Is the EOS 7D Mark II the last in the 7D series? We’re told that it is [CR1]

[Don Haines]

How many times have you had 1 series cameras fail? Since 2004 I have had one, and that was because I dropped it. This talk of "I need a backup" is largely bullish!t.

I have had 3 DSLRs fail.
#1 was because I dropped it 110 feet onto a concrete pad....
#2 was a sticky mirror, but a clean and lube when I got home cured it...
#3 was a motherboard failure, the day AFTER the warranty expired. (they fixed it for free)

I don't carry a second camera because I think I need a backup, I carry it to avoid swapping lenses. One for wide, one for long. Often I have a third that is a P/S that works underwater so I can shoot in the worst of weather

 

[ShermN8r]

If this news holds true, I have purchased my final Canon camera (5D Mark IV)...It was a good ride ever since the AE-1 Program. As far as mirrorless goes, Canon have quite some catching up to do to reach the Fujifilm or Sony level...See ya!

 

[privatebydesign]

I have had 3 DSLRs fail.
#1 was because I dropped it 110 feet onto a concrete pad....
#2 was a sticky mirror, but a clean and lube when I got home cured it...
#3 was a motherboard failure, the day AFTER the warranty expired. (they fixed it for free)

I don't carry a second camera because I think I need a backup, I carry it to avoid swapping lenses. One for wide, one for long. Often I have a third that is a P/S that works underwater so I can shoot in the worst of weather

Were any of them a 1 series?

I also use two bodies at the same time so I can use two lenses without changing, far more realistic a use case than failure IMHO.

 

[Don Haines]

Were any of them a 1 series?

I also use two bodies at the same time so I can use two lenses without changing, far more realistic a use case than failure IMHO.

A Rebel, a 60D, and an Oly....

of all the consumer electronics out there, I would have to rate cameras as the most stable. I Seldom worry about camera failure, particularly when it is so rare, I have at least one other camera with me (and a phone), and if it did happen, it means that all I have lost is the convenience of not swapping lenses.

And besides, if disaster struck, most of the time you can get a new camera fast!

 

[privatebydesign]

A Rebel, a 60D, and an Oly....

of all the consumer electronics out there, I would have to rate cameras as the most stable. I Seldom worry about camera failure, particularly when it is so rare, I have at least one other camera with me (and a phone), and if it did happen, it means that all I have lost is the convenience of not swapping lenses.

And besides, if disaster struck, most of the time you can get a new camera fast!

Couldn't agree more. Over 15 years ago I stopped carrying 'a spare' body with me when I went traveling. I reasoned in the very unlikely event I had a failure I could get another body FedExed to me practically anywhere in a couple of days.

 

[digigal]

Couldn't agree more. Over 15 years ago I stopped carrying 'a spare' body with me when I went traveling. I reasoned in the very unlikely event I had a failure I could get another body FedExed to me practically anywhere in a couple of days.

You're not in the Arctic or Antarctica on a boat or in western Mongolia or the Gobi desert a lot, are you?

 

[Andreasb]

I dropped the first one and did not have a backup. so I got two so I would have a backup and so I can have one on the 600 and one on the 400 DO II or the 100-400 II all ready to go.

I have been doing this for a long time now, and it is of course up to me how I spend my money, as for your comment it speaks for yourself.

How many times have you had 1 series cameras fail? Since 2004 I have had one, and that was because I dropped it. This talk of "I need a backup" is largely bullish!t.

 

[Aussie shooter]

Couldn't agree more. Over 15 years ago I stopped carrying 'a spare' body with me when I went traveling. I reasoned in the very unlikely event I had a failure I could get another body FedExed to me practically anywhere in a couple of days.

My main trips are to places like the Antarctic, Arctic and Galapagos. Even considering Kamchacta peninsula as my next big trip. So a spare body(even if it is just a rebel) is essential for peace of mind if nothing else

 

[Lee Jay]

I'm not buying it.

1) Canon has invested millions of dollars in the technology behind the 7D series. It' very
unlike a Japanese company to go bonkers and leave all that technology without current representation.

2) There is no substitute for the OVF...yet. Most 7D users are very picky on this subject.
A move like this would alienate a good number of hardcore Canon customers with a ton of EF
lenses that work superbly with a traditional OVF, not an EVF.

