Sl2 or t7i with 100-400 ii

Karen Casebeer · Mar 6, 2018

I’m looking for lighter gear and recently switched to the M5 and 18-150 as my landscape and walkaround set-up. I also shoot wildlife and birds with my 80d and 100-400 ii, but that combo is pretty heavy to handhold. I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance. Thinking of switching the body to Sl2 or t7i, both of which have a bit more meat. What input do you have? Do you forsee any problems with either of these bodies?

MikeJ9116 · Mar 6, 2018

Karen Casebeer said:
I’m looking for lighter gear and recently switched to the M5 and 18-150 as my landscape and walkaround set-up. I also shoot wildlife and birds with my 80d and 100-400 ii, but that combo is pretty heavy to handhold. I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance. Thinking of switching the body to Sl2 or t7i, both of which have a bit more meat. What input do you have? Do you forsee any problems with either of these bodies?

If you haven't tried one, I would recommend looking into using a monopod. The SL2 doesn't have an AF system for shooting moving targets with telephoto lenses so the only viable option is the T7i between your two suggestions. The T7i saves you 7 ounces over the 80D which isn't much considering your current rig using the 80D with the 100-400mm is 82 ounces.

A monopod will take bulk of the weight when you are shooting and with a quick connect plate you can mount and dismount the monopod easily if you need more freedom of movement. The 800 lb. gorilla in your combination is the lens and a change in camera bodies isn't going to do much to reduce weight to any degree. Also, an added benefit of a monopod is it will help a good deal in steadying the camera and will probably give you sharper photos in many situations. It would also increase your ability to take sharp photos in less the ideal light.

Karen Casebeer · Mar 6, 2018

MikeJ9116 said:
Karen Casebeer said:

I’m looking for lighter gear and recently switched to the M5 and 18-150 as my landscape and walkaround set-up. I also shoot wildlife and birds with my 80d and 100-400 ii, but that combo is pretty heavy to handhold. I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance. Thinking of switching the body to Sl2 or t7i, both of which have a bit more meat. What input do you have? Do you forsee any problems with either of these bodies?

Click to expand...

If you haven't tried one, I would recommend looking into using a monopod. The SL2 doesn't have an AF system for shooting moving targets with telephoto lenses so the only viable option is the T7i between your two suggestions. The T7i saves you 7 ounces over the 80D which isn't much considering your current rig using the 80D with the 100-400mm is 82 ounces.

A monopod will take bulk of the weight when you are shooting and with a quick connect plate you can mount and dismount the monopod easily if you need more freedom of movement. The 800 lb. gorilla in your combination is the lens and a change in camera bodies isn't going to do much to reduce weight to any degree. Also, an added benefit of a monopod is it will help a good deal in steadying the camera and will probably give you sharper photos in many situations. It would also increase your ability to take sharp photos in less the ideal light.

Thanks, Mike, for pointing out the lack of the Sl2’s AF system with respect to being able to track moving targets. I went back and re-read the review and see how I missed that the first time around.

grammieb14 · Mar 6, 2018

You can track moving targets with the sl2. It is easier to do with live view. I would not recommend the sl2 to someone who wants to shoot big as their main focus, but it is possible to do moving sports and wildlife with the sl2. Bab

rick9814911 · Mar 7, 2018

I wouldn't want to use the SL2 for anything very action oriented, specially birds. It has only one center crosstype autofocus point, the T7i has 45 all crosstype. I just got the 77d and it's a lot lighter than the 80d, it's almost exactly the same dimensions and weight as the T7i.

For you I would say go T7i or 77d all the way. The autofocus alone will be worlds better for bird and action photography. It's not quite as light as the SL2 but still a lot lighter than the 80d, and smaller too. It should balance pretty well with that lens.

Karen Casebeer · Mar 7, 2018

rick9814911 said:
I wouldn't want to use the SL2 for anything very action oriented, specially birds. It has only one center crosstype autofocus point, the T7i has 45 all crosstype. I just got the 77d and it's a lot lighter than the 80d, it's almost exactly the same dimensions and weight as the T7i.

For you I would say go T7i or 77d all the way. The autofocus alone will be worlds better for bird and action photography. It's not quite as light as the SL2 but still a lot lighter than the 80d, and smaller too. It should balance pretty well with that lens.

