Camera Labs

I currently have a Canon 50d, which is absolutely perfect for the photography I do, however I'm really interested in getting into videography as well. If I do decide to change bodies, there's a choice between two for me. Either the 550d, or the 7d. The benefit of the 550d for me is that I wouldn't have to spend any more money, I'd have enough from the sale of my 50d to cover the 550d.
If I was to go for the 7d, I'd probably have to sell some glass as well, either my Sigma 135-400 or 10-20mm, both of which I love to bits.
How much better is the 7d than the 550d for video?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Thanks, Adam

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Canon 50d, 50mm f/1.8, Sigma 135-400mm APO, Sigma 10-20mm, Lowepro backpack, Velbon tripod, Manfrotto 679 monopod, Hoya filters

www.flickr.com/amr276
Comment and help me learn!

First off the bat, may I ask why you'd want to sell your 50D for a 550D, isn't that a DOWNgrade? Perhaps you should focus on some new glass, the 50D is a very nice camera you know. Indeed, the 7D would be an upgrade, but right now new glass should be your priority.

If the video is THAT important to you, either buy a camcorder or a 550D. Although it's a downgrade, you'd have to sell some of your favorite glass to get a 7D which should be your last resort for cash flow. I love to say this,

"A body is 2% of photography, glass is 8% and the photographer behind the camera is 90%".

I presume that cinematography is the same.

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-Evan

Gear: 7 Nikon Nikkor AI-S and AF-S lenses, SB-700 flash, Nikon D7000, Nikon FM, variety of accessories

"There are no rules for good photographs, there are only good photographs."
- Ansel Adams

Adam, you've got the last question the wrong way around, as it is the 550D that's better than 7D for video. I can't remember the exact differences between them but I remember they put in more video features on the 550D when I read the reviews at the time.

You might also consider the 60D as something in between the 550D and 7D, as I'm making the assumption that inherits the video features of the 550D.

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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.

From what I'm seeing in reviews in regards to video only, it's a bit hard to notice a big difference between the 550d, 7d, and 5dmkII. The reviews were made before the 60D was out, but I presume it would be similar.

The top Nikon camera beats Canon in extreme low-light (there was a test where they used a match as the single light source), but in regular conditions Canon cameras make better videos.

The big advantage the 60D brings is the tilty-swivelly screen, and the manual audio volume. The screen seems interesting. If you're serious about videos, you'll probably end up getting a better audio recorder, such as the Zoom H4N down the road anyways.

If you're looking at the photo side or the toughness side, though, then the 60D is faster and more solid than the T2i, and the 7d is even more solid than the 60D.

Finally, the T2i and 60D have SD/SDHX/SDXC cards, while the 7D has CF cards. I never owned a CF card-enabled camera, so can't comment on why there seems to be a consensus that CF is better.

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Cameras: Canon EOS Rebel T2i, Canon S90
Lenses: Tamron: SP70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD, Canon: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens, 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 III, and EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Retired camera: Fujifilm Finepix s700

Please read the movie mode section of my 550D / T2i review - I've goje into lots of detail. The main differences between it and the 7D are:

1: Wider screen means the 16:9 image looks bigger and has more pixels devoted to it

2: Movie Crop mode

http://www.cameralabs.com/reviews/Canon ... mode.shtml

The 60D goes even further with the articulated screen AND manual audio levels.