Upgrade to a Canon 7D?

SDK^

SDK^

SDK^

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I currently have two Canon 20D's and am getting frustrated by the lack of auto focus accuracy and flexibility, so I'm looking to upgrade to a camera with better AF.
I want to spend as little as possible and noticed 7D prices are quite low now - around £650 for a new one.

I mostly use my camera for portraits of my son; either stationary or tracking him running around.

Is the 7D the best Canon camera to go for at this price?
 
The 7D is an excellent camera and it just been made EOL by Canon (it's 4 years old) which is why the price keeps sliding. But...

If you did want to buy new i'd be tempted to get the 70D as its 4 year newer technology and features. It can be had on import for £655 inc 2 year warranty. But you could get a another newer (than your 20D) x0D body second hand for much cheaper. MPB / LCE etc. have some good bargains and i'm sure LCE still offer a 6 month warranty of bodies for peace of mind.
 
Funny you should say 6D...

I'm itching to add a FF body to my existing 50D body so i've done hours and hours of research (read days and weeks ;)) on the newer crop bodies, 6D, 5DII and 5DIII. For me the 6D is the only logical choice for my style of photography.

In a nut shell the good and the bad as i understand it:
+ Superior image quality to crop
+ Improved ISO performance especially higher ISOs
+ -3ev on the centre point giving excellent low light focus abilities
+ Quality of DOF
+ Weather sealing
+ Wifi + GPS

- Limited AF points (11!!!!!)
- Only one cross type (centre point)
- Max shutter 1/4000
- Max sync speed 1/180
- 'low' fps @ 4.5

The 6D will be better than a crop depending what you do. If you're into sports or quick moving subjects the nerf'd AF system probably won't be up for the job (70D or 5DIII would be better suited) and you may get frustrated. If you're more into slow moving subjects, portraiture, leisure, landscapes, macro etc. it'll be first class. It's image quality is on par or better than a 5DIII without the price tag.

6D imported via BACS is 'only' £950 or £1000 via credit card, UK pricing is a lot more.
 
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I've found a new 7D for £565 so will go for that.
The 6D is nearly double the price and I feel the AF will be no better than my 20D. Plus it uses SD memory and I have large CF cards which I don't want to replace.

The perfect camera is the 5D MK3 but I can't spend £1.7k on a camera.
 
Sh4rkie said:
If you did want to buy new i'd be tempted to get the 70D as its 4 year newer technology and features.
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That's very misleading though as it makes it sound like the 70D is far superior which just isn't the case. The 70D is a no-brainer if you shoot video due to the dual-pixel sensor but, aside from that, it's quite similar to the 7D but not as well built.

SDK^ said:
What about the Canon 6D?
It's a touch more expensive but has full frame and better IQ.
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The downside to the 6D is the AF system is nowhere near as good as the 7D's which could be an issue if he wants to shoot pics of his son on the move.

SDK^ said:
I've found a new 7D for £565 so will go for that.
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Good choice - at current prices the 7D is a steal.

The perfect camera is the 5D MK3 but I can't spend £1.7k on a camera.
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Neither could I but I did anyway :p
 
High ISO is the weak point of the 7D to be fair but it's still possible to get perfectly decent shots up to 1600 or 3200 ISO if you're careful with exposure.

There are better cameras these days but not for the same money.
 
Vertigo1 said:
There are better cameras these days but not for the same money.
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Yup :)
For £600 the 7D is unbeatable, it's old but doesn't suddenly stop taking good photos because it's discontinued.
Like you pointed out, the 70D is at best identical in features and costs more.

Hunders said:
They're ok. I found the high ISO lacking to be honest.
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High ISO is pretty rubbish on the 7D but my main lens is a 135 L F2 and with the savings (over the 6D) I can buy a Sigma 18-35 F1.8 to go with it. So low light/High ISO isn't a problem.

Thanks for your help :)
 
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Well it is considering he can get a 16-50mm along with a a6000 for less.
Sell the tired 20D and lenses (if he's shooting a 20D perhaps the lenses could also do with updating) and with the residue value, buy a 50mm 1.8.
He would also have the benefit of a consumer friendly video camera.
 
My lenses are pretty decent and would cost a lot to replace, if the equivalent Sony is even available.
- Canon 17-40L
- Canon 135L F2
- Sigma 8-16

The Sony A6000 looks good but I want to stick with a DSLR.
 
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Vertigo1 said:
That's very misleading though as it makes it sound like the 70D is far superior which just isn't the case. The 70D is a no-brainer if you shoot video due to the dual-pixel sensor but, aside from that, it's quite similar to the 7D but not as well built.
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I never said it was far superior though :p. The image quality on the Canon crop cameras hasn't significantly changed that much if any (beyond >1:1 pixel peeping) in years, this is why my old 40D served me well for 6 years!

Nothing wrong at all with the 7D but given the choice of 7D vs 70D the 70D just makes more sense with the improvements in processor, af, flip out screen etc. Yes it might not survive being run over, fire, being frozen in ice and being shot with a bb gun as well as the freak like 7D body but its still seems pretty well built all the same.
 
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An Exception said:
Sony A6000

Much better autofocus. Much better image quality. Cheaper.
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Have you handled a NEX body? Great specs but horrid handling. The Fuji X series are a little bigger and much nicer to handle. I'm not sold on the X-Trans sensor at the moment though. The attraction of a smaller body was negated instantly as I immediately thought "this needs a grip" :D (with the X-E1 I picked up recently that is)
 
Sh4rkie said:
I never said it was far superior though :p. The image quality on the Canon crop cameras hasn't significantly changed that much if any (beyond >1:1 pixel peeping) in years, this is why my old 40D served me well for 6 years!.
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Also the reason why my 20D's have served me well for 10 years :)

As for the Sony, 179 focus points!! I imagine it's cumbersome cycling through those :p
 
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Rojin said:
Have you handled a NEX body? Great specs but horrid handling. The Fuji X series are a little bigger and much nicer to handle. I'm not sold on the X-Trans sensor at the moment though. The attraction of a smaller body was negated instantly as I immediately thought "this needs a grip" :D (with the X-E1 I picked up recently that is)
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Not sure about the a6000 as I haven't handled one, but this is basically where I'm at gear wise.
I always used a dslr with a grip until Nikon decided to charge a fortune for a D800 grip (my OCD prevents me from connecting a 3rd party grip). I got used to not using a grip and now prefer it.

Then I handled a Fuji x-pro 1 which I liked size wise but that was about it other than it's image quality. Then an A7 which I really do like but the specs and lenses are not right for me at the minute.

At the moment I feel stranded with my D800E's because neither Sony or Fuji (or Canon/Nikon) can offer me anything that will improve my photography.

Basically I'm wanting something like an A7s (I like the completely silent shutter mode) with a6000 autofocus. Apparently on sensor PDAF is more reliable hit rate wise. Also just as important.. a fast way to select a focus point.
Regarding lenses, I would need a fast'ish 35 and 85mm, they can even only be F1.8.

I also like the look of the XT-1 and Fuji have the right lenses (F1.2), but the bodies are not full frame and I'm not thrilled with the positioning of the PDAF points and the controls to change focus point are not quick enough imo.
Should Fuji address those minor short comings then I may be tempted with them.
 
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