[er1kksen]

Take the extra money you would have to spend to switch to the 7D and buy a K-x body. Put a lens on each camera, throw them in a bag, and Bob's your uncle. You've now got a high ISO APS-C champ in the K-x and a great all-rounder in the K7. And now you have a backup!

+1. Not to mention it's great for long exposures/star trails (as mentioned in the OP).

People have been getting them well under $600 thanks to bing. One lucky forumite even got one for $480. That's probably less than the Tokina fisheye.

btw, if you haven't used a upper-level canon before, it would probably take you a while to adjust to the UI. Going from the K20D to the 40D, for me, was really frustrating at times. The lack of customizeability also feels really limiting going to Canon from Pentax.

[Ash]

CW, I'm with Mike and Peter on this one - there isn't much point in you asking whether you should switch to Canon. If that's what you want, just do it. You don't need to justify it to anyone, nor get us to prove to you it's a good/bad decision. If you feel more professional with a Canon, you go for it (along with that attitude). Get your plastic money out handy for the switch...

[Christopher M.W.T]

Sticking with the Pentax ..... until I get back from overseas.

Then i'll see, after doing some homework I don't gain much by going to the 7D esp after looking at the raw results of the 7D vs K7 on dpreview.

I'm just better off waiting to get a full frame if I want the jump i'm after.

[awo425]

if I were you, I would jump to D700 instead of 7D

[LeDave]

if I were you, I would jump to D700 instead of 7D

The D700 is 2x the price of the 7D so it might be a little bit too much.

[daleroy]

The D700 is 2x the price of the 7D so it might be a little bit too much.

And Nikon lens are more expensive than the Canon ones in general.

[Ratmagiclady]

Sounds to me like awfully lukewarm reasoning to think about switching brands, especially if the P-TTL is seeming to work OK for you, (I've yet to really give it a chance, but I knew flash wasn't a big strength of the Pentax stuff. Not enough to dissuade me, but still. I'm hoping it'll be adequate, anyway.)

Sounds like the right idea to just wait on it.

[edl]

And Nikon lens are more expensive than the Canon ones in general.

But they have 5 year warranties instead of 1. And you don't need to send them back for calibration as often.

[Ash]

if I were you, I would jump to D700 instead of 7D

Would be nice, although this is putting a FF cam in place of an APS-C cam.
Between the D300s and the 7D, I'd still go with the D300s.

[Wheatfield]

Really I'm starting to weigh up whether or not its worth selling my pentax K7, fisheye, 17-70, grip and 540gz and moving over to the Canon 7D.

Reasons?

Well more its the choice and market of higher end telephotos and lense choices in general, High ISO work that is concerning me as I want to get more into long exposures, deep sky/star trails.

The other thing is well the flash system on Pentax isn't reputed to be as good as the Canon....not sure how true that really is? wouldn't say thats an issue for me as I use the 540 and have not had any dilemmas or issues using it.

1080p with manual control on the 7D.

Finally working professionally I worry I may not be taken as seriously (ok that sounds petty)

BUT....reasons keeping me with the Pentax is I love its ergonomics, I already have a kit established and I love the camera itself.

Or am I just trading one similar camera for another and just better off getting a 5D Mk2?

Frankly, the 7D makes the K7 look like a kid's toy. If you can stomach the image quality of Canon lenses, then moving to Canon for the 7D feature set is a no brainer.

[Christopher M.W.T]

Whats wrong with IQ of canon lenses?

I've done research in the last few days (and I just paid for an FA50 1.4)

But the only real advantage i'd have going to a 7D is

1. Lense range in telephotos (not relevant to me at this juncture) I thought Pentax lenses were the only expensive ones, really equivalents in Canon are just as pricey, so nothing to gain.
2. 1080p video with full manual, which I admit is really the most attractive feature as I like shooting video and I love the quality a DSLR can give over a standard camcorder, however I have faith Pentax will bring out a firmware update to give manual control, so not a biggie. Also I am not going to get any more shallow DOF unless I go FF so i'd be trading one similar unit for another.
3. FPS, yes the 7D is faster but I've realised that I don't bother shooting sports so it's irrelevant to me.
4. Ok AF on the Canon is superior without a doubt, thats the only thing I can't really say the Pentax does well, however it's actually not a huge deal to me. I used my K7 with a HSM sigma and I found it almost as responsive.
5. High ISO noise, well I don't shoot as much at high ISO as I thought, in nightclubs I shoot at 1000-1250 and actually I was quite happy with the results and I have successfully done long exposures, stars etc without any dramas.

