r/CanonR7

I've been struggling with which lens I should get for the ESO R7. Any recommendations?

Hello,

I am an absolute photography beginner. The only pictures I have taken have been snapshots with my phone (Samsung S24 Ultra, pleasing enough results for my taste).

But through coincidence I started to get interested into dedicated cameras. I did very little research and ultimately landed on the Canon EOS R7.

I took it out a bit, much less than I would have liked, but I have two children (1 year and 5 year old) and naturally they take up a lot of time, as does work.

So I got some bird shots with the R7 and the Canon 100-400mm F5.6-8 lens, which translates to an effective 640mm focal length due to the APS-C sensor. This reach makes it good for birding. And I like birding, at least as of now I find it exciting to hunt for the little winged guys.

But - of course - once you stick your nose into such topics, you hear a lot of stuff about different types of cameras and you see stuff that, a few months ago, seemed absolutely uninteresting for you and - factoring in the price - just seemed crazy to even think about because why would you need this stuff, you are an absolute beginner, you shoot a little bit of stuff, you don't make money from this, I am not even the type to post a lot on social media, so the "audience" for my work would be a very, very small group, probably almost exclusively family...

But it somehow itches, you think "Maybe with this 45 MP full frame body and the advanced stuff this camera can do, you will take nicer photos, you are nailing AF more often, you have better noise reduction in low light, you have a larger buffer for burst shots, etc...."

I somehow can't get my mind off the R5 II, I have watched a few reviews, of course there are some things other cameras seem to do better, e.g. the new Sony A7R VI looks phenomenal, but costs about 2,200€ more (granted it is brand new and you can get a used R5 II for good prices if you do some research) and I would have another mount system to worry about, not compatible with my current 4 lenses I have (however with the plus side of having a vastly larger offering of third party lenses)... so the R5 II seems really tempting.

But do I need this thing, do I really? Or am I just suffering from an idiotic case of FOMO and think that I can play with the "big boy" photographers just because I have a more advanced piece of tech? I mean, it certainly won't miraculously give me "photographer's eye" or perfect my compositions. It just is a more advanced and versatile tool - a very, very expensive tool given that it will only be used for an - as of now severely time-restricted - pastime activity.

Sorry for the wall of text, but maybe some of you have insights on such a topic, can relate or give me a brutal reality check what a moron I am. I appreciate literally ANY input and I thank you in avance for it.

Have a good one.