7DII and 70D
Autofocus test
This is a test of the initial Autofocus aquisition speed capabilty of the 7DII
with two lens and
two extender combinations. For comparison the 70D was tested at the
same time. Other tests showed the speeds for the old 7D and 70D
to be
similar.Method:
The camera on a tripod with physical stops to limit the horizontal movement of the Wimberly II head to two places aimed at a target 15 feet away and another target at 150 feet. With camera in One shot mode lock focus on the near target start the stopwatch and swing the camera to the far target and refocus. Focus is confirmed when the beep and AF indicator is active. Continue to swing and focus the camera for 40 AF locks total and record the time from the stop watch in seconds.
Notes:
- Light was outdoor overcast and varied from 10 -10.6 EV as checked with an Incident Light meter
- Focus limiter 300mm f2.8L IS II was set to 6m - infinity
- Focus limiter 400mm f5.6L was set to 8.5m - infinity
- time in chart is the average of several 40 focus lock data runs
- iTR was set to OFF on the 7DII
- all Autofocus related parameters were set at camera defaults in both bodies
- batteries were fully charged at start of test
- camera shutters were not fired for this test
- with All points set both cameras would not focus consistently with the x 2 III
- It is important to note that the 9 Points of the 7DII does not cover nearly as much of the frame as the 70D .
- With extenders attached both cameras would require 2-3 pushes of the shutter release button at times if the AF failed to lock
- a small portion of the recorded time is do to the time to swing the camera into position .
| Camera | Lens combo | Time (secs) | # AF Points |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS | 29 | 1 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS | 34 | 1 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS | 34 | 9 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS | 38 | 9 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS | 35 | All 65 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS | 38 | All 19 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 38 | 1 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 41 | 9 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 59 | 15 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 56 | All 65 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 45 | 1 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS x 1.4 III | 59 | 9 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III | 43 | 1 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III | 45 | 15 |
| 7DII | 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III | 45 | 25 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III | 47 | 1 |
| 70D | 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III | 111 | 9 |
| 7DII | 400mm f5.6L | 35 | 1 |
| 70D | 400mm f5.6L | 35 | 1 |
| 7DII | 400mm f5.6L x 1.4 III | 101 | 1 |
Conclusion:
The AF performance of the 7DII is faster overall than the 70D\7D but often similar depending on the lens combo and number of points. For my own usage the 7DIIs ability to use multiple points with the 300mm f2.8L IS x 2 III is a big plus as is the ability to achieve focus at f8 allbeit slowly. As is normal with Autofocus improvements with the latest camera model over the last 10 years the gains are incremental not monumental.
Links:
Canon 7D Mark II Instruction Manual
70D vs 5DIII image comparison
7DII dissassembled - water seals
7DII vs 7D image comparison