5D III, or 6D+7D combo - your thoughts?

[RC]

So for all of you suggesting to dump the 7D, at what price point do you think it's worth getting rid of it? As I mentioned in another post, I don't think l could get $800 for my low shutter count 7D. How many of you are willing to "give" it away for a few bucks? For me, that is not worth it, I'll keep mine as a second body.

 

[Nishi Drew]

So for all of you suggesting to dump the 7D, at what price point do you think it's worth getting rid of it? As I mentioned in another post, I don't think l could get $800 for my low shutter count 7D. How many of you are willing to "give" it away for a few bucks? For me, that is not worth it, I'll keep mine as a second body.

For as a second body/backup sure, if you're not potentially getting much out of selling it then the body is far more valuable sitting there in a bag for the in-case-emergency. Or, you're with someone else and you want them to have a body (I feel that way quite often), or you might as well gift it to someone, friend or family.

 

[DB]

So for all of you suggesting to dump the 7D, at what price point do you think it's worth getting rid of it? As I mentioned in another post, I don't think l could get $800 for my low shutter count 7D. How many of you are willing to "give" it away for a few bucks? For me, that is not worth it, I'll keep mine as a second body.

+1 The 7D is probably the best value Canon DSLR on the market right now. I paid €1,000 for mine new in 2011 and would still have to cough up almost 2x for a new 5D2 and 3.5x for a 5D3, even a the Rebel T4i is only 200 euros cheaper, thus for the speed, mag alloy body, and unique AF system, it's worth every cent.

 

[pdirestajr]

I actually like carrying around 2 bodies with different crop factors. Gives me more options mixing my prime lenses.

 

[K3nt]

Back to what the original question was: Keep the 7D for sports and get a 6D for landscapes/portraits?
I'd say yes. Based on what you stated the use would be I'd say you don't need 600 AF points for landscapes, you want a good sensor and the 6D's AF points are well sufficient for that. The added bonus of GPS when doing landscapes is something I would like too.
I might be wrong, if so, I stand corrected but it is what I would do.

For sports the 7D is one of the best there is, and yes, while high-ISO shots (3200+) are noisier than I'd like them to be most are usable through decent post.

 

[Daniel Flather]

I got these primes as an affordable way to get to a decent shutter speed for indoor sports within the ISO range of the 7D. It barely does that.

Get the 5D3. But, we have no idea what the 6D's iso/noise will be like.

 

[dtaylor]

Not sure if anyone else has said it, but the "reach" of the 7d vs a 5d3 is BS. Crop into the 5d3 frame and it will still be sharper than the 7d.

Sure it will. If you compare out of camera images with no sharpening or the same sharpening. The problem is crop sensors utilize lenses at a different point on their MTF curves and therefore require different sharpening amounts. It amazes me how many reviewers and testers fail on this single point. Failure to understand this also leads to much of the "huge, just huge difference" claims by FF fans.

Crop cameras put more pixels on target, period.

Having established that...the resolution differences are only apparent at large print sizes or with extreme cropping. Really it's only when doing both that the 7D pixel density advantage becomes clear, but you don't often have to do both. I have 20", 8-10 MP cropped 7D surfing prints that I could not have made with a 5D3 and the same lens, but that's the rare print. The subject matter you're typically trying to reach just doesn't stress MP like a wide angle landscape, and you typically don't have to crop that much for additional magnification.

I love the 7D for telephoto action (sports; wildlife). But...I could probably do >95% of what I do in those areas with a 5D3.

6 of one, half dozen of the other.

 

[dtaylor]

Here is my dilemma. I want to buy a FF camera to do more portraits, landscape, etc. Do I sell my 7D and get a 5D III, or keep my 7D and get a 6D for a second body? (I couldn't justify the cost of the 5D III unless it could replace the 7D as well)

There's going to be very little difference between the two for landscape and portraits, contrary to the unsupported claims of people infatuated with FF. (I say unsupported because we never see photos or crops that illustrate any real difference at low ISO.) That said...

With the 5D III, I really only give up a couple of FPS vs the 7D and some reach which I would probably only miss in football. I gain much better ISO performance for the indoor sports like volleyball, where the 7D can struggle (even with an 85mm f/1.8 I need ISO 3200 which honestly is poor on the 7D).

