# Buying a used Canon camera advice



## alfanoc (Oct 24, 2016)

Hello

I'm wondering what kind of things I should be looking at when purchasing a used camera. I checked online with Henry's and found a large selection that comes with 90 days warranty and also warranty up to three years for additional cost. 

Looking at the Canon Mrk 5D 11 ($1400) or 5G 111 ($2500) are still pricey but I came across the Canon EOS 7D that is half the price (approx 700 cnd).

I currently have the Rebel T1i and hoping to upgrade for a reasonable price.


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## robbins.photo (Oct 25, 2016)

Ok, so to answer your question, I'd need to ask some... what is the purpose of the upgrade?

In what areas, specifically, are you looking for improvements in your camera body?  What is it your current body doesn't do well that you want it to do better?


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## alfanoc (Oct 25, 2016)

robbins.photo said:


> Ok, so to answer your question, I'd need to ask some... what is the purpose of the upgrade?
> 
> In what areas, specifically, are you looking for improvements in your camera body?  What is it your current body doesn't do well that you want it to do better?




Honestly, it's outdated. I'm a hobbyist right now and thought it was time to go with something more professional if I'm going to aim towards that eventually. I been researching a lot on newborn photography and children portraits and notice a lot of photographers using the mark 111 or 6dor 7 d, I'm comfortable with a canon and would like just a little more bells and whistles to be able to experiment with.


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## Advanced Photo (Oct 25, 2016)

The number of shutter actuations let's you know how much use it has seen, but not if it is close to fail as the actual failure and predicted mtbf does not correlate in the real world.


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## alfanoc (Oct 25, 2016)

Advanced Photo said:


> The number of shutter actuations let's you know how much use it has seen, but not if it is close to fail as the actual failure and predicted mtbf does not correlate in the real world.


What does that mean? Mtbf? / and what number would be considered a high number of shutter shots taken? When I walkin to Henry's I guess I'll need to ask that question, correct?


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## robbins.photo (Oct 25, 2016)

alfanoc said:


> Honestly, it's outdated. I'm a hobbyist right now and thought it was time to go with something more professional if I'm going to aim towards that eventually. I been researching a lot on newborn photography and children portraits and notice a lot of photographers using the mark 111 or 6dor 7 d, I'm comfortable with a canon and would like just a little more bells and whistles to be able to experiment with.



Yes, it is outdated.  But that's way to general.  Question is, what features do you need for the type of photography?

With most portrait photography you have a lot of control - you can control your distance from the subject, the lighting, etc, etc... so you really don't need something brand new or top of the line to get the job done.

Now, if you want better background separation or the ability to shoot in lower lighting, or a camera that doesn't have a crop factor so you can get the same FOV while being closer to your subject then those are reasons you might want to upgrade to a full frame.  The question then becomes what are the different features those cameras offer and which features are most important to you?

But these are questions you really need to ask yourself.  What features are the most important to you, and the photography you do - not what are the Jones's using.  

Make sense?


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## alfanoc (Oct 25, 2016)

And


robbins.photo said:


> alfanoc said:
> 
> 
> > Honestly, it's outdated. I'm a hobbyist right now and thought it was time to go with something more professional if I'm going to aim towards that eventually. I been researching a lot on newborn photography and children portraits and notice a lot of photographers using the mark 111 or 6dor 7 d, I'm comfortable with a canon and would like just a little more bells and whistles to be able to experiment with.
> ...


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## robbins.photo (Oct 25, 2016)

alfanoc said:


> Absolutely, thank you. I do want to get into the newborn photography to start as well as macro photography so I guess speaking to someone who does that as a profession may help me decide. Perhaps I just need a better lens, I do like the one I have, canon 50mm 1.4,
> 
> thank you for your help.



No problem, always happy to help.  A new camera body can give you some advantages, trick is to pick one that is going to suit your needs best.  To do that you need to first identify what your needs are.

In the interest of full disclosure, I'm not a professional photographer.  Just an avid enthusiast.


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## kalgra (Oct 25, 2016)

Another thing to consider is what lenses you currently own. If you currently have a rebel then most likely you are using mostly EFS lenses which will not work on any of Canons full frame cameras such as the 6D or any of the 5D cameras.

The 7D is an apsc camera so any EFS glass you currently own will work with the 7D.


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## Advanced Photo (Oct 25, 2016)

alfanoc said:


> Advanced Photo said:
> 
> 
> > The number of shutter actuations let's you know how much use it has seen, but not if it is close to fail as the actual failure and predicted mtbf does not correlate in the real world.
> ...


Mean Time Between Failures. 
Most quality Dslrs are rated at around 150,000 but no one knows how those are tested. While it's a useful thing for comparing within camera brands, all makers use their own settings so inter brand comparisons are useless.
A shutter can fail quickly or if it makes it through warranty it can last for a million actuations.
Asking about it will just let you know other things about its use though and the former owners habits as far as if it was used an awful lot meaning travel time environmental condition changes, vibration, etc. But it could also be a back up camera that was always taken along but barely used.
While in and of itself, it might not be a deal breaker, it can give you leverage to offer a lower price than is being asked if it has over 100,000 on it.


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## zombiesniper (Oct 25, 2016)

One thing I will add about Henry's.
The one I have local to me in Barrie is fantastic. I have bought a lens that I ended up returning because I would get periodic communications errors. They took it back and refunded me with no questions. I have since purchased two used lenses from them and my 7Dmk2. Have had nothing but good experiences from them.


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## alfanoc (Oct 25, 2016)

kalgra said:


> Another thing to consider is what lenses you currently own. If you currently have a rebel then most likely you are using mostly EFS lenses which will not work on any of Canons full frame cameras such as the 6D or any of the 5D cameras.
> 
> The 7D is an apsc camera so any EFS glass you currently own will work with the 7D.



CRAp! That I didn't know! Thank you! 
Back to researching. I have canon EF 50mm 1.4 that i really like to use that was pretty pricey for me anyway that is like to keep.


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## alfanoc (Oct 25, 2016)

zombiesniper said:


> One thing I will add about Henry's.
> The one I have local to me in Barrie is fantastic. I have bought a lens that I ended up returning because I would get periodic communications errors. They took it back and refunded me with no questions. I have since purchased two used lenses from them and my 7Dmk2. Have had nothing but good experiences from them.



Thank you, did you buy the extra warranty? I read they offer 3. Yrs warranty for a few extra hundred dollars?


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## zombiesniper (Oct 25, 2016)

I did for the 500 F4 and the 7dmk2 but not the rest.


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## zombiesniper (Oct 25, 2016)

alfanoc said:


> kalgra said:
> 
> 
> > Another thing to consider is what lenses you currently own. If you currently have a rebel then most likely you are using mostly EFS lenses which will not work on any of Canons full frame cameras such as the 6D or any of the 5D cameras.
> ...



The 50mm 1.4 will fit both full frame and APSC bodies as will all EF lenses. It's only EF-S lenses that won't fit full frame.


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## kalgra (Oct 25, 2016)

alfanoc said:


> kalgra said:
> 
> 
> > Another thing to consider is what lenses you currently own. If you currently have a rebel then most likely you are using mostly EFS lenses which will not work on any of Canons full frame cameras such as the 6D or any of the 5D cameras.
> ...



That wont be a problem. EF lenses will work on either crop  sensor or full frame. Its just the EFS lenses that wont work on full frame bodies. Sorry if that was confusing.


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