@George - More grip battery info for you (and anyone else interested) - Now 5 sessions :
LP-E6N battery 1 - 89% / 19 shots >> 79% / 71 shots >> 56% / 185 shots >> 45% / 232 shots >> 21% / 353 shots
LP-E6N battery 2 - 96% / 10 shots >> 83% / 56 shots >> 62% / 166 shots >> 51% / 217 shots >> 34% / 333 shots
All images erased from CF card before each session.
Note that I don't use a card reader (long story) and so some battery juice (fairly insignificant) will get used uploading via USB direct to my Mac.
I don't quite understand what this tells us, but no matter.
Camera is on the 1.0.2 firmware and googling round seems a few have had lockups after updating to the 1.0.4 version.Anyone here had issues on the new one ?.
Also looking into screen protectors any recommendations ?.
Link would be great,and thanks to all who answered.I was a bit concerned about lockups when I read the article I quoted above, but I haven't experienced any problems and have taken about 200 shots since the upgrade....but I did have what I thought was a major problem after I updated the software...the camera just seemed randomly to completely shut down!!
After a few minutes of blind panic, logic took over and I found the problem was my battery grip had loosened and the contacts were intermittent.....and a tightening sorted everything out!!
Regarding the AF improvement, I can't say it's been any better or worse since the upgrade.
The screen protector I always use on all bodies is the GGS glass one, hardly noticeable and effective.....can look up a link if you want!
George.
@George - Final is 6 sessions logged and now time for me to change a battery.
LP-E6N battery 1 - 89% / 19 shots >> 79% / 71 shots >> 56% / 185 shots >> 45% / 232 shots >> 21% / 353 shots >> 15% / 382 shots
LP-E6N battery 2 - 96% / 10 shots >> 83% / 56 shots >> 62% / 166 shots >> 51% / 217 shots >> 34% / 333 shots >> 24% / 348 shots
IS, focus motor size and image review time all have an impact on battery life.Quick numpty question relating to battery life based on above, I understood and I'm probably wrong... But if the lens is IS then battery life is considerably less, so battery life would therefore also be dependent on lens choice... Yes/No???
IS, focus motor size and image review time all have an impact on battery life.
Bob
It's only really relevant to the individual and their style of shooting/reviewing. Some people will spend a while tracking (with focus) and not shoot whilst others will pop off speculative shots. There's far less focusing involved in a burst of 20 shots than there is for 20 individual shots that each require new focus acquisition. A burst of 20 shots only reviews the last one (if selected) whilst 20 individual shots gives 20 reviews.Though so Bob, so all the analysis of battery life and amount of shots taken is pretty much irrelevant then....:banghead:
Link would be great,and thanks to all who answered.
@George - Final is 6 sessions logged and now time for me to change a battery.
LP-E6N battery 1 - 89% / 19 shots >> 79% / 71 shots >> 56% / 185 shots >> 45% / 232 shots >> 21% / 353 shots >> 15% / 382 shots
LP-E6N battery 2 - 96% / 10 shots >> 83% / 56 shots >> 62% / 166 shots >> 51% / 217 shots >> 34% / 333 shots >> 24% / 348 shots
Cheers wiil look into it George.I bought the one for the 5D3 which fits, and this is the link
http://www.amazon.co.uk/BestDealUK-Screen-Protector-Glass-Camera/dp/B008J7QHR6
however if you google it you may find it cheaper......but personally I wouldn't use the plastic film ones, they don't really offer much in the way of protection I feel.
George.
Ordered cheers GeorgeI bought the one for the 5D3 which fits, and this is the link
http://www.amazon.co.uk/BestDealUK-Screen-Protector-Glass-Camera/dp/B008J7QHR6
however if you google it you may find it cheaper......but personally I wouldn't use the plastic film ones, they don't really offer much in the way of protection I feel.
George.
I am impressed with the AF on the 7D2 (especially compared to the original 7D). One the the best challenges for the bird photographer is Swallows in flight as they are so fast and erratic flyers. But I have had more success for this type of shot with the 7D2 than any other Camera I have owned. Attached shot was taken with a cheap(ish) third party zoom lens at 600mm.
View attachment 38338
Great shot! Out of interest which AF case did you use, and how many focus points?
On another battery grip related matter, I went today to do a bit of af checking, with 2 full batteries, and my usage was 239 shots on the first battery (89%) and 136 0n the second battery (94%).
Seems a bit funny!!
George.
