Review: Canon EOS 7D Mark II

[Canon Rumors]

<p>DPReview has completed their review of the Canon EOS 7D Mark II and it’s extremely positive. They make a special effort to stress this camera is not an incremental update to the original EOS 7D.</p>
<p><strong>From the review</strong>

<em>“It would be easy to write off the EOS 7D Mark II as just an incremental upgrade to the original 7D, but that would be a serious mistake. The two cameras may share the number 7 and the letter D on their bodies, but inside they are very different machines.</em></p>
<p><em>With the 7D II Canon is putting a stake in the ground that it is committed to the crop sensor market. Although it will likely be seen as an aspirational camera for novices, or an upgrade path to people using more consumer oriented crop sensor bodies from Canon, the 7D II is unquestionably a pro camera. It’s built like a tank, has the control layout of a 5D Mark III and an autofocus system to compete with the 1D X.</em></p>
<p><em>Canon has added lots of tools to the Mark II, but one deserves special mention. Dual-Pixel autofocus may be one of the most important, and yet under-appreciated, technologies introduced to digital cameras in a long time. It’s significant that Canon now includes this technology on their Cinema EOS cameras. Canon still seems to be dialing in the optimal implementation for the technology, but it will be exciting to see how it evolves.”</em></p>
<p><strong><a href="http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canon-eos-7d-mark-ii" target="_blank">Read the full review</a> </strong>| <strong><strong><strong><strong>EOS 7D Mark II in stock $1799: <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1081808-REG/canon_9128b002_eos_7d_mark_ii.html/bi/2466/kbid/3296" target="_blank">B&H Photo</a> | <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NEWZDRG/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00NEWZDRG&linkCode=as2&tag=canorumo-20&linkId=4IHYPE3ZKJN5VL4X" target="_blank">Amazon</a></strong></strong></strong></strong></p>
<p><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;">c</span>r</strong></p>

 

[Marauder]

Looking forward to reading it! ;D

 

[WillT]

Not looking good for the 7dmk2 imo
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canon-eos-7d-mark-ii/13

 

[AvTvM]

hehe, only silver.

Its dynamic range and video quality fall behind some of its top-performing peers, but its performance is class-leading.

Looks like the the DpReview DRones will be as popular here as the DXO fellas. ;D

Canon has added lots of tools to the Mark II, but one deserves special mention. Dual-Pixel autofocus may be one of the most important, and yet under-appreciated, technologies introduced to digital cameras in a long time. It's significant that Canon now includes this technology on their Cinema EOS cameras. Canon still seems to be dialing in the optimal implementation for the technology, but it will be exciting to see how it evolves.

Exactly. All that DPAF stuff is in it, but it does not really deliver the goods: live view AF as fast as that lowly Sony A6000 or better.

The Mark II is more evolutionary than revolutionary when it comes to image quality. Its 20.2 MP resolution sensor is a minor increase over the 7D, and not terribly noticeable on its own. It's certainly not a reason to upgrade from a 7D in and of itself.

Canon has been busy under the hood, however. Jpeg processing has seen a big improvement, and Jpeg files are capable of holding down noise and maintaining color and contrast for an extra stop (and sometimes more) compared to the 7D. Raw noise is slightly better, but Canon's real improvement in this area is the elimination of banding commonly found in dark shadow areas on other EOS cameras.

yea ... minor iteration. Better jpg engine. Less banding. RAW minimally improved, DR basically unchanged. Not good enough. Not at all.

Overall I consider both rating and conclusions are balanced and fair. 7D II would have been REALLY GREAT, had it come in spring 2013, but now it is very late to the party really only interesting for those, who have not moved to FF yet and/or are in the rather small niche of action/tele reach-oriented users. And even those may soon discover, that mirrorless cameras like Samsung NX1 are better suited for reach-limited, action-oriented captures.

 

[Ryan85]

IMO they give it a very good review. No it's not going to resolve as well as a nikon d810 but for what it's meant to do I think it's pretty great.

 

[tayassu]

I was surprised how much the DR difference to the Nikon D7000 is, but then I remembered how well my old 7D can deal with harsh lighting conditions with the right PP technique.
Would be nice, but I can live without it.

 

[Ryan85]

I sure wouldn't go with the Samsung nx1 or other mirrorless systems just do to the fact canons lenses are much better and have a lot more options.

 

[Ryan85]

And even those may soon discover, that mirrorless cameras like Samsung NX1 are better suited for reach-limited, action-oriented captures.

Really? Which 400 f2.8, 500 f4 or 600 f4 were you planning on using with your Samsung? Or did you mean things you couldn't reach with the included zoom kit lens?

+1

 

[WillT]

The NX1 is everything the 7d should have been.

