Ok long story short  - my current workhorse full frame camera body (Canon EOS 5D) along with a 24-70mm lens on a tripod came crashing to the ground in a freak accident during a photoshoot a month or so ago. The body suffered a deep internal crack to the casing and gashes, the lens broke into two with the mount hanging on the camera and with rear element badly scratched. You can guess my feelings then. A nightmare that I never thought would have happened to me did.

I sent both camera body and lens to Canon Service Center for damage assessment and was told repair costs for both lens and camera could cost upside of SGD $1,000. In the end I opted to salvage the lens, fortunately most of its parts could still work after the accident and after a month I got it back, so far its working alright.  Repair costs (for lens): SGD $400+.

However for the camera body it would cost around SGD $800 to replace the entire casing and realign the sensor and internal parts. I decided that due to the age and condition of the camera, it would not make economic sense  to pay this amount to restore it, when 2nd hand good condition sets are only going for like $100-$200 more.

So with the 5D body more or less a write-off, I have decided to get a full frame sensor body to replace it, likely by the end of the year. I currently have three possible  options in mind. For my first choice, I am eyeing the 22 Megapixel  EOS 5D Mk3 which Canon launched this year as a replacement to the 5D Mark II. However it is not cheap (roughly SGD$4,000 with tax). Then there's also the newly announced EOS 6D, a 'budget' full frame camera. In my opinion, I didn't quite like the way Canon "dumbed down" the functions and layout of the camera so as to not make it compete with the pricier 5D Mk3. My last option (and prolly the most economical pricewise) is to get a 2nd hand EOS 5D Mk II, the older version which is still a very good camera despite it being a 4 year old model.

The main problem though is with budget - I feel that don't really shoot that often nowdays to justify the huge price premium of the 5D Mk 3. I'm not too keen or convinced on the EOS 6D either, in comparison its rival the Nikon D600 at the same price range seems a much more attractive option (but I've invested too much in Canon to switch)

So its a dilemna I'm facing, save up, go for broke and get 5DMk3 or just settle for a lesser option (i.e. EOS 6D)? Or just get a 2nd hand 5D MkII?

Decisions decisions!

p.s Sorry for the inactivity on this account lately, I'll try to update it with newer stuff shot in the recent months, so stay tuned!