Should I keep my 500D or upgrade to 5D Mark II?

[cprun90]

Save up ome $ for about a year or two. But the end of two years, you'll have sufficient $ to afford 7D Mark II / 5D Mark III (in 1-2 years time)! haha =)

 

[Tiggerer]

Thanks for all the suggestions so far. Just wanted to clarify a few things...

1) My wide angle lens is mostly my Canon 16-35mm f/2.8. Usually I bring my 24-105mm f/4 to school because 105 (or 168 with 1.6x) is suitably long enough to get candid shots of people on stage, and 24 (or 38 with 1.6x) has been ok so far when group shots were needed, as long as I stood a few steps back. In my school hall, I'm used to settings such as 1/50-1/60 shutter speed, f/4, ISO 800. I also have a 24-70mm f/2.8 and a 70-200mm f/4 non IS.

2) If I'm not wrong, 500D and 5D Mk II both have between 3-4 fps? So if 500D is working well enough for me right now in terms of fps, I think that 5D Mk II would as well?

3) If my 70-200 is working all right for me now (at 116-320 with 1.6x), then wouldn't the closest be a 100-400 on a ff body?

4) My school events are held either in the hall, in the field, at external sports complexes or external concert hall. If it's in the hall, I'd use my 24-105 with settings as above, maybe with 16-35. In the field, or at external places (in bright sunlight), I'd use my 70-200, with faster shutter speed, lower aperture, lower ISO, to get smallest field of depth while not blurring out so that I can get those 1 or 2 sports guys involved in the action at that point of time.
Comparing 5D Mk II with 7D:
I think I could bring 24-70 + 70-200 for the hall events on 5D Mk II, but on 7D I'd stick to 16-35 + 24-105. I'd have enough length coverage on both bodies, just maybe a problem for blur on 5D Mk II, unless I raise the ISO (which I hear is less of a problem on this body.)
For sports, I'd have to get a 100-400 for a 5D Mk II to compare with 70-200 on 7D, but then the main difference would be fps here. But currently I don't really need the fps, since I have lots of time to carefully aim and shoot. I don't need to take shots in succession, just need to time them right. Usually in team sports like soccer, rugby, I'd have over 1 hour to slowly take my shots. In other sports like swimming or track, I'd have shorter time but less unexpected events. Bear in mind I only need 2 to 3 REALLY nice shots for the school magazine each time, not like 30 shots.

Just wanted to give a little bit more info on my usage and my thoughts. But thanks so far for all the suggestions! I haven't really looked at Sigma or Tamron lenses, but I think I might.

 

[litlefiter]

Thanks for all the suggestions so far. Just wanted to clarify a few things...

1) My wide angle lens is mostly my Canon 16-35mm f/2.8. Usually I bring my 24-105mm f/4 to school because 105 (or 168 with 1.6x) is suitably long enough to get candid shots of people on stage, and 24 (or 38 with 1.6x) has been ok so far when group shots were needed, as long as I stood a few steps back. In my school hall, I'm used to settings such as 1/50-1/60 shutter speed, f/4, ISO 800. I also have a 24-70mm f/2.8 and a 70-200mm f/4 non IS.

2) If I'm not wrong, 500D and 5D Mk II both have between 3-4 fps? So if 500D is working well enough for me right now in terms of fps, I think that 5D Mk II would as well?

3) If my 70-200 is working all right for me now (at 116-320 with 1.6x), then wouldn't the closest be a 100-400 on a ff body?

4) My school events are held either in the hall, in the field, at external sports complexes or external concert hall. If it's in the hall, I'd use my 24-105 with settings as above, maybe with 16-35. In the field, or at external places (in bright sunlight), I'd use my 70-200, with faster shutter speed, lower aperture, lower ISO, to get smallest field of depth while not blurring out so that I can get those 1 or 2 sports guys involved in the action at that point of time.
Comparing 5D Mk II with 7D:
I think I could bring 24-70 + 70-200 for the hall events on 5D Mk II, but on 7D I'd stick to 16-35 + 24-105. I'd have enough length coverage on both bodies, just maybe a problem for blur on 5D Mk II, unless I raise the ISO (which I hear is less of a problem on this body.)
For sports, I'd have to get a 100-400 for a 5D Mk II to compare with 70-200 on 7D, but then the main difference would be fps here. But currently I don't really need the fps, since I have lots of time to carefully aim and shoot. I don't need to take shots in succession, just need to time them right. Usually in team sports like soccer, rugby, I'd have over 1 hour to slowly take my shots. In other sports like swimming or track, I'd have shorter time but less unexpected events. Bear in mind I only need 2 to 3 REALLY nice shots for the school magazine each time, not like 30 shots.

Just wanted to give a little bit more info on my usage and my thoughts. But thanks so far for all the suggestions! I haven't really looked at Sigma or Tamron lenses, but I think I might.

The closest to 70-200 on ff isn't 100-400. It is the new 70-300L. And it has faster USM, better IS and it is weathersealed.