Thanks, Rick. I didn't find the 77d until after I'd ordered the t7i. They are very similar, although the 77d is a tiny bit heavier. In looking at the specs, one wouldn't think the difference between the 80d and the t7i is a game changer, but when shooting with the lighter camera, it is easier to handhold, which is my preferred method of shooting.

MikeJ9116 · Mar 7, 2018

Karen Casebeer said:
rick9814911 said:

I wouldn't want to use the SL2 for anything very action oriented, specially birds. It has only one center crosstype autofocus point, the T7i has 45 all crosstype. I just got the 77d and it's a lot lighter than the 80d, it's almost exactly the same dimensions and weight as the T7i.

For you I would say go T7i or 77d all the way. The autofocus alone will be worlds better for bird and action photography. It's not quite as light as the SL2 but still a lot lighter than the 80d, and smaller too. It should balance pretty well with that lens.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Rick. I didn't find the 77d until after I'd ordered the t7i. They are very similar, although the 77d is a tiny bit heavier. In looking at the specs, one wouldn't think the difference between the 80d and the t7i is a game changer, but when shooting with the lighter camera, it is easier to handhold, which is my preferred method of shooting.

You are only giving up a couple of external controls between the T7i and 77D. They both have the same internals and specs otherwise.

Olga Johnson · Mar 7, 2018

Karen Casebeer said:
I’m looking for lighter gear and recently switched to the M5 and 18-150 as my landscape and walkaround set-up. I also shoot wildlife and birds with my 80d and 100-400 ii, but that combo is pretty heavy to handhold. I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance. Thinking of switching the body to Sl2 or t7i, both of which have a bit more meat. What input do you have? Do you forsee any problems with either of these bodies?

While the cameras may weigh less than the 80D, the balance of holding such a lens on the smaller cameras is too awkward for me, making it worse than a good balance with the 80D.

I sometimes use my 70-200 f/4L with my SL2 but find it very uncomfortable. It's much more comfortable, although slightly heavier, with a bigger camera.

jvc1 · Mar 7, 2018

Karen Casebeer said:
I’m looking for lighter gear and recently switched to the M5 and 18-150 as my landscape and walkaround set-up. I also shoot wildlife and birds with my 80d and 100-400 ii, but that combo is pretty heavy to handhold. I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance. Thinking of switching the body to Sl2 or t7i, both of which have a bit more meat. What input do you have? Do you forsee any problems with either of these bodies?

I had my 100-400 II on my SL-1, I doubt the SL-1 will feel any better than the M5 does. As others have mentioned the AF isn't great for fast moving subjects though the SL-2 is probably a little better than the SL-1. Another consideration is the small buffer. If you shoot RAW and JPEG in bursts, the buffer bogs down after 3 shoots. The SL-2 looks like it might be a little worse as the file sizes are bigger.

grammieb14 · Mar 7, 2018

grammieb14 said:
You can track moving targets with the sl2. It is easier to do with live view. I would not recommend the sl2 to someone who wants to shoot big as their main focus, but it is possible to do moving sports and wildlife with the sl2. Bab

ThrillaMozilla · Mar 8, 2018

Karen Casebeer said:
I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance.

So hang a weight on it. $800-$1000 is a lot of money to pay for an 8 ounce weight, if that's why you're getting another camera.

R2D2 · Mar 9, 2018

ThrillaMozilla said:
Karen Casebeer said:

I tried the 100-400 on the M5, but it was ridiculously out of balance.

Click to expand...

So hang a weight on it. $800-$1000 is a lot of money to pay for an 8 ounce weight, if that's why you're getting another camera.

LOL!

I've shot with my 400/5.6 on the M5 all day, and though I don't find the balance to be an issue, it's really the small grip that makes it less comfortable (than my 70D). It's do-able, but not preferable. I can hang any big lens (incl Canon's 200-400 brick) on an xxD body and it'll feel completely comfortable and natural. Lenses like the 100-400 will do just fine on the T7i or 77D (though I'd go for the 77D with its AF-On button).

IMHO what really hurts the M-series when shooting action is the EVF delay when shooting bursts. It's really a "blackout" for all intents and purposes, making it hard to track fast moving subjects because the image on the display is always old. Even the SL2 would track better.

But when the tracking is right on, then the M5's images are well-focused (even in pretty low light IME). So the potential is there. Canon just needs to keep speeding up their processors and displays. Maybe the M50 will be a step in the right direction!

In the meantime, the Rebels still hold a definite advantage.

R2

--
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Experience comes from bad judgment.
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Sl2 or t7i with 100-400 ii

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