You can gain the reach back for football with a 1.4x tele, assuming your telephoto lens is compatible. While I do not concur that 3200 is poor on the 7D (if it is, you're processing it wrong), I think the 5D3 will show you the greatest difference with indoor sports. 3200 is excellent on the 5D3, and it's not the limit like it is on the 7D. (I will concur that by 6400 the 7D isn't doing so well.) For indoor sports the 5D3 is the camera to grab.

I love the 7D. I think it is one of the most well rounded bodies ever released by Canon, and still the king of crop 3 years later. But now that the 5D3 has a real AF module, a 5D3 + 1.4x can do the things that used to require a 7D.

 

[funkboy]

Personally, my ideal setup would be either the 5DIII or 6D and a really nice small portable camera. The type of small camera you get depends a lot on what you want to be shooting with it when you don't have your FF camera around. It also depends on what lenses you already have for your FF setup.

There are some really sweet smaller cameras out there at the moment from Fuji, Panasonic, Olympus, and of course Canon.

Just as an example, it might not have the greatest IQ or AF in the world but the Pana FZ200 has a 25-600 f/2.8 constant-aperture zoom on it. I don't have a lot of need for long telephotos but owning an S5 IS has completely put me off the desire to buy SLR lenses longer than about 200mm. It's easy to bring in to a stadium/arena concert in a small bag and shoot decent video from really far away. If you need better IQ, Panasonic also makes a load of stabilized μ4/3 supertelephotos that fit in a handbag. A GX1 with one of those would be a sweet compact stadium setup.

BTW you didn't really mention what lenses you have (other than the 85mm f/1.8) or whether you have any EF-S lenses like the 17-55 f/2.8 that would influence your decision to keep the 7D...

I agree that if you do primarily sports & action keeping the 7D is probably a good bet, a compact camera won't hold a candle to it in terms of IQ and AF.

 

[dtaylor]

I don't want to get flamed by 7D lovers, but I always found my 7D images to have a rough quality to them. I'm not talking about ISO noise -- that body let me make lots of great images at 3200, but a general granularity of the images even at ISO 400-800 (which should be very smooth these days).

Crop sensor shots can be a little more "rough" due to pixel size. But I never had any trouble killing this and making them FF smooth...without losing detail...with Noise Ninja. (Just not with the default settings.) At least not at low to mid ISO. High ISO is a different story, and where FF truly distinguishes itself.

The images are beyond compare to the 7D images, though.

Comments like that are what cause flames "Beyond compare" quickly becomes "I can't tell the difference" when asked to identify unlabeled, processed crops and 24" prints. That means it was never "beyond compare" to begin with.

That said, at high ISO the 5D3 is "beyond compare" vs. any current crop camera.

Bodywise, your hand will fall onto the 5d3 controls instantly. Not sure about the 6.

The 6D takes its design from the 60D. Another reason to be annoyed with it

 

[chasn]

Uk wise a 7D and a 5D2 is pretty much the price of a 5D3. I would like a 5 D3 and will get one in due course but to give up the 7D even if only to keep the fps is not for me - here is a Wiggins shot to my mind impossible at 6 fps - he came round the corner very fast....

 

[ishdakuteb]

Not sure if anyone else has said it, but the "reach" of the 7d vs a 5d3 is BS. Crop into the 5d3 frame and it will still be sharper than the 7d. I did lots of testing myself to confirm this. The only time I touch my 7d is as a backup. Go for that glorious 5d3 and you will love it.

based on your suggestion, i wonder:

1. why buy telephoto while i can crop, and
2. should i sell my 5d iii to buy nikon d800 since its sharpness will maintains much better than 5d iii after cropping due to its resolution...

yes, i still have my 7d (will keep it as back up) and 30d (will keep it for experiment purposes). everyone has his/her own philosophy about utilizing his/her camera right?

