My 40D is dying (to be replaced)

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

05/06/2015 10:18:28 PM · #1

I haven't been on this site in ages, but I came back for some advice. I have a Canon 40D which, I'm afraid, is beyond repair. It got caught in a moist backpack (thank you, Oregon) and the electronic menu/screen is essentially useless. I can get by without the view screen, but now the scroll wheel is messing up. Not cool.

In reviewing my options, I've been considering a 7D, but it seems like maybe there aren't a lot of fans here. I don't feel like I "need" a full frame sensor (or do I?). I primarily shoot with my 50mm 1.4, which I love dearly and rarely gets taken off the body. 70D seems nice but a tad more expensive and the plastic body...did I mention that my 40D got damp? (I promise not to do that to my next camera, but...kids, Oregon, camping, etc.). I'm a hobbyist not a pro, but since I'm shopping, I want the most for my money.

What do you like/dislike about the 7D?
Is it a dinosaur? Or a workhorse?
My gear-lust is a little bit out of practice here.

Yo_Spiff

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

05/06/2015 10:29:17 PM · #2

If you don't require the semi-pro body, perhaps you might consider a newer Rebel series camera. I have a 50D and bought a used Rebel T2i a few years afterwards. The Rebel has slightly better image quality, due to being about 4 years newer technology and a little higher resolution.

Where the 50D is still better is the convenience of the additional buttons and dials as well as the faster burst rate and larger buffer for fast moving action.

I also got a micro 4/3 Olympus recently and the images from it are better than either of my Canons.

I can't advise you on the 7D, as I've never had one.

Message edited by author 2015-05-06 22:31:20.

Bear_Music

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

05/06/2015 10:49:57 PM · #3

The 70D is excellent, slots between the rebel series and the more expensive 7D series. Very nice image quality, good solid feel, an evolution of the 10D-20D-40D-50D-60D series. It has a flip-out LCD too, so you can use it at many different angles. Canon store has a refurbed one in stock for 699.00 I think.

GeorgesBogaert

Canon RP

Canon RF 35mm f/1.8 IS Macro

05/07/2015 03:58:40 AM · #4

The 70D is very good isolated to extreme weather conditions. I live in Taiwan and it sub-tropical very humid over here. I used it in a -40 degrees Celsius warehouse for a whole hour. (my flash Phottix Mitro went into security mode and couldn't be used anymore for the rest of the day) My lens was completely frozen and I changed lenses inside the warehouse. It doesn't feel like plastic and is very sturdy build

P-A-U-L

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM

05/07/2015 04:42:00 AM · #5

The 70D is superb! I had a 40D which I loved but the 70D is miles better.

Cory

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV

Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II USM

05/07/2015 10:08:57 AM · #6

Sounds like a great time to try a bag of rice in the oven @ 180 degress for a few hours. You may find that your camera isn't as damaged as you might think. Clearly nothing to lose by trying.

MEJazz

Canon EOS-6D

Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM

05/07/2015 12:44:42 PM · #7

I recently did a thorough comparison between 70D and 7D mkII (yep the new one, not the classic) and concluded unless you absolutely need 7dII's 1DX like auto focus system, 70D is a better camera for 95% of the people. Something you probably won't have experienced with older Canon bodies is the touch screen that 70D has and its excellent. I didn't realize how much I would really use and appreciate it until I actually had one. The dual-pixel sensor which excel when it comes to shooting movies and using Live View and the touch screen were major strengths of 70D over the 7DII. And I thought 7fps is good enough that one won't really miss 10fps of 7DII.

As for weather sealing, with each new body Canon keeps improving it. I won't worry about polycarbonate body either as I have seen DigitalRevTV abuse Rebels (dropping from top of a long series of stairs, burning, freezing) and when that entry level camera keeps working, mid-grade 70D should fair much better.

Message edited by author 2015-05-07 12:45:47.

Phocal

OM System OM-1 Mark II

Olympus 300mm f/4.0 IS PRO M.Zuiko Digital ED

05/07/2015 02:06:49 PM · #8

Originally posted by Cory:

Sounds like a great time to try a bag of rice in the oven @ 180 degress for a few hours. You may find that your camera isn't as damaged as you might think. Clearly nothing to lose by trying.

Little late for that........unless done right away (even then to some extant) corrosion will set in. While it may work for awhile it's only a matter of time once things inside start to rust/oxidize that it will die.

Sony 24-70mm F4 Vario-Tessar T* FE OSS

05/07/2015 06:13:38 PM · #9

Yeah, it's far too late for the bag of rice in the oven trick. I should have thought of that a long time ago.

I don't "require" a semi-pro body, but the Rebels just feel small and light in my hands. I really like the solid feel of my 40D compared with the Rebel I used to have.

So I jumped on Canon's sale plus loyalty program and grabbed the refurbed 70D body for $639! I either got the last one or I'll get it on backorder, but I can live with backordered at that price. I normally would have done a lot more lusting and dreaming before ordering one, but seeing that people are selling them used for that price or more, I had to jump on it. Happy mother's day to meeeeee!

Bear_Music

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

05/07/2015 08:25:28 PM · #10

Originally posted by mindbottling:

So I jumped on Canon's sale plus loyalty program and grabbed the refurbed 70D body for $639! I either got the last one or I'll get it on backorder, but I can live with backordered at that price. I normally would have done a lot more lusting and dreaming before ordering one, but seeing that people are selling them used for that price or more, I had to jump on it. Happy mother's day to meeeeee!

Yee Haw! You're gonna love it! Now enter some challenges with it, OK?

Yo_Spiff

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

05/07/2015 09:02:14 PM · #11

Originally posted by mindbottling:

So I jumped on Canon's sale plus loyalty program and grabbed the refurbed 70D body for $639!

Good deal. That's what I got my 50D for through their loyalty program, a few years ago when it was the current model.

Lydia

Canon EOS-6D

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM

05/07/2015 09:29:22 PM · #12

The 40D is my biggest regret in my camera journey.

I sent it to repairs a billion times. (I might have missed this number by a bit, but not much).

While it was in repair, I used my 20D.

I still use my 20D as my second body. I've had three bodies in between.

Just say no to the 40D.

MEJazz

Canon EOS-6D

Canon EF 35mm f/2 IS USM

05/07/2015 10:26:35 PM · #13

So for the loyalty program, you do have to send in your old camera?

05/07/2015 11:12:54 PM · #14

Originally posted by MEJazz:

So for the loyalty program, you do have to send in your old camera?

Yep, broken or functional (though if mine were functional I might have just sold it instead). They ask for the serial number and then you just ship it to them when the refurbished item arrives (in the same box with a label they provide).