The Canon EOS 7D is the most advanced model in Canon’s line of APS-C cameras. Above it is the full-frame grandeur of the EOS 5D MKII, which is priced £200 more than the EOS 5D MKII. Below it is the compact shapes of the EOS 1100D, the EOS 600D, and the EOS 60D.
Internally, the 5D MKII and the 7D couldn’t be more different from one another. The 7D has an image sensor that is about the same size as those found in cameras such as the 600D, the Nikon D5100, or the Sony Alpha 77. The 5D MKII is the least expensive model in Canon’s line-up that features a full-frame sensor.
The Canon 5D Mark II has a higher resolution than the Canon 7D, which uses an APS-C CMOS sensor with just 18 megapixels. This gives it a modest advantage over the 7D.
There is not much of a difference in build quality between this and the 5D MKII. The magnesium alloy that makes up the body gives the impression of being rather sturdy, with the exception of the doors that conceal the memory card and the battery. Because every point of contact on the 7D is covered in a thick layer of rubber with a textured finish, it is simple to keep a firm grip on the device even when wearing gloves.
And, in contrast to Canon’s more compact consumer range, such as the EOS 1100D or EOS 600D, for example, the grip is practically sized for the hands of an adult, and it gives the impression that the body will be perfectly balanced when used in conjunction with one of Canon’s L-series telephoto lenses.
Additionally, it has been protected from the elements and dust. In order to prevent foreign substances from entering the device through the battery and memory card doors, there is a tiny layer of rubber placed where the door meets the body.
Canon EOS 7D 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera Body Only (Discontinued...
- 18MP APS-C CMOS sensor / 8 frames per second continuous shooting / 1080p HD video recording with manual controls / 3.
- 0 inch Clear View II LCD screen with 920,000 dots / 19-point AF system (all cross-type) / 100% viewfinder coverage / 63-zone metering system / Built-in wireless flash control
- 18MP APS-C CMOS sensor / 8 frames per second continuous shooting / 1080p HD video recording with manual controls / 3.
- 0 inch Clear View II LCD screen with 920,000 dots / 19-point AF system (all cross-type) / 100% viewfinder coverage / 63-zone metering system / Built-in wireless flash control
Features
The body is covered in buttons, which might be overwhelming for novice users at first but can bring unrestrained delight to anyone upgrading from a consumer body.
A row of buttons located next to the shutter release may be used to modify the sensitivity (ISO), drive mode, and focus area of the camera. You may pick the option you wish to modify by using either the click wheel on the rear of the command wheel on the right-hand shoulder. Each of these buttons handles two different functions; for example, one button governs the white balance as well as the focus zones.
Figuring out which wheel controls which function The 7D has a learning curve that is somewhat high, but after some practise it will only take a few seconds to make significant adjustments to the shooting modes, and you will only need to resort to the on-screen menu system when you are trying to access more esoteric settings.
All of this is made easier by the fact that the top plate features a secondary LCD screen that displays information pertaining to shooting. One last button on the upper shoulder activates a convenient backlight that may be used to make adjustments even when it is dark.
A large-screen preview of the camera’s settings may be accessed by pressing the Q button located on the back of the camera. This feature is ideal for users who like to verify their camera’s settings via an onscreen display. The availability of a raw/JPEG button is beneficial for one-off shooting in RAW mode; for example, when confronted with a situation that has a very high dynamic range, the user can take advantage of this feature.
Canon offers a few accommodations for new users who are still getting their bearings. Once you have changed the shooting mode to CA, you will be able to make adjustments by referring to the main screen. The many camera settings, including aperture and exposure, are explained in layman’s terms, such as blurred vs sharp and darker versus brighter.
The 7D sports a built-in pop-up flash, in contrast to the 5D MKII’s fixed one. The flash appears to be safe and is activated by a motor release that sounds and feels trustworthy. Despite being a possible weak spot in an otherwise rock-solid body, the flash operates without issue. It has some use, but it is limited in that if you attach a hood to most lenses, the flash will be blocked. On the other hand, the 7D was the first Canon camera to include an inbuilt Speedlite transmitter.