Strange things going on here. I had to choose an elevated target to avoid the heat haze (28 degrees and sunny) and one shot looked good at around 350-400 metres. The same target locked with AIservo was less clear despite allowing sufficient extra time. I noticed something strange with the AF point switching in that it was frequently shifting (albeit very briefly) to an off target AF point so I set up something a little more (but not very) scientific.
I set up a series of coloured targets about 20 metres away (rectangular lids off old Tupperware containers..bright and vibrant in the sun). Red, white, yellow, blue and green. These lids covered an array of AF points 3 tall by 2 wide at this distance with the 600/4. All locked precisely in one shot and the focus was good....AFMA has been done using Reikan Focal.
I then switched to AIservo and selected the 25 AF points of the centre group. Shooting the white target resulted in very minor twitching of the lens focus motor as the active point shifted from one to another (case 2 was selected) but it was always constrained to one of the six points covering the target. Same with the red, same with the yellow. However with the blue and green targets it was very obvious that something different was occurring. The target was picked up (as per the other colours) but the AF motor twitches were far more pronounced. I then saw that AF points not covering the target were being highlighted very briefly and the focus position started to move off target before switching back again...the focus never achieved the distance covered by the new AF point but it simply moved the focus enough to soften the target before quickly regaining it. I repeated this numerous times and each test produced the same result....red, yellow and white targets cause the AF point selection to stay within the target boundary but blue and green targets cause the AF point selection to wander off target (for a few 1/10ths sec at least) long enough to cause the lens motor to "spoil" focus but no where near long enough to acquire the distance that was covered by the 'errant' AF point selected. It was always a point adjacent to the six covering the target and I confirmed this by moving the target around the array. The distant backgound colour was a mid-brown.
I'll have a try with the 1Dx and 5D3 tomorrow (adjusting the target distance to replicate the same AF coverage) and see how they cope.
Is the 7D2 colour blind?
Bob
I was just conversing with George and thought it'd be a good time to update this post with the results of some further tests and conclusions.
My initial thoughts were that the (my) 7D2 was colour blind or at least biased towards certain colours. I've played around (in a controlled manner) for a while I now have some conclusions and it's not a colour issue.
Hopefully you can all follow this and it makes some sense.
Test #1.......Light subject against darker background......the automatic AF point selection moves around from the centre point (acquisition point) but will always stay on the light subject and never steps outside the lighter region into the dark background.
Test #2.......Dark subject on lighter background....the automatic selection seems to want to sample the lighter part of the scene....ie, it wanders off the dark subject and back again.
My earlier tests with the vibrant Tupperware lids pushed me towards a colour issue but it was the green and blue that caused the problem (and they were darker than the background I had at the time....the white, yellow and red were brighter and worked okay.
I've done these test with the 600/4 and 300/4 (locked firmly on a big Gitzo tripod) and they're conclusive and repeatable with the 7D2 and it's not an issue with either the 1Dx or 5D3. I then cast my mind back to the football and rugby shots that just ended in frustration and realised that both my local teams play in dark blue shirts and the stadia both give me white concrete fences as backdrops (for the best part).
So blackbirds with a leafy background is a waste of time but seagulls against a blue sky will be fine. (with appologies to George who's already read most of this)
Does anyone else have the time to see if their 7D2 performs similarly?
Bob
Well that hints at similar behavior to that which I'm seeing, Jack.Strangely enough I received mine back from recalibration earlier this week and today I tried it out on a blackbird on the lawn, quite a few of the shots were out but the grass either side of the bird was in focus. I had updated the firmware to 1.04 and was using a 70-200mm f2.8 L ii which was the lens the firmware was supposed to improve.
Just had a look at the focus points and it seems to jump to the tip of the beak.Well that hints at similar behavior to that which I'm seeing, Jack.
Bob
My 7D2 is performing extremely well with AF, got it customised now to how I like it and it is deadly quick, my model certainly doesn't have this issues some are reporting, tested it against a 1Dx which in all honestly is a fraction quicker but its hard to call.
Joe, would you be kind enough to share your settings please. It'd really be appreciated.
For Birds in flight I'm using the below setup, and for faster moving subjects i'm using 1,0,2
Tracking Sensitivity -2
Accel./decal. Tracking 0
AF pt auto switching 0
Hope this helps
Joe
Thanks Joe. Which case number are you using ?
Since he's specifying the actual numbers, he's probably edited the standard one (I can't remember any -2,0,0 cases off the top of my head)
Since he's specifying the actual numbers, he's probably edited the standard one (I can't remember any -2,0,0 cases off the top of my head)
As Phal says I'm using the standard cases which have been customised