Canon LTM Canon 7 - user comments?

Canon M39 M39 screw mount bodies/lenses
Krosya

Krosya

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Hi All,
I was wondering if users of Canon 7 could comment on this camera. How good is it? How do you like it? Anything at all.
Thanks
 
If it's anything like the P, you'll love it. I understand most meters on the 7 are either shot or "off" after all the years since production, but I haven't tried one.
 
Okay, I'm not unbiased...for one, I have a Canon 7s and a 7, and the 7 is for sale right now in the classifieds. It's meter is actually pretty accurate. I'm selling it for two reasons...to pay off a Canon 5d, and because the 7s is a little bit better user with the hot shoe and cds meter. That said, I love the 7. Awesome viewfinder that I can use with my cokebottle glasses on. Very sturdy. Nice big shutter speed wheel and wind knob, good ergonomics. Pretty quiet and unobtrusive. The 7 feels like a simpler Leica m5. I liked it better than my P (better viewfinder for viewing 35mm lines, which is very hard on the P even without glasses). I don't know, I think they're the best buy out there in LTM cameras these days. I think the only reasons they are so undervalued is that people don't like having a meter that might not work (even if they will rely on a handheld or sunny 16 anyway) and the size relative a M3. Both of which I found pretty groundless. The 7 rocks! Long live it.
 
dreilly is correct that the 7 is a fantastic buy in today's LTM market. I've had one for a couple of years now, and agree that the vf is outstanding, only slightly inferior to that of an M4, which is its most direct competitor (although in terms of size, it's the M5). As a glasses wearer, I like being able to see the 35mm framelines easily, which I can't do on a Canon P. The 7's vf can also serve in a pinch for 28mm, although the lower magnification vfs in Bessas are better in that regard. The meter on my 7 is working just fine in daylight conditions. And there's no question that this is a solid, well-built camera body that is equal to anything Leica produced at the time (the 1960s).

I find the 7 to be especially useable and well-balanced w/ some of the larger CV lenses, like the 35mm Ultron. That's a very good shooting combo, if you don't need light weight.

Which brings me to the downside of the 7: it's a heavy camera, not pocketable really. Put an old Canon chrome lens on it, and the combination will weigh over two pounds. I don't have particularly large hands, so the size factor of the 7 is not an advantage to me. From my standpoint, the size and weight of the body is a limitation on its use as a camera for travel (although I've carried it on hikes in the mountains where I appreciated its robust construction and ability to frame precisely). For that reason, I'm thinking about putting mine up for sale. As an around-town shooter, though, it has a lot going for it.
 
I love my Canon 7 and didn't realize until I saw a 7s on ebay that it had a hot shoe. My meter works well right now and I have not taken a bad picture, yet with it. I rely on sunny 16 to check it but I trust the light meter so far. The weight is a factor but I have a Voigtlander R if it's a problem of weight.

Since I also purchased a Canon 50/1.4, I consider it a wonderful combo.
Joe
 
In terms of style, I'd argue that you can't touch the Canon P. But I wouldn't throw a nice Canon 7s out of bed, as they say. If you can try one or both of them before you decide you might have a better point of reference. This is not always possible, though.
 
The Canon 7 is hugh in size, larger than OM2, shutter is louder than M with its steel shutter curtain. The selenimum meter is ugly, otherwise, it is a good RF camera

Attached is a modified Canon 7 from internet, it is still huge in size
 
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7 finder is better than P (spoken as somebody who uses 2 Ps). HOWEVER the P finder is, but for its clutter, nearly as good as M2/4/6, whose finders have not hindered much photography. (35mm's obscure with all of them)

I'd have 7s instead of Ps now except that repair people have said the meter cannot be practically repaired unless they find another to cannibalize (KEH once said they had otherwise dead 7s for that purpose). Also, even though a good 7 meter is presumably fine, it never was good in low light...which is where I really do want a meter for B&W...so I carry a Gossen Digisix.
 
Today I received a tulip 49mm hood from Hong Kong and with a 48to49 mm adapter, I plan to use it on my Canon 7+ Canon 50/1.4. I attached a rubber hood but it blocks so much of the view that I thought the tulip hood would work better and give me more true view. Can't hardly wait to get home to put it on the camera and use it.
Joe
 
Thank you everyone for the comments on Canon 7. I have a followup question - how's focus accuracy with longer lenses, such as 85/2 or 105/2.5 wide open?
 
I'd say "huge" is relative. Some people said the M5 was huge. They obviously never held a Speed Graphic. The same I guess could be said from the other side: Canon 7 boosters obviously never held an M3. Except, I have. And the Leica CL and Minolta CLE, which do make the 7 look kinda giant. For me, I found the CL way too small and fiddly. The M3 was a nice size, but add a meter to the top and it starts to feel unwieldy too. I guess there's no real way to argue it. The size is what it is...some feel it's too big, some would find it refreshing svelte.

