Canon EOS
5D Mark II
 vs
Canon EOS
7D

Updated (March, 2012): Compare the Canon EOS 5D Mark III vs Canon EOS 7D

Canon EOS 5D Mark II

83
"the EOS 5D Mark II has an awful lot to recommend it to the serious photographer."
dpreview.com | talking about the 5D Mark II's overall-performance
"the 5D Mark II is certainly one of the best value for money propositions on the market for image quality - especially in RAW, where you really can see the benefit of all 21 million pixels."
dpreview.com | talking about the 5D Mark II's image-quality

Reasons to buy the Canon EOS 5D Mark II

Color depth
 Great color depth
23.7 bits
Viewfinder size
 Large viewfinder
0.71x
Weather sealed
 Weather sealed
Shoot in extreme weather
Sensor size
 Large sensor
Full frame 36.0x24.0mm
Fastest shutter speed
 Fast shutter speed
1/8000 of a second
Canon EOS 7D

71
Runner-up

Canon EOS 7D
"The Canon EOS 7D is a camera that can convince in all areas, and at its current pricing is going to be a very serious competitor for Nikon's flagship APS-C DSLR, the D300S."
dpreview.com | talking about the 7D's overall-performance
"Excellent build quality with magnesium body and environmental sealing"
dpreview.com | talking about the 7D's build-quality

Reasons to buy the Canon EOS 7D

Weather sealed
 Weather sealed
Shoot in extreme weather
Continuous shooting
 Rapid fire
8 fps
Shutter lag
 Barely any delay taking photos
131 ms shutter lag
Cross type focus points
 Many cross-type focus points
19
Viewfinder coverage
 Great viewfinder coverage
100%
Fastest shutter speed
 Fast shutter speed
1/8000 of a second

differences

Advantages of the Canon 5D Mark II
Low light performance Significantly lower noise at high ISO 1,815 ISO vs 854 ISO
Help
 The 5D Mark II has excellent image quality 1.1 f-stops higher ISO than the 7D
Overall image quality Significantly better image quality 79.0 vs 66.0
Help
 Around 20% better image quality
Color depth Better color depth 23.7 bits vs 22 bits
Help
 Distinguishes 1.7 more bits of color
Sensor size Much larger sensor Full frame 36.0x24.0mm vs APS-C 22.3x14.9mm
Help
 More than 2.5x larger sensor
Viewfinder size Larger viewfinder 0.71x vs 0.62x
Help
 More than 30% larger viewfinder
Dynamic range More dynamic range 11.9 EV vs 11.7 EV
Help
 0.2 f-stops more dynamic range
True resolution Higher true resolution 21 MP vs 17.9 MP
Help
 Capture around 20% more detail in your photos
Light sensitivity (boost) Better boost ISO 25,600 ISO vs 12,800 ISO
Help
 The 5D Mark II's boost ISO is 1 f-stop better
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Learn more about
the Canon 5D Mark II

Advantages of the Canon 7D
Cross type focus points Significantly more cross-type focus points 19 vs 1
Help
 Grab focus in difficult situations
Continuous shooting Shoots significantly faster 8 fps vs 3.9 fps
Help
 More than 2x faster continuous shooting
Lens availability More lenses available 162 lenses vs 125 lenses
Help
 Around 30% more lenses available
Shutter lag Less shutter lag 131 ms vs 206 ms
Help
 Around 40% less delay when taking photos
Focus points More focus points 19 vs 9
Help
 Set focus accurately within the frame
Viewfinder coverage Better viewfinder coverage 100% vs 98%
Help
 Almost the same
Built-in flash Built-in flash Yes vs No
Help
 A built-in flash is useful for taking indoor shots where there is little light
Size Slightly smaller 148x111x74 mm vs 152x114x75 mm
Help
 Around 10% smaller
Lowest price Slightly cheaper $1,549.00 vs $2,130.11
Help
 The best price we've seen is $581 cheaper (around 30% less)
Thickness Slightly thinner 2.9" vs 3"
Help
 Almost the same
Canon EOS 7D Learn more about
the Canon 7D
vs

recommendations

Relative to the best recent pro DSLRs, and ignoring price

Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon EOS 5D Mark II
83 vs 71
Explain scores
Canon EOS 7D Canon EOS 7D
Green arrow Snapsort recommends the Canon EOS 5D Mark II.

advice

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I am considering either the 5D Mark II or the 7D,
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4
votes
by Ila-Das last month
Canon 5D Mark II vs Canon 7D

I am a beginner and image quality is my priority

3 people recommend the Canon 5D Mark II:

" Most amateurs are recommended to start with a cropped sensor camera (7D is cropped).  But if you..."

