Due to its unmatched strengths; I bought two used 7D bodies early this year. Now happily shooting wildlife as an enthusiast. Had I been a pro, I would still be using this camera. It's great in all departments. Previously I used 50D and 70D for this purpose, they were also great. Tried the 7DII as well. But somehow, I preferred 7D over all the others for wildlife photography.

To add to my 40D, just bought a 7D with three lens and ton of filters, bag, batteries, chargers, etc for $350. Sweet.

Still own and shoot with 2 Canon 7D's. Hell I still have a 20D that works amazing. Great to see people picking them back up and shooting them.

7D is like your old friend. New friends keep coming and bringing something new. Yeah, they are fresh and have something new to talk about. Yet, sometimes they lack something and it kinda annoys you. In the end, you come back to your old friend and your friend just waits for you there patiently.

The Canon 7D was the first camera I ever bought back in 2008 if I remember correctly and still remains the only DSLR camera I have ever bought. It is a solid beast and survived travelling with me to more than 20 countries and has produced some beautiful timelapses over the years, hoping it sticks around a lot longer.

I still use my Canon 7D for over 10 years even though I now have a 5D M4. The 7D is still the camera I shoot the most and most often. All genres, from portraits, macros, flowers, sports... It's very good. With 7D you can take advantage of cheap Canon lenses but give good image quality like Canon 55 250 stm, Sigma 17 50 F2.8, Canon 50 f1.4...

It's what I got, better than nothing and it's 2023. Thanks for the video.

Great summary, thanks. A friend just gave me one as he no longer used it. Wow, I love it. Back into photography after a 20-year break. So looking forward to the next vacation :)

So funny… I can definitely relate. I have the Canon R7, 90D, 6D Mark II and the 7D. I still find myself often reaching for the 7D. If I need squeeze some higher quality pictures, I typically bracket one up and one down and do HDR in post. I have gotten some amazing results - of course on still subjects. The 7D just feels comfortable - it is better balanced with heavier lenses. Lastly, this is a pro camera with weather sealing, and pared with a weather sealed lens is my first choice in bad weather situations. The 18 MP sensor is enough for most needs and provides exceptional dynamic range for a crop sensor. Just a fun camera!!!

Hello Joe, I also have a 7d. It's great. I was long time thinking about to upgrade to the 7d mk2, but all the tests I read showed me that the differerence is too little. And yes, I have some M-model, the original M, the M50, but their big advantage is for travel. The moments to shoot with the 7d are unique. (BTW, I have also the 300d (Eos Rebel), a 40d and a 50d). The 40d and the 50d are still good cameras too. The 7d works great also with the STM Lenses. Joe thank you for the video, I fully agree with you about the 7d!

What a pleasant video. Thank you, Joe. It was nice to hear you.

Thanks Joe, I'm still using my 7D for surf photography and getting amazing results. I love my mirrorless but just doesn't feel the same as one of these old tanks.

Thank you for the review, I just bought one with 25000 shutter, your video makes me feel good about the purchase.

I. Upgraded. To a Nikon d500 a few years ago, but the pictures I got from my Canon 7D were fantastic. It was a very good camera.

I bought the EOS 77d in 2023 because I really want to have an SLR camera again to go with my mirrorless R6M2. I think that these cameras are still very good and take beautiful pictures for landscapes, portraits are enough. I also like the shutter sound.

I love my Canon 7d and can't force myself to part with it. I own and shoot with a Canon 5d Mark ii and shoot with that as my primary camera. I also own a few nice lenses that don't work with full frame cameras such as the 5d Mark ii, so I use them on my 7d.

My 7D's are still my work buddies for sports photography and 1080p video. You can have an old car, and it still does what you want it to do!.

Got a great deal with my 7D from Craigslist. Came with a Tamron 70-300mm a 16mm and a lowepro bag. 350 total but at first it looked like the built in flash was broken so I bargained, got it for 300 and ended up just dusting the flash mechanism and it works like brand new.

