80D vs 6D ownership now over 2+ years

[Warren21]

Hey All,

I made a post similar to this one in another 80D thread, but things have changed and I figure a new post is warranted! I have been looking for an upgrade from my T4i, which I have owned for about 16 months.

Stuff I want over the T4i:

1. A better viewfinder, (size and clarity, not coverage/magnification) (80D yes?, 6D yes - bigger than 80D?)
2. AFMA (80D yes, 6D yes)
3. Better ISO performance. At the low end, being able to recover more DR from shadows/highlights. At the high end, (above 1600 ISO), less noise. Otherwise I'm perfectly happy with the IQ of the 18 MP sensor. (80D yes low ISO DR, 6D yes high ISO noise)

What I love about the T4i (stuff 'unique' to it):

1. Articulating touch LCD (80D yes, 6D no)
2. 9-point all cross-type, decent coverage of frame. (80D yes, 6D no)

I shoot a little bit of everything, but stills only. Probably 40% landscape, 40% portrait/people photography, 20% nature/macro. Maybe I'll do video later... But not a consideration right now.

The fork in my road for a couple months now has been 80D (I rented a 70D for about a week last year, almost bought it. Liked it a lot) or take the FF plunge with a 6D. I have mostly EF-S lenses.

SO! I went to my local Best Buy to get the 80D (body only) last week, but the body only variant sold out the same morning it launched online (Now a week later they have removed the listing for it ) I want to get it there because I have a no interest card that I could split the purchase over a few months. Lo and behold then, I bought a new 6D body for $1625 CAD.

I've been running around the house taking all kinds of pictures with it (it is still crap weather here) and the 50 1.8 STM and,

What I love about the 6D:

1. High ISO performance (80D yes? , 6D yes)
2. Big, sharp viewfinder (80D yes? , 6D yes)
2. Depth of field (80D no, 6D yes)
3. Smooth shutter button, no half-stop (80D yes? , 6D yes)
5. Wifi/phone sharing (80D yes, 6D yes)

What I miss on the 6D:

1. Articulating, touch LCD (80D yes, 6D no)
2. My EF-S lenses (mostly just having variety. Having one prime is OK, very limiting. 80D yes, 6D buy new lenses)
3. High sensitivity off-centre AF points (minor gripe, I do often focus-recompose even with my T4i - 80D yes, 6D no)

Mostly, I love the 6D. I just feel like it's silly to invest now in a camera body that's pushing 4 years old when it seems like based on same-ISO performance parity with the 6D, the 80D ticks even more boxes (minus the depth of field which is FF exclusive at same aperture). Whatever this next body is, I can't see myself selling it any time soon or needing a new body for a while. . That new on-chip ADC seems to really be upping the IQ out of the newest sensors, and I'd have my flippy LCD + lens variety back.

I have a week to decide on the 6D. Do you all think it's silly to buy a 6D this late in the life cycle with these new sensors coming out now?

Help me, CR!

 

[mrzero]

Not silly at all. The 6D is a great camera for the price and it will continue making great pictures for a long, long time. Unless you are willing/able to buy the most recent body and sell it used before the replacement comes out (meaning you have multiple bodies on hand to meet your needs), you are always going to lose money on buying new and selling used after the model is upgraded. If the 6D meets your needs, then you just need to focus on acquiring proper glass for it. The fifty was a great start. Consider which of your lenses you used frequently on crop and how you might like to translate those to full frame. The 24-70/4L is a great standard zoom lens, don't worry about what some of the early internet postings said. Or, you could stick with your standard zooms on crop and use the 6D largely for wide aperture primes. Look at the older models (28/1.8, 100/2 or 2.8 macro, etc) or the newer IS primes if you can't afford L primes or don't want to lug the weight.

 

[Larsskv]

If I were to buy a 6D now, I would buy a used one.

That 80D seems like a very good camera. I don't think I would decide before trying it, if I had a lot of EF-S lenses.

In any case, the 6D has made many people happy, including me. It should make you happy.

