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Might upgrade to a canon 7d.. worth it?

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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
so i've owned a t2i for a long time, became a very avid photographer and cinematographer (somewhat). Anyways, ive started getting offers for work, paid photo work. Ive gotten gallery offers and am beginning to enter the more professional world. I have noticed multiple times where my camera has "held me back" i guess..... I'm looking into upgrading to the 7d for the following reasons:

better low light performance
made of fucking aluminum not plastic
weather sealed
better autofocus
faster burst
better sensor (yet same size and format)

so should i upgrade? or am i just being a bitch complaining about their t2i....
Aug 24 2013 10:13PM
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No.Quarter
Posts: 5257 - Karma: 16,962
get an older camera with the characteristics you want and spend the money you save on good lenses
Aug 24 2013 10:15PM
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Forcillo
Posts: 3801 - Karma: 3,580
The sensor is identical to the T2i, it will take nearly identical pictures. You won't notice a difference in image quality if you upgrade, it's pretty much a question of how you get there, rather than what you get in terms of photos. It will feel much more solid and you'll like the top LCD. I would, however, consider the 70D as well. It truly does have a better sensor, and the autofocus is supposedly very effective. Do some more research though, and see what you can get a good deal on.
Aug 24 2013 10:19PM
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Mag
Posts: 8155 - Karma: 14,809
The 7d isn't much of an improvement in low light, snapsort compares the two as:

7D:854 ISO
T2i:784 ISO

I believe they get the results from dxOmark, either way I've heard it's not a great deal better.


the t2i is dirt cheap, you can get them for $300 without much trouble, the 7d is what, a grand roughly? if you end up breaking your t2i because it's made of plastic and not metal, and I very much doubt you will, just buy another, I've had my t2i covered in snow, relatively wet powder got in the hotshoe, the jacks and all over the screen and body in general. It then ended up melting and refreezing, it was still working perfectly after. Refer to earlier in this paragraph.

Is the Autofocus on the t2i holding you back? when you say better, do you mean faster, more accurate etc? what lenses are you using such that the camera is holding you back.

Burst, and more importantly the buffer, is far better on the 7d, but I highly doubt you'll be glad you upgraded for exclusively this.

As for a better sensor, I believe it's got the same sensor as the t2i, not definitely, but if not it's definitely close from what I've heard/seen.



Are you being a bitch? most likely yes, but everybody does it, especially me.

Post up some photos that you have been unable to use due to your body, I doubt you'll have any that would have been usable with the 7d.

Also I presume you're wanting to stick to canon?
Aug 24 2013 10:23PM
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Sklar
Posts: 8864 - Karma: 31,612
The only things on your list that you're getting from switching are:

made of fucking aluminum(it's actually magnesium) not plastic
weather sealed (it's "weather resistant" not fully sealed like canon pro bodies)
better autofocus
faster burst

If those things are worth it to you, send it.



There are definitely other options though. What is your budget and current lens setup?
Aug 24 2013 10:25PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
"Held back" might be the wrong term... I mean there are situations where I can't really shoot because I don't dare set the ISO higher than 800. I'll check out some other options tho
Aug 24 2013 10:26PM
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1337
Posts: 31054 - Karma: 29,234
-Better low light performance? No, and the 7D performs worse at low ISOs. It has noise issues.

If you're getting into photography more than videography, get a 5d2. Full frame, still has some video features, awesome performance, about the same price used now adays
Aug 24 2013 10:27PM
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S.C
Posts: 3068 - Karma: 2,285
All posts so far have been on point. It is pretty much identical in IQ and noise to the T2i.

70d Should have much better low light performance, but 5d ii will still likely trump that.

