Canon 5D, Blackmagic Cinema Camera, Canon C100 or something else?

Question

I currently have a Canon t2i and I'm definitely ready to upgrade to a more professional, larger sensor camera, the question is which one? I need a camera with good low-light, a film-look (would be nice, but not necessary), all-in-one (in other words, doesn't need a ridiculous amount of accessories to make it better), and overall just amazing. I'll set my budget at $5,000. Feel free to offer other camera choices and back up your answers with facts. I'm not a huge tech guy so please don't throw technical jargon at me. Thanks.

Update:

Another camera I'm looking at that I forgot to mention: Sony NEX-FS100U,

Update 2:

You should also consider the need for me to have to buy new lenses. I have no idea what cameras will support the two lenses I have (a Canon kit lens 18-55mm and a canon 35mm f/2). So if a camera requires me to get new lens and up the cost a lot that would be good to know.

Answer 1

This is an easy answer for me of the choices you are considering. Hands down the C100 would be the best choice here. It will destroy any camera in this price range for low light. It has built in ND filters, a huge plus if you have ever had to use ones that mount to lenses. The dynamic range is a solid 12 stops which means you can get a lot more detail in highlights then with any DSLR. It also has XLR inputs built into the handle so you can record great audio in camera without needing to buy additional gear. With an optional video recorder, like the Atmos Ninja 2, you will get Pro Res HQ quality at 10 bits, which exceeds the quality of the C300 costing over twice as much. It is highly useable without an expensive rig as well. I shot a full wedding with it, over 8 hours, and about 80% of it was handheld with a 50mm.

The Blackmagic Cinema Camera is a great image camera but it is not close to the C100 performance in low light. The image may be great but you will have to work for it with proper color correction. If you want to shoot raw, well, that is whole another can of worms and expenses. Even a lot of major productions that have budgets will opt for Pro Res over raw because of cost. If you want to shoot a lot of footage raw will hit your pocket book hard not to mention your time needing to edit everything in post. At 2,000 though it is a lot of image for the price and you can always shoot in Pro Res which is still a great image format. It does need a rig, no ND filters built in, and SSD cards are a lot more expensive then the kind of cards the C100 shoots with.

The 5D is not an upgrade from what you are using now in my opinion. It is a $3,000 camera, and it is still a stills camera that does video. You will get better low light performance then the T2i and more shallow depth of field with the larger sensor. Even though the 5D may be a larger sensor then the C100 it does not beat the it in low light. Just check out some comparison test videos online to compare noise levels at high ISOs. The reason why, the 5D is packing over 20 mega pixels on the sensor, way more then you need for video. The C100 only uses 8 mega pixels which leads to larger pixels that are more sensitive in low light. So sensor size is only part of the equation here when it comes to low light performance of a camera.

Overall if I had 5,000 in my budget I would be getting a C100 without question. If you are not sure go rent one on LensRentals.com to see if it is for you. $5,000 it a lot spend on a mistake if it is not what you like so renting is never a bad option before you buy. Also I should mention, your kit lens will work on the C100, I have the same lens and it worked for me. The 35mm will also work without any problems. Another nice thing about the low light performance is even a kit lens will get decent performance in low light because you can push the ISO so high.

Answer 2

Your kit 18-55 lens is an EF-S lens and will not mount on a full frame Canon body like the 5D.

The 35mm is an EF lens so can be used on any Canon DSLR.

A chain is only as strong as the weakest link. If you want to do justice to the full frame sensor on the 5D you need the lens with resolution to suit - that means L series lenses.

Answer 3

Not sure about what kind of photography do you want, but if I were you, I would choose the 5D2/5D3/7D + Sigma 24-70, a tripod,.

In fact, the needs of your "low-light, a film-look (would be nice, but not necessary), all-in-one" are mostly related to the lens

Answer 4

I select canon 5d