Отзывы о Цифровой Фотоаппарат Canon EOS 7D

I have used the Canon EOS 7D almost exclusively for over 5 years now. The reasons why I selected it still hold true for me: burst rate, picture quality, professional look and feel, after market accessories available at reasonable prices, lens choices and on-board flash. Yes, that little flash has given me shots that would not have happened otherwise. The compromise was supposed to be the sensor size (not full frame). The latter has not been an issue for me, as evidenced by the large scale quality prints I have produced. To see some of the damage I’ve done with this machine, please visit my web site at [...]For my time of ownership I have produced a great variety of high quality images that include 24 x 36 in. posters and long panoramas. The sensor size (APS-C) has not been an issue for me at all. This is also due to the magic of post-production. Additionally, for my needs, I no longer use RAW, but exclusively JPG.On burst-rate: Originally I used this for high-speed sequencing (such as a skateboarder jumping or a dancer across a dance floor) and for HDR production. I no longer use this for HDR, since I find it more productive to use 1 high-quality image and curves to produce HDR. I still use to stack images and produce a flowing effect (such as a waterfall), but not shooting at high speed. This is useful for me since I wouldn’t need to carry a tripod for this type of shot.Picture quality has been exceptional. Most of my prints are between 8x10 to 18x24 inches. As mentioned above, I also have produced bigger prints to include big panoramas. I have upgraded my lens quality through the years and that has made a difference in quality. But the sensor size of the 7D has not been an issue.Weight and feel: This camera is not light, especially with dual battery grip. However, it is not cumbersome. It feels solid. This is due to its magnesium skeleton. Additionally, with the right lens it provides enough resistance and feedback on hand to produce unique movie shots. I prefer the Tokina 11 – 16, 2.8 wide angle for this.Notes on Canon APS-C sensor: Provides extra zoom due to the crop size (1.6X). The down side is the wide angle end of it. So if you have a 30mm lens, you really are shooting at 30X1.6= 48mm focal length. Alternatively, if you have a zoom of, say, 150; you are effectively shooting at 240mm. With the Tokina lens mentioned, I get very nice wide shots and wide movie angles, without going into the fisheye world. Particularly satisfying to me is to pan (hand held) to produce the unreal perspective shift this wide angle produces.The original Canon battery is still strong after 5 years. However, I’ve experimented with Opteka brand and, although they need replacing more often, it allows me to ‘dollar-cost average’ my battery purchases better. I make sure I have enough spares. With the cost of the Opteka (or Power 2000) batteries, this is very reasonable.The low-light performance is really a matter of the lens used. The camera does not seem to hinder any lens performance. It accepts EF and EF-S (for Canon cropped sensors, such as the 7D) mounts.My favorite things about the 7D: How compliant it behaves when you press the shutter, the quality of the shots, and the sound it makes is which is very pleasant.My least favorite: Movie making must be monitored using the LCD screen only. I’d rather use the viewfinder. I primarily use a Panasonic cinema camera for movies, but the 7D for B-shots (supporting shots).In my opinion, this is a regal machine that I have appreciated through the years. Canon will have to go beyond ‘nice things to have’ for me to trade this camera.

My experience (or lack of it!): After some Nikon School of Photography classes in the early 1970's I jumped into SLR's with a full range of Honeywell-Pentax cameras and lenses.My first digital camera was the Canon 30D (8mp, no video and no sensor cleaning).I tested a Nikon D800, Canon 5D MkIII and Canon 7D. I kept the 7D.I got manuals on all three from the same author, and was using high end Canon "L" wide and telephoto zoom lenses and Nikon ED high end lenses.Conclusions:I loved the full frame sensor (35mm sized sensor) in both the D800 and 5D.I saw no practical difference in photo quality between the D800's 36mp and the Canon's 22mp.There was also no practical difference (if you're not enlarging to extreme sizes)between these two and the Canon 7D.I love Canon's intuitive controls and that "big wheel" Quick Control Dial.The Canon 7D's menu is very easy to read (there's never more in a particular "tab" than what will fit in the rear LCD (so you don't have to scroll down thru choices)The 7D has a very useful built in flash (pop-up flash), that also can be used as a master flash (to control other "slave" flashes).Both Canon's were faster at acquiring focus (I was using a Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L & Nikon 70-200 f/2.8 ED lens - both are $2,000 + lenses).All three cameras have built in sensor cleaning (although in reality you will probably have to clean the sensor sooner or later).The Nikon D800 and Canon 7D have pop up flashes. No Canon model higher than the 7D has one.(This one item meant a lot to me because a pop up flash can be used to highlight during a "daylight" photo and you always have a flash with you, instead of having to lug a separate SpeedLite flash with you-even the small Canon 90EX or 270EX still needs separate batteries and fills your pocket).Negatives: 1.6x cropped sensor (although if you use a Canon 10-22mm EFS lens, it's the same focal width as the Canon 17-35mm L lens).I did not test the "movie" modes of each camera, as I am not experienced in that area, but all the cameras seemed to have very good quality video when displayed on a Sony 55" LCD TV.Best positive was the price: I paid $1,149 on a special Amazon.com and Canon promotional period just last month.The Nikon and Canon 5D's are around 2 1/2 times as expensive (body only).I don't think anyone could go wrong with either a Nikon or Canon, so Nikonians, please, no "hate mail"!Both are great camera companies. If I were a previous Nikon DSLR user, I may have went with the D800, but the Nikon D800 was just too confusing for me to try and learn a whole new way of adjusting & choosing options.Menus take more time to scroll thru, but are fairly easy to use.Dedicated buttons are quicker to access, but you have to learn and remember what each button does.Canon uses more menu choices, while Nikon seemed to be on the "button heavy" side.Final word: Buy the best lenses you can afford. That extra weight in a Canon L lens, for instance, is because of the extra "glass". And the extra $$$ is for the expensive glass.

