Is the 7d Mk1 still a standout camera, or are there better alternatives

Urban Grimshaw

Urban Grimshaw

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Currently using a 30d, which I've been relatively happy with. I remember when the 7d was first released, it was the body to have - all the features at a semi-affordable pricepoint. Like a poor man's 5d. However, whilst I don't keep up to date much with equipment, I've heard a handful of negative comments on the 7d in recent times. Poor low light performance and stuff like that. So if I were to buy 2nd hand, are there better alternatives for the same price, or is it still a well regarded unit?

Personally I prefer the controls on the xxd series cameras as opposed to the xxxd series. And I like the solid metal body on my 30d.

Mostly take landscape stuff, but some sports (cycling mainly), and would like half decent low light performance, and video. Just looking to upgrade really.

What are the options?
 
The mkii is a far superior camera. The original 7D was never very good at high ISO stuff and if I remember correctly auto focus could be a bit hit and miss.

I use a 6D and a 7Dmkii how and whilst the 7D will never match the 6D in high ISO performance, I'm quite happy pushing the ISO on the 7Dii

If you're shooting mainly landscapes, the 6D is an excellent choice.
 
ecoleman said:
The mkii is a far superior camera...
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And a fair bit more expensive... The Mk1 has attracted me because the price has now come down quite a lot. I'm guessing it would still be a good upgrade over the 30d. Just wondering what others I should be looking at really.

I've been into photography for a long time, but it's a secondary hobby for me and not something I want to spend huge amounts of money on, but obviously I'm looking for capable kit. I mean the 30d is OK, but in terms of low light, I'll rarely push it past 200 ISO...
 
Urban Grimshaw said:
Currently using a 30d, which I've been relatively happy with. I remember when the 7d was first released, it was the body to have - all the features at a semi-affordable pricepoint. Like a poor man's 5d. However, whilst I don't keep up to date much with equipment, I've heard a handful of negative comments on the 7d in recent times. Poor low light performance and stuff like that. So if I were to buy 2nd hand, are there better alternatives for the same price, or is it still a well regarded unit?

Personally I prefer the controls on the xxd series cameras as opposed to the xxxd series. And I like the solid metal body on my 30d.

Mostly take landscape stuff, but some sports (cycling mainly), and would like half decent low light performance, and video. Just looking to upgrade really.

What are the options?
Click to expand...

What's your budget really ?
As you can go FF & buy the 5d mk III or IV plus the 6D ..... Nice but dear ..
Or can buy a 60D crop sensor the nearly specs (very close) as 7D mkI or 7D MkII top end again ...
plus a few more cameras as well 70D & 80D etc etc ...
 
Urban Grimshaw said:
And a fair bit more expensive... The Mk1 has attracted me because the price has now come down quite a lot. I'm guessing it would still be a good upgrade over the 30d. Just wondering what others I should be looking at really.

I've been into photography for a long time, but it's a secondary hobby for me and not something I want to spend huge amounts of money on, but obviously I'm looking for capable kit. I mean the 30d is OK, but in terms of low light, I'll rarely push it past 200 ISO...
Click to expand...
60D nice camera
 
Urban Grimshaw said:
And a fair bit more expensive... The Mk1 has attracted me because the price has now come down quite a lot. I'm guessing it would still be a good upgrade over the 30d. Just wondering what others I should be looking at really.

I've been into photography for a long time, but it's a secondary hobby for me and not something I want to spend huge amounts of money on, but obviously I'm looking for capable kit. I mean the 30d is OK, but in terms of low light, I'll rarely push it past 200 ISO...
Click to expand...

Well, I had the 40D which was terrible at anything over 800ISO. I also wanted to upgrade but everything I read about the 7D didn't give me any confidence that I'd get any better low light performance from it, so I moved to full frame, the 6D. I couldn't afford the 5Dmkii/iii at the time.

I love the 6D, but missed the extra reach of a crop and higher fps. So after reading some great reviews of the 7Dmkiii I eventually bought one and now use both bodies depending on what I'm shooting.

I understand the mkii is more expensive, but I think you will be disappointed with the mk 1
 
Budget is the key here but for your usage I don't think a mark 1 7d is going to give you much improvement over your 30d except in af performance which is a big jump. If your happy with the 30d af and can afford it then a 5d mkii or 6d would give you much better ISO performance.

I think your being very harsh on the 30d saying ISO 200 is the max you'll use I was happy running mine much higher!
 
a 2nd hand 5Dmkii is great value and a very capable camera
 
7d mk1 is about £250 second hand? For more capable cameras around for that money is probably things like the 600D but thats a smaller body
a1ex2001 said:
I don't think a mark 1 7d is going to give you much improvement over your 30d except in af performance which is a big jump.
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Sorry I don't agree
30D is 8.2 Mp ISO 100-3200, starts getting noisy after iso 400
7D was better than the 50D, which was an huge improvement on the 30D, 18Mp, ISO 100-12800, with 1600 easily usable 8 frames/sec, HD video recording, environmental sealing (Splash proof), 19 point af system, wireless flash control,

Thats a decent step up from a 30D
 
5Dmkii is at least twice the price of 7Dmki though, as tempting as it looks.

