Canon has gone and done a pretty unforgivable thing to me. On my birthday, of all days, they released the long awaited upgrade to the 5D line -- the Canon 5D Mark IV. And I am coveting this pretty badly. The only trouble is I don't have the necessary $3500 to purchase it. And, well, the other trouble is that my Rebel T4i that I bought in 2012 is still doing a pretty good job.
I really like the idea of shooting with a more professional grade camera. It makes me feel more legitimate, like somehow that makes me more of a real photographer.
Whatever that actually means.
Shooting with a T4i, I still feel like an amateur. Sure, I've upgraded my lenses to some pretty decent Tamrons, and when people see my camera, all they really see is the lens. But there's this annoying whisper in my ear... "Why are you shooting with a cropped sensor camera? Real photographers use real equipment. You're not really ready to play with the big boys."
To find out if shooting with a 5D would really make a difference or not, I rented a 5D Mark III from a local camera shop for 7 days. Used it for an outdoor photo shoot. Took it to one of my son's soccer games. Overall, I really like the feel of it and the pictures I took with it were outstanding. But were they $3500 better than the ones I take with my T4i?
I've read all the lab reviews, checked out the DXo Labs rating, looked at the DPReview score. By all rights, this camera should absolutely change the way I take pictures. Maybe it will. Maybe it won't.