I ordered mine a little late to the game; my Canon 40D had the shutter fail, and I debated long and hard on what would be a true upgrade to that camera, without breaking the bank.I wasn't in the market for a full frame camera, so that narrowed it down to a used 50D (a new one cost more on Amazon at least than the 7D), the new 60D, or a new 7D.60D missed a few key points on my check-list - auto-focus is key in motorsports photography, which while not my primary focus is something I do frequently. Build quality was another concern, and it seemed as though Canon really dumbed the 60D down deliberately from the 50D (or 40D for that matter) to save a bit of manufacturing costs. Less dedicated buttons, no joystick, worse auto-focus, and while yes, it is cheaper by a few hundred dollars, my feeling of value for $ just wasn't met.The 50D I actually really liked; not a super upgrade from the 40D, and if I could have found a new one for $800 I probably would have gone with it. The fact that it cost the same or more than the 7D on every site I could find it on put it right off my list.Onto the 7D - first, the autofocus. Head and shoulders above the 40D, 50D, and 60D. It's sick. You have to use it to see what I'm talking about, but selectable area from the joystick, or 19 point selection, or autoselect; usable, and fast. I will say that the liveview has more issues with focus than without; this isn't something I use very often, but when I do, its noticeably slower. However, manual focus from liveview is great; a click of the + button and you can go from 5x to 10x magnification on the screen to get that perfect focus - the display is high quality and really helps lock in focus when you use it in this manner. Good for tripod/portrait shots (not something you'd use in situations requiring fast focus anyway)The menu system and features are very well laid out; if you've used a Canon camera this should all be familiar anyway, and there are a few extra bells and whistles coming from the 40D that I noticed; primarily autofocus but being able to limit autoISO is a nice feature as well (if you own this camera and don't have that, update your firmware). Ridiculously fast burst speed - I mean 8fps is getting close to full motion; if you need speed and don't have $8000 to spend on a camera, the argument is over, get the 7D.Image quality - better than the 40D which is to be expected, but not lightyears ahead. I'd expect images between the 50D and 7D to be fairly similar. Having the extra pixels to play with is always nice; 18MP for me is fairly future proof. I think excellent results can be had to ISO 1600 - very usable at 3200 for web based images; 6400 ISO is pushing it a bit but still usable for web and black and white.View finder is excellent. The autofocus and grid display are both unobtrusive and usable. Battery life is great. Camera is actually pretty lightweight, weather sealed as well.Is it with the $1200 Amazon charges? Yes. Is this a futureproof camera? For a mirrored full sized SLR, I'd say yes. I would never need a FASTER camera than this. I'd be hard pressed to justify more MP than this, even more so on an APS-C sensor. Digital cameras have just come so far from where they were a few years ago, and this being an older camera I think like film cameras of old will end up becoming a classic. I thought about buying this used, but I didn't want to have to worry about the shutter being replaced in a year, so I just bought it new.Video - no idea. Haven't shot any. Reviews show its fairly awesome, so thats as far as I can go with that.Honestly, I don't think there is a better Canon APS-C on the market at the moment, and the next version of this will likely cost $600 to $800 more. Hence, I just bought it new, and hope to enjoy it for years. Bottom line, if you need the speed, and the best auto focus system on the market (right up there with the 5D Mark II, Mark III, or 1D Mark II), I think you'd be happy with this purchase.If you don't and just want a decent APS-C camera? Save a few bucks and get the 60D.

If you are not seeing any noise quality issues with the 7D then, with all due respect, you have little or no experience with what the standard for a high file quality should be (shooting in jpg doesn't solve the noise problems with this camera). The 7D is no where near the best camera Canon has made and, in fact, I would say it is probably one of the worst bodies they've made, excepting that the camera does excel on the video end. There is significant noise beyond ISO 800, although the files are still usable, but ISO 3200 is the absolute limit. This is a very antiquated camera now when you consider that the newer sensors on a camera like the 5D Mark III will shoot clean files in excess of ISO 12000. The files from the 40D were just as good, if not better than the 7D.I had one of the early 7Ds and I can attest to the serious problems that the early cameras had with sharpness and focus. I got rid of that body a couple years ago. After the recent price drop I decided to give it another shot and bought a new recently manufactured body. While it appears that the sharpness issues had been resolved, for the most part, even the newer makes are mostly unimpressive. Focus on this camera when tracking moving subjects is still sub-par. When shooting a typical sporting event it is not uncommon to get a 50% in-focus burst when the subject is moving towards you). The center point focus is really the only one that is usable for moving subjects as none of the other focus setting can produce consistently in-focus shots of moving subjects, including the center-point expansion setting. Contrary to what some have proclaimed, the focus system is not so advanced that is difficult for the user to find the right settings, it is just that this camera's focusing system is simply not very good for moving subjects. In fact, I found that the 9-point focus system on the 40d and 5DmkII, respectively, were just about as good as the 7d's for moving objects. Of course, neither of those cameras fps are close to the 7D's so for sports they were not viable alternatives.This camera has probably been Canon's most hyped body and for those that had the mistaken impression (like me) that is was a viable and dependable backup to your 1D series camera it has been a complete bust. If you think this is a great body then that's fine since it is your opinion but I really think the only person that could objectively say that this is a great camera is someone that has never shot with a higher performance camera. I would take a used 1DmkII over this camera every day of the week.That being said, Canon is producing some amazing camera now, such as the 5DmkIII, which is worth every penny in my opinion. It's a little slow in fps for some sports action but given that the focusing system is incredibly good I would say that I get many more in-focus shots from it then with 7D and almost as many than with the 1DmkIV, even though that camera shoots almost twice as many fps.Let's hope that Canon does not release the 7dmkII with all of the noise problems the 7D has. If it's a 1.6x crop then you can't expect it to be as good as a 5D or 1D but it has to be significantly improved in relation to original 7D or I can't buy it. Given that the 1D cameras have all gone to "full crop" senors my suggestion to Canon would be to adopt the 1.3x cropped used in the previous 1Ds.Given current technology advances this camera is well out dated for a serious shooter. If you're enthusist then have at it but if you need to depend on a camera to help you make money, this is not the most dependable camera. If the 7dII is able to adopt the focus system of the 5DmkIII and at least borrow some of the clean file technology up to, say ISO 8000, then the new camera will be a winner, if not, the 7dII will be every bit the dog that the 7d is for more advance and professional shooters (my apologies to dogs for the insult).

I started with a Canon XTI Rebel, upgraded to a Canon 50D, both purchased from other sellers and was happy with both purchases. For months, I have vacillated about upgrading to a APS-C 7D and / or Full Frame 5D Mark II. I was looking for three things when I decided to upgrade from the 50D; 1.) ISO speed, 2.) Frames per second, 3.) AF points. Both the 7D and 5D Mark II offered improvements in these areas in addition to increased megapixels. After much research, price comparisons, and recommendations on Amazon's website, I decided on the 7D. After four months of taking pictures with my quality professional Sigma lens I had used with success on my 50D, all I ended up with were out of focus, incorrect forward and / or rearward focus, substantial noise at ISO speeds above 1200, poor sharpness, and soft images. In doing additional online research, I located numerous blogs, threads, and website devoted to 7D issues I was now experiencing from 2009! Most people state Canon refuses to admit a problem and refuses to replace defective 7D's they are unable and / or unwilling to repair! Why would Amazon sell such a camera with this type of "black cloud" on their website? Canon knows about and Amazon should have known about these 7D problems!I believed my camera to be defective!! In an attempt to fix the problem, I followed Canon's telephone advice and; 1.) Did a "hard-restart" which involved removing the main battery and clock battery, 2.) Removed all lens filters from my lens, 3.) Used a tripod with image stabilization in the off position, 4.) Used 6.3 and above aperture for landscape photos. In the end, little if any improvement was noticed. In doing an, "apples to apples" comparison between my XTI Rebel, 50D and 7D, the 50D performed better in focus, sharpness, softness, and focus select and speed of focus!Since I wanted what I payed for and not a $1350 paper weight, I called Amazon on April 14th and was told by a representative that I could return the camera to Amazon for a replacement camera for one year. On April 15th, I telephoned Amazon again and was told a completely different "story"! I was told I could not return the camera for a replacement and / or return it and upgrade with Amazon for a 5D mark II and pay the difference. I was told I could return the defective camera for a 50% to 80% refund!! I have spent thousands of dollars on Amazon and they don't want to replace a defective camera?When I asked the Manager why his representative would have offered to replace the camera the day prior, he stated it would be a, "Training issue"? Huh! How about, keep your word Amazon!Well, now I have a $1350 paper weight.Update, since writing this review I have been "working" with Canon. Canon told me the problem is all the quality professional Sigma lens I have. Canon told me non-Canon lens are not supported by Canon and should not be sold as being compatible. Canon told me to send them three pictures taken with the defective camera using a Canon lens. When I told Canon my quality professional Sigma lens were all that I had, Canon told me to buy, rent, or borrow a Canon lens. Canon "claimed" to have sent me a email link where I could send them my pictures. Funny thing is, to date I have not received a email link, over three weeks.Update, tonight, after following a Canon 7D users following "tips"; Verify the AF in aperture priority and shutter priority using a single AF point and multiple AF points. It is also important to remember to set the proper Custom Function III. The AF on the 7D is better than what most people who shoot casually need and it has a learning curve. Shooting in full auto may also give you bad results.C.Fn III-1 (Tracking Sensitivity): slow (this is on fast by default)C.Fn III-2 (1st/2nd image priority): 0 (AF priority/Tracking priority)C.Fn III-3 (Tracking Method): 1C.Fn III-4 (Lens drive when AF impossible): 1 (focus search off)C.Fn III-5 (AF microadjust): 0 (disable)C.Fn III-6 (AF area selection mode): Single point, Expansion, SpotC.Fn III-7 (Manual AF point selection): 0 (stop)C.Fn III-8 (VF illumination): 0 (auto)C.Fn III-9 (Display all AF points): 0 (disable)C.Fn III-10 (Focus display in AI servo/MF): 0 (enable)C.Fn III-11 (AF assist beam firing): 1 (Disable)C.Fn III-12 (orientation link): 1 (Different)C.Fn III-13 (mirror lockup): 0 (disable)I went to a local bridge and took several night photos using "Live view" with my Sigma 70-200mm 1:2.8 APO DG HSM in "Tv" mode shot in RAW format and ended up with some pictures that, outside of more noise, where comparable to my recently purchased Canon 5D Mark II! Also, I have taken some day photos and most, not all, are in focus, correct forward and / or rearward focus, less noise at ISO speeds above 1200, sharper and less soft?I have been taking photos for eight years and never have been more challenged by a camera like the Canon 7D. I am still disappointed with Amazon and disgusted with Canon.

