Low Noise Champion at 1600 ISO

Cicero wrote in post #11520204
@buddy4344

I had/have all the cameras you listed.
In my eyes the 7D in not in the some class then others two. That why I sold the 7D.
I use the cameras for birding, and with 7D ISO 800 was the max I could use to get good results.
With 5Dmk2 or 1Dmk4 I can go 3200 and more with no problem.

1Dmk4 ISO3200

3200 is no problem with the 7D, this was shot with the 7D @ 3200, I don't see any problems.

the 50d does great at 1600, much higher and i dont get concistant results
this is at 1600 and litterally no noise to speak of , not the greatest photo but me playing with the new 70-200 lol

Saxi wrote in post #11520273
3200 is no problem with the 7D, this was shot with the 7D @ 3200, I don't see any problems.

How cropped is that? I'm guessing his bird shot's way more cropped than that.

SuperHuman21 wrote in post #11520326
How cropped is that? I'm guessing his bird shot's way more cropped than that.

Very little crop if I remember right.

I'd say that 1600 with some noise reduction will be good for pretty much most contemprary cameras. Yes, though, people display ISO 6400 at web reductions and they look good, you just have to ask how they will print at say an 8x10, 11x14 or a 12x18? If the noise is real noticeable, then you have to take that into consideration.

But, from what I've seen, ISO 1600 has set a good threshold for great prints -- if you have to boost the exposure a bit you need a bit of noise reduction.

@Saxi

I didn't day it isn't possible ISO3200 with 7D, but with birds you need far more detail as you need with your shot. My 7D just couldn't deliver those details with high ISO.
Picture I posted.. NR was done only to BG, NR in camera is turned OFF.
How much NR was done on yours?
I wasn't happy at all with 7D noise, glad that your are.

Cicero wrote in post #11520380
@Saxi

I didn't day it isn't possible ISO3200 with 7D, but with birds you need far more detail as you need with your shot. My 7D just couldn't deliver those details with high ISO.
Picture I posted.. NR was done only to BG, NR in camera is turned OFF.
How much NR was done on yours?
I wasn't happy at all with 7D noise, glad that your are.

Understood. There is no question the 5D II & 1D is better, I thought you were saying the 7D doesn't do 3200 ISO well. Serious cropping there definitely can be issues.

On mine, no NR in camera, like 15 in LR3 w/ +5 Details slider. Fairly insignificant NR, but as you say it isn't a deep crop.

I much rather have a 5D II, I find the 7D has more noise at 100-1600 ISO than 3200 for the most part. Not in total noise, but really what it should have for the given ISO. I am very happy with the 7D over the 50D, but I really don't want to be in a 7D at all, but the focus system on the 5D II turns me off and I am stuck here until the 5D gets a decent AF system and a little more FPS. ISO performance is very important to me as I frequently shoot 3200 and would like to get more out of 6400, 12,800.

This was from my 7D at 6400 and looks perfectly acceptable to me. Cicero you say the 1D4 outperforms the 7D, I should flipping well hope so in view of the difference in cost. These sort of comparisons are to a certain point irrelevent as the playing fields aren't level. Buy the camera whose functions best suit your photography and pocket, on that score the 7D is an excellent camera for me. If someone was to offer me a 1D4 as a swap for my 7D yes I would probably take it, with the 5D2 I'm not so sure.

ISO 6400

artyman wrote in post #11520576
This was from my 7D at 6400 and looks perfectly acceptable to me. Cicero you say the 1D4 outperforms the 7D, I should flipping well hope so in view of the difference in cost. These sort of comparisons are to a certain point irrelevent as the playing fields aren't level. Buy the camera whose functions best suit your photography and pocket, on that score the 7D is an excellent camera for me. If someone was to offer me a 1D4 as a swap for my 7D yes I would probably take it, with the 5D2 I'm not so sure.

ISO 6400

Nice work at 6400 ISO Ken.

@artyman

7D is not a bad camera at all, but I just wasn't happy with it.
When I had 7D I also buyed 1Dmk2N body, and I was totally impressed. Pictured looked much better, sharper with 1Dmk2N as they were with 7D.
After that I used 1Dmk3 and I haven take 7D in my hands anymore. Just wasn't happy with results which 7D gave me.

I sold 7D and buyed 5dmk2, which has in my eyes a class better IQ than 7D.
Now I have 5dmk2 and 1Dmk4 which is perfect combo for all type of shooting.

For birding i take out the 7d over my 5d mkII as it gives me a longer perceived focal length over the 5d . After cropping the 5d image to match the 7d you loose the noise advantage, if I owned the 1d mk iv id take that.

Ken wonderful picture and great art in your site (do you use photos as base for your paintings?)
As for the OP question
i think the AF system of the 5DII is underrated as all points (not enough - true) are cross type and are pretty snappy - yes the 7D Has better AF
For what you want to shoot i think 5DII is a better choice also i think that 1.3 crop (1DIV) may limit you for Ultra Wide angle that you may want to shoot

Just for fun was playing with my new 5D2...

ISO 3200, basically out of the camera... little exposure/WB adjust and a slight bit of sharping:

Cicero wrote in post #11520611
I use the cameras for birding, and with 7D ISO 800 was the max I could use to get good results.
With 5Dmk2 or 1Dmk4 I can go 3200 and more with no problem. ....

5dmk2 and 1Dmk4 which is perfect combo for all type of shooting.

Again, thanks all for the comments. I bought the 7D because of ability to track BIF and it does pretty nicely there. Like Cicero, I limit myself to ISO 800 because I often crop.

I agree the 5dmk2 and 1Dmk4 make a great combo, but that's tough on the budget, so I will need to go with one or the other. If I sell my 400 DO, I might could swing both, but it's such a nice lens for BIF and other areas where portable, fairly fast focusing.

The more I read, I'm thinking maybe get the 5DmkII, and keep the 7D for bif and distance.

You can't neglect the 1Ds MK III. With good exposure, you can get a nice image at 1600-3200. The grain is nice and smooth.

ISO 1600: