5D or 7D - overheat factor-

[Anthony Mozora]

Hello there,

I will order tommorow one of this 2 cameras. 5D OR 7D and my main concern is how which one of this 2 does better with the temperture... I will mainly shoot wedding video hilights ..


thanks!

[Andy Wilkinson]

Double post somehow so deleted this one!

[Andy Wilkinson]

This question comes up from time to time.

Personally, I've NEVER had the overheat icon on my 7D but the general consensus seems to be that both can suffer from this problem (even with the latest 7D firmware) and that the Canon 5DMkII is less prone to it. This may be because of more gaps in the body/design/one less digital processor etc. If you really need a DSLR right now then, in your climate, my guess would be that the 5DMkII is the one to go for.

Alternatively, buy TWO 550D's and use them alternately (one off to cool down, the other in use) and when the 5DMkIII and/or 7DMkII get launched (assuming these models are in the pipeline) you've less expense lost in the switch...There are rumours a new HD video centric Nikon is in the works too.

Who knows, they may have better focussing aids/less aliasing/better exposure setting and audio options for HD video?

Only buy an expensive DSLR body right now if you need it right now! - that's my advice. In 6-9 months time this format will have moved on a lot. That being said, sometimes you've just got to get the best camera available (for your needs) and go use it. Both your current choices are good ones, as long as you are aware/plan for their limitations.

[Bill Pryor]

I have shot in very hot sun all day with the 7D and not had any heating problems. In lots of reported cases, people are shooting 60fps slomo for very long takes when it happens. An advantage to the 5D for weddings might be that when you push low light conditions to the extremes it handles things better than the 7D. A disadvantage would be that when shooting wide open with fast lenses your depth of field is really shallow and you might have trouble riding focus if you don't have a follow focus system. I think if I did weddings, I'd get the 5D and a T2i for backup and to use as a second camera.

[Anthony Mozora]

Originally Posted by Andy Wilkinson

This question comes up from time to time.

Personally, I've NEVER had the overheat icon on my 7D but the general consensus seems to be that both can suffer from this problem (even with the latest 7D firmware) and that the Canon 5DMkII is less prone to it. This may be because of more gaps in the body/design/one less digital processor etc. If you really need a DSLR right now then, in your climate, my guess would be that the 5DMkII is the one to go for.

Alternatively, buy TWO 550D's and use them alternately (one off to cool down, the other in use) and when the 5DMkIII and/or 7DMkII get launched (assuming these models are in the pipeline) you've less expense lost in the switch...There are rumours a new HD video centric Nikon is in the works too.

Who knows, they may have better focussing aids/less aliasing/better exposure setting and audio options for HD video?

Only buy an expensive DSLR body right now if you need it right now! - that's my advice. In 6-9 months time this format will have moved on a lot. That being said, sometimes you've just got to get the best camera available (for your needs) and go use it. Both your current choices are good ones, as long as you are aware/plan for their limitations.

Thank u very much for ur reply here Andy . I agree with u 100% unfortunatly or fortunatly I have 2 very important videos for me this summer that I can not step them away. I need to create something really good so I can have later a good promotional video to show on some wedding fairs that I will attend.
If I could I would rent the equipment but we dont have any digital cameras rental station in my country so I have to buy the camera.

Hopefully later when NIKON , Canon and ofcourse Panasonic and Sony release their KRAKENs I will be there to choose the right equipment

[Anthony Mozora]

Originally Posted by Bill Pryor

I have shot in very hot sun all day with the 7D and not had any heating problems. In lots of reported cases, people are shooting 60fps slomo for very long takes when it happens. An advantage to the 5D for weddings might be that when you push low light conditions to the extremes it handles things better than the 7D. A disadvantage would be that when shooting wide open with fast lenses your depth of field is really shallow and you might have trouble riding focus if you don't have a follow focus system. I think if I did weddings, I'd get the 5D and a T2i for backup and to use as a second camera.

