Stu, from Pro Lost fame, just published a list of gear under the 7D Cine Kit label. Go and take a look. Nothing new for the regular visitors of this site or Canon5DTips, but it is good to know that Stu endorses my gear selection.

My only complain is the presence of the 24-70L2.8 in the list. The 7D, as a EF-S body is able to use the incredible Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS. While this lens is not as good as the 24-70L2.8, it is still regarded as one of the best lenses one can get. It has about the same focal range as the 24-70 on a full frame, same aperture and adds IS!

My other suggestion would be to replace the hoodman with a real view finder, either the LCDVF or the Z-finder from Zacuto.

I am also working on a gear list for 7D users but it is taking a bit more time than expected due to some side projects.

Last weekend, I did a few test shots on a new location I was exploring with my friend Robert and we took the time to do some 7D vs 5D tests. Most of our conclusions can be read in the previous post on the subject.

Here is the video of the moire pattern test we did. Most camera would have had some issues with all the overlapping vertical bars but the 7D handled it surprisingly well.

Note: this was our first test with the 7D on the Glidecam and, while it was balanced, it was not heavy enough. We have corrected the issue since by adding some serious weigth.

I have a 5D vs 7D clip coming soon. Both taken at the same EFL, something no one seem to have done yet!

An anonymous donor gave Hudson (they guy who created Magic Lantern, the 5dMrkII firmware hack) a 7D (source: Twitter).

What can we expect? My guess is a port of the current features (audio gain, rack focus, etc) to the 7D, which would turn it into an even better camera.

With some luck, Hudson might be able to figure out how to add 24p to the 5DMrkII, which would qualify him for a Nobel prize.

We shot a few clips yesterday with a 16-35L mounted on a 7D to compare it with the 5DMrkII with a 24-70L. I dont have the clip in my hands yet (will get them tomorrow), but from our initial tests, it seems like the 7D low light capabilities at higher ISO is about 1 1/3-1 2/3 stop lower than the 5D. Basically, ISO 1250 on the 7D looks about the same as 3200 on the 5D.

The increase of noise is not linear. By that I mean that ISO 800 on both camera is about the same, it is only above 1250 that we can see a difference.

Scott Boune who did his own mini review of the video of the 7D does not seem to notice the difference between the two. It is probably because he did not go high enough in the ISO chart.

Is this something you should worry about? No. Unless you are shooting in very dark places (or at night @ f2.8 and smaller), ISO 640 should be enough for most shots. Also, to correct Scott, the 5DMrkII also has the auto focus feature for video and it works the same way as with the 7D: it only works in live view: while you are not recording.

Our tests also show something very interesting: the 7D seems to process moire pattern much better than the 5D and the jelly effect is much less noticeable. This is probably thanks to the 7D smaller sensor, being smaller, it takes less time to fully scan it. What ever the reason, it makes the 7D much more desirable for fast moving subjects.

As I said above, I will get the footage from this weekend tomorrow and should be able to put it online soon.

We also did some steadicam shots at 60p, I am very curious to see how these will turn out, especially since I am the model walking around like an idiot…

If you are planning to buy a 7D on Amazon US, please use this link. All profits made by affiliates links are reinvested in the site to add content.

I will have access to a 7D this weekend. I already planned a few tests to compare it to the 5DMrkII. Anyone has an idea of a specific test you want me to perform?