General 550D(T2I) or 7D; for filming & videos only?

R

raf702

Active member
First off, I've looked through the threads and found great info. But not enough for me to feel convinced yet.

Well I've been using my D40 for quite some time now for photography. And I know it's not the best for still camera shooting compared to others on the market. But it's what I started out with when I became interested in photography. But now I'm moving onto to doing strictly film/video.

This will be my first experience in film production. I don't have plan's on making blockbuster hits or Hollywood like films. It will mainly be as my hobby to hopefully make great quality short films, music videos, projects, etc.

I'm sure some of you may say to go with a pro-consumer camcorder. But I like the idea of having both the features of shooting photos and making videos. As well as the abundance of interchangeable lens, etc. And the pro-consumer camcorder's are way above my budget.

Well, it comes down to the choices at hand. The 7D or T2I, price is a factor but not so much. But spending nearly $1700 for a 7D is a bit high for me compared to the T2I. But if I have to spend that extra money, then of course I'll make my choice from there. Again, I'm only concerned with using the film/video mode from the two.

So which is better for filming? As to the quality, performance, and overall production or results when producing a video/film.

I've read a few reviews stating that they both are nearly identical in results when making films/videos. But I don't have either one, so I can't really decide yet.

By the way, I've seen video clips, short films, etc. with both models and so far I am impressed. But I still would like more convincing on which to pick.

I would appreciate anyone's opinions, personal experiences of using both or either one. As
to which you feel is better for videos/filming only. Thanks you guys/gals!
 
If you are only doing video, the only benefit the 7D has is that it outputs in HD while recording, so if you are using an external monitor, you will get a better image. Other than that, they are pretty much exactly the same.

Buy the t2i, and then get the canon 17-55 f2.8, and you will be set.
 
Buy t2i,if you have doubts over 7d then it means something ,right?
Anyway i like how t2i switches ISO settings ,faster than 7D.
 
Really, if you are getting the 7D and then buying cheap lenses, you will be much better off buying the t2i, buying nice lenses, and then a couple of years down the road when you buy a new body, you will have nice lenses.

I think the 60D has some significant benefits over both the 7D and t2i, so if you were thinking 7D, think 60D instead. Manual gain control, swivel screen, and video histogram are all great features which the 60D has that neither of the other cameras have.
 
I see, I actually read very little about the 60D, I know it's fairly inexpensive compared to the 7D.
 
For video, the 60D is your best bet, unless you plan on doing nothing but very shallow focus shots (which look like poop most of the time in video, but some people really like it), in which case the 7D may be better with the higher resolution output while recording. This still requires a nice external monitor, nice lenses that will get you those low F stop values, and whatever other accessories you may need to focus and hold the camera. If you aren't planning to spend another thousand on accessories, than go with the 60D or the t2i and forget the 7D.

If you plan on getting into photography, however, than the 7D has some significant advantages. One of which (that I just thought of, and is applicable to video) is the weather sealing on the body, so if you think you are going to be doing video in places with chances of rain, snow, sandstorms, etc., the 7D will be better protected from the elements.
 
markblasco said:
Buy the t2i, and then get the canon 17-55 f2.8, and you will be set.
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If you're not shooting stills, and your budget is tight, there's no need to get a modern AF lens. Get older Canon manual stuff from eBay or KEH; get Nikon mount or Pentax screw mount and an adapter. Get Sigma, Tamron, Tokina or Vivitar in one of those mounts. The Canon video compression negates the softness you might find in a Vivitar anyway.

Keep in mind the crop factor - pardon you crop factor purists, but I'll use the abbreviated explanation to say that "your 50mm becomes about a 75mm". Get the T2i or D60 with the kit zoom - it's fine on the wide end for video (unless you have a follow focus that is, the ring is too small for a gear) and it's "almost free" with a body.

IMHO, you need something like a 20mm 2.8, a 28mm 2.8 (Pretty much a "normal" lens on this camera), a 50mm 1.8 or so, and if you're into long shots, a 2.8 in the 70-100mm range. Or see if you can find a decent name brand or aftermarket 28-70 2.8 (or 35-70, both common as a constant aperture 2.8). Going wider than 20mm will get pricey, but the kit zoom is effectively a 28mm-ish at F3.5.

The "lens advice" has been done-to-death around here, so search for more ideas beyond mine - I'm gearing this in a getting started/no budget direction, if you can afford the latest Canon badassery, go for it. But you should be able to find very useable primes and zooms on the used market.

The other thing you'll really need is some ND filtering if you using all those wide apertures - I've found that the cheaper no-brand glass screw-ons seem fine after video compression, I grabbed a bunch of those before I got a matte box. (Heresy, I know, but I saw no sharpness difference in my edits and it sure beats no ND at all...)
 
