Wow, finally the 7D ll appears.

[Bennymiata]

I think that there's lots of users out there who will LOVE the 10fps and improved focussing of the MkII, and I reckon it will be another hit for Canon.
I was waiting for this to come out as I want to get a good Canon SLR for videos, as I do a number of events, but even though I know it is a superior camera with the dual processors etc., I think the flip out screen and built in wireless of the 70D will suit me better.

[Pinarelloman]

I will be looking at one when they are released. We are off to Africa again next year & the 5Dmkiii with 100-400 just isn't enough some times. The extra crop of 1.6 makes the lens 640mm. The option is A a bigger lens $$$$. B crop the photo & lose quality. C 7Dmkii. D either a 1.4 or 2 x converter.
Depending on cost, the 1.4 or 2x will save some $$ but then I lose low light capability with either converter.

[crafty1tutu]

Pinarelloman, I have just come back from Africa and used both the 7D and the 5D MK III with a Canon 100-400 lens (only because my 7D died halfway into the trip). The idea of taking two cameras was so I didn't have to keep changing lenses as sometimes the animals are too close for the 100-400 so I also took a Canon 24-105 which I had on the 5D. I have been told that the 1.4 converter gives better photos than the 2 x for some reason. I didn't really notice much difference with the photos with either camera, but I would also take a lens with a wider angle for animals that are closer or for scenery. I must say though, that I will probably be investing in a 7D MK II when it is available for purchase. When I go to Africa again, I think I may look at the Tamron 150-600. You can see some of my photos on Flickr at https://www.flickr.com/photos/836460...7640815803354/

[RJD]

As great as it sounds, if I were to spend that much upgrading from my 70D (which I love) I think I'd be putting it towards a 5D III or IV. Of course, it will be a great excuse to get into a camera store to have a play and compare

[Babu]

If you are interested in perusing the 7D MK II AF-Setting Guidebook, it is available for download according to the-digital-picture.com through Canon USA.

[MattNQ]

I think that there's lots of users out there who will LOVE the 10fps and improved focussing of the MkII, and I reckon it will be another hit for Canon.

Just wondering if it should read more like this ....
"I think that there's lots of Nikon D300s users out there who will envy the 10fps (and 20 something megapickles) and improved focussing of the MkII ,....and switch camps

[Patrick K]

Thanks Tony,

Following your post I did some tweaking of the settings for AF in the 7D and it has been better for bird in flight shots. Much happier!

Patrick, either you are doing something very, very wrong, or there is something very serious wrong with your camera and/or lens. There is no possible way to get better AD on a 5D II than you get on a 7D. (Assuming both are working properly.) On release, the 7D had easily the best AF system of any non-pro Canon camera ever made; and (pending the arrival of the 7D II which might be even better) it still has by far the best AF system of any Canon APS-C camera made. The much newer full frame 5D III has an advanced focus system which may equal or even better the 7D system (I don't own one and couldn't say either way) but that aside, the only way to get better AF than a 7D has is to buy a 1 Series Canon.

Compare with the 5D II which, allowing for date of manufacture, has without doubt the worst AF system of any Canon DSLR ever made. Some of the very oldest ones, things like a 12-year-old D60, are slightly inferior in absolute terms but not if you alllow for the era of the model. The 5D II has a wonderful, wonderful sensor but the AF system is, frankly, absolute rubbish. My ultra-cheap old 400D had better AF than any 5D II.

I repeat, if you are getting equal AF results with a 5D II and a 7D (never mind superior), something is very, very wrong. Either you are using it in some absurdly wrong way (I doubt that, though the 7D system is complex and takes some learning to master) or (more likely) it is badly faulty and you should get that fixed under warranty.

[Tannin]

Good news, Patrick, I'm very pleased to hear that. As you know, the 7D AF system is very configurable, but it takes quite a bit of learning. This is so even when you have mastered a variety of other Canon AF systems. When I bought my 7D (quite a while ago now) I'd already owned 20D, 400D, 40D, 50D, and 1D III, but nevertheless it took me a year or more before I felt I was getting something like the best out of the 7D AF. Where I can, I prefer the 1 Series for flight shots (1D III back then, 1D IV now) but I've learned to switch modes on the 7D for flight shot work when I do use it for that purpose. (I quite often will sit quietly somewhere - by a wetland, say - using the 1D IV and the big 500 for static shots but with the 7D & 100-400 beside me ready in case something interesting flies over.)

There is a mode on the 7D where you get a movable rectangular set of AF points (I forget what it's called) and I find that a good compromise between the ultimate accuracy of single point (high-precision smaller point is best) on the bird's eye (as you do with a sitting bird) and the flexibility and speed of full auto point selection. I imagine that's what you are doing now.

The real pro in-flight lads don't think much of that system though: they reckon that with any of the area focus modes (with any camera) you tend to get focus on the nearer wing rather than the eye, so they use single AF point and hold it in exactly the right place. Damned if I know how! One thing that helps then is that they mostly favour the 400/5.6 prime because it focuses faster that the 100-400. The 500/4 is great in that regard - significantly faster, more accurate AF than the 100-400 - but it's so big and heavy that I struggle to hand-hold it accurately enough on a bird in flight. Also, I really, really like the fast push-pull zoom function on the 100-400 'coz you can easily acquire the bird at 100mm, zoom in to frame as it comes closer, then zoom out to fit it all in as it gets closer still. Alas, with the slowish 100-400 the AF system struggles to keep up, even with a 7D or 1D. So there is no perfect answer, except possibly the new 200-400/4, which I can't afford at present. Sadly, the market for kidneys is sluggish this year and I've already sold my last grandmother.

[mickyj]

I like my 7D but I still prefer my 5D so I will not be jumping on this but it is still great to hear about it!
thanks for the info.

[Paddyob]

Thanks for all of that, Tony et al! Interesting stuff. Budget restraints decree that I will be sticking with the 7D for a good while yet, but one can still dream.
Thanks for the pics, Crafty1Tutu. Great results. Must have been fun.

[Jaded62]

I think I'd go to the 6D for the full frame as I only do landscapes so speed is not an issue. Not that the 7D is a slouch when it comes to speed anyway.

[in2fx]

When I received my 7D (mk1) all that time ago now, I spent the first week just playing around with it each evening without a memory card in the slot so that I could really learn everything about it. That really paid off, because when I finally put a card in, I knew the camera so well and had already customized it to suit how I wanted to use it.
Once I got my 5D mk111 and reprogramed the DOF button to select Al Servo instead (finger falls into place perfectly), I wished that the 7D also had a button there for quick changes to moving targets from Single.
I use my 3 custom settings all the time as it is, but often want that Al Servo even faster than I can flick that dial and think the 7D mk11 has a button there now and like the idea of the new model just for that alone.

[I @ M]

And a bit more handy information about the weather resistance of the body can be read at ---- http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2014...open-the-7d-ii

[Babu]

Thanks for that very informative link Andrew.
The weather sealing pictures in that article and Bryan Carnathan's review at the-digital-picture.com
have helped to overcome my initial reservations about the Mk II. It now seems likely that it will be
the crop factor camera that I take on my trip to revisit Madagascar and South Africa next year.

[in2fx]

I am not in a position to upgrade my 7D mk1, but would if I could afford it with the impressive improvement in the ISO reach after watching Scott Kelby rave about it after playing with one and the jpeg images he was capturing at 16,000.
That print, straight out of camera was very impressive

[dolina]

Not a troll post so pls do not interpret it as such.


What do you not like about your 7D Mark II?

- - - Updated - - -

Not a troll post so pls do not interpret it as such.


What do you not like about your 7D Mark II?

[Tannin]

^ That I haven't got one?

On a more serious note, I'm only medium-impressed by the early samples of higher-ISO noise. It's a pretty significant improvement on the Mark 1, but then the Mark 1 isn't much good at anything over 400 ISO so improvement was needed. I'd really like to have seen comparisons side-by-side with the 5D II (which is my benchmark camera for noise performance) but the closest I can see on The Digital Picture is comparison with the 1D IV. The 7D II bears comparison to the Mark IV, but is comprehensively out-performed just the same. So, in low light, I'd still be reaching for the Mark IV even if I did buy a 7D II. That makes it a nice-to-have upgrade over the 7D 1 rather than a must-have upgrade.

Of course, it is rather unreasonable of me to expect an APS-C body to match or beat an APS-H one. Physics is physics. Just the same, I was quietly hoping that it would perform a miracle. I'll probably still get a 7D II at some stage, but there doesn't seem to be any hurry now. Maybe I'll hit myself over the head with the expensive stick and get a 5D III or 5D IV first (which will also require a small fortune on new lenses).

[Dion]

I too am hanging out for more information about the 7D2s higher ISO performance. My current 7D is awful at anything 800 or above, especially compared with my 5D2.

The 7D AF means it is the body to choose when it comes to sport or birds in flight though, so I do think I will upgrade.

Seems to be with Canon that it is the MkIII version where the camera really shines. But I can't wait for the 7D3!

[Arg]

See you in five years then!