 

[verysimplejason]

I'm an owner of 6D and previous owner of T1I. I might have gone with 70d if I were to do it all over again but given that, I really love 6D and its imgae quality. What I only hate is the weight at least compared to aps-c. FF lenses are way much heavier. Most of the time, I carry 6D and a 24-105L. It's almost perfect for most situations. Meanwhile a friend of mine likes the 6D and 24-70 F4L combo...

 

[papa-razzi]

I think the question you have to ask yourself is - "what pictures could you take with the 6D vs 80D that you couldn't with the other?"

I have a 6D and 7DII. I use my 6D for my kid's plays - indoor, poor lighting. That is primarily why I got it. Now that I have it, I also use it for any indoor or portrait work. I use the 7DII for sports or anything outdoors with decent lighting.

To be honest, the 6D AF system seems quite limiting after using a 7D. I pretty much use a single focus point with it. The 7D is much more fun and pleasant to use.

Upgrading your glass is a major investment. I would think long and hard before forcing yourself into that.

Good luck.

 

[Piratethedog]

I've owned a 7D2 for just over a year and I just purchased a 6D in the last month. The image quality of the 6D is world class. I love the shutter speed, auto focus, and controls of the 7D2, but they haven't really played a huge roll in my photography. With your list of subjects (40% landscape, 40% portrait/people photography, 20% nature/macro), it doesn't sound like you must have the insane amount of AF points or high FPS of the 7D2.

The details and DR you can recover from shadows on the 6D is mind boggling! I don't regret purchasing a 6D with it being so late in the product's life cycle. It produces outstanding images today, it will produce outstanding images tomorrow, and it will still produce amazing images when the 6D Mark II is finally released. I am in no way disparaging the 80D, but I would be hesitant to say it's better just because it's newer.

P.S. - I feel your pain about moving to EF only from EF-S lenses.

 

[TeT]

I went from the T4i to the 6D for 1 specific reason; custom settings C1 & C2 on the dial. At the time the T4i gave as good/better IQ than the 7D & the 60D, and I was not going to take a step back in IQ.

I love the 6D The low light and the DOF I get with FF are fantastic, would love it much more with better AF and more Focus points...

If you feel the need to go to a FF wait for the 6DII and more focus points... 5DIV if you need FF with all the bells?

Otherwize if you just want the features with very good high ISO jump on the 80D

 

[ins0mniac]

I'll add another plug for 6D. I am a current owner, and have very similar shooting needs like you. I upgraded from the T2i to 6D about two years ago, and couldn't be happier. The high ISO performance is mind-boggling. I have had a 12800 ISO image score high in a local club competition (projected image, but I think a small print would have been fine). My primary interest is landscape, and indoor shots of my toddler son. The camera excels at both. Maybe with a better AF system, I would have a few more keepers of the perfect "moment", but I can live with it. I also use Magic Lantern with it, and can extract greater dynamic range in a pinch when needed using Dual ISO.

I have no intention of upgrading my camera anytime soon, although I do lust for articulating screen for low angle shots. I have been trying to practice remote shooting using WiFi to get around this limitation. I do feel the pain for lens upgrade. I sold the three EF-S lenses I had, including the excellent EF-S 10-22. I kept the 50 II, then replaced it with the 50 STM, which is on the camera by default, particularly indoors. I would say start with it, and then spend any money you have upgrading lenses, one by one. This is the approach I took. I first bought 17-40, then 85 1.8, then 70-200 f/4 L. Using tripod is not always easy on family trips with a toddler, so I decided to upgrade to IS lenses. So I sold the two L and got the 16-35 f/4 IS and 70-200 f/4 L IS. With those two zooms and the two primes, I think I am set for a while. I will continue to drool over new releases and have fun reading CR threads, but I know this camera and these lenses are enough to make good images if I know how to make them!

 

[j-nord]

I shoot a little bit of everything, but stills only. Probably 40% landscape, 40% portrait/people photography, 20% nature/macro.

6D will do all of this better less you want to shoot action or wildlife. Also investing in better glass is better than investing in the latest body. Id sell the crop lenses, buy a used 6D, and start getting some decent used glass.