3) It would eliminate the natural upgrade path to the 5D series.
Both bodies are very much alike. The feel like a brick. Buttons are almost in the same place.
In fact, it's not rare to see photographers and photojournalists out in the wild with a 5D in one hand
and a 7D on a shoulder sling.

4) The market is small, but it's still there. Nikon's D500 should be the mark to beat, not your own 1DX.
Arguably, Nikon's model is one of the better camera's they've released in the last decade.

5) Mirror slap. Canon included a new mirror box module with the 7DM2 to
make it tougher and less prone to mirror slap. Where is the added space in the cheaper
XXD line for this feature? There's a reason the 7D is so heavy and so firmly built.
The 80D, which is nice, is not in the same ergonomic league. For speed demons, like birders, this is crucial.

If I were to place a bet, I would put $ on the 6D M2 being the last of its kind, not the 7D M2.
With the prior model, you have everything and more in the mirrorless option, but not with the APS-C model.

In that sense, and in many others, the 7D is unique.

This.

I just went and tested the R and RP viewfinders and they're actually awful. And I just finished switching from the 5D to the 7D II and am much happier overall with the range of lenses available for APSC than for full frame.

I also have an 80D and there's just no comparison ergonomically or in speed of use. If an 80D upgrade is going to serve the purpose of a 7DII upgrade as well, it's going to have to be a way bigger step than between any xxD camera since the 10D to 20D jump, which was substantial.

And if a mirrorless is going to be the replacement then EVFS are going to have to get orders of magnitude better. The A7iii I I looked at was slightly less awful than the R series but the EM5 mark II was the only one I saw I could tolerate for slow moving subjects (like walking people). For fast moving subjects, none were close to usable. Further, any full frame would have to take EFS lenses and have the pixel density of the 80D or higher, so over 64MP, and have a crop mode.

 

[Don Haines]

You're not in the Arctic or Antarctica on a boat or in western Mongolia or the Gobi desert a lot, are you?

I did a lot of field trials on Navy Frigates and in the high Arctic. great times!

For security reasons, not a lot of photography on the frigates.....

The high Arctic is gorgeous, even in winter..... and yes, my camera survived -60C!

My standard kit is a crop camera with a long zoom, a FF camera with a normal zoom, and a wide zoom in reserve. I have the two bodies for the versatility, not the fear of failure. Often I also have an Oly TG5 tucked into a pocket for use in rain, or underwater.

 

[digigal]

I did a lot of field trials on Navy Frigates and in the high Arctic. great times!

For security reasons, not a lot of photography on the frigates.....

The high Arctic is gorgeous, even in winter..... and yes, my camera survived -60C!

My standard kit is a crop camera with a long zoom, a FF camera with a normal zoom, and a wide zoom in reserve. I have the two bodies for the versatility, not the fear of failure. Often I also have an Oly TG5 tucked into a pocket for use in rain, or underwater.

That's the kit I'm settling on: 7DMII with 100-400 II (occas with 1.4 TC in really bright light for extra reach) and the R with my 24-104 II or 70-200 II. I also carry a M3 converted to IR that I use with the 3 Canon lenses above. It's a pretty compact kit to carry around the world.

 

[Valvebounce]

Hi Folks.
I have had a body fail, nearly new 40D with shutter failure (well documented else where on CR) on what I considered to be a once in a lifetime trip, I could not afford to replace it instantly and it would have screwed the rest of the holiday so I’m glad I squeezed in my 300D in to my bag just in case.
I do carry two cameras almost all the time, I’m not really afraid another will fail, I consider the failure a random event and I know that it is more likely I will break one accidentally than have another fail. I have different lenses on each body but it gives me a backup too!

Cheers, Graham.

 

[privatebydesign]

You're not in the Arctic or Antarctica on a boat or in western Mongolia or the Gobi desert a lot, are you?

No not the Arctic or Antarctic (though I have spent many years on boats) but if I was I wouldn't rely on a single point of mission failure for anything. But my point was most peoples perceived need for a 'backup' is largely bullish!t, not every specific use case. That was why I wrote "largely".

 

[privatebydesign]

That's the kit I'm settling on: 7DMII with 100-400 II (occas with 1.4 TC in really bright light for extra reach) and the R with my 24-104 II or 70-200 II. I also carry a M3 converted to IR that I use with the 3 Canon lenses above. It's a pretty compact kit to carry around the world.