 

[Tcapp]

Not sure if anyone else has said it, but the "reach" of the 7d vs a 5d3 is BS. Crop into the 5d3 frame and it will still be sharper than the 7d. I did lots of testing myself to confirm this. The only time I touch my 7d is as a backup. Go for that glorious 5d3 and you will love it.

based on your suggestion, i wonder:

1. why buy telephoto while i can crop, and
2. should i sell my 5d iii to buy nikon d800 since its sharpness will maintains much better than 5d iii after cropping due to its resolution...

yes, i still have my 7d (will keep it as back up) and 30d (will keep it for experiment purposes). everyone has his/her own philosophy about utilizing his/her camera right?

Huh? I assume you are being sarcastic? Longer lenses are always better than cropping. Unless, of course, the lens is just really really bad.

For any given lens, a 5d3 gives such a better image than a 7d that even with it cropped down to the same field of view as the 7d, then unscaled to 18mp, it can look just as good, if not better than the 7d.

And no, I don't think the d800 would be nearly as good. Canon lenses are awesome. ;D

 

[ishdakuteb]

Huh? I assume you are being sarcastic? Longer lenses are always better than cropping. Unless, of course, the lens is just really really bad.

For any given lens, a 5d3 gives such a better image than a 7d that even with it cropped down to the same field of view as the 7d, then unscaled to 18mp, it can look just as good, if not better than the 7d.

And no, I don't think the d800 would be nearly as good. Canon lenses are awesome. ;D

nah... i am just joking around and will not sell my 5d iii and buy d800 since i am still loving all my canon gears...

 

[SJTstudios]

Get the 6d, for sports you always need a second body for photos, and the 6d won't hinder your abilities. If you stick the 70-200 on your 7d, and the 85 on your 6d, you will be set. 4.5 is decent for ff, since I know a lot of other pros who shot sports with a 5d ii. But the 8fps is needed for some situations, and the 5d iii isn't designated for sports, it's a studio camera, with some fps versatility.

 

[Richard8971]

This is the same 'ole "My item is better than your item" for this blah, blah, blah, reason.

The 7D is one hell of an amazing camera, as is the 5D2/3. I LOVE my 7D and my 5D2. Each camera body offers something that the other cannot. OK, answer me this, I hear 5D2 (or 6D) this... and 5D3 that... so why hasn't anyone here suggest the 1DX??? (Isn't it superior to the 7D???)

Oh, that's right, the PRICE RANGE (close to what 7 grand for the 1DX? ouch) ... duh, I forgot about that. At about $1400.00 (give or take a few bucks) right now the 7D is an amazing value for what it gives you. The images it takes are amazing and very crisp. The camera is blazing fast (for the money) and I couldn't be happier with it. Do I own a 5D3? No, and I prolly won't for the price (right now). I have friends who use it and it offers the same thing the 5D2 offers. It just does it a little faster. (Yes, yes and a few more features, oh...like those found in the 7D!) I will keep my 5D2 and 7D.

Readers... do yourself a favor. Buy what you can AFFORD for the FEATURES/SPEED you want (and more importantly need) and learn your equipment well. Look, I can go back to images I caught with my Rebel XTi and they are fantastic!!! I mean that, they are super shots! Sad to say that money is a limiting factor to our purchases, but then again, that is the PRIMARY reason why Canon offers so many cameras for us to choose from. There is simply no ONE camera for everyone.

D

This is kind of like someone suggesting that everyone should drive a Corvette and anything less is crap. Give me a break...

 

[Richard8971]

Uk wise a 7D and a 5D2 is pretty much the price of a 5D3. I would like a 5 D3 and will get one in due course but to give up the 7D even if only to keep the fps is not for me - here is a Wiggins shot to my mind impossible at 6 fps - he came round the corner very fast....

Nice shot, BTW...

D

 

[dswatson83]

I would not go with the 6d. It just really lacks as a pro body. The 5D mark III will easily replace your 7D with almost as fast frame rate, better DR, better low light, FF, dual card slots, and better focusing. I don't think the 6D focusing system will serve you. There are some reviews of the 7D & 5D mk iii vs some nikon cameras as well as a preview of the 6D of why I don't think the camera will serve you best if you want to take a look: http://www.youtube.com/user/learningcameras

I'd go with the 5D mark III...wait for a deal to get it around $3000 though.