameras that make manual focusing so much more enjoyable ? Or maybe you are a videographer and love the fact the 5DII supports 24p ? No ? Am I on the wrong track ? Then surely it must be the WA available for FF cameras without a lens that distorts the crap out of the edges ? Or the gorgeous low DoF without paying a massive amount for super fast lenses ?

Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer.

westmill · 03-10-2012, 11:10 AM

Originally posted by Frogfish

You mean apart from much lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 1,162 ISO ? Or maybe it's the higher true resolution 21 MP vs 16 MP ? Or maybe you mean the significantly larger viewfinder of FF cameras that make manual focusing so much more enjoyable ? Or maybe you are a videographer and love the fact the 5DII supports 24p ? No ? Am I on the wrong track ? Then surely it must be the WA available for FF cameras without a lens that distorts the crap out of the edges ? Or the gorgeous low DoF without paying a massive amount for super fast lenses ?

Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer.

mmmmmm that sums it up nicely

Add K5 has ginormous focus points making it tricky
indeed for focussing fast glass in auto.
Its like comparing apples n oranges here !

westmill · 03-10-2012, 01:14 PM

Originally posted by mr.wizard

im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2
and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000
Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5

I wouldnt bother reading the site if they are claiming the K5 is better than the D700 lol.
Its not all about speed either. Accuracy is more important than speed.
The K5 is fast enough and not bad sensativity. But ! its sensors are huge in comparison to the D700.
In fact... if the OP is changing cameras just for focussing.... you need the D700 !

WerTicus · 03-10-2012, 09:27 PM

Originally posted by Frogfish

Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer.

I know what the advantages are, I came from the 5d to the k-5. The K-5 is still the all round superior camera.

The K-5 has a MUCH nicer noise profile than the Mk2 btw so you do get less noise but its ugly noise on the Mk2 where as the K-5's is filmic and you dont mind it being there

Lenses in Pentax's range are much cheaper than canon so saying you need expensive lenses to get the DOF is moot.

JinDesu · 03-10-2012, 10:23 PM

Originally posted by westmill

I wouldnt bother reading the site if they are claiming the K5 is better than the D700 lol.
Its not all about speed either. Accuracy is more important than speed.
The K5 is fast enough and not bad sensativity. But ! its sensors are huge in comparison to the D700.
In fact... if the OP is changing cameras just for focussing.... you need the D700 !

I believe the multiple tests from the German and French sites regarding the AF has always referred to accuracy, not speed.

Frogfish · 03-11-2012, 12:40 AM

Originally posted by WerTicus

I know what the advantages are, I came from the 5d to the k-5. The K-5 is still the all round superior camera.

Lenses in Pentax's range are much cheaper than canon so saying you need expensive lenses to get the DOF is moot.

There is a world of difference between the 5d and 5dII - a massive difference, so to compare the 5d to the K5 is not relevant at all as far as noise / DR / colour depth is concerned. Let's go back to the 5dII shall we.

It is very misleading to say Pentax's range of lenses is cheaper too. Canon's range runs the whole gamut, from very cheap 50s to extremely expensive zooms / primes. You must compare like to like and in that respect there is no great difference. See here (from 2009 but any increases will be in step) : Pentax vs Canon lenses 2009

03-08-2012, 06:11 AM	#1
oliver939 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: europe Posts: 156	k5 vs 5Dmk2 autofocus Hi, I am a k5 owner but since the recent canon news (5Dmk3), I'm finally looking toward buying a fullframe 5Dmk2 (second hand) that are becoming more and more affordable now. The main complaint I could read about the 5Dmk2 is its autofocus and I''m wondering up to which extent does the 5dmk2 can compare with a k5 autofocus. Is it comparable, is the 5Dmk2 much faster (but so-called slow for a "pro" FF camera) or is the k5 faster (being a much recent product)? Sorry to ask this here but I'm sure more people know teh 5Dmk2 here that people know teh k5 on a canon forum Thanks

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03-08-2012, 07:03 AM	#2
morpho Forum Member Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 95	Not that i have a 5Dmk2, but what are you planning on photographing?

03-08-2012, 07:09 AM	#3
mr.wizard Forum Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Posts: 50	im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2 and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000 Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5

03-08-2012, 07:39 AM	#4
kenyee Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Boston, PRofMA Photos: Albums Posts: 3,026	The main problem is the only reliable AF point on the 5DmkI and 5DmkII is the center AF point according to a few Canon friends who have had both (same AF system in both). So if you're doing portraits/weddings, you focus/recompose. One time I was shooting w/ one of these friends and we were doing a sun flare shot for a model and he was asking if I had trouble focusing (K10D at the time IIRC with the old FA50/1.4 mounted to get the max flare)...I had no problems, but apparently he did :-) That said, the AF points are smaller than Pentax's AF points which are a lot bigger than what your viewfinder indicates, so if you're using the 85/1.2 w/ narrow DOF, you'll have a better time hitting the eye than you would w/ a K-5. You'll have to learn its quirks like most AF systems. Just be aware that most Canon owners will gripe about it, so it really is that bad. Canon's reputation for having great AF systems really comes from their 1D sports lineup...

