5DS R update - preorder angst

I received an email from Clifton Cameras, it read :

Dear Mr Tainton. 

 We have been advised by Canon UK that initial allocation of the new 5DS R bodies is poor throughout the UK, but they have assured us they are working hard to provide cameras as quickly as they possibly can.  As soon as we receive further updates, we will of course be in contact and assist you in any way we can. 

Should you have any questions or concerns in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact us. 

Thank you and kind regards, 

 XXXX XXXXX - Online Sales Manager 

Surprising news, as I was expecting a pre launch demonstration day, with a chance to get my hands on a demo 5DS R and make some images for comparison purposes with the 1Ds3.

The 5DS and 5DS R cameras have shipped and are in the hands of some customers, reviews are starting to feed through. Most insightful is a blog article from Lensrentals (http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2015/06/canon-5ds-teardown) which tears down a 5DS and comments on various aspects of the camera design, build and images of the tear down stages. My eyebrows raised a tad reading the following passage

'I should probably mention weather sealing because many of you are fascinated by it. Canon presents the 5Ds and 5D sr as studio cameras and the weather sealing clearly isn't as robust as that we saw in the 7D Mk II, but it's still pretty good, particularly around the doors. You can see foamed sealing around the memory card door in an earlier image. There's similar sealing around the battery door on both sides. We didn't see any rubber gaskets around the top assembly, rear assembly, etc.'

Based on the accompanying teardown images, to my eyes the weather sealing was indeed pretty good for coping with the demands of an indoor studio camera, but it appeared pretty lame for anything outdoors and damp. So, digging out the UK Press literature when it was announced, the launch literature stated

‘… utilise Canon’s iconic design DNA–a highly durable body constructed from high-grade magnesium alloy to provide weather resilient shooting – ideal for landscape photographers who are dedicated to getting the perfect shot, whatever the weather.’

From what I've seen on the Lensrentals tear down,  I would be pretty stupid to use the camera if it rains or there's hill fog or mist about, which effectively puts the 5DS R into the 'chocolate fireguard' category of useful objects for my landscape photography needs.

EDIT - Canon's definition of 'weather resilient shooting', 'whatever the weather' is 3 mins of rainfall up to an intensity of 10mm/hr

'The bodies of the EOS 5DS and EOS 5DS R are made from a combination of the same durable materials as the EOS 5D Mark III – a steel base plate and a magnesium alloy body shell. These three cameras are also weather-sealed to protect against dust and moisture in harsh environments. Body panels interlock, rather than just join, and all seams buttons and dials are protected with rubber sealing. The weather protection provided by this design is high enough to endure exposure to rain of up to 10mm of rain per hour for a duration of up to approximately three minutes.'

  http://cpn.canon-europe.com/content/education/technical/inside_the_eos_5ds_and_eos_5ds_r.do

Finally an upgrade path from the 1Ds3

Canon released the 1Ds3 in the UK at the end of 2007, I read the user reviews and realised how useful Live View was in assisting manual focus. The frustrations of trying to manually focus with a 5D made it a no brainer, I bought a 1Ds3 and haven't looked back.

When Canon announced the 1DX as the unification of the 1D series, I was less than impressed. The specs suggested this wasn't a camera optimised for Landscape photography. There was no upgrade path within the EOS system, even for my limited needs. Still, one key attribute of Landscape photography is patience and endurance.

Nikon, released the FF D800 and D800E DSLR's, after the initial hype, all went strangely quiet. Except for the discussion of the Live View implementation and image colours.

Leica, announced an M240 digital RF, with an R lens adapter, live view and an external EVF. Sadly, Leica's idea of Live view implementation didn't match mine and the tripod haptics were interesting. A pre order deposit placed, was cancelled after a hands on demo revealed the flawed nature of the camera for Landscape photography with a tripod. 

Sony, announced and then released a FF mirrorless interchangeable lens camera. I suspected the camera with a mount compatible with it's E mount lenses was primarily aimed at its Nex user base. The short registration distance of the camera, meant that with a 3rd party smart adapter FF Canon EF lenses could be used, in fact pretty much any FF lens, ever made, could be used via an adapter. The pre release hype was incredible, febrile even. However, as with so many Sony photography products, with the camera actually in the hands of photographers, the hype died down. It was soon apparent that there were some issues with the design and build quality viz. the materials of construction, the insubstantial mount design caused a mounted lens to wobble and leak light, there were ZERO weather sealing gaskets, excessive shutter vibration, battery life was poor, an issue with the sensor cover glass thickness, EVF, complaints of lossy RAW files, image posterisation, the list went on and on and on. Even the 3rd party EF to FE 'smart' adapter had some issues too, with reflections and tolerances. You can't believe all you read online, so I made a trip to check out the Sony camera. Even with low expectations, it still underwhelmed massively.

Canon, had released FF 5D3 and 6D DSLR's and the specs were biased to High ISO, FPS, Auto Focus, Video etc so these weren't an upgrade path either. 

Nikon, then released a D810 and soon after used D800's could be picked up for a very reasonable outlay. I could switch, if the ageing 1Ds3 expired, the Canon lenses hold their value well, and for a reasonable outlay join the Nikon system. Buying a used 1Ds3 seemed more practical and realistic.

Then, on the 6th of February, Canon Europe announced to those gathered in London the EOS 5DS R 50MP DSLR.

The online forums filled with speculation and no little negativity. The underwhelming High ISO,  Low FPS and frankly lame Video implementation, meant some sports, events, street, wedding and wildlife photographers were not impressed. Happily, Canon had not addressed this market segment, oh no. At long last there was an upgrade path from the 1Ds3.

A quick check on the image pixels for 3:1, 5:2 and 2:1 aspect ratio crops from a 50MP FF Sensor, hmmm interesting.  I've found stitching multiple images of landscapes in storm/squall lighting and especially around dusk and twilight when colour temperatures can change rapidly, to be an exercise in abject frustration and gave it up a long time ago. A FF 50MP opens the door for single shot panoramic images. There are other and more important factors to just MP's though.

The weather sealing was stated for "extreme weather". A more robust body chasis for tripod mounting than previous 5D series. Crippled video features - oh yes, a camera optimised for Low ISO stills - deep joy, colour filter array optimised for colour ALA 1Ds3 - the clincher. Improved rear display resolution screen and live view over the 1Ds3. Optical view finder ...

There were some minor gripes - 5D body and smaller battery, no OVF shutter blind and some other things that I can't recollect.

It was all too much, the silence from Sports and Wildlife photographers and whining from Wedding and Events photographers was all the confirmation I needed. So, I pre ordered with Clifton Cameras and have now settled down to wait for buyers remorse to kick in.