I just remember when the 7D was released, everyone raved about it. It was the thing to have. Surely it has something going for it, or was it all down to Canon's marketing, creating a new xd series, effectively having everyone thinking "Wow, it's a pro camera for those on a budget"? Now it all seems a bit "Meh..."
 
Urban Grimshaw said:
5Dmkii is at least twice the price of 7Dmki though, as tempting as it looks.

I just remember when the 7D was released, everyone raved about it. It was the thing to have. Surely it has something going for it, or was it all down to Canon's marketing, creating a new xd series, effectively having everyone thinking "Wow, it's a pro camera for those on a budget"? Now it all seems a bit "Meh..."
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its still a great camera, but it depends on your usage really. if you get one at a good price its well worth it another cheapish option is a mk1 5d great sensor and full frame if that floats your boat
 
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I bought the 7D mark 1 after the mark 2 came out and am happy with it. For its time it was very good in all departments but of course now the newer cameras beat it on high ISO and AF speed. I still prefer it to a newer 60D or similar as the screen size is bigger - the basic end Canon and Nikon models are like staring the wrong way down a telescope.
 
Sandokan said:
.......I still prefer it to a newer 60D or similar as the screen size is bigger ......
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I believe that the screens are the same size on the 7D and 60D with the 60D being of higher resolution.

Bob
 
7d MkI has a higher FPS rate than the 60D
Viewfinder on the 7D MkI is 100% but 96% on the 60D
But the rest of specs are very close & the 60D is lighter & smaller than the 7D MkI
 
Hi Bob and thanks Graycbr,

I had to look up the specs but magnification and coverage are smaller on the xxD than the xD series. Does not sound like much, but it is noticeable when picking it up. Whether it is significant or a deal killer is another matter.

Viewfinder
60D
• 96% frame coverage
• Magnification: 0.95x
• Eyepoint: 22 mm


7D
• 100% frame coverage
• Approx. 1.0x magnification
 
If video's important to you the 70d is also worth a look.
I personally chose the 50d over the 60d as it was cheaper, more solid (60d had more plastic for wifi reception) and has mfa.
I've heard only good things about the 7d, but you'll probably be happier with a 5d or 6d if landscapes are your thing. That said, if your current lenses arent full frame friendly, I'd ask yourself whether you really want or need another slr.
 
jerry12953 said:
I honestly couldn't recommend a 7d Mk1.........
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My experience has been different but I do remember some people had issues with there's
I've had my mk1 7d since not long after launch and it's been great
It's not perfect you have to nail the exposure
I normally expose to the right
Mine has done about 70K shots and not missed a beat
I am using a mk2 7d now which is a better camera especially the autofocus but I still use my mk1 as a second body :)
 
Sandokan said:
Viewfinder
60D
• 96% frame coverage
• Magnification: 0.95x

7D
• 100% frame coverage
• Approx. 1.0x magnification
Click to expand...

That's interesting about the frame coverage. I've just taken it as a minor quirk over the years and learnt to compensate for it when necessary. Not a deal breaker though.

I should maybe mention that my cameras tend to see a fair bit of weather, so decent weather proofing is a good thing!

These threads are never a good thing for me. They always end up up in a hmmm.....if I just spend that little bit extra....

But really, I'd like to stick to somewhere around the £300 mark. More money for lenses that way.
 
Urban Grimshaw said:
5Dmkii is at least twice the price of 7Dmki though, as tempting as it looks.

I just remember when the 7D was released, everyone raved about it. It was the thing to have. Surely it has something going for it, or was it all down to Canon's marketing, creating a new xd series, effectively having everyone thinking "Wow, it's a pro camera for those on a budget"? Now it all seems a bit "Meh..."
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Its a good camera but it is 7 years old now, and even on release users key complaint was the noise even at low ISOs. Everything else about it is excellent though, as once a good camera, always a good camera. I wouldn't use one if you intend to use middling to high ISO though.
 
As already said, 7d is OK up to about ISO 1600, gets noisy after that.
Compared to his 30D which is good to about ISO 400.....

We're not comparing old models to new, it's what's available for £250-300 as a replacement for a 30D.
 
Love my Mk1 7D - sure, I'd love a Mk2, but the Mk1 does what I need it to most of the time, and if it falls short, it's usually due to the fleshy thing behind the viewfinder rather than the camera.

Certainly felt like a decent upgrade over my old 50D, personally - it kind of did most of what the 50D did for me but better, ISO performance a bit better than the 50 (and noise was a lot easier to deal with for some reason even when it was there), and felt a lot more solid than the 60 I was considering instead.
 
Byker28i said:
As already said, 7d is OK up to about ISO 1600, gets noisy after that.
Compared to his 30D which is good to about ISO 400.....

We're not comparing old models to new, it's what's available for £250-300 as a replacement for a 30D.
Click to expand...
It did also have an issue with noticable grain at base ISO did it not? I have to say I've barely used one, at that juncture my main camera was the 50d which kind of ran side by side with the 7d (the 7d basically being a 50d on steriods!). I know we're not comparing with modern stuff, I was just saying on release the sensor wasn't an improvement as such, and that was a while ago.

But yes, for the budget it cant really be beaten. I'd say its between the 7d, 50d, or something newer from the xxxd line which may be a downgrade body ergonomics/ build / FPS / AF wise.
 
as i said before iq wise the 5d classic(mk1) is very very good, just not as good with af system
 
niko said:
as i said before iq wise the 5d classic(mk1) is very very good, just not as good with af system
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I found the 5d mk1 very clunky and slow (with an awful screen, not that that really mattered!) and I bought it for high ISO which I found very disappointing. At 100-800 iso though its lovely, but it should have handled 1600 and above better IMO, even for its time. I ended up selling mine and using the 50d primarily.
 
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odd jim said:
I found the 5d mk1 very clunky and slow (with an awful screen, not that that really mattered!) and I bought it for high ISO which I found very disappointing. At 100-800 iso though its lovely, but it should have handled 1600 and above better IMO, even for its time. I ended up selling mine and using the 50d primarily.
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that's interesting i thought it was a league above the 50d, horses for course i guess. but yep it is a bit clunky:D
 
niko said:
that's interesting i thought it was a league above the 50d, horses for course i guess. but yep it is a bit clunky:D
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It should have been but for me it wasn't! But then I needed something I could really push at the time for indoor show jumping and perhaps the 5d1 wasn't the ideal tool. I could use the 50d up to 3200 iso (with some NR) and the 5d1 wasn't any better at 1600-3200, but of course the 50d had the AF and FPS advantage over it, so I kept the 50d. TBH it wasn't until I bought my 6d that I could push a body to how I wanted it without compromising IQ, so maybe I was expecting too much? Loved the files at normal ISOs though, and I wish I kept it TBH but needs must at the time.
 
odd jim said:
I found the 5d mk1 very clunky and slow (with an awful screen, not that that really mattered!) and I bought it for high ISO which I found very disappointing. At 100-800 iso though its lovely, but it should have handled 1600 and above better IMO, even for its time. I ended up selling mine and using the 50d primarily.
Click to expand...

niko said:
that's interesting i thought it was a league above the 50d, horses for course i guess. but yep it is a bit clunky:D
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http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon_EOS_50D-vs-Canon_EOS_5D

still below 7d & 60d ...
 
graycbr said:
http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon_EOS_50D-vs-Canon_EOS_5D

still below 7d & 60d ...
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Well, yes I know this (but I wouldn't rely on Snapsort!), I had both at the same time so I got to know how they perform! But my findings were as above.

But this is wrong in parts, the 50d has a max shutter speed of 1/8000 as well as the 5d. And this shows there's nothing in it, only really better low ISO from the 5d which is the same as my findings. If you look uin detail you'll see how much better the 50d is in a lot of areas, surprisingly also dynamic range. In actual fact, the 50d has a lot more advantages than I realised!

http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon_EOS_50D-vs-Canon_EOS_5D/detailed

But its a rubbish site...
 
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odd jim said:
Well, yes I know this (but I wouldn't rely on Snapsort!), I had both at the same time so I got to know how they perform! But my findings were as above.

But this is wrong in parts, the 50d has a max shutter speed of 1/8000 as well as the 5d. And this shows there's nothing in it, only really better low ISO from the 5d which is the same as my findings. If you look uin detail you'll see how much better the 50d is in a lot of areas, surprisingly also dynamic range. In actual fact, the 50d has a lot more advantages than I realised!

http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon_EOS_50D-vs-Canon_EOS_5D/detailed

But its a rubbish site...
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niko said:
that site isn't really correct (being polite:p) it recons the mk1 costs 3500- so a bit out of date!
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Another site guys ...(being polite:p)

http://cameradecision.com/compare/Canon-EOS-50D-vs-Canon-EOS-5D

http://cameradecision.com/compare/Canon-EOS-60D-vs-Canon-EOS-7D
 
Had a 5D & a 7D myself & upgraded them both to 5D mkII & 7D mkII
I agree the 5D is a great camera for portraits learned a lot with it ..

But the OP is asking is the 7D the best he can get for his £300 or is there a better alternatives , which the 5D & 50D don't really match the 7D specs ...
 
agreed spec wise they don't, but for mainly landscapes id still go with the 5d. for cycling the 7d would work better. what is the usual price of a 7d now? there is a well used one on mpb around that price but don't they usually cost more in good condition? i haven't been following prices lately
 
price wise 7D £300 - £340 ...
 
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