 

[devilcup]

keep 500D and get 5D MKII

then u have 2 cam

 

[evilorgi]

most 7d users are too keen to draw whatsoever parallels they can gather to associate to how good and advance it is compared to 5dmkii. to me its important that we as an enthusiast build our own style for any give camera.and that the 7d is nothing near to the 5dmkii.

having used both,my take is that you will appreciate the 5dmkii more, when youre stucked in an event with no flash photography... when ur 7d is so noisy you question why u upgraded from 40D just for the sake of more AF points....and thats when the faster frames per second dont matter...


its a 35mm sensor. i think that makes a whole world of difference.

i agree with you here... a FF will always distinguished itself from cropped... esp with coupled with primes!

 

[Soundaholic]

I'd say go for the upgrade, whether 5DII or 7D, since you do have the budget. If you need good high ISO performance for low light without flash, 5DII is the obvious choice. 7D has much higher fps, so it's excellent for outdoor sports, but for indoor sports, unless you have a fast prime, the noise would probably be unbearable. I shoot A div indoor sports matches (table tennis, badminton, squash, etc) for my school too and I find any lenses slower than f2 will give me no choice but to push the ISO hence extremely noisy photos. 5DII has much lower fps, but if you can anticipate what's coming and learn to time it properly, you can live without a high fps for bursting. I've gotten shots I like with my 500D which has similarly low fps. So it's either 5DII, or 7D with a really fast prime

 

[Odyssey-Boy]

A 5D Mark II with 135mm f/2 and your 500D with a 24-70 f/2.8, both very good combination.

 

[ChengB]

The closest to 70-200 on ff isn't 100-400. It is the new 70-300L. And it has faster USM, better IS and it is weathersealed.

I would have to agree with litlefiter on this one. In addition, i wouldnt recommend the 100-400 cos of the push-pull method of zooming in and out. I got the chance to use it to shoot my school at our A div soccer finals before, and IMHO, it wasnt very user-friendly, especially with you are used to the twisting method of zooming. I would even recommend a 2x teleconverter and a 70-200 if you must reach 400mm. I'm just too used to the usual way of zooming. But then again, that's just me.

Body wise, i'm equally partial towards the 7D (for its higher FPS and much better and fster focusing) and 5DII (for its image quality), so i wont comment. But if you are unsure, why not rent both during events and try them out (though you will have to lug two around)?

Edit: I used a 70-200 on a 7D during my school's floorball finals. The focusing speed of the 7D is definitely fast enough on the lens. Awesome combi for fast sports.

 

[stinkyboy]

Not to forget, you can't use any of the cool EFS lens on the 5D, (like to 10-22 wide angle on Crop which gives the same result as the 16-35 on FF)

Then you get to use all the L lens... at 2 to 4 K a pop, the amount quick adds up


I'd say, keep your 500 and get some lens instead.

 

[litlefiter]

Not to forget, you can't use any of the cool EFS lens on the 5D, (like to 10-22 wide angle on Crop which gives the same result as the 16-35 on FF)

Then you get to use all the L lens... at 2 to 4 K a pop, the amount quick adds up


I'd say, keep your 500 and get some lens instead.

I think the TS mentioned in front that he already has 16-35L haha :bsmilie: so there's no point to get 10-22. getting the 5D mk2 will only help him to achieve the wide angle that he wants. Plus, low light performance is better.

I think there is no camera that can do everything (eg. sports and indoor performance) well, unless u get a 1ds mk3, which would be overkill for school events. so just pick which one u need more and get it

 

[enzeru21]

I think there is no camera that can do everything (eg. sports and indoor performance) well, unless u get a 1ds mk3, which would be overkill for school events. so just pick which one u need more and get it

haha.. i agree with you~!

but actually all the above choices are already overkill for school events la... does the pictures need to be printed out large size like banner style? no right?

for what usage? online? school magazine? even a PnS can shoot for that la.. its just that nowadays people always think that to have the best and the biggest specs means you are getting it right...

 

[litlefiter]

haha.. i agree with you~!

but actually all the above choices are already overkill for school events la... does the pictures need to be printed out large size like banner style? no right?

for what usage? online? school magazine? even a PnS can shoot for that la.. its just that nowadays people always think that to have the best and the biggest specs means you are getting it right...

It is not that PnS cannot lah, it is just that having a dslr makes it easier to get the pictures u need. the functions such as high ISO, fast AF, high burst rate -> all this make it easier to get a picture..

 

[enzeru21]

It is not that PnS cannot lah, it is just that having a dslr makes it easier to get the pictures u need. the functions such as high ISO, fast AF, high burst rate -> all this make it easier to get a picture..

true true~!!!

:thumbsup:

 

[Tiggerer]

It is not that PnS cannot lah, it is just that having a dslr makes it easier to get the pictures u need. the functions such as high ISO, fast AF, high burst rate -> all this make it easier to get a picture..

Yeah I agree here. I use my camera outside of school sometimes as well Anyway thanks for the suggestions said so far. I think I've got a pretty clear idea of what to expect. Still open to new ideas though!

 

[renzokuken]

but u lose the f2.8

have you consider the tokina variant ?