Body Talk

Jelster

Jelster

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Steve
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Sorry, but it's one of those threads...

I feel that I'm at a crossroads. I'm getting frustrated with the noise generated on my 7D when I have to push the ISO. I shoot (mainly) wildlife, but also like to shoot landscapes from time to time, especially when on holiday.

I currently own a 7D Mk1 and a 6D. My lens collection includes:

Canon 50mm f1.8
Canon 85mm f1.8
Sigma 10-20 EX ??
Canon 17-55 f2.8 EF-S
Canon 17-40L
Canon 24-105L
Canon 70-200 f2.8 L IS
Canon 300 f4 L
Sigma 50-600S
1.4 EX II (usually mated on the 300 f4)
​
I also shoot the odd bit of motorsport as I'm a bit of a petrol head, I like sea scapes and night time city scapes, but wildlife is preferred subject.

So with all of the above, I'm torn between the 7D2 & the 5D3. I keep thinking that the 5D3 can be bought grey to a similar price to a new 7D2, but will I miss the reach of the crop compared with the FF body ?

We are due to go to Scotland this summer on a photography holiday (yes, Mrs J is getting more interested, so a 3rd body would be really handy).

Any advice would be appreciated, I've even wondered if I should look at a used 1D4. I'm not saying money is no object, but I want to buy the right body that would compliment my existing kit and my type of photography.
 
Silly question, your frustrated by the 7d at high ISO, so why not use your 6d?
 
Imo for wildlife you would get much better performance all round from a 7D2. It's head and shoulders above the original 7D and for wildlife shooting, a much better proposition from the 5D3. I think you would miss the cropping option if you went full frame for wildlife the extra reach is considerable and the superb AF and much improved higher iso performance leads to the 7D2.
I've used it with the Sigma 150-600 sport and the Canon 100-400 mkii and Canon 300 f2.8 IS, its a lightning fast camera.
The 6D is a great low light body but not really a wildlife camera and lacks the focus points that the 7D2 has.
Just my ten pence worth.
Sadly I may have to surrender mine in the near future as I'm struggling with weight of kit following an accident but it will be a hard decision to make as it's the best body for nature / wildlife photography I've ever used.
 
Like odd jim says why not use the 6D for low light its one of its best assets
 
I have both the 5D3 and 7D2, and it is the latter I use for wildlife unless the light is very poor indeed. I would have thought a 7D2 and a 6D would make a complementary pair for your interests.
 
MadWoman said:
I have both the 5D3 and 7D2, and it is the latter I use for wildlife unless the light is very poor indeed. I would have thought a 7D2 and a 6D would make a complementary pair for your interests.
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I agree, if you already have the 6D then the 7D2 is a perfect companion to it.
 
odd jim said:
Silly question, your frustrated by the 7d at high ISO, so why not use your 6d?
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Reach, plain & simple. That said, when I have mated it with the 150-600 results have been quite good.
 
Jelster said:
Reach, plain & simple. That said, when I have mated it with the 150-600 results have been quite good.
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The 6d is still highly croppable. Technically the 7d doesn't give you any more reach. A cropped 6d image (amount of cropping relative) will still give you the same frame / resolution as an Uncropped 7d image. And the 6d image will be more detailed and cleaner.
 
odd jim said:
The 6d is still highly croppable. Technically the 7d doesn't give you any more reach. A cropped 6d image (amount of cropping relative) will still give you the same frame / resolution as an Uncropped 7d image. And the 6d image will be more detailed and cleaner.
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When shooting wildlife at distance, ability to fill the frame makes a big difference. Trying to get 100% focus on a bird (let's say a lapwing, because that's a real example) on the 7D is easier because the focus system is better and the subject is larger in the frame. With a FF body the subject will be smaller and harder to hit 100%.