03-08-2012, 02:07 PM	#5
Franky2step Veteran Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Niagara Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 793	I switched from the 5D MKII last summer and can honestly say the difference in auto focus is nothing. Neither camera comes close to my old Nikon D300, particularly the 51pt 3D focus mode. Manual focus is another matter altogether, the 5D MKII with EG-s screen is the bees knees!

03-09-2012, 12:51 AM - 1 Like	#6
toooldtocare Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Lake Saint Louis Posts: 126	I also switched last summer, both focus about the same. I cannot tell much differences in quality of the photos either. One thing that is different is the size and weight, the Canon is huge and heavy. Shooting weddings with the 28-70mm L series lens wore me out.

03-09-2012, 06:57 AM	#7
oliver939 Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: europe Posts: 156 Original Poster	thanks for all the answers.

03-09-2012, 08:54 AM	#8
Frogfish Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Shanghai Posts: 4,490	Originally posted by mr.wizard im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2 and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000 Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5 I really like snap sort for getting quick facts on specs .. but you really can disregard their 'winners' since they tend to allocate spurious marks for certain features (e.g. video always gains big marks though some shooters never use it) !

03-10-2012, 09:14 AM	#9
WerTicus Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Perth Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 1,514	The K-5 surpasses the mk2 in pretty much every way possible. I dont know why you'd actually want one since you have a superior camera.

03-10-2012, 10:56 AM	#10
Frogfish Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Shanghai Posts: 4,490	Originally posted by WerTicus The K-5 surpasses the mk2 in pretty much every way possible. I dont know why you'd actually want one since you have a superior camera. You mean apart from much lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 1,162 ISO ? Or maybe it's the higher true resolution 21 MP vs 16 MP ? Or maybe you mean the significantly larger viewfinder of FF cameras that make manual focusing so much more enjoyable ? Or maybe you are a videographer and love the fact the 5DII supports 24p ? No ? Am I on the wrong track ? Then surely it must be the WA available for FF cameras without a lens that distorts the crap out of the edges ? Or the gorgeous low DoF without paying a massive amount for super fast lenses ? Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer.

03-10-2012, 11:10 AM	#11
westmill Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Stoke on Trent Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,146	Originally posted by Frogfish You mean apart from much lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 1,162 ISO ? Or maybe it's the higher true resolution 21 MP vs 16 MP ? Or maybe you mean the significantly larger viewfinder of FF cameras that make manual focusing so much more enjoyable ? Or maybe you are a videographer and love the fact the 5DII supports 24p ? No ? Am I on the wrong track ? Then surely it must be the WA available for FF cameras without a lens that distorts the crap out of the edges ? Or the gorgeous low DoF without paying a massive amount for super fast lenses ? Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer. mmmmmm that sums it up nicely Add K5 has ginormous focus points making it tricky indeed for focussing fast glass in auto. Its like comparing apples n oranges here !

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03-10-2012, 01:14 PM	#12
westmill Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Stoke on Trent Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,146	Originally posted by mr.wizard im not sure how fast but base on this website.. k5 is still better than 5dm2 and k5 is the winner between D800,D90,D700,60D,D5100,7D and D7000 Canon 5D Mark II vs Pentax K-5 I wouldnt bother reading the site if they are claiming the K5 is better than the D700 lol. Its not all about speed either. Accuracy is more important than speed. The K5 is fast enough and not bad sensativity. But ! its sensors are huge in comparison to the D700. In fact... if the OP is changing cameras just for focussing.... you need the D700 !

03-10-2012, 09:27 PM	#13
WerTicus Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Perth Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 1,514	Originally posted by Frogfish Don't get me wrong, I have 2 K5s and absolutely love them, they are superb cameras, but I'm not blind to the obvious advantages that a FF, and in this case the 5DII, offer. I know what the advantages are, I came from the 5d to the k-5. The K-5 is still the all round superior camera. The K-5 has a MUCH nicer noise profile than the Mk2 btw so you do get less noise but its ugly noise on the Mk2 where as the K-5's is filmic and you dont mind it being there Lenses in Pentax's range are much cheaper than canon so saying you need expensive lenses to get the DOF is moot.

03-10-2012, 10:23 PM	#14
JinDesu Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: New York City Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,638	Originally posted by westmill I wouldnt bother reading the site if they are claiming the K5 is better than the D700 lol. Its not all about speed either. Accuracy is more important than speed. The K5 is fast enough and not bad sensativity. But ! its sensors are huge in comparison to the D700. In fact... if the OP is changing cameras just for focussing.... you need the D700 ! I believe the multiple tests from the German and French sites regarding the AF has always referred to accuracy, not speed.

03-11-2012, 12:40 AM	#15
Frogfish Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Shanghai Posts: 4,490	Originally posted by WerTicus I know what the advantages are, I came from the 5d to the k-5. The K-5 is still the all round superior camera. Lenses in Pentax's range are much cheaper than canon so saying you need expensive lenses to get the DOF is moot. There is a *world* of difference between the 5d and 5dII - a massive difference, so to compare the 5d to the K5 is not relevant at all as far as noise / DR / colour depth is concerned. Let's go back to the 5dII shall we. It is very misleading to say Pentax's range of lenses is cheaper too. Canon's range runs the whole gamut, from very cheap 50s to extremely expensive zooms / primes. You must compare like to like and in that respect there is no great difference. See here (from 2009 but any increases will be in step) : Pentax vs Canon lenses 2009