24-70/2.8 mkII & 70-200/2.8 mk II & 50/1.8 @ 5DIII & 7D comparison & combination

[absente]

So the last several weeks went like this:

Sold 600D and a 24-105L. Got a 5D3. Got a new 70-200/2.8L (non-IS). Missed the 24-105, so decided to but the 24-70/2.8II. Sold the 70-200/2.8L by thinking that a 135/2 will be much better. Bought 24-70/2.8II. Tested some 135/2 - not long enough, bought a used 70-200/2.8L (mine was already sold) in a so-so condition. Decided to get a used 7D as a second body an bought one (today). I burned about 200$ with all those bad decisions on the 70-200 - lesson learned.

Now my setup is 5D3 + 24-70/2.8II and 7D + 70-200/2.8 and I will be testing it out over the weekend at several gigs.
Some people say this setup is amazingly stupid, some say it's the best for any kind of shooting. I would like to hear your takes on this. One thing I know so far - it's heavy (I am 67kg, 180cm).

The second thing i realized that the 7D's ISO is "crappy", the AF is slow (in low light) and it feels like a toy - the whole sentence only, if you compare it to the 5D3 side by side (what a surprise /sarcasm).

So, since I've got some free time tonight I decided to make a short comparison between the two bodies, lenses (at 70mm) and also compare the 50/1.8 that I have lying around with the 24-70/2.8II at 50 mil. Since I didn't have a model (lying around) I used a bottle of shampoo in my bathroom.

Distance: 1,5m (24-70) - 1,7m (70-200) in order to get the same frame. Sharpness set to Canon default (3).
Tripod & 10sec timer. Each frame repeated 3 times.

I let you decide if the 7D can compete against the 5D3 in terms of sharpness, quality etc - it seems that my 24-70 needs some AFMA adjustment, LV is sharper then PF @50mm - am I seeing this correctly?


result

 

[Dylan777]

I think is a great setup.

One comment on 70-200 f2.8, why not IS? IS will help a lot due to the weight of this lens.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

The first thing I do is to use FoCal on a new lens or new body. Adjusting AFMA makes a big difference in many cases. If you are viewing at 100% and wide aperture, you can see the difference that just a few points of AFMA adjustment makes.
Focal is able to detect the difference in less than 1 point of AFMA adjustment, but my eyes need about 3-5 points to see on my 27 inch monitor.

 

[absente]

I think is a great setup.

One comment on 70-200 f2.8, why not IS? IS will help a lot due to the weight of this lens.

Actually the heavier the lens the easier without IS (at least for me) - reason to go with a used one was the price. Either a new with IS or a used without IS and a 7D body. I decided to go with the second body.

I will be on my feet tomorrow 12 hours covering an auto show, I'll will post some results on the pair tomorrow if it worked out, or if they will divorce ^^

 

[absente]

Okay, after testing this setup out this weekend at the Chengdu Auto Show - I am happy. I took almost 6000 pictures, and the 24-70 + 70-200 combination on two bodies worked perfectly.

The 7D gave me perfect tight headshots @ 200x1.6mm, or portraits at 70x1.6 while the 5D was used for full body shots, crowds, cars etc. The image quality of the 7D is "doable" compared to the 5D. I shot mainly at 800ISO (7D) during the first day, but the noise is noticeable. IO 640 during the second day worked out for me very well.

The setup is quite heavy, and I hate backpacks - so what I did is having the 5D on my neck, and the 7D over the right shoulder with the heavy zoom - It starts making problems on your neck and shoulders after 6-7 hours, but it's worth it. I didn't miss any shot, switching was below one second in most situations and I am very happy with the results.

Getting "un-shaky" images with the 70-200 on a crop camera at 200x1.6mm is difficult, especially without IS. That's where the 7D proved to be the right choice for a crop-body solution with it's 8fps - I would say that 40% are keepers/in focus at the 200x1.6mm long end, while on the short (70x1.6mm) I get around 70%. It's just almost impossible to get a sharp image by using single shot at 200x1.6mm on a moving subject without a tripod.

In terms of IQ: The 7D performed slightly better in AI SERVO than my 5D3 (and burst) to my surprise. I will test it again, with different settings on the 5D3, but I am really impressed that this old body can hold up to the "holy grail" for most photographers.

Will post pics soon. There is not much information on the internet for this kind of setup, so I will try my best to post regular updates for other people considering marrying their 5D3 to a 7D.

George

 

[Deleted member 7828]

Interesting...

I'm contemplating using this same combo to shoot an ice-skating show coming up...the 7D and 70-200 (the IS II version) for the show action and a 5D3 with the 24-70 II for backstage shots. I want the reach of 1.6x for the show so I can get the ends of the rink, but I also want the clean ISO performance/superior IQ of FF when the reach is not necessary. A case to get the best of both worlds, but since I have not handled multiple cameras before, this will be an experience...

The other option is switching out the 5D3 with the 6D for the backstage stuff, but haven't decided here yet. I used a 60D/70-200 before and it's simply too long and awkward when you are up close and personal, although it is ideal for capturing the action.

Would be interested in reading about more of your experiments. I embark on my own test in a couple of weeks.

 

[Camerajah]

My attack setup is 16-35 L on 7D and 70-200 L IS on 5DIII all gripped is I need full wide angle or extra tight framing lens swap

 

[absente]

I must say that after PP the first pictures I am quite happy with the results of the 7D.

PS: Lightning was very bad and I didn't use a flash on the 7D. PP done in LR

 

[Invertalon]

I did some comparisons myself between the 24-70 II and the 70-200 II at 70mm using a high detailed target and compared the IQ between them on my 5D3...

Just like the Canon MTF charts confirm, the 24-70 II is sharper at 70mm... While close, there is just a higher level of detail compared to the 70-200 II, which is already very good.