New Canon 50D & 5D MKII but which one to choose?

If you're a Canon user like me and dreaming of an updated version of the 5D then perhaps you've heard that Canon has announced a new model. Well it's far beyond my expectations at 21.1 megapixels!

I won't go to the effort of reviewing the camera here, as there are many sites out there that can do a better job than me with that. But as you may know Canon also announced the new Canon 50D the upgraded 40D with many of the bells and whistles most people want.

So which one is best? Thats not a fair question, perhaps its better to first figure out what it is you need in a camera. And surprising more important to working professionals but often overlooked is just how will the camera effect your workflow.

Again to keep things short (I'm trying to write shorter articles as I'm told these go on far to long)

Consider the two main differences in these cameras. The Canon 5D MKII Full frame 21.1 megapixels against the 50D http://web.canon.jp/imaging/eosd/eos50d/index.html which has 15.1 megapixels and a 3.2 aspect ratio.

All the review sites and photo magazines will discuss this in depth. But the simple explanation is that the 5D MKII will capture full frame images similar to the frame size of film. So what's it good for?

For me it's about landscapes and group portraits. Also architecture, interiors, and other wide angle images. If you do a lot of fine art, group portraits like large families, event groups like teams this is the perfect camera for that. If your into wide vista style landscapes, wide angle effects, panoramics and tend to shoot with shorter lenses this camera may be for you.

However if you're a high speed sports shooter, do a lot of telephoto work, macro photography or close ups then the Canon 50D may be the better choice.

Why?

Because the smaller chip and aspect ration makes your lenses seem longer. You've read about this before as it's an issue with most digital cameras. So heres the rub, you don't have a lot of money to buy those big gun giant telephoto lenses and you want to get the most reach you can. The aspect ratio of the 50D is better for you to get more bang from your buck at greater distances. Where you loose is your wide angle lenses are not quit so wide angle any more.

On the other hand the 5D MKII has the opposite effect, wide angle lenses get to use the full effect of they're capabilities. However telephotos get exactly what they are so you get less distance.

What about the added benefit of the 21.1 megapixels?

For me at least once I got over the wow factor I realized what it really meant was more work for me.

When I work in the studio I often pick up our trusty 40D instead of a 2 1/4 camera because it's not only faster to shoot, but it's faster for our computers to download and process the file, faster to manipulate, and faster to print. Sometimes, in fact most of the time I really don't need that huge file. If you know that your never going to be shooting to make prints larger than 16X20 and lets be honest most people never go over an 8X10 if even that. So all those megapixels for most people, even commercial studios is just not needed.

So which one am I going to buy? I'm not sure yet. The 5D MKII fits my needs best as a fine art, landscape, event, and architectural photographer. I do very little sports and I have decently long lenses to meet my needs. On the other hadn for my personal budget the 5D MKII is outside my reach. I may order a 50D just because I can more closely can afford it, and encourage my employers to buy the 5D MKII so I get to play with that at work. Unless there are any benefactors out there who would like to float me $4,000.00 for a 5D MKII, it may fit my needs but is for all practical reasons outside my reach.