1600 ISO Canon 70D vs. Canon 5D Mark III – Both With Canon 70-200mm f/2.8

1600 ISO Canon 70D vs. 5D Mark III Noise Test

I have been shooting with the Canon 5D Mark III professionally for some time now, but I must confess that I am very impressed with the Canon 70D. The image above is a side-by-side comparison at 1600 ISO using the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8 lens on both cameras.

This post is not about Full Frame vs. APS-C (1.6x Crop Factor) or any of the other numerous things that the photo forums may argue back and forth about. It's simply a short post about my testing at 1600 ISO using the Canon 70D after being a regular user of the Canon 5D Mark III.

In the test above, I wanted to compare the two cameras at 1600 ISO because as a corporate event photographer, I often shoot in low light and do bump the ISO up to 1600 ISO at times for stage shots. At a quick glance, there is not a drastic difference in the two images. They were both shot seconds apart with the same f/stop, the same shutter speed, the same lens, in the same lighting environment. I was trying to do as close to an apples to apples comparison as possible. If my goal were to make the Canon 70D look bad vs. the Canon 5D Mark III, I could have changed numerous variables and tried to make an argument against the 70D. However, with all of my initial shooting thus far including the 18mm-135mm kit lens shooting as I wrote about the other day in my post on my take of the Canon 70D, I am very impressed with the 70D and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a Canon brand camera.

Although my go to will continue to be the 5D Mark III, I can now feel confident grabbing the 70D out of my bag if needed especially after numerous tests at 1600 ISO beyond the one above. At the end of the day, it's about buying the best gear that you can comfortably afford and doing the best job you can with that gear. After shooting with the Canon 70D, I feel that it can get the job done in most situations.

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David Williams

Owner at RTP Photo and Video, Inc.

Short Bio About The Author: I'm David Williams a professional commercial photographer focusing on corporate and business clients with some personal branding, lifestyle photography in the mix. My love for photography began in late 1981 while still in High School. I started making money with his camera in 1982. Brenda, my wife, and I started working together in photography in 1988 shortly after we met. Brenda and I married in 1989 and have two adult daughters. Please be sure to get a quote for services if needed. Call or Text: 919.723.8453. Please reach out to connect with me on LinkedIn.