Full frame canon body worth it??

[Astroblagger]

Iv been getting more and more into time lapses with my S.A and been looking into Motorized sliding rails too, but my question is are full frame cameras worth the extra cash?

Im aware of the crop factor etc, but has anyone recently moved from APS-c to full frame? What are your thoughts? Iv been looking at the Canon EOS 5D mark2 as it has live view.

[D Wright]

I have just bought a canon 5D mk4 but not used it for AP yet. I am aware that you get a much wider field due to the larger sensor. I was using a 60D crop sensor with        18mp and the 5D has 30mp so it should be better resolution. I am really looking forward to trying it.

[D Wright]

I got the camera as a business asset as I am a photographer. If not for that I probably would have not spent as much. As for whether full frame is worth the extra is up to you. You will get a good bargain on the second hand market.

[RichM63]

"Worth it" is very difficult to answer.

You should certainly notice a big difference between your 600D and a FF. See my sig', 700D, 7D, and 5DIII.

Noise control improves dramatically as you go up the line + the 'pro' bodies are weather proof etc.

But the price per picture also increases dramatically.

Do I need a FF 5DIII for the type of photography I do, most certainly not, but do I enjoy using the best tool I could afford, most certainly YES.

One caution, if you have a large collection of APS-C designed lenses 'white square' they simply will not fit onto a FF body, all 'red dot' lenses will fit either type.

Rich

[ollypenrice]

I would expunge the term 'crop factor' from your vocabulary. It is totally meaningless in astronomy. Chip size has no effect on resolution (which is dependent on pixel size) but FF opens up the FOV magnificently provided you have the optics to cover it. It's important to note that only a tiny minority of (usually expensive) scopes can do so. Since stars are very exacting targets for camera lenses you may also find that not all supposedly compatible lenses will give good stars across full frame.

If you can cover the chip then full frame feels like 'one shot mosaic.' We have two full frame CCDs here which are easily covered by Tak FSQ106 and TEC 140. On the other hand there are plenty of small targets which are easily covered by chips smaller than APS-C.

Olly

 

[Astrobug]

Most optics don't handle full frame well. Will you buy a new scope to?

[Astroblagger]

Thanks for the reply’s Iv got no intention of using it with a scope just lenses for timelapse. 

[gorann]

As Olly points out, most affordable (and several in-affordable) telescopes will not have a large enough image circle to fill up a full frame DSLR. When it comes to Canon, they have three main series. Those with numbers in the hundreds are consumer type cameras. Those in the tens are semi-professional with APS-C chips but otherwise similar to the professional cameras when it comes to the electronics, functions and weather proofing. The 7D is a bit of an oddity since it has an APS-C senor. The older models of all these (including 5D Mark I and II) are quite noisy so not great for astrophotography. I found that the 60D has a strikingly low noise, which is probably why Canon made a dedicated astrophoto version of the 60D (full Ha sensitivity) - the 60 Da. When I started with astrophotography about three years ago I bought a 60Da and have been very happy with it. So, recently I bought two used 60D on ebay so I could run a triple rig. They are bargains right now (around 300 pounds for near to new ones) and their Ha sensitivity is ok and they have live view and a turn-able LCD screen (so you will not break your neck crawling on the ground). The 60Da is almost impossible to find (the few I have seen on ebay costs 50% more than when they were new). They are 18 Mp cameras but I never had my images limited by pixel size (except when I use fast telephoto lenses). I expect you would need to be on a clear mountain top in Chile for that to happen with a telescope.

Reading the thread more carefully I see you say you will use it for time lapse. I assume that means filming. In that case my advice may be a bit on the side - but when making movies why would you ever need more than 18 Mp?

[RichLD]

Put simply the FF sensor (I have the 6d) provides far better high iso performance than any of Canon's crop sensors. I know this is more pertinent to daytime photography but if exposed correctly I can get very usable results at iso 6400 and sometimes above with the 6d. All the crop sensor Canon's I've used look terrible when used at these settings.

[MartinB]

On 12/4/2017 at 12:35, RichLD said:

Put simply the FF sensor (I have the 6d) provides far better high iso performance than any of Canon's crop sensors. I know this is more pertinent to daytime photography but if exposed correctly I can get very usable results at iso 6400 and sometimes above with the 6d. All the crop sensor Canon's I've used look terrible when used at these settings.

This isn't my experience using a FF 6d and an APS 80d.  In terms of noise they appear very similar in real world use at night.  The 6d is mainly used for night time landscapes using samyang 24 and 14mm lenses.  The 80D also gets used at night but is a much more agile camera for happy snappy daytime use.  I can use a Tokina 11-16mm (this lens is designed for APS chips and wont illuminate ff) at 11mm with my 80d which gets around the issue of a smaller sensor as far as FOV goes.  Two advantages of APS cameras - lenses are generally cheaper and for the same field of view you use a shorter focal length lens which gives you a greater depth of field with easier focusing.  Having said all that, my 6d is my weapon of choice at night because it pairs beautifully with the Samyangs

[RichLD]

4 hours ago, MartinB said:

This isn't my experience using a FF 6d and an APS 80d.  In terms of noise they appear very similar in real world use at night.  The 6d is mainly used for night time landscapes using samyang 24 and 14mm lenses.  The 80D also gets used at night but is a much more agile camera for happy snappy daytime use.  I can use a Tokina 11-16mm (this lens is designed for APS chips and wont illuminate ff) at 11mm with my 80d which gets around the issue of a smaller sensor as far as FOV goes.  Two advantages of APS cameras - lenses are generally cheaper and for the same field of view you use a shorter focal length lens which gives you a greater depth of field with easier focusing.  Having said all that, my 6d is my weapon of choice at night because it pairs beautifully with the Samyangs

I have to admit that I haven't tried the 80d which I believe uses improved sensor technology, must try one out!

I can however compare the 6D to the 7D mark II and find that there is no contest for me - I can shoot at iso 6400 on the 6D and still get usable images if properly exposed, the 7D II is a mess of colour mottle at that setting.

[Alien 13]

Interesting thoughts Martin, I expect the 80D is Canons joker in the pack in that its their only model that is effectively ISO less and has very good noise performance.

Alan