I bought my Canon EOS 7D with the 28-135 mm lens from Amazon just over a year ago. Since then I've taken about 20,000 photos, and had to work with Canon's service department along the way. So now's a good time for a review. I've been a serious amateur photographer for more than 50 years. I don't take snapshots; 99% of my photos are taken with the camera on a tripod. I take a lot of pride in my photos, and hundreds of them are published on several websites I own or manage. I wanted a camera that was so good I couldn't blame it for a bad photo, but not so expensive I'd be limited in what other photo-related items I could buy.My intention when buying the camera was mostly bird photography, so I also bought the 100-400 mm L zoom lens. My interests also extend to close ups, and the 60-mm macro lens got added to the package. Since then I've added only two more lenses to my kit: the 10-22 mm EF-S wide angle and a used Sigma 600-mm mirror lens. Accessories? Oh, yes, we have accessories!One problem with APS-C sensors is greater image noise, especially at higher ISOs. The EOS 7D produces very low-noise images at ISO 800, though I rarely go there. While photographing a night-time prescribed fire in Jonathan Dickinson State Park I kicked the ISO up to 6400, and shot with the 10-22 mm EF-S lens wide open (f/3.5 to f/4.5). Those shots were for the web, and even at 1200-px width the noise is bearable. In fact, for something as dramatic as a night-time forest fire the noise seems to add veracity. Most of the time I shoot at ISO 100 or 200, and large prints look wonderful. (Don't handicap yourself with cheap filters or a flimsy tripod. Accessories can add significantly to the start-up costs of a system like this, so figure them into your budget from the beginning. If you're just getting into DSLR photography, stick with the camera and 'kit' lens, and get a high-quality clear or UV filter. I always recomend a tripod, but good ones are pretty expensive. Autofocus and image stabilization may make tripods seem irrelevant, but tripods make you slow down and pay attention to the shot. That would be a good next purchase.)The sensor and in-camera processing are important, but so is the lens. The supplied 28-135 is acceptable, though not on par with better fixed-focal-length lenses. Its greatest fault is the 6-blade iris, which causes sub-par background blur, but I've been able to fix that up pretty well using Photoshop's "Lens Blur." If your program has Gaussian blur and you know how to work with layers, you can fix the problem so most people won't notice, and the lens does have its benefits.For one, it focuses down to about 20 inches (0.5 m), which is very useful if you're a nature photographer. Schneider makes a +2 diopter achromatic (dual-element) close-up lens with the right thread, and that lets me focus down to about 10 inches, even at 135-mm (more than 200-mm equivalent on a full-frame 35-mm camera). (Canon makes an equivalent achromatic +2 diopter lens but at this writing you can't get a new one in the U.S., and used ones are commanding high prices.) I've gotten some astounding photos of dragonflies and other insects with this combination. The depth of field is limited, so you need a tripod, and it doesn't hurt to manually focus.Ah, here's the thing: If you're an automatic-camera type, the 7D probably isn't for you. Yes, it has built-in options that will think for you, but you can get them for less on, say, a 60D or a point-and-shoot. The 7D is a photographer's camera, like a Porsche is a driver's car. I've never used the full-automatic features and don't miss them. I tend to use Aperture Priority, and set Exposure Compensation to underexpose by one-half f/stop. I also use the Histogram to look for potential problems (you can see the Histogram before shooting by switching to Live View mode, which you can do by pushing one button on the back of the camera).One feature I especially like is the ability to shoot at 8 frames per second. Great for birds in flight and butterflies. If you shoot only JPEG-format, an 8-GB CF card holds more than 1000 images. If you shoot RAW+JPEG you can store about 250 images on an 8-GB card. As I don't do sports photography, occasionally changing memory cards in the field is not a big problem, and if a card goes bad, I'll lose fewer images. I have two SanDisk cards and alternate them, and so far, no problems. I download images to my PC via the USB connection.I did have a problem with the camera, though it was my fault. The body is claimed to be water resistant, but that's not exactly right. I shot outside all summer here in South Florida, and a couple of times I dripped perspiration on the flash hot shoe. I _thought_ I wiped it off, but some must have gotten inside and corroded the hot-shoe terminals. The camera thought there was always an 'unidentified' external flash on board, so the internal flash wouldn't come on. And it wouldn't recognize my Canon 580EX II flash when I slid it into the hot sho

