For those that have had the honor of testing the 7D, I wonder how the lcd is compared to the 5D? Is it clear enough to know whether or not you're in focus during a shot where perhaps your DOF is tight? Or is something where anyone doing video (Even for fun only) would benifit from something like the Zacuto Z-Finder?

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/canon-eos-7d-hd/348819-viewfinder.html

I didn´t figure out yet: is there true monitoring through the (optical) viewfinder when shooting video with 7D or not?
Ron

I didn´t figure out yet: is there true monitoring through the (optical) viewfinder when shooting video with 7D or not?
Ron

You can't use the viewfinder because the mirror is up.

The LCD screen on my T1i is supposed to be the same as the 50D, 920,000 pixels, and it is head and shoulders above previous LCD's. This is supposed to be what is on the 7D. I find it quite usable for focus with both the Hoodman 3.0 (using the cameras 5X and 10X focus assist when necessary) and with the CAVISION and it's 6X magnification (Most of the time focus assist is not necessary with this one).

In my opinion this is the best LCD I've seen on a camera, but some kind of "loupe" type LCD accessory will be necessary for serious work with this, the 5D MkII, or most of what's on the market.

Related question..
I've seen people using modified Sony SD broadcast viewfinders (DXF-501) with adapters on cheaper segment HD camera's, they were modified such as this one (with composite input):
http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/1051/sonydxf50101.jpg

Would that be a worthwhile monitoring solution for a 500D/5D/7D?

For those that have had the honor of testing the 7D, I wonder how the lcd is compared to the 5D? Is it clear enough to know whether or not you're in focus during a shot where perhaps your DOF is tight? Or is something where anyone doing video (Even for fun only) would benifit from something like the Zacuto Z-Finder?

Jason,

The 5d has a quick button for 5x and 10x zoom for critical focus, so I'm sure the 7d will have something similar. I shoot often with a 50mm at f1.4 which gets pretty shallow, but is entirely manageable if you're not in a huge rush. So it really depends on what you are shooting. You can always open the aperture a little if you need more DOF. If you're shooting moving targets it's tricky to focus on the fly no matter what. One trick is to set your focus at 10' or whatever and then try to maintain that distance to the subject during shooting, but at f1.4, it's risky business.

You can always open the aperture a little if you need more DOF.

Hi Ken. I think you mean close the aperture to get more DOF.

Richard

Yep, open gives you less, closing give you more.

Hi Ken. I think you mean close the aperture to get more DOF.

Richard

Richard,

Whoops! Thanks. - Point being, sometimes (especially after the novelty wears off), you don't need ALL of the available (shallow) DOF. Sometimes it's totally impractical or near impossible to maintain focus. Although I admit after having so much (deep) DOF for so long, it's nice to have that bokeh, and unlike some, I'm not sick of it yet.