A couple of people have written in about the Canon EOS 7D Mark II being listed as discontinued at major retailers. Unfortunately, this is not a sign of an imminent replacement.
While the Canon EOS 7D Mark II body only is indeed discontinued, this was to make room for the Canon EOS 7D Mark II with the W-E1 Wi-Fi adapter, which has taken the place of the EOS 7D Mark II body only purchase option.
So while a Canon EOS 7D Mark III is coming, we don't think we'll see it for at least another 6 months. We haven't received any suggestions of a replacement being imminent.
Firstly, as some people may remember, the original 7D was set as "discontinued" four months before the announcement of the 7DmkIII; the 24-105 f/4L was set as "discontinued" 18 months before the 24-105 mkII was announced. A product being listed as "discontinued", even with no replacement directly in sight, does not automatically mean the end of anything.
Secondly, when it comes to the 7D series, mirrorless is not yet in a position to replace it. The Sony α9 and Fujifilm X-T3 have gotten the speed in place, but they still fall behind in durability and battery life. The 7D, 1D, D8xx, D5xx, and Dx series of bodies by Canon and Nikon will have a purpose for existing as long as it takes for mirrorless to catch up in battery life and durability. That the current fast mirrorless cameras also only achieve their speeds with various combinations of rolling shutter, lower resolution/further cropping, and/or generally compromising on IQ is another factor.
Third and finally, SLR as a whole still has about ~5 more years left in it. It's still what the factories are all geared up to crank out;l that alone will mean entry-level systems will stick to SLR designs. Just as the switch from film to digital was not overnight, the switch from SLR to mirrorless will also take a few more years. (Remember, digital photography first entered the market in the early 90s...)
Realistically, the next 5 years will be a transition period as mirrorless catches up to the extremes that SLRs are used to and factories are retooled for the new style of product. Then there will be another 5 years or so where the top and bottom SLRs (e.g. 1DX and 2000D) remain relevant and supported. All-in-all, it's going to be roughly 10 years (8 at least, 12 at most) before SLR is "dead".
This is, if anything, simply a sign that Canon knows the 7DmkII is outdated and no longer selling enough to justify making more units. Whether that means the end of the 7D line (extremely unlikely), a merger with the xxD line (quite possible), or gearing up for a direct replacement (most likely), nobody can say; simply discontinuing one body doesn't tell us much.
I heard McCoy in my head as I read this!
Recent mirrorless cameras are not competing directly against them,
so the big two companies are releasing their mirrorless products as a complement,
not a substitute, for the robust DSLR lineup.
Right now the market is too fragmented to go all-in into mirrorless.
In this age of MILCs, focus issues are no longer acceptable.
I am pretty certain the 7D Mark II is discontinued because sales numbers were awful.
My feelings exactly. I replaced a 60D with the 7DII and it felt like a complete lateral move as far as image quality goes -and with an actual reduction of "in focus" photos. Granted over the nearly three years I owned it I did get SOME decent shots but we would always return from a vacation and I would be disappointment with the VERY small % of acceptable ones. I even went down that long dark rabbit hole of continually trying to microadjust various lenses to see if that was where the problems were. . . But when I replaced it with my 5D IV, it felt like I was leaping two, if not three, generations ahead at once.
I have a love / hate relationship with the 7DII.
I think its the sensor I don't like.
I find scenes often look sharp as tack in the viewfinder but not so clear in the photo.
I think its too many pixels crammed on the sensor.
I find it poor at high ISO.
It will be interesting if they put much effort into the 7D III.
I'd suspect it won't be much of an upgrade.
Mirrored is dying out.
It would be great if they went out with one last hurrah for a mirrored APS-C.
12 FPS would be great and good ISO performing sensor
If the 7D3 has a flip screen I may just get one.....I predict the 7D3 being released before next Easter.....
APS-C glass by Canon: 18-135mm IS STM, 17-55mm IS 2.8, 10-18mm IS STM and 28mm F2.8 IS full frame and 75-300mm IS.
This is just my anecdotal experience. I don't fiddle around with the "AF Cases".
I find image quality good to very good comparing it to my 6D, SL1, Fuji X100 and Nikon D600.
It's definitely the most responsive of the bunch and the only one I have used in payed gigs. I know it won't fail me.
really? The 7D M2 should have been replaced a year ago (if not sooner). I have one and have tried the Nikon D500 and IMO the D500 is clearly better
Image quality aside, in what areas is the d500 better?
Also I dont get why people are complaining about AF issues on 7D2, I regularly use the 7D2 and dont have any problems getting good sharp photos(will share few photos in a while when I get my Pc)
The 7d2 was a lame, dead duck when it was released, and is even more old hat, "useless" trash now. The sensor is UTTERLY ABYSMAL, and that was it for me. I tested it the first week it was on the market, and I still hate it..disgusting nightime pictures with terrible dynamic range that is easily beaten by an M1. I despise the 7d2 more than the 6d2 though...that one is a true, canon wasnt even trying 2k$ stinker.
You would be far better off with a used 5d3. The 5d3 is still a beast, no fancy gizmos or functions, just raw shooting, reliable full frame goodness. But yeah, let that old trash die.
Sony is about to drop a super aspc model.....they probably designed it at a 7d2 roasting party. And canon will again have no answer. Pathetic.