2 weeks has passed since I finished reviewing the Canon EOS 7D, the most affordable powerful and complete Canon DLSR on the market, or at least on the paper. Yeah, I had a lot of expectation from the 7D, I first whished this DSLR could have been a cheaper 5D MK II by offering to us all another Full Frame body, then the news came that the 7D was only a APS-C Camera… I dreamed of having a powerful Video mode with support of different frame rate and full control on the video mode, yep, the 7D on the paper let you do that but at the end… The 7D fall short on many aspects that made me want to own a 7D.

Canon EOS 7D Specs
- 18 Megapixel, APS-C, Dual Digic IV
- Test Lens : EF-S15-85mm F3.5-5.6 IS USM, EF50mm F1.4 USM, EF24-105mm F4L IS USM.
- LCD Monitor 3.0-inch TFT color LCD with wide viewing angle
- Shutter Speed 1/8000 to 1/60 sec., X-sync at 1/250 sec.
- ISO Sensitivity : 100-6400
- Video Mode : 1080/24/25/30p and 720/60p

First Impression
Slightly smaller than the 5D MKII and bulkier than a 50D for example (I said slightly), the 7D is a new bread of EOS DLSR. Canon built-up the 7D from scratch and decided to take under advise customers feedback when it comes to operation as well as how your camera will feel once in your hands.
More refined that we been used to have from Canon and with button even better place than before, the 7D is really a new bread of Camera and with the addition of a 19 point autofocus and its dual Digic 4, the 7D is also amazingly fast and accurate.
Keeping up against its competitor like say the Nikon D300s, the 7D even offer better AF metering than the all mighty 5D MK II, so yes, there is no doubt about this, the 7D is nothing like Canon build before.

Another nice addition, will be the special care that Canon binged to the 7D when it comes to protect your investment by making the Camera even more resistant to humidity and water than its high end 5D MK II for example. However, don’t dream, this does not mean you will be able to shoot underwater, but rather than you will now be capable to shoot under heavy humid condition without risking to damage your camera.

Let’s Shoot Baby
As I said earlier, the 7D thanks to its improved 19-point AF, color metering and dual Digic 4 image processor is an all-new DSLR that has a huge potential despite its APS-C sensor size. Fitted with Canon latest 15-80mm Lens the 7D has virtually the potential to be used in almost any setting for a Semi-Pro usage.
During my weeklong test I could enjoy different setting, ranging from landscape shooting to Press conference coverage and even Event (Tokyo Motor Show)… And while I has quite disappointed at the beginning with it, the 7D finally grow in me and I succeed to master the beast to fully enjoy its potential.
If the 7D is not a 5D MK II, the 7D is however a really powerful camera when it comes to photo, and if you just keep your ISO below to the 1000 mark, you will have spectacular photo with few noise event at 100% crop… Once you set your camera over the 1000 ISO mark, get ready to be disappointed since the noise will drastically increase forcing you to avoid any crop at 100%.
However, since the 7D is a DSLR, you can always bypass this problem in low light by mounting a better lens less sensitive to the lack of light, and in my case I had to swap with my good old 50mm to be able to shoot great photo at night below the ISO 1000 mark.
Add to this a more accurate AF and its dual Digic IV image processor, the 7D is really impressive when you need to shoot fast moving object or in my case when I had to cover Press event. Speed is a Key element when you have to work with your camera, and faster your camera will better you will have chance to catch “That Moment” which will turn your photo into a piece of art or the best among your competitor, and the 7D in this very aspect is a killer… I rarely saw such fast camera in a somehow affordable budget… Thanks to its Dual Digic IV image processor, the 7D is capable to offer faster and more accurate photos than the 5D MK II for example.

No, really despite its ASP-C sized censor and the fact that above ISO 1000 the 7D does not perform as expected, or at least as well as I would like, and fitted with the 15-80mm, the EOS 7D is really an impressive camera which will please people who needed more than the good old 50D but could not afford a 5D MK II.

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