 

[axtstern]

Good morning everyone,

in my little circle of Canonistas I meet from time to time and where we are all friends we throw the same bullshit at each other as I hear in this post. The difference is: The owners of the outdated models or those who bought a little bit to cheap try halfhearted to defend their past decission. However noone really wants to offend, noone really wants to convince the other to buy a different product and we usualy bitch more about what we shoot than what gun we have on the belt.

Now my 50 Cent:

To the original poster: Ignore those people who tell you to sell your EF-S lenses. Sell them when you do not use them anymore but not because the Full Frame Blokes fart the word "decent glass" at you. Every "decent" EF glass will fit on any crop body (Agreed, not every glass makes sense) but plenty of the lightweight stuff does not fit on a fullframe. I do not know your age, don't know to what altitudes you hike, don't know where your limits in regards to the size of your camera bag are but believe me there is a reason for full frame under the sun but there are at least as many reasons also for a nice crop.

When it comes to the comparison 6D vs 80D my very private, very biased statements:

The 6D is the Rebel for the full frame diehards. I have bought and sold my 6D. I bought it to early and I sold it to late. The 6D gave you a unique mixture of WIFI, GPS and low light AF. The build in WIFI is still at toy stage, the GPS is great and the low light AF is now challenged by any of the newer non Rebel EOS.

Beyond what I mentioned above the 6D offers you a lot more. A warm cosy chunk of Retro. With Retro I mean an AF System that is basicaly on the level of an EOS 100 (non D) from the late 80s together with carying about twice the weight of tin and glass (Remember the the advice from this post: Crap AF needs to be compensated by 'decent glass'). It gives you a shallow depth of field which is what I desired for many years but there are many ways to reach this target.

When talking about the quality of the pictures: The 5D3 outclasses the 6D in my humble eyes, The 80D however is giving me the same IQ, the same resolution as the 5D3 and it is much easier to reach that IQ with the 80D through better menues and more modern technology.

It is you who has to decide if an entry level full frame or a mid level crop will satisfy your needs.
I suggest to wait for your next big photo project and rent a 6D + Canon 24-70L or Tamron 24-70 VCD + Canon 70 200L. Put it in a shoulder bag and start doing the do. Believe me wisdom will come before end of the day.

 

[Otara]

Have the 6D and the 80D, as Im fortunate enough to be able to buy too many toys. Really liking the low-ISO image, the tilt-screen which can be great for macro etc. The 80D really is a great all rounder and the weight saving is noticeable.

So I tend to agree with axt above, theres a lot to be said for the advantages of crop rather than going full full-frame. The savings from selling your rebel and ef-s lenses are likely to be comparatively small compared to getting 'good glass' and a 6D anyhow unless you have very high end ones ie the 17-55 or sigma 18-35 etc.

 

[verysimplejason]

When it comes to the comparison 6D vs 80D my very private, very biased statements:

When talking about the quality of the pictures: The 5D3 outclasses the 6D in my humble eyes, The 80D however is giving me the same IQ, the same resolution as the 5D3 and it is much easier to reach that IQ with the 80D through better menues and more modern technology.



Mmmm... 6D has a better IQ than 5D3 unless your 6D is defective. To the OP, I believe that you'll get a lighter, better system if your FF is combined with primes. Those F2.8 zooms are a big no-no if you want a light system. For an FF camera a 6D is the lightest you can get apart from mirrorless systems and film of course... Well, the only thing you can really hate in a 6D is its AF. If you don't really shoot fast moving scenes, its AF is more than adequate. Rent an FF and compare it with a crop or better yet, have some friends with FF cam shoot the same scenes and compare. How much IQ will be up to you.

 

[JohanCruyff]

Have the 6D and the 80D, as Im fortunate enough to be able to buy too many toys. Really liking the low-ISO image, the tilt-screen which can be great for macro etc. The 80D really is a great all rounder and the weight saving is noticeable.

80D: 730 gr = 25.8 oz
6D: 755 gr = 26.6 oz

It's a 3.4% saving. Did you mean "the weight saving, using EF-S Lenses instead of EF Ones, is noticeable"?

 

[Otara]

Yes, total system, as a continuation from axtstern's comments. You dont need to get to 2.8 lenses, my 24-105mm is hardly a lightweight. Primes sound good till you have to carry a few, etc.

