How I opened my 5D Mark III - and why you have to be crazy to do it

[Andrew Reid]

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[img]http://www.eoshd.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/DSCF0134.jpg[/img]

[url="http://twitter.com/#!/millerandmiller"]First and foremost – a huge thank you to James Miller for the inspiration and guidance[/url]

Disclaimer: I accept no liability, nor can I recommend this risky operation on your camera unless you are totally insane!

Over Easter I disassembled my 5D Mark III. The aim is to remove the optical low pass filter that sits in front of the sensor block, a drastic operation [url="http://www.eoshd.com/content/7727/james-miller-removes-optical-low-pass-filter-from-5d-mark-iii-for-resolution-increase"]pioneered by James Miller last week[/url]. Removing it increases resolution in video mode and makes for a sharper image with no digital sharpening in post required.

With results that good on offer, why do you need to be bonkers to try it? Read on to find out how the teardown went…

[url="http://www.eoshd.com/content/7813/how-i-opened-my-5d-mark-iii-and-why-you-have-to-be-crazy-to-do-it/"]Read full article[/url]

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[rishaar]

It's an extreme way to improve video quality of course, but you gotta love the whole DIY spirit  :)
Can't wait to see some footage!

[Rabby]

8) Cool Can't wait to see your footage as well as how to on the Mark III. Andrew can this be applied on the Mark II as well?

[moebius22]

Wait till somebody figures out they can do this for money.

[Chris Santucci]

It'd be interesting to see how footage from the MKIII with OLPF removed compares to the MKII footage.

[jcs]

[quote author=moebius22 link=topic=561.msg3673#msg3673 date=1334103053]
Wait till somebody figures out they can do this for money.
[/quote]

$450 USD + shipping (includes optical replacement glass): http://maxmax.com/IRCameraConversions.htm

[FastFisher]

Awesome! with more and more people doing. It's very encouraging.

[Andrew Reid]

[quote author=jcs link=topic=561.msg3677#msg3677 date=1334104382]
[quote author=moebius22 link=topic=561.msg3673#msg3673 date=1334103053]
Wait till somebody figures out they can do this for money.
[/quote]

$450 USD + shipping (includes optical replacement glass): http://maxmax.com/IRCameraConversions.htm
[/quote]

A service like that [i]could[/i] be a solution for many people here. It is worth the price if they can do the 5D Mark III, and do it right. I'd enquire and explain the situation with a link back to this article.

[bradleyg5]

I don't quite understand how you EVER could get it to focus perfectly again if those screws/springs need the perfect amount of tension, hear you explain that sounds like it would always be a little bit off if done by hand.

I want screen shots of test charts and stuff though! I hope you took before comparison shots so you can post frame grabs from video to show the difference.

I'd rather spend 500 dollars extra on a 5dIII than spend 500+ extra on needing a second body like the GH2.

The IR is sort of a big deal but I still don't understand what the rest of the filter does, your implication is it does nothing beyond  blur the image. And I don't understand why a 2MP video frame would be more affected than a 22MP still frame?

[Andrew Reid]

It is possible the electronic contacts to the OLPF trigger a stronger anti-aliasing blur when video mode is active. More likely, video is more effected because you are viewing the results at 1:1 on a 1080p screen. If you look at stills they are quite soft at 1:1 as well.

[OlegKalyan]

Andew, or any of fellow members who has this setup, could you compare 5dmk3 to GH2, do a test?

[Samuel H]

I thought this was a crazy idea when I first read about it, and still think it is after seeing your pics

I have declicked and repaired lenses, repaired point-and-shoots, opened up laptops... but I'll stick to post sharpening, this is frightening  ??? ??? ???


plus: reading that the filter affects video but not stills makes me think it's not a standard passive filter: it's somehow controlled by electronics, and I look forward to having Magic Lantern solve the 5D3's softness issue in a much less aggressive way :)

[Andrew Reid]

[quote author=OlegKalyan link=topic=561.msg3703#msg3703 date=1334139323]
Andew, or any of fellow members who has this setup, could you compare 5dmk3 to GH2, do a test?
[/quote]

I will be doing soon, along with FS100 in the mix.

[jaybirch]

Fair play fella, that must take nerves of steal... I've done my share of meddling with computers and such, but that is a step up.

[jcs]

[quote author=Andrew Reid - EOSHD link=topic=561.msg3701#msg3701 date=1334136226]
It is possible the electronic contacts to the OLPF trigger a stronger anti-aliasing blur when video mode is active. More likely, video is more effected because you are viewing the results at 1:1 on a 1080p screen. If you look at stills they are quite soft at 1:1 as well.
[/quote]

This can be tested by pulling the connector and leaving the OLPF in place.

[nigelbb]

[quote author=Andrew Reid - EOSHD link=topic=561.msg3687#msg3687 date=1334106663]
[quote author=jcs link=topic=561.msg3677#msg3677 date=1334104382]
[quote author=moebius22 link=topic=561.msg3673#msg3673 date=1334103053]
Wait till somebody figures out they can do this for money.
[/quote]

$450 USD + shipping (includes optical replacement glass): http://maxmax.com/IRCameraConversions.htm
[/quote]

A service like that [i]could[/i] be a solution for many people here. It is worth the price if they can do the 5D Mark III, and do it right. I'd enquire and explain the situation with a link back to this article.
[/quote]Over on dvxuser there is a report from someone who has had their OLPF professionally removed by www.maxmax.com
His verdict - 
"So far, I am a bit underwhelmed."
"The difference in resolution is negligible"
"Camera works fine, no aliasing to speak of but also very little gain in sharpness"
"right now I'm unimpressed."

http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?278918-Canon-5d-mark-iii-improved-olpf-removed-for-higher-resolution&p=1986130831&viewfull=1#post1986130831

[muf]

As an experienced IR shooter (I own a [url=http://www.flickr.com/photos/66126370@N07/]600D with the hot mirror removed[/url]), I cannot recommend removing the hot mirror for anyone who wants to retain decent colour reproduction on their 5D III. The Canon hot mirror (which is also the optical low pass filter and houses the piezoelectric sensor cleaner) is vastly superior (in that it blocks almost all IR) to any third party hot mirrors like the one from Tiffen.

Replacing the hot mirror with a third party filter will almost certainly bring a pink tinge to your shots and especially black clothes will not be the same (they will show up dark purple) because black fabric is usually bright white when viewed in the infrared spectrum and as such will show IR contamination the strongest.

I also have reason to believe the EOS high end range uses a more effective hot mirror than the lower end, as I have a bright IR LED light that can light up an entire room (I use it for night vision with my modified 600D), and when viewing it directly with an unmodified 450D there is IR leakage (you can see a dark pink light) and viewing it directly with an unmodified 5D II it's completely black (as you see it with the naked eye -- we don't see IR) suggesting a more effective hot mirror.

You can easily test IR sensitivity by pointing a TV remote at your camera and pressing a button. I'll be interested in seeing results from people before/after modification. I've only ever known about people removing the hot mirror for astrophotography and IR/UV shooting, removing it for an extremely marginal improvement on sharpness seems a waste of a perfectly good hot mirror that also doubles up as a sensor cleaner.

[Andrew Reid]

I'm happy with colour reproduction. The Leica M8 didn't have an ir-cut filter over the sensor either. I've ordered some Leica ir-cut filters for my lenses.

[muf]

I'm happy with my colour reproduction too. But that is because I like an unusual look and don't mind if things don't look exactly true to "eye vision". But I also only modified an inexpensive 600D, I would never do that with a 5D unless I was made of money. Other people might not be so adventurous (given the marginal gains to be had), hence my warning.