Why would I chose the 7d over the 5d2?
 

I have, and absolutely love my 5d2, however I know that this spring my wife and I will be fighting over it. I bought her a 50D for stills, but she keeps reaching for the 5d2. She will use the 50d as a back-up. And I reach for the 5d2 instead of my xlH1 or hv30.

So I think that the only solution is a new cam (yet another). I have considered buying her a used 5d1, which she would use (she wants full frame). But really I'd be looking at around $1500 for a used DSLR without sensor cleaning, not to mention it would be Digic 2 as opposed to digic 4.

So then my option is to let her have the 5d2 and buy myself a new 7d or a like new 5d2. In Canada a new 7d is $2000.00 plus tax. A like new 5d2 is 2800.00 no tax, so the difference is really about $500.00.

I'm leaning to the 5d2 option because I know and love the camera. For me it's a full frame thing. The only advantage that I see the 7d offers is the overcrank, and while that is tempting... it doesn't really offset the ability to shoot fisheye and true wide with a 17-40 etc. I know I could buy a 10mm lens, but that would cost more money again.

Has anyone here used both the 7d and 5d2, and switched for any other reason than to save some money?

I switched for 24p and 25p and will switch back the minute the 5d gets them. The 7D does have better ergonomics and an improved menu layout as well, but those weren't factors for me.

The telephoto reach is another advantage of the 7D. It's like having a 1.6x extender built right in. On top of that, you can add the Canon EF 1.4 extender and get the benefit of 2x (that is, double the focal length) without the light loss or loss of autofocus. Not a big deal for everybody, but for some folks it's a very cool aspect of APS-C which beats full frame.

I have both cameras (well, I own both, but one is loaned out right now). I'd keep a wide lens on the 5D Mk. II and telephoto on the 7D. But then, I shoot more photos with these things than video, so maybe this isn't much help.

If you do a lot of wide angle shooting, then the 5D would be best, and as you noted, 17mm is 17mm, whereas with the 7D, 11mm is about 17mm. But if it's mostly for video, i think I'd still go with the 7D because lots of my shooting is fairly wide open, and the size of the 7D chip provides a more "normal" depth of field, normal being what we're accustomed to seeing in movies. An overly shallow depth of field is something I need to overcome for some of the work I do; but that's just my situation, some people want every shot to have a more shallow DOF.

$500 is a lot of money for me.
But oh would I love me some zebras and manual audio.

Which reminds me...I wonder how Magic Lantern for the 7D is coming along?

It is progressing and is quite far along given the new obstacles that Canon has added to try to verify the integrity of the firmware files. Luckily I have made some progress on producing valid files for it, but do not yet have the ability to do a clean reboot of the camera to start the Magic Lantern threads.

Since tomorrow and the weekend is a holiday, I plan to spend the entire 96 hours hacking on it (along with the PTP library support in the 5D).

For video shooting, the only advantages I can think of are price, framerates, and telephoto reach.

(The new 24p firmware on the 5D2 might reduce one of the advantages, but if it breaks Magic Lantern for a while then it will be a tough choice for me.)

For still photography, there are more advantages. Autofocus, frame rate, angular resolution, wireless flash control, Auto ISO that isn't braindamaged, etc.

Agreed. This advantage is a huge benefit for many types of photography. The reason why the 7D has a reach advantage is because it has smaller pixels. If the 5D2 had 4.3 micron pixels like the 7D, then you could crop it down to 1.6X and still get as many pixels as the 7D (18 MP), and there would be no advantage. (Separate from the magnified optical viewfinder, of course.) Also, it's actually 1.5X instead of 1.6X is because of the difference between 18 MP and 21 MP.

I'm with Chris. Having one of each would be cool.

Then again, if you have an established style that demands wide shots, the 5D2 is the way to go.

If I do let go of the 5d2, I'm sure my wife will not give it back, so I'll only have one.

Telephoto for video is not really an issue as I have the XLH1 and an eos adapter, and the stock 20x takes me to over 700mm. The 70-200 2.8L takes me from 500mm - 1400mm, so if I'm planning a shoot long, then I can use that. The only negative with the H1 is relatively poor low light performance compared to the D-series, and if I'm shooting that long - I'm pretty sure I'm outside.

You see I'm trying to be objective about this, which is why I posed the question on the 7d side of the forum. But my objectivity is hampered by the fact that I absolutely love the 5d2.

I think if you already own a bread and butter HDV camera, as you do, then the 5d makes a little more sense since it can shoot shallower DOF than the 7d, which presumably, is one of the main reasons you'd choose a DSLR over a dedicated video camera in the first place. On the other hand, I believe the 7d is a better emulation of typical 35mm cinema frame sizing.

I know its already been mentioned by the OP as a feature not really required
but for me the overcrank is something Im growing to really like.
Especially since you can interpret the footage to suit.
Im not sure I'd like to give that chocolate away for a 5d2,
even after it gets 25p.

I have both cameras, my go to camera is the 5Dmk2 for general shooting.

The 7D was the first crop sensor camera I cared to own. I justified it's purchase as an expensive 1.6 lens extender that shoots 8fps as a bonus.

The deciding factor for me, if I was in this situation, would be the total cost of the extra lenses you will need to properly outfit both cameras.

In my recent experience, owning both has actually expanded my lens choice. I shoot 24mm TS, 50mm and 135mm L primes. On the 5D these were great to have but sometimes the gap between them could be a problem. (For a little while, I solved this to some extent with a cheap 28-105mm zoom. Not a bad optic, but the L lenses have a way of spoiling you. I dumped mine to help fund a Zoom H4n recorder.)

Anyway, now that I have the 7D, I'm in L prime heaven. I effectively shoot at 24, 38, 50, 80, 135 and a 200mm.

Given the leaning towards wide angle instead of tele, and the fact you don't have an ultra-wide for 1.6x crop, I would suggest getting another 5Dm2.