But the 6D and the 50mm STM is a great combo.

 

[Luds34]

I had a T2i as well for a few years. Then I upgraded to a 70D, and eventually added a 6D. Thought the 70D would be my go to for action/sports, etc. In the end the 70D collected dust and I used the 6D almost exclusively, so I sold the 70D.

I agree with others, it can kind of be summed up as Higher IQ, limited feature set (6D) vs Lower IQ, excellent feature set (80D). With that said don't get caught up in the spec sheet too much. In practice I have not really found the 6D's 1/4000th max shutter, lower FPS (4.5?), slower max flash sync 1/160th, limiting. The one limit is the focus system. I consider it one (but a really really good one) point focus system.

So my personal vote is the 6D. However swapping out all your EF-S lenses is costly. As someone who went through that I can tell you that a $700/$800 15-85mm takes a bath in the secondary market. I'm still trying to unload my EF-S 60mm. However, as others have said, you don't need to load up on a bunch of L glass. The consumer primes are great lenses and offer excellent value and most importantly, take great pictures! The 85mm f/1.8 is just a steal for what it can do.

Someone once said on this forum, that the move to full frame will feel underwhelming, but once you do it you'll never go back. And I think that sums it up nicely.

 

[x-vision]

Someone once said on this forum, that the move to full frame will feel underwhelming, but once you do it you'll never go back. And I think that sums it up nicely.

I believe that some people are 'FF guys' at heart - and others are 'crop guys' at heart.

I consider myself to be the latter.
There have been so many good deals on FF cameras in the past couple of years.
And yet, I cannot bring myself to buy a FF camera and always gravitate towards crop cameras.

So, here is my free advice to the OP:
Decide for yourself if you are more of a FF guy or a crop guy.
If you are a FF guy at heart, the 6D is a great choice at current prices and you would be happy - even though the 6D might feel limited in certain respects.
Otherwise, you are better off getting the 80D.

 

[Ladislav]

I moved from 650D to 6D and I really didn't miss articulating touch screen. It is a nice feature but not important at all.

I love my 6D but I'm really not sure if I would buy it now in your situation. I believe 6D will have better IQ for the type of photography you prefer but considering that you don't have EF lenses, I think 80D is better option for you unless you are also ready to put some serious money to get good FF wide angle, standard zoom and portrait and macro prime to your kit. That will be more expensive than the body itself.

If you go for 6D, I would not completely abandon an idea for upgrading to Mk.II in next the year or two if it turns out to be 6D with technology similar to 80D (sensor, AF).

 

[j-nord]

When it comes to the comparison 6D vs 80D my very private, very biased statements:

When talking about the quality of the pictures: The 5D3 outclasses the 6D in my humble eyes, The 80D however is giving me the same IQ, the same resolution as the 5D3 and it is much easier to reach that IQ with the 80D through better menues and more modern technology.

Mmmm... 6D has a better IQ than 5D3 unless your 6D is defective. To the OP, I believe that you'll get a lighter, better system if your FF is combined with primes. Those F2.8 zooms are a big no-no if you want a light system. For an FF camera a 6D is the lightest you can get apart from mirrorless systems and film of course... Well, the only thing you can really hate in a 6D is its AF. If you don't really shoot fast moving scenes, its AF is more than adequate. Rent an FF and compare it with a crop or better yet, have some friends with FF cam shoot the same scenes and compare. How much IQ will be up to you.

I agree, I'm not sure I've heard anyone say the 5D3 has better IQ than the 6D. By many accounts, including DXOmark, the 6D is slightly better.

 

[Maiaibing]

When talking about the quality of the pictures: The 5D3 outclasses the 6D in my humble eyes,

But... then you need glasses!

 

[Luds34]

Some "experts" seemed to say that if DOF advantages, high ISO performance and large print aren't overly important to probably just stick with what I already have where I'm used to those focal lengths/1.6x, etc.
Pretty much?

Yes. The high ISO and narrow DOF (when warranted) is nice. However, the biggest reason I jumped to full frame was the lack of dedicated lenses (primes) for the FL I wanted on crop.