My photography is just a form of hunting for me. I have been a hunter for 68 years but when I turned 66 I had a lot of retired time so I took up hunting with a camera. I especially enjoy the spring migration of waterfowl so I go out in the spring in my solo canoe, put out decoys, and photograph ducks and geese as they come in. I also canoe into different osprey and eagle nests and wait for the birds to return with food for their young. Running the shore line of many lakes early in the morning gives many opportunities to photograph shorebirds and warblers.
I keep my best photographs on my computer and get a number enlarged on glass or metal, or on stretched canvas. These are put on the wall of my den and remind me of all the great mornings I have had out enjoying nature.
When hunting with a camera I do not have to be concerned with seasons, bag limits, or protected species.
I also have nothing to throw out from freezer burn when we clean the freezer each spring. I still hunt in the fall
but hunting the rest of the year with my camera helps keeping my 81 year body young. I just wish I would have all these photographs when I was teaching science classes.

I am considering purchasing a Canon R5 to replace my 7D 2. If I purchase the adapter to use my Canon 100 to 400 L lens I know it will work fine with the mirrorless body. I also use the Canon 1.4 tele extender with this lens on the 7D2 body and want to know if it will also work the same on the R5 body.

I am considering the purchase of the canon R7 AND 100 TO 500 r lens. Are any UHH members using this combination and what is their opinion of this combination? I have used a Canon 7D 2 and the canon 100 to 400 since 2014. It will be used almost exclusively for wildlife photography.
Thanks for any replies.

What camera and lenses did you use at the falls for your excellent bear photos ?

I have been shooting a Canon 7D 2 since 2014 using a 100 to 400 L lens with a 1.4 adaptor part of the time. My photography is mainly wildlife. I also have a 24 to 105 L lens for non wildlife pictures. This set up has served me well but I would like to add a mirrorless body and am debating between a new R7 body and a refurbished R5.
I have no problem with the APS sensor and have numerous stretched canvases and metallic prints that I am totally satisfied with. Nearly all my shooting is in manual mode where I set the shutter speed and f stop and let the
iso vary and I am not interested in changing my style of shooting.
Thus my question is - Would I gain anything from buying the the R5 instead of the R7?
Opinions on this question would be greatly appreciated.

Since 2014 I have been doing wildlife photography with a Canon 7D 2 and it has served my needs very well. I almost exclusively use a Canon 100 - 400 L lens (sometimes with the 1.4 adapter}. I shoot mainly in manual by setting the lens speed and aperture and let the ISO set itself automatically. This works well for me and I am very pleased with my enlargements.
I am considering a new body and would like a recommendation. I do not want more bells and whistles than I need but I do want to get good sharp enlargements. I am considering the new Canon R7 but also have looked at the Olympus Cameras. My photography is now my hunting and I no longer have any game to clean when I get home, then put it in the freezer, and have it become a permanent resident until my wife disposes of it when she cleans the freezer.
I do much of my photography from a solo canoe or blinds Any thoughts of a new body for my needs would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for all the opinions. I am going to stay with my 7D2 as long as it is working and I have no reason to think it is going to quit. I will look seriously at the R7 when it eventually comes out if it ever does.

For the past 8 years I have used a Canon 7D Mark 2 for my wildlife photography and have been very pleased with the results. I have no idea how many shots I have taken with this body but it is a lot. My main wildlife lens is the 100 to 400 mm L2 lens. Part of the time I also use the latest 1.4 teleconverter. I also have the 24 to 105 L lens which I use occasionally. Most of my shooting is in manual mode where I set the shutter and aperture and put the ISO on auto.
If I were (or needed) to replace the 7D2 body what current body would be my best choice? I am not a professional photographer but I like to take good wildlife photos for my own enjoyment. I use my photography as a form of hunting where I do not have to clean anything when I get home and put it in the freezer where it becomes a "permanent resident."
Any suggestions on body recommendations from UHH members would be greatly appreciated.

I do photography much like you do but much of mine is from a solo canoe along lakes and in wetland habitats. I started out with the Canon 18 to 200 lens and I wanted more reach. I then purchased a Canon 70 to 300 EF IS USM lens. I took several thousand pictures with it this summer and have some excellent images especially when it is a good bright blue bird day. My body was originally a T5i but recently purchased a Canon 7D.

Again I want more reach. A friend loaded me his Canon 400L lens and I got some very sharp images of wood ducks
and eagles as long as I had a good solid rest. It is a big lens. To big to use in a canoe and really to large to do much hiking with. This lens is about the same size as the larger Tamron and Sigma zooms.

I am currently leaning toward the purchase of the 300 f/4 with IS and USM to get the sharpness of a prime and a 1.4 extender. The 300 lens alone is not to big and I can handle it from the canoe. With the 1.4 extender I have a lens with slightly more reach than a straight 400 but with IS.

Every selection has its pros and cons. Even if we had all the choices in our arsenal we don't always have them on the camera body at the right time.

Is your 300 prime the 2.8 or f4? Ever use a teleconverter with it? Great photos.

I do most of my bird photography from a canoe but some on land. I am now using a Canon 70-300IS USM and am quite pleased with the results. However, I would like a prime lens and am considering a Canon 300mm f4L and a 1.4 teleconverter to use for my land shooting. Any comments on how this would be on a Canon 7D?

How do the Canon teleconverters compare to the Sigma or Tamron teleconverters?

I have been using the 70 to 300 ef is usm lens for shooting birds in flight from my solo canoe. I have been very pleased with my results from it.

Though I would like more reach at times shooting from a canoe is different from shooting from land.

I do most of my waterfowl photography from a solo canoe and am currently using a 70 to 300 IS USM EF lens with good results. Would the 70 to 300 EF/L give me much better results? I am also considering a 300 prime Canon L lens. Any opinion on these 2 lenses for my purpose?

I do a lot of bird photography from a solo canoe in wetland habitats. My Canon 70 to 300 IS lens is on my camera about 99% of the time. There are times it may not be perfect but it is close to it.