stenojj

Right now I have a Canon Rebel T6s. I use it mainly for shooting wildlife and birds in my yard with it. It stays on my tripod 99% of the time. I get beautiful photos with it using my Canon 100-400 L II lens, even through windows. I also have a Canon 6DM2 full frame for other purposes. My question …. now that the 90D is out and is shooting 10 fps and has a new sensor and a touch screen, yada, yada, yada …. would anyone suggest upgrading to this or purchasing the 5-year-old 7DM2 since that camera is great for wildlife and shoots the same 10 fps, also the 65 focus points. If I use video, I'll use my full frame so that's not something I'm worried about. I have read that Canon will probably not be coming out with a 7DM3. The two cameras mentioned above are about the same price (90D new and 7DM2 refurbished right now). Just not sure the best way to go. Thanks for any info.

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

Unless you spend a good deal of your time shooting under adverse conditions where the 7DII's build and sealing offer advantages I would go with the 90D. Had a 7DII for quite some time. Very good camera. Sold it earlier this year. If I were to replace it I would go with the 90D. The 7DII has more AF points, 65 vs 45, but, the 90D has 27 points that will focus at f/8 vs 5 for the 7DII. If you ever plan to use a 1.4x extender on your 100-400 that can make a big difference. The 90D has over 50% more megapixels and appears capable of handling high ISO better. Part of that is no doubt due to the Digic 8 processor which, according to articles I have read, can outperform the dual Digic 6 processors of the 7DII. It seems that pretty much any capability of the 7DII has been matched or exceeded by the 90D. Not all, of course, but certainly enough to make it my choice. If you haven't done so already I suggest you visit the Canon USA website and do an in-depth comparison of the two. Even though it is no longer being produced I'm pretty sure the 7DII is still listed on their site.

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Just to clarify, assuming the 90D's 45-point AF system is the same as or very similar to what's in the 80D, 6D Mk II, etc... and it appears to be... it will "focus at f/8" at 27 of the AF points ONLY with a few, specific lens/teleconverter combinations... the EF 100-400mm II lens and the EF 1.4X III TC being one combo that works that way. Some other lenses and other TCs will not be able to use as many AF points. In many cases it will only be able to AF with the center AF point alone.

But, the 7D Mk II ALSO is only able to AF "at f/8" with the center AF point alone. It doesn't have five AF points capable of that.

Other differences in the AF systems include that the 7DII has more "focus patterns". Both cameras have Single Point/Manual, All Points/Auto (all Canon DSLRs have those), Large Zone, Small Zone and Spot Single Point (higher precision AF... which I think the 80D lacked). The 7DII also has 4-point Expansion and 8-point Expansion (both of which I use more frequently than the two Zone patterns). The difference between Zone and Expansion patterns is that Zones are just like a scaled down version of All Points/Auto (sort of a "point n shoot" mode). You leave it up to the camera to choose the AF points within the zone you've set up. It will usually choose the active AF point covering the closest object (which can be a problem, if, for example, you are photographing a bird flying past... it may well focus on the closer wing tip rather than the bird's body). With Expansion, on the other hand, the photographer chooses the AF point the camera should use, but if they have a difficult time keeping that "on target", such as due to fast or erratic subject movement, the camera has the option to switch to one of the adjacent AF points. This works well for sports, wildlife and other subjects.

7DII also has dual memory card slots (one CF, one SD). The 90D only has a single one (SD).

Although both can handle long bursts of shots at high frame rates, 7DII can buffer more images (probably due to smaller file sizes, not due to smaller buffer size).

7DII has magnesium body panels where the 90D uses plastic. The 7DII also has a more sealing for dust/weather resistance and a higher durability rated shutter (200,000 actuations). 90D's shutter is rated for either 100,000 or 150,000 "clicks" (I've seen conflicting info from unofficial sources).

7DII has 100% viewfinder with 1.0X magnification, slightly larger than than the 90D's 100% and 0.95X magnification.

7DII's battery grip has a secondary "joystick" and AF pattern selector, which allows the same control in vertical orientation as you have in horizontal (much like the 5D Mark IV's and a couple other models' grips have.) The 90D uses the same battery grip as the 70D and 80D, which lacks those controls. With them you have to move your hand back to the horizontal grip to make changes to the AF selections, unless you have a really long thumb!

Don't get me wrong. 90D appears to be quite a camera... It looks like it will be a super nice upgrade from the 80D in many ways. But it's definitely not a "7D Mark III". It would be interesting to see the performance possible with a 7DIII, were Canon to make one with the dual Digic 8 processors AND a discrete AF chip (like the 7DII and 7D used, but besides those two, only found on the 1D/1Ds/1DX-series cameras). I doubt all that processing power would make for much higher frame rates... there's a physical limit to how fast a mechanical shutter and the mirror mechanism of a DSLR can operate. But, who knows... maybe Canon has some tricks up their sleeve!

https://cameradecision.com/compare/Canon-EOS-90D-vs-Canon-EOS-7D-Mark-II
https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/news/canon-eos-90d-vs-eos-80d-vs-eos-7d-mark-ii-12-key-differences-to-be-aware-of
https://www.imaging-resource.com/cameras/canon/7d-mark-ii/vs/canon/90d/

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

With the 100-400 L II and 1.4x III extender the 7DII does show 5 focus points in the viewfinder although, if I remember correctly, the 4 points surrounding the center point did not seem to be as quick or accurate as the center point. Not that it makes a big difference it would seem since they are so close to each other it's easier to just rely on single center point for more consistent results.

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

That is center point only or center point with "assist" from the other 4.

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

Amfoto1 gave a good rundown on 90D vs 7DII.

In your case having never had the 7DII I don't think you will miss any of its pro features and the 90D is a vast improvement over what you have been using. Maybe in the future if you really get into birds and other action photography and they bring out a real 7DIII or even mirrorless replacement for it with all the features then you can think about another upgrade.

Having traded a 7DII for an 80D which I went to for the 27 AF f/8 points and better sensor I can say I missed the extra features and got a like new 7DII off Ebay from someone who lives close enough to me we met for the pickup. He had less than 2000 actuation's on the shutter, a Canon battery grip and all the boxes and paperwork looked untouched. "Just too much camera for anyone in my family to want to learn how to use." I got it for only $740 and he got over $100 more than he had been offered as a trade in.

So now I have 3 cameras: 5DIV - 24-105, 14 mm ultra wide or a macro lens; 7DII - 100-400L II with or without 1.4x III extender and a pistol grip on the tripod collar for walking around after birds, butterflies, bees, bugs and planes; 80D with Tamron 150-600 G2 on tripod for doing birds out the family room door. I have flowers, plants and feeders/water dishes to attract birds and butterflies. Two dwarf trees, some flowering bushes and other plants in large terracotta pots that I can rearrange from time to time - my "potted jungle" just for photography.

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

I don't think that the "assist" part amounted to a whole lot.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

If an old camera is the only tool you have in your bag of tricks, you need a new bag.

robertjerl Loc: Corona, California

But it looks good in the spec list.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

The advances to the focusing system are significant. If your using the Canon 100-400 LII (very good lens) and your shooting birds in flight, go with the 90D.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

My experience is that the assist points are very useful at times.

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

Quite possible, but, despite it being a fine camera, I never took a real liking to it for some reason. Perhaps because I had to exchange the first one I received due to very erratic auto-focus performance, a somewhat common problem with the first 7DII's to hit the market.

khorinek

The 7D MII is a very good camera. It was built for sports as a "cropped Sensor" semi professional camera. However, it has been out for a while, September 2014. 5 years is considered a long time in the camera arena. I'd go for the 90D, or for nearly the same price look at the EOS RP Mirrorless Camera. It has the newest Digic 8 Processor as well.

mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey

I think the key questions with regard to the 90D on the minds of many people is whether it is a replacement for the 7D Mark II. While the 90D betters the 7D Mark II in a number of significant areas, at the end of the day it is not really a replacement for that camera. However, there may not be a 7D Mark III, and a replacement mirrorless version may take a year or two to get to market. As a result, for some 7D Mark II users, the 90D, even with it's limitations, may be the right choice as a replacement, even if not a true upgrade.

Of course, for users of Canon's xxxD(Rebel) and xxD lines, the 90D is a very significant upgrade at a reasonable price. If I did not already own and have four years experience with the 7D Mark II, I would certainly consider a 90D. The differences between it and the now 10 year old 60D, and even the somewhat newer 70D, are so significant that they are not even remotely comparable. It even betters the excellent 80D in many significant ways.

Blurryeyed Loc: NC Mountains.

You will get a lot of recommendations for the 7DII, I however would consider the 90D. My reasons are simple, like you I have the 100-400II and that lens is just awesome, even more awesome is the 300 f/2.8 II that I have with both teleconverters, to get the most out of either of those two lenses you really need a high mp body. Currently I use a Canon 5DSR for wildlife but am very attracted to the new 90D because the pixels are even smaller than those on my 5DSR which should translate into higher resolution.

Like the 7DII my 5DSR is a bit dated which means both the processor and the focusing systems are dated as well. I am hoping that the new 90D offers better focusing as well as higher resolution so that it can replace my 5DSR as my wildlife camera, I had a 7DII prior to my 5DSR and was not happy with it, not sure if it was me or the camera but I have been much happier with the 5DSR.

I am going to wait a while to see what real life feedback is on the 90D before making any changes to my current gear because those smaller pixels bring problems, one of the biggest is noise, one of the things about the 7DII that really made me not like it. Maybe you should just wait a little bit for user feedback on the new camera before making your decision.