Although I have been pondering going full frame for some time, I am postponing the switch out of concern for my pocketbook and because this 7D has been giving me lots of joy for the year I have had it.I shoot a lot; kids, parties, performance art with available light, sport etc. plus I am getting into home studio portrait and strobism with a pair of speedlights and this camera works beautifully and reliably.In a year I reached above 30 000 frames, nearly no video (I do stills).Side equipment I would recommend - I don't have tons of lenses and gear so I can't speak about everything there is out there but here is what I gathered around that camera that I really use all the time. I am very happy with what I can do with this stuff.LENSESAll three lenses are quite pricey and well-built and give gorgeous pictures that the 7D sensor captures with minute details.- I already had a 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM from a few years back. This lens remains one of my very favorite.- I bought the 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM with this 7D, also a full frame-capable lens with in mind a future upgrade to a full-frame body like the 5D-III.- I recently procured the Canon EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 USM, which is a crop-sensor only lens - it will not work on the 1D, 5D or 6D but I really wanted a wide-angle lens and this one is just beautiful.With these three I can do almost all I want.If I had known I would have bought the 7D body only and foregone the 18-135mm hich is ok but really not as enjoyable as the ones listed above.LIGHTAdd to that a Canon TTL flash or two such as- the 430EX II,- the 580EX II,- or the 600EX-RT (for a comparison based on spec sheet with the 580, see my review of the 580Ex-II)and you are all set.You will likely find that you want some more lighting equipment but this is beyond the scope of this review.SOFTWAREIt comes with a software bundle that covers all the bases but following the advice of a pro photographer friend of mine I still added Lightroom v.4.0, and I am very glad I did. I wish I had known of it earlier.The 7D is a great camera, very simple to use, yet provides a wealth of possibilities for technically inclined amateur like me.- Once I got used to its basic controls, I found that the camera does not get in the way of taking the picture. This to me is probably the most important, even before image quality.- The sensor gives beautiful, vibrant images - the color rendering is very close to what I see with my eyes, which is my criterion.- The sensor also features a native ISO range of up to 6400 and at ISO 3200 the pictures are really good.- Flash control is excellent - I frequently use the remote flash control from the camera with a 580Ex-II and a 430Ex-II together and the possibilities are staggering.- The JPEG you get directly from the camera are gorgeous. I rarely shoot raw due to the size of the resulting files except when doing landscape or portrait, and the dedicated button that switches to raw+JPEG for the next picture is very useful to me.There are many more good things to say about this camera but I would find myself re-writing the manual, which is informative, well written and well-worth reading from cover to cover.All in all a great camera, the best I ever had and one of the easiest to use.

This is not a technical review since there are tons of other existing reviews of those nature. This review is intended mostly for DSLR beginners or even better for those who own point and shoot (PS) and thinking about moving to the so called 'next' level. Before I share my two cents I would like to present an analogical question - what was your experience moving from one grade to the next in school? Not bad right? Eventually you understood what the books were trying to teach you. Well most of them! Same logic applies here.As compared to a PS camera there are of course more controls on Canon 7D but they are all understandable. More options means more control on the picture. You do not need to have 'years' of experience to master/understand this small instrument meant for capturing 'light'. All you need is two books - no one of them is not your camera manual. The only thing you need to understand from your camera manual is how to switch the camera to manual mode. Once you know this, throw your manual out of the window!The first book to read is David Busch's Canon EOS 7D Guide to Digital SLR Photography. Actually you do not need to read this book completely. The first three chapters are good enough to tell you what each button on the camera is meant for. You can read or more precisely refer to the remaining chapters depending on your need. Well some readers might object that you can get this info from your camera manual - that's true. However, if you are like me, you wont be able to stand that small book (camera manual) with monochromatic pictures and boring presentation. The choice is yours.The second book to read is Bryan Peterson's - Understanding Exposure. Read this end to end. It will make photography intuitive. After reading the very first chapter you will understand the core 'triangle' of photography which is comprised of the Aperture (the opening in the lens), ISO (light sensitivity) and shutter speed (the speed with which the shutter opens and closes). You will be surprised how your captured pics will have the correct exposure 'magically'. I guarantee you wont be disappointed after reading this book. Yes there is more to this book than capturing pics with correct exposure.Once you know how to manipulate your 7D, it will be your call how far you want to go with your compositions. As compared to entry level DSLRs, 7D offers more options. If you want to take nice pics and stay there you can choose one of the DSLRs from the rebel series. However if you want to have one DSLR with which you can learn DSLR photography and grow, 7D is the better choice. I particularly like the ability to access any function at the press of a button instead of digging deep in the menu. This translates into more overall speed and control over the camera and thus the pictures.So go ahead and get this fast beast without getting daunted!!3/9/12 Update:Lenses:I added 2 lenses to my collection: Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Prime and the Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC PZD LD Aspherical IF Macro Zoom Lens for Canon DSLR Cameras.I have found the Canon 50 mm prime to be the best for portrait photography and works great with the 7D. It can also be used as a general 'walk around lens' for landscape photography. It is lightweight and the max aperture of 1.8 works wonders - no exaggeration here. When purchasing this lens my decision was pretty clear.However, when I was looking for a zoom lens I had 3 choices: Canon 18-200 mm, Sigma 18-200 mm and Tamron 18-270 mm. After doing extensive research and seeing many pics taken by these lenses, I decided to go with Tamron. Another reason for going with Tamron was its jaw dropping 6 year warranty in the US. Nothing can beat this. Recently I took this lens on my trip to Nevada and found it to be great. You can google for the comparison of these 3 lenses and see the sample pics. You may also want to see the sample pics taken by Tamron on Amazon and decide for yourself.Tripod:If you are planning to buy a tripod, I would recommend the SLIK PRO 700DX Professional Tripod with Panhead (615-315). Its sturdy, comes with a carrying case and compliments 7D nicely.Camera Bag:I found the Case Logic SLR Camera/Laptop Backpack to be fantastic. The 7D fits into the bag with the 18-270 mm Tamron attached to it. It has many adjustable compartments and can fit 2-3 more lenses (not telephoto zoom) nicely.Please feel free to post questions if any. Hope this review was of some help. Happy clicking!

For years I have had two Canon cameras: A 1980s era T-70 film camera and a mid-90s Canon Rebel digital (This was the first generation Canon Rebel and really the first "affordable" DLSR). Having used the Rebel for several years, I was hooked on digital photography, but frustrated by my camera's limitations (one-shot at a time with several seconds between shots, and only 6MP sensor). My Daughter-in-Law's dad is a semi-professional (he actually makes money with his nature pictures) and one day a about a year ago, I had the opportunity to shoot some pictures using his Canon 40D. That's when I got the bug to upgrade to a more capable camera. I spent a few months researching the capabilities of different cameras - mainly Canon. I went back and forth on whether to go for a full-frame or spend less on a crop-frame. I decided a crop frame would probably serve my needs just fine and I could get more bells and whistles in a crop-frame for a lot less money.I ended up buying a 1 year old 7D with the kit lens for $1000. Now that I've had it for close to a year, I can honestly say it was the best $1000 I've ever spent! The capabilities of this camera are amazing! I also recently bought the Canon 70-200mm F4 L series lens (non-IS) and double-wow! I took this combination to the BMX International bike competition up at Angel Fire, New Mexico (hosted by RedBull) this past August. I took over 1300 pictures, using the 8-frames per second capability quite a lot! Man did I get some great stop-action pictures!I know this isn't as technical a review as some, but I just wanted to give my impressions of this camera! I would definitely recommend the 7D to anyone who wants an extremely capable camera and can live without full-frame.

I bought this camera back in march 2012 after reading a lot (thanks to everybody for their comments and reviews). It is indeed a great camera, that I've compared with other less expensive versions of canc and it really stands out. I won't be giving much technical input here but wanted to give you some information on one problem I had.I noticed some time after buying it that the on/off switch was a little tight without any accident happening to the camera. Probably this issue was there since the very beginning but I noticed this some time after ... so I didn't worry too much... until this summer. I was up in the mountains in Spain when I noticed that the dial mode switch was starting to become loose (not firm) ... some hours latter when shooting and changing modes the dial mode switch detached from the camera, it broke completely. To my stupefaction it was just a regular plastic switch with a plastic stem that just broke. I really wasn't expecting this to be made out of plastic in a 7D. Anyways hopefully it was stuck in aperture mode and I could still use the camera (partially) ...Some months latter I went to canon to have it fixed (it was out of warranty so I had to pay ~100$). I also asked to have it replaced with the lock-build-in version of the dial mode (this was in France where I live). Not being a CPS member they don't take you very seriously and they had my problem fixed 3 weeks after when the maximum delay shouldn't have been more than 10 days for non CPS. I'm a little upset with this since I really needed my camera and them keeping their delays.Anyways just wanted to let you know that this is made out of plastic and that if you feel the on/of button is unusually firm go to have it fixed while it is still covered by warranty. The technician said this is not the first case they had. After repair I had 6 months of warranty for the whole camera which is great. This is very nice camera but far from perfect. For these combined reasons I'm taking off only one star ...