"The 5D Mark II and 7D are both great choices for starting out as a professional. However, the 5D h..."
One person recommends the Canon 7D:

"It actually depends on what type of professional you want to be. For sports/action shots, the 7d i..."
1
votes
by TrinaPMaysPhoto last month
Canon 5D Mark II vs Canon 7D

Not a beginner, more of an intermediate. Looking to be a serious pro

2 people recommend the Canon 5D Mark II:

" If you think you can afford it, then 5D Mark II is better.  But ... I think your question is bet..."

"I'd go with the 5D Mark II because it has a full frame sensor, which gives better image quality an..."
1
votes
by Karen-Billingsley-Riegler last month
Canon 5D Mark II vs Canon 7D

I would call myself an advanced amateur.

One person recommends the Canon 5D Mark II:

" 5D Mark II is a full frame sensor camera, and thus would be expected to perform better in low li..."
0
votes
by Haywood-The-Voice-Arrington yesterday
Canon 5D Mark II vs Canon 7D

I'm trying to figure out which one is better for video recording.

One person recommends the Canon 7D:

" I own both cameras and the 7d is more usable on a day to day basis. Better still the even cheape..."
0
votes
by Lia-Young last week
Canon 5D Mark II vs Canon 7D

I want to be able to pick up this camera and have little difficulty taking a variety of photo's ...

One person recommends the Canon 5D Mark II:

" You will get better photo and video quality from the 5DII thanks to the full-frame sensor.  (But..."

similarities

Compared to recent DSLRs

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Weather sealed Weather sealed Help
Shoot in extreme weather
Viewfinder Both have pentaprism viewfinders Help
Pentaprism
Supports 24p 24p support Help
For that film look
Thickness Thin Help
5D Mark II:3"
7D:2.9"
Fastest shutter speed Fast max shutter speeds Help
1/8000 of a second
Storage slots Fewer storage slots Help
1
Weight Heavy Help
5D Mark II:850 g
7D:860 g
Autofocus No video autofocus Help
Manual focus only
HDR Neither has in-camera HDR Help
You could do HDR manually
Screen flips out No flip-out screens Help
Less flexible
Image stabilization No image stabilization Help
Risk of blur
Panorama Neither camera stitches together panoramas Help
You could stitch photos in post
3D Neither camera can take 3D photos Help
No 3d support
Light sensitivity Poor maximum light sensitivity Help
6,400 ISO

Compared to recent pro DSLRs

Common Strengths Common Weaknesses
Size Fairly small Help
5D Mark II:152x114x75 mm
7D:148x111x74 mm
Supports RAW Supports RAW Help
Better editing
Lowest price Inexpensive Help
5D Mark II:$2,130.11
7D:$1,549.00
Weight Light weight Help
5D Mark II:850 g
7D:860 g
Light sensitivity (boost) Poor boost ISO Help
5D Mark II:25,600 ISO
7D:12,800 ISO
Focus points Few focus points Help
5D Mark II:9
7D:19
Battery life Few shots per battery charge Help
5D Mark II:850 shots
7D:800 shots
Screen size Very small screens Help
3.0"

dxomark

DXOMark

competitors

Shared Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages
Nikon D7000

Nikon D7000

Entry-level DSLR

$1,000 body only

$1,100 with 55-200mm lens
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Movie continuous focus Can focus continuously while recording movies
Thickness Is thicker
Shutter lag Has significantly more shutter lag
Compare the D7000 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the D7000 vs the EOS 7D
Canon EOS 60D

Canon EOS 60D

Pro DSLR

$848 - $1,304 body only

$1,177 - $1,342 with 18-135mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Thickness Is thicker
Viewfinder coverage Slightly less viewfinder coverage
Compare the EOS 60D vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the EOS 60D vs the EOS 7D
Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Canon EOS 5D Mark III

Pro DSLR

$3,499 - $3,500 body only

$4,299 - $4,300 with 24-105mm lens
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Screen size Has a significantly larger screen
Lowest price Is slightly more expensive
Compare the EOS 5D Mark III vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the EOS 5D Mark III vs the EOS 7D
Canon Rebel T3i

Canon Rebel T3i

Entry-level DSLR

$619 - $700 body only

$745 - $1,000 with 18-55mm lens
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Weight Is slightly lighter
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the Rebel T3i vs the EOS 7D
Nikon D700

Nikon D700

Pro DSLR

$2,649 body only
Low light performance Is slightly less noisy at high ISO
Focus points Has significantly more focus points
Thickness Is thicker
Weight Is slightly heavier
Compare the D700 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the D700 vs the EOS 7D
Canon EOS Rebel T2i

Canon Rebel T2i

Entry-level DSLR

$544 - $949 body only

$649 - $867 with 18-55mm lens
Size Is slightly smaller
Thickness Is thinner
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Viewfinder coverage Slightly less viewfinder coverage
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the Rebel T2i vs the EOS 7D
Nikon D5100

Nikon D5100

Entry-level DSLR

$500 - $597 body only

$600 - $697 with 18-55mm lens
Dynamic range Has slightly wider dynamic range
Screen flips out Has a screen which flips out
Fastest shutter speed Has a slower max shutter speed
Thickness Is thicker
Compare the D5100 vs the EOS 5D Mark II
Compare the D5100 vs the EOS 7D

Canon EOS 5D Mark II Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

No significant competitors found that are specific to the Canon EOS 5D Mark II.

Canon EOS 7D Competitors

Advantages

Disadvantages

No significant competitors found that are specific to the Canon EOS 7D.

appearance

Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon EOS 7D
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon EOS 7D
Canon EOS 5D Mark II Canon EOS 7D

discussion

Showing 25 comments

Avatar for Dartanian Dartanian (5:49 AM, April 22, 2012)
It's incredible that you would say that.  Perhaps your 40 years of experience has caused you to stay in the 1970's.  The 'Singularity' (Google it) is what's happening here, and you are fast becoming obsolete if you cling to your opinions based on previous experience.
 
Avatar for ReeLChordMedia ReeLChordMedia (0:56 AM, April 05, 2012)
I think you should burn your degree...LOL. Have you been living under a rock?! More and more people are doing incredible things with DSLR cameras (final episode of "House"). And they do it with little or no budget. Go on youtube or vimeo; dont be a dream killer. Do you know what I could do with three 5D's and a $250k budget?!!
 
Avatar for Sol_Invictus Sol_Invictus (8:53 PM, March 30, 2012)
I hope you realize that the movies "Hell and Back" and "Act of Valor" were both shot with the 5D Mark II.  They didn't have anywhere near the assets you're referring to. Google Danfung Dennis and you'll see the gear he used to make his movie.  Which incidentally was nominated for an Oscar.  
 
Avatar for Leonard Washington Leonard Washington (3:49 AM, March 25, 2012)
I owned both of those cameras. I definitely preferred the 7D for its quickness. I could care less for stills. 7D will focus much much much faster than 5d mk2 in the lower light and sports or whenever you need a fast candid. 5D mk2 has a harder time focusing and only useful with a center AF point really. Though 5D mk2 low light performance if you get it to focus right is OUTSTANDING, and image quality is AMAZING. I usually manual focused on my 5D mk2 and AF in Cont. high on 7D. 

I sold both now and buying a 1D series camera ;) 
 
Bcdane (9:05 PM, March 22, 2012)
Salt water splash from a Hawaiian wave.... immediate towel dry, was prepared incase with a silica cube and stuck camera in a bag in case.... Canon... sorry,... complete write-off!. Weather sealed? tickles of rain, dust ok. The NIkkon shooter at front of boat and camera got complete heavy wave soak.... A OK. Nice 'false' sense of security. Readers.... don't get it wet, especially salt water.... didn't even get a chance to corode... done.
 
