Canon EOS 70D Digital SLR Camera with 18-55mm STM Lens

The bottom line is this is a fantastic vlogging camera, which is the specific reason I bought it. If you're not interested in 4k, if you're a 1 man band, or just someone that wants to shoot a lot of great material and get it out to the world fast, this might be the camera for you. Already being the owner of a Canon 5D mark iii and mark iv, I am very familiar with the Canon brand. I do both still photography and videography, equally. I endeavored to help my wife start up a lifestyle vlog, and did a lot of research on cameras before picking this one. It made a lot of sense to me because I already own a lot of high-end Canon glass. However, owning full frame cameras, I don't have too many super wide angle lenses, that are better for this APC-S sized sensor. Please see below for a detailed analysis. VIDEOGRAPHY: Pros: -I love the articulating touch screen. To me, this is the main reason this camera beats the pants off of my 5D's for shooting video. You can place this camera high or low, left or right, face it at you or behind you, and turn the screen to see it. You can tap on the screen to focus or adjust properties easily. -Facial auto focus works really great! I know there is an upgraded camera (80D) that makes this better. But honestly, if you are looking to save some money, just get this camera. You're gonna be happy with the autofocus. It's fine. -Compared to my bigger cameras, this guy is really light weight -The menus are easy to navigate -the footage looks amazing -Shoots 24p -Sound is straightforward. You need an off camera mic, and you preferably want a powered mic so you can use the mic gain and not the camera's gain to get less hiss. -Can use any EF or EF-S lens.So you you are a canon shooter, you've got a head start -Takes pretty nice photos too! Since I didn't buy this for photos, admittedly I haven't delved in. I would, truthfully, use my 5D Mark IV for a photo shoot. But for me, when I am out there shooting video, if I want to snap a few stills, this guy works great. Cons: -Not 4k (this is not a con for me, but if you want 4k, look elsewhere) -Not a high quality/high bit-depth format. (Again, this is not a huge deal for me. I'm about story and speed over noodling with quality. I also own a BMPCC, and yes, shooting raw 10 or 12 bit is amazing... but you have to CC everything, do online/offline workflows, etc. so this is really more of a preference than a con. You have to know what you want to do. I think this camera wins for vlogging -Not as great with low light as other cameras. This camera caps off at ISO 6400. But realistically you wanna be at 800, 1600 max if you are good with seeing some noise. On my Mark IV I can shoot at 6400 and see no visible noise. But I mean, the Mark IV is like thousands of dollars more, so it's not a great comparison. -Its not full frame. Not a huge problem, neither was the Alexa I've shot TV shows on for years. But, if you want full frame, this ain't it. So you need wider aperture lenses or to shoot really long lens if you want to get shallow depth of field. LENSES: On lenses, I did pick it up with the 18-55mm kit lens, then also bought the little 2.8 24mm pancake lens. They're both great lenses, actually... for the cost. The 18-55 has stabilization, so is better for hand held stuff, but needs more light. The 24mm makes the camera super light to carry, and also looks nice at 2.8. Both of these lenses autofocus great with the camera. So I disagree with some reviews out there that say don't get the kit lens. These days canon makes them pretty good and they are cheap in comparison to other lenses. So unless you have all the glass you need - get the kit lens. I usually get the short zoom kit lens because they are sharper and faster. Having used this camera for a few weeks, I really want to get something wider like the canon 10-22 or the sigma equivalent. I think there are times when being at a 10 to 14mm, especially out doors, would be helpful. I have not used either of these two lenses, my widest lens that is not a fisheye is the canon 15mm zoom. CONCLUSION: This camera may be on the older side right now, but I have to tell you I like it better for videography than my Mark IV. it's just so much faster and easier to use, and doesn't make you're wrist feel like it is going to break off. And because it is older, you can get it cheaper. Don't let all the posts and videos about technical quality hold you back from just going out there and creating. At the end of the day, it's about your talent and your stories. Tell them. I've seen big TV shows with Alexa's suck. I've seem people do amazing things with iPhones. It's not the cameras, its you and how you use them. So if you're gonna go tell stories, and you have about $1200 bucks to do so, get this camera, the kit lens, and an on camera mic. That's all you need. I promise you.