Thank u Bill for replying ! :)

I think 5D will be my choice!! I have 3 super Nikon lences like 14-24mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm and after reading/seaching around the net it seems taht the 5D+an nikon adapter is the perfect choice!

[Marten Dalfors]

> I have 3 super Nikon lences like 14-24mm, 24-70mm and 70-200mm

Do these lenses have manual aperture ring? Not all nikon->canon adapter allows you to use modern nikon lenses with the possibility to control the aperture. If I remember right 'G' series lenses have an aperture ring but still don't work on some adaptors. I might be worng, but I would suggest to investigate this further.

[Daniel Weber]

I shoot with a 7D at my office and I have had it overheat on numerous occasions. It seems to react to humidity more than actual high temps.

Last week I picked up a 5D for my own personal use and I just finished shooting with it all weekend. I didn't have it overheat once. If I had been shooting with the 7D it would have overheated several times during that time period.

By the way, I always shoot at either 1080p24 or 1080p30 so for me the issue has not been shooting at 720p60 like others have claimed.

On another point, I almost purchased the 7D, but I am very happy with the 5D. I really enjoy shooting with it, even more so than the 7D. The FF sensor is amazing...

Daniel Weber

[Peter Mykusz]

Our experience with the 7D camera is that it shows the overheating icon at about 45 minute of continuous shooting. We shot in a reception hall under a normal temperature range and ran into this problem. We tested the cameras at room temperature and got the same results. This was last year. There may be many factors such as temperature, humidity, manufacturing date, etc that could generate different results. I'm sure that Canon has made improvements over time. You need to do your own test to see how your camera behaves.

I shoot with the 5D MII now to get the widest angle of view with my Nikon 14-24 f2.8 lens with adapter. This produces amazing beauty shots to complement the video from XDCAM PDW 800 cameras for high end projects.

[Nigel Barker]

The only time that we have ever had the overheating warning come up one of our 5DIIs was when the camera was on a tripod in full sunshine on a hot (30C/90F) summer day.

[Mitchell Lewis]

I've shot 4 straight days using the 5DM2 as an overhead video camera for a cooking show. We use the camera mounted to a boom pointing straight down to shoot the countertop. The 5DM2 is connected to a laptop via USB and we're running the EOS Utility software. This allows us to start/stop recording, focus and change exposure. This means that the camera is in LiveView a lot and we've never had problems with it overheating.

If you plan to use this setup make sure you buy the AC power supply for the 5DM2 and a large CF card so you can run all day without replacing it. (we use a 32GB).

Maybe if we were shooting the show outdoors in bright hot sunlight....maybe then we'd have overheating issues.

[Dave Partington]

I've also yet to see any overheating on either 5D2 or 7D, but then it's winter here ;) I've filled 4x32GB cards consecutively on both cameras (about 90mins per card).

However, Cyprus may be different ;)

[Robert Turchick]

Here in hell (I mean Arizona) I used to use a T2i and would constantly battle the overheating issue. It did however do a great job on one 5 hour shoot in a parking lot on a 112 deg day but I used ice packs and kept the takes short. The camera was turned off and covered with a towel between takes too.

Since upgrading to a 7D, I've shot in all sorts of situations and have never seen the overheat light. I shoot a regular show with a friend who uses a 5D and he occasionally sees the temp warning but it's never hindered a shoot.

[Peer Landa]

Originally Posted by Anthony Mozora

I will order tommorow one of this 2 cameras. 5D OR 7D and my main concern is how which one of this 2 does better with the temperture.

Last summer I had a day long shoot in the Californian desert with my 5D2, in scolding heat -- besides from almost getting a heatstroke myself, I didn't experience any problems with the camera. As for the 7D, I can't comment since I have never used it.

-- peer

[Chris Barcellos]

No problem shooting direct sunlight 105 degree day all day this summer with my 5D.