First Images-Canon 7D Mark II in One Lizards Hands
ISO 16,000!
ISO 16,000
This camera just shipped Thursday so this is kind of a scoop for me, minor of course as pros will be submitting reviews soon. I’m kinda hoping the guys over at Petapixel like these images.
When I first mounted a lens and got it in hand my first impression was that my old camera had been to the gym and maybe done some steroids. Solid heavier and certainly thicker at the grip side. Controls are classic Canon configurations with just small changes and one addition, a malfunction lever to help navigate focus modes on the fly.
The first intimidating part is this huge array of focus points for the AF that can be set in a bewildering set of options. The idea here is to capture and lock focus with pre sets for everything from a ballet dancer to a car race, or a hummingbird shoot. Six standard modes help the new owner see how this plays out real world and learn what really can be done.
New sensors are said to be low noise at very high ISO settings. Okay that’s always welcome. But I’m a skeptical guy. So I devised a tough test. I set up on my hummingbird feeder, let the cat out and settled in. the light was late so the birds are backlit. No problem, add a speedlite flash, set it up for super fast exposures and settle in.
The camera can shoot ten frames per second, great for fast action. My flash however can not possibly keep up. I dialed it’s strength back some and put up with what I could get. Typically I got quite a few frames with the bird back lit, and a few with flash.
Given the advantage of high sensitivity I was able to keep the exposure as fast as I can, and still thicken the depth of field with a middling F stop or aperture. Wide open aperture would be shallow focused and I would have more soft images. Hummingbirds are a little tricky. Fast.
For those of you with less demanding styles of photography don’t be afraid of the sophistication. The camera has easy to use modes that are essentially auto pilot for you or point and shoot mode.
Bottom line this camera is a great deal at $1799. Arguably the best bang for the buck. it’s shutter will last about four times as long as a Rebel T3I and is about twice the price. It’s far less likely to break in the field, metal frame has real benefits. Like when you mount a heavy lens.
Shot without the flash. ISO 5000. Exposure .000125 second or 1/8000.