Reading through the reviews here I have been seeing a common trend of problems with the camera, or I should say user. A lot of users are going to be upgrading from their entry level DSLR like a T2i or d3100. You have to remember this is NOT a point and shoot camera like entry level cameras are. There are so many more settings and factors that will effect the photos you get. I have had this camera for about 6 months now and it has been quite a learning curve. Instead of complaining that the camera doesn't take great pictures, I learned how to work with the camera to get great pictures that i would never have been able to get with the t3i I upgraded from.Why?The main reason to buy this camera is: its much faster, more accurate, more advanced, 19 point cross-type AF system. Again, there are many settings that effect how the AF will function, and its up to you, the user to determine the settings you want to use. This camera also provides a micro adjustment for each lens to get your focusing better than you could have with an entry level DSLR. And remember that there is a dioptric adjustment. If you think you are seeing "fuzzy" or "not focused" pictures, its because you did not adjust this and its because of your eyes, NOT the camera.This camera is very well suited for action photography. Noise is very clean up till ISO 3200 which makes getting action shots a breeze.This camera has some sort of weather sealing which makes it a good camera to take outdoors on a rainy day.To get the most out of this camera you MUST be shooting RAW and be WILLING to do some post production.Having 8fps shooting, and basically an unlimited buffer has allowed me to get many more shots than i would ever be able to get before.It has a MUCH larger viewfinder than an entry level dslr.The AF works wonders in low light.The battery lasts me around 2k+ shots on most days.When I first received this camera I was disappointed. I would snap two identical pictures on the 7D and on the t3i. For some reason I thought the t3i took better pictures. The t3i's display is quite sharp and gives you a false sense of the pictures you take. In reality when I would put both photos on photoshop and begin editing them, the 7Ds photos were sharper and had less noise.Dont expect to get low noise like a FullFrame body like the 5D. This camera IS susceptible to low ISO noise in certain conditions. Review your settings and turn off all in-camera noise reduction.A few quick facts about this camera:The t2i/t3i, 60D, and 7D share almost identical sensors. The 7D has DUAL processors which allows it to have substantially better AF and faster shooting. Technically these cameras should take very similar pictures. The 7D is Canon's flagship Crop-Sensor Body.Finally- put your money where your lenses are. An "L" series canon lens is going to do much more for you than upgrading your body.In all I am in LOVE with this body and Im very glad I upgraded to it. Even though this camera was released in 2009, Canon is still providing firmware updates that increases its performance. The last updated increased its RAW and RAW+JPEG buffer and added manual audio adjustment.Happy shooting!

It has an 18-megapixel CMOS Sensor and Dual DIGIC 4 Image Processors for high image quality and speed; Advanced HD movie mode with manual exposure control and selectable frame rates; Viewfinder with 100 percent field of view (real PLUS); 19-point, all cross-type AF system equipped with dual diagonal cross-type sensors.You can capture images to CF Card Type I and II, UDMA-compliant CF cardsWith a host of brand new features designed to enhance every facet of the photographic process, from still images to video, this 7D represents a whole new class of camera. Made to be the tool of choice for serious photographers and semi-professionals, the 7D features an all-new 18-megapixel APS-C size sensor and DIGIC 4 image processors, capturing tremendous images at up to ISO 12800 and speeds of up to 8 fps - as for the highest ISO, don't expect to use it beyond 2000 unless you are a MASTER at NR software in post.The 7D has all cross-type 19-point AF system with improved AI Servo subject tracking and user-selectable AF area selection modes for sharp focus no matter the situation. The 7D's Viewfinder provides 100% coverage and displays user-selected AF modes as well as a spot metering circle and on demand grid lines.IMHO, it is a great asset to any amateur in the market to step up from a Rebel.

I am sure at some point the crop sensor bodies would get discontinued, so buy them now while you can.There is nothing better for Wildlife or Macro! The 1.6X factor turns my 400mm lens to 640mm and I don't lose one thing in picture quality. You can spend money to buy 7D or you can buy $12,000.00 600-mm lens. (If I could afford it I would buy it, but know that it is 5-6 times heavier, impossible to carry long distances, and closest focusing distance is large).Same goes for Macro photography. With crop sensor body, for little itsy bitsy flies, I am getting almost full frame shots and that without extension tubes.Picture quality is great! Higher FPS is ideal for wild-life.Both Wildlife and Macro requires cropping, but with this body, your average MBs for your shots will be HIGHER than with the full frame body. Simple reason being that you have to crop less of the shot because it is bringing the subject closer to you so why crop?Not saying that full-frame body is not great or not needed. I love my 5D MK-III and for landscape and portrait it is ideal. But the precious reach that 7D is giving me, it is indescribable how valuable that really is.Buy it before the world runs out of them! Happy shooting!

