Canon 1Ds Comparison Review

The Canon EOS-1Ds is a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera that was officially introduced in September 2002 and is equipped with a full frame sensor. It offers a resolution of 11 megapixel.

Is the Canon 1Ds a good camera? The 1Ds has a Camera Elo of 1203. This rating puts the 1Ds below average of all digital single lens reflex cameras. In terms of its sensor size category (full frame cameras), the 1Ds also ranks below average. Based on its within category standings, the camera earns a 2.5-star performance rating. – Well, the Canon 1Ds is more than 22 years old, and there have been many other good digital cameras released since 2002.

Read on to find out more about the camera's size, sensor, features, reception by expert reviewers, and how it compares to other digital cameras.

Body comparison with a credit card

The side-by-side display below illustrates the physical size of the Canon 1Ds vis-à-vis a credit card. Three consecutive perspectives from the front, the top, and the back are presented. All size dimensions are rounded to the nearest millimeter.

The table below summarizes the key physical specs of the Canon 1Ds alongside a set of similar cameras. If you want to review a particular camera pair side-by-side, just move across to the CAM-parator tool and choose from the broad selection of possible comparisons there.

Body Specifications

		Camera Model	Camera Width	Camera Height	Camera Depth	Camera Weight	Battery Life	Weather Sealing	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Canon 1Ds	156 mm	158 mm	80 mm	1265 g	600	Y	Sep 2002	US$ 8 999	ebay.com
2.		Canon 1D Mark II	156 mm	158 mm	80 mm	1535 g	1200	Y	Jan 2004	US$ 4 499	ebay.com
3.		Canon 1D Mark II N	156 mm	158 mm	80 mm	1565 g	1200	Y	Aug 2005	US$ 3 999	ebay.com
4.		Canon 1D Mark III	156 mm	157 mm	80 mm	1155 g	2200	Y	Feb 2007	US$ 4 499	ebay.com
5.		Canon 1D Mark IV	156 mm	157 mm	80 mm	1230 g	1500	Y	Oct 2009	US$ 4 999	ebay.com
6.		Canon 1Ds Mark II	156 mm	158 mm	80 mm	1215 g	1200	Y	Sep 2004	US$ 7 999	ebay.com
7.		Canon 1Ds Mark III	150 mm	160 mm	80 mm	1385 g	1800	Y	Aug 2007	US$ 7 999	ebay.com
8.		Canon 1D C	158 mm	164 mm	83 mm	1545 g	1120	Y	Apr 2012	US$ 14 999	ebay.com
9.		Canon 1D X Mark II	158 mm	168 mm	83 mm	1530 g	1210	Y	Feb 2016	US$ 5 999	ebay.com
10.		Canon 1D X Mark III	158 mm	168 mm	83 mm	1440 g	2850	Y	Jan 2020	US$ 6 499	amazon.com
11.		Canon 5D	152 mm	113 mm	75 mm	895 g	400	Y	Aug 2005	US$ 3 299	ebay.com
Note: Measurements and pricing do not include easily detachable parts, such as add-on or interchangeable lenses or optional viewfinders.
Convert to Imperial

The listed prices provide an indication of the market segment that the manufacturer of the cameras have been targeting. The Canon 1Ds was launched in the US market at a price of $8,999. Usually, retail prices stay at first close to the launch price, but after several months, discounts become available. Later in the product cycle and, in particular, when the replacement model is about to appear, further discounting and stock clearance sales often push the camera price considerably down. Then, after the new model is out, very good deals can frequently be found on the pre-owned market.

Check 1Ds offers at
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Sensor comparison with a 35mm slide

The imaging sensor is at the core of digital cameras and its size is one of the main determining factors of image quality. A large sensor will tend to have larger individual pixels that provide better low-light sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and richer color-depth than smaller pixel-units in a sensor of the same technological generation. Further, a large sensor camera will give the photographer additional creative options when using shallow depth-of-field to isolate a subject from its background. On the downside, larger sensors are more costly to manufacture and tent to lead to bigger and heavier cameras and lenses.

The Canon 1Ds features a full frame sensor and has a format factor (sometimes also referred to as "crop factor") of 1.0. Within the spectrum of camera sensors, this places the Canon 1Ds among the large-sensor cameras that aim for top notch image quality.