This is really useful information for developing unique flash approaches. If you have a standalone flash, you can tell it to fire remotely without having to spend money on a flash transmitter or a PocketWizard setup. This is possible because standalone flashes have their own built-in electronics.
According to Canon, the 5D MKII is capable of a maximum continuous shooting rate of 4 frames per second (four frames per second). In the tests that we ran, the 7D was almost astounding in its performance. Canon asserts that it will reach 8 frames per second when a UDMA card is utilized.
Because of this, it is an exceptional camera for capturing animals. Because there is no shutter lag, its responsiveness is excellent. Because it is so sensitive, the camera actually has a second continuous mode that takes pictures at a more reasonable 3.5 frames per second.
The smaller sensor conceals an additional benefit for photographers who take pictures of sports and nature: the 1.6x focal length magnification ratio means that each lens you attach adds a little distance to the final image. For example, a 400mm lens on a 5D MKII will be equivalent to a 640mm lens on a 7D, allowing you to go closer to the subjects of your photographs.
The outstanding focusing mechanism of the 7D contributes to the camera’s responsiveness. It includes 19 focus sensors of the cross-type, and in our testing, it was restricted only by the speed of the lens’ focus motor. This is a really impressive feature. It handles quite well. It is interesting to note that the focusing technology of the 7D outperforms that of the Canon 5D MKII. The Canon EOS 5D Mark II features a total of nine focusing points, although only one of them is the more accurate cross-type sensor. In comparison, the Canon EOS 7D has a total of 19 autofocus points.
The initial and final of these are considered to be typical choices and are comparable to those available on the vast majority of other SLRs. The first option gave the photographer the ability to choose the AF point, whilst the Auto-select 19-point AF option gave control of the choice to the camera itself. The Auto-select 19-point AF has a tendency to focus on whatever is closest to the camera, which is one of its drawbacks.
In the mode known as Zone AF, the 19 AF points are segmented into five distinct areas, and it is up to the photographer to select which of these areas to utilize. When shooting moving things that are difficult to track with a single AF point, this is a smart option to go with.
When the AI Servo focus mode is used in conjunction with the Auto-select 19-point AF mode, the photographer is able to choose the initial AF point, but the camera continues to follow the subject even as it moves.
When one of these automatic AF selection modes is used and Custom Function III-10 is set, the active AF point(s) will glow. This is a really helpful feature. This makes it much simpler to determine whether or not the camera is monitoring the appropriate topic.
Spot AF and AF point expansion are the two additional AF point selection modes that may be enabled by using Custom Function III-6. Both of these modes can be added to the default list of AF point selection options.
The single-point AF mode is identical to the spot AF mode, with the exception that the single point in the spot AF mode is significantly smaller than the single point in the single-point AF mode.
In the AF point expansion mode, the photographer is responsible for manually selecting the AF point; however, the 7D may also make use of the AF points in the surrounding area to acquire focus when following moving subjects. However, in contrast to the Auto-select 19-point AF option available in AI Servo mode, the active AF points in the surrounding area do not light up while they are in use.
The EOS 7D also offers more advanced AF customization settings, which allow the photographer to select how quickly the system adjusts to changes in subject distance. These options were added to the camera in response to the release of the EOS 7D Mark II. These options can be found in the custom menu and are referred to as AI Servo tracking sensitivity (C.Fn III-1) and AI Servo AF tracking method (C.Fn III-3). Their purpose is to prevent the camera from focusing on things such as a post or spectators when the camera is panning around a stadium following athletes, for example.
These settings can also be found in the EOS-1D Mark IV and the EOS-1Ds Mark III; however, the EOS 5D Mark II does not have access to these options. The new EOS-1DX from Canon offers a lot of the same features as its predecessor, but the menu system has been updated to make it much easier to understand what each option does.