I've been using the 7D for about six months now, and while there are plenty of reviews I thought I'd add a couple of thoughts. I was coming from a T1i, with which I had been shooting RAW, and not doing much (competent) post processing on the files. The IQ results were good, and I primarily upgraded to the 7D for the better AF system, the weather sealing and better high ISO performance.The first thing I noticed as far as IQ was concerned is that the raw files looked, well, disappointing. There seemed to be a lot more luminance noise than the T1i files, and the images seemed mushy and grainy. I was concerned, but convinced myself that there was no way an upgrade like this could have worse IQ, and figured I had to be doing something wrong. This went on for a while, and despite my fiddling in Lightroom I wasn't getting the results I felt the camera should deliver. Then I started to actually learning how to do post-processing of RAW files properly, and the results I got improved dramatically. The point of this story is that if you're shooting in RAW and coming from something like the T1i, you may find that the images require more detailed post processing than you're used to. And if you aren't particularly good at post processing, you're going to have to get good at it if you're shooting in RAW. I can't speak to the quality of the JPG output directly from the camera, as I have not used it at all.((Edit 5/25/11: As I dig deeper into post-processing the RAW files from the 7D I have a bit of advice for those who will have to step up their post-processing game: Learn to create presets in Lightroom (or whatever program you are using) that you can apply to common camera settings. For instance, I can create a preset in Lightroom called "7D ISO 3200 Dark" that contains the noise reduction settings I commonly need when post-processing a RAW file shot at ISO 3200 in dark conditions. Then I can apply this preset across the board to a batch of ISO 3200 files with one click - no more adjusting images individually, no more remembering what settings work best. (You can always tweak things more if needed.) You can also setup the camera profile in Lightroom to apply these settings automatically upon import, if you wish. Hopefully this tangent is helpful to people like myself who were finding it difficult to keep up with required post-production work on the 7D's RAW files. The 7D RAW files force you to learn proper workflow, unless you have a lot of time to kill, or always shoot at ISO 100 in perfect conditions!))The AF system is great, can be tweaked in many ways to suit your needs, and really isn't that hard to learn if you read the manual and play with it for a while. (Seriously, read the manual. Twice.) It's built like a tank, and is very comfortable to hold. Weather sealing seems good - I've shot with it out in the rain with no cover and no issues. Just take a little compressed air and blow all the water off when you're done. Almost all the buttons on the camera can be reconfigured, should you wish to do so. For instance I've always found the DoF preview button not terribly helpful, so I changed it to be a toggle between One Shot and AI Servo AF modes. (Good for when you're shooting stills and then you want to switch to action without pressing several buttons/turning dials.) The C1, C2 & C3 modes are also great for saving exact camera configurations for frequently encountered shooting circumstances. (Whatever they may be, depending on the individual.)I would caution against purchasing this camera for high ISO purposes. While the noise can be tamed in post processing, you're not going to be blown away by the quality. (Unless your current camera is 5 years old.) If high ISO is the most important thing in the world to you, save up for a 5D MkII (or III if it ever comes out). You may also want to hold the camera to see if you're going to be comfortable with the size and weight. (I think it's great, others may find it to be a bit of a beast.) Finally, with a million options/settings/customizations/buttons, make sure you want a camera with all this functionality (and corresponding complexity). If you're just going to set it on full auto, your money could probably be better spent elsewhere. (And you may save yourself some frustration.)So overall a very nice piece of equipment, with a very rich feature set.Edit 5/25/11:The ability to trigger off-camera flash is fantastic. This opens up a whole new confusing world of lighting to learn, but you can do some really cool things.Also worth mentioning are two other things that I really like about this camera:First, I find the light meter to be great. Unless conditions are particularly difficult the camera does an excellent job, and I often find myself surprised that it handled the metering of a particular situation as well as it did. I've actually turned off automatic review on the LCD at this point. I take a shot of a scene, check it to make sure I don

Let me start off by saying that I am only a hobbyist and not even considering being professional. I am also not the most knowledgeable about all things technical when it comes to cameras. I am writing this more from the perspective of hobbyists who are considering upgrading their camera and are on the fence about choosing the camera. Professionals please ignore this.I recently upgraded to this camera after using a Canon Rebel T1i for several years. Clearly I was upgrading from an entry level DSLR, so the step up was significant for me. I wanted to make sure I could use my older lenses and not have to buy everything from scratch. After using it for a few weeks, here is what I LOVE:1) This is the fastest camera I've had - I am amazed at how fast the multiple exposures for a HDR shot come in. I also have been taking a lot of moving shots and it's really smooth2) The controls are intuitive and fairly easy to understand. If you've used Canon before, the dials look familiar. Having said that, please don't plan on starting a project as you take this out of the box - it does take a little getting used to3) The EF-S lenses all works. This means if you're upgrading from a Canon DSLR, you DON'T have to invest in new lenses straight away. For budget hobbyists like me, that was a big selling point4) The BULB exposure setting was a significant step up for me - my old camera wasn't very good with BULB exposuresI am not going to go into technical details and AF points and those kinds of pros and cons. There are enough qualified reviewers writing about those, and try to look at the online manuals if you are so inclined.A couple of caveats for the naive buyers like me - there are a bunch of accessories you DO have to upgrade:1) Since I was upgrading from the lowest level DSLR, I didn't have CF card in my old camera. It was a shock to me when my new camera arrived and I couldn't use my usual SD card. Make sure you get a good quality CF and CF card reader with the camera. If you're upgrading from a 60D or 50D, you know what a CF is, so ignore this point2) The 7D uses a different batter from the entry level DSLRs (LP E6 - my old camera had LP E5). You get a new battery and charger in the box, but if you have a battery pack and grip for your old camera, it isn't going to workI think at ~$1250 this is an excellent buy. Definitely recommend it to hobbyists looking to upgrade

I won't do a detailed review of this camera, as other people have done a much better job than I ever could. So I will just discuss my experience with it.I've been a paid semi pro photographer for about 10 years now, portrait, events and college sports. I've also worked as a paid photographer for a multitude of marathons and other races that come to town. Over the years I've shot with a long list of DSLRs (Sony, Pentax, Nikon and Canon). I've shot with the Canon 20D, 30D, 40D, 50D, 7D and so forth. I was very excited to finally purchase the 7D but I was constantly disappointed by it.For one, it seemed a bit noisy at 100 ISO, much more so than any other Canon I ever used. Honestly, I got cleaner images (at 100 ISO) with my 20 and 30Ds. I spoke to Canon about this. Their response: "Well, when you pack that many pixels on a sensor, that sorta thing happens." I'm thinking, really? This new, near state of the art sensor with dual processors can't take a cleaner image than a sensor you made nearly 10 years ago? Really?! Ironically I was very pleased with this camera at really high ISOs. It was awesome at 3200. And focusing... My 20D, 30D, 40D and so forth seemed to take sharper pictures (and I always used L glass). I seemed to have to struggle with this camera to get really sharp images. I reached a point where I was afraid to use it on paid shoots because I never knew what I was going to get.The 7D is an awesome camera when you can get it to work (and yea, I read the manual cover to cover a few times). But I shouldn't have to fight with my camera to get it to do its job.Maybe I had a defective model. Who knows.On the one year anniversary of purchasing the 7D, I sold it and left the world of digital photography -- for now, anyway. Back to shooting and processing my own black and white film. I've fallen in love with photography all over again.

My wife and I are not serious photographers, but we are serious about travel and we like high quality photographic equipment to document our trips. This camera has produced high quality photos and we have been more than satisfied with the images and even video taken with it. Reliability, however, has been a real problem for us with this model. We own 2 other Canon digital SLRs, several EF lenses and 3 Canon PowerShot cameras and this is the first product where we believe product reliability has been a problem. We bought the camera in late 2010 and the problems didn't crop up until early 2012 when the camera was out of warranty. Periodically we would get an error 20 which required us to remove the battery and reinsert. Although annoying, we got used to the periodic error and process for removing/reinserting the battery. By April 2012, removing and reinserting the battery stopped correcting the problem and I figured out that if I switched the camera from photo to video mode (and back), that the camera operated fine again for several days or even weeks before seeing the error 20 message again. We had a big trip to Peru coming up, but the camera was out of warranty so I decided that I could live with this workaround for the summer and that I would send the camera in once our travel slowed down for the fall as it usually does. On day 3 of our trip which was the day before we were to begin hiking the Inca Trail, the camera simply died. No error codes, no message of any kind. I had spare batteries, lenses, CF cards and no combination of swaps resulted in a message of any kind. I took everything to a Canon dealer in Cuzco and confirmed that all of my components worked fine with their display 7D eliminating the possibility of the problem being with anything but the body. Unfortunately, the closest Canon service center was in Lima and they were not guaranteeing a turn around of less than 7 days which wouldn't work for our travel agenda so we chunked the camera into the luggage and used our PowerShot for the rest of the trip. I know, shame on me for not having a backup body but in our defense we are not "serious" photographers and we've never encountered a problem like this before with a Canon product so we didn't have prior experience to draw upon. When we got back to the US, I tried the camera at home and to my surprise was met with an error 40 message when I turned the camera on. Having looked at various camera forums and blog sites I've noticed that many others have experienced either the error 20 problem (mechanical) or error 40 problem (power) as I have and it turns out I'm not the first to have a trip to Peru impacted by an error 40 problem.To Canon's credit, I sent the body to Canon Service in Virginia where they promptly repaired and returned the unit. The repairs amounted to $234 plus shipping. I'm not saying "don't buy this camera", but if you are concerned about reliability then caveat emptor.