Since 2007, DXO Mark has published sensor performance measurements that have been derived using a consistent methodology. This service assesses and scores the color depth ("DXO Portrait"), dynamic range ("DXO Landscape"), and low-light sensitivity ("DXO Sports") of camera sensors, and also publishes an overall camera score. The table below summarizes the physical sensor characteristics and sensor quality findings and compares them across a set of similar cameras.

Sensor Characteristics

		Camera Model	Sensor Class	Resolution (MP)	Horiz. Pixels	Vert. Pixels	Video Format	DXO Portrait	DXO Landscape	DXO Sports	DXO Overall
1.		Canon 1Ds	Full Frame	11.0	4064	2704	none	21.8	11.0	954	63
2.		Canon 1D Mark II	APS-H	8.2	3504	2336	none	22.3	11.1	1003	66
3.		Canon 1D Mark II N	APS-H	8.2	3504	2336	none	22.3	11.2	975	66
4.		Canon 1D Mark III	APS-H	10.1	3888	2592	none	22.7	11.7	1078	71
5.		Canon 1D Mark IV	APS-H	16.0	4896	3264	1080/30p	22.8	12.0	1320	74
6.		Canon 1Ds Mark II	Full Frame	16.6	4992	3328	none	23.3	11.3	1480	74
7.		Canon 1Ds Mark III	Full Frame	21.0	5616	3744	none	24.0	12.0	1663	80
8.		Canon 1D C	Full Frame	17.9	5184	3456	4K/24p	24.3	13.0	2155	85
9.		Canon 1D X Mark II	Full Frame	20.0	5472	3648	4K/60p	24.1	13.5	3207	88
10.		Canon 1D X Mark III	Full Frame	20.0	5472	3648	4K/60p	24.2	14.5	3248	91
11.		Canon 5D	Full Frame	12.7	4368	2912	none	22.9	11.1	1368	71
Note: DXO values in italics represent estimates based on sensor size and age.

It should be noted that unlike many modern cameras, the 1Ds does not provide the possibility to capture videos.

Feature comparison

Apart from body and sensor, cameras can and do differ across a variety of features. For example, the 1Ds has an optical viewfinder that provides a field of view of 100% and a magnification of 0.70x. The following tables report on some other key feature differences and similarities of the Canon 1Ds and comparable cameras.

Core Features

		Camera Model	Viewfinder (Type or 000 dots)	Control Panel (yes/no)	LCD Specifications (inch/000 dots)	LCD Attach- ment	Touch Screen (yes/no)	Max Shutter Speed *	Max Shutter Flaps *	Built-in Flash (yes/no)	Built-in Image Stab
1.		Canon 1Ds	optical	Y	2.0 / 120	fixed	n	1/8000s	3.0/s	n	n
2.		Canon 1D Mark II	optical	Y	2.0 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	8.3/s	n	n
3.		Canon 1D Mark II N	optical	Y	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	8.5/s	n	n
4.		Canon 1D Mark III	optical	Y	3.0 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	n
5.		Canon 1D Mark IV	optical	Y	3.0 / 920	fixed	n	1/8000s	10.0/s	n	n
6.		Canon 1Ds Mark II	optical	Y	2.0 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	4.0/s	n	n
7.		Canon 1Ds Mark III	optical	Y	3.0 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	5.0/s	n	n
8.		Canon 1D C	optical	Y	3.2 / 1040	fixed	n	1/8000s	14.0/s	n	n
9.		Canon 1D X Mark II	optical	Y	3.2 / 1620	fixed	Y	1/8000s	16.0/s	n	n
10.		Canon 1D X Mark III	optical	Y	3.2 / 2100	fixed	Y	1/8000s	20.0/s	n	n
11.		Canon 5D	optical	Y	2.5 / 230	fixed	n	1/8000s	3.0/s	n	n
Note: *) Information refers to the mechanical shutter, unless the camera only has an electronic one.

One useful feature of the 1Ds is a presence of a top-level LCD. While being, of course, smaller than the rear screen, the control panel conveys some of the essential shooting information and can be convenient for quick and easy settings verification.