Now, the 5D2 has a far superior focus system to the 6D so that may improve matters. The good thing is that with both of them you can mate a 300f4 with a 2x TC, which may prove useful when trying to shoot at extreme ranges. I think I'm edging back to the 7D2, and then I can upgrade the 6D at a later date. The 7D1 can then be used as back up, or I can stick the 17-55 f2.8 on it and let Mrs J use that when we're not shooting wildlife.

Edit: I meant to say 5D3 above, not 5D2
 
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Jelster said:
When shooting wildlife at distance, ability to fill the frame makes a big difference. Trying to get 100% focus on a bird (let's say a lapwing, because that's a real example) on the 7D is easier because the focus system is better and the subject is larger in the frame. With a FF body the subject will be smaller and harder to hit 100%.

Now, the 5D2 has a far superior focus system to the 6D so that may improve matters. The good thing is that with both of them you can mate a 300f4 with a 2x TC, which may prove useful when trying to shoot at extreme ranges. I think I'm edging back to the 7D2, and then I can upgrade the 6D at a later date. The 7D1 can then be used as back up, or I can stick the 17-55 f2.8 on it and let Mrs J use that when we're not shooting wildlife.
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The 5d2 does not have a better AF system than the 6d, not by a long shot, especially with regards to sensitivity and accuracy. Did you mean the 5d3? If so, the extra sensitivity of the 6d AF might still be beneficial if you're shooting in dark wooded areas for example.

IMO the 6d and 7d2 would be the ideal combo for you. The 7d2 for general wildlife use and the 6d for when light conditions get tough or need the suburb IQ for landscapes etc.
 
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From personal experience you will not get autofocus on a 5D mk2 and a 2X TC. You can with the 5D mk3 and 6D but not a 5D mk2 where AF needs f5.6 or wider.
 
Personally, I'd go with the 5d3. It's a very versatile beast and I've got some good wildlife shots with it.

It's not a specialist wildlife/sports camera but it is damned good at higher ISO's and very croppable. I found the 7d useless at anything other than low ISO's and difficult to crop into the images and retain any kind of quality.

I'm sure the Mark2 is better but you just can't beat full frame for croppability and high ISO's.

The frame rate on the 6d is a bit sleepy and it has far fewer focus points.
 
the 7Dii is better than the 7Di which annoyed me at anything more than ISO800 tbh. Even the noise looks messy compared to the 5Dii or 5Diii.
If you shoot wildlife with a 6D or 5Dii you will really miss the better auto focusing system.
For fast moving sport and wildlife then the 5Diii falls down on the buffer. Even the 7D kept snapping when my friend on a 5Diii ran out of buffer space.
The 5Diii is great i think and it's my go-to camera. But the reach, buffer, and focusing on the 7D is really handy.
I would go for a 7Dii, which is also lighter than the others. For landscapes you have the 6D which has excellent dynamic range.
If you only had 1 camera body and that was is...then I would choose the 5Diii
 
Jelster said:
When shooting wildlife at distance, ability to fill the frame makes a big difference. Trying to get 100% focus on a bird (let's say a lapwing, because that's a real example) on the 7D is easier because the focus system is better and the subject is larger in the frame. With a FF body the subject will be smaller and harder to hit 100%.

Now, the 5D2 has a far superior focus system to the 6D so that may improve matters. The good thing is that with both of them you can mate a 300f4 with a 2x TC, which may prove useful when trying to shoot at extreme ranges. I think I'm edging back to the 7D2, and then I can upgrade the 6D at a later date. The 7D1 can then be used as back up, or I can stick the 17-55 f2.8 on it and let Mrs J use that when we're not shooting wildlife.

Edit: I meant to say 5D3 above, not 5D2
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My mint condition 7D2 is for sale in the classifieds if you want a low mileage secondhand one.
 
wardy07 said:
I
Sadly I may have to surrender mine in the near future as I'm struggling with weight of kit following an accident but it will be a hard decision to make as it's the best body for nature / wildlife photography I've ever used.
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sorry to hear this. however, the new CSC systems are in a place far beyond where they were a few years ago. I know a few professionals who use the APS-C fujis and I personally really like the recent lumix CSC cameras.
The previous ones were okay but I missed my DLSR when not available. Now the later sensors are great, focusing is better and the lenses are amazing with some great f/2.8 glass , primes and huge reach on the 100-300mm lenses with a 2x cropping factor.
 
If you main subjects are wildlife and motorsports upgrading the 7D to 7D2 would be my choice id have to agree with not liking the noise of the 7D i had one for about 2 weeks and sold it because i didn't like the noise at higher ISO :( I'm tempted get one myself as i just have a 5D3 which is great and its AF is but id like that extra reach at times and wouldn't mind trying the 7D2 out :D

Wardy07 id agree with DizMatt with regards to the Fuji they do produce some very good photos, I had the X-T1 and various Fuji lenses and i was very happy with Fuji camera and the glass i only sold it to get myself a 5D3 which id always wanted :oops: :$
 
Throttle said:
If you main subjects are wildlife and motorsports upgrading the 7D to 7D2 would be my choice id have to agree with not liking the noise of the 7D i had one for about 2 weeks and sold it because i didn't like the noise at higher ISO :( I'm tempted get one myself as i just have a 5D3 which is great and its AF is but id like that extra reach at times and wouldn't mind trying the 7D2 out :D

Wardy07 id agree with DizMatt with regards to the Fuji they do produce some very good photos, I had the X-T1 and various Fuji lenses and i was very happy with Fuji camera and the glass i only sold it to get myself a 5D3 which id always wanted :oops: :$
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Very helpful advice, thank you. I must admit I've been leaning towards the Olympus em1 or 5 but I'm still thinking about the different options. I am concerned at the lens options with Fuji but that maybe my ignorance? Any help in that direction would be appreciated.
 
wardy07 said:
Very helpful advice, thank you. I must admit I've been leaning towards the Olympus em1 or 5 but I'm still thinking about the different options. I am concerned at the lens options with Fuji but that maybe my ignorance? Any help in that direction would be appreciated.
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I had the EM5 which i used to like but i sold it and later got another a year later yet was unsure about its image quality after id sold the Fuji gear and got the 5D3 back i cant comment on the EM1 or EM5 mk2 ( i have a 25% code for the Olympus store if need one though ;) ) on the Fuji i found the image quality nicer myself and tracking AF on X-T1 much better against the EM5 but not DSLR speed so be warned the only tele lens i had for reach was the XF55-200mm which was a decent lens but theres been more lenses released since like a 70-200mm f2.8 equivalent and a XF100-400 which is like a 150-600mm coming out ( been delayed in the past though)

Your best talking to the members in the Fuji X-T1 post really but basically out if all CSC i liked the Fuji X-T1 the best..... Although i now have just got myself a A7 as it was the right price at the time so im seeing what i think of that for now, I may end up with another Fuji if i dont like it :D
 
Throttle said:
I had the EM5 which i used to like but i sold it and later got another a year later yet was unsure about its image quality after id sold the Fuji gear and got the 5D3 back i cant comment on the EM1 or EM5 mk2 ( i have a 25% code for the Olympus store if need one though ;) ) on the Fuji i found the image quality nicer myself and tracking AF on X-T1 much better against the EM5 but not DSLR speed so be warned the only tele lens i had for reach was the XF55-200mm which was a decent lens but theres been more lenses released since like a 70-200mm f2.8 equivalent and a XF100-400 which is like a 150-600mm coming out ( been delayed in the past though)

Your best talking to the members in the Fuji X-T1 post really but basically out if all CSC i liked the Fuji X-T1 the best..... Although i now have just got myself a A7 as it was the right price at the time so im seeing what i think of that for now, I may end up with another Fuji if i dont like it :D
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Cheers for your help, it's a minefield looking at all the options. It was so much easier with DSLR as I knew more about it but needs must so I'll have make a decision sooner or later.
 
I think I have settled on the 7D2, just need to work out whether to buy one cash, or bump it on the plastic.
 
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