20d upgrade options

[john_lopes]

<p>Hi all,<br>

Thanks for the great advice I have enjoyed reading on these forums over the years.<br>

My current camera equipment (EOS 20d body, EF 28-135mm, EFS 10-22mm, EF 50mm f/1.4 lenses, and 580EXII & 420EX flashes) have served me well for several years. I am mostly taking family photos (group shots) and lots of individual portraits, as well as travel photos (building exterior, interiors and general street shots).<br>

My wife and I are soon expecting a new addition to the family and I have been considering options for purchasing some new equipment to help get the best quality photos and expand my learning ability.<br>

Options I am considering are:<br>

1) New lenses (85mm f/1.8 USM + 24-70 f/2.8L) and radio triggers (I'm really keen to experiment with off camera flash)<br>

2) New EOS 7d + 85mm f/1.8 USM lens<br>

3) New EOS 5d MkII (I'm keen to go FF, but it eats up all my budget)<br>

All options give around my budget of $3000.<br>

I am leaning towards option 2 as the 7d can wirelessly trigger off camera flash, I can still use my 10-22mm lens, and the samples I have seen from the 85mm are amazing. Downside is still no great lens for those indoor group photos and from what i've read my style of photography would really benefit from a FF body.<br>

I've read loads of online posts, but hope you could provide some advice on my particular circumstances.<br>

Thanks in advance,<br>

John</p>

[robin_sibson1]

<p>The introduction of the 7D means that there are fewer reasons than there were for wanting to move to FF. I use a 5DII (and 50D) and just bought a 7D for my wife, and my first DSLR was a 20D, so I know all the cameras you have or are considering. The 7D has the best-yet viewfinder on any Canon 1.6-factor body (but still not quite as good as the 5DII) and the best-yet sensor performance on any Canon 1.6-factor body (but still significantly short of the 5DII at ISO 1600 and beyond). Unless you have specialist requirements like being able to use a TS lens or the 100mm IS macro in "native" mode, which I do, that's about it, and of course the 7D has some nice features not available on the 5DII.</p>

<p>So my advice would be to go for the 7D and think carefully about what you need in the way of lenses. Your 28~135 may well be a bit off the pace on a body with more than double the pixel count of your 20D. To replace it completely you may need more than one new lens over the course of time. Options worth considering include the EF-S 17~55/2.8 or 15~85, or, since you already have the 10~22, the EF 24~105. My wife uses the 24~105 as her standard lens on the 7D, and is very happy with it, but, like you, we do have a 10~22 to complement it when needed. That said, the 85/1.8 is an excellent lens and very good value for money.</p>

[tudorciobanu]

<p>New EOS 5d MkII.<br>

Congratulations for the<em> new addition to the family!</em></p>

[mike_hitchen]

<p>Congratulation on your upcoming family :o)</p>

<p>Have you identified any shortcomings of the 20D with regards to picture quality? Or is it that the 7D offers <em>even better</em> quality plus the flash trigger?<br>

If the 5DII eats all your budget then you will have no money to replace the 10-22 which means you would have the 28-135 and it seems a shame to put that on such a good body until you an afford the 24-105 or 24-70.<br>

So I would go with Robin's sugggestion of 7D plus maybe the 17-55 (which provides nice overlap with the 10-22) and this will give you almost the same FOV as 28mm on FF so it is only slightly longer than the 24-70 on the 5DII so group shots may be covered. And as your kid grows, get the 70-200 f4L for taking pictures in the park. You could take it step-wise and get the 17-55 first because that may make you really happy for a while.</p>

[david israel]

<p>Congrats on your upcoming addition to your family.</p>

<p>I guess I would go with the 7D so I would still be able to use the 10-22MM which is one of my favorite lenses.<br>

I still shoot with the 20D as a new camera is not in the budget yet.<br>

Good Luck!<br>

David Israel</p>

[steven_crist]

<p>For $3000 you can buy the 7D and the 24-70L lens. Or for $250 less you could get the 24-105L lens instead. Then you would have an excellent camera and 3 good lenses meeting all your stated shooting needs. Trade in the 20D and 28-135 lens and your budget is freed up even more.</p>

[arie_vandervelden1]

<p>I vote for 7D plus 17-55/2.8 IS</p>

[m._scott_clay1]

<p>Congrats on the little one.</p>

<p>Do you have a camcorder? If not, the 7d makes even more sense.</p>

<p>I think 7d with the 17-55 IS 2.8. Using the 7d to trigger the off camera flashes you already own will help tremendously in the group shots. The 17-55 is a fantastic lens.</p>

<p>Another option would be to buy the new 7d, a used 5d mk1 and used 85 1.8 (I think you can do that for 3K). It will get you into FF with a great camera, but still give you all the bells and whistles (plus video) of the 7d. The 85 works well on both camera's. (Trade in or sell the 20d and 28-135). It's just a thought.</p>

<p>I personally use a 5d mk1 and 40d. I love the combination and being able to leave the lens best for each camera mounted.......... M. Scott Clay</p>

[yoshio]

<p>Hello</p>

<p>it depnds on what you like. I think that for some photographs it is hard to beat normal to wide and shallow depth of field that you can get on a full frame camera. You put a EF50 f1.4 at 1.8 and you just can't get that look on anything else. Same is true with a wide like the 20f2.8 or 24</p>

<p>Certainly if you photograph wide at a distance you can't tell them apart, but if you're not afraid of being close and choosing wide to normal then there is a difference.</p>

[nathangardner]

<p>5D MkII would be the obvious best choice, but you would need to upgrade glass as well, which will push the price way up. You'd need to sell the 10-22mm and get a 17-40mm (even trade) or the 16-35mm (more $$$) and sell the 28-135mm and get a 24-70mm or 24-105mm. I'd get the 7D and the 85mm f/1.8, but don't discount the 70-200mm; this would be a great lens in a few years when he/she is runnin' around in the yard.</p>

[john_lopes]

<p>Hi all,<br>

Thanks so much for the advice and opinions.<br>

Although I would love to get the 5dMkII, unfortunately I don't have enough funds to stretch a new lens as well. I was pretty keen for the 7d, so will likely purchase that along with the recommended 17-55 IS 2.8 lens which I had not considered. I'm sure it will serve me well for a long time to come.<br>

John</p>