Morning all,
UK DISer here, so bear with me on model number differences!
I'm looking at a canon dslr, but can't decide which one to go for. There's a few decent deals about for the 7D at the moment, and from what i can gather it's one of their higher end models.
I'm confused
Not fussed about entry level, i want to buy a camera that won't leave me wanting the next model up in a year or two....
any suggestions?
I'm going to tell you what I tell everyone. When you ask for advice about which camera to buy on a message board everyone will be really quick to tell you what works for them. But what works for them may not be what's best for you. You can't go wrong with any DSLR out right now, as long as it's the right fit for your needs.
What do you hope to get out of the camera? What type of shooting will you be doing? Why is it that you want a DSLR? What kind of features are you interested in?
The 7D is due to be replaced by a newer model sometime soon, it's a few years old. It is the "professional" crop body from Canon, but that designation really doesn't hold much if the technology is already becoming out of date. Right now with Canon crop bodies the T4i (650D) is the newest with all the new video features (like auto focus with video) and a number of other improvements. As far as image quality it's got a newer sensor and image processor than the 7D. If I were shopping for a crop body for myself right now the T4i is the way I'd go. But that's me, and not you.
You can get a really good rundown of all the features as well as compare cameras at dpreview.com. their camera comparison tools are great for nit picking the differences in specs. But don't get too tied up in the specs. Go to the store and play with the models and get a good feel for them. Some will feel better in your hands than others and that's important, too.
As far as full frame... getting a full frame camera is absolutely no guarantee that you won't be outdated in a few years. While Canon has just released a new round of full frame cameras, I'd think long and hard on the benefits of them for what you'll be doing before jumping into a camera that will run at least $2000 USD.
Full frame cameras have a leg up on crop bodies in noise related to ISO. They also get a very slight gain in image quality because of the way crop cameras literally crop in on the projected image from a lens... but that is really slight. To me image quality alone is not enough of a reason to go full frame. It's also about the features of the camera.
Also keep in mind that that the gain in image quality many immediately associate with a full frame camera is partially because of the lenses sold with them. You can get cheaper lenses, but it's a lot like putting the cheap gas into a high end sports car. Sure it will take pictures, but you're not going to get the performance you paid for out of the camera with low end lenses. Some lower end lenses have characteristics that actually make noise more visible. And you can always take those high end lenses and drastically improve the performance of a lower end camera. This is why many start with an entry level body and then add high end glass down the road.
In the end of it all though, the camera and the lenses are just a tools. Getting the shots is mostly on the photographer and you'll get out of it only as much as you put into it. Find the right camera for your needs, then learn how to take command of it.
Edited to add... that DPS article is way outdated. When it was written crop cameras didn't have the low light performance that they do now, there was a huge divide between the two formats, and mirrorless weren't even on the scene yet. So take the information with a grain of salt... or silver halide as the case may be.
