Besides our workhorses (Canon 5D3 and 60D), we have an old camera - Canon 1Ds Mk II which has its OLPF scratched. That is, the camera works (ok, more or less because the signs of time are present on it - however is usable) without any problem for apertures less than, let's say, 7.1 but starting from this aperture if the middle area happens to be a highlights area, a vertical black line appears.
We spoke with the Canon's local dealer and he said that the price to replace this is @ 600 Euro (we're located in Europe) but, besides this, he warned us (he is a friend of us) that the replacement could render camera useless because it can happen even at their (ie. Canon's) repair center particles of dust to reach between sensor and the new OLPF leaving permanent black spots on images.
The general question is what should we do?
Some options we thought at:
- Leave the camera as is because we don't use it too much anymore and, also, there are enough situations in which I (us) as photojournalist(s) shoot in dim light, hence the aperture will be anyway open. In this way we use camera now.
- Leave the camera as is BUT because this spares us some money invest this money in another camera / lens / gadget for this sum. Does anyone know a good complementary camera for a photojournalist in the aprox. range of the money needed for replacing an OLPF? (it can be also a good P&S or mirrorless - we are not purists, we need to have our job done and we are aware of the goods & bads of P&S, mirrorless, dSLR etc. - we do not badly need another 1Ds or 5D3, but if we could get a price/performance bargain then why not?)
- Go ahead and make the conversion somewhere else ...but where? Does anyone know a certified/reliable (first) and cheap (second) company in US or Europe which changes Low-Pass filters for Canon 1DsMk2 who can guarantee that nothing wrong will happen?
- Doesn't matter, go ahead and change the filter at the Canon's local representative
Which path, in your experience, should we choose?