I have used this body for 3 years now mainly for event coverage and studio shoots, I have a total of 50,000 actuation already but still performs like brand new. This is by far the most durable Canon body I ever used, I even dropped it twice already. I have tried 60D-up to 1000D but it's really not comparable because 7D has a lot to offer and it's built quality is amazing even better than the 5d2. If you're a beginner or just a photo enthusiast I will recommend it, you'll grow with it. The only negative thing about it is it's weight. You wouldn't try carrying your L lenses or any glass with 77mm filter thread with it because it's very heavy. But overall, it's a BEAST DSLR, the upgrade makes it more valuable to 7D owners like me. For the price I think it's reasonable.

I've been using Canon cameras for almost 20 years. I started with the AE-1 and have owned 4 additional Canon cameras since then. My current camera is a Canon XSi which is a great camera and I have not had any issues with it at all, but I wanted something a little faster and something that could manage low light situations without needing to resort to a flash.I researched cameras extensively before purchasing the 7D. I looked at the T3i, T2i, 60D, 7D, and 5D Mark II. In the end, it was the wealth of features available on the 7D that won me over.The T2i, T3i, and 60D are excellent cameras and anyone choosing them will be quite happy - they can take excellent photos, have enough raw pixel size to allow for significant cropping/enlargements, and can even shoot full HD video if you desire. If you are a starting photographer and want a great camera to 'get your feet wet' there aren't any better choices that those cameras. For me, however, I knew I wanted something bigger, more powerful, and with more features.That really brought me to the 7D or the 5D Mark II. Both are excellent cameras for the Pro-AM or Semi-Pro photographer. In fact, both would even work for full-on professional photographers without any issues. The primary difference between the two (at least in my decision making process) was the full-frame sensor in the 5D Vs. the crop factor sensor in the 7D. Trying to look up the differences between these sensors will drag you, kicking and screaming, into a bitter argument and BOTH sides swear they are right. Crop factor is better because of the added 'zoom'. Full frame is better because it has less pixel density and therefore less ISO corruption. The list goes on and on and on and, really, doesn't end up meaning much. The crop factor sensor in this camera is lightyears ahead of a full-frame sensor found in Canon cameras that are even just 5 years old. You can get EXCELLENT photos from either sensor. You can get acceptable low-light behavior from either sensor. You can have photos from either camera published. The differences really come down to what kind of photography you find yourself doing most often. If you spend a lot of time shooting tight spaces, close-up portraits, and super-fine detail work, a 5D may be the better choice (although you can easily overcome the limitations on the 7D crop factor sensor with a lens purchase or two). If you shoot action, outdoors, zoom photography, the 7D is a better choice.The 7D is a dream for me. The 8FPS shooting makes it so much easier to capture wildlife or motorsports shots that I just couldn't get before. The auto-focus is INCREDIBLY fast and sharp.... I've been shooting cars at an automotive drifting event where the cars are sliding sideways towards me at 90mph and all 15 or 20 rapid-fire shots I took were perfectly sharp and in focus. With the $1000 I saved over the 5D, I purchased some fantastic L glass which simply fit perfectly with this system.The versatility of the 7D is still impressing me. I can go from shooting a motorsports event to shooting an indoor birthday party and everything is crisp, clear, and exposed just right. If I want to get 'artistic' it is easy to flip a few switches and alter aperture or shutter settings. This is a camera that I will continue to grow in to for years.

I purchased this camera through B&H Video in May. I am now in the UK on vacation visiting family. My EOS7D worked fine until two days ago. It then developed a serious problem : the camera cannot read the CF card, so I cannot take any pictures. I have just got off the phone - here in London - with Canon UK. They have told me that the warranty on my EOS7D is not honored by them - apparently because Canon USA and Canon Europe no longer honor each other's warranties. So, any repairs needed will have to be paid for, even though the camera is only three and a half months old. Alternatively, I can just forget taking pictures with it here on my vacation and get it repaired on return to the USA.This means that : I have been sold a $2000 DSLR camera - which says it has a global Canon warranty. But in fact it does not!I have used Canon cameras and printers for decades. I have always considered them the best. I am now seriously considering selling all my Canon products on Ebay and switching to other brands.If you have to travel outside the USA at all with you camera, my advice is : DO NOT BUY THE EOS7D or any other Canon camera for that matter.Sadly, Canon has become one of those bureaucratic multinational companies where customer service matters less than making a fast buck at the customer's expense.Happy Holidays Canon! May it be a very very long one!UPDATE - SEPTEMBER 26 2012 :-Since posting the above review, I have sent my EOS7D in to Canon USA, who have repaired my camera under warranty. It is just shame that I could not get the camera repaired earlier while in the UK, so I could have used it during our family and friends reunion there. So, my feelings about Canon's warranty still stand.As regards the camera repairs, Canon have replaced the CF reader in my camera with a new one. This now works in that I can again take photos.However, the CF card slot still feels very stiff, making it somewhat difficult to insert the CF card. I am therefore still quite concerned that the problem I had before could recur later.I have called Canon to raise this concern. But i was told that the CF card slot was purposely made tighter to avoid the problem of the card missing the pins and bending them when inserted.I have a lot of experience inserting CF cards in Canon digital cameras. I have owned a Powershot G2 since 2002 that has the same CF card system. That is smoother and easier to use and I have never once had a problem with it and have taken tens of thousands of photos.Surprisingly, Canon's tech support did not seem too receptive to being told about my experience, which is at odds with their own thinking on this issue.I am posting this update so others may be aware of this issue, before buying this camera.

