Don't fix it if it ain't broke....

[rpcrowe]

Don't fix it if it ain't broke was one of the slogans we used in the U.S. Navy. A corollary to that statement is: Change gives the illusion of progress

I was shooting with my new Canon 7D Mark II camera today and wanted to adjust the flash compensation. I have been using two dial Canon DSLR cameras for well over ten years and know how the buttons and dials work.

Anyhow, I pressed the ISO-FEC button and rotated the quick control dial in the back of the camera. Crazy things happened with the exposure.

The reason was that the ISO-FEC button is no longer ISO-FEC... Rather Canon has changed this button to the FEC-ISO button. Now, to change the FEC, you press the button and rotate the main dial on top of the camera. In order to adjust the ISO, you press that button and rotate the Quick Control Dial on the back of the camera; instead of the other way around.

I know that the "Canon Gods" must have had some valid reason to reverse this button, but for the life of me, I cannot figure out why they did so. After the D60, 10D, 30D, 40D and 7D; they felt the urgent need to switch this button reversing the use that my five previous cameras made of it

Not a heavy cross to bear but, it has me wondering what else has changed and has me looking into the manual. Another Navy saying is "If all else fails, read the directions"

[Rita]

Just enough of a change to mess with your head

[george013]

Don't fix it if it ain't broke was one of the slogans we used in the U.S. Navy. A corollary to that statement is: Change gives the illusion of progress

I was shooting with my new Canon 7D Mark II camera today and wanted to adjust the flash compensation. I have been using two dial Canon DSLR cameras for well over ten years and know how the buttons and dials work.

Anyhow, I pressed the ISO-FEC button and rotated the quick control dial in the back of the camera. Crazy things happened with the exposure.

The reason was that the ISO-FEC button is no longer ISO-FEC... Rather Canon has changed this button to the FEC-ISO button. Now, to change the FEC, you press the button and rotate the main dial on top of the camera. In order to adjust the ISO, you press that button and rotate the Quick Control Dial on the back of the camera; instead of the other way around.

I know that the "Canon Gods" must have had some valid reason to reverse this button, but for the life of me, I cannot figure out why they did so. After the D60, 10D, 30D, 40D and 7D; they felt the urgent need to switch this button reversing the use that my five previous cameras made of it

Not a heavy cross to bear but, it has me wondering what else has changed and has me looking into the manual. Another Navy saying is "If all else fails, read the directions"

You probably can change that behaviour in the menu.

George

[Donald]

I know there are usually good reasons why one camera differs from another from the same manufacturer, but as Richard says, you do wonder why some things are changed. The one that gets me is because of my using both a Canon 5DS and a 7DMkII.

Now, I know they are very different beasts, but .............. why is the Digital Terminal below the HDMI Out terminal on the 5DS and above it on the 7DMkII? For one thing you find yourself trying to connect the Digital Terminal to a slot into which it does not fit, because you can never remember which body is which way round. But more frustratingly, it means you've got to keep and carry two cables.

It's great that they both use the same battery, because you only need to carry one charger unit with you. But some things are just sent to try us!!

[george013]

I don't know if your choice is in it but http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/0/030000...s7d-im2-en.pdf page 217.

George

[DanK]

Odd. I can't figure why they would change the mapping of ISO and FEC. Maybe they had user complaints.
Is there a menu choice to reverse this?

I don't know if the 7DII allows this particular customization, but on my 5DIII, I set it so that holding the set button and rotating the main dial changes ISO. That makes it easier to change ISO while holding the camera up, without fumbling for the correct small button on the top. I wonder if the change you describe removed this option as well.

[george013]

Odd. I can't figure why they would change the mapping of ISO and FEC. Maybe they had user complaints.
Is there a menu choice to reverse this?

I don't know if the 7DII allows this particular customization, but on my 5DIII, I set it so that holding the set button and rotating the main dial changes ISO. That makes it easier to change ISO while holding the camera up, without fumbling for the correct small button on the top. I wonder if the change you describe removed this option as well.

