Struggling to decide on the APS-C 80D vs FF

Barks · 26 May 2016 at 06:21

Hi guys,

I've actually not been on these forums in eons but I remember the photographic community on here is really helpful and thought it would be a good place to gather some opinions.

I've currently got a 550D with an L 24-105 and a (temperamental) Sigma 17-55. The 550D recently got some serious water damage and is now dead

I'm therefore in the market for a replacement. First and foremost, I have no interest whatsoever in mirrorless cameras. Even if they are technically superior, I love the look, handling and feel of SLRs. Secondly, I want to buy brand new but I would rather buy newer tech (hence leaning towards the 80D). My budget is £1000-£1200 and I'm only interested in Canon SLRs as I don't want to change all my glass.

My problem lies in the fact that part of me thinks £1000 on an APS-C is crazy. I've always wanted a full frame and something like a 6D would mean I could use my 24-105 as an all purpose lens. As it stands with the 24-105 with the APS-C sensor on the 550D, it definitely doesn't go wide enough and so I find myself constantly switching between the two lenses. The only issue with the 6D is I'm sure it's due an upgrade and I'd be buying something that's quite old. Furthermore, it doesn't share some of the connectivity features of the 80D such as NFC/Wi-Fi and as sad as it sounds I definitely would use this when travelling/holidays to share my SLR photos via email or social media. (In fact does anyone know if this tech enables you to share RAW files or would you have to shoot in RAW + JPEG).

The 80D seems to have solid reviews and it has some tech I think I would use but it seems to be aimed at videographers and I am buying a camera primarily for photography. I'm then wondering if I would be better off buying that fantastic Canon f2.8 17-55 - or sticking with my L glass and adding something like a 17-40 or an ultra-wide angle lens for landscape/portrait work. In terms of my photography I tend to do landscapes, long exposure night photography, street, portrait - pretty much everything except sports.

As you can tell I'm a bit confused but I'd really appreciate some advice

JohnStewart · 26 May 2016 at 06:56

Given that you mostly do landscapes and long exposure night photography, the obvious choice would be to go full frame with the 6D. The noise handling and focussing in the dark are very good. It has been out for a few years, but there don't appear to be any rumours of an updated model any time soon, unlike the 5D with the Mark IV expected in the next few months. The 6D does have built in wifi as one of my friends uses this to upload photos via his mobile phone within minutes of taking a shot.

I've seen a few low mileage 5D IIIs selling for around your budget which might be worth considering as a stop gap until a revised 6D is released. You can always buy a grey import from a well known UK store for a little more than your budget if you wanted a new 5DIII, or a new 6D and have some money left over to go towards a 17-40 for landscapes, or the Samyang 14mm for night stuff (manual focus). You can get SD cards with built in wifi, but I've never tried one myself.

dannyjo22 · 26 May 2016 at 08:17

I imagine very soon you will be able to get a 5D3 on clearance from grey import for your budget. Or plenty of cheap second hand ones. Depends how long you can hold off. I have tried plenty of canon crops now in a similar position to you. I just find them unusable past iso 800 (canon) and even 800 is pretty poor for any sharpness once you have removed some of the noise.

Try before you buy. The sooner the 5D4 gets announced the better.

And · 26 May 2016 at 09:31

I've no qualms about shooting 1600 on my 1DMkIV (1.3 crop) which is older tech (released around same time as 7D) and I always process without NR. I'd expect the newer bodies (7DII/80D) to be at least as good.

dannyjo22 said:
I imagine very soon you will be able to get a 5D3 on clearance from grey import for your budget. Or plenty of cheap second hand ones. Depends how long you can hold off. I have tried plenty of canon crops now in a similar position to you. I just find them unusable past iso 800 (canon) and even 800 is pretty poor for any sharpness once you have removed some of the noise.

Try before you buy. The sooner the 5D4 gets announced the better.

dannyjo22 · 26 May 2016 at 12:48

And said:
I've no qualms about shooting 1600 on my 1DMkIV (1.3 crop) which is older tech (released around same time as 7D) and I always process without NR. I'd expect the newer bodies (7DII/80D) to be at least as good.

I have only tried 1.6 and they have all been horrific after 800, my 50D is sometimes poor at ISO 400. I have tried just about every crop since in 1.6 at ISO 800 and been disappointed.

And · 26 May 2016 at 13:24

And you expose to the right?

Just reviewed some old 7D files @800 and they're clean.

D.P. · 26 May 2016 at 16:58

dannyjo22 said:
I have only tried 1.6 and they have all been horrific after 800, my 50D is sometimes poor at ISO 400. I have tried just about every crop since in 1.6 at ISO 800 and been disappointed.

Sounds like exposure issues. You onyl get abotu 1 more stop form FF, so if 800 is your APS_C limit then 1600-200 would be your FF limit.

Barks · 26 May 2016 at 18:04

6D sounds like the way forward.

On the other hand I've been on the Fuji thread and now tempted by the X-Pro 2. Surely these mirrorless jobs can't be as good as an SLR? I guess I need to see for myself.