This is my first Canon camera, but not my first DSLR. My first DSLR was the Sony Alpha 100, with a Sigma 18-200mm lens. I have enjoyed photography for > 40 years, including darkroom work on film, and have really enjoyed it the most with the advent of the digital revolution. I have been using the 7D for 7 months now, having taken thousands of photos, including a wedding and a couple of events, (for friends or family), trying to make sure my issues aren't due to my lack of familiarity with the camera.Con: My biggest, and maybe only real gripe is the 19-point auto-focus. It locks onto the nearest subject, no matter where it is in the frame. And to make matters worse, the focus indicators can show locking on farther points in addition to the one closest, but they usually aren't in focus when you review the photo, just the closest ones. I was taking pictures of people on a stage and found the camera focusing on the TV camera to the very far right of the stage, and the people on stage were not quite sharp in focus, even though they took up the majority of the picture. I took a picture of my backyard, and a small branch from a bush to the very far right of the screen was in sharp focus while the entire backyard was out of focus. In each case, the focus indicators did not show just these objects being in focus (I keep the focus indicators showing when I review my picture just to confirm where the camera tells me I was focusing). There are usually several areas with the focus squares indicating focus, but when I review my photos it is usually the object closest to the camera in sharp focus. The manual even indicates that the camera will normally focus on the closest object, so I wonder what the point is of having 19 focus points? Seems it should have an AI that would maximize the greatest amount of objects in focus in the picture. You can make adjustments by cutting down the area of focus (some of which are turned off by default?), but then why have 19 auto-focus points? Why would the camera think that I would prefer to focus on something to the far side of the screen and not the central area of the picture? If the area you are taking a picture of is square with the camera, with everything about the same distance from the camera, everything will be in great focus. But if you are taking a picture where things are at varying distances, such as a U-shaped table with guests sitting around it, expect the people on each end nearest you to be in focus and the middle of the table (farthest away) to be blurred with the 19-point AF.Related to the focus issue, my Sony had a sensor on the eye-cup that started AF whenever you put your eye to they eye-cup, so I never opened my camera eye to a completely blurred screen. Often when I put the Canon to my eye I can't recognize anything in the image before me. Of course I just need to press the shutter button halfway and it focuses, but seems that an eye senor option would have been nice on such an expensive camera. Another advantage of the eye sensor is in keeping the subject focused as you compose the shot and before you finally depress the shutter button. With the eye senor of the Sony if I moved just a little bit the auto-focus would continue to adjust, which is a big help with hand-held macro shots where just a slight movement can make a big difference. I know there is a setting for dynamic focus called AI Servo, which is for moving subjects. I'm not sure how this would work for macro shots, however I tried it for seagulls in flight and it didn't work very well at all. My Sony did much better for birds in flight, no matter what focus setting I used on the Canon.For those who think I had a bad lens, I have used the Canon 50mm 1.8, Canon 28-135, and Tamron 18-270. Not the best lenses you will find, but decent enough to not blame the lens solely for these problems. I now use center-weighted focusing for just about everything, and it works fine most of the time, just need to be thinking exactly where you want to focus to be sure to get what you want out of the shot.Another con is the fact that highlights seems to get blown out far more often than my Sony on high contrast outdoor shots. But when the exposure is good, which is most of the time, the colors are fantastic. When using the built in flash outdoors for closeup fill flash it is always overexposed, but you can adjust the flash exposure very easily. It also doesn't have an articulated LCD (I would like to save getting on my knees for shots from that perspective). Automatic mode is almost worthless because of the 19-point autofocus being the only option. I know, you don't buy this kind of camera for automatic mode, but why shouldn't I expect it to work when I pay this much money? One more con, optical stabilization (OS) makes your lenses cost more than sensor based stabilization. And if your lens doesn't have OS, you don't have the advantage of OS with that lens. Ironically, OS can make your pictu

After months of waiting for a new upgrade for the Sony a700 I finally madethe difficult decision to go with Canon. I had some very good Sony/Minoltaglass, so it was hard to let it go, BUT...The Canon 7D is everything it promises to be, especially for someone that shootswildlife/nature photography professionally. The metering and ISO abilities areamazing and the fact that it is built like a portable tank is great. WEATHER SEALEDand much better build is what I hear from my 5D Mark II friends who are amazedby the quality of this "enthusiasts" camera. Yeah, enthusiastic about quality gearand professional images.DO put good quality glass on this thing and you will not be disappointed! Bestbet buy the body only and pick and chose your lenses. I started with a Canon 100-400mmLand just for fun a "nifty fifty" Canon 50mm f1.8. I also have for lightweight travel a Canon70-300USM IS and will be buying the Canon 15-85mm. Also on my list for theyear is the Canon 24-105mmL also weathersealed.IF you are shooting primarily landscape save your money and don't bother in investingin "fast" lenses. You need the smaller aperture for full focus landscapes. If you are shootingsome wildlife as well, like I do, then get a couple of faster zooms. I chose the less fast100-400mm for versatility instead of the Canon 400mm. Both work very well.If you are pondering the choice of the 7D know that it is heavier than the Sony a700 and theCanon 60D, 50D and 40D. I have the 40D as a secondary camera. I like this camera for it imagequality and portability. I use it in good lighting situations for landscape and keep my 100-400mmmounted on the 7D, and will use the Canon 24-105 on it as well.The metering and ISO quality is hands down the best thing I have seen and I can shoot in snowand not worry if I get caught in some rain (depending on the lens).If you have the money and want this camera, get it. If you want the camera and don't have the money,save up, sell something off, whatever, but you wont be sorry about the image quality. THis thing has a greatsensor and DUAL image processors. Canon did a great job on this, and the video in low light is incrediblethough I don't use it often I have videoed Elk in near dark and the image quality and, even the audio wasimpressive.At the time of this posting I have owned/tested the 7D for over 3 months using various lenses on it.FYI, Most people are not aware that there can be large differences in images quality in camera and lens batchesof the SAME model camera and lens. I tested 3 different 7Ds and kept the sharpest of the three. I used the same sharp50mm lens on all three exactly same shooting conditions, tripod etc. I also did this with the Canon 70-300ISM US and foundthe same thing to be true. This happens all the time and from what I have seen the newer the camera or lens TENDS tobe the best quality, but to be certain test out your gear before buying and make CERTAIN you can return your gearif it does not perform as expected.Quality discrepancies occur in every brand of camera and lens, some are just worse than others. I have found thisto be very true concerning Sigma and Tamron lenses where quality control can be quite lax.Have fun and Happy shooting!December 21, 2011I've owned the 7D for over a year now and I've really put it through the paces. THis is a truework horse and has consistently put out excellent images. I have, since my original reviewsold my canon 100-400L (Dust collector) and replaced it with a Canon 70-200L IS F4 plus Canon TX 1.4II (both weather sealed). THis lens in combination with the 7D creates spectacular images for publishing. I have also added the legendary Canon 24-105L as well as the Canon 17-40L and can report that both of these lenses produce absolutely publish worthy images and are weather sealed.I sold the Canon 70-300USM IS as I just could not get acceptable sharp images for my use.I replaced it with the Tamron 70-300 VC and will say it is one amazing low cost lens. Wellworth the price and much better for my uses than the Canon which I found lacking in buildquality and image quality. I found the AF much better on the Tamron and the IS more usefulas well.The only thing I would change about the 7D would be an extended eyepiece as standard, sothat my face isn't pressed against the LCD. But I was able to remedy this buying a thirdparty extension, just make certain it's the one for the 1D series as it's larger than the rest ofCanon's DSLRs.The 7D stands up to tough environments... hot, dry and dusty weather, and frigid, snowy and thenwet weather. Using weather sealed "L" lenses makes this camera nearly impervious to any adverseweather. My next addition will either be in the 1D Line or a 5D II, but I'll be keeping this 7Duntil it either wears out, or they offer another model that can offer the same quality and stilltake cropped images for wildlife and action.Also, I have no regrets in NOT waiting for Sony to finally release the Sony A77. After v

I have the Canon T3i and switched to the 7D. Its autofocus is higher, the current 7D (19-point auto focus), the construction is a fundamental point, is practically armored, but has never fallen me I want it to fall. The high speed for action shots is excellent. Despite not being full frame censor chose me instead of the Canon 6D. When you switch to full frame conservare this camera as a second body as I have with my current T3i. Definitely an excellent camera 7D Semi-Pro.

I love the Canon 7D. This is my second one. I have been using one along with my original 20d for a few years now with my pro glass. I got tired of deciding which lens to put in the 20d before each shoot. Buying the second 7d resolved that. I can't say enough about the quality and features of this camera. My advice if you are new to Canon pro and semi pro cameras is to read the manual, take a class or both. I'm always finding new features that I was unaware of.