A lighter way to do what I do with a 5D and 7D

[james_de_h]

<p>I started to ramble on this so in brief my kit is a EOS 5D mated to a EF 16-35mm lens and a EOS 7D mated to the EF 24-105 that came with the 5D. The latter is brilliant and despite borrowing a 5D MkII and then a 6D I still think the 5D is fine for what I need. And that need is to be able to take images inside tractor or combine cabs etc., capturing as wide a vista as possible to show the controls. I rarely use flash these days thanks to the power of Adobe CC software (Actually I have reverted to LR 5 and purchased Affinity Photo which I prefer to Photoshop). I shoot handheld. The 7D is used for pretty much all the other photography to include taking pictures of machinery in action. I only shoot RAW, always put the bodies away in 'P' on the mode dial to ensure I can quickly grab a shot if I do not have my 'manual' head on. I sometimes find 'P' does it well enough to allow me concentrate on framing the shot. Now there is an admission! <br>

Question? Two bodies and different spare batteries crammed into one slightly too small a kit bag can make for a package that is less than easy to carry on a 'plane. I want to downsize. But I am out of touch with modern kit and have nowhere to go to fiddle with alternatives. So any suggestions for a system that will cover 16mm through to around 75mm, do good RAW capture and is up to working in dirt, dust and damp? </p>

[james_elwing]

<p>The only way to lose the weight is with an APS C sensor. EOS100D/ Rebel SL1 is very light, economical, and there are a number of very light lenses. You must have noticed 10-18 mm apologists, and there are a few light full frame lenses like the 40 mm which would be happy with your FF cameras.<br>

Dirt, dust and damp? Don't know, but maybe don't expect a long life from a light weight kit like that. 18mp sensor, even the 18-55 kit lens that comes with it is fairly sharp.</p>

[Ken Katz]

The easiest way to lighten the load is to carry just the 5D and swap lenses. Alternatively you can buy a 10-

22mm lens (or similar) and just carry the 7D and 2 lenses. Besides the relatively economical alternative

outlined by James, if you are interested in also really lightening your wallet, there are many other alternative

from Sony, Fuji, Panasonic, and Olympus, at varying price points and capabilities. I still have my 5D and "L" lenses, but travel

with an Olympus kit due to having a bad back.

[david_henderson]

<p>Like Mr Katz. I always travel with a back-up FF body, but never carry it - its either in a car, in a hotel room, in checked baggage. So its nearby if I get a malfunction, without weighting me down.</p>

[phule]

<p>A lighter option while still providing some of the more advanced features you're used to might be the Canon 80D. It's a crop-sensor camera but provides weather-resistance, better dynamic range and lower noise than either the 5D (classic) or the 7D (and indeed, even the 7D Mark II). </p>

[james_de_h]

<p>Thanks one and all. I cannot realistically swap lenses on most jobs as if it is not dirty or wet it is windy and damp! I can, of course, do the swap somewhere cleaner but this is not always as easy as it could be. The middle of a field is typical. The 5D is a rugged old thing and has no dirty sensor problems thanks to the lens always being on its nose. I think I will invent a splitting camera bag so I can leave a body behind but re-unite the kit quickly and easily when I need to. A camera in the car is always handy -until you take the car that does not have the camera in it... I may take look at the 80D - it seems to have a very impressive spec and maybe it could do the job with a 10-22 on it.</p>

[james_elwing]

<p>James, Just look at the accumulated weight of projected light weight kit and compare it with what you are lugging about now.</p>

[JRCrowe]

<p>Look in to the Sony mirrorless full frame cameras. They reportedly work well with Canon lenses with adapters. http://briansmith.com/canon-ef-to-sony-e-mount-smart-adapter-compatibility-guide/ </p>

[james_de_h]

<p>I am now in a better position to appreciate how tricky this is after having my kit valued. In brief, trading in to switch to something lighter will essentially see the investment made in one single lens returned for pretty much every bit of kit I own. So I am going to stick with my lenses - the heavy bit - and use just a 6D body in the future. I could go for a 10-22 on the 7D but I tried this for a while and missed the 16-35 and 5D combination. I found a camera dealer who actually understands my problem and they have offered to walk me through my options next week. In real terms, trading in used bodies that are not current makes keeping them as a back-up a more viable option. I still love the 5D too. A two bag solution is still on the cards. It is easy to do and actually the more I think about it is seems it is the way forward. Thanks for the Sony to EF link Brian. Wow, there are some really helpful people on this forum.</p>

[dcstep]

<p>For the use that you describe, I'm thinking that a used 70D and a used EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM would do the trick. It won't be quite as wide as 16-35mm on a full-frame body, but it might be wide enough. It'll be light and you won't need to change lenses in a dusty field. Your old bodies and lenses might keep the net boot required very small.</p>

<p>I don't see a single full-frame lens that'll cover the range that you need.</p>

 

<h3 data-selenium="itemHeading"><a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/647013-USA/Canon_3560B002_EF_S_15_85mm_f_3_5_5_6_IS.html" data-selenium="itemHeadingLink"> </a></h3>

[carbon_dragon]

The Sony A7 line has all kinds of adapters, including adapters that are supposedly quite good for Canon lenses and the

body is a lot smaller and lighter. It would also allow you to experiment with almost ANY kind of lens with the appropriate

adapter. On a budget, a Sony NEX-7 must be pretty cheap by now and would have the same capability.

[doug_nelson5]

<p>If weight and /or bulk are issues, you're not going to get anything smaller/lighter than the bodies you have, unless you switch to the SL1 from the 7D. To me, the problem would be these massive beer bottle zooms. I travel with a 40mm f 2.8 STM on my 5D2 and an SL 1 body. Any good 50mm will give you about 80mm coverage on the SL1.The EF 40 is a nice 62 or so on the SL1. I use an 30 year old Olympus OM 24mm f 2.8 via an adapter on the full-frame body. 16mm is a problem; maybe the EF-s 10-18 STM zoom?<br>

A big problem with my set-up would be changing lenses in dust and moisture. Everything's a trade-off.</p>