amehta Loc: Boston

I included the A7r since you started with a Sony, I agree the lens selection is an issue. I also am not comfortable with the EVF, though if I used it for several hours, that may change. Or I would have a headache for 3 days. :-)

You don't have to use the built-in flash, get a SB800/SB900/SB910. The Nikon flash system (creative lighting system) is excellent! The built-in does work very well as a commander for the other units.

I'm not sure in what way the tonal quality of any of these is different? Do you shoot raw? Can you do the post processing on 5D Mark III and D800E images in exactly the same way and see any difference?

Yes, a 24-70mm lens is perfect for what you do. As lukan said, they are all excellent, and the D800/Nikon 24-70mm combo is at least as good as any other.

lukan Loc: Chicago, IL

We're splitting hairs in the wrong department to be of any service to the OP. For him, as for us all, we need the best tool for the job, be it portraiture, landscapes, macro and/or sports-action. The autofocus systems have a lot to do with which camera is best for you too! It's about the entire combination package, not just one or two characteristics. Gotta pick what's best for your line of shooting! ;) :thumbup:

amehta Loc: Boston

While the 24-70mm lenses are great, primes are even better. :-)

amehta Loc: Boston

Do you think that AF systems will be a differentiator for "natural daylight, landscapes, architectural, oddball portraiture"? With the lenses we're talking about, the D800 AF will be flawless. Would any of the other cameras be different?

cntry Loc: Colorado

Are you buying a camera to take impressive pictures or just look impressive?
Turn the flash off, it won't pop up.

amehta Loc: Boston

As much as we are dismissive of the built-in flash, if you're walking about doing your landscape or architectural photography and you want to grab an oddball portrait, the lighting is often pretty harsh. Being able to use the built-in with flash compensation set to -1 or -2 can soften the shadows in the eye sockets very nicely. It is a tool which different people can use in different ways. If you're using a camera without a built-in flash, you have to go grab one from your bag, and the candid portrait you wanted to catch becomes a posed one.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

I see we're back to this again!
Of the Sony, I don't know anything.
About the 5lll and the 800, they are very different cameras. If you think one is more suited to what you do than the other, then just get that one. If you will be doing ONLY landscapes, get the 800. Forget the minutiae of low light, tonal ranges, ISO, 24-70 lenses, blah, blah, blah.
Can you just turn the flash off? Sure you can, but that's not why the pro cameras don't have them. The pop-up flash is the fastest way to flood a camera in the rain. The flash areas are impossible to seal and they leak water. You want a flash, get a real flash with a real commander like the Canon 600 with Radio Control.
I can see we are still down-playing the focus systems. If you have an 800 and it's all you have, sure, go ahead and shoot sports. I do it all the time with my 5Dll and I've gotten some amazing shots. And you know what, the camera SUCKS at it!!
Buy a Canon to take advantage of all the lenses Canon makes that the other companies can't make, to give your photography an edge, not because of the numbers at Snapsort and DXO.
The 800, is NOT the D4's little brother. It's a landscape studio camera. The 5lll has the exact focus system as the 1Dx minus one processor. The 1Dx's focus ability is already legendary amongst pros, no matter what brand they shoot.
OR, you can go to Snapsort and compare all the cameras. According to snapsort, the 1Dx is only one notch better than an Instamatic.
What goes on in the real world, is a little different than what goes on in a lab!
NYJoe can get anything he wants. But Joe, Don't buy into a system for what you do right now. Buy into a system for what you think you may be doing in 5, or even ten years from now. The Body you're stressing about right now will have long gone into the camera burial ground. What you will still have are the lenses. THAT'S where you need to look VERY carefully, not the disposable body!
That's just my 2cents. I like my fast lenses, and the fact that ONLY Canon makes them! ;-)
SS

Gobuster Loc: South Florida

The OP says he likes to make large prints, possibly from highly cropped images. The D800/800E is a master at that, the Canon and Sony don't compare. Obviously, all these top end cameras produce great results and each has it's limitations, but, for what the OP is doing, the D800 is king. Just read all the reports, it blows away the 5D Mk III in IQ.

NYjoe Loc: US/UK

I already look impressive thank you ver much.

NYjoe Loc: US/UK

Thank you all for your interest and help. Very much appreciated.

lukan Loc: Chicago, IL

No, the AF systems would not be, and I guess that was my point (in a round-about way)... With "natural daylight, landscapes, architectural, and oddball portraiture", I concur with your recommendation of including a Sony A7r and a D800 into the mix. They're actually PERFECT for the said applications.

lukan Loc: Chicago, IL

The first part is true but the second part about the D800 blowing away the 5DIII is false in real- world printed images. It might be true in terms of measured numbers in a lab, but not in reality.
This argument reminds me of distortion and power ratings for amplifiers in high fidelity... Sometimes the "cleaner, more highly powered" amps just don't sound as good as some other equally expensive amps that don't quite "measure" so well.

NYjoe Loc: US/UK

So if I really blast a D800e, it won't sound as rich and full as a 5d mkiii? "I've never seen a rose with such a funny looking smell."

jpanar Loc: Reston, VA

Eventually, you'll break away from working around a lens and start working around the body and lens combo. In that situation, of the two you mentioned, the Canon 5D MKIII is a far more versatile pairing. They really become the proverbial apple and orange, or apple and grocery store. The Canon is as close to a mid-price super camera as you can find.

CHOLLY Loc: THE FLORIDA PANHANDLE!

NYjoe, check this out:

http://www.dxomark.com/Cameras/Ratings

Click direct access to DxOMARK on the upper right after the splash.

Go to the "filters" box on the mid right. Click Sony and after it comes up, click Canon.

For further information, click on the Canon 5D MkIII, and read the tests and review. Then go back and do the SAME for the Sony A99.

The A99 beats the Canon is almost EVERY category. ;)

Now, the 5D MkIII is the faster sports shooter. But if you don't make a living shooting sports images, the A99 gives you overall better image quality and utility than the 5D MkIII. And let's not even MENTION the prices. :D

As for the EVF, it IS an acquired taste, but once you use it, you'll love it. The EVF allows you to see EXACTLY what you will record on the memory card. WYSIWYG INDEED!

And if you have bad eyesight like me, until you have used Sony's Focus Peaking you haven't lived! :lol:

The A99 is a MONSTER with that Carl Zeiss 24-70mm up front; the image quality is BETTER than what you'd get from the 5D MkIII.

Final decision? Go to a store that sells the A99 and ask to take it on test drive. Then do the same for the 5D MkIII, simultaneously if possible so you can do side-by-side comparisons.

I'll bet when you look at the price, features, and image quality, you'll pick the Sony. :thumbup: