Canon 7D mk2 owners thread.

Here's a comparison of different cards (in a 7D2) I posted in another thread, although limited to the ones I had, it gives you some idea.

That's quite a big difference depending on memory card. If I get a 7DII I hope my Sandisk cards have a decent speed. Some of the reasons I would buy the 7DII is for the 10fps and large buffer, so it would be interesting to find out which cards are the best.
 
Got my new one this week, I sent the first one back for a refund early in January, it was useless on AF. I was worried in case it was me not using the camera correctly, and on one shoot out of 368 shots, 3 were acceptably in focus, a desperately dismal rate. I did try a controlled series of shots and that confirmed that the camera was giving very inconsistent results.
I waited about 6 weeks before ordering a replacement in case it was a faulty batch. I ran off about a 100 bird shots on Wednesday, but due to the poor weather I didn't stay out long, and I can honestly say that it didn't miss a beat, even it poor light.
I now need to learn the camera but so far I am very pleased indeed.

That's encouraging, Trev, glad you are pleased!!...hope I get the same results!!
 
What cf cards are people using with their 7d mkii's? I am a bit out of the loop as my 16gb cf card has done me fine since I got a 7d on launch, now it seems its a bit out of date.

I found on the 1Dx that the faster (600x or faster) UDMA cards emptied the buffer significantly quicker than the older San disc "Ultra" 30MB/s and so that's what Ive standardised on....otherwise you don't get the true advantage of the frame rate and burst capability, and I assume the same will be true on the 7D2 although I haven't actually tested it.

Well worth the outlay, I think.
 
I have a SanDisk Extreme CF UMDA7 120mb/s card in mine and never had any lag or buffering issues so far. I only shoot RAW and rarely more than 12 shots on 10 fps and usually just 3-shot bursts. My onboard Card 2 is a Lexar Professional 600x SD and performs similarly.

Each battery usually gives me about 700 RAW images and I always carry 2 spare.

Once you get used to the performance you simply work with what you've got and enjoy it.
 
Apologies if this has been asked but I'm looking to upgrade my general short zoom lens for the 7D2. I currently have the EF-S 17-85mm. I find it a bit soft. I was thinking about buying an EF 17-40. Any thoughts? Is it going to be a worthwhile upgrade? I realise that I'm losing focal length but I'd rather lose it at the long end in sacrifice for sharpness. Any hOpinions would be great. What is your general multi purpose short zoom?
 
I have a SanDisk Extreme CF UMDA7 120mb/s card in mine and never had any lag or buffering issues so far. I only shoot RAW and rarely more than 12 shots on 10 fps and usually just 3-shot bursts. My onboard Card 2 is a Lexar Professional 600x SD and performs similarly.

Each battery usually gives me about 700 RAW images and I always carry 2 spare.

Once you get used to the performance you simply work with what you've got and enjoy it.

Your spare batteries, are they proper Canon ones? I'm going to pull the trigger on a 7Dii soon and wondering what batteries to purchase. I'll probably get a minimum of 2 maybe 3 spare ones, so would rather not pay the completely and utterly ridiculous price Canon want for their official ones.
 
Apologies if this has been asked but I'm looking to upgrade my general short zoom lens for the 7D2. I currently have the EF-S 17-85mm. I find it a bit soft. I was thinking about buying an EF 17-40. Any thoughts? Is it going to be a worthwhile upgrade? I realise that I'm losing focal length but I'd rather lose it at the long end in sacrifice for sharpness. Any hOpinions would be great. What is your general multi purpose short zoom?
My favourite lens in that range is the 17-55 f2.8 efs, its fast, sharp and has never failed to give me good results. Its not an 'L' lens but the build quality is still very good.
 
Your spare batteries, are they proper Canon ones? I'm going to pull the trigger on a 7Dii soon and wondering what batteries to purchase. I'll probably get a minimum of 2 maybe 3 spare ones, so would rather not pay the completely and utterly ridiculous price Canon want for their official ones.

....Yes, all my batteries are "proper" Canon ones. I don't put cheap tyres on a high performance car, so why put cheap batteries in a high quality camera?

I pay "completely and utterly ridiculous prices" for most of my gear :D
 
....Yes, all my batteries are "proper" Canon ones. I don't put cheap tyres on a high performance car, so why put cheap batteries in a high quality camera?

I pay "completely and utterly ridiculous prices" for most of my gear :D

Christ on a bike, you must have more money than sense. At £65 a pop for a battery!
 
Your spare batteries, are they proper Canon ones? I'm going to pull the trigger on a 7Dii soon and wondering what batteries to purchase. I'll probably get a minimum of 2 maybe 3 spare ones, so would rather not pay the completely and utterly ridiculous price Canon want for their official ones.

I use 7day shop ones for my 7D mk1 they are excellent I haven't had either the 7day or the canon one run out on me in a day and that's taking a lot of shots
I assume that the 7day ones will work in a mk2 but I'm not 100percent sure
 
Christ on a bike, you must have more money than sense. At £65 a pop for a battery!

I only buy Canon batteries also. It's not about having more money than sense. It's about being sure that the batteries communicate correctly with the camera, which not all do, and that they will charge fully and hold their charge correctly.
As I always use a grip on my camera I need to know what the charge left is on them and also which battery is the lowest so I can change it out so communicating with the camera is essential for me.

I've only ever bought one non OE battery and it was crap. Wouldn't fit on the charger or in the camera properly. I've never paid full price for my batteries coz I've done a deal with spare ones at the time of purchasing other kit.

I'm sure plenty of others have happy stories about third party batteries and ultimately it's down to the individual.

For me it's like spending £2500 on a body and then putting a £30 grip on it.

What I do also for the 7D MkII is fill the AA battery tray with Eneloop rechargeables. This lives in the bag with the camera all the time so that if I manage to run down 4 batteries I've still got a back up. As they retain something like 85% of their charge after a year it's a useful back up.
 
I only buy Canon batteries also. It's not about having more money than sense. It's about being sure that the batteries communicate correctly with the camera, which not all do, and that they will charge fully and hold their charge correctly.
As I always use a grip on my camera I need to know what the charge left is on them and also which battery is the lowest so I can change it out so communicating with the camera is essential for me.

I've only ever bought one non OE battery and it was crap. Wouldn't fit on the charger or in the camera properly. I've never paid full price for my batteries coz I've done a deal with spare ones at the time of purchasing other kit.

I'm sure plenty of others have happy stories about third party batteries and ultimately it's down to the individual.

For me it's like spending £2500 on a body and then putting a £30 grip on it.

What I do also for the 7D MkII is fill the AA battery tray with Eneloop rechargeables. This lives in the bag with the camera all the time so that if I manage to run down 4 batteries I've still got a back up. As they retain something like 85% of their charge after a year it's a useful back up.

I'm afraid I agree completely with Gary's comments, and the Enloop option is also an excellent suggestion.

George.
 
I use the 7dayshop batteries as backups in my 7DII and 70D. I have 9 batteries in total, 3 genuine and 6 from 7dayshop and I can't tell a difference between any of them when in use.
 
I got a dot.photo one from Amazon to go in my 5d3 and it shows like a genuine battery. I use it alongside the genuine battery in my grip, when I look in the menu it shows the levels, location and number of shots for each battery
 
Christ on a bike, you must have more money than sense. At £65 a pop for a battery!

May have been on the beer a little last night, but hey ho...

Still, for both of my crop cameras (7D and 50D) I've had 3rd party batteries, and found them superior to the official Canon ones. I know Canon are know being sly with making it difficult for 3rd party batteries to work for the new models, this along with them charging £65 a pop makes me reluctant to buy them. I shan't be using a grip as I don't really like them on croppers!

I too have had my fair share of dud 3rd party batteries, but the best thing is the seller just sent more out until I got another that worked :)

I use the 7dayshop batteries as backups in my 7DII and 70D. I have 9 batteries in total, 3 genuine and 6 from 7dayshop and I can't tell a difference between any of them when in use.

OK, thanks. That's what I wanted to know, shall order some 7dayshop ones.
 
