Are you still "faithful" to your back up body?

I made the step from crop factor on my 50D to full frame, 5D.I did buy the 50D from new and it served me well but after using it for a couple of years I "cheated" on it for a bargain 5D. I have said to myself that I would be using both cameras but to be honest I`ve not opened 50D`s box for months, using the 5D only.I have had opportunities to sell it but strangely enough I did not.How about you guys?

Even though I have 2 bodies I don't really consider one or the other the "backup". Depending on what I'm going to be shooting I choose which body is going to be better, action/sports I'm pulling out the 7d, portraits or macro I'm gonna grab the 5d mark 2. They both get used enough that they never get jealous

I had a 7D and 5D2 and although I got some great shots from the 7D it was never used anywhere near as much as the 5D2, which gave me consistantly good shots. I've got a 60D now that is definitely a backup body to my 5D3 and was actually bought after the 5D3 as a backup and when I needed the extra reach although, as I have a Sigma 150-500 OS, it's not that often. It is a very good camera though and gives consistant results too and my keeper rate is similar to the 5D3.
The first dslr I ever got was a T2i (550D) and I've stayed faithful to that by handing it to the wife to use instead of selling it.

TheBigDog wrote in post #14528463
Even though I have 2 bodies I don't really consider one or the other the "backup". Depending on what I'm going to be shooting I choose which body is going to be better, action/sports I'm pulling out the 7d, portraits or macro I'm gonna grab the 5d mark 2. They both get used enough that they never get jealous

Yeah, I'm the same (although with a 40D / 5Dc combo).

For sports, action, birding, etc. the 40D is my "prime" with the 5D as backup and for portraits, landscapes, etc. etc. the 5D is prime and the 40D is backup.

However, in most situations both cameras will still be in use, as I will fit them with different lenses and carry both ready for action. Saves a lot of fannying around swapping lenses if the two most likely to be used are already mounted.

A common combo I use is the 100-400L on one body and the 300 f/2.8L on the other (possibly with a 1.4x or 2x TC on it). That way when something happens where the prime is the wrong length, I just drop that camera and pick up the one with the zoom on, ready to go.

Dan, I think you are missing out by leaving the 50D in it's box. It has abilities in some areas that the 5D doesn't and can be the better tool for some jobs. I don't know if you would benefit from carrying two bodies at once, as I don't know how many lenses you have, but if you get fed up swapping lenses at events, when you need a different focal length, it is well worth carrying both.

In the film days I would carry 3 cameras usually, when I first went digital I found it soooo frustrating to be constantly switching lenses at some events with only having the one body at first. When I upgraded to the 5D, it never crossed my mind to leave the other body (then a 20D, the 40D came later) behind, I was always going to use both.

7D + 450D for me.

I don't use the 450D at all anymore *apart* from doing climbing photography, where hanging of ropes at height makes everything more awkward, so it's easier to have two camera with different lenses around the shoulder (and clipped into your harness) than it is to swap lenses on one camera (it's a lot easier to drop lenses than it is to drop cameras).

But hey - a backup camera is just that - one to use when you cannot use your main for some reason. Otherwise it wouldn't be a "backup" camera, it would just be a "second" camera...

I can count on one hand the number of shots I've taken with the 7D since I got the 5D3. I've briefly considered selling it but it is a solid body and a great backup. Plus, if I need to carry 2 bodies, it certainly fills the need.

As for being faithful, I've never slept with a Nikon.

I only go to the 7D if I need the extra distance or the 7D has the right lens already mounted and the 5DIII does not.

My 40D is the backup to my 5D Mark II for weddings but when I'm not shooting weddings I use the 40D a lot for everyday kind of shots out in the yard and around the house.

The 7D is my primary body, and given what I typically shoot, and what I have proven to myself I can do with th 7D when I am shooting anything else, I am not interested in the expense of a FF body.

My 350D is truly a backup. I practically never use it, but it is there in case anything happens to the 7D. It was my first digital body, and I have sharp 16x20 prints from it, so I know it will serve if necessary.

All three of my bodies get regular exercise...

7D + 450D for me also. I don't use the 450D much, mainly because my daughter seems to "need" it most of the time, but I'll still grab it when I can if I want something lightweight.

I throw on the 15-85 and I swear the 450D gives up almost nothing to my 7D from an IQ perspective, I might not shoot with it much, but I don't think I'll ever get rid of it.

I put my Rebel XSi up for sale on Craigslist almost as soon as I got my new 7D. I knew that I wouldn't be using the XSi much and that it would just continue to depreciate. I'm glad that I sold it.

I don't wish to offend, but why have two crop bodies at the same time?

photohistorian wrote in post #14531221
I don't wish to offend, but why have two crop bodies at the same time?

before I had my 5dm2 i had 2 crops, it was nice being able to use all my lenses (which at the time were mostly EF-S mixed in with an L or 2). Once i had the opportunity to go to the 5d i migrated away from the EF-S.
So in short, sometimes that's all that people can afford and it's more convenient for the lenses that they have.

If you have mostly EF-S lenses, why go with a FF body?

photohistorian wrote in post #14531221
I don't wish to offend, but why have two crop bodies at the same time?

Why not ?

The two most recent replies above, where that applies, are from owners of a rebel / xxxD and a 7D. I would imagine that in both cases the owner originally bought the rebel / xxxD body and later upgraded to a 7D but kept the older body as a backup. It seems perfectly logical to me, not everybody sees FF as the next step (a birder for example would see a 7D as the ideal birding camera due to the high pixel density and great AF system) so upgrading to another cropper makes perfect sense for many people.

A lot of people who have two bodies don't originally decide they want two bodies, they just see that the older body may not fetch a very high price and decide to keep it as backup instead.

In addition, somebody owning EF-S lenses might want to use them on both bodies, so see two crops as desirable for that reason.

Personally, I like a crop and a FF combo. The crop being better for sports, action and birds etc., whilst the FF has the nicer shallow DoF capability etc. and is better suited towards portraits as well as landscapes and so on.

Just because I prefer one of each, it doesn't stop me understanding that there are many reasons why somebody would have two croppers.