7D or 5D for video... please help
 

Hello, A quick decision has forced me into choosing a 7D or a 5D for purchase either today or tomorrow. I understand the full sensor difference...currently own an older 5d and 2, 20D's . I will be using this new camera for HD video primarily along with our EX1's. The main concerns are overheating differenc e of each and image quality difference in HD. The 7D makes nice use of the 17-55 IS lens but just how good is the stabilzer in video mode? The 24-70 L would be the choice for the 5D but has no IS.
Any advice from hands on experience will be greatly appreciated because I am down in Key West, FL.
thanks!
Craig

Buy the 7D, you already know the answer, that is why you posted your question in this forum.

I just bought the 7D with the 17-55 lens to use along with my EX-1. I've had it about a week and a half now. So far, my reaction to the video test shots with the 7D is WOW! I'm very happy with it.

Its hard to beat the image quality of the 5D, and usability is much improved with the new firmware. However, only you can decide if the added expense of the body and lenses are worth it.

It also depends on the type of production you do, most of my work is run-n-gun, rarely do I have the opportunity to use a tripod. With IS lenses and a good monopod most people can't tell that I'm not using a tripod. So for me IS is important.

Regarding overheating, I'm in California, gets warm but the humidity is quite low. I have had the overheating icon appear a couple of times, usually near the end of the day after the camera has been in direct sunlight for hours. I ignored it and kept shooting, no problems. Not sure that's a good way to go but I needed to finish up what I was doing. I'm also still on the older firmware and I understand that the new firmware improves this problem on the 7D.

With the temperature and humidity in Florida your right to be concerned about overheating. The 5D is an awesome, albeit and expensive alternative when you add the additional cost of lenses. I shoot with the 17-50 f2.8 and rarely without IS.

Of coarse the other alternative would be the T2i, I have not heard that it has the same overheating issue as the 7D but from what I understand is nowhere near as rugged or robust, depending on the type of production you do it might be the right answer.

The little bit that I have shot in Orlando I found shooting in such high heat and humidity to be very challenging. I love the 7D but I'm not sure how well it would perform there.

Good luck with your decision and let us know what you decide and how well it works.

I have a 7D and have never had the heating light come on. It doesn't seem to be a problem at all. I've shot outside on hot days, in the sun. Not in Florida. I think if you were maybe shooting outdoor events in hot sun, where you were running continuously (or as close to continuously as you can with the 4 gig limit), it could possibly be a problem. I have the latest firmware update.

The 7D's chip size is ideal for video, I think. It gives you good control of depth of field but not the overly shallow depth of field that requires you to always have a follow focus assistant. For bright light shooting this would not be a problem, but for low light situations with some types of action it can be. If you looked at those Zacuto tests you can see that the differences in the two cameras is not very much until you start pushing things to the extremes. If you're going to shoot in very low light and high ISOs, then the 5D is clearly better. If I did more still photography I think I'd prefer the 5D.

I was about to open the same thread today as I have the same dilemma. the projects that I am planning to use the 7D or the 5D are wedding videos and maybe some music videoclips. budget is not a problem here. .... which one is better for wedding videography?

Choose the 7D for f/2.8 zooms and long focal lengths. Choose the 5D2 for fast primes, wide shots and low light shooting. The 5D2 is also better for portraits where you really want to blur the background. And because the 5D2 has a bit less noise, you can stop it down a bit more than the 7D when you don't want to fight the focus.

So, for weddings, it depends. Zooms are handy, but in some situations you might not have much light. Then again wides aren't that important at weddings. So... probably the 7D with a mid and a long zoom, as well as a couple of primes for dark situations and portraiture.

I have the 7D and love it. If I knew what I know now and the new firmware was available when I purchased my 7D I'd go with the 5D. But for a DSLR I don't think you can wrong with either.

I bought a 7d and won a 550d and honestly, i reach for the 550d first. I just like the ergonomics a bit better. I guess I have tiny hands.

I loooooove my 17-55, so there would be some tears and cold-dead-finger-prying if i tried switching to a 5d completely.

I keep the 17-55 2.8 IS on the 550d, the 70-200 2.8 IS on the 7d. If i bought a 5d i'd have to figure out what other lens i wanted to use on it. Probably my friend's 85mm 1.2. Man thats a sexy lens at ff.

I am also interested on the 5D or 7D. My question with regards to the over heating.
If you have a 1 Hr. ceremony will any of the cameras will have the over heating problem?

I am considering the camera for churches with low light as a 2nd camera since I already have the Sony EX3 as the main camera.

Thank you!

There truly is no wrong purchase in the Canon HDSLR line up. I own a 7D and I want both a 550d & the 5D. The 5D edges out both of it's baby brothers in low light and (IMHO) has a more film look to it but by no means do I feel incapable of getting great images with the 7D.

As for overheating, I shoot in direct sunlight at auto shows and other events in Southern CA and I can go through two batteries and fill a 32GB card and not experience the temp warning light. I have yet to upgrade to the latest firmware. It's been a non-issue for me.

I have 7D and T2i. If you aren't shooting continuous footage, you shouldn't have problems with overheating. If you leave it on and take long shots back to back, you'll likely see the overheating.

We've had 7D's for about 4 or 5 months now, and we're starting to consider selling them and picking up 5D's specifically because of the overheating issue.

We've now had the cameras overheat at every single wedding, and this included a wedding where it snowed on the wedding day (ridiculous). At last weekend's wedding the temperature only reached 82, yet we had overheating issues inside and outside all day long. Given the nature of what we film (weddings), it's starting to look like the 7D is not a good choice if it's going to hinder us from doing our job.

That said, we have the 17-55mm and it's a great lens; IS works great.

Travis have you got the latest firmware on the 7d?

Since I put it on I've not had overheat icon once, before it would pop up every 45 mins or so

I purchased the 7D right when they came out in October of 2009. Used and use it all the time. The overheating thing was kind of annoying, but is less annoying with the recent firmware. I think I only had the 7D stop once because of overheating, so while the indicator came on all the time it didn't seem to result in anything bad...

Except maybe that caused the sensor went bad and I had to send it back for repair for a red dot on it that appeared after being on a while wouldn't go away. They replaced the sensor under warranty, within a week I had it back. Seems fine now.

Anyway, I have the 17-55 Canon EF-S. Love the stabilization, don't shoot without it. Very smooth. I also have a bunch of all kinds of lenses for it, some just EF-S, some EF, some L.

In February I got the 5D Mk II, they were having a bundling special with a nice Canon printer. Figured I could sell the printer or return it if I didn't like it. With the newest firmware, I think it is actually a bit better for video than the 7D now. It's a bit lighter and smaller, and it seems to do better in lower light. The images are very nice, I think just a bit better than the 7D. If I'm outside and I know there will be enough light where I need to put my Fader ND on, I'll use the 7D. If I'm in the dark, and want velvety images, I'll choose the 5D. I take them both around.

I also got the 1D Mk IV, nice, huge camera, slightly better in low light than the 5D. Images almost as good as the 5D, but I returned it because I didn't think it was worth 3x the 7D or 2x the 5D and it was a bit big and heavy, making it more of a production. Most EF-S lenses didn't work on it so there wasn't a savings there, for example I couldn't use my favorite 17-55mm EF-S on it.

Advice: If you need low light and less versatile zooms, get the 5D. If you need reach, don't need lower light performance and better deals on zooms, get the 7D. Or get them both and use them at the same time for different situations. If you want a very expensive camera you can use a weapon, get the 1D Mk IV.