Im about to buy an SLR Camera, but should I wait?

[Brian Duke]

Im probably gonna get the Canon 7D, but if anyone think I should wait for better SLR camera coming out reasonably soon I will wait. Any news on newer and better cameras coming out? I just searched and found a bunch of rumors but nothing concrete.

[John Wiley]

Are you getting it mainly for video or stills.

If you are getting it only for video, then the simple answer is to get a 600D for now, and upgrade when something better comes out. The 7D is probably the least popular of the Canon HDSLR's and the only reason to get it is if you absolutely must have live HD output for a HD monitor.

For stills, it's a bit harder to call. but in any case the smart answer is always to put money where it matters most: good glass. You might lose a couple of hundred dollars when you sell a DSLR but the lenses will hold most of their value for quite a while.

[Brian Duke]

I only would use for video. Its funny you say 7D is the least popular, because every project I get or friends I know with a canon they all have/use the 7D. Maybe its just Los Angeles where its popular.

The 600D is the T3i, right? I heard from a few people its not as good for video as the 7D. is that true?

[Jon Shohet]

I think the perceived popularity of the 7D is not the issue. Better to just consider straightforward the pros and cons of the 7D vs. the 60D/600D :

Pros
- (as already stated above) Best live HD output through HDMI.
- Best build quality/weather sealing. IMO only important if you are actually intending to shoot in really extreme conditions.

Cons
- No articulating screen
- No proper manual audio control
- Overheating problems (that in the 60D/600D seem to have been resolved completely)
- No "Magic Lantern" firmware, at least not in the foreseeable future, maybe never.

The first 2 cons may be a non-issue, depending on your shooting setup. The last two are pretty much deal breakers as far as I'm concerned.

Another issue would be price - since almost all of the feature advantages the 7D has over the 60D/600D are purely still photography related, if you get the 7D and intend to use it for video only, you are going to pay a lot more, for features you are never going to use.

AFAIK, all current crop sensor DSLRs from Canon (7D,60D,600D,550D), share the exact same image sensor. I find it hard to believe the 7D has better video, and have yet to see any proof to that claim.

Finally :
I think it would be also wise to check out the Panasonic GH2, and the newly announced Sony NEX7/A77 before you make your final choice.

Cheers,
Jon

[John Wiley]

Jon summed up the differences pretty well. If you're shooting for video only then I'd get either a 60D or a 600D (T3i).

Most people use the 7D over the 60D, 550D or 600D for video for one of four reasons:

1. They also want to shoot stills, where they can enjoy the benefit of 8fps, a larger prism, faster AF, etc.
2. They want to monitor in HD using an LCD via HDMI.
3. They bought the 7D before the other cheaper and arguably better options became available.
4. They didn't do their research and just assumed (or were falsely convinced by a sales clerk) that themore expensive, 'pro' option would be the better choice in every possible way.

You want to make sure you don't fall into category 4 - buy the 7D if you really think you need the extra features, but if not, the 60D or 600D will be much better choices, and will save you some money.

[Brian Duke]

I think you both are right. I will probably just get the T3i. But with my luck I buy it and the next day a better canon comes out. I hear they have one with better quality in RAW format video coming out but its all rumors now.

The heating issues are definitely annoying with the 7D, because i have worked with it and it always seems to overheat...

I assume it also shoots 60p for slow motion.

[John Wiley]

Originally Posted by Brian Duke

I will probably just get the T3i. But with my luck I buy it and the next day a better canon comes out.

All the more reason to Choose the T3i over the 7D - Get the cheaper one now, and then you can save your money for the better one if/when it comes out. One of the good things about DSLR's is that once you have a good lens collection, it's easy and fairly cheap to sell your camera and just upgrade the body.

If you sell the T3i in 6 months or a year, you might still get back 75% of what you paid for it.

[Thanh Nguyen]

If I were you I'll buy the 60d over the t3i $100 different will serve you well and it a $100 discount now only 899 every where. If you not in a hurry wait for the Sony a77 it capable of 1080/60p or if you can wait a little longer more wait 5dm3 or if you really patient and wait some more there will be a camera that you just think and it will capture the picture with any feature you can think of. The waiting game never end. There are always a new camera better than the current one.

[Matt Thomas]

Yeah, the 7D is same video quality as the 550, 600 and 60D so I would go for the 600D, which has the zoom feature which at 3x is 1:1 ratio I believe, which can make a 50mm 1.4, a 150mm 1.4 without taking the crop of the sensor into consideration. You usually can't get any fast long lenses, which makes that feature so appealing, I'm hoping to get a 600D as a second cam to my 550D soon.

[John Vincent]

If you do buy a "first gen" Canon, why not the T2i? Cheap, will take a beating (at least mine has), and makes images equal the rest of the lineup (and in fact was judged slightly better in video then the 7D by some reviewers).

That said, are you already invested in glass? As Phil Bloom and others have repeatedly said, decide which glass you want to invest in, then jump...

Which is part of why these Sony Emount cams are so interesting - you can strap virtually any lens ever made to them via a $30 adaptor.

Glass issues aside, the Sony VG20 looks incredibly interesting - NEX5N quality - which seems very high - in a true video camera body. If the footage holds up, and if the Mark III hasn't been announced by then (sometime in November according to B&H), then Sony's getting some of my hard earned cash.

All that said, I love my little T2 - rationally, I should sell it now while it still has some of its value - but I just can't. I figure it'll always be a decent B-cam and a nice stills cam. But I'd pass on a new 7D.

[Bryan Cantwell]

I'm with John. I use a T2i, and with Magic Lantern it can do anything the 7D can do (and much more) for much less. It has the same sensor, takes the same lenses, will work with the same rigs, and will save you money.

[Patrick Janka]

I'd skip the 7D in favor of the 60D or t3i. I personally use the Panasonic GH2, so you may want to check that one out.

[Chris Barcellos]

One other reason to consider waiting.... Sony VG-20 may be a DSLR killer..........stay tuned.

[John Vincent]

Preach on! I know I'll be waiting for some production footage from the VG20 before I buy anything (and, baring some sort of major foul up on Sony's part, will probably get one).

Of course, Nikonrumors is saying that Sept 21 will be a big announcement, possibly of a mirror-less ultra fast DSLR.

Which is why I'd either wait it out a couple of months (and who knows, maybe by November Canon will have finally announced too) or get a T2 if you're just dying to have something in your hands.

[Taky Cheung]

I would go with T3i (600D) over 7D. It's the articulating LCD screen, 3X crop zoom (the best feature among all), Audio gain control. Compared to 7D, I prefer SD card in 600D than CF card in 7D.

I'm selling my T2i =)

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/private-...body-only.html