Canon EOS Elan 7NE

Like many people, I started out with a Canon Rebel XTi and wet my toes with its kit lens for over a year before I felt the need to up to a prime 50mm and a L-series telephoto (70-200 F4). I was seduced by… the myth of having a full frame camera but as a university student, couldn't afford to plunk two grand on a camera body after draining all my resources on the lenses. I decided to have a cheap full frame by buying an ancient Canon Canonet QL17 off ebay and I fell in love with shooting film so much that I brought a refurbished Elan 7e as well. I went out to do some street photography today and have been using the Elan 7e since March. It has all the features I love on my XTi but in an affordable full-frame 35mm package. Looking through the huge viewfinder is always a pleasure and going back to the dim and narrow viewfinder of the XTi reminds me how much more subject you can fit inside a real 35mm frame. Using film is a pleasure too, I have honestly became a better photographer because I take significantly more time with each shot and I focus more on composition and framing than trying to luck out a shot with the "machine-gun" shutter of digital SLRs. I use this film camera along with a few others (I have since became a collector of film cameras) for my personal projects and I have since dedicated my XTi for photojournalism and event photos for quick transfer and convenience. I highly recommend the Elan 7E and it's newer cousin the 7NE as an affordable alternative to the dreamy 5D or the recently announced Nikon D700. And finally, a 50mm is a 50mm and not 80 something.

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I picked up EOS Elan 7NE a few days ago (since it is not available at Amazon I had to order elsewhere), after I noticed that 35mm film cameras in advanced hobbyist/enthusiast range are getting rare, and I'm… a dedicated film shooter. I plan using Elan alongside my trusty AE-1's; I just wanted something more modern, with AF etc and what won't brake the bank. 7NE definitely fits the bill; I ordered this body with EF 28mm-105mm f3.5-4.5 II USM lens which is supposed to be significantly better then entry-level 28mm-90mm that comes with available Elan kits at better online camera stores. Camera is feature-packed; luckily the 100-page small booklet manual is well written and consistent in giving enough info to get you going. I'd like to add that the camera is somewhat bigger then I thought (I'll try to upload a shot of 7NE and AE-1 side by side for size comparison), however size shouldn't be a drawback. Overall it feels solid and is easy to hold, controls are well laid out, and I have overall a good feel about it. I shot a test roll of B&W PlusX with it the other day and it came out decent even on full-auto mode. I also tried the eye-controlled focus, and yes it works as advertised. BTW, there is large variety of used Elan and EOS bodies available for low prices on auction site, however I wanted to get a spankin new 100% functional & dent-free camera so there wouldn't be any surprises; since the 7NE body is so affordable, why not to buy brand new.

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I bought this camera in 2002 (when it was the Elan 7e), the only difference is body texture, lit display, and a slightly faster autofocuser. The camera works great and the pictures are great. It takes 4… fps. I don't use this camera anymore since going digital with my EOS 40D but if I would recommend a film camera at a good price, this would be the camera. If you still use film, this is a camera that is hard to beat at the price.

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Okay, first off, I'd like to say that this is my first AF SLR--I stepped up from my dinosaur of a camera, Canon AE-1 manual focus, and right now I am quite overwhelmed by all the features in this little… thing. I'm still in the learning stages of all this technology but let me tell you this, I am having fun! It amazes me that Canon can offer quite an impressive camera for the price. I just received my first few rolls from the developer and the pictures came out amazing--so clear and the colors are very vibrant. Just to let you know, I'm using the 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 USM lens. I took the suggestions of many and passed up on the "kit" lens and I'm sure glad I did so. I would highly recommend the f/3.5-4.5 lens, but unfortunately for the rest of you, Amazon has discontinued it. But you could order it from one of the many other photo shops (B&H, Adorama, etc). Do I have any regrets on this purchase? Absolutely not! I love this camera and even though I've owned it for less than a month, I'm actually thinking about stepping up to the EOS 3 and using this as a backpacking/hiking body. Hmm...what to do, what to do? Do I purchase another body or start a collection of L-series glass? ...that is the question.

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