I agree on one thing...the P was called P because it was prettier than anything that came before or after. It's just lovely. The 7 was uglier but a better user (IMO) because of its improved viewfinder and onboard meter.

My 7s is at Essex right now having the meter calibrated, among other things. They didn't say it wasn't possible, and the estimate didn't look like what I'd expect for a total rebuild, so my sense is that the 7s isn't too bad off. CDS meters were very widespread and I'm not sure the one in the 7s was so special.

I was considering adding a shoe to my 7, but since the meter still works, I dropped the idea...there isn't much real estate to fit it in and have it be flush with the rear of the camera.

d
 
It's important to keep things in perspective. For under $250 these days, you can get, in the Canon 7, an LTM body that has an outstanding vf w/ clearly labeled framelines (in the vf) for 35, 50, 85/100, and 135, is equal to Leica in quality of construction, is easier than Leica to load, and may have a functional, if basic, meter. The shutter is fairly quiet, and if you are ever mugged you can beat your attacker senseless, and then return to snapping pix. How good is that?
 
It is a good camera for focusing long or wide open lenses. It has a relatively long EBL. I use my F0.95 lens on it and my 85/2 lens (Canon and Russian J9) with great accuracy wide open.

The VF is great. I wear high powered glasses and I can easily see the 50 frame lines and with some effort see the 35 frame lines. The M3 is a lost cause for me there. I can't see the 50 lines. With the P, it is a struggle to see the 50. (Anyone want to buy one of mine? I'll be selling my black one in the fall after a CLA) I have about 10/12 RF cameras and the 7/7s are clearly the best.

The VF eyepiece exit pupil is HUGH! and the relief is very long.

I have two 7 models and one 7s. On my beat-up 7 the meter does not work. It is missing a set screw that holds the asa value on the speed selector shaft. My second 7 has a meter that is spot on, however it does not read low enough and the angle subtended by the sensitivity makes it almost useless. My 7s CdS meter is accurate and has a relatively narrow angle of acceptance. It reads lower than the selenium, but not low enough.

I use the VCII meter I got from SG on the 7s and I am constructing a home-brew accessory coupler to hold the meter on 7 cameras.
 
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People reporting about the difficulty in frames lines with the P have obviously never tried to shoot a roll of film with a camera from the FSU. You kinda know what you're shooting, but often the frame you get is way different than what you thought you were composing oh so carefully. And I'm not knocking the 7. In fact, since I have 2 P's (as soon as Mark Hama returns the latest CLA'd P to me) I should probably sell one and pick up a nice 7s. I used to want one, too.
 
Krosyna - The Canon 7 will allow you to focus a 85/2 Nikkor with care. Undeniably, the 7 is underrated. A much nicer build than outer appearances would suggest. I eventually traded up to an M3 for the larger finder, frame lines and absolute superb RF optics.
 
I was complaining about the P--and I have used a Leica IIIf, Fed 2, and a Minolta 35--all of which were horrible in the squinty department. The P is glorious by comparison, and I really enjoyed using it. It's not bad, just not 7 good. If I didn't wear glasses, the P would work totally fine for me. Though I couldn't see the 35 lines even without glasses, using the edge of the visible field for me was a close enough approximation. But without glasses, I can't see anything anyway, which made it kind of like using an FSU or a Barnack Leica!
 
Understood, dreilly and I sympathize completely. If EVERYONE loved just the P or just the 7, there'd be no cameras for guys like you and me, eh? My Leica friends still turn up their noses at my equipment. But then again, they're all bottom feeders.... err, bottom loaders, I meant.
 
Krosya

Krosya

The 7s which I have is my favorite of all my RF's (Leica, S2, various FSU's, Canonet Glll). I can use my screw mount lenses directly without an adapter, the focusing is quick and easy, the projected view lines are very easy to see which is great because I wear glasses. I could go on and on. Focusing my Serenar 85.f2 is very easy and the lens is sharp! I haven't done too much with wide open but the little I did was easy to focus and results were very good. That was with the Canon 50/f1.4. BTW, the 7s handles very well with the heavy and fairly large 85/f2 (a lot better than my M2). It is my Go To Cam! You can't go wrong. Just my $0.02.
 
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The 7 and 7s are long enough baseline to focus the Canon 50/0.95 and 100/2 lenses. So they can focus any LTM lens accurately.

If you ever want to shoot with 28mm or wider lens, you want the 7s for the (cold) accessory shoe. Otherwise the 7 is a nice camera, although the meter on the 7 isn't very sensitive.
 
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