News that Canon would be making a direct competitor to Nikon's APS-C workhorse, the D300s ($1,600, street, body only) made many Canonites optimistic. Optimism became excitement with the unveiling of the EOS 7D ($1,700 street, body only; $1,900 with 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM lens). Its impressive specs include 18MP resolution, a 100-percent accurate viewfinder, sensitivity up to ISO 12,800, blazing burst rate, and-a first for Canon-built-in wireless flash control. Its performance in our lab and field tests proved as impressive as its specs, besting its Nikon rival on several indicators-but trailing on a few others.
In The Pop Photo Lab
As expected, thanks to its 18MP CMOS sensor, the EOS 7D scored an Excellent rating in resolution, easily outgunning the Nikon's 12.3 MP CMOS sensor. Even at ISO 12,800-a stop more than the Nikon's highest sensitivity-the Canon outresolved the Nikon at ISO 100, though we deem the noise Unacceptable at that high sensitivity.
The noise performance was of particular interest. With nearly 6 million more pixels than the Nikon, the 7D's pixels are smaller than those of the D300s-which means, nearly always, more noise at higher ISOs. The surprise: The 7D produced less noise than the D300s at its highest ISOs, 3200 and 6400, although the Nikon produced comparable or less noise from ISO 100 through ISO 1600. If you're not a low-light shooter, the Canon's higher sensitivity might not make a huge difference. But the ISO cushion comes in handy when you're shooting handheld with a long, nonstabilized lens on overcast day.
Both cameras earned Excellent ratings in color accuracy and capture admirable detail in highlights and shadows, thanks to 14-bit RAW image capture.
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