6D mk ii, 7D mk ii or 80D

[xzebra]

I am looking for some help deciding on a new camera. 

I am not one of those that jump on the new camera bandwagon. I try to make something work for a long amount of time, however technology does change and features get much better.

.

I have a dinosaur...aka Canon 50D and looking to get the best upgrade bang for the buck.  The camera has outgrown me in many ways and I am not sure where to go from here.  I know that any camera now is an upgrade, but which would be best for the money?

I would love to have a 5D mk IV, although I cannot afford much more than $1500, thus is why I am looking at the 6D mk II, 80D and 7D mk ii.  All my lenes are FF lens, so I have nothing to lose going FF.

My normal photo hobbies consist of, portraits/kids, indoor and outdoor sports, landscape and some small amount of birding.  Wildlife if possible, but rarely.

I do realize here is no one perfect camera and especially for $1500-1700 or less, however I would like to get the most I can while upgrading.  I have been eyeing the 6D mk ii with the holiday discount and would love to move to FF if possible. 

Just not sure if the deal is worth it or if the 7D mk ii / 80D would be a better choice?

Appreciate everyone's time to respond!

[Waddizzle]

Between the 6D2, the 7D2, and the 80D, any one of those cameras can easily do what you seem to want.  Which one might be best for you is going to boil down to what features are most important to you.  

What type of shooting do you do most often? Whatever answer you come up with, i guarantee you that it will likely change somewhat with a new camera body.  The 7D2 is the workhouse of the bunch.  The 80D is maybe the best bang for the buck, especially if you want to shoot video.  The 6D2 will have the lowest noise, highest resolution, but the slowest maximum shutter speed, 1/4000.  I do not know about you, but I do not use 1/4000 very often, if at all.

————————————————————————-

Each model that you named has a distinct performance edge and disadvantage over the others.  I have either owned or used all three of those camera bodies, and have used them interchangeably.  But, I will select one body as my first choice for a given task over the others.  I normally go out with a primary and a secondary camera body.

I have bought 3 80D bodies, but I have given them all away as gifts to family and friends.  This is not a knock against the 80D, which I think is the best bang for the buck body in the current Canon lineup.  I gave them away because I have other bodies that were more frequently my first choice, or secondary choice.   

But, the 80D was a favorite secondary choice for daytime action photography.  This is something to consider when choosing a an upgrade.  Which shooting scenarios would your 50D be a good secondary camera to use, or not to use?  I would look for a camera body that can do what your 50D cannot.  As you seem to have noticed, that can be a long list.

I seem to do most of my shooting outdoors.  It used to be mostly landscape and “tourist mode” shots.  Now, it’s mostly fast shutter speed action photography, or night time photography on a tripod.  I also do a lot casual indoor shooting, which I prefer to do without a flash, whenever possible.  

In other words, I noticed that most of my shooting was pushing the ISO performance of my camera.  So, I bought a 6D a few years ago to upgrade a Rebel T5, and loved it.  You will not notice a significant difference between the bodies you cited at ISO 800 and lower.  You may not notice a difference at 1600 or 3200.  

But, I did notice a difference at 6400, and up.  The 6D was the better body over the 7D2.  My first choice for a shooting scenario when I do not know what to expect has become the full frame 6D or 6D2.  Before I picked up the 6D2, my favorite second body was the 1D4, which I just may give away to another relative, too.  Lately, I have been carrying the 7D2, instead of the 1D4, when I want extra reach from a crop body when I am shooting action photography in good light.

I seem to be shooting a lot Friday Night Lights, and indoor basketball and volleyball lately.  For these tasks, I carry the 6D and the 6D2.  When I am shooting a casual social event without a flash, I will carry the 6D and the 6D2.  The only time I seem to carry the 7D2 is for outdoor action photography during daylight hours, for which I will carry the 6D/6D2 as a backup.  The 7D2 really excels at the the outdoor action photography tasks, but so does the 6D2.  But, to be fair, my keeper rate is higher with the 7D2, which is mostly due to the higher frame rate per second.

I still have not figured out which camera body to use.  I am ready to sell of my current bodies and get an EOS-1Dx Mark II.