Image Quality
The only aspect of the 7D’s build quality that falls short of expectations is the lens that may be purchased in a kit with the camera. Although it was launched at the same time as the 7D body, the Canon EF-S 18-135 lens does not appear to have the same high level of build-quality as the body.
To begin with, it is entirely constructed out of plastic, and in contrast to more pricey lenses, it does not have full-time manual focusing. This means that if you don’t like what the lens is attempting to do by itself, you can’t just grasp the focus ring and force it to change.
It has a maximum aperture of f/3.5 at a wide angle and f/5.6 when zoomed in, which is nothing to get excited about in terms of its characteristics. It is a fantastic beginner lens if you are purchasing the 7D for video since it features image stabilization, which considerably decreases frame shaking when you are zoomed in. This is a benefit if you are acquiring the 7D for video.
Unfortunately, its outstanding video credentials are tainted by the fact that it is not a USM (Ultra Sonic Motor) lens, and as a result, it makes a variety of whining noises while looking for focus. This is a drawback. If you choose the 7D without the lens, you will only save 160 pounds, but if you start investing more money in more sophisticated lenses, you are unlikely to change your mind and go back.
In a head-to-head comparison of image quality, the Canon 5D Mark II easily outperforms the Canon 7D, despite the fact that neither camera features a full-frame sensor. When compared with photographs captured by an original 5D, the photos captured by the 7D at 3200 ISO were noisier, but not to the extent that they were unusable.
When comparing the highest ISO, the Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon 7D are differentiated from one another. The 7D can reach a maximum ISO of 12,800, but only if the user modifies the camera’s custom settings. The 5D MKII has a range that is twice as great, reaching 25,600.
Aside from that, it is hardly unnecessary to state that the image quality of the 7D is practically unquestionable, and its primary limiting factor will be your ability as a photographer in conjunction with the lens that you use in conjunction with the device.
Video Quality
Users of the EOS 5D MKII needed to wait for a software upgrade before they were able to handle their cameras’ video modes manually; however, the 7D comes equipped with a tremendously strong manual mode right out of the box. If you wish to be able to just point and shoot with your camera, fully automated modes are still available; but, if you turn the mode dial to the manual, you will have the ability to choose your own aperture, shutter, and ISO speeds.
The quality is incredible; it is crisp, and the colors are so vibrant that, had the frame been stopped, it might have passed for a still picture. Although we noticed issues with vertical objects when the camera pans quickly, sensor wobble, also known as the ‘jello effect,’ is less evident in our test videos than it is with some other cameras, most recently the Pentax K-x. However, we did notice problems with sensor wobble when other cameras were used.
Trees, for example, would lean towards one side of the screen depending on which direction we panned the camera. Even while this is an easy problem to fix (pan slower), it demonstrates that the 7D isn’t without the occasional flaw in its armor.
Nevertheless, there are a lot more things to appreciate about it than there are to detest. In addition to its user-friendliness, the manual mode offers a vast array of customization options and powerful capabilities. You are able to make adjustments to the aperture as well as the shutter speed while the video is being recorded, and any changes you make are displayed on the screen in real-time.
The experience of shooting for a day is educational. If you do not have a lens that is capable of being stabilized and, ideally, a tripod, you should not bother working with telephotos. You are able to concentrate while the recording is being done, provided that you are content to live with rather sluggish contrast detection focusing, which is both less precise and takes more time. Even though there is a port on the side of the 7D for an additional microphone, the built-in microphone is sensitive enough to pick up a significant amount of handling noise. The only glaringly evident thing that’s lacking is a headphone jack.
In addition, our 4GB Crucial memory cards were really problematic for us. The 7D has never exhibited any evidence of sluggishness in the past; nonetheless, the very longest movie we have ever taken in the 7D’s 24p 1080 mode is fifty seconds long, and this is an exceptional case. Before the camera ran out of the buffer and ceased capturing our films, each one of them had a duration of between eight and ten seconds on average. It would be an understatement of the highest kind to call it irritating.