Don't know if anyone else is finding this but the MKII doesn't seem to like underexposure at higher ISO. It really seems to increase the noise. I'm used to sneaking a 1/3 of a stop underexposure on my 1DX if shutter speeds are a bit on the low side but the MkII seems to want it as close to the right hand side of the histogram as poss.
 
The 7D2 sensels are < 40% of the size of those of the 1Dx.....the s-n ratio is going to make it significantly less tolerant.

Bob
 
I see on Canon Rumours yesterday that in the US a grey importer (99.5% approval) was offering the 7D2 at £933!!!!...or if you add VAT £1119!!......makes you wonder where they come from, perhaps it's all the ones with AF problems!!
 
I see on Canon Rumours yesterday that in the US a grey importer (99.5% approval) was offering the 7D2 at £933!!!!...or if you add VAT £1119!!......makes you wonder where they come from, perhaps it's all the ones with AF problems!!

Is this a confirmed issue from Canon..?

I've just placed an order with Panamoz...
 
Is this a confirmed issue from Canon..?

I've just placed an order with Panamoz...

No Harry, it's a one off and basically only of academic interest to us here in the UK, but it just serves to show that there's a lot of funny business going on with pricing internationally, Panamoz seem to have an excellent reputation if you are prepared to go down the grey import route, but that argument's pros and cons has been done to death here!!
 
No Harry, it's a one off and basically only of academic interest to us here in the UK, but it just serves to show that there's a lot of funny business going on with pricing internationally, Panamoz seem to have an excellent reputation if you are prepared to go down the grey import route, but that argument's pros and cons has been done to death here!!

OK, thanks. Was getting worried for a second!

Yes I have weighed up the pros and cons but at the end of the day ~£550 saving is too much to ignore. Gives me more money to spend on new, faster cards too :) On that subject (I've seen the table posted on the previous page) I'm interested to know, how much does having an SD card as backup slow down the write process. If I go and spend £50 on a 160mb/s CF card, is that money wasted if it's writing a back up to a 90mb/s SD?

Cheers/
 
I actually don't use a backup card as such, I set the camera to write to each card in turn and backup my CF card every night if I'm on a shoot.

I've found with my cards (I use 16 or 32 gigs) that I'll seldom fill a card in a day, and if so, it'll write to the SD, but I suspect that the SD has a slower write speed than the CF although I've never checked, I'm sure someone else will have and post.

On a longer trip I back up each night to my Nexto 750 GHz hard drive as well.
 
I see on Canon Rumours yesterday that in the US a grey importer (99.5% approval) was offering the 7D2 at £933!!!!...or if you add VAT £1119!!......makes you wonder where they come from, perhaps it's all the ones with AF problems!!

Maybe easier if they did a BOGOF deal to clear that lot :LOL:
 
I'm thinking of upgrading from my 450D to the 7D mk2. I was wondering where I should start when learning the extra features of 7D mk2? Would learning about how to use the different focusing modes be a good place to start? Any advice welcome

Also I'm trying to decide between Hdew and Panamoz, I think Panamoz at the moment as their warranty includes a new replacement camera for the first year which to me seems excellent. Just wondering if the camera manual etc are in English ? I guess you get a euro plug in the box rather than a UK plug?
 
I'm thinking of upgrading from my 450D to the 7D mk2. I was wondering where I should start when learning the extra features of 7D mk2? Would learning about how to use the different focusing modes be a good place to start? Any advice welcome

Also I'm trying to decide between Hdew and Panamoz, I think Panamoz at the moment as their warranty includes a new replacement camera for the first year which to me seems excellent. Just wondering if the camera manual etc are in English ? I guess you get a euro plug in the box rather than a UK plug?
Just bought mine from HDEW because they give a Canon international 12 month warranty, plus an extra 2 years themselves. My thinking was that if HDEW went into liquidation, which seems doubtful I know, but anything's possible, then at least I have the 12 months manufacturers warranty. Their service was good and they kept me in touch at every stage, and when I asked, they sent me a VAT receipt too. I cant speak for their aftersales as luckily I haven't needed to use it, but overall they seems a friendly and efficient company. Not having dealt with Panamoz I cant comment.

