im basically freaking out because black friday is like right around the corner and i still havent decided which body to go with for my trip to costa rica in december. i need to get this sorted like yesterday so i have time to learn the settings before i go and i am just paralyzed by the choices right now.
been staring at the canon r7 and the r10 for weeks now. the r7 has that better sensor and the dual card slots which would make me feel way less stressed about losing photos but its obviously more expensive and heavier. then there is the r10 which is way cheaper and i could spend the extra money on a better lens like the rf 100-400mm but i worry it wont hold up in the humidity or the autofocus wont be fast enough for birds. my budget is strictly under 1500 for the whole setup including at least one lens. i saw some rumors that the r7 might go on sale for like 1300 body only but then i literally cant afford a decent lens to go with it. but then what if the r8 drops in price and i should go full frame? i just dont know what to do and the clock is ticking.
does anyone know if canon usually does better deals on their own site or should i wait for b&h or adorama? i dont want to wait until friday morning and find out everything is sold out and then im stuck with my old phone camera for the whole trip. should i just pull the trigger on the r10 now if it hits a certain price point or is the r7 really worth the extra stress on my bank account?
To add to the point above: i am so excited for your trip, costa rica is gonna be amazing!! if you are worried about the budget, honestly the Canon EOS R10 Mirrorless Camera Body is the way to go. it is such a fantastic little beast for birds because of that crop factor! since you're on a strict budget, definitely grab the Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM lens with the money you save. it is literally a game changer for wildlife and fits perfectly under your 1500 limit. for the humidity thing... just grab a Ruggard RC-P18 Rain Shield for like ten bucks. it is way cheaper than buying a weather sealed body and works great! i love saving money where it counts so i can spend more on the actual flight lol. you're gonna get incredible shots of those macaws! TL;DR: stick to the R10 and spend the extra on the 100-400mm lens for those birds!
Building on the earlier suggestion, check Canons refurbished shop for reliability since they include a warranty. My Canon EOS R10 with RF-S 18-150mm Lens worked fine in the jungle despite the moisture.
Honestly, the way these companies handle Black Friday pricing is just infuriating. Monitoring the data shows the sales are basically a joke this year. It makes me so mad when they pretend it is a discount while people are actually trying to plan big life events. In my experience, if you are worried about the weather but stuck on a budget, you gotta go the DIY route for protection. The market isnt helping us out here. Over the years I have seen humidity ruin plenty of gear, but you can definitely manage if you are technical about your prep.
- grab a Peak Design Shell Camera Cover to handle the humidity
- use a SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO UHS-II SDXC for faster buffer clearing during bird bursts
- keep some silica gel packets in your bag (old pro trick) Refurbished units are your best bet. If you find the Canon EOS R7 with RF-S 18-150mm f/3.5-6.3 IS STM Lens Kit on the Canon site, it sometimes dips near 1400. That would solve the dual slot worry. Pro shooters deal with humidity all the time without high-end sealing; you just have to be diligent. Just dont let the gear stress ruin the trip.
tbh the sales this year are kinda disappointing so far. i was tracking the prices on the Canon EOS R7 Mirrorless Body and it's just not dropping as much as we'd hoped... unfortunately. if you want to stay under 1500 with a lens for costa rica, you're in a tough spot because that body basically eats the whole budget.
- canon refurbished site is usually the way to go, but even there the deals haven't been as good as expected lately.
- the Canon EOS R10 Mirrorless Body is way cheaper but honestly the lack of weather sealing is a major bummer for a jungle trip. humidity is no joke and i've seen cameras fail in those conditions.
- you really need the Canon RF 100-400mm f/5.6-8 IS USM for those birds but that puts you over budget if you buy a brand new r7. if you go with the r10, the buffer is tiny... like, you'll hit the limit in two seconds of burst fire and miss the shot. it sucks ngl. i'd keep an eye on the canon loyalty program tho. you can sometimes call them and get a discount on the Canon EOS R8 Full Frame Mirrorless but then the lenses for full frame are way more expensive and heavy. basically, prices are frustrating right now. maybe look at the r10 if it hits 600 bucks but otherwise the r7 is the only one with the specs you actually need for wildlife, even if the price is stressful.
Regarding what #2 said about "To add to the point above: i am excited for your trip..." - i definitely agree on the crop factor being a massive plus for wildlife, but i'd be a bit cautious about the environmental side of things. Costa Rica is notoriously brutal on electronics because of the humidity levels and sudden rain. Since the R10 lacks the weather sealing you get on the R7, you'd need to be really careful with it in the cloud forests. Quick tip: if you end up with the R10, definitely grab a couple of extra Canon LP-E17 Lithium-Ion Battery Pack because the battery life is honestly pretty short compared to the R7s larger battery. Also, you might want to look into SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO UHS-II SDXC cards to handle the high-speed bursts without the buffer filling up too fast. Before I suggest a specific setup tho, i need to know what kind of conditions you're actually expecting? Like, are you gonna be deep in the jungle hiking for hours, or mostly shooting from resort balconies? That really changes how much you should prioritize that R7 weather sealing.
My buddy told me the exact same thing last week. Guess he was right lol.
