Apologies for the late reply guys, been busy after the time off followed by two powercuts, one for 2 hours and one for 6 so shrimp werent happy and required my attention, hopefuly all is well now.
The thing to bear in mind here is that most of the advantages of the 7D over the 600D boil down to things like ergonomics, build quality, weather sealing, autofocus speed, etc. Actual image quality will probably be very similar to the 600D the majority of the time. I'd always recommend getting a 'lesser' body and better lenses over blowing your entire budget on a body and kit lens. However, if you've cash to splash and getting a better body won't compromise your choice of lenses and other equipment down the line then there's no reason not to consider the 7D.
thanks for that tom, i figured the image quality wouldnt be a vast improvement (i guess the man behind the camera is what makes the biggest difference so need all the help i can get!) but was thinking that maybe the extra bells and whistles may be worth the extra, glass wise i have a good selection available from my housemate already and he is buying a couple of L series lenses in the near future, I'm very lucky that he is so generous with his gear already.
Hi Iain
So, my advice is to save for a used 5D2, or 6D with the savings you'll make from choosing the 600D over the 7D.
You won't regret it and you are at a standard now where you will reap the benefits.
cheers George, in all honesty i hadnt considered the 5d2 so will find some time to have a look around for them, quick google shows around the £1250 mark which is within the budget so well worth consideration. Given my knowledge of camera tech its all very confusing at the moment so your advise and others is very welcome indeed. I guess one of my main considerations, aside still quality is good quality movie abilities, im very grawn to macro pics and that i would like to buy once and not have itchy feet 12 months down the line, saying that i think the 5d 6d range may tick those boxes more that entry level models.
I have 600D and when it comes to aquarium photography is useless. Small sensor, a lot of noise on high ISO.
Look for something with a full frame sensor, even second hand.
Appreciate the opinion aqua, think that may be a little harsh as ive seen a lot of quality images from lower level cameras, even compacts. However the recommendation of full frame sensor is certainly worth a little more of my time to investigate.
You could go second hand and get a 40d body for ~£200 and spend the rest of your budget on some nice glass. (That's where the image quality is) If all you want to do is take nice pics and arnt fussed about the extra features (video mainly) then there is no point spending too much on a body. The xxd bodies feel nice in the hand they have a good build quality.
Cheers jac but movie is a strong draw for me at the moment. I'm also very nervous about second hand technology, especially fragile kit like a camera...
Roly, some great opinions there so thanks a lot and am under no disillusion that a better camera will make me a better photographer, only way to achieve that is taking plenty of pics and learn as much as possible from mistakes (of which there are plenty!)
Yes everybody does billboards these days Aquadream.
Stop complaining so much dude, you are getting really annoying.
Iain I'd wait for 70D that comes with a neat LCD autofocusing system that beats the crap out of the old point-wait-20s-to-focus-then-shoot system.
Cheers,
Mike
This looks like an interesting proposition mike, i hadnt seen this until now so will be added to the list for comparision. It certainly looks like a good addition.
As far as image processing goes, i find it astonishing and intriguing what can be achieved with a few tweaks. In now way do i have much of a comprehension what most of it does or how to use it but am of the camp that it is an invaluable tool and something i would like to learn more about as i continue to try and develop my skills as a DSLR user. Certainly a good amount of the wedding photos from my holiday on first look were far from impressive but having imported to photoshop im actually quite chuffed with some of them.
At the moment i thinking the 5D2 would tick a lot of boxes and provide all i could need for a good while, prices are pretty decent and reviews shining. The trouble is that being entry level as i am its quite difficult to get my head around what is a pro and what is a con and its certainly easy to miss something that i may regret later down the line.
All your advise is very welcome folks and will all go a long way to helping make a decision.
You guys rock