Canon EOS-1D Mark III

Viewfinder (9.25)
The Canon EOS-1D Mark III's fixed pentaprism viewfinder is bright and contrasty, though its 0.76x magnification makes objects in the view look small compared to the way they appear through other cameras. Canon claims 100 percent viewfinder accuracy for the Mark III, and if it's not quite that, it's very close – we couldn't discern an error. This is an improvement over most DSLR finders that average about 95 to 96 percent coverage of the recorded image.

The viewfinder is easy to see through, even for users who wear glasses. There is a diopter adjustment that scrolls from -3 to +1.

A rounded, wide patch encloses the Mark III's 45 autofocus points, which are visible individually, and a circle shows the rather large spot metering patch. The active AF site shows up red – either when it is chosen manually or when the camera achieves focus.

Text or icons in the viewfinder show the following data: aperture and shutter speed, focus, manual exposure, AF mode and Point Selection mode, exposure compensation, white balance compensation, ISO, shots remaining, Highlight Priority mode, Metering mode, battery status, JPEG/RAW, maximum number of images possible in current Burst mode, and scales for flash and ambient exposure.

LCD Screen (9.0)
Canon put a 3-inch 230,000-pixel TFT Color LCD on the Canon EOS-1D Mark III, a feature formerly found only on consumer-oriented compacts; in fact, the Canon PowerShot G9 has the same screen. Even on a camera that measures 6.2 x 6.1 inches, the LCD looks big. The jump in size is not accompanied by an increase in resolution, though. The LCD’s brightness can be adjusted in the Setup menu; there are seven levels.

The display is bright, the angle of view is wide, and the color is good. It is easy to read in any light except direct sun. Judging image sharpness is a little tricky on the display, though. In-camera sharpening for the display is low, and images show more detail on a computer screen than they do on the LCD.

The Mark III offers a Live Preview mode that puts the competition to shame. Both Olympus and Fujifilm offer live preview on at least one DSLR, but those cameras have jerky previews – the image lags if either the camera or subject moves substantially. The Mark III refreshes at 30 fps, which is as good as video. Lag just isn't a problem in the view. Of course, it is a problem when shooting – live preview adds a significant delay between shutter and shot.

The monochrome LCD on top of the Mark III shows shooting data, including ISO, Exposure mode, metering pattern, battery charge, shutter speed, aperture, auto bracketing increment, auto bracketing status, Auto Focus mode, Auto Focus Point Selection mode, Burst mode, mirror lockup, flash exposure compensation, shots remaining, and an exposure scale. The data are presented in clear text and icons, and they are a useful selection. The monochrome LCD on the back of the Mark III shows which media are active – CompactFlash, SecureDigital, and external storage each have icons, and below each is an indicator showing what file type is being recorded to that media.

There are icons for white balance presets and an indicator for white balance fine tuning. There are indicators for wired and wireless LAN connection, and for folder number and file numbers. The back LCD looks small below the hulking color display, and the text on it is smaller than on the other displays on the Mark III – it's not as easy to read as the top LCD or the menus.

Flash (8.0)
The Canon EOS-1D Mark III does not have a built-in flash unit, but uses Canon EX dedicated flashes that offer wireless control and excellent backward-compatibility. Generally, old EX flashes offer all their original capabilities on the Mark III, but no new ones. That's a big advantage over new Nikon cameras, which only take advantage of the dedicated features of current flashes. Canon notes that the new 580 EX II has a weather seal for the hot shoe and an all-metal mechanical connection with the camera. The new flash syncs with the Mark III at up to 1/300 of a second. Standard flashes sync to 1/250. Studio and other non-dedicated flashes can connect via a standard PC terminal on the left side of the camera.

Wireless flash control is flexible. It's controlled by the flash unit connected to the camera, and can handle several flashes. Nikon has a similar system, though it has an advantage over Canon because some Nikon bodies act as the controller, while the Mark III and other Canons require a flash connected to the camera to control the system.

There are a host of flash options in the menu system. The Setup menu allows users to show the EX flash's settings on the Mark III's displays. The Custom menu has an entire section devoted to flash exposure. The shutter curtain sync can be set to front or rear, and PC terminal flash firing can be activated.

Lens and Lens Mount (9.0)
As a "professional" DSLR, the Canon EOS-1D Mark III isn't bundled with a single lens. Canon supplied a 28-105mm f/2.8 L series lens for testing. Canon has the widest selection of lenses available for a DSLR system, and the optics are excellent. The lenses focus with motors inside the lens, rather than in the camera.

The EOS-1D Mark III's EF-mount is compatible with Canon EF, TS-E, and MP-E lenses, but doesn't function with EF-S lenses.