Second hand, Canon 6D or 5D MK2 ?

Not a big difference, I would likely go with 6d as it is newer but really I would be putting my money on new glass. Ditch the x50mm, get a 35mm, something wider and a tele option. Will make a bigger difference than camera body on a Budget.
 
I am looking into getting a wider lens. One of the reason I wanted a new body is that I find low light photo have a lot of noise where I need to do a lot of post editing. Also I would like to have a better or more accurate focusing, I only use the center focusing point btw.

budget around 500-800
 
Like all things though a faster lens is better than a body with better higher iso IMO although bodies which can handle higher ISo without extra noise do give you mroe flexibility.
 
China Man said:
I am looking into getting a wider lens. One of the reason I wanted a new body is that I find low light photo have a lot of noise where I need to do a lot of post editing. Also I would like to have a better or more accurate focusing, I only use the center focusing point btw.

budget around 500-800
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I just want to clear some things up here. The 5D classic acully has very good high ISO capabilities despite being old because it is a FF camera, I wouldn't go expecting a huge difference with the 5DMK2, the 6D will be a little better but I want o make sure you udnerstand the limits.

When you say the noise is bad, is this when viewing on a computer screen at 100% or when you print out an 8x10" to hang on the wall? Is the noise in the shadows and you are trying to bring the shadows up in post, or is the noise in the mid-tones? If you are worried about shaodw noise then sicne you are not invest in Cnaon I would switch systems to Canon or Nikon.

What kind of ISO, aperture and exposures are we talking about? Are you shooting wide open at ISO 6400, or are you at f/8 to gain DoF (and have you looked up a DoF calculator and read up on hyper focal focusing to maximize DoF?), maybe you can get the same image at f/4.0 and 2 stops less ISO, maybe you can't (very frequently this is the case inside, but I see some people use an automatic mode and shoots at smaller apertures for no reason).

In the OP you say you shoot landscapes and portraits. Well the landscapes I am hoping you are using a tripod and iSO 100 so noise wont be a problem.
For portraits it is hard to know what you are actually doing but if you are shooting formal portraits inside then make sure you sort out some good studio lighting and flashes, you can than shoot at base ISO. For event type work (club/wedding etc.) then you will want at least 1 flash and do what you can to bounce. There are of course times when you can't use flash effectively but when possible it will give way better results than a new camera.



As for auto focus, the 5DMK2 has the same AF as the 5Dc so you can scratch that. The 5D has good central AF performance but you really want to be looking at the 5DMK3, which wont work with your budget. As I said above, since you are not heavily invested then it might be prudent to look at other camera systems but on your budget I would be looking at lenses
 
First of all thank you for all your input, I feel like I am learning from the best and I already think I may be saving a lot of money by not doing unnecessary upgrade.

Here is 2 typical photo I get when I am messing around at home with my flash, not the best low light comparision but that is the latest shot I have access to without digging into my NAS.


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F1.8 1/100 iso200 the picture of my daughter have flash hitting the front and back so it is well lit, at 200iso there is some noise when zoom in with camera raw at 100% but can't really tell zoomed out, it does not bother me. I still adjust Noise reduction with lumiance by 10 to get rid of the grain.

F2.8 1/100 iso 200 the picture of both of them together have only bounced flash from celling and because it was a action shot their faces was not lit. By adding fill light to show up their face the noise become unusable, I turn up luminance to let say 50 and it lost the details and the colour just become "dirty" skin tone.

May be I am chasing the imaginary noise in my photos, I find most of the time I am adjusting evey photo I take out of my camera, with flash I have more control but outdoor is really a hit and miss. I thought if my camera can handle higher iso or even auto iso I will spend less time adjusting or post processing.

Landscape I just hate carrying tripod but when I am serious I will carry one, again if upgrade means I can use a higher iso and faster shutter speed for me it will be a good investment.

shooting at f1.8 with only center point means that I focus on the eye then recompose to shot, with kids moving all the time = hit and miss. but the time I get a lock on the eye and move to frame the shot kids would have moved that 1/2" depth out of focus......I guess when I move onto shooting adult it will be a lot easier :)
 
Jase said:
Honestly this sounds more like an issue with lighting and processing than it is your camera and noise.
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This.

If you don't like the noise at ISO 100/200 in he 5DC you will be disappointed with any camera upgrade. This is a combination of unrealistic user expectations and technique limitations.

In the first photo if you are seeing bad noise it must be because you underexposed. Since you are going for a high key kind of look then you can achieve that look with an appropriate exposure and reduce noise.

In the second photo you have tried to lift shadows a lot. A brighter exposure would have resolved this issue.


If you do want lot lift shadows, and sometimes you don't get much choice such as in landscape work, then I don't think either the 6D or 5DMK2 is what you are after. Look at getting a 2nd hand Nikon D800 or Sony A7R etc.
However, buying some books or taking classes might yield better result for less investment.
 
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