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SO I've made some progress on getting a new camera for my unit in the Army. I kind of need some morality guidance on my purchase. I need to get 3 quotes, that's easy but I have to make the final decision on what I'm going to get. The smart choice is my first and most expensive with the 5DII and 24-105L lens. It has weather sealing and considering I just paid $170.00 to get a $350.00 lens repaired because of dust it's what I want. But we all have to be good and think of cost. I could be very happy with a T3i or even T2i and 18-135. The camera and SD memory is cheaper, but no weather sealing. I could go in the middle with my dream camera of 7D which does have some weather sealing and I might could live with a 24-105L on a crop sensor but would prefer the 18-135 range. Arg!

SOMEONE MAKE MY DECISION FOR ME

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

What about the 60D? I believe it has some weather resistance and is cheaper than the 7.

I took a look at your military flicker, and I strongly believe the 5dII will be a better choice, mostly for the weather sealing.

I played very briefly with the 24-105L, and it seemed like a very capable lens. The 24-105's IS would help compensate for it's f/4, though I see most of your shots are taken in the desert during day so either way it could be a non-issue for you. Having IS would be great if you decide to take advantage of the video mode.

While a good quality SD card can be quite durable, in the back of my mind I believe I remember reading that the CF cards are even more reliable.

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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

Gee Mike the US military has an annual budget of around $670Billion, making thousands of 3rd world millionaires on your dime every year.
Go for the best and get an assistant as well.

Unless the army is also going to be happy paying future repair bills (and loaner bills while the primary is in the shop), I'd cross the T3i and T2i off the list.

Then, between the 7D and 5DII, it's basically full frame vs crop. (Although the 7D's faster burst rate might come in handy the next time you're shooting from a helo.)

Mark

I'm with WestCoast. It would not be US military to purchase second best.

This site has a comparison of weather sealed cameras http://www.neocamera.com/article/weathersealed_dslrs

Maybe you should go down a total cost of ownership route to justify things, saving on 3rd party covers for the non sealed kit.

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Nikon D90
Nikkor AF-S DX; 18-105 f/3.5-5.6G VR, 55-300 f/4.5-5.6G VR, 35mm f/1.8G
Speedlight SB-700

http://keystrokesukimages.com

When it comes down to it for the real Army photographers, the Army does get the best. All though I take A LOT of photos, that is not my full-time job. The real school trainined Public Affairs get nice Nikon kits. These are the Soldiers who's first mission is to write a story and take pictures to go with it. The Combat Documentation and Production Specialist or "Combat Cameras" are the one's who's whole job is to take pictures, nothing more. They get the 5D's and 24-105L.

So when that nice budget finally trickles down to me it's up to my unit, do we buy a new tent ok Sergeant Carrigan a new camera I was going to use the point that the 5D is already an issued piece of equipment to some Soldiers. That's not a bad idea to do a cost of ownership over repairs and I can show my own repair bill for my personnel lens that got tore up from the dust

I'm waiting to hear back from B&H's government sales on doing some quotes but, can they make a custom kit? The 5DII is pretty standard with the 24-105L but the 7D is not. I just put a "7D body only" and 24-105L lens in the shopping cart and it is only $100.00 less than the 5DII with lens kit. Can B&H build a "kit" with 7D and 24-105L lens to bring the cost down?

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

Since you said the cost between the 7D and 5Dii cost nearly the same after factoring the 24-105, I'd go whichever would help you do your job better.

The kits are not up to the company who sells them, but to the manufacturer. So if Canon does not make any 7d + 24-105L kits, the manufacturer will pay full price on it (and so will you).

However, sometimes Canon will have rebates where if you buy a lens at the same time as you bought a camera, they will give you a discount. Discounts will sometimes vary according to camera and lens combinations. But that's only if Canon USA has such a deal at the specific moment you buy.

If your unit badly needs a new tent, though, you might want to consider a GoPro HD

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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

Hey Hiking, suggest you go with the best low light (clean high iso with raw file) capable camera you can get and, think about one of these ziplock like underwater bags. Not that you are protecting from water, but this will protect the whole kit from dust, dirt and, water. btw, 6720-01-549-3787 canon , EOS 5D camera 12.8 megapixel camera, has interchangeable lens, found here. Can't vouch for accuracy, but it may be good!

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Photo Taker for ~30 years.
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Thanks Cliff, I did find that one and looked it up on the Army system and no good. Maybe because it was a 5D and not a 5DII so it was canceled, not sure. I tried calling the Army unit where the Combat Cameras work to see how they get there 5D's and no one will call me back I know I will get one through my unit, that's the advantage of driving for the Command Sergeant Major (and I think he likes pictures of himself ), it's just a matter of selling the cost verses quality. I have to do 3 quotes so I'll do 3 quotes for the diff cameras and get a feel for how they react to the cost of the 5DII and go from there.

Thanks for the help gang!

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS

I mostly only pay attention to what Canon/Nikon are doing, but I was just watching a video about the Pentax K30 and that could actually be an interesting option for you. They market it as a weather-sealed camera and sells for the same price range as a T4i, around 899$ with 18-55mm, so you could get your weather-sealing, your crop-factor, and your cheap price tag all in one. I have no idea at all on lens availability for the Pentax though, but could be worth checking it out.

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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

Mike, the 5D2 actually has relatively modest environmental protection. The 7D and 5D3 are better in this regard.

If it's going to get really sandy or wet, consider an older 1D series (or the latest if you really can afford them!)

Gordon

Oh come on Gordon, if the 7D is supposed to have more weather sealing than the 5DII, why don't they make a kit with a L lens like the 24-105L ARG I wounder if I can find a refurb 1 series for a good price. I just checked http://shop.usa.canon.com and they don't have a refurb link for cameras anymore They still have the refurb lenses link.

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Mike "The Squirrel"
Canon 550D | Canon EF 35mm 1:2 | Canon 50 f/1.8 II | Sigma 18-125mm DC OS | Tamron SP 70-300mm Di VC USD | Canon 430EX II
Military Issued Canon 40D | Canon 55-250mm IS