I have had this camera for a little over a month now and am only working with the kit lens and body right out of the box. I am not using any hot shoe flashes, extra lenses, filters etc., which is the best thing about this camera - it is superb right out of the box as a stock set up. And, I do mean superb. I have owned Canons for about the past 20 years and have to say this is the best I have owned yet for the price point. The stock lens: Excellent lens for a kit lens and truly responsive in terms of focus vs. stabilization and lighting. This, of course, also works in conjunction with the sensor and chip. But, this is a nice, solid lens at a good cost. Video: The primary selling point on this is the focus when using video. I have to try pretty hard to trick the camera in order to see any focus problems when recording video. It's easier to trick the camera in low light, but I think this is the best video I have ever shot with a camera. The audio seems to be on par or above with most cameras in this price range. But, a nice shotgun mike would probably make a nice addition for the serious videographer. I've never considered myself a serious videographer, but this camera could change that. Battery Life: Battery life seems very good and I am still working off the same charge from when I pulled the camera out of the box about a month ago. However, to me this has never been an issue since I ALWAYS carry a spare battery. I may consider a battery grip for this camera and have owned a couple of Canon battery grips with previous Canons. As a result, battery life has never been much of a concern for me. Speed: The speed of the camera is excellent and I have worked in situations where I fired a number of bursts with great success. Form Factor: I think this is a nicely sized camera and the controls are very well placed for my hands. Everyone has different hands and mine tend to be a little smaller. But, I do like the size and feel of this Canon. It is significantly larger than the Rebels and I think that is what I like about it since I always felt the Rebel was a bit small. On-camera Flash: The last thing I'll mention is the on-camera flash. It's the best I have used yet. Hands down. I am not a big flash user because I shoot a lot of naturally lit subjects. But, I have used this one with a lot of success and am pleasantly surprised at how well it works. Overall, I can't say anything bad about this camera. I wish I could offer up something constructive. But it appears as though Canon got everything right in this one. Even the interface...though I am sure there will be plenty of nit-pickers out there, the interface is pretty intuitive with minimal use. This is truly the best Canon I have ever owned.

This camera has allowed me to start video reviews on top of taking fantastic photos at the amateur level. It is a cropped body sensor so be aware of that while making lens purchase decisions. This was the first DSLR from Canon to feature their dual pixel technology which allows focus to be attained at a quick rate when paired with an STM lens that was also developed alongside this camera. I wish that a dedicated white balance button was available on this camera but there are definitely ways around this and is a non issue. I do appreciate having the rotating wheel that is a step above the rebel lineup of cameras. It definitely makes going through settings much easier. This camera should be perfect for a starting amateur, a mid range user, or someone who needs a fast focusing camera with good auto focus / tracking, but still does not need something budget breaking or full frame. Battery life is decent as long as you stay out of live view.

I've been more than happy with this camera. It's seen lots of use (and some light abuse) for 3 years and still works great. Even today it's still a worthy camera. Sitting in basically the middle of the Canon lineup (when it was release), it offered a build quality and features above the Rebel line and just below the semi and pro cameras. For anyone that wants a nice camera and feels they may outgrow a Rebel camera or wants more configuration options/control, but can't afford a 6D/7D or higher, this is a great choice. It has proven to be very reliable for me. I've taken it on many hikes (with it bouncing around), used it the cold (snow) and light rain (covering it the best I could) and it's never let me down. I don't do a lot of video, but what I have done turned out nice. It may not have the video features some other cameras, but the DPAF and touch screen are really nice. I find the 1080p video to be fine. You're not going to make feature films with it, but that's not what it's really designed for. I've used almost all the STM lenses on it and they all focus smoothly and quietly, but I still recommend using an external mic. With still photos I don't really have any complaints. It's focused well with all the lenses I've put on it except for the 50mm 1.8 II, but that's more the lens than the camera. Noise at high ISOs is tolerable, especially if you're not making huge prints. Overall I highly recommend this camera. If it has the features you want/need and is in your price range, you can't go wrong with it.