Filmbird (8:25 AM, March 17, 2012)
And 'For Lovers Only'. With a cast and crew of about 5-10 people, on a $0 budget. They've made a profit of over $200,000. Sorry Delijaxd, but you're wrong...
 
ADPTraining (7:34 AM, March 07, 2012)
Delijaxd is an idiot. Redtails and Act of Valor were shot with 5Ds and 7Ds. DSLRs are the future.
 
Wdeptuch (2:57 AM, March 07, 2012)
You have no clue what you are talking about, the canon 5d mark ii and the 7d have been used on feature films and television shows over the past several years.
You dont have to worry about the sound on these if you are shooting for a feature because you should be shooting that seperately (like with an h4n zoom) like they do with the reds and film cameras.
 
Delijaxd (6:14 AM, February 25, 2012)
Having both a college degree in film making and 40 years of experience in the industry, I can assure you that it is virtually IMPOSSIBLE for ANYONE to make a "full length feature film" with any digital SLR type camera - a complete waste of time. In theory, yes "impossible" may be over-stating it, but unless you have a crew of 100 or so, plus a viable script and a huge budget - while technically possible, it would also require at least 3 or more cameras, a complete sound system (you can't expect to get even sound from 2 or more cameras) and there's just so much more I could go on for 10 full pages and only address a small fraction of the obstacles you would face.  Take a look at the Nikon website and they have a 4 or 5 minute "movies" made with the new D800 camera. Take a look at the credits at the end - there are well over 100 people that were credited with their contributions to a movie that ran for less than 5 minutes - a typical 'full length feature" would require everything they had (my guess is at least a half dozen cameras, countless lenses, and a separate sound recording system - which is expensive but an absolute requirement) - and my guess (based on the cost of shooting 30 second TV commercials) or a $250,000 budget - a full length feature film is on average over 100 minutes long, so multiply that budget by 20. (Only $5million - which seems WAY too low - but maybe possible if you don't have to pay anyone - just pay for the equipment, the sets, permits, etc.) - Of course if the unions get wind of what you are doing, expect the cost to be much higher.
 
Avatar for Feral Thibedeaux Feral Thibedeaux (5:40 PM, February 14, 2012)
Easy... 5d... the 550d (t2i)  side by side comparisons have shown that
in almost all respects, performs like the 7d... If you are upgrading... spend the dosh, get the 5d... the bigger sensor, lower contrast ratio (due to the larger sensor) and video capabilities are amazing
 
Steve (5:25 PM, January 06, 2012)
7D : Magnesium body with shutter durability up to 150,000 cycles and exclusive dust and weather resistance. (http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/professional/products/professional_cameras/digital_slr_cameras/eos_7d#Features)
5D:High performance with 3.9 fps continuous shooting, new shutter with a durability of 150,000 cycles and improved weather-resistant body.
(http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/professional/products/professional_cameras/digital_slr_cameras/eos_5d_mark_ii#Features)
Seems They are *both* weather resistant but the 5D isn't dust resistant.
 
Doctorz (2:37 PM, December 26, 2011)
I looked at these two cameras before choosing the 5d MkII. IMO these two cameras are just about equal except that the 5D has the full frame 35mm CMOS  sensors while the 7D has the smaller  APS-C CMOS sensor. Thus  the 5D behaves as a true 35mm camera while the 7D behaves as "smaller" frame camera. By the nature of physics, the APS-C sensor has a 1.6x focal length multiplier -which becomes important when one is shooting wide field of views: e.g. a 24mm lens shoots as a 24mm lens on the 5D while the 7D with the same lens shoots as a 38mm lens (24 x 1.6).  Thus it's tougher to shoot "wide" with the 7D. Conversely, because of the 1.6 focal length multiplier, a longer lens (e.g. 200 mm) on the 7D will have more "reach" than that on the 5D. It will behave as a 320mm lens. (200 x 1.6). To those still undecided, may I suggest reading Canon's CMOS White Paper found here: http://media.the-digital-picture.com/Information/Canon-Full-Frame-CMOS-White-Paper.pdf

As for lenses: keep in mind that if you already have an investment in EF-S lenses, you cannot use them on the full frame 5d as these lenses are designed only for APS-C sensor cameras.
 
