Where to Get Canon 5DII
 

So I have been trying to watch our regular sponsors here to catch one of these cameras while in stock- with no luck. BH is not accepting orders. Has anyone figured out why no one has any stock, or is there a sponsor out there that does ?

Have you tried Amazon?

B&H has had them in stock off and on, so if you keep checking back I wouldn't be surprised to see them back in a few days...

If you're in a hurry, you might have to try other places.

You can also try calling Frys and Best Buy each day. I believe that BB only carries the3 5D2 at their more upscale stores. (Look for one with a Magnolia store in store.) I got mine a Frys.

At BB, a woman told me about their delivery schedule, but it didn't help. The 5D2s were being drop shipped whenever. It's best to call in the morning.

I went ahead and ordered from a big box store. They promised delivery in 5 days or so.... we shall see.

I will keep all posted.

I have been monitoring my regular supplier BH every day, and never see in stock...

^^^

Likewise. B&H had them in stock once for an hour or so in all the times I checked which is practically daily. I have been on their notice list (when ever they have let me get in) and I have as of yet to get an in stock notice.

I did get an "opportunity" to pre-order from B&H but they had no delivery date so I passed. I want one too but it's hard for me to shell out near $3k for an unknown date of delivery.

It is amazing how popular this camera is. Even in this economic climate.

Best Buy
 

You can always order from them. Good people.

Also check w/our sponsor Precision Camera:

Precision Camera & Video - Great deals on Digital Cameras, Photography Equipment, Accessories, and Photography Classes

Automated way to find MKII
 

I got mine from Amazon and, maybe I was really lucky, but it was actually pretty painless. The trick was using some free software I got off the web. I can't remember the name of it, but it's a little program that keeps watch of sites you list and alerts you when there is a change on that site.

For example, I set it up to look at the Canon 5D Mark II product pages on the usual websites: Adorama, B&H, Amazon, etc. Essentially I instructed the program to alert me whenever the text "In stock" showed up on that page. You can also instruct it to look for times when certain text doesn't show up, like "on order."

If I remember right, I got my camera from Amazon by telling the program to alert me when "$3,499.99" appeared. So when the overinflated prices some Amazon-related sellers were replaced for a minute or two by Amazon itself selling the camera at its stated retail price, the software pinged me. I went right to the site by clicking the handy URL the software provided, and I got the 5DMKII and lens for the retail price a little before Christmas...

Okay, I lied. The first time I got pinged, I lost my nerve (hey, $3,499 is a lot of money) and someone else snagged it. But the next time I was ready and less than a minute after the ping, I had placed the order. The camera arrived a few days later. Amazon has excellent service, btw.

So Google around for "web site watchers" or "site checkers" or something similar. (PC versions of the software are more common than Mac versions.) I got a free 15-day trial of the software and had the MKII within a few days.

B and H call at noon ET every day... they had one in stock Friday, I get it tomorrow and got their warranty which covers accidental damage (as I mentioned in a separate post).

Do you want to buy mine? :)

I'm about at the end of my rope with it. Why? It's not the auto-gain audio or ergonomic problems, or lack of manual controls, I knew all that going in. But what I didn't count on was a lack of reliability.

1. Stuttering - the picture stutters, period, about every 3 seconds. And no it's not the card, it happens with two seperate SanDisk Extreme III Cards. The chances that they are both bad is virtually nil. This is the nail in the coffin. There is no way to shoot professional video with this happening.
2. Iris flashes - these happen rarely, but they do happen. The exposure just flashes, even with ae lock on.
3. Audio quality - I've had shots completely ruined by really loud static that comes in randomly. It wasn't the connection or the cable. It just happens. And then it goes away. 95% of the time the audio works fine, but because if I can't monitor I have no idea if this is happening until I review the take.
4. Macro Blocking - On shots with lots of details, like mulch at a playground, I get huge visible macro blocks on people's clothing and other solid color areas.
5. Live View just shuts off sometimes. Not when recording. But I can turn it on and in 2 seconds it turns off again.

The bottom-line is that I just can't rely on it and if I can't use this professionally, I can't justify the expense. I'm already in deep enough with money, maybe it's time to get out.

Here is a stock tracking website

Canon 5D Mark II In Stock Tracker - NowInStock.net

Great to hear about all of these methods. Didn't really expect stock to be out so long on this camera.... but it tells you something about the the hunger for a camera with its attributes. Canon still division probably didn't expect the videophiles to put such a demand on it. I ordered through a big box before all these posts came in, and we will see what happens with it. With an 18 month no interest account, I could not pass it up through that retailer... and Brian Leahy's post above confirms it is in stock at that BB site.

I managed to get one on B&H in mid December.

I had no problem finding one in Canada. If you go into a London Drugs, they will have you one within 2 days (they haven't been keeping them in stores, only in the warehouse, and shipping them as they are paid for.

I ordered my from Henry's in Toronto. They had the 5D + 24-105 in stock.

Hey Dylan: Is that lens IS ?

Yes, sorry, it's the 24-105L IS