Read my former post.

George

[DanK]

Read my former post.

I did. Your former post is about something else, at least on my cameras. It shows the screen for the customizable buttons on the 7D, not the 7DII. The top four buttons, including the FEC/ISO button, are not on the list of customizable buttons on either of my canon bodies, a 7D and a 5DIII. That's why I asked Richard whether there is a menu option for this on his camera; they might have added it on the 7DII. If they did, it might be with these others in the menus, or someplace else.

[rpcrowe]

Another slight change Canon made to the 7Dii is the locking button on the mode dial. I can understand the motivation behind Canon making this change since there have been numerous complaints regarding other photographers inadvertently switching the mode. However, in many tens of thousands of exposures with numerous Canon xxD and xD type DSLR cameras (D60, 10D, 30D, 40D and 7D), I have never mistakenly moved my mode dial on those cameras, even without the mode dial lock

OTOH: I would frequently inadvertently change my camera mode when shooting with the Rebel XT model camera. The button to switch the mode dial is located directly under where my thumb would rest when shooting. So, when I pressed the shutter button and the self-timer began counting off, I would say to myself "Shucks (or something a bit stronger) I did it again"

It was control problems like this that lead me to sell the XT fairly soon after I purchased it! Of course, that was user error but, it was also ergonomics that were wrong for my style of shooting

[DanK]

Another slight change Canon made to the 7Dii is the locking button on the mode dial. I can understand the motivation behind Canon making this change since there have been numerous complaints regarding other photographers inadvertently switching the mode. However, in many tens of thousands of exposures with numerous Canon xxD and xD type DSLR cameras (D60, 10D, 30D, 40D and 7D), I have never mistakenly moved my mode dial on those cameras, even without the mode dial lock

OTOH: I would frequently inadvertently change my camera mode when shooting with the Rebel XT model camera. The button to switch the mode dial is located directly under where my thumb would rest when shooting. So, when I pressed the shutter button and the self-timer began counting off, I would say to myself "Shucks (or something a bit stronger) I did it again"

It was control problems like this that lead me to sell the XT fairly soon after I purchased it! Of course, that was user error but, it was also ergonomics that were wrong for my style of shooting

That's not new. They have been using a lock button on new high-end models at least since the 5DIII

[rpcrowe]

I have just noticed another quirk which makes the 7D II different from all of the other "two-dial" Canon SLR cameras that I have used. When selecting Auto Exposure Bracketing, the default is that AEB selection remains on until it is turned off.

With my previous Canon DSLR cameras, including the 7D, I needed to go into the menu to select that the AEB stays turned on when you turn off the cameras power. The previous default setting was to have the AEB turned off when you turn the camera's power off. That was a ridiculous system because the other exposure modifications remained turned on in the default mode when you shut off the camera's power. I like the new system a lot better

Many-many years ago, as a new user of Canon DSLR cameras, I wanted to bracket my exposures within Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico; in order to possibly do some HDR imaging. Unfortunately, I had to change my battery soon after I got into the Caverns. So, since I did not realize that the default selection shut off AEB, instead of having three bracketed exposures of each image, I ended up with three identically exposed images.

[DanK]

Richard,

I'm guessing that the 7DII is like my 5DIII--far more customizable than the 7D. If so, I found it worth my time to work my way through all of the customization options, which took quite a while. I don't even remember what most of the defaults are.

Dan

[davidedric]

It's not just dslr's. Here's a somewhat tongue in cheek suggestion for setting up a Panasonic G7

3. There are 14 screens of options for each Fn button………feel faint…dizzy….sit down….have a cup of tea…..back to it…..You could use one of the Fn buttons for the Dial Operation Switch function. But the opportunity cost of doing that is you cannot use that button for anything else.


4. There are three pages of options for each dial under the [Dial Operation Switch] tab……..feel faint again…………….noisy grumbles……….what genius thought up this lot……...back to it…….


5. I think Panasonic has taken a step too far with the Dial Operation Switch function. It’s all too convoluted both at setup and in operation.

Dave