The EOS-1Ds Mark II is the sixteen (point seven) megapixel successor to the EOS-1Ds which was announced almost exactly two years earlier. Carrying on from the EOS-1Ds the Mark II has a full size 35 mm (36 x 24 mm) sensor which means it introduces no field-of-view crop, an 18 mm lens on this camera will provide exactly the same field-of-view as it would on a 35 mm film camera. At first glance it's clear to see that Canon has stuck (as they did with the EOS-1D Mark II) with the same body and control layout. The timing of the EOS-1Ds Mark II's announcement was interesting if not totally surprising coming just five days after Nikon announced the twelve (point four) megapixel D2X, the megapixel one-up-man-ship continues.
Despite the significant jump in resolution from the EOS-1Ds (11 mp) to the EOS-1Ds Mark II (16.7 mp) the camera maintains an impressive four frames per second shooting rate and a buffer large enough for 32 JPEG or 11 RAW images. The EOS-1Ds Mark II's internal bus throughput of approximately 67 megapixel/sec is virtually identical to the eight megapixel EOS-1D Mark II.
Wireless transmitter
In July 2003 Nikon announced the D2H and the WT-1 wireless transmitter which screws to the base of the camera and is connected by a Firewire cable to the camera. This transmitter provides 802.11/b WiFi transmission of images either immediately or selectively later. This has been followed by the WT-2 which now supports both 802.11/b and 802.11/g and hence faster maximum throughput of 54 mbp/s (although we all know that in reality the true rate is almost half this).
Along with the EOS-1Ds Mark II Canon has announced its own wireless transmitter, the WFT-E1 which provides 802.11/b and 802.11/g transmission as well as a wired LAN socket. The WFT-E1 connects to the EOS-1Ds Mark II via its Firewire port. Another interesting difference between the Nikon and Canon offerings are that the Canon WFT-E1 has its own battery, probably because Canon intend the unit to be backwardly compatible with other EOS digital SLR's and none have power terminals on their base.
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Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II vs. EOS-1Ds (feature & specification differences)
![]() Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II ![]() |
![]() Canon EOS-1Ds ![]() |
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Sensor | • 36 x 24 mm CMOS • 16.7 million effective pixels |
• 36 x 24 mm CMOS • 11.1 million effective pixels |
Image sizes | • 4992 x 3328 • 3600 x 2400 • 3072 x 2048 • 2496 x 1664 |
• 4064 x 2704 • 2032 x 1352 |
Processor | DIGIC II | Unknown |
White balance | Image sensor | • External sensor • Image sensor |
Sensitivity | • ISO 100 - 1600 • Boost: ISO 50 (L), ISO 3200 (H) |
• ISO 100 - 1250 • Boost: ISO 50 (L) |
Color matrix | • 4x sRGB • Adobe RGB • 2x user configurable |
• 4x sRGB • Adobe RGB |
Contrast | • Tone curve • 5 level contrast control |
Tone curve |
Sharpness | Level | • Level • Pattern |
Continuous | Max. approx. 4.0 fps | Max. approx. 3.3 fps |
Buffer size | • JPEG: 32 frames • RAW: 11 frames |
• JPEG: 10 frames • RAW: 10 frames |
Flash | E-TTL II | E-TTL |
Storage | • Compact Flash • Secure Digital (Dual writing capable) |
Compact Flash |
Digital connection | • IEEE 1394 (FireWire) • USB 1.1 |
IEEE 1394 (FireWire) |
LCD monitor | • 2.0" TFT • 230,000 pixels |
• 2.0" TFT • 120,000 pixels |
Orientation sensor | Yes | No |
Playback zoom | Yes, up to 10x | Yes, 3x |
Review notes
Due to the similarity between the EOS-1Ds Mark II and the EOS-1D Mark II we have re-used some editorial and some images from that review.
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