Last week Mark Forman was invited to a Canon Press Event hosted by Broadway star Andrew Scott Rannells (“Girls,” “New Normal,” and as Elder Price in the Broadway musical “The Book of Mormon.” He won a Grammy for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for the original Broadway Cast Recording. Other credits include “Jersey Boys” and “Hairspray.”)

The “Canon Bring It” crew supplied cameras to 20 members of the media. Mark was loaned two Canon EOS DSLRs: a 70D and the new 7D Mark II, along with a choice of lenses.

The event covered 3 stops: The Marchesa Showroom, a private backstage visit to the Broadway Play “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder,” and luncheon at the Palace Hotel.

I found the Canon 7D Mark II was better at higher ISO shooting than the original Canon 7D. The video is less noisy at High ISO settings. The 7D Mark II is more like a 5D Mark III except that it uses an APS-C sensor. The dynamic range is essentially unchanged. I liked phase detect focusing which was very accurate in every condition and could also be used in video for less demanding scenes. I still prefer manual focus most of the time when shooting video. JPEGs had a pleasing color. There are two card slots — for CF and SD cards.

I also tried out briefly the Canon 70D which to me is a slightly less-featured 7D and is less environmentally sealed in a less costly body. Maybe a bargain.

Here are some shots from the day. Used with permission from the Canon Bring It Event® New York City.