Looking to upgrade my DSLR, help please

Hey guys,

I am looking to upgrade my Canon 400D (old i know).
I am really getting back in to photography as my current situation gives me the time and ability to save money to really be able to get back in to it.

I really want to upgrade from my old Canon 400D as i find it can be very frustrating to use.

I would like to stay within the canon range as i have canon lenses, and i also love the way canons work, i've played around with Nikon, but its just not what i am used too at all.

I like to take my camera pretty much everywhere, mostly i enjoy taking nature shots, but i am also starting to get in to a bit of street photography. I also take a lot of photos indoors as my friends have had a baby and i love getting shots of her. I definitely want to stay in the DSLR field, not interested in any point and click or anything like that. I am not bothered about going all the way up to a full frame, but if you guys think that a particular full frame would be most suitable then i will consider whatever you guys recommend.

The camera i am considering at the moment is the canon 7D, i have also considered the 50D and the 60D, but i wrote off the 60D when i had a play with one and just didn't enjoy it. My brother also said "why not look at a 5D MKii" but i am not sure to be honest as i reckon its probably a bit above me.

My budget is about £600-£1000 big range i know, but i think that its worth being prepared to spend a lot on something like this.
I am living in China also, and out here you can pick cameras up a bit cheaper than back in the UK.

Anyway, any advice would be MOST welcome.

Thank you all.

 

The 7D is a fine camera but keep in mind it was released in 2009. The newly released 70D is similar and priced about the same as the 7D, but has a few features the 7D lacks, such as a dual pixel AF system, a fully articulated LCD, a touchscreen interface and built-in WiFi. If you're interested in a full-frame the 6D is a much newer camera than the 5D Mark II, being released in 2012 compared to 2008 for the Mark II. The 6D has built-in WiFi and a GPS. But given your price range, the 7D or 70D makes more sense. If I had to choose between the 7D and 70D I take the newer camera, the 70D.

 

Hey, thank you for your advice on the 70D. I don't think that full frame is too important for me at this stage. Maybe in a few years if and when i want to upgrade again then i can look in to that. I am taking a peak at the 70D now and checking some reviews on it, i must say that it does look nice and i have seen some good reviews on it.

Thank you once again,

James

 

I agree with Andy. The 7D is mainly for sports shooters. If you don't need that type of performance, the other Canons make more sense (to me). We don't know what your current Canon lenses are. If a few of them are full frame (not EF-S), then the older 5Dii or the new 6D would be a nice fit. But EF-S lenses will not work on the 5Dii or 6D. "Nature" can take on different flavors. If this means macro and/or telephoto, then you may as well stay with the crop bodies such as the 70D. A DSLR is becoming an odd choice for street photography. For the street, there is a trend toward mirrorless cameras. These bodies can take Canon lenses thanks to adapters, but that usually restricts you to manual focus. It's pretty easy to find low prices on used mirrorless cameras, I got my Olympus PL2 for around $250USD, less than half the price of a new DSLR. Of course prices for the fancier mirrorless go up, way up. If you are really unsure, and want to put off a big purchase, another option would be to "fill in" with a used Canon 550D, which is nicer than the old 400D.

Kelly Cook

 

The lens i am using at the moment is a 24-105mm F4 L IS lens. I have the kit lens of my 400D and the sigma 70-300mm, but i want to sell the 400, kit lens and sigma together to be honest.
I guess if i was to go with something like the 5D mk ii or the 6D then it would restrict me to buying EF lenses only in the future, as i was thinking of getting a cheaper 50mm f1.8, but that wouldn't be compatible with the full frame cameras.