I got it used about 3 years ago best money I've ever spent in gear. I've been satisfied with it for a long time and I wish they had continued the 7D series because its body quality is unmatched by anyone to this day. ■ The body is just indistructible and I love that. ■ It has almost every command that you need on the back of the camera as a button (much more agile to operate). ■ Image quality is still very good if you're not too serious (to today's standard). Some limitations I came to struggle with: ■ Low light performance is not great (forget about ISO 500+ if you want quality). Sensor is the same one as the low-end DSLRs. ■ Autofocus is fast but not always accurate. ■ 18 MP today is really not great. Nowadays cameras have 30+ MP sensors and the difference becomes pretty evident after cropping, especially if you share your photos on the web, where files will be compressed. Other things that don't bother me personally but can be not ideal are: ■ Video and audio quality are bad. ■ Its weight and bulkyness can be annoying when travelling: it takes a lot of space in the bag. ■ Because it's so heavy it can be difficult to balance on a tripod that is not too sturdy. Other considerations: ■ Photographers tend to keep them so they're not too easy to find and if you find them, the shutter count is probably going to be really high so be sure to always check that before buying. ■ It only works with CF memory cards which are not easy to find outside photography stores (where everything is very overpriced). ■ I heard (but never experienced) that it has pretty bad rolling shutter artifacts if you shoot very fast-moving subjects. I would rather take a 7D mkII. That's better on any level and has the same DSLR feeling and perfect body quality and has been around for 5 fewer years (so you'll find lower shutter counts) though it's still not cheap, it's even heavier, and it's still a DSLR which is dead technology (sadly) that you shouldn't invest too much on at this point.

I have had my 7D since it came out. I am STILL using it almost daily. I still use it for video as well. This thing is STILL a beast and I feel will still be on the top end of the spectrum of the flooded camera market.

Still using my original 7D I bought back in 2009 on a daily basis. Lots of use in the field and still going..

Just got one, with 4 lenses (a couple original) and a backpack and I look forward to using it

I just came back to work with my 9 year old 7D and as you said - I LOVE the sound of the shutter and the feel of holding a real thing in my hand. I put the sony mirrorless (RX100M6) back into the drawer after using only the Sony last three years. Thanks !!!!

When I started moving back to DSLR from Mirrorless I got better glass, but went originally went with a 6D for full frame. When I got my EXC+ Tamron SD 70-200mm f2.8 I ended up tossing a 7D in the cart for around $250. Camera and lens both cost what the Tamron SD 24-70mm f2.8 I bought new. In other words, for what I had to spend on two lenses new, I got one lens new, one like new, and the 7D. I use the 6D for its full frame and low light abilities. I have the 7D for faster shooting and if I need to take advantage of the cropping. The 7D is a lot of camera for a few hundred. Depending on your uses I think the 7D and the 5D classic are serious bargains. Spend the big money on the glass.

Spot on. Cameras like 7D, 5DII, 1DIV are never old. I use them for still photography purposes, they are second to none. MILCs are great but I don't want to ditch my DSLRs and replace them with mirrorless cameras. Simply because, it's not needed. I bought two used 7Ds at 300 dollars apiece last .year with around 20k shutter count each. I just love using them all the time. Moreover, they have so much shutter life left. In fact, the MILC fever is great advantage for hobbyist photographers like me. We are getting great gears cheap and enjoy photography more than before. I'm not into videos so, least concerned about that feature. However, when I record few casual videos; I use a handycam or smartphone. Thank you for the video.

Hi Joe, Im a freelance photographer for the Chicago Sun-Times and I have always used this camera for all my assignments, from features to spot news to sports this camera is great! I sometimes have issues with grain while shooting basketball if the lighting in the gym is bad. The video is great also, there were times when I had to shoot 5 minutes of video for the paper and it was perfect. I dont plan on upgrading because this camera is perfect for what I do. There are so many features on this camera I've just started experimenting.

I still use my 7d to this day, why because it works and I find tracks better then most and the auto focus right on the money, yep that's about what I paid $1,700 for it new back in the day, there is a vary good reason why I hung on to this camera all Theas years! because its still a grate DSLR and out shoots most others in its price range, depending on what lens youse you can photograph most any thing with it, thank you, love your post.

I bought my 7D second hand in 2010. I have used it to shoot many bands, and artists, including Ed Sheeran, and still use it now.

Good Morning & Thank You For This Review Sir! I am so tired of hearing tech-spec(s) reviews. My SL1, after 7 years, has finally entered the replacement phase. I love(d) this camera so much! This has come 2 months before graduation photo season, and im already filled up, and feel the anxiety as far as what to do. Two days ago, i began shopping. Tje SL2, used, is INSANE in the resale arena. 3, 4, and 5 hundred. Nuts ! I dont care about video at all, and only used tjat feature maybe two times in 7 years. I only care about color and quality, and dont want to pay for features i dont need, just to get image quality. Next thing i know, im sucked into "whats popular" for my price range (no more than 300) and feel completely tea-bagged by tech-specs and people who only want to sound "smart" and popular. I discovered the 7D, and when i saw the resale value, i freaked out! I thought they were broken, but quite the opposite!! Sir, i wish there was a way I could convey how much i enjoyed watching a non fluff, humble point of view review, about a camera. Thank You! I am an (word of mouth) outdoor/indoor, nude natural light photographer. No glam, no reflectors etc. Its very difficult to find reviews of that subject matter, without glam, bells, and wistles being intertwined, so i relay on the color and quality info, and you spoke it perfectly. I feel its like wildlife photography, shooting bambie in forrest, or a little chipmonk in just the right spot, with that once in a while perfect lighting situation. Reviews about still photography, color, and quality, i feel are becoming more rare and hard to find. Sorry for the long essay, im just burnt from fluff and pride videos! Thumbs Up From Iowa Sir 😁 (Edited) Im picking up the 7D for sure now! 😊