You will also require a significant amount of room. The 7D could create still images as tiny as 3.29 megabytes in size, but the typical size was a robust 7 megabytes. A Compact Flash card with a capacity of 32GB swings from being a luxury to becoming a very stringent need when it comes to storing high-definition video since HD video takes around 60MB for a 10-second clip.
After a day of shooting, during which we shot 8GB of stills and video, the 7D’s battery was half-depleted, which means you’ll need to pack extras if you’re traveling somewhere with restricted access to power outlets. A battery handle will also come in useful in this situation.
The battery that comes with the 7D (part code LP-E6) is identical to the one that comes with the 5D MKII, and the cost to replace it is around £30. A different option is the BG-E7 battery grip, which can accommodate two batteries or, more conveniently for those venturing into the wilds of Siberia, AA batteries, which are readily accessible everywhere.
Conclusion
The formidable Nikon D300S looms enormous above the Canon 7D and is essentially identical to it in every respect. The build quality of the Nikon is unparalleled, its performance in continuous mode is comparable to that of the 7D, and its usability, although being very different from that of the 7D, is excellent.
The D300S is just as simple to operate, quick to adapt, and straightforward to regulate as its predecessor, the 7D. And because to its 15 cross-type sensors, its focusing mechanism is roughly the same, making it about as ideal for sports as it is for wildlife photography.
The video mode on the 7D is virtually the only area in which it excels to a substantial degree above the D300S. The D300S is severely limited in its capabilities, with a maximum resolution of only 720p, a maximum recording time of only five minutes per clip, and a generally less impressive overall quality of Motion-JPEG compared to the 7D’s silky-smooth H.264. Aspiring videographers would be better off investing in the 7D rather than the D300S.
When looking just at image quality, this indicates that the Canon 5D Mark II is superior to the Canon 7D, but only by a little margin. When compared with photographs captured by an original 5D, the photos captured by the 7D at 3200 ISO were noisier, but not to the extent that they were unusable. When comparing the highest ISO, the Canon 5D Mark II and the Canon 7D are differentiated from one another. The 7D can reach a maximum ISO of 12,800, but only if the user modifies the camera’s custom settings. The 5D MKII has a range that is twice as high, reaching 25,600.
The Canon 5D Mark II has a higher resolution than the Canon 7D, which uses an APS-C CMOS sensor with just 18 megapixels. This gives it a modest advantage over the 7D.
Canon EOS 7D Specs
| Price (With 18-135mm kit lens) | • US: $1,899 • EU: TBC |
|---|---|
| Body material | Magnesium alloy |
| Sensor * | • 22.3 x 14.9 mm CMOS sensor • RGB Color Filter Array • Built-in fixed low-pass filter (with self-cleaning unit) • 19 million total pixels • 18 million effective pixels • 3:2 aspect ratio |
| Image processor * | Dual DIGIC 4 |
| A/D conversion | 14 bit |
| Image Sizes ( Still) * | RAW • 5184 x 3456 • 3888 x 2592 • 2592 x 1728 JPEG • 5184 x 3456 • 3456 x 2304 • 2592 x 1728 |
| Image Sizes (Movie) | 1920 x 1080 (29.97, 25, 23.976 fps) 1280 x 720 (59.94, 50 fps) 640 x 480 (59.94, 50 fps) |
| File formats (Still) | • JPEG (EXIF 2.21) – Fine / Normal • RAW • M-RAW • S-RAW • RAW + JPEG • M-RAW + JPEG • S-RAW + JPEG |
| File formats (Movie) | MOV (Video: H.264, Sound: Linear PCM) |
| Lenses | • Canon EF / EF-S lens mount • 1.6x field of view crop |
| Dust reduction | • EOS integrated cleaning system with fluorine coating • Self-cleaning sensor unit (filter in front of sensor vibrates at high frequency at start-up and shutdown – can be disabled) • Dust Delete Data – Data from a test shot is used to ‘map’ dust spots and can be later removed using Canon DPP Software |
| Auto focus* | • TTL-CT-SIR CMOS sensor • 19 cross-type AF points (f/2.8 at centre) • Center point additionally sensitive with lenses of F2.8 or faster • AF working range: -0.5 – 18 EV (at 23°C, ISO 100) |
| Focus modes | • One shot AF • AI Servo AF • AI Focus AF • Manual focus |
| AF point selection | • Auto : 19 point • Manual : Single point/ Spot/ AF point Expansion/ Zone |
| AF Lock | Locked when shutter button is pressed half way in One Shot AF mode or AF-ON button is pressed |
| Predictive AF | • Up to 8 m |
| AF assist | • Stroboscopic flash |
| AF microadjust | • +/- 20 steps • Adjust all lenses by same amount/individually adjust up to 20 lenses |
| Metering* | • TTL full aperture metering with 63 zone Dual Layer SPC • Metering range: EV 1 – 20 EV |
| Metering modes* | • Evaluative metering (linked to all AF points) • Partial (9.4% at center) • Spot metering (approx. 2.3% at center) • Center-weighted average |
| AE lock | • Auto: One Shot AF with evaluative metering • Manual: AE lock button |
| Exposure compensation* | • +/-5.0 EV • 0.3 or 0.5 EV increments |
| Exposure bracketing | • +/- 3.0 EV • 0.3 or 0.5 EV increments |
| Sensitivity * | • Auto ISO (100-3200) • ISO 100-6400 in 0.3 or 1.0 EV increments • H (12800) expansion |
| Shutter | • Focal-plane shutter • 30 – 1/8000 sec • 0.3 or 0.5 EV increments • Flash X-Sync: 1/250 sec • Bulb |
| Aperture values | • 0.3 or 0.5 EV increments • Actual aperture range depends on lens used |
| White balance | • Auto • Daylight • Shade • Cloudy • Tungsten • White Fluorescent light • Flash • Custom • Kelvin (2500 – 10000 K in 100 K steps) |
| WB bracketing | • +/-3 levels • 3 images • Blue / Amber or Magenta / Green bias |
| WB shift | • Blue (-9) To Amber (+9) • Magenta (-9) to Green (+9) |
| Picture style | • Standard • Portrait • Landscape • Neutral • Faithful • Monochrome • User def. 1 • User def. 2 • User def. 3 |
| Custom image parameters | • Sharpness: 0 to 7 • Contrast: -4 to +4 • Saturation: -4 to +4 • Color tone: -4 to +4 • B&W filter: N, Ye, Or, R, Gvan • B&W tone: N, S, B, P, G |
| Image processing | • Highlight tone priority • Auto lighting optimizer (4 settings) • Long exposure noise reduction • High ISO noise reduction (4 settings) • Auto correction of lens peripheral illumination (vignetting) |
| Color space | • sRGB • Adobe RGB |
| Viewfinder * | • Eye-level pentaprism • 100% frame coverage • Approx. 1.0x maginification • Eyepoint: 22 mm • Fixed screen (Transmissive LCD screen) • Dioptric adjustment: -3.0 to +1.0 diopter |
| Mirror | • Quick-return half mirror (transmission:reflection ratio 40:60) • Mirror lock-up (once or multiple exposures) |
| Viewfinder info * | • AF points • Focus confirmation light • Shutter speed • Aperture value • ISO speed (always displayed) • AE lock • Exposure level/compensation • Spot metering circle • Exposure warning • AEB. • Flash ready • High-speed sync • FE lock • Flash exposure compensation • Red-eye reduction light • White balance correction • CF card information • Monochrome shooting • Maximum burst (2 digit display) • Highlight tone priority (D+) • Grid • Dual Axis Electronic level |
