Canon
EOS-1D X Mark III 2020
Best for Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography
£6999
new today at Wex Photo Video
Decision tools · Compare
EOS-1D X Mark III vs EOS-1Ds
Quick take: The EOS-1D X Mark III has the highest resolution at 20MP; the EOS-1Ds is the most affordable.
15 specs side by side·14 genres scored·UK prices from Wex Photo Video and Clifton Cameras
How to read this page. Highlighted cells win that row on the spec alone. Genre scores are the engine's base scores (enthusiast, photo and video); Camera Match re-weights them for your level and priorities. Price buttons are affiliate links; the price you pay is the same.
Canon
EOS-1Ds 2002
Best for Full-frame DSLR history & Canon archive collections
£200
list price · used from £102 at eBay
Price buttons are affiliate links — GearFrame may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never affects a score. Learn more
Verdictwhich should you buy?
EOS-1D X Mark III — Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography: Canon's DSLR masterpiece — 20fps live view, 5.5K RAW, 191 cross-type AF points, and dual CFexpress. Almost certainly the finest optical viewfinder camera ever made.
EOS-1Ds — Full-Frame Dslr History & Canon Archive Collections: The world's first production full-frame DSLR — the EOS-1Ds arrived in 2002 with 11MP and changed professional photography forever. Historically irreplaceable.
Who should buy what
EOS-1D X Mark III (2020)
is the right camera for you if…
- Sports and wildlife photographers with a Canon EF lens collection
- Professionals who prefer the optical viewfinder experience
- Press photographers who need 20fps, weather sealing, and Ethernet
- Canon historians who want to mark the end of the EOS-1D DSLR era
EOS-1Ds (2002)
is the right camera for you if…
- Collectors and historians of professional digital photography
- Canon archivists who want the full EOS-1 lineage represented
- Photography educators documenting the full-frame transition
Full specificationsthe better value in each row is highlighted
| Specification | EOS-1D X Mark IIICanon · 2020 | EOS-1DsCanon · 2002 |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £6,999 | £200Best |
| Sensor | 20.1MP full-frame CMOS | 11.1MP full-frame CMOS |
| Resolution | 20.1MPBest | 11.1MP |
| Video | 5.5K RAW, 4K 60fps (crop), 4K 60fps (full-frame via firmware) | — |
| Autofocus | 191-point all cross-type OVF AF; 525-point Dual Pixel CMOS AF (Live View) | 45-point AF with 7 cross-type points |
| Burst Rate | 16fps mechanical, 20fps live viewBest | 3fps continuous |
| Battery Life | ~2850 shots (CIPA)Best | ~500 shots per charge |
| Weight | 1250g (body only)Best | 1270g (body only) |
| Dimensions | 158 × 167.6 × 82.6mm | 155.6 × 117.8 × 79.9mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | OVF 0.76× magnification, 100% coverage | OVF, 0.70× magnification, 100% coverage |
| Screen | 3.2" fixed touchscreen, 4.15M dots | 2.0" fixed LCD |
| Mount | Canon EF | Canon EF |
| Memory Cards | Dual CFexpress Type B slots | CompactFlash Type I/II |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth 4.2, USB-C 3.1 Gen 2, Ethernet | USB 1.1, FireWire |
Wins the row — price, resolution, burst, battery, weight and sealing are compared; text specs aren't ranked.
How they score by genreengine base scores out of 10
Genre
EOS-1D X Mark III
EOS-1Ds
Portrait
6.3/10
5.1/10
Street
4.1/10
3.6/10
Travel
4.2/10
3.5/10
Wedding & Events
7.3/10
4.6/10
Filmmaking
6.6/10
—
Documentary
6.5/10
3.6/10
Sports & Action
7.0/10
4.4/10
Landscape
5.4/10
4.2/10
Wildlife
6.7/10
5.0/10
Casual
3.2/10
1.9/10
Food
4.7/10
3.5/10
Macro
3.9/10
3.2/10
Architecture
5.3/10
4.0/10
Astrophotography
6.6/10
5.7/10
Scores come from the same engine as Camera Match: verified specifications weighted by what each genre needs, with documented adjustments. The product page and this table show the enthusiast base score. See how scores are calculated →
Next
More comparisons with EOS-1D X Mark III
Camera family history