Camera Labs

Well, it really depends on your needs and what you use the camera for. In my case, these are the things I'll miss from the 7D

1. 60fps video.
2. Integrated flash.
3. The AF system.
4. The 8fps. Not so necessary for landscaping but, hey, I was once taking landscape shots when I see a sled pulled by dogs approaching me. And last year the road bike world championship just happened to pass in front of my building, so it can be handy.
5. The weather sealing.
6. The electronic level indicator.

I know that if you limit yourself to one purpose (like landscapes), then most of the above become irrelevant, but we rarely limit ourselves like that, right?

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Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105mm f/4.0 L

Stuart, define "better sensor"? The 5D2 sensor certainly is bigger, thus allowing more potential for shallow DoF effects, and the higher total pixel count can help in larger outputs or harder crops. But the 7D sensor is a generation newer, and if you were to scale it up to full frame size it would give you more potential still particularly at higher ISO.

Of course if you were to put the "best" parts of 5D2 and 7D together it would be a potent combination... If you want a balance of high speed and bigger sensor, there's always the 1D series.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Hehehehe, I don't think my bank account can withstand a 1D. And it's not even FF...

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Canon 5D Mark II
Canon 24-105mm f/4.0 L

Well, going back a generation can help, as here a typical used 1D3 is less than a new 5D2. But I guess it all depends what you want at the end of the day.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Yes I meant the mark lll!

I am sure the mark ll does the job very well. But the prospective buyer sees the 7D with the better technology and then may be put off buying the 5D now because they would want a camera with the same, or better, technology as the 7D. Of course it is always a problem that the next camera will always have better technology but Canon have got in to the situation of having one camera leap frogging another.

Maybe it would be better if upgrades to the 7D and 5D would come out at the same time, with the same improved technology. That would avoid the problem and would also lead to economies of scale by fitting improved technology to both the 5D and 7D, with research for both at the same time.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.

I’d like to add some comments about my experience shooting videos with the 5D Mark II. I recently visited the Kimberley region of Western Australia and shot dozens of clips with this camera at 30fps and full resolution 1920x1080. I think it is important to use an external microphone, particularly if the Image Stabilizer is left on, as the motor is otherwise very evident in quiet clips. I used the Rode Video StereoMic, which is excellent. I had earlier used the Rode VideoMic, but while the audio it offers is good, the rubber band arrangement to isolate the mic from the camera is very poor and doesn’t like much knocking about. Most of the clips were shot with a video pan/tilt head on a tripod. The results can be seen on Vimeo in 720p HD:
Part 1: http://www.vimeo.com/15148528
Part 2: http://www.vimeo.com/15553750

Nice work Strabo! What lens and which editor did you use? Any challenges or tips with either you'd like to share? (we may break this out into a separate topic in the video section)...

Most of the video was shot with the 24-105 f4 IS lens, my standard for this camera. Dirt on the sensor (troublesome to later delete in videos) was sometimes a problem and I learnt not to stop the lens down too far (eg f22) since while this gives focussing more margin for error it also makes dirt on the sensor likely to be more visible. Some of the video was shot using a Merlin Steadicam, but with a Canon 28-80mm lens at the wide angle, as the 24-105 is too heavy and changes the adjustments on the Steadicam when it is zoomed or if the focus is changed. For video editing I started with Adobe Premiere Elements, but it struggles with HD video and often aborts. I am now using Premiere Pro and even that occasionally aborts and I am currently upgrading my graphics card and installing RAID 0.

From Murdock's list above there is one other item that is missed out: the viewfinder. The 7D has wider coverage than the 5D. I don't think that would be important to me though. The 40D has even less coverage and I have got used to really filling the viewfinder to ensure complete coverage.

As for the other points:

60fps video? This is essentially a stills camera. Video is nice and maybe I could find it very useful. I have a videocamera though.

Integrated flash? A dedicated speedlite flash is much better. You avoid lens shadow at least. When you are spending a lot on camera equipment an extra £180 on a 430EX is not that much extra and you get much better quality photos, which is the aim of getting better equipment.

The AF system? Yes this is one item I would like on the 5D, but is it that much different?

8fps? Actually I rarely use continuous shooting, even in 'sport' photography. 4fps is also pretty fast (ok 3.9fps).

The weather sealing? I have never had a problem with my 40D.

The electronic level indicator? Could be useful when photographing landscapes and buildings, but this can be rectified in photoshop

So most items can be worked around.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.

Firmware version 2.0.8 available for download:

http://web.canon.jp/imaging/eosd/firm-e ... mware.html

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Mark Osborne
My life through an iPhone

There is another important facility that the 7D has and the 5DmkII does not have and that is a wireless speedlite transmitter. Having recently investigated the speedlite for my 40D I see how useful the wireless speedlite transmitter is on the 7D. The 5DmkII requires a separate transmitter whereas the 7D can fire an off camera 430EX II on it's own.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.

Hi folks,

Thanks to Rob Galbraith for flagging up Canon's intention to offer its Japanese customers an upgrade to the mode dial of the 5D Mark II to including a locking mechanism similar to the design on the 60D.

Click the image for a Googlish translation from the original Japanese. Price after conversion from the Yen is about £80/$125. No word yet if this will be offered outside Japan but as this has apparently been driven by customer demand then, if you want it, I'd suggest sending a Christmas card to your local Canon head office.

Bob.

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OM-D E-M5 + ED 12-50mm, H-PS14042E, H-F007014E, L-RS014150E, M.ZUIKO DIGITAL 45mm 1:1.8.
Gitzo GT1541T, Arca-Swiss Z1 DP ball-head.
Astrophotography: TEC 140 'scope, FLI ML16803 camera, ASA DDM60 Pro mount.

Interesting... The locking mode dial does seem to have caused some argument, although what feature change doesn't?

Thinking more widely, I wonder if they could make one that is user selectable e.g. you could set it to lock or not and therefore please everyone.

On a recent trip to Whipsnade, since it was a weekday off season it was practically deserted. In their drive through enclosure I had plenty of time to practice my drive by shooting. The camera was placed on the passenger seat and I picked it up as needed for shots. Only when I reached the end did I noticed the mode dial had been nudged to P mode at some point, so the lock could have helped there. Well, I guess there's a first time for everything.

On an unrelated note: the 5D2 is cheaper than ever so I'm getting that itch again... I just need to keep telling myself I don't *need* one...

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

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Good news for those that would like to have their camera modified as the mod has been announced in Canada, the USA and the UK.

Bob.

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OM-D E-M5 + ED 12-50mm, H-PS14042E, H-F007014E, L-RS014150E, M.ZUIKO DIGITAL 45mm 1:1.8.
Gitzo GT1541T, Arca-Swiss Z1 DP ball-head.
Astrophotography: TEC 140 'scope, FLI ML16803 camera, ASA DDM60 Pro mount.

Window dressing. It's about time we had some news on the 5D mkIII. Now that the 7D has been out for so long with extra facilities that should be on a 5D as well.

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Canon 40D, EF-S 17-85mm IS USM, EF 70-300 IS USM, EF 50mm f/1.4, Speedlite 430EX II, EF 70-200 f/4L IS USM, EFS 10-22mm.