Moving from a Rebel T1i to a 7D...thoughts?

I've never shot full frame, so I will leave the comparison to pro level cameras to others, but I did jump from a Canon Rebel XSi to a 7D and can comment on that.

The 7D is an awesome camera. I thought I knew my way around cameras by instinct from my long background with film, but the degree of control offered by the 7D actually caused me to read the manual and then buy a camera guide to fully grasp what the thing is capable of. The sensor has great ISO range with not a whole lot of fall off or loss of detail unless you really press it up to the 3200 range. I routinely shoot at iso 200-400 when I go birding and the results are good.

Focus speed is more a factor of the lens than anything else when you get to this level of tech. My Canon 100mm L macro focuses in a flash but my Sigma 120-400 still does some focus hunting, so keep that in mind. The metering system in the 7D is outstanding and I think it's the same as in the full frame Canons.

I could have gone to the 5D, but chose the 7D and I haven't regretted it one bit.

TL;DR: I love my 7D...

Good luck,

Dale

The DPReview article on the 7D:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos7d

Dale

Edit: The 7d is a "higher end" camera. I say this because some people discredit crop frame cameras as not professional just because they are "limited" to, say 18 megapixels instead of 24.

After doing some research for a blog post I just did on SLRs, you can now get a 5D Mark II for under 2000.00 and not much more than a 7D... just a thought. I use the Mark II, I am a pro and I love this camera. I tested a 7D once and it is fine... but between the 2 there is no contest imo. I would prefer a used or refurbed MII to a brand new 7D.

The &D is a great Camera to learn on and change settings quickly thru the manual buttons. Changing on the fly, quick auto focus, great feel.

I tired playign with a t3i and owned one for a bit after i sold my 7d and it was just hard to do things as quick as i wanted. I splurged on the 5diii and it's a nice full frame, but the 7d would have done what I needed.

MattG said:

That makes a lot of sense, but still a little beyond what I'm willing to spend. I'm also potentially looking to add another lens to the collection, so I think I really need to cap the body-money at $1200-1500ish. As for used...I'd be very leary about buying something like this used. So many tiny mechanical moving parts in there...that scares me.

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I think that is a wise decision, which is what I stress in my post, putting your real money toward a good lens rather than a camera body. It is ALL about the glass!

Designer Dale said:

The DPReview article on the 7D:

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos7d

Dale

Edit: The 7d is a "higher end" camera. I say this because some people discredit crop frame cameras as not professional just because they are "limited" to, say 18 megapixels instead of 24.

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Being a cropped censor camera has nothing to do with megapixels. It just means it has a smaller sensor.

It depends on what you shoot. 7D is nice as a sports, second camera wedding, wildlife camera because of its auto focus speed.

When you move to full frame ie 5D line you are getting low light performance and wider focal lengths.

For the price the 7D is amazing and if you want the faster auto focus and burst rate i would definitely get it. If you really want to move to full frame look for a used 5D mark ii it is going to be around the same price.

Both are fantastic cameras and will be great for pro use.

You should worry about buying used. These are pro cameras. They are built to last a very long time.

This is going back a bit but is just what you need!

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/885124/

MattG said:

I've been thinking about the 7D. I realize the 1.6X multiplier will still be there, but I'm wondering...how's everything else in comparison to the pro-grade cameras as well as the beginner-cameras? One thing I notice when I use my friends' pro-grade cameras is how lightning-fast the focus is, and how super-bright the viewfinder is. Also, light-metering seems to be much more spot on.

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The 7D satisfies the desires you mentioned.

The AF is lightning fast and accurate. The viewfinder is 100% coverage. Definitely going to be far better than the 'Rebel' line.

I had a hard time deciding whether to sell my 7D or my 5D Mark II after I acquired the 5D Mark III. I sold the 7D because I decided I wanted to have a FF as my backup *AND* at the time I sold the camera, 7D didn't have the ability to control audio in camera (pre v2.00 firmware). If I were going to sell now, I might have kept the 7D instead of the 5DII because of the v2.00 firmware branch, and because it would be nice to have a crop sensor to complement my FF main body.

Canon just put their refurbs on sale at 20% off. You can pick up a 7D for $1,023. Some of their refurbed lenses are on sale too.

http://shop.usa.canon.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/subCategory_10051_10051_-1_29252

I bought a 7D refurbished a little over two years ago. It was a flawless camera (just sold it and upgraded to a 6D). If there are any flaws with the camera you return it and get a new camera and your 90 days starts over again. If you use your camera a decent amount 90 days is plenty, if not then maybe taking a risk.

