EOS 7D Mark II User experience Thread

Dang. I just looked at a sequence of about 27 images and 24 are in sharp focus. The 3 that are slightly off is likely user error (handheld). It is of a snowy owl flying off a fence and heading in general direction of camera. Canon 70-200 2.8L + 1.4x used. This is using the centre AF point with surrounding 4 points.  Light was great which may have helped.  The photo posted in the bird galleries was frame 26 I believe.  Anyone want to buy a heavily used 6+ year old Canon 40D?  backup schmack up.  I'm not touching that thing again.

I remembered last week I had forgot to mail in my receipt and bar code from the camera box. In the mail Monday!

^^^ Good work! You've hit the sweet spot with the 7DII...good light=good contrast (which the 7DII's AF seems to need), and CP+4-point expansion is proving to be my AF mode of choice....for pretty well all my shooting. The particular "case" doesn't seem to matter much with this setting.

Especially the late day sun low on the horizon. That kind of light bathes the subject in a warm glow providing really good contrast. I played around with a couple of settings and find that the AF array mentioned works really well for Ai-servo. It works good too for static subjects but if a subject is static or I am shooting up at it or the scene is cluttered, I then like to switch to the more precise spot AF and move it over the eye. The subject is not moving so I have the luxury of time to get more precise.

Indeed, I was trying to shoot an SEO in EXTREMELY low light 1/2 hour after sunset -- the 7DII could not focus using 5x3 matrix on centre even thought the owl was sitting clearly on a fence post ... switched to CP+4pt expansion and the camera nailed it, though AF was very slow.

Coreyhkh wrote:
So if you use the new 100-400 are most of the images sharp in a burst? 

Since the weather finally was cooperative today, I could try some bursts with the new 100-400 II by shooting some ducks floating on the river nearby. Most of the images of the sequence came out sharp with minor differences. Nevertheless, based on my experiences posted previously, I have yet to check the focus consistency with Focal - especially with the 300mm IS/f 2.8 - before I will come to a final decision if the cameras needs further checks at Canon.

100% crop  of an image (out of a burst of 8 shots, High Speed Servo AF, center AF field, Case 1), ISO 1600, f 5.6,  1/1600 sec, 100-400mm II @ 360mm, handheld, raw-file converted with DPP @ default settings

Wolfgang

New firmware 1.0.4 available for download on Canon USA site. http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/ ... ndSoftware

I have noticed softer images with my 7DII compared to my 7D all with same lens, settings, and mount. I have MF adjusted and am still having problems. 

I assume the last 4 digits of serial number are the indicator of how early or late the models are? Mine is 0201. Are others having problems with this batch?

Thanks

NRVbirder wrote:I have noticed softer images with my 7DII compared to my 7D all with same lens, settings, and mount. I have MF adjusted and am still having problems. 

I assume the last 4 digits of serial number are the indicator of how early or late the models are? Mine is 0201. Are others having problems with this batch?

Thanks

I can't comment on what the numbers mean, mine is a low number...  I was having AF problems and sent it in to canon for service.

They fixed it, and now it seems to be dramatically better. 

I guess these "problems" are hit or miss, with some folks having AF problems and others having no problem at all.

It would be interesting if :
- users here that have got their camera back from canon with better AF could check if the firmware is 1.0.4
- users that have updated to 1.0.4 find better AF reliability

I just shot my first airshow this past weekend with mine. I set it up to case 4, default values in case 4. This is the way my 5DmkIII is set up 100% of the time. It nailed everything I aimed at, no issues. Planes are a little bigger than birds though.

Vertigo wrote:It would be interesting if :
- users here that have got their camera back from canon with better AF could check if the firmware is 1.0.4
- users that have updated to 1.0.4 find better AF reliability

Mine came back two weeks ago after the fix and still had 1.0.2. 

I am reluctant to upgrade to the new firmware, now that my camera seems to be working better. 

If there were AF improvements with 1.0.4, Canon would be issuing all sorts of glowing press releases and interviews and Canon Explorer videos claiming how the AF has reached a new level of superiority over the world

Since they don't mention AF, any AF improvements are likely to be perceptions based on sub conscious wishful thinking. That said, there is nothing wrong with the 7D2's AF system. Sure there have been a handful of cameras that need some tweaking by the factory repair centers, there always are, but that is the vast minority and very much a subject of the Internet Amplification Effect. When you are an early adopter, you are more likely to get a camera like this. By far the most common problems with the AF system are due to heat shimmer, the lack of proper camera support, microadjustment issues, user technique, and just plain lack of user understanding of how to get the most out of it.

EJ,

You wrote in January that you had tested multiple Canon 7D MKII bodies.

Your website indicates that you only own Nikon and Sony bodies.

Can you help me understand why you are the expert on Canon but do not own any?

Are they that bad?

NRVbirder wrote:EJ,

You wrote in January that you had tested multiple Canon 7D MKII bodies.

Your website indicates that you only own Nikon and Sony bodies.

Can you help me understand why you are the expert on Canon but do not own any?  

Are they that bad?

I use a lot more stuff than I own including Phase One, Fuji, and Canon regularly and about 75% of my focus calibration business is Canon bodies and lenses.  I also have numerous people that ask me to shake down their new Canon gear to make sure it is working properly.  The majority of my workshop customers are also Canon shooters.  I have also in the past owned most pro and prosumer Canon bodies and most L-lenses that were available in the first decade of this century

Basically, not a week goes by that I'm not doing something with or to Canon gear.

E.J. Peiker wrote:If there were AF improvements with 1.0.4, Canon would be issuing all sorts of glowing press releases and interviews and Canon Explorer videos claiming how the AF has reached a new level of superiority over the world

While I agree with the second part of your comment, I am not sure Canon would ever go to any length to broadcast such a thing.  Maybe you were just being sarcastic.    It would be like admitting, yeah we can't get our AF system right and we put out a product that wasn't properly tested and not ready for prime time.  So, if you missed capturing any great shots, it's our fault. But it's fixed now. Sorry Canon customers.    Did Canon ever make any official statement about the 1D MK3??

Did Canon ever make any official statement about the 1D MK3??

They certainly did! They issued a Product Advisory. And, AFAIK, they are still willing to fix that camera, seven years later.

John

John Guastella wrote:

Did Canon ever make any official statement about the 1D MK3??

They certainly did! They issued a Product Advisory. And, AFAIK, they are still willing to fix that camera, seven years later.

John

Oh, ok.  That was a physical issue. Like an automobile defect recall. I wonder if folks who had the mirror adjustment done, then afterwards found no more AF issues with the camera?

John Guastella wrote:

Did Canon ever make any official statement about the 1D MK3??

They certainly did! They issued a Product Advisory. And, AFAIK, they are still willing to fix that camera, seven years later.

John

Haha! Yep.  I have a lifetime warranty on my 1D3

OntPhoto wrote:

John Guastella wrote:

Did Canon ever make any official statement about the 1D MK3??

They certainly did! They issued a Product Advisory. And, AFAIK, they are still willing to fix that camera, seven years later.

John

Oh, ok.  That was a physical issue. Like an automobile defect recall. I wonder if folks who had the mirror adjustment done, then afterwards found no more AF issues with the camera?

I can't speak for anyone else, but mine has been superb ever since the repair back in '09

I have more issues with my 7D2 and heat distortion than anything with the large magnification and smaller shooting window on the crop sensor. Not to mention the depth of field gets razor think with the 600mm and especially if I add a 1.4x. My focus has been shifted and it's bothering me enough I'm going to try and calibrate it in camera. It's not an issue on big birds but tiny warblers bring these issues up on this camera.