My last round the world kit was a 1DX MkII, a 35 f2 IS and a 100 f2.8 IS macro, along with a portable battery powered printer. My 15 years ago round the world kit was 2 x 1VHS's, a 1DS of some description, three f2.8 zooms, 15, 50, and 300 f2.8 primes, a couple of 550EX flashes etc etc.

My next one might be different again completely.

 

[privatebydesign]

Hi Folks.
I have had a body fail, nearly new 40D with shutter failure (well documented else where on CR) on what I considered to be a once in a lifetime trip, I could not afford to replace it instantly and it would have screwed the rest of the holiday so I’m glad I squeezed in my 300D in to my bag just in case.
I do carry two cameras almost all the time, I’m not really afraid another will fail, I consider the failure a random event and I know that it is more likely I will break one accidentally than have another fail. I have different lenses on each body but it gives me a backup too!

Cheers, Graham.

Again, I was asking specifically how many times a 1 series body had failed on the poster. Obviously they do fail, but as Don points out even more modest models fail remarkable infrequently, my point was most people here (forum and gear junkies) 'justify' a second body to themselves because of this strange 'back up' meme that in reality isn't generally justified. Yes there are trips any of us might make once, or maybe many times, in a lifetime where a spare or taking our older body makes sense, but that isn't particularly common.

How can anybody argue with that simple fact?

 

[Don Haines]

That's the kit I'm settling on: 7DMII with 100-400 II (occas with 1.4 TC in really bright light for extra reach) and the R with my 24-104 II or 70-200 II. I also carry a M3 converted to IR that I use with the 3 Canon lenses above. It's a pretty compact kit to carry around the world.

My canoeing kit is a large pelican case with a 7D2/Tamron150-600, and a 6D2/24-70F4. That lets me quickly grab a camera for either wide or long use. The 24-70F4 also has a macro mode.... not a real Macro, but often good enough...

 

[stevelee]

I bought my G7X II just before a trip. I decided to take my S120 along as a sort of backup. My concern was not such much fear of failure, but that I might prefer the S120 in some situations. It would fit in my shirt pocket, and the G7X II was just a little too large. So I had the option of taking one or the other out with me sightseeing on any given day. I would up not using the S120 at all. The G7X II fit my in jacket and pants pockets, so that worked just fine.

The S120 will zoom into a 120mm equivalent, vs. 100mm on the G7X II. But that was not part of my reasoning for carrying it along. I had already figured, as I recall, that with the extra resolution, I could crop from the 100mm frame and still have more pixels than the S120's 120mm shot. And my experience has continued to confirm that for travel photos, I rarely wished for longer than the lens would do, and certainly less often than I wished for wider than the 24mm equivalent of both cameras.

That's my experience with carrying along an extra camera as a backup. I realize that space/weight considerations are much less than if talking about FF DSLRs.

 

[Shutterbug]

Again, I was asking specifically how many times a 1 series body had failed on the poster. Obviously they do fail, but as Don points out even more modest models fail remarkable infrequently, my point was most people here (forum and gear junkies) 'justify' a second body to themselves because of this strange 'back up' meme that in reality isn't generally justified. Yes there are trips any of us might make once, or maybe many times, in a lifetime where a spare or taking our older body makes sense, but that isn't particularly common.

How can anybody argue with that simple fact?

You wouldn't cover a wedding or an assignment with one camera body? You couldn't use that excuse that these bodies hardly fail if something were to happen during their "hopefully" once in a lifetime moment. Having the same kind of backup body is helpful and most preferred in many ways but the 7d series makes a very nice backup body to the 1dx series , shaving some weight off the kit.

 

[Kit.]

You wouldn't cover a wedding or an assignment with one camera body? You couldn't use that excuse that these bodies hardly fail if something were to happen during their "hopefully" once in a lifetime moment.

I would cover a "hopefully once in a lifetime moment" with more than one photographer. You know, photographers can fail too.

 

[privatebydesign]

You wouldn't cover a wedding or an assignment with one camera body? You couldn't use that excuse that these bodies hardly fail if something were to happen during their "hopefully" once in a lifetime moment. Having the same kind of backup body is helpful and most preferred in many ways but the 7d series makes a very nice backup body to the 1dx series , shaving some weight off the kit.

I cover weddings with two 1DX MkII's. Principally, as Don and I have already said, to negate the need for lens changes. There are not many pro wedding shooters here, so I stand by my comment which had a very narrow definition.

I have covered hundreds of assignments with one camera body, including my own wedding.