I hesitate to post anything here because I fear the usual slings and arrows of outrage from those who don't agree with me, but here is my opinion in a nutshell as a 5D3 owner: the 5D3 is the best overall digital camera for professional use I've ever owned, and I've owned an awful lot of them, some costing many, many times more.
It doesn't produce the biggest files of any camera I've owned, but the files are big enough for 95% of anything I'd ever likely need to do , and there's always stitching or a digital back rental for the others.
It doesn't produce the least noisy files of any camera on earth at high ISO's, but the real world images at 1600 and 3200 are so good that I feel comfortable commonly using them in my work for the first time.
Its files don't have the now famous capability of raising shadow values by truly unusual, maybe ridiculous, amounts that some others seem to have, but I find it will allow at least a couple of stops just fine, which is a little more than I've ever actually needed, because I tend to make smaller mistakes - or bracket like hell in very critical situations - than those which would make that shadow lifting an advantage.
It isn't the most rugged or most weatherproof or have the longest rated shutter of all cameras I've owned, but in all those cases, it is easily good enough for my professional needs. In fact, just a few days ago I shot in a steady but very light rain, with temperatures just above freezing, for a couple of hours - the worst conditions to which I would expose any camera of mine - and the camera suffered absolutely no ill effects.
It idoesn't have the very best ergonomics of any camera I've owned, but it is within a whisker of being so in that regard.
It isn't the fastest operating camera I've owned, but it is easily fast enough for whatever I actually do, including occasional action shooting.
It has the most accurate, responsive and fast focusing of any camera I've owned so far, and it costs half of what any faster focusing one (1Dx) would.
It has the best menu system and smoothest (and maybe quietest) shutter action of any DSLR camera I've owned.
It isn't the cheapest DSLR I could conceivably use, but it is still very moderately priced compared to its more strictly "professional" cousins like the 1Dx and Nikon D4.
It came with very good software for free, including a very decent raw converter that, if you don't want to invest in a 3rd party program, can serve you well for even professional use.
In other words, when you consider the whole package, it seems to do the real job of shooting professional level still pictures very, very well with almost no noticeable vices and many, many advantages. That makes this camera very desireable for those who aren't looking for one or two particular outstanding capabilities, but want something that does just about everything very, very well, and sometimes better than that, with no fuss whatsoever. Add its very good video capabilities to this package, and you have a camera that most advanced amateurs and professionals can easily learn to love.
At the risk of sounding too enamored of the 5D3, I think I would agree with Pop Photo's assessment, regardless of what you may or may not think of their credentials or bias in coming to their conclusion.
Regards,
David
