7D Mark II for Airshows

Howdy everyone,
Typically I shoot airshows with a 5D MK III and IV. Obviously the FPS on those cameras is very low. I've been thinking about picking up a 7D Mark II for this years airshows. For the people that shoot with this camera, what is your opinion on it? Does it match the IQ of the full frame cameras? The 5D MK III IQ is excellent IMO.

TIA for any help you can provide!

My opinion (FWIW) is that the 7D2 does a good job. I use a Sigma 50-500 lens and maybe other lenses might possibly do a better job.

Here's my shots. Ground shots may have been with an XSi, so look at the EXIF data.
https://www.flickr.com …/albums/7215768​6235788935
https://www.flickr.com …/albums/7215767​0993939602

7d2 @ 10 FPS is not significantly faster than 5d4 @ 7fps.

7d2 IQ suffers earlier if you need to bump up the ISO in cloudy weather/ low light.

7d2 is harder to get sharp pans with at low shutter speeds due to higher pixel density.

However, on a good clear day the 1.6x crop factor does allow more of the viewfinder to be filled by the aircraft - though the 30mp of the 5d4 verses the 20 of the 7d2 negates a bit of that advantage.

I used to shoot aircraft with a 7d2, did a few air shows with the 7d2 and the 5d4..... now I only have the 5d4 out of the two bodies.

Thanks for the info guys. I think i'm just going to stick with the Mk III and Mk IV

graham121 wrote in post #18578413
7d2 @ 10 FPS is not significantly faster than 5d4 @ 7fps.


7d2 is harder to get sharp pans with at low shutter speeds due to higher pixel density.

I have to disagree. Going from 7 to 10 fps is a 42% increase. Maybe not a big deal for a lot aviation photography, but for crossing shots the extra 3 fps may make a difference. Another consideration is the buffer size between the two cameras.

I now use the 80D for air shows. It has a 24mp crop sensor. I have not noticed any disadvantage when panning at slow shutter speeds compared to my less mp dense 1D4. But that's just me. Your experience may differ.

One more thing...With my 80D/300 f2.8 combo, in order to install/remove a drop-in filter the lens must be detached from the 80D. Bummer! This may also be the case with the 7DII as it's body design is similar to the 80D.

To the OP...why not rent the 7DII first. The LA County Air Show will be here really soon!

Planes of Fame Airshow is coming up in May at Chino, CA

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