My 7D is still good. Some day I'll buy the upgraded, all new super digital A.I. Mark whatever, but right now, no hurry. Good review.

Got a 7D around the same time with just 8000 miles on the clock for about £250. Mint! The reason being I sold my old 40D that I used for outdoor horse events and found my full frame 6D somewhat lacking in terms of losing the reach with my 70-200mm lens and the 4FPS was a bit crap. The 7D fixes that for outdoor action events. The only annoyance I find is its slow to pump multiple shots to the compact flash. I have a fast 32GB 120MB/s Sandisk Extreme card in it but it really takes its time.

Another great video Joe. Sticking with my 90D I bought a year ago, just because i'm so used to the weight and size in my hands, but think this will probably be my last DSLR. I will probably do exactly the same and leave it around with a long lens attached once I move to mirrorless in a few years time.

love my 7D and still have my old 30D that thing has been through so much love it!!

Just bought one yesterday with 2 batteries charger and short based lens for $225. I think i got more than i bargained for. My wifes loving it.

Still using my original 7D and have a new 7D MII. I like the nomenclature of these cameras.

"I cant explain why, but I just love it" Me justifying shooting with my 5D classic today. These old pro Canon dslrs from the 2000s all had beautiful sensors.

Great video. Very informative. I enjoyed it. It is a fantastic camera indeed, even in 2021, still very usable at a very good price.

I just bought one of these after using a 40D and a Lumix LX100 for years, I mainly do street photography, the 40D was good enough for me, the main thing that attracted me to the 7D was the 100% viewfinder, not had chance to use it properly yet, but love the feel of it, and love that viewfinder. Been after one for a while actually but the ones Ive seen up until now have been well battered. The one I got is like a new camera, less than 2k shutter count!!! for £235 english pounds!!! "The photographer is the instrument, not the camera" - Eve Arnold.

I have had a 7d for about 7 months now and it's really great. The auto focus is not that great compared to newer mirrorless cameras but the quality if the image is unbeatable.

I am an aritst, painter and drawer. and i like capturing moments, trying compositions and angles (y'know, doing photography lol) so when i later check on the files... there's a lot of material to pick up from, but when something catches my attention, it brings out ideas of how to paint it. and i paint it, or draw it, full of excitement and determination to get that art piece done to bring out the excitement of the simplicity life has underneath, i'm in love with that. So after that little monologue.. i use a canon eos m100, i used the kit lens, but indoors it did not work all so well, so i picked up the 22mm f/2 pancake lens, as it was my favorite focal distance in the kit lens, and so far i've LOVED it, though i do miss something more telephoto, while keeping general usage possibility still in hand, things and people further off from me rather than things that closeby me. my dogs, my family, friends... appreciating what's not directly in your life is good. so the sigma 56mm f/1.4 might just do that greatly well... from what i've researched, it'll be a little narrower than the kit lens at 45 but with way sharper and a much larger aperture, perfect!! After that another monologue... currently i've been, highly questioning what would be good, for wildlife photography, i thought adapting a ef 200mm f/2.8 to my m100 and getting 320mm, but something didnt felt right about it. i think, whenever i'm making a dedicated living for myself with art, i will get a 7d/7d mark ii, and maybe that same sigma 150-600mm lens... for the reasons you present, having a separate experience from my regular photography, which kind of makes me excited for that possibility in the future! your canon m100 video was one of the most important ones that lead me towards getting it as my first camera, which for it's size, the kind of things i do, and the results i get... i hope to use it for MANY years to come! you're a very genuine person and what you bring to the table here in youtube is something to truly love!! ^^

Awesome video my friend 👍👍👍👍👍 the original never gets old.

I'm convinced, one cannot be a casual videographer or cinematographer. It's a full time activity in its own right. Therefore, I've decided, since I'm a nature photographer since 2009, I will remain so. Doing sporadic videos here and there actually doesn't make sense. Because that never tells a story. A cinematographer is a cinematographer when he/she is able to tell a story through his/her work. And for that purpose; full-time commitment and dedication are necessary. That's the reason why I would rather leave it to those who are seriously committed to that cause.