So in a nutshell I have let myself be bought by the hype....really a 7D is not going to be a major upgrade for me unless I move to Fullframe which I am not ready to yet due to me not been ready to spend that much just yet.

[newmikey]

Just a plain, honest answer without sentiments.

Really I'm starting to weigh up whether or not its worth selling my pentax K7, fisheye, 17-70, grip and 540gz and moving over to the Canon 7D.

There is a huge chance you will loose a lot of the money you invested when you sell. See how much this deal will really give you in money terms, calculate how much money you need to add just to the exact same set on Canon. That would give you a cold, hard comparison of whether you can stomach the expense.

Well more its the choice and market of higher end telephotos and lense choices in general, High ISO work that is concerning me as I want to get more into long exposures, deep sky/star trails.

2 arguments here, higher-end lens choices and high ISO work for long exposures.

I cannot judge your first argument, only you yourself can pinpoint which lenses in the Canon lineup you care for and which do not have a Pentax cousin, quality-wise as well as money-wise.

Your second argument is a mystery to me and I am surprised nobody else hit on this yet: "long exposures, deep sky/star trails" are invariably made with low ISO settings, at least that is the common advice you read and see time and time again. High-ISO requirements could include sports or indoor activity shooting, rough-weather but NOT long exposures!

The other thing is well the flash system on Pentax isn't reputed to be as good as the Canon....not sure how true that really is? wouldn't say thats an issue for me as I use the 540 and have not had any dilemmas or issues using it.

I'd say that pound for pound Pentax and Canon flashes do not differ that much. If you'd want a real upgrade in flash photography, Nikon would certainly be a smarter bet?

1080p with manual control on the 7D.

No idea what your requirements are, but I'd say that anybody is better off buying a HD videocam rather than trying to shoot video with a DSLR. It is gadgetry, at least now. It may someday result in a truly bifunctional camerasystem but for now a videocam doesn't really do good stills and a still camera doesn't take very well to video.

Finally working professionally I worry I may not be taken as seriously (ok that sounds petty)

It does sound petty. You may gain more professionality points by changing your website, the car you use to drive to customers with, your letterhead paper, the presentation of your work portfolio, pre-labeled DVD's with professional screent-printed artwork etc. It seems to me that the only one who is not taking you seriously is you?

BUT....reasons keeping me with the Pentax is I love its ergonomics, I already have a kit established and I love the camera itself.

Good, solid reasons. I imagine you could find more.

Or am I just trading one similar camera for another and just better off getting a 5D Mk2?

Again, compare and see where you experience your gaps are in terms of equipment. Truly, nobody here can tell you you'd be better off with camera A or camera B. All of the cameras you mentioned have tons of info available about them. Search and find the one "must-have" feature in all of them and go for that system.

In the end, you cannot go very wrong with ANY of the cameras you mentioned and that includes your current one!

[Class A]

I don't understand why people keep asking these questions.

Perhaps because they are not sure whether they are applying the right criteria to make a decision?

Isn't it good for the OP to receive an answer that states that one shouldn't switch systems just for a body? Isn't it good that some point out lens quality/prices. Etc.

I can understand that individuals get tired from reading such questions but AFAIC this is as a good and legitimate a question as many other questions posted to this forum.

With good answers the OP gets their thinking sanity checked and then either makes a switch or not. Where's the problem?

[Christopher M.W.T]

Perhaps because they are not sure whether they are applying the right criteria to make a decision?

Isn't it good for the OP to receive an answer that states that one shouldn't switch systems just for a body? Isn't it good that some point out lens quality/prices. Etc.

I can understand that individuals get tired from reading such questions but AFAIC this is as a good and legitimate a question as many other questions posted to this forum.

With good answers the OP gets their thinking sanity checked and then either makes a switch or not. Where's the problem?

Thats pretty much it

[pingflood]

Your second argument is a mystery to me and I am surprised nobody else hit on this yet: "long exposures, deep sky/star trails" are invariably made with low ISO settings, at least that is the common advice you read and see time and time again. High-ISO requirements could include sports or indoor activity shooting, rough-weather but NOT long exposures!

I think somebody mentioned it earlier, but yes, you are right; generally this stuff is done at something like ISO 100 f/8 (depending on conditions).