Canon 7D Mark II Owners first thoughts

[Bigjezza]

So I've got some handheld indoors cat wasn't around
Loaded raws into DPP and turned off sharpening and NR for all, exported to JPG quality max.

https://flic.kr/ps/2XpP3t

They alternate at same exposure settings, then I did it again with them underexposed a bit...

 

[Sportsgal501]

How's the battery life?

I actively shot it (stills) for 2.5 hours in somewhat cold conditions (about 40 degrees Fahrenheit) and the new battery blinked twice when I first put it in the charger. My guess is 25% to 50% spent. I chimped a little bit but not extensively. I did not shoot in LiveView. I took about 900 shots.

Thanks!

 

[Canon1]

How's the battery life?

I actively shot it (stills) for 2.5 hours in somewhat cold conditions (about 40 degrees Fahrenheit) and the new battery blinked twice when I first put it in the charger. My guess is 25% to 50% spent. I chimped a little bit but not extensively. I did not shoot in LiveView. I took about 900 shots.

If you want to know how many shots you took and exactly how much battery life is left simply locate "battery info" on the third page of the camera's setup screen.

 

[simongking]

I blogged my first thoughts here after getting out with the camera on Friday night for some Rugby.

http://blog.simongking.com/canon-7d-mark-ii-impressions/

Cheers
Simon

 

[Lee Jay]

I'd love to see how well the 7D2 dual-pixel AF system tracks moving subjects (moving to or from the camera) in video mode, at relatively long focal lengths (say, 100-400mm). I'm particularly interested in shooting video of very high speed model and full-scale airplanes (models are way, way harder) so tracking medium sized birds would be similar in some ways. I'm interested in how it does stopped down to, say, f/8 or f/11 too.

According to the manual, face mode will work for non-faces (manual, page 301), "Focusing on a subject other than a human face" if you get the AF frame on the desired subject, from whence it will track it across the frame.

Anyone up for trying that out? I'd really appreciate feedback on that functionality.

I'm bumping this because it seems like a number of people have the camera now, and could possibly try this out.

Thanks.

 

[photo212]

Glad I skipped the 7D Mk0 and waited for the Mk II. Huge leap from the 40D/50D to the 7D Mk II. Had I purchased the original 7D, I would be upgrading to the Mk II. The problem is the secondary market for the 7D is rough. The camera has been out for some time, and the prices are really low at the moment.

Autofocus and noise reduction is greatly improved. Still learning the AF features. One quick test series for noise reduction shows ISO-16,000 has noise, but not too bad, and by ISO-2,000 it is looking pretty darn good. Difficult for me to see a difference in the ISO-100 to ISO-800 range in terms of noise.

 

[NancyP]

Well now I really want this camera.... am patiently awaiting the Adobe Camera Raw update for the non-subscription LR5/PS6.

 

[drjlo]

LensRentals Loves the 7D II AF 8)

https://www.lensrentals.com/rent/canon/cameras/canon-eos-7d-mark-ii

"Do you use live view focus? The 7DII hits live view focus in a split second; nearly as fast as phase detection and waayyyy faster than the original. We put the 7D and 7D II side by side and autofocused from near to infinity in Live View. The 7D II had taken 8 shots before the 7D even locked on focus.
Don’t use live view? Well, the phase detection is a joy to use: completely accurate, the cool thumb button to let you jump points to anywhere you want in a split second, and the whole system is phenomenally customizable. Did I mention it’s accurate? I took a few hundred shots and it just nailed everything. Still life in bad light? Nailed it. Moving rapidly? Nailed it. Sunlight, halogen light, fluorescent light? Nailed it."

 

[WillThompson]

WTF !

NO REAL USER MANUAL!

 

[Lee Jay]

WTF !

NO REAL USER MANUAL!

Paper manual = recycle material.
PDF manual = useful, searchable, and takes no space.

 

[WillThompson]

WTF !

NO REAL USER MANUAL!

Paper manual = recycle material.
PDF manual = useful, searchable, and takes no space.

Impossible to read with just your eyes, thus not a user manual! Only a computer file.

 

[Freddie]

If there's not paper manual.

Put it on a thumb drive. I know I will. I've been carrying those paper manuals around for too many years already.

 

[streestandtheatres]

WTF !

NO REAL USER MANUAL!

Paper manual = recycle material.
PDF manual = useful, searchable, and takes no space.

Impossible to read with just your eyes, thus not a user manual! Only a computer file.

Exactly. The problem with the 7d Mark ii is that without a paper manual it's impossible to figure out where the film goes.

 

[Runnerguy]

The rain today talk about crappy so I decided to play with my 7d mkII ,70d, 6d and the eos M .I set up my 300 f/2.8II on my tripod picked out some wildlife(stuffed orange monkey) and took 3 pics from each camera set in RAW 1600-3200-6400 ISO and checked for noise and the eos M with its 18MP showed the most then the 70d and the 7d mkII was noticeably better than the 70d which surprised me and not as far behind the 6d as I thought.I am heading out for the weekend to find bald eagles and hope to test the 7d II and so far the AF has been awesome ,as for noise I am more worried about getting in focus pics.

 

[FotoAwe]

Hi Simon,

I appreciate you taking the time to review the 7D MKII. Good work and good photos!

I blogged my first thoughts here after getting out with the camera on Friday night for some Rugby.

http://blog.simongking.com/canon-7d-mark-ii-impressions/

Cheers
Simon

 

[Lee Jay]

WTF !

NO REAL USER MANUAL!

Paper manual = recycle material.
PDF manual = useful, searchable, and takes no space.

Impossible to read with just your eyes, thus not a user manual! Only a computer file.

I have it on my phone. Searchablility - priceless.

 

[Freddie]

Waiting for the package.

I tried the 7D in 2010. Too noisy. I bit the bullet and bought the 1D Mark IV. I've had 1-Series bodies since 2004 and the 1D Mark IV is the best of all those. I haven't tried nor can I afford the 1DX.
Now, I have a 7D Mark II coming this week. If it works out, I'll be replacing the 1-Series with that new camera body.
This possible changeover would consolidate my battery requirements, Lighten my kit, and heavy my wallet back up.
I hope it works. Time will tell.

 

[monkey44]

When it gets here, you're gonna love it -- never had a 1D series anything, but with this 7D2, I probably never will. Canon either scored completely, or I got lucky with a good one.

 

[Freddie]

Maybe they got it right this time.

I just sold a 5D Mark II, purchased in 2008. As much as I loved that camera, the 5D Mark III I got last year is a major improvement in every way save image quality. I'm optimistic that the 7D Mark II is similarly improved over the 7D.

 

[simongking]

Hi Simon,

I appreciate you taking the time to review the 7D MKII. Good work and good photos!

I blogged my first thoughts here after getting out with the camera on Friday night for some Rugby.

http://blog.simongking.com/canon-7d-mark-ii-impressions/

Cheers
Simon

Hi FotoAwe

You're welcome, it was a pleasure to write about this camera, for me the 7D Mark II hits the mark 100% and is a game changer. Sure there are a couple of niggles but they are massively outweighed by the plusses and the tiny negatives revolve around things I don't need or use e.g. Popup Flash!

Regards
Simon