A Shake-up Coming to the APS-C DSLR Lineup? [CR2]

[BillB]

What does the market need/want in a new DSLR?  Finer resolution?  Faster frame rate? Better low light performance?  Less menus/options?  Lighter weight?  Faster autofocus?  Improved video?  Better audio?
Today's offerings do pretty well in all these areas given differences in price points.  Pack the new ones with more
not photographic features?  GPS?  NFC?  Bluetooth?  Or maybe better in-camera editing?  Improved remote
operation?  None of the prime manufacturers seem to be particularly customer sensitive (except perhaps Fuji)
as to market requirements.  We'll get what they give us, when they give it to us.  The rest is chasing rainbows.

Specifically regarding the 7D2, a little bit of everything, as most would agree that it is behind the D500 in featureset - and even the 80D in some areas. A flip screen would be nice

More broadly, cameras do get slight improvements even now, and there is no reason NOT to implement that into bodies for new purchases, because there are a multitude of reasons that people buy new cameras, and after all, camera manufacturers are trying to stay in business.

This doesn't mean that buying a new camera will have any meaningful benefit for an existing owner of a flagship in terms of producing better photography, which may be what you're driving at. But that is a reason not to upgrade; it isn't a reason not to iterate the product.

Also, the 7DII has a dual pixel sensor, but it does not have the current technology with the Analog to Digital conversion on the sensor itself, which has lower noise levels at low ISOs.

[Talys]

The only thing that I can imagine would be a shake-up would be integrating support for full frame and crop within the one body.

The mirror would be sized for APS-C, and would only show the centre crop of the image.  If you have an EF-S lens attached, then it would enforce cropping.  If you have an EF lens attached then you would have the option of centre crop (you get what you see through the optical viewfinder), or entire frame.

Optical focusing would only be able to use focus points reflected by the mirror - though I guess with software smarts could be combined with the dual-pixel AF - particularly when a subject moves just outside the centre.

So what does full frame bring to the equation?  Well I guess this is where there is alignment with video, and landscape, portrait, architectural type photography where you can primarily use the LCD screen for adjusting framing and reviewing shots.

To have a decent megapixels for the birders you will need to have presumably 50MP (or more) across the full frame.  I guess they could do some clunky separate pixel resolution between the centre-crop and full-frame portion.

The problem is that Canon being Canon, will look at it taking away from people buying 5D, 1D, 6D, and 4K video camera sales.  However if Canon are smart then it is an opportunity to sell wide angle EF lenses, and more lenses designed for video.

This... makes zero sense.  The camera would need a full frame sensor, but APSC mirror/prism.   That's nearly all the cost of full frame, without a way of seeing the field of view in the viewfinder.  You also couldn't use the autofocus sensor beyond the APSC mirror's boundaries, since no light would be reflected downwards.

If you want a crop capture on a full frame sensor, mirrorless will be the way to go, because the viewfinder can switch between crop and full frame with a push of a button.  The Sony implementation of this is excellent.

[fingerstein]

Maybe the "big shakeup" will be WI-FI/NFC for 7D Mark III (!)

[sanj]

"The reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated."
                                                          —The dSLR

Matter of time. Sooner than anticipated.

[Treyarnon]

Any chance the 'extra' camera is a 7D3 with the AA filter removed?

The real surprise here is that the 7D3 has been delayed (when was the last full calendar year without a marquee 'xD' camera release?). I guess Canon have decided the camera needs more time in R&D - but the idea that releases are effectively being held for the moment, and then a big rush of new models next year (5Ds, 7D, 80D, the 'new' model - maybe a full frame mirror less too) ... kind of makes me wonder if Canon has some new tech in the pipeline that they want to get into the market as soon as possible

[padam]

It's not going to be as big as an upgrade as the 7D II was compared to the original for stills (just like the 1DX II compared to the 1DX), but it will be very solid.
More speed (12 fps?) and faster card support for that, better IQ and AF (more high-precision cross-type points, more points at f/8) and better video features will be the main upgrades.
Maybe it will remain around the 20MP mark with a similar 1.4x crop to the 1DXII (in addition to the 1.6x) for 4k, maybe with 60fps as well (if CFast 2.0 is included), and 1080p at 120fps.
All these video features mean the AA filter is there to stay, nothing wrong with that, really.

[tron]

So it seems 7DIII will be announced in 2019 which means that Canon will keep more or less the 5 year gap between the 7D systems. It will not be a problem if the improvements are on the same scale like the ones from 7D to 7DII.

[Talys]

So it seems 7DIII will be announced in 2019 which means that Canon will keep more or less the 5 year gap between the 7D systems. It will not be a problem if the improvements are on the same scale like the ones from 7D to 7DII.

The only thing the 5 year gap is tough on is people who have the need to buy something every year or two

[tron]

So it seems 7DIII will be announced in 2019 which means that Canon will keep more or less the 5 year gap between the 7D systems. It will not be a problem if the improvements are on the same scale like the ones from 7D to 7DII.

The only thing the 5 year gap is tough on is people who have the need to buy something every year or two

Correct! Apart from some sensor improvement though which could be welcome sooner. Everything else can wait! But even so, I guess the more we wait the better the sensor will be 

[zim]

So it seems 7DIII will be announced in 2019 which means that Canon will keep more or less the 5 year gap between the 7D systems. It will not be a problem if the improvements are on the same scale like the ones from 7D to 7DII.

The only thing the 5 year gap is tough on is people who have the need to buy something every year or two

Correct! Apart from some sensor improvement though which could be welcome sooner. Everything else can wait! But even so, I guess the more we wait the better the sensor will be 

and people with the 7D waiting patiently as the difference between original and 3 should be significant to cost justify, so not really correct