Great video. Hate new camera snobbery. This nails it. 7D is old but blimey it's still a serious machine.

BTW, the Canon 7D and EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-56 IS STM is an excellent combo for travel photography. It covers a bit of everything. When I'm travelling; this is the combo hanging on my shoulder.

I used to own a 7D...loved it! Then I sold it, hate that part!! I bougth a 70D and a 6D. Both are great for their own things. But the shutter sound on the 7D!! :) I now just bought a mint 5D MK2 for 180 USD! I used that camera for years when I was shooting professionally. Ok, the old cameras lack in some features, but the image quality is the same, 15 years later. And at ridiculous prices! :)

I got the 7D when it first came out and still have it :) I have taken some great and memorable photos with this beast. I have a lot of cameras from Hasselblad, Nikon, Fuji, Sony etc. And I will never sale this beast.....

I have the 7d until now at 2022.and good performance still like new and shutter count total at 7k .the best 7d

Hello Joe. I just wanted to let you know how much I enjoyed your video about the canon 7D. I did check eBay and there are some great deals available for the 7D. I had purchased one when the 7D came out. I mainly took photos at air shows, nature, and many trips to Gettysburg battle field. I still have my 7D and I am looking forward to become a more knowledgeable photographer. With the Canon 7D prices as low as they are, I will be looking for another 7D as a backup. Thanks again for a great video and looking forward to future videos. Stephen X. Brown

I love my 7D, I've only had it for a couple of years, and I'll keep it for years to come. I had shot with a 10.1 mp Rebel Xs since 2008 and when it finally died (my fault, nothing went wrong with the camera) I knew when I took it out of the box that it was a worth the money when it was new, even tho I only paid a fraction of what it cost then. I've recently bought a 5D mk II, and have my eye on a 5D Classic and 6D in the next couple of years. I doubt if I'll ever switch to anything else for still photography.

I LOVE IT TOO!!!

I've got mine a few months back for 140 bucks shipped US>RU. 140. Can you imagine? 😳 It didn't turn on (blinking battery), I had to perform an extensive repair work - the main issue was a loose power board connector, but then a shutter err 20 appeared, so I dismantled the sensor... I'd rather not get it if I knew what's next! But now I only need to calibrate the sensor, and this "clack-clack" in 8 fps is breathtaking! 😜 Low DR is an issue, and the noises at high iso too. But the handling is great anyway!

I'm just like you, I love the shutter sound , so I'm a fan of DSLR

I know what you mean about that intangible feeling, the emotional connection. Why do some of us love old British motorcycles? Compared to a modern motorbike they are crude. But, but…they sound & feel right. Nostalgia or something deeper? Same with a clattery SLR, just something…

Whenever a mirrorless is in hands I always feel that something isn't correct. 7D is a beast and still loving it

I got it new when it came out, and it was terrible in low light, but when there is good light it's magic. And I made a video on it that still looks amazing today. the video looks like film! I uprezed it to 4K and it looks just like film. I'm going to pull it out and do some vid and pics with it .

7D is the cheap deal today. I just got one for $139 delivered from ebay. it's hard to go wrong at that price!

Great video Joe; with this video, you've really persuaded me to get one; however, what are your thoughts on people saying that the images that come out of the 7D tend to be on the soft side?; I'd love to hear your experience of the camera's sharpness quality.

I bought a 7d for about $80 after I sold the lens that it came with. Beast of a camera.

The 7D was never really meant for making video, though the capability was included as a sort of afterthought. Mine has shot loads of stills, but very little video. I'm here this evening because I want to start making basic videos, and I need some "encouragement" to use my 7D first before researching something more appropriate for video.

Mine will be here Monday. Cannot wait.

Great commentary. Very helpful.

Those old school pro bodies felt nice and heavy.

So glad I was able to find my 7d right before the covid price hike on everything, was able to grab my 7d body for $95

I didn't select this video to hear about all your unicorn "M" series gold, just the 7D, thanks!

Love my 7D ..it's awesome

Do the 7d have that nice color you get out of the 5d classic-5d3 and 6d? How is it to shoot Indoor sport? 🤔 Thanks for a great review!

Been using my 7D since I bought it in 2013. Will never part with it. My best work has been shot with that camera.