I went from a Rebel XT to an EOS 40D, then to an EOS 7D. I also now have a 5DMarkIII.

The biggest thing I noticed when going from the Rebel to the 40D was the ergonomics. The Rebel line have smaller bodies compared to the 40D/50D/60D/7D. For me, the larger body of the 40D and 7D were much more comfortable to hold and operate. These just fit my hand much better. As for image quality and performance, you may see a slight improvement depending on how and what you shoot because the technology is more modern. However, big difference you will feel is in the control layout. It is substantially different and more comprehensive than your T1i. Basically, the 7D controls are laid out so you can work quickly and have access to many of the manual user controls (as opposed to the automatic functions).

The menu system and AF system, in particular, will be substantially different to your T1i. It took me a few weeks to get used to it, but once you get a feel for it, it's great.

There is a series of videos from B&H that were hosted by Rudy Winston of Canon. He explained all the menu systems and how the AF works on the 7D shortly after it came out. I found these videos essential in understanding the new AF system, menu layout, and custom controls. I strongly recommend that you watch these, perhaps several times.

http://www.youtube.com/user/BHPhotoVideoProAudio/videos?query=rudy

I've just bought a 7D. I was faced with a dilemma. Had a 600D (after a 50D) and found it pretty lacking at times. Was contemplating a full frame 5Dmk2 but would have meant a new lens or two and the 6D was out of my price range.

In the UK there's grey imported ones available from UK sellers at a no brainer price. (Bear in mind the 7D Mk2 is on the horizon.) So that made up my mind. I paid around £720 (MkII's are running around £1200)

I'm very pleased with it. I'm still struggling a bit with the focus and it seems to really like light. (Sometimes I find it's low light performance to be a bit patchy). I'm swotting up on my flash techniques. I find it seems to really do well with a hint of speedlite flash. My problems are probably poor technique though.

The burst rate is amazing and I'm getting action shots of the kids which wouldn't be possible previously.

At some point I'll go full frame but this is a great camera. It's really solid to use.

As pretty much everyone said before me, you will be very pleased with the 7D, especially coming from the Rebel series. You will probably notice that the AF on the 7D blows the doors off any Rebel series camera. I really don't know what you shoot, but it's a very good sports/action/birding camera if you shoot any of those subjects. It's not 1DX material, but it's pretty good for a prosumer body. The AF will definitely help you when you help shoot the occassional wedding.

MattG said:

Excellent
Well I just got it today, so...will take some test shots tonight!!

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Make sure you get high speed CF, at least 266x, it makes a world of a difference.

Cuechick said:

After doing some research for a blog post I just did on SLRs, you can now get a 5D Mark II for under 2000.00 and not much more than a 7D... just a thought. I use the Mark II, I am a pro and I love this camera. I tested a 7D once and it is fine... but between the 2 there is no contest imo. I would prefer a used or refurbed MII to a brand new 7D.

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All depends on what you do with your camera. For example, for fast moving subjects the 7D's focusing in AI-Servo and burst speed is quite better than the 5DII. I have a 7D, and plan to buy a 5DII in the near future, since both would get me close in performance to a 5D III. The 7D coupled to the lenses I have now is perfect for wildlife that's farther out of reach, while the 5DII would be perfect for portraiture, landscapes, and such.

AlaskaMoose said:

All depends on what you do with your camera. For example, for fast moving subjects the 7D's focusing in AI-Servo and burst speed is quite better than the 5DII. I have a 7D, and plan to buy a 5DII in the near future, since both would get me close in performance to a 5D III. The 7D coupled to the lenses I have now is perfect for wildlife that's father out of reach, while the 5DII would be perfect for portraiture, landscapes, and such.

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Have you considered a 6D instead of the 5DII? Yes, it costs a bit more, but you get a lot more. Better image quality, better menu system, better focusing system, better processors, much better low light performance, etc.

tgara said:

Have you considered a 6D instead of the 5DII? Yes, it costs a bit more, but you get a lot more. Better image quality, better menu system, better focusing system, better processors, much better low light performance, etc.

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Yes, I have considered the 6D, but in reality its advantage over the 5DII does not justify the added cost, at least to me. While the focusing system on the 6D may be a "tad" faster or more accurate, it's still lacking compared to the 5DIII. Also, low-light shooting is something I don't do without artificial light. I do take photos of the Auroras all the time, but don't need more than 400-600 ISO (most times 400 is plenty with a slightly longer exposure).