If you read Brandon Riley’s previous post titled “Shooting with the 7d”, you probably saw a pretty amazing video. This little camera is a sweet ride.
There are some ups and downs, but in my opinion, the “ups” out weigh the “downs.” Here’s the deal: it has an APC sensor therefore if you are used to shooting with a full frame sensor, then your nifty 50mm is no longer nifty. It is now an 80mm. The APC sensor is 1.6 bigger. So they way to estimate what lens shoots what, just multiply by 1.6. It is hard to get an affordable wide angle lens for the 7D. You can get a 17-55mm lens, but after putting it on the 7D it becomes more like 27-88mm. Which 27mm is still a decent wide, but it is not a 17mm.
Keep in mind that this is not the best camera to use for most hand held shoots. It does lag some when quickly panning back and forth. It really needs a steady hand, tripod, or even some type of steady can stabilizer.
Also, the audio. Not sure if it is the best audio you can capture, but it does the work. You will need a supplemental piece of gear, in which Beachtek had one specific for it, but has since pulled it. Not sure if they are getting a better option or what. I cannot get them to call me back. Anyway, you do need something with a VU meter to monitor the audio. At the end of the day, or shoot, the camera is still a sweet deal.
Moving on, the codec it records to is H.264, which is a great codec. But it is not an editable codec. You will want to convert to Prores 422. You can do this with a free piece of software called Mpeg Streamclip. It is fast. Faster than Apple’s Compressor.
If you are used to shooting with a viewfinder, this camera has a 3″ viewfinder, but for getting a sharp focus, I would recommend getting a viewfinder loupe.
A good resource for extra gear for your 7D is IDC Photography. Great service, and very affordable follow focus, viewfinder loupe, and other goodies.
I love this camera. Having just gotten back from a mission trip, I would have rather had this camera on my hip…not a HVX200 with a Brevis film adapter…and manual lenses. This camera is worth the price if you plan on shooting video with it. But if you are looking for a nice camera to shoot stills…stick with the Canon 5D Mark II.
Oh, one more thing. The 7D has an improved autofocus motor, unlike the Mark II, and it has more frame rate options. Also, you can only record up to 12 minutes at a time, or else the sensors will burn out…but luckily they shut off before the burning begins. So don’t plan on shooting live events with it.
Enough said…get out and Kreate!
Related posts:
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- Training others on shooting a video Tips to use when enlisting non-creatives to shoot a video....
- 7 reasons why your church should buy the new canon 7d You've heard about it, you've read about it, and here...
