In August 2005, Canon wowed the photo world when they introduced a full-frame digital SLR, the EOS 5D, at a price that more than just an elite few could afford. Well, Canon is back with the 5D’s replacement, the even better (and not by a little bit) EOS 5D Mark II. By keeping the basic design of the original 5D, but correcting its shortcomings, and adapting technology from the top-of-the-line 1Ds Mark III, Canon has succeeded in producing a camera that is truly top-notch, while keeping the price, though not inexpensive, generally affordable for those who need a full-frame DSLR.

The new 5D is similar in size, shape and weight to the original, but has a more aesthetic appearance with texturing on the contoured top and bottom plastic pieces, giving it a more elegant feel, and with the exception of a couple of controls and a few menus, the cameras are identical controls-wise. But on the inside …

The most obvious change is the newly designed 21.1 megapixel (effective) full-frame CMOS sensor adapted from and, maybe, even improved a bit from the one in the 1Ds Mark III, also, 21.1 MP. ISOs range from 50 to 25600, but from a practical standpoint 6400 should be considered the maximum. Even at that speed, images are sharp and very usable with only moderate noise overall and just a hint of chroma noise. (You can set how much noise reduction you want or even turn it off entirely, if it suits you.) All told, excellent overall performance.

One feature that was lacking in the old 5D was built-in sensor cleaning. The old 5D’s sensor attracted and held onto dust like a superconducting magnet, and no amount of user or qualified camera tech cleaning would completely remove it. And, then, shortly after cleaning, the dust specks were back! It was a real problem. But with the Mark II, that has all changed. With a newly designed sensor assembly, anti-static coatings and sensor-shake cleaning, dust should be much less of a problem.

Complementing the sensor is the DIGIC4 14-bit A/D image processor adapted from the Canon 50D. With it you’ve got fast enough performance to maintain a 3.9 images per second frame rate, correct image vignetting, and handle 1080p HD video, which is quite an accomplishment considering the huge image files.

Rounding out the major hardware improvements is a new, very viewable (even in bright daylight), 920,000 dot 3.0” TFT LCD. And what a boon it is for Live View and HD video composing, viewing and general proofing. The quality of the images on it must be seen to be appreciated.

Of course, a camera is more than just hardware, and the 5D Mark II has an abundance of settings and configurations like 7 image file formats, 4 focusing modes, 9 white balance settings, including Custom as well as Bracketing and Shift; 6 Picture styles, plus 3 custom settable ones; and, of course, the usual Sharpness, Contrast, Saturation, Tone, etc.

All things considered, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II is one hell of a camera! And if you need more than just the body, it also comes bundled as a kit with an excellent piece of glass, Canon’s EF 24-105 f4L IS USM, at a substantial savings over buying it separately.