recommend a camera for me

[crazeazn]

1) has to be Canon (too much invested in it)
2) excellent AF
3) high ISO/low noise (almost 70% of my photos are ISO 3200)

budget around $2k give or take

GO!

[Tom]

Depends what type of photography you do.
5D II
7D
1Ds Mark II
1 D Mark III

[Jim Victory]

The only one that meets your requirement is the MKIII. The 5D MKII AF is good using the center point but the 1DMKIII AF is generally better. With FlexNR you can get some excellent high ISO, low noise shots above 3200 with the MKIII that are every bit as good as the 5D MKII.

I have the 5DMKII, 1DsMKIII, 1D MKIII, and 7D and at around $2K the MKIII is your best bet for what your wanting.

[Tom]

I generally leave my 1D3 in the bag for my 7D. All up to the shooter, I guess.

[crazeazn]

Thomas, i took to heart the input you gave in chat! :)

A little more info: I am not a pro (gear freak/hobbyist) and almost ALL my photos are of people (friends) moving around indoors (580flash bounce+ISO800, or ISO3200 maxed out) so I would prefer the fastest AF I can. Giving the glass I have (17-40 f/4,24-105 f/4 IS,70-200 f/2.8IS, zeiss 28 2.8 and zeiss 50 1.4) and given I have the 24-105 mounted most of the time, I am open for rearranging my kit too if I have to.

Flickr: crazeazn's Photostream

if anybody wants to add me and or check out what i shoot.

If I bought a 7d I would buy a battery grip so the weight is moot. Megapixels is also moot because I don't really print that often either. Out of the 7D, 5DII, and the 1DIII which is most demanding on lenses?

[Jim Victory]

Originally Posted by crazeazn

Out of the 7D, 5DII, and the 1DIII which is most demanding on lenses?

I would say the 7D because of its pixel density but none of your lenses should be a problem on any of these cameras.

The 5D MKII does a good job in low light using the center point but its AI servo performance in low light may not be the best of the three. It really depends how fast your friends are moving.

I haven't had any problems using a 580 EX II @ ISO400 indoors with all three cameras. The 7D seems to meter the best of the three using a flash.

I wouldn't recommend using the 7D consistently over ISO3200. I have gotten some good shots at 3200 but I usually don't like using it over ISO1600. The detail starts to break down fast over ISO1600 and only optimum conditions will yield you an acceptable ISO3200 shot. I know everyone's QC is different but the fine detail on birds, for me, using the 7D takes a big hit moving from ISO1600 to ISO3200.

The 5D MKII handles ISO3200 well and its acceptable level for me is ISO6400. At that point I will only keep those shots made in optimum conditions to minimize the noise at that level.

The 1D MKIII, using FlexNR, will yield very similiar results to the 5D MKII. Maybe just a little less but the files hold up well to processing and seem to hold their detail better.

You can't avoid the resolution differences which become apprarent if you print big or crop. Since you don't print then cropping is your only concern.

FWIW I get the best performance out of my lenses with the 5D MKII, given all things equal. The detail, color depth, and dynamic range is better than the MKIII and 7D.

[Tom]

Another thing I deal with constantly is the 1D3's write speed tops out at like 10MB/s. The 5D2 and 7D both have MUCH better buffers. While that may not be a concern for you, it really is for me. I hate waiting for my 1D3 to refresh the buffer (even on my UDMA cards) because I am shooting RAW+noise reducer.

With Lightroom3, the noise problem is handled pretty well (wish I had the time to run all my old stuff through that.)

The 5D2 has the worst AF. The 1D3 has the best in the lowest light (talking about where you need extended exposure or flash to capture anything) and I think the 7D has the best in average to good light AF.

But I love the pics in my 5D2 the best. At a wedding, I shoot about 200 pics with my 7D and the rest with my 5D2.