Very robust camera Pros: Easy to use (If you have use an SLR before) Great quality Compatible with every EFS lenses Fast and silent shutter Cons (Comparable to other SLR Canon cameras): Heavy Bulky Battery runs out fast This is a "in the middle camera" for a profesional and an starter. If you are starting with Photography buy a EOS T5i. For a pro user save your money for a 6D.

I've had this camera for about nine months now and absolutely love it. I've not picked up any of my other cameras since! I previously used a Nikon D50, but prefer the controls of the Canon and find it much more intuitive and easier to use. I've not had any problems so far using this camera. Shooting is smooth and fast. It did take me a while to acclimate to the AF system. I looked up some videos for advice on the best shooting modes, but also just got out there and experimented until I found the settings that worked best for what I wanted. I primarily shoot birds in an urban setting and the 70D has been great for this. Continuous shooting with AF is excellent. The camera does a great job of finding and keeping the subject in focus as they fly. I find that the majority of fuzzy shots I might get are due to me failing to move quick enough, not the camera. My experience in low light has been ok, although not great. I can get decent images at/after sundown up to about ISO 2500, but then I feel shots are too grainy. This could vary depending on the lens being used - I am currently using a Canon 70-200 f4.0 L at higher shutter speeds (over 400). I've not yet had much experience with the video function, so can't review that part at this time. Over all, this is a wonderful camera and I'm so glad to have purchased it. I was trying to decide between this and the 7D and went with this one mostly because of the fps and the potential video. I'm so happy I did.

Awesome camera. Purchased to have a graphic designer friend (also a casual amateur photographer) do an engagement photo shoot of me and my fiancé, figuring for the cost I would save of hiring a true professional I would have a great camera to show for it at the end of the day. The photos came out amazing. I myself am very much an amateur and this is my first DSLR - while this is not the most basic in Canon's line-up, as with a lot of tech, I tend to go with the more pro-sumer models so there is plenty of room to grow before needing to upgrade down the line. I had been waiting a few years for Canon to release the perfect model with the right feature set for me, and the 70D is it. There are a lot of auto or semi-auto modes good for the beginner, as well as full manual controls (which is really why you would want to buy a camera like this anyway). The camera has excellent build quality without being too heavy. Live view looks great on the articulating screen, though I surprisingly quickly realized I much preferred the viewfinder (which also incidentally saves a TON of battery power - during our shoot we shot 478 photos (without flash) over 2.5 hrs, almost exclusively using the viewfinder, and included battery was still full when we were done). The included 18mm-55mm kit lens is, well, the included kit lens; no frills but sufficient to get you started. Have not played with the onboard wi-fi yet, nor the video which is actually supposed to be one of the major strengths of this model. All in all, very satisfied with this purchase thus far, and looking forward to capturing many memories to come with this camera.

Coming from a T2i the image quality is excellent (specially in low light). Colors are very bright but of course can be turned down for a more natural look if you desire. Viewfinder AF works extremely quick coupled with either USM or STM lenses and it also works under very dimmed lightning, very impressed. The camera's overall performance is fantastic, shot to shot is very fast even using the built in flash it doesn't hiccup. Now to Dual Pixel AF I have nothing to compare this to, so needless to say i think its the greatest thing since sliced bread. It works as advertised, very quick and precise, specially with STM lenses. With USM it works very well, but you can still see it hunt for focus sometimes. I do not shoot video very often, but i do find Dual Pixel AF very useful when shooting macro because i can get the camera in very tight spaces with no need to look through the viewfinder. Now to what it does NOT do... while it can keep track of a subject on screen (for instance a dog or a person) for objects moving quick, or when panning to shoot an object, it lacks the speed of the viewfinder AF. Loves: Performance -shot-to-shot, Image quality, low light quality, speed Swivel screen - Once you have this. you will never want anything else Touch screen - touch to shoot pic comes in handy WiFi - remote control the camera with your phone Dual Pixel AF - Works as advertised, definitely great for video or difficult spaces where looking through the screen is easier Multishot noise reduction and HDR