Worth the upgrade
Now that people have had a chance to try out the 7D2, is the general consensus that, for bird photography at least, it is worth upgrading from a 70D or a 7D mk1?
Reading reviews of the 7D2 online, although most reviews are quite glowing, there are quite a few other reviews quite lukewarm about it - eg comments that high ISO performance is virtually no better than the old 7D.
Perhaps the key thing is what you are photographing - for bird/wildlife shooters the fast and accurate AF performance of the 7D2 is the big step forward?
Comments please from early 7D2 owners who have upgraded from the 7D mk1 or from the 70D.
Nick, there are many reasons that the 7d2 is better.
The custom function settings are fantastic. I have my AF-ON button set for AI servo and zone focus (the zone I choose) and whatever autofocus case I want as well.
I have my AE lock button set for one shot and 1 focus point
I keep the camera on ai servo and one shot
So wherever my thumb or pointer finger goes I have immediate access to pretty much any shot I need to get.
The joystick I have set to move the focus point/zone. For instance a bird is facing right and I have my focus point set (so many and so much more sensitive than my old 70d by the way) to his eye. Then he turns left I can without taking my eye off of the bird just use my thumb and change where I want the camera to focus on.
I have my control lever set for ISO. So I just need to pull it and use the control wheel on top to change ISO.
Basically any adjustment I need to make I can do on the fly. Perfect example. Bird is on the ground or in a tree and I am shooting it in one shot. It then takes off. All I need to do is put my thumb on the af-on button and I am in zone focus in ai servo.
This alone to me is a worthy upgrade.
I have the set button set for playback with 2x so if I need to review a shot I just use my thumb and get the image I want to see with using my right hand and only one button.
The extra speed is great as well. going from 7 or 8 to 10 fps may not seem like much but it is.
The high ISO performance is better as well. You will not get full frame quality but there is a definite improvement over my old 70d.
I would say that there is an improvement in IQ as well. Colors are better and I can crop more and keep sharpness in my shots. Check out my Flickr page. All shots taken from November 3rd and on were with the 7dii (they start at a Golden-crowned Kinglet). Prior to that was the 70d. I think there is a pretty major difference in quality between the 2. Others have noted it as well. All pics were processed the same way only in DPP so nothing has changed except the camera.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/120553232@N02/
If you have any other questions let me know and I would be happy to answer them.