The Canon EOS 7-D
DSLR’s are all the rage these days, in particular for videographers looking to get high quality results with a minimal outlay of dollars. There are lots of pluses and minuses and I would recommend anyone looking at making an investment of what is easily several thousand dollars, (no matter how you slice it) borrow, rent or otherwise get themselves as fully acquainted with the various cameras and third party systems as they can before buying.
As I mentioned in another post, even top television producers are turning to DSLR’s to solve problems, while providing them with high quality footage. The 2010 season closer for House was shot predominantly on Canon EOS 5D cameras. The cameras I am certain were a fraction of the cost of the entire gear package, which probably included some $20,000 lenses and such. Nevertheless, plenty of people are getting incredible results with a number of available DSLR’s from Canon, Nikon and others, at what can only be described as bargain pricing.
After you read this review, I might suggest you head over to YouTube and check out some of the incredible footage, tips and information available there on these cameras and their use for video. You will be blown away. You will also discover that by themselves, these cameras are rather difficult to use, and thus an entire world of companies, including names like Red-Rock Micro, Zacuto, IDC and many others have all sorts of devices to make your videos look better and assist in every phase of the process. Steady cams to follow focus pullers to magnified eyepieces to special cages, there is no shortage of devices one can buy to improve their experience.
Canon EOS REBEL T2i
Thankfully, many users are posting videos to show their various interactions with these third party add-ons. Even in a major city, such as San Francisco, there are few places one can find any of these items available to see in person, let alone try out. Given that differences can vary greatly from product to product and brand to brand, spending considerable time researching available options will serve you well.
So, now to the nitty and the gritty. The video you can get from the Canon Rebel T2i out of the box is exactly the same as what you would get from the Canon EOS 7D. The difference is that the T2i is approximately 1/2 the price of the 7D. Now, having said that, these are 2 very different cameras. If you are looking to shoot predominantly stills, while you will get a nice shot from the T2i, it doesn’t hold a candle to the 7D. The drive motor is slower. The fit and feel is not up to par with the 7D. It is smaller and doesn’t fit as well in your hands (well, at least not in mine) as the 7D. In most ways it seems to be an entry model to the 7D.
But if video is your game, the T2i might just be the ticket. The T2i and the 7D have the same exact sensor, which is almost identical to the ones in the Red and the Genesis. And given that few people will be looking at shooting video by hand holding one of these babies, but instead will elect to put the camera on sticks or use a third party solution, such as some sort of steady holder or cage, the size differential probably matters far less than if you are looking to go and shoot stills with the camera.
With the street cost of the Rebel T2i going out at about $750 and its bigger brother, the EOS &-D running around $1500, a smart videographer can re-invest the $750 they’d be saving into some nice glass or one of the aforementioned third party add-ons.
Actually, the LCD on the T2i is a newer generation that offers slightly more pixels. Both cameras will shoot full 1920 X 1080 video in 24/25/30 fps. Combining the near-field capabilities of the camera with 24 FPS in true high def yields a tremendous product. Both cameras work equally well in very low light too.
While I am not too certain what the production path is like in FCP or Avid, I can tell you that in Adobe Premiere CS5, it’s a dream. Having a big 0 Raid drive setup will help quite a bit.
As soon as a couple of my slow paying clients pay up, I will be getting myself one of the T2i’s for keeps. I’ll have to fill you in as I go through the paces of picking out exactly what lenses and other paraphealia I will be getting to go along with this fine shooting machine.
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