Canon EOS 1D Mark IV vs. Nikon D3s: ISO Comparison

Canon EOS 1D Mark IV vs. Nikon D3s: ISO Comparison
In one corner the 16.1 megapixel APS-H sensored Canon EOS 1D Mark IV. In the other corner, the full framed, 12.1 megapixel Nikon D3s. We’ve been playing with both cameras now and finally have our ISO shots from each to compare. The winner? No contest…it’s the Nikon D3s.

Order The Cameras

• Nikon D3s at B&H Photo
• Canon EOS 1D Mark IV at B&H Photo

A Quick Tour

A Few Words

Don’t get dismayed Canon fans, compared to most cameras, the EOS 1D Mark IV does a very respectable job at high ISO, however the Nikon D3s just takes things to a whole new level, I hate to encourage you to skip past the fine print, but check out the ISO 1600 samples from the D3s, they look a lot like ISO 200 on most other cameras don’t they? It’s really just quite remarkable. Now of course the D3s has two key advantages going for it:

• larger sensor
• fewer megapixels

But in my opinion, Nikon also has chosen a wiser noise reduction path. If you look at the crops, you’ll see a lot of chroma noise in the Canon files, and none in the Nikon files. Instead Nikon leaves behind the luminance noise, the final result is a prettier image–for pixel peepers anyway. ISO isn’t everything, but in the real world shooting scenarios, improved ISO performance has its advantages even when ambient light isn’t that low. For example, while shooting a local high school basketball game, I was a bit hesitant about what I was seeing on the LCD of the Mark IV at ISO 6400, the ISO I needed to get 1/1000 for shooting sports, (at f/2.8 even). So instead I was reducing ISO and slowing shutter speed to 1/800, which resulted in slightly less sharp captures than could have ideally been captured. In similar environments the D3s would allow for the higher ISO setting, which also would have been cleaner than the Mark IV’s lower setting, and I could have shot at a higher shutter speed, the net result would have been sharper, cleaner shots. On the other hand…the Mark IV’s 1.3x crop allowed for a longer lens reach, and bigger files, that can be resized down, or alternatively could be cropped out of. There’s advantages either way, but my takeaway would be if your sports, wildlife, or journalistic photography involves low light environments to a great degree, the D3s should get preferential treatment, otherwise stick with your current system. Nikon shooters get a 1 and a half stop boost in ISO performance and 720p HD video, Canon shooters get a much improved AF, more extensive HD video options, and slight image and ISO improvements.

ISO Comparisons

In general I like to keep these tests at the same equivalent focal length, typically 50mm (and f/8) where possible. Due to lens differences, and processing differences in-camera, it’s important to not judge the sharpness of the results. For both cameras (all three actually) I lower sharpening in-camera to the lowest setting, and no sharpening is done in post. Actual in-camera results from both cameras are sharper at factory defaults. Noise reduction has been turned off in-camera, as well as dynamic range enhancers, so yes this is as bad as these files can look out of camera. One final note, I’ve thrown in the Canon EOS 5D Mark II, which is still putting in a fine showing here. The D3s and Mark IV go all the way to ISO 102,400, where honestly things aren’t all that pretty, in fact the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV’s crops are downright brutal.

Use the image below to orient yourself to the crops, and click each thumbnail for the full 100% view of the crop. Get the full Canon EOS 1D Mark IV Samples here and the D3s samples here. From left to right the cameras are D3s, 1D Mark IV, 5D Mark II. After ISO 25,600, it’s Nikon D3s on the left and Canon 1D Mark IV on the right.

[Edit: For a closer look at how the Canon EOS 1D Mark IV compares with the EOS 5D Mark II, check out our comparison right here.]

Crop 1

ISO 1600	ISO 3200
ISO 6400	ISO 12800
ISO 25600	ISO 51200
ISO 102400

Crop 2

ISO 1600	ISO 3200
ISO 6400	ISO 12800
ISO 25600	ISO 51200
ISO 102400

Order The Cameras

• Nikon D3s at B&H Photo
• Canon EOS 1D Mark IV at B&H Photo

Continue the Discussion

Join us on Facebook! Become a fan of Neutralday today! Become a fan of Neutralday on Facebook. Interact with us and stay updated on what's coming next at Neutralday, photography news, and other fans' insights. Follow us on Twitter! Grab our tweets right here. Follow Neutralday on Twitter. Insights on the cameras we're reviewing, and frequent photography related news, thoughts, and links. Support Neutralday by shopping at our preferred retailer, B&H Photo

Explore Similar Posts

• None Found

1. 

   carp says:

   July 23, 2010 at 9:57 pm

   what i see its that the best one up to 1600 is the 5D mkII…who shoots at 6400 anyway?…and its not fair to compare biggest sensor to smallest one at 100%…it should be like at the same print size…

   reply
   • 

     Patrick says:

     July 25, 2010 at 1:13 pm

     carp,
     I have the 5D Mark II, so I’m biased, but agree that it looks very good at ISO 1600. Who uses ISO 6400? You’d be surprised, indoor sports, weddings, etc. anywhere you need a decent shutter speed in poor light.

     reply
2. 

   kumpon says:

   July 29, 2010 at 4:05 am

   i love lumix more than

   reply
   • 

     poosha says:

     August 6, 2010 at 7:49 am

     Haha. I once dropped a 1D Mark IV and it broke into a thousand Lumix pieces.

     reply
3. 

   karl bratby says:

   August 31, 2010 at 2:05 pm

   thanks for sharing. you are correct the noise issue on these cameras favors nikon, but for a camera in the hand to use day in and day out and can alter everything while camera at your eye then the 1 series canons are way above the nikons, i own both systems and like the nikon image but can be a little plastic looking the canon image is more pleasing and real looking, it may have a little more noise but it is also a nicer noise if that makes sense, what no body also compares is these cameras in low and poor quality light, then they are very even but the canon wins as the noise it creates is more even almost ilford Hp5 like and it holds its colors in these situations better whereas the nikon tends to be a little red… but Dude they are just cameras and both are amazing with no clear winner its just personal preference and ergonomics

   reply
4. 

   Peter G says:

   September 1, 2010 at 2:43 am

   Never liked Ilford HP5. Never liked any Iflord film.

   Loved my T-MAX 400, Loved my KR64 , Love my D3.

   D3S next year. Canon..Never

   reply