I'm still learning after stepping up from a 7D mkI, there is a big difference between them, you will find a world of difference from a 450D. I would suggest starting with the basic settings and refer to the manual (which was in English, and mine also has a UK 3 pin plug fitted). The on line manual, or the one that comes on a disk is far better and detailed though. There's plenty of help on line already with suggestions for settings, Glen Bartley has a detailed list of settings for wildlife usage on his website. We are all different and have varying styles/interests, so once you get the basics sorted, you can adapt it to suite your needs. I hope this helps Steve.
 
I'm thinking of upgrading from my 450D to the 7D mk2. I was wondering where I should start when learning the extra features of 7D mk2? Would learning about how to use the different focusing modes be a good place to start? Any advice welcome

Also I'm trying to decide between Hdew and Panamoz, I think Panamoz at the moment as their warranty includes a new replacement camera for the first year which to me seems excellent. Just wondering if the camera manual etc are in English ? I guess you get a euro plug in the box rather than a UK plug?

I've just ordered mine from Panamoz, and it's due to arrive on Friday. Will let you know about the manuals etc :)
 
I've just ordered mine from Panamoz, and it's due to arrive on Friday. Will let you know about the manuals etc :)

If you could that would be great !

Thanks for the information trev4, I could use hdew as they are only a 5 minute drive from me so I could go and collect it from them...
 
If you could that would be great !

Thanks for the information trev4, I could use hdew as they are only a 5 minute drive from me so I could go and collect it from them...

....I bought my Canon 100-400mm L II from HDEW. It's the first time I have bought any shade of grey import and I did so for exactly the same reasons that Trev did and with absolute confidence.
 
....I bought my Canon 100-400mm L II from HDEW. It's the first time I have bought any shade of grey import and I did so for exactly the same reasons that Trev did and with absolute confidence.

That's the next item I want :) I can't justify paying the high street price for the 7d mk2 when I can get it so much cheaper as an grey import. At first I was a bit dubious as there was a question mark over the warranty, however HDEW and Panamoz now offer there own 3 year warranty.

If HDEW sold the camera for £1099 (same as Panamoz) I'd buy it from HDEW.. Just have to wait for Canon to drop prices a bit, they have in the US according to canonRomours
 
Canon usually start their Spring CashBack on selected products in the first week of March but no sign of any such offer yet.

I had an opportunity to sell my 70D to a friend and didn't want to wait for the 7D Mark II so I bought it at full price but on a no-deposit free interest 12-month deal from Park Cameras.

I was waiting to see if the 100-400mm II is on the Spring CashBack list but even if it will be, I very much doubt it will match the £300 saving I made via HDEW and besides, life is not a rehearsal and I want to enjoy my photography every day I can (I'm 67yo).
 
I saw this offer, however at £1599 for the body and £1999 for the lens (£3598) the offer brings it down to £3348. Still way cheaper to buy both from HDEW at £2898, or £2564 from Panamoz.

I wonder if Canon will reduce their prices, in the US, Canon have come under pressure from the US resident resellers as they cannot compete on price with the grey import market due to them having to stick to Canon''s MSR (Minimum Suggest Retrial price).
 
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I'm with Robin re buying when you want things. I would have bought my 100-400 MkII grey but no one had them in stock. I've got a trip to Norfolk coming up so got a uk one. Same with the 7D MkII. I had a good private sale for my 5D3 and again no grey stock so bought uk. Yes good savings to be had buying grey but I can't wait for backlog orders etc to be cleared. Grab one while it's available.
 
Had my first opportunity recently to pit the 7D MkII against the 1DX. Same lens, shutter speed, aperture, AF point, AF case, photographing the same subject.

I don't know if there is a slight difference in the AF case parameters in each camera and if I had been using the MkII in isolation I would have been very happy with the results. However the 1DX, although shooting at 2 FPS faster, had a higher hit rate than the MkII. The MkII, for some reason, couldn't pick the sudden appearance of the subject up quite as consistently.
 
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