Canon EOS 5D Mark III vs Nikon 1 J1

In this comparison, we will evaluate the Canon EOS 5D Mark III and the Nikon 1 J1, highlighting the advantages of each over the other, discussing their pros and cons, shared strengths and weaknesses, and providing a rating based on their available features and specifications to assist you in choosing the one that best suits your needs.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III was introduced in May 2012 and Nikon 1 J1 was introduced in January 2012. Let us first list highlights of the models.

Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these cameras, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Canon EOS 5D Mark III over Nikon 1 J1.

This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Nikon 1 J1 over Canon EOS 5D Mark III.

We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

Screen

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has a 3.2" screen with 1,040k dot resolution and Nikon 1 J1 has a 3.0" screen with 460k dot resolution. Both have Fixed screens.

Optical (pentaprism) Viewfinder on Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has a built-in Optical (pentaprism) viewfinder. It has a 100% coverage and 0.71x magnification. There is no built-in or optional viewfinder available on Nikon 1 J1.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III features a 22.3 megapixel Full Frame CMOS sensor with dimensions of 36 x 24 mm and a total area of 864 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 25,600 and expands to 50 - 102,400 in boosted mode. Nikon 1 J1 features a 10.1 megapixel 1-inch CMOS sensor with dimensions of 13.2 x 8.8 mm and a total area of 77.4 mm². Its native ISO range is 100 - 6,400.

Here is a sensor size comparison chart where you can see how different sensors compare with each other:

Sensor size chart

	Sensor	Dimensions	Area	Aspect Ratio	Crop Factor
	Medium Format	44 x 33 mm	1452 mm2	4:3	0.79x
	Full Frame	36 x 24 mm	864 mm2	3:2	1x
	APS-H	27 x 18 mm	486 mm2	3:2	1.3x
	APS-C	23.6 x 15.6 mm	368.2 mm2	3:2	1.5x
	APS-C (Canon)	22.3 x 14.9 mm	332.3 mm2	3:2	1.6x
	Micro Four Thirds	17.4 x 13 mm	226.2 mm2	4:3	2x
	1-inch	13.2 x 8.8 mm	116.2 mm2	3:2	2.7x
	1/1.7-inch	7.44 x 5.58 mm	41.5 mm2	4:3	4.7x
	1/2.3-inch	6.17 x 4.55 mm	28.1 mm2	4:3	5.6x

Canon EOS 5D Mark III is equipped with DIGIC 5+ processor and can take pictures up to 5760 x 3840 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3840 x 2560, 2880 x 1920, 1920 x 1280, 720 x 480 with 3:2 aspect ratios. Nikon 1 J1 can take pictures up to 3872 x 2592 resolution. It can also take pictures with lower resolution like 3840 x 2160, 2896 x 1944, 1936 x 1296 with 3:2, 16:9 aspect ratios.

Lens Mount

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has Canon EF lens mount and Nikon 1 J1 has Nikon 1 lens mount. Due to Full Frame sensor in Canon EOS 5D Mark III its crop factor is equal to 1x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length. Due to 1-inch sensor in Nikon 1 J1 its crop factor is equal to 2.7x, this means that a 35mm equivalent focal length of the mounted lens will be equal to its actual focal length times 2.7.

No Image Stabilization

The cameras do not have image stabilization. On Canon EOS 5D Mark III it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Nikon 1 J1 nothing can be done. On Nikon 1 J1 it means that you need lenses with optical image stabilization for vibration reduction. As for Canon EOS 5D Mark III nothing can be done.

USB Inputs and HDMI Outputs

Both models have USB 2.0 (480 Mbit/sec) inputs for data transfer. Canon EOS 5D Mark III has a Mini HDMI and Nikon 1 J1 has an HDMI connector for video signal output.

Battery

Canon EOS 5D Mark III comes with LP-E6 battery pack with battery life of 950 shots and Nikon 1 J1 comes with EN-EL20 battery pack with battery life of 230 shots.

External Storage Slots

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has two card slots - one for SD/SDHC/SDXC and one for CompactFlash (Type I, UDMA 7). Nikon 1 J1 has a single SD/SDHC/SDXC card slot.

Shutter

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has Electronically Controlled Vertical-travel Mechanical Focal-plane shutter. Nikon 1 J1 has Electronic shutter. Shutter speed can go up to 1/8000 sec on Canon EOS 5D Mark III, and up to 1/16000 sec with electronic shutter and up to 1/4000 sec with mechanical shutter on Nikon 1 J1. Canon EOS 5D Mark III can shoot continuously up to 6.0 fps. Nikon 1 J1 can shoot continuously up to 10.0 fps.

Focusing

Canon EOS 5D Mark III has Dual Pixel CMOS AF system with 61 (41 cross-type) focusing points and Nikon 1 J1 has Hybrid autofocus (phase detection/contrast-detect AF)
AF-assist illuminator system with 135 focusing points. Canon EOS 5D Mark III has detection range from -2 to +18 EV.

Exposure

Exposure meterings of Canon EOS 5D Mark III ranges from +1 to +20 EV and you can set the exposure compensation within the ±5 EV range on Canon EOS 5D Mark III and ±3 range on Nikon 1 J1. You can also do exposure lock, exposure bracketing and manual exposure adjustment on Canon EOS 5D Mark III and exposure lock and manual exposure adjustment on Nikon 1 J1.

Flash

Nikon 1 J1 has a built-in flash with maximum range of 5.00 m. Canon EOS 5D Mark III has no built-in flash but an external flash may be connected via Hot Shoe or PC Terminal. The fastest flash synchronization speed is 1/200 sec on Canon EOS 5D Mark III and 1/60 sec on Nikon 1 J1.

Canon EOS 5D Mark III body has dimensions of 152 x 116 x 76 mm (5.98 x 4.57 x 2.99") and Nikon 1 J1 body has dimensions of 106 x 61 x 30 mm (4.17 x 2.4 x 1.18"). Canon EOS 5D Mark III weighs 950 g (2.09 lb / 33.51 oz) and Nikon 1 J1 weighs 234 g (0.52 lb / 8.25 oz).

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Nikon 1 J1

152 mm

116 mm

106 mm

61 mm

116 mm

61 mm

76 mm

30 mm