6d is gonna be your best bang for your buck as far as low light performance goes.
Aug 24 2013 10:30PM
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Sklar
Posts: 8864 - Karma: 31,612
I second this.
I made the switch from t2i to 5d2 this spring and am loving it.
Aug 24 2013 10:33PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
well 5dii, 70d, 6d arent options, too pricey. a used 7d could be like 800
Aug 24 2013 10:33PM
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gravel
Posts: 5518 - Karma: 42,202
Sometimes you feel held back by a camera like a T2i but honestly you can really make it work for you a lot. How/In what ways do you feel held back? I'm not criticizing you for thinking this, but depending on how you feel about it holding you back maybe there's a simpler solution than having to spend a lot more.
Aug 24 2013 10:33PM
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Sklar
Posts: 8864 - Karma: 31,612
6D only has 11 af point and only shoots 4.5fps, so it has a downside as well. That doesn't mean it wouldn't be a good choice still.

Keep in mind that if you're going to switch to a full frame body that you'll need the glass to go with it
Aug 24 2013 10:36PM
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Sklar
Posts: 8864 - Karma: 31,612
used 5d2's are going for about 1200 nowadays, which isn't that much more than a 7d. I definitely think it would be worth the wait
Aug 24 2013 10:37PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
this is why i dont wanna go fullframe. my new 11-16 would be useless haha

Aug 24 2013 10:38PM
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Mag
Posts: 8155 - Karma: 14,809
What glass have you got currently?
Aug 24 2013 10:39PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
most frequently used? canon 50mm tokina 11-16
Aug 24 2013 10:40PM
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Mag
Posts: 8155 - Karma: 14,809
well the focus on the "nifty" fifty is fucking useless IMO, are you sure that's not the problem?
Aug 24 2013 10:42PM
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loganimlach
Posts: 5132 - Karma: 14,054
i upgraded from a t2i to a 7d and couldn't be happier. mainly i did it because i was sick of feeling like i was holding a fucking little toy, and i'm known to break things, so the beefier build was necessary. and i feel like the 7d handles noise WAY better than the t2i, i don't know what you guys are talking about. then again i'm probably just being ignorant.
Aug 24 2013 10:42PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
but what about filming skiing? i alway fear dropping/ getting my t2i wet... the 7d is a fucking work horse
Aug 24 2013 10:43PM
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loganimlach
Posts: 5132 - Karma: 14,054
i do really miss ML though, i hope they get a stable build for the 7d sometime. on the bright side it looks like they've been working on it though.
Aug 24 2013 10:43PM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
yes i've just installed ml on my t2i and its fucking sick
Aug 24 2013 10:47PM
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Twaddler
Posts: 1197 - Karma: 109
i did the same a while back. to play devils advocate, the 7d has more specific iso settings than the t2i (640 and 1250 among others)
Aug 24 2013 10:51PM
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Forcillo
Posts: 3801 - Karma: 3,580
ML is so helpful for me on my 60D, I really hope they come out with a good version by the time I decide to upgrade.. Might just jump to full frame but I'll see how the 7DmkII turns out.
Aug 24 2013 11:22PM
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jkauffman22
Posts: 2592 - Karma: 1,150
I use my 11-16 on my 5d2 and as long as its at 16 it's ok for photos. If there's any vingetting then you can use photoshop/Lightroom to correct for that an distortion but it works. And it's pretty solid for videos as well. (And I won't sell it because I need it for my crop bodies as well)
Aug 25 2013 2:32AM
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erikK
Posts: 3245 - Karma: 2,328
how the fuck do people shoot photos with a t2i in the first place? ergonomics are a nightmare
Aug 25 2013 2:41AM
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Belzebub
Posts: 451 - Karma: 812
Have you checked out m43 or more specificly the olympus omd?
Fully weatherproofed with some lenses
8fps
Apparently the worlds fastest autofocus in one shot mode
A big range of cheap outstanding primes
Better iq than the canon aps-c sensor
Add on grip and battery grip
Sexy looks
Lighter weight

I am going to switch from my 60d setup to a m43 setup when I find a good deal.
Aug 25 2013 4:47AM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
I've looked at a lot of rangefinders and mirror less, but I still shoot a good amount of video to get a rangefinder
Aug 25 2013 10:28AM
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Balto
Posts: 25985 - Karma: 4,404
soccer mom's don't care about ergonomics
Aug 25 2013 11:27AM
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SamColby
Posts: 644 - Karma: 2,006
So the 7d is 870$ used and someone offered me 400$ for my t2i.... Which means I'd get the 7d for 470$
Aug 28 2013 10:50PM
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Sklar
Posts: 8864 - Karma: 31,612
Meh, still not worth it IMO
It really doesn't buy you much, id just stick with the t2i as much as that sucks and wait til you can actually upgrade, and build a FF capable lens quiver while you're at it
Aug 28 2013 11:09PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
7D is for only if you get a killer deal, and are fine with T2i video/photo quality. Because that's what it is.