As a 7D owner, I'd have skipped the 7D and the T2i and gone straight to the 60D if it would have been available at the time. The swivel LCD will be a big, big advantage to you.
 
I see, thanks for everyones input. Now as for SD cards, which one is best used for videos. I know that I should an SDHC, and what's class 4, 6, 10, etc.? Which class should I be using? And is 16gb/32gb enough or overkill for my needs? Thanks again guys.
 
The SDHC card classes refer to the minimum guaranteed speed the card will support. To shoot videos on the Canon DSLR cameras, you need Class 6.

I don't know what your needs are, but my 32GB card holds about 90 minutes of video. To do your own calculations, plan on 330MB per minute of video.

You will find that a lot of these questions have probably been answered here several times already. I'd recommend using the search feature to check for older posts. I've learned a lot here just from reading the posts made by other people.

Good luck!
 
Regarding cards - I bought some class 6 with my cam and they work fine; but, I have a studio space and often do quick shots when I get a "big idea" and I've regularly stuck a class 2 card in the camera with no issues.

It's probably wise to go with only class 6, but if you've already got a pile of slower cards, my experience is they'll work fine in a pinch.
 
Someone can correct me if i am incorrect but I remember reading class 6 is the minimum recommended speed for shooting hd video. i have a class six and ten card paid thirty and fourty dollars respectively for each of them, and they have both worked out great.
 
Sounds good, but in other words. The higher the class, the faster the sd card will read correct?
 
nwrolla said:
Someone can correct me if i am incorrect but I remember reading class 6 is the minimum recommended speed for shooting hd video. i have a class six and ten card paid thirty and fourty dollars respectively for each of them, and they have both worked out great.
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Yes if you do not use a class 6 or higher it wont work for video. It will skip frames and not everything will be required. Im pretty sure its more mandatory then recommended. I could be wrong as well, since I have not tested that theory, hah.
I use a class 10 just for the quicker offloading (30 mb/s). Im coming from the p2 world, so a SDHC card is insanely cheap. I would recommend a 32 or something. Just as much as you can get since they are cheap.

T2i is a great choice by the way. I own a HVX as well (I shoot skiing), and this thing does soo much that the HVX doesnt. What it can for 700 dollars and less then 1500 set up just blows my mind.
I recommend getting some sort of rubber case or something and a rain coat. Those should cost you less then 100 dollars total for both. The t2i is kind of like a toy body.
 
DOSMedia said:
Yes if you do not use a class 6 or higher it wont work for video. It will skip frames and not everything will be required. Im pretty sure its more mandatory then recommended.
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Scroll up a few posts. I've done dozens of shots on class 2 cards, from 512k to 2GB; yeah, I have several big class 6 cards, and I'm not recommending you use less than that. But I've had zero trouble with lesser cards. If you're just fooling around, testing, or doing artsy stuff in the studio without people hanging about and you have a class 2 in the cam - my experience is you'll never know the difference, and I've been using them for stuff like that, with the assumption that "everything has a life span" and I'll put some wear and tear on my cheaper cards until they conk out. No dropped frames, no distortion or noise (beyond what you get all the time from Canon). I do take all my cards to location gigs in case something dies, but if it's critical I reach for the class 6.
 
Michael Carter said:
Scroll up a few posts. I've done dozens of shots on class 2 cards, from 512k to 2GB; yeah, I have several big class 6 cards, and I'm not recommending you use less than that. But I've had zero trouble with lesser cards. If you're just fooling around, testing, or doing artsy stuff in the studio without people hanging about and you have a class 2 in the cam - my experience is you'll never know the difference, and I've been using them for stuff like that, with the assumption that "everything has a life span" and I'll put some wear and tear on my cheaper cards until they conk out. No dropped frames, no distortion or noise (beyond what you get all the time from Canon). I do take all my cards to location gigs in case something dies, but if it's critical I reach for the class 6.
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Thats actually very interesting. I think I might go buy a class 2 or something to go play with and see how it works. Do you ever do a quick pan or try to follow some sort of moving object with the class 2 cards? I would assume maybe thats when they would drop frames or become slow. Are you shooting 24p? Maybe 60p they have trouble?
I really want to go out and grab one myself just to see if there is any difference other then offloading speed now that you mention that.
It just doesnt seem to be a big deal to me to go spend 140 dollars on 32 gigs worth of class 10 extreme coming from spending 400 on an 8 gig p2 card back in the day (I also unfortunately bought my HVX no joke less then a week before they began selling them with a free 16 gig p2 card!).
 
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