What’s up guys, welcome to another Tech Gear Talk video. Today I want to talk about a nice camera for vlogging and creating YouTube content, the Canon G7 X Mark II.
A lot of you have been asking me to review gear that is more affordable and you’re looking to either start a YouTube channel or vlogging for your business. I’m going to review a lot of cameras at different price and feature ranges and I’ll link to my playlist on the top here so that you can check out some other cameras if you’re interested.
I’ll put a link in the description to where you can find this camera if you’re looking to buy it and it’s automatically going to update with the latest prices and holiday specials to make sure to check it out if you’re interested.
If this video ends up being helpful in giving you a good overview of the G7X Mark II, please let me know by giving it a like and consider hitting the subscribe and notification button for more camera reviews. The G7 X Mark II is one of Canon’s best compact point-and-shoot cameras. And what Canon did here is pack a bunch of features into a really small and affordable camera.
Ok, let’s start looking at the camera itself. Like the Canon M6, the G7 X Mark II was redesigned with a really nice rubber grip to make it super easy and comfortable to handle. The camera body is small to where it’s super portable but not too small where you would feel like you’re going to drop it. It’s just slightly smaller than the Canon EOS M6
Another nice feature is the improved control dial on the front. Canon added the ability to switch between clicking and smooth rotation modes. That really gives you the best of both worlds because you can use the click mode when you’re setting things like exposure parameters, so it’s easy to just go up one or two clicks at a time. But then for something like manual focus, you can switch to smooth mode and the freely rotate the dial. To switch, all you have to do is slide this little toggle under the lens.
One of the things we know we need for vlogging is a screen that flips so that we can see ourselves on camera. Like the original G7 X had a flip screen, the G7 X Mark II screen can also be flipped 180 degrees to face the front. But in addition to that, it can also be flipped down 45 degrees which is a nice feature for when you’re doing overhead shots.
The 3” touchscreen LCD on the back a nice size and really easy to use and it supports tap to focus or shoot and gives you the ability to navigate menus and review images. Alright, let’s start looking at this camera in a little more detail.
Even though the sensor size wasn’t upgraded from the original G7 X, the Mark II uses the DIGIC 7 Image Processor which is also used on more expensive models like M5, M6, T7i, 6D Mark II, the SL2 a bunch of other cameras. Because of the more modern processing capabilities, the upgraded sensor will give you better performance overall. So you’ll get sharper images, less noise in low light situations, a more responsive and faster autofocus and a much improved burst speed for when you’re trying to photograph a moving subject.
So the better your processor the more continuous shots you can take without running into buffering issues. One of the problems with the original G7 X was that the battery life was pretty poor. This new processor is able to get a 25% increase from the same battery with is definitely an improvement. But that is one of this camera’s weak points, and it’s still behind other cameras like the Sony RX100 series or Panasonic Lumix ZS100 and TZ100.
The lens is built-it so you don’t have the option to upgrade or get additional focal lengths so that is something to consider. Some people may look at it as a limiting factor and some people are going to say that this range covers what a lot of people who are looking at this type of camera are going to need. The lens also has built in stabilization and when you’re zoomed all the way out you can focus on items as close as 2” away from the lens.
You can see that it’s relatively fast and doesn’t hunt for focus. As always I wish it was even faster but you know it’s a function of the overall cost of the camera so at this range and with the new processor, even low-light autofocus is really nice.
Now, if you’re vlogging and it’s always close to you or you’re in a quiet room, it can work for you. If you’re looking some another option from Canon that has mic input check out something like the M6 for example. It will give you a mic input, an interchangeable lens, but of course goes up in price a little. I’ll put some links in the description to a few other cameras in case this is a deal breaker for you.
If you want to take this a step further, you can use the app to remotely control the camera from a mobile device using the Camera Connect app. That’s a nice feature but it only works with photography. You can’t shoot video with the camera connect app. Hopefully that is something that Canon introduces soon.
It’s super easy, you select between 3 saved pre-programmed scenes plus a custom mode where you can just change the settings each time. What’s nice about that is that you can save 3 different presets so like you can create a preset for sunright and sunset, another for clouds and one for people for example, and then just reuse them, instead of having to remember your settings.
It’s really perfect for beginners and you can easily decide how much you’re going to speed things up, whether you want the exposure fixed or not, and whether you want to see each image as it’s being taken. This is the same timelapse setting as the Canon M6 and a few other cameras so I’ll probably end up shooting a quick tutorial about this and posting it later. Another feature that’s important especially if you’re using this for vlogging and you’re moving around a lot, or shooting hand-held, is image stabilization.
In video mode the the G7 X mark II has what Canon is calling ‘dynamic IS,’ which combines the in-lens and electronic IS for 5-axis stabilization. And this combination is designed to remove that camera shake you get when you’re hand-holding the camera. You can also decide to use a 3-axis gimbal if you want even smoother footage.
The G7 X II also includes a wind filter, focus peaking if you ever want to focus manually, and an ‘auto level’ feature that lets you see if the camera is leveled.
There is also an exposure compensation function so that you can override the camera’s auto-exposure if you want. If you move to the + side you’re making the image brighter, if you move to the – side you’re making the image darker. That can be helpful for when the lighting conditions make it tricky for a camera to get the exposure you want.
You have the tap-focus feature of the LCD display to easily pick and lock your focus point. Once you select it, the camera will continuously autofocus on that spot until you select a different spot. It’s a great feature for vlogging and for when you’re shooting alone. I wish that there was a mic input however with the G7 X Mark II has a built in microphone. It may not be a big deal for you or maybe it is, I just want to make sure you know the facts.
It’s an excellent size for vloggers, YouTubers or really anyone else that likes to take their camera with them when they travel. I like the build quality and the rubber grip. I would have liked to see a little more of it on the other size. The flip up selfie screen is something I wouldn’t go without if you plan on using this camera for vlogging. It’s so important that workflow has as little friction as possible and doesn’t get in the way of you using the camera and creating great content with it.
I like using the Canon Camera Connect app with the built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth options to easily transfer pictures from the camera to a mobile device and even control the camera remotely. Like I said it’s a great camera for beginners with all the presets, picture styles and auto everything, and also still gives you manual control is you want to play around with that. And finally we talked about how easy it is to do timelapse and about the in-camera lens and electronic image stabilization to help you get rid of some that shake. .
Right now it sells for $679 and I’ll put links in the description that will automatically be updated with any specials or discounts so you’re always getting the lowest prices.
I really hope I was able to provide you with a nice overview of the Canon PowerShot G7 X Mark II. Please let me know it was helpful by giving it a thumbs up, tweet it, share it, and if you haven’t yet, hit that subscribe and notification buttons.
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Good luck and see you soon.