 

[AvTvM]

Really? Which 400 f2.8, 500 f4 or 600 f4 were you planning on using with your Samsung? Or did you mean things you couldn't reach with the included zoom kit lens?

Samsung 300/2.8 for starters. -
Maybe followed by a 2x Extender next.
;D

 

[Ryan85]

Really? Which 400 f2.8, 500 f4 or 600 f4 were you planning on using with your Samsung? Or did you mean things you couldn't reach with the included zoom kit lens?

Samsung 300/2.8 for starters. -
Maybe followed by a 2x Extender next.
;D

Umm sorry but Samsung lenses can't compete with the high end canon and nikon lenses. Just because it says 300 2.8 doesn't mean it's a great lens. For a hobbyist its fine. For the absolute best image quality no. Maybe in the next few years Samsung a others will have great glass but right now they don't.

 

[WillT]

Really? Which 400 f2.8, 500 f4 or 600 f4 were you planning on using with your Samsung? Or did you mean things you couldn't reach with the included zoom kit lens?

Samsung 300/2.8 for starters. -
Maybe followed by a 2x Extender next.
;D

So you imagine that an NX1, with an untested and unreleased 300 2.8 plus 2x extender, is going to outperform a 7D2 with a native Canon 600 f4 IS ii. Zoiks.

Not even mentioning that you can add a 2x to the Canon 600. You do realize that these posts are public and that people can read them? Man you need to get out and get some fresh air.

If your shooting with the 600 f4 I would guess you would not be using the 7D... Honestly I would rather use the 5D and crop than the 7D. The IQ will be better in most cases.

 

[bholliman]

If your shooting with the 600 f4 I would guess you would not be using the 7D... Honestly I would rather use the 5D and crop than the 7D. The IQ will be better in most cases.

Granted, most 600/4 owners also own a 1DX or 5D3, but I imagine a good number also own or will buy a 7D2 for the added reach.

In reach limited situations, as wildlife photographers often are, more pixels on target usually equals better IQ.

 

[WillT]

If your shooting with the 600 f4 I would guess you would not be using the 7D... Honestly I would rather use the 5D and crop than the 7D. The IQ will be better in most cases.

Granted, most 600/4 owners also own a 1DX or 5D3, but I imagine a good number also own or will buy a 7D2 for the added reach.

In reach limited situations, as wildlife photographers often are, more pixels on target usually equals better IQ.

You would think, but my experience had been that I would rather crop than deal with the IQ from the 7D

 

[DominoDude]

Still haven't had enough many cups of caffeine poured into me eyelids, but I see Digital PReview mentioning that it's disappointing that we had to wait so long for the 7D Mark II.
Now they know how many of us feel about their reviews of the Canon 1D X and Nikon D4s and a few other bodies...
(A rumour says that it's a Mr Godot that's carrying out those reviews. We just have to wait a little longer.)

Also, it looks like the primary "cons" they've found are such that I wouldn't consider them to be top priority for what I believe to be the typical buyer of 7D's. Softish video, lacking touch screen and other items seemingly more important for those shooting via LiveView. Perhaps their overall conclusion and score is fair, but as I read it I would expect a slightly higher total score. How they weigh the numbers from their test results are perhaps the same kind of mystery as it is with DxO's sensor testing.

 

[Ryan85]

If your shooting with the 600 f4 I would guess you would not be using the 7D... Honestly I would rather use the 5D and crop than the 7D. The IQ will be better in most cases.

Granted, most 600/4 owners also own a 1DX or 5D3, but I imagine a good number also own or will buy a 7D2 for the added reach.

In reach limited situations, as wildlife photographers often are, more pixels on target usually equals better IQ.

+1

 

[MichaelHodges]

You would think, but my experience had been that I would rather crop than deal with the IQ from the 7D

Agreed. And so does every professional wildlife photographer I shoot with. They exited the crop game with the 7D and never went back. Crop or get longer glass.

 

[Ryan85]

There are many "pro" wildlife shooters who use crop sensors. Many use ff and crop too like you say as well. A crop sensor is a very valuable addition to any wildlife shooters kit.

 

[WillT]

A crop sensor is a very valuable addition to any wildlife shooters kit.

I was not trying to say that crop sensors are bad, I have one. I was just saying the 7d MK ii has suspect IQ through the ISO range. I also found the focus system to be ok at best when tracking birds using all the AF points. Tracking people, boats, large objects and such it nailed them!

I was really excited to try out the AF system as I thought that even if the pictures were somewhat soft I would get more keepers. I ended up going back to selecting the points I want and shooting they way I have on every other camera. Also I thought the IR would mean better low light tracking and it did not :/

 

[Ryan85]

Hopefully with some firmware updates they improve some of those things if they can.