Visit Page
Skip to content

Late 2012 Video Smackdown

Not quite a head to head of the same footage but a good chance to compare video from a Canon 1D Mark IV, 5D Mark III, and C300; all shot with a similar lighting setup. The 5D Mark III footage did have sharpening added in post (2.5 in FCP X’s Sharpening Filter.) The other samples did not.

Differences are visible but are a bit toned down because of Vimeo’s compression. To watch the videos at their best run them full-screen with the scaling turned off. To get the best sense of sharpness and tonal range take a look at the attached frames. I recommend right clicking them, selecting “open link in new window,” to see the frames at *full size (1920 x 1080.)

*In Safari you may need to click the enlarge icon for a 100% view.

Canon Cinema EOS C300

C300 still frame, click to enlarge.
C300 frame, click to enlarge.

Canon 5D Mark III

5D Mark III still frame, click to enlarge.
5D Mark III frame, click to enlarge.

Canon 1D Mark IV

1D Mark IV still frame, click to enlarge.
1D Mark IV frame, click to enlarge.