Welcome To My Bag

I've posted about my search for a more compact solution to my Canon EOS 7D and 5D Mark II bodies, both of which I use with vertical battery grips. I finally arrived at a solution, a solution in which cost played a large role.

Why not just take the grip off when you want a smaller body? Well, there's nothing worse than a less than rigid connection between the grip and the body. It can flex and I've read reports of electrical contact being lost between the camera and the batteries when that occurs.

So, I tighten the thumb wheel that attaches grip to the body as tightly as I can, using a rubber jar opener for added grip. The thumb wheels on the grips use plastic gears to mesh with the screw that attaches to the camera's tripod mount. They have been known to break, and yes, I have broken one. Accordingly, I try to minimize the times I remove and reattach the grips.

I decided that, in addition to a small body for carrying around, I wanted a body that would supplement my current compliment of one full frame body and one crop sensor body. The 7D is a dedicated sports and wildlife body and the 5D Mark II is dedicated to landscapes, closeups, portraits and the like.

This new, smaller body could be either a full frame or crop sensor body. I started out considering the SL1, which I've blogged about, or the full frame 6D, which I haven't blogged about. Envisioning this body as a supplement to the other two bodies, not just a small body to be used separately, led me to rule out the SL1 since the features in the Rebel series in general, and that body in particular, simply aren't what I'm used to.

Which led me to a more detailed examination of the EOS 6D, a full frame body a bit downscaled from the 5D series. A person can't read a review of the 6D, however, without there being a reference to the EOS 60D, a body I have never had any interest in owning.

While I wouldn't desire a 60D as my primary camera -  it really doesn't excel at any one type of photography as do the 7D and 5D Mark II - I gained an appreciation of how it might fit in the role I was trying to fill. Upon looking up some pricing I saw that Canon had a $200 instant rebate on the 60D,  a 22% discount. Also, some retailers were discounting their bodies refurbished by Canon by a similar amount.

So, I ordered a refurbished EOS 60D from Adorama for $579 minus my 2% affiliate discount. This is almost $100 cheaper than the SL1 body for a more advanced camera. I've had the 60D for a week now and am very happy with my decision. While it's big compared to the tiny SL1 it's small compared to my other bodies, even without their grips. Here's a comparison photo taken with my iPhone:

EOS 7D w/50mm f.1.4 - 60D w/40mm f/2.8 - 5DII w/24-70 f/2.8

I'll post some example shots in my next blog entry. Stay tuned.