Upgrade from 7D to 5D Mark III ?

[TimothyJinx]

I currently own two 7D's and a few video cameras. Thinking about selling one of the 7D's and my Panasonic AF100 (video camera) and buying a 5d Mark III. I'm still a photography rookie but I'm considering this upgrade. One of my main reasons is for better high ISO performance for indoor sports, etc. Most of my lenses are EF lenses so I'm good there.

My question is this: Any of you out there upgrade from the 7D? Was it worth it? What are your primary uses?

 

[Overread]

The 5DMIII has not only a superior usable ISO range but also a superior AF system to the 7D. For lowlight indoor sports I'd say that the 5DMIII makes all the more sense over a 7D if you can afford it (and provided that you've also got the lenses that have wide maximum apertures and also enough focal length to get you the shots framed well).

The only thing the 7D has as a "bonus" is its crop factor, which you can likely simulate on the 5DMIII by cropping without much loss of quality because of its high MP.


The 7D is still a great camera body, but from what you've said it sounds like you've some superfluous bodies and a need for the features that the 5DMIII is going to provide for you.,

 

[TCampbell]

I think you'll be pretty impressed with the 5D III. The ISO performance is substantially better and the focusing system is amazing.

The 5D III basically has the same focusing system as the flagship 1D-X (there's one subtle difference in how they link focus tracking to the metering system, but apart from that, they're identical.)

There's actually a manual -- roughly 45 pages -- on JUST how to use the advanced focusing system. You can get it here: Canon DLC: Article: Master the EOS-1D X's AF System (find the link to the PDF in the lower left side of that page.)

The continuous shooting speed isn't as fast as your 7D... but it does have a lot more data to handle. Even the flagship 1D-X slightly drops the resolution in order to get a high continuous burst speed.

 

[kathyt]

I am so impressed with the ISO performance it is not even funny. For real. Do it Tim. Do it!

 

[kathyt]

Here is another picture from the aquarium on Sunday at ISO 8,000 with no noise reduction.

 

[EIngerson]

I moved up from the 7D to the 5D MK III. It is night and day difference. The auto-focus, IQ, honestly everything about it is better. My 7D has become a paper weight since I got the MK III. The jump from crop to full frame is great too. With the 7D I was getting frustrated with my 24-70 because 24mm was never wide enough. It is now my favorite lens.

You will absolutely love the 5D MK III if you upgrade.

 

[TimothyJinx]

The only thing the 7D has as a "bonus" is its crop factor, which you can likely simulate on the 5DMIII by cropping without much loss of quality because of its high MP.

Good info, thanks. Yea, the crop factor is actually a negative for me. I would much rather have the flexibility to crop after the fact.

I think you'll be pretty impressed with the 5D III. The ISO performance is substantially better and the focusing system is amazing...There's actually a manual -- roughly 45 pages -- on JUST how to use the advanced focusing system. You can get it here: Canon DLC: Article: Master the EOS-1D X's AF System (find the link to the PDF in the lower left side of that page.)

Wow, I'm a little intimidated now!

I am so impressed with the ISO performance it is not even funny. For real. Do it Tim. Do it!

Don't beat around the bush, Kathy. What are you trying to say?

I moved up from the 7D to the 5D MK III. It is night and day difference. The auto-focus, IQ, honestly everything about it is better. My 7D has become a paper weight since I got the MK III. The jump from crop to full frame is great too. With the 7D I was getting frustrated with my 24-70 because 24mm was never wide enough. It is now my favorite lens.

You will absolutely love the 5D MK III if you upgrade.

I am inclined to agree with you!

Thanks for all the comments. I think I will put my spare 7D and the AF100 up on eBay in the morning!

 

[TimothyJinx]

Here is another picture from the aquarium on Sunday at ISO 8,000 with no noise reduction.
View attachment 41941

This looks really nice, Kathy. I am reluctant to use a flash when photographing newborns so I've been using these little LED lights I picked up. They are fine if I'm using my 50mm f/1.4. But with my 24-70 f/2.8 I usually have to bump up the ISO. The 5DMIII would make me feel a lot better about that!

 

[grafxman]

Here is another picture from the aquarium on Sunday at ISO 8,000 with no noise reduction.
View attachment 41941

As someone who recently had to photograph sea dragons in very dim light at the Tampa Aquarium, I must say that photo is most impressive. This ISO 8,000 photo alone may make me rethink my 7D. What lens did you use?

 

[kathyt]

Here is another picture from the aquarium on Sunday at ISO 8,000 with no noise reduction.
View attachment 41941

As someone who recently had to photograph sea dragons in very dim light at the Tampa Aquarium, I must say that photo is most impressive. This ISO 8,000 photo alone may make me rethink my 7D. What lens did you use?

I was using my 100mm macro. I actually used it for this whole set. http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/just-fun/323662-my-colorful-day-shedd-aquarium-chicago-il.html I was manually focusing, because of the lack of light, but as you can see the noise is next to none. I had my ISO up to 12,000 that day.

 

[ktan7]

I don't have 7D but I upgraded from 5D Mark II to 5D Mark III. I do a lot of low light photographs. So, I would highly recommend you to upgrade if you do a lot of low light shooting. ISO 6500 is grainless.

 

[Ballistics]

I wish Nikon made the 5d mark III equivalent. I would have gone with that instead of the D800.

 

[TimothyJinx]

I've decided to go ahead and upgrade. Just waiting for a few things to fall in place!

 

[LShooter]

I did last year and haven't looked back. The features on the Mk III and the IQ, high useable ISO, etc are simply amazing. The 7D would make a great backup camera, but the Mk III is awesome!