The original Canon 7D

Just bought a Canon 7D, the original mk1, from Harrison cameras of Sheffield, in excellent condition for £235…and it is in excellent condition!, in fact it’s like a new camera! Can’t even see any dust in the button recesses! With less than 2k shutter actuations! I have been after one for a while but the ones I have seen thus far have been quite battered, it puzzles me how they get so, unless its been used in a war zone? I have been using Harrison cameras for some years now, its rare I buy camera gear new, I did buy a new lens one time, oh and a battery grip, that’s about it. Harrison’s offer a great service, their used items are checked by experienced, competent people and their prices are better than anything you will find elsewhere, including eBay.

Link to Harrison cameras click on this

The main thing that attracted me to the 7D is the 100% viewfinder, I often find I get more than I wanted when using the 40D, at one time I was well into cropping images but I have done a complete U turn, and now prefer to get it how I want it at the point of taking. The 7D has a few more pixels which is of no consequence to me, the rear LCD screen is a lot better, though I turn the review off and use it like a film camera, If I have been out of town I will start going through my images on the way back while sat on the train, that’s when my editing begins, deleting some, sorting out the wheat from the chaff, less is the new more. Also I don’t want to waste time working on images I won’t use.

I think the focus system is a bit overkill, though I can appreciate how sports photographers will like it, it has a great movie mode too, though I am more into still photography. I have disabled the live view mode, an optical viewfinder is all the live view I need. Not had chance to use it properly yet, but I’m already loving the feel of it, and that larger viewfinder, reminds me of the Canon EOS 1N film camera. Its substantial like a real camera should be, feels good in the hands. The pop up flash is impressive... for a pop up flash! I sometimes like a bit of flash for street portraits to make the colours pop.  

I have handled/used a few mirrorless full frame cameras (mostly Sony) I just don’t like them, don’t like the look and feel of them. It’s neither a compact nor an SLR, but somewhere in-between. I do have a mirrorless compact, a Lumix LX100, which I like and is a very capable camera, but it’s a compact, and I know it’s a compact, it will go in my jacket pocket, unlike the mirrorless, interchangable lens, full frame jobs. I considered getting one of the Fuji X100 series, I like the retro, rangefinder style but I heard even the latest V model can have focusing issues! How did they mess up the most basic thing on a camera, the focusing? 

Digital rev put a 7D through some challenges click here

I will keep the 40D and still use it, it’s a great camera, and makes good quality images, how much image quality does one need? Surely the actual image itself is more important, what’s the point of having super image quality of a boring image? The Canon 7d mk1 could possibly be all the camera I will ever need?

Yes… full frame may have the "edge" on IQ over the crop sensor, but I refer you to my previous points, and it may be better on low light performance but the 7D is no slouch in that respect, and there is always those things called tripods. Also I have some great lenses designed for the crop sensor which I like. All this obsession with resolution and pixel count, full frame etc bores me to death! Especially when most hardly ever make any prints, but just share online, also when it comes to printing we are limited by the printers ability itself. Even my 4/3rds sensor LX100 compact is capable of printing great looking LARGE prints! If I ever do go full frame, and it’s a big if! It will be a Canon 5D mk2 or the 6D. (I have not even looked into the newer R models, way too expensive, maybe if money was no object) 

"The photographer is the instrument not the camera" - Eve Arnold

Big Hair day

Street Portrait

A recent street portrait, one I made today actually (9/11/2021) saw this guy in my local town couldn’t let him pass without asking if I could take his portrait, he was happy to pose for me and I ended up taking a few. Shot with my Canon 40D and Canon EF 24mm f2.8 lens @ ISO 200, aperture priority @ f6.3. I like this lens for street photography, on the 40D its close to a 35mm in full frame focal length terms, (full frame for me means I didn’t crop the image 😀) its a similar set up to the Fuji X100 series, same size sensor and more or less same focal length lens, only the Canon 40D has a focusing system that works. 😀 And I have the option to change lenses. Did I mention its a lot cheaper too. 😀 And I can give it a retro style look to match the subject, thanks to Silver efex...

Shot in raw mode, processed in Lightroom, b/w using Silver efex pro