Connection comparison

For some imaging applications, the extent to which a camera can communicate with its environment can be an important aspect in the camera decision process. The table below provides an overview of the connectivity of the Canon EOS-1Ds and, in particular, the interfaces the cameras (and selected comparators) provide for accessory control and data transfer.

Input-Output Connections

		Camera Model	Hotshoe Port	Internal Mic / Speaker	Microphone Port	Headphone Port	HDMI Port	USB Port	WiFi Support	NFC Support	Bluetooth Support
1.		Canon 1Ds	Y	- / -	-	-	-	FW	-	-	-
2.		Canon 1D Mark II	Y	- / -	-	-	-	1.1	-	-	-
3.		Canon 1D Mark II N	Y	- / -	-	-	-	1.1	-	-	-
4.		Canon 1D Mark III	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
5.		Canon 1D Mark IV	Y	stereo / -	Y	-	mini	2.0	-	-	-
6.		Canon 1Ds Mark II	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
7.		Canon 1Ds Mark III	Y	mono / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-
8.		Canon 1D C	Y	mono / mono	Y	Y	mini	2.0	-	-	-
9.		Canon 1D X Mark II	Y	mono / mono	Y	Y	mini	3.0	-	-	-
10.		Canon 1D X Mark III	Y	mono / mono	Y	Y	mini	3.1	Y	-	Y
11.		Canon 5D	Y	- / -	-	-	-	2.0	-	-	-

Further information on the features and operation of the 1Ds can be found in the free online Canon 1Ds Manual or on the Canon support site.

Expert reviews

While the comparison of the spec-sheets of cameras can offer a general idea of their imaging potential, it remains incomplete and does no justice, for example, to the way the 1Ds handle or perform in practice. User reviews, such as those found at amazon, can sometimes inform about these issues, but such feedback is often incomplete, inconsistent, and biased. This is why expert reviews are important. The adjacent table relays the overall verdicts of several of the most popular camera review sites (amateurphotographer [AP], cameralabs [CL], digitalcameraworld [DCW], dpreview [DPR], ephotozine [EPZ], photographyblog [PB]).

Review Scores

		Camera   Model	AP   score	CL   score	DCW   score	DPR   score	EPZ   score	PB   score	Camera Launch	Launch Price	Street Price
1.		Canon 1Ds	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Sep 2002	US$ 8 999	ebay.com
2.		Canon 1D Mark II	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Jan 2004	US$ 4 499	ebay.com
3.		Canon 1D Mark II N	..	..	..	..	..	..	Aug 2005	US$ 3 999	ebay.com
4.		Canon 1D Mark III	..	..	..	..	..	..	Feb 2007	US$ 4 499	ebay.com
5.		Canon 1D Mark IV	5/5	..	..	89/100	..	..	Oct 2009	US$ 4 999	ebay.com
6.		Canon 1Ds Mark II	..	..	..	+ +	..	..	Sep 2004	US$ 7 999	ebay.com
7.		Canon 1Ds Mark III	..	..	..	+ +	4.5/5	..	Aug 2007	US$ 7 999	ebay.com
8.		Canon 1D C	..	..	..	..	..	..	Apr 2012	US$ 14 999	ebay.com
9.		Canon 1D X Mark II	..	..	4.5/5	89/100	4.5/5	4.5/5	Feb 2016	US$ 5 999	ebay.com
10.		Canon 1D X Mark III	..	+ +	5/5	..	4.5/5	4/5	Jan 2020	US$ 6 499	amazon.com
11.		Canon 5D	..	88/100	..	+ +	o	..	Aug 2005	US$ 3 299	ebay.com
Note: (+ +) highly recommended; (+) recommended; (o) reviewed; (..) not available.

The review scores listed above should be treated with care, though. The ratings are only valid when referring to cameras in the same category and of the same age. Hence, a score should always be seen in the context of the camera's market launch date and its price, and comparisons of ratings among very different cameras or across long time periods have little meaning. Also, please note that some of the review sites have changed their methodology and reporting over time.

Check 1Ds offers at
ebay.com

Camera to camera comparisons

In case you would like to check on the differences and similarities with other camera models, just make your choice using the following search menu. Alternatively, you can follow any of the listed hyperlinks for comparisons that others found interesting.

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