Teknodogg (3:45 PM, December 13, 2011)
if you do a lot of sports than go with a 7D
 
Rizengrom (7:29 PM, December 12, 2011)
It's weather Resistant, not weathersealed
 
xeres (6:03 PM, December 07, 2011)
Being an amateur photographer I've understood, through the years, that lenses are at least as much important than cameras. After an uppgrade from a 500D to a 7d (I really love that machine !) I got the feeling that my best lens did a better work with a 500D than my worse lens did with my new 7D.
Anyway, I.m quite sure the 5D is a better rending camera concerning details, colors and sharpened pictures. But the 7D has got newer technology (autofocus, 2x digic-4 processor for real fast pictures series and so on...). I would advise people with my ambition (wanting to take real good pictures and make nice HD movies to buy a 7D and put the money that is over in a better zoom lens. The 7D is more than enough camera for the creative amateur!  
   
 
Bobraposo1970 (9:17 PM, November 17, 2011)
I am looking to upgrade my Rebel XTi and considering Canon 7D or 5D.  Issue is that I have a lense 18-200 that is not compatible with the 5D, but I love the power of this camera.  Any recos?
 
Boskovicluka (9:37 AM, September 21, 2011)
I prefere the 5D too, but this review is the worst ever. Expecially the "weather seal" kix hahahah
 
SHAMWOW (3:04 PM, September 13, 2011)
I am looking to upgrade my Canon T1i. I currently only use the 50 f 1.4 and the 85 f 1.8. I shoot a lot of basektball and landscape things. I am really starting to get into portrait photography as well. I am a college student so obviously I am on some what of a budget but I could probably get enough for the 5d if need be. Any comments or suggestions would be great on which camera is better and why. Thank you
 
Dadvianphotography (10:36 AM, September 13, 2011)
can't afford a 5d mark II =( and L lenses...wish i could ..but 1,000 extra for the body...and twice the price of any lens...help please..can't decide betwin a 5d mk II  with a 50 mm lens  or a 7d with a 18-135 mm  ,a 10-20 sigma wide angle  a rokinon 8 mm fish eye..and a nikon sb 28 vintage flash for off camera flash =(....something inside of me tell's me go for te 5d...but other part tells me that its a 3 year old body and an up grade can come real soon...reasons to buy 5d..low noise at high iso  and full frame format...reasons to buy 7d..focus system and the option of 60 frames ps ..i love slow mo  =( please help
 
Stefanots (9:23 AM, August 23, 2011)
http://canonfieldreviews.com/7d-1-weather-sealing/
Isn't 7D weathersealed?
The weathersealing isn't as good as 1D series, but it's quite complete
 
Ted Ciesielski (3:37 AM, August 20, 2011)
Absolutly 5D!  All Zeiss P2 pro lesnses and Shift lenses are for full frame cameras only like 5D

Ted Ciesielski,  DP
"man w the movie camera"
 
BobGuch (8:07 PM, August 08, 2011)
ahh which one to buy when you already own a canon 550D :P
 
Sp12 07 (4:08 AM, July 28, 2011)
The weathersealing info is wrong.

Neither camera is weathersealed. The 7D has slightly better sealing in that it has a full-out seal at the tripod mount and a few more scattered around the buttons. The 5DII is missing several key seals -- in fact, it only has 3 at the screen, memory card door, and battery.

So, it goes something like Rebel<5DII<7D<1D series, in which only the 1D* series is actually weathersealed. I'd call the 5DII weather-resistant, as Canon's own literature states resistant to up to 10mm of rain in 3 minutes.
 
Niklas (2:01 PM, May 13, 2011)
 The weathersealing info on 7D is wrong, it is weathersealed.
 
Qnsnjd (8:21 PM, May 12, 2011)
Sorry, but the 7d actually has slighy superior weather sealing. This comparison says the 7d has none.