| LCD monitor | • 3.0 ” TFT LCD • 920,000 dots • 100% coverage • 160 ° viewing angle • Coating : Anti-reflection and Solid Structure |
| LCD Live view | • Live TTL display of scene from CMOS image sensor • 100% frame coverage • 30 fps frame rate • Real-time evaluative metering using CMOS image sensor • Best view or exposure simulation • Silent mode • Grid optional (x2) • Magnify optional (5x or 10x at AF point) • Three AF modes – Live mode/Quick mode/Face Detection • Histogram • Remote live view using EOS Utility 2.0 (via USB or WiFi/Ethernet using WFT) |
| Record review | • Off • On (histogram via INFO button) • Display mode same as last used Play mode |
| Playback modes | 1. Single image with exposure, file number, storage slot 2. As 1 but also image count and quality 3. Detailed exposure information, thumbnail and luminance histogram 4. Less detailed exposure info., thumbnail, luminance and RGB histograms |
| Playback features | • Optional blinking highlight alert • Optional AF point display • Magnified view (up to 1.5x – 10x) • 2×2 or 3×3 thumbnail index • Delete / Protect |
| Flash* | • Auto pop-up E-TTL II auto flash • FOV coverage up to15 mm (27 mm equiv.) • Guide number approx 12 m (ISO 100) • Cycle time approx. 3 sec • Flash compensation +/-3.0 EV in 0.3 or 0.5 EV increments • X-Sync: 1/250 sec |
| External flash | • E-TTL II auto flash with EX-series Speedlites • Wireless multi-flash support • PC Sync |
| Shooting modes * | • Auto • Creative auto • Program AE (P) • Shutter priority AE (Tv) • Aperture priority AE (Av) • Manual (M) Stills and Movie • Custom settings 1 • Custom settings 2 • Custom settings 3 |
| Drive modes | • Single • High-speed continuous • Low-speed continuous • Self-timer: 2sec + remote, 10sec + remote |
| Burst buffer * | Approx. 8 fps (speed maintained for up to 126 JPEGs (with UDMA card), 15 images (RAW)) |
| Orientation sensor | Yes |
| Auto rotation | • On (recorded and LCD display) • On (recorded only) • Off |
| Custom functions * | 27 Custom Fubctions with 70 settings |
| Menu languages | • English • German • French • Dutch • Danish • Portuguese • Finnish • Italian • Norwegian • Swedish • Spanish • Greek • Russian • Polish • Czech • Hungarian • Romanian • Ukrainian • Turkish • Arabic • Thai • Simplified Chinese • Traditional Chinese • Korean • Japanese |
| Firmware | User upgradable |
| Portrait grip | • Optional BG-E7 Battery Grip • Optional WFT-E5 Wireless File Transfer Grip |
| Connectivity | • USB 2.0 Hi-Speed • Video output (PAL/ NTSC) • HDMI connector • N3 type wired remote control • PC Sync flash terminal • External microphone (Stereo mini jack) • Communication terminal on base for WFT-E5 |
| Storage | • Compact Flash Type I or II • Supports UDMA and Microdrive cards • External storage via optional WFT-E5 |
| Power | • Lithium-Ion LP-E6 rechargeable battery (supplied & charger) • CR1616 Lithium battery (date/time backup) • Optional AC adapter |
| Wireless connectivity (optional WFT-E5) | • Mounts on base of camera and also acts as vertical grip • Has its own BP-511A battery • Wireless 802.11b / 802.11g • Wireless security: WEP, TKIP/AES, WPA-PSK, WPA2-PSK • Wireless methods: Infrastructure or Ad Hoc • Wired ethernet (100 Base-TX) • Transfer: FTP, PTP (remote control by computer), HTTP (view / remote fire) • USB host capable: External hard drives, flash drives • USB comms: GPS devices (records coordinates and altitude in image header) |
| Dimensions | 148 x 111 x 74 mm (5.8 x 4.3 x 2.8 in) |
| Weight * | • No battery: 820 g (1.8 lb) |