A great camera, still have it, used it sometimes..love it

Thanks, Joe, interesting video! I use my 70D for wildlife and BIF. I was thinking of changing it for a 7D Mark II, but it is still a little bit expensive. How do you compare the 70D to the original 7D for wildlife?

iv just sold my panasonic fz1000 bridge camera - i had previously owned fuji stuff but sold that because the lenses were just far too expensive for me as a hobbyist to justify - iv had a good couple of years with the bridge camera and im at the point were i want a larger sensor and the ability to swap lenses etc for shooting motorsports - i was going to buy a canon m50 but then iv been looking at the 7d mk2, a7ii, d750 and so on that sort of level - the 7d is REALLY cheap i can pick up a mint example from MPB for around £175 and then put the £ towards a USM 100-400 or 75-200 f2.8 - i was looking through flickR and came across some albums of motorbiking at the track shot on the original 7d and my god, the files are SERIOUSLY CLEAN!

Great review. Would the 7D be good for Sports Photography with a 70-200 Tamron lens? Thanks in advance.

I use mine mostly for sport photography and wildlife whenever I get the opportunity

Very helpful, thank you.

Great review! Thank you! Would you recommend this for event photography?

great new review of an oldie. I actually bought this new in 2010 then life got in the way so because it was fancy at the time it stayed in the box with a new canon 70-200 f2.8 lens also! Gone back to it recently as opposed to my older eos 30d which was the one i kept using if the need arose..yea i don't know why either! Anyway i just wondered if you could advise, I'm looking at the sigma contempory 150-600 lens. will this work with a 10 year old 7d? If so will i be able to use all the features of the lens as apparently you update lens via usb these days! I'm been out of the game a while haha. Cheers

nobody mentioned that you can turn it into an even higher tier pro camera with Magic Latern custom firmware. Im still learning all the features.

Thanks!

Example….fairly easy to find a great condition 7d fully working for around £200 from 2008. They don’t build them like that anymore unfortunately

Hi, great video :-) , do you think it would be a good camera to use for interior photography?

Hi I’m a somewhat beginner photographer, I’m still in high school but I have been taking photos since enter high school so 2/3 years ago I always used a rebel T3I and now I’m think to move to a 7D or a 6D since found both we almost same price which one should I get? I normally do car and sports photography

Oh and my old Canons have lasted like crazy , serious awesome build quality unless I got lucky.

I've had this camera purchased new for over 8 years and am intimidated by it's functions still. Would love to know how to shoot NYC display windows at night with it???

This video was great. I just picked up one of these. I had one in the past and now I bought it to give to my nephew. Is there a brand of batteries you would recommend for it? and a charger?

They are bargains, if you keep the ISO clean and below

I've been using my "trusty dusty' Canon 7D for years. Still happy with it.

Canon 7D has an awesome wheel dial it makes me drool.

OMG I've had my 7D for at least a decade and I didn't know it was old. lol. I have a RED Scarlet Mx. I didn't know that was considered so old too. Yipes!! haha.

I have a 7D and want to use it for outdoor photography, beginner....how would you recomend using the 7D now a days. I also have others and a mirroless camera but want to use the 7D. Thank you, keep thise videos going.

quick question: Is it compatible with newer lenses and accessories? great video btw !

Technology may have improved in digital mirrorless cameras but in retrospect smaller can’t survive a fall better video but don’t forget what a camera is for and that is photos Just picked up a 7D for 200 Cad with little accusations can’t wait for it to come in Mirrorless cameras to me are just that not an improvement or better technology than older Dslrs

i just threw magic lantern on my ol trusty 7d and am shooting 2k raw video...looks amazing. its incredible, really!

Is it going to be good for music photography in small bars and venues with a 50mm 1.8? Will the AF be good enough?

I'm looking to replace my 20D with one of these since they've come down to about £150 over here. I'm very much photography first but I do shoot video on occasion (fixed subject, lighting and camera). Your problems with the AF put me off a bit, but I do actually manual focus for everything anyway since my best lens has a bad motor and my second best is a fully manual prime. Would you still recommend this camera to me? Thanks.

Hey Joe I am relatively new to serious photography. I had an EOS Rebel T3 bought in the US. Not much money so bought a Canon 7d second hand for under £200 last weekend. Can you recommend a good video to help me set up to best use?

I use mine for weddings. I love my camera but not sure if it’s best for this? Thoughts 🤷🏼‍♀️

Is this camera good for portrait life photography? Like family photos? And will it blue the background once it’s focused on the subject?

my dad just brought me one. with an canon 100-400 lens and 10-20 sigma lens

Just picked up one of these in the UK for £69 from a camera shop

I had an 80D that someone stole. And so I was looking around and picked up a 7D and a 5D mk3 and omg the 7D for 250 was a steal

What lens do you recommend to upgrade from the basic one it comes with, I mainly use it for short action films, would you know of any that would generally work?