If you want weather sealing, then buy a pentax, or hope you have enough for L glass to clip on the front.
Aug 29 2013 12:44AM
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RileySnyderPhoto
Posts: 688 - Karma: 1,451
Lets get down to the gritty:
1) The 7D and any Rebel do not have the same photo quality let alone noise handling. The 7D does have some issues though as ISO 1600 was the useable limit for me back when I had it for photo. Video is a different game than photo so the threshold is different for usability. Rebels are only good for video as far as I am concerned unless your photos are Web exclusively.
2) Save up and get the 5D mk II, full frame is worth it and the photos will be amazing. I do believe they have ML for it as well.It is an older camera but still in use despite the mk III being out. You will outgrow the 7D quickly if you think the ISO is limiting, thats why I finally upgraded to the 5D mk III and it made a world of difference in IQ.
3) As for the lenses; if the Tokina is in good shape, you should be able to resell it without much loss seeing as it is a good crop lens that is well sought after. Glass makes a bigger difference in your images than the body will.
Aug 29 2013 9:37PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Then you can pretty much say the same for the 7D or the 60D. It's no different pretty much no matter how you slice it.

I've got very nice 30x20 prints out of photos I took on my T2i as well as when I had my 60D. They are fine as long as you have good glass in front of a clean sensor.
Aug 30 2013 2:21AM
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RileySnyderPhoto
Posts: 688 - Karma: 1,451
It is very different. The IQ is better on the XXD line as well as the XD line than the XXXD line. If they had the same senor then they would handle noise the same which they dont.

http://www.thephoblographer.com/2010/08/27/which-one-should-i-buy-canon-60d-t2i-or-7d/

"If you really want great high ISO images, you should go for the 7D. The 7D is only a bit behind the 5D Mk II which is a big feat."

The only problem with this is he says ISO 6400 is useable on the T2i which makes me wonder what his use is. Print most definitely not usable unless maybe going for artistic B/W?

Side note: I would like to say that more megapixels does not denote better quality since no one has said this. (I feel like this needs put in every buying camera thread just in case someone does not know that already)
Aug 30 2013 3:11AM
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Joshua.
Posts: 2957 - Karma: 6,230
^

"Side note: I would like to say that more megapixels does not denote better quality since no one has said this. (I feel like this needs put in every buying camera thread just in case someone does not know that already)"

Truer words hath not been spoken.

Listen to Riley.
Aug 30 2013 3:15AM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
Having tested the T2i side by side with the 60D, honestly, I have disagree with that. I couldnt find very much difference between the I Q on the rebel and that of the 60D, both video and Photos came out about as the same at all ISO's with the same lens under the same conditions on the same tripod shooting the same subjects. I don't know what they are compared to the 7D, but I'd imagine it's not 'very different'. Minuscule at best.

6400 is pretty much unusable on at T2i. Just as it is on a 60D. Using 12800 on a 60D is laughably horrible.

You really don't want to go past 800 on these cameras. 1600 at most, and I suppose you COULD get away with 3200 for certain things. 6400? Impractical for almost anything unless you're just layering on grain in post.
Aug 30 2013 3:44AM
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RileySnyderPhoto
Posts: 688 - Karma: 1,451
I must be more critical because I can see IQ differences at 100% even when shot with good glass
Aug 30 2013 12:52PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24725 - Karma: 29,944
I'd imagine there are slight differences from shot to shot within the same exact camera at high ISO's and at 100%.

Either way, I tend not to pixel peep too hard or shoot above 800 or at the very least, 1600 for almost anything. If I cant get it handheld with a really fast lens, I'll bust out a gorillapod.
Aug 30 2013 6:03PM
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