Canon EOS 40D 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Review

The Canon 40d a pretty serious camera for anyone who wants an advanced piece of equipment at a reasonable price. If you are upgrading from the Minolta/Sony/Pentax class of dSLR to the 40d you are taking quantum leap in noise reduction technology, color reproduction, and auto-focus precision among a large list of other features.

I won’t mention too much about the 6.5 frames per second shooting other than it is exhilarating hearing the shutter click that fast for the first time. The live view feature is perfect for working with a tripod and macro shooting where manual focus is important. The ability to have live view displayed on your computer with full camera controls is handy when you need to reduce vibrations. Focus is fast, and almost always accurate in ideal conditions, very quick even when searching for focus. Menus are easily navigable with the wheel and joystick controls.

Overall image quality excellent. All your photos can easily turn out great after spending some time behind the view finder of the 40d.

The 28-135 EF IS USM kit lens is a pretty good deal, especially for photographers investing in a Canon camera for the first time. The money you save by buying the lens with the body is a very substantial amount at the time of this writing. The first notable feature about this lens is that it is image stabilized. The picture quality seems better than a stabilized sensor, but it won’t keep my images blur free for as long. 28mm is a little wide with the 1.6 crop factor, ok for inside photography in large rooms, the 135mm on the high end isn’t bad either, good for zooming in on faces for portraits or to bring the wildlife a little bit closer. Its minimum focus distance of 1.6 feet allows for some close-up macro photography when fully zoomed. This is also an EF lens, this means that if you ever upgrade to a full frame dSLR the lens will still work. It’s not an `L’ series lens, but if you’re upgrading from lesser optics, it really is quite a luxury.

Canon EOS 50D 15.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Standard Zoom Lens Review

I have had my hands on a 50D for exactly two days, and have taken only a few more than 100 photos; however, it is clear to me that this is no “40D Mark II.” It is a giant step-up from the 40D and, in my opinion, akin to a jump between the 20D and 40D (the 30D skipped intentionally). I can speak and write confidently of this because I own or have owned all four cameras. I have the 50D with EF 18-200mm IS Telephoto Lens, which came as an offered kit. Additionally, I own and have used the 50D with an EF 24-105mm f4L and EF 85mm f1.8. Here is my two day take:

a. Controls are familiar yet more intuitive than the 40D;

b. Photos are top shelf. “Incredible!,” “Beautiful!,” and “Wow!” are superlatives which came quickly to me and to my close friends. I tried a few photos at higher ISOs. Those photos showed a bit of `noise,’ however, was much less than expected. Noise at low and mid-range ISOs was not visible to me. I took many pictures in shaded areas to see if this camera handles colors, tones, and lighting better than the disappointing manner of the 40D. Seems to be truth to the claim of improvement in that area. Not a Nikon D2, but still quite excellent. I did not do any flash photography.

c. The LCD is bright, sharp, and much more viewable in sunlight than its predecessor. I think it matches well with those on the Nikons, which seems to have been one major objective with this camera.

d. The camera body is solid; feeling to me even more so than the 40D.

e. The 18-200mm IS lens was quite nice, and provides a great “one-lens” option. I have not compared photos taken with it to those taken with the EF 24-105mm L-series; however, I believe in L-series lenses and would guess the 18-200mm will not hold a candle to the L’s. That said, it is a very excellent lens!! My only criticism is the significant differences in focusing `speed’ between it and the 24-105mm L lens. It is Slooooooow…

The bottom-line is that 50D is a very excellent and, potentially, a very outstanding camera. Not perfect by any means, but a great step forward. I have not to date exercised enough of it’s’ features and options to be more specific now, but I will follow-up with more information once I have the opportunity to use the camera more. I rated it a conservative “4 stars,” which for me is a high rating.

FYI, I am an advanced amateur photographer. I have much experience with Canon SLRs dating back to the A-1, and with some Nikons, including the D300. I have remained a Canon enthusiast because of the investment I have in EF lenses, and because Canon, sooner or later, always seems to come to the dance with superb equipment.

Canon Rebel XS 10.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black) Review

This review is geared toward complete newbies (such as myself) who are coming from the point-and-shoot world.

I purchased this camera due to a budget constraint and after reading numerous reviews. For what you features you get, you simply cannot beat the price for an entry level DSLR camera. You may have looked at the XSI (as I have) and have been tempted to put forth the extra $100 or so to get that one. If you get down to the nitty gritty between the specs of the XS and XSI, you’ll find that they are very minimally different, and more importantly, those “extra” features will have no bearing on you as a DSLR newbie.

This XS (1000D) model is oft overlooked because so many are praising its “bigger brother” the XSI. But take a look at a side-by-side comparison and you’ll notice not much has been scaled back for this XS. Save that extra money for better glass. I would even be willing to speculate that a future firmware release will address some of these scaled-back features.

PROS

-Currently the best bang for buck you’re going to find (at this time).
-Canon didn’t scale back very much from the XSI
-Some report that the lower MP (10 vs XSI’s 12) gives better image quality because of the sensor (DigicIII).
-Excellent image quality even with the supplied kit lens.
-Easy to use (with some research-effort on your part)
-Canon compatibility — nuff said.

CONS

-Not crazy about the build materials (some sort of plastic). When I purchase things, I plan on owning them for a very long time, regardless of how “outdated” it may become a few years down the road.
-Some button placements for me seem counter-intuitive, but remember, I’m only a newbie.
-Has crop sensor like all of the rebels.
-Live View usefulness is questionable.

In short: If you’re coming from P&S, you will not be disappointed with this purchase. It will meet or exceed your expectations of photo quality and features.

Canon EOS Rebel T1i 15.1 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera with 3-Inch LCD and EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens

If you are upgrading and already own Canon or Nikon lenses, you should stick with your brand, the differences between these two cameras should not be enough to cause you to switch, otherwise read on.

First I will list the commonly wrong reasons to pick one over the other:

1) Image Quality – Not because image quality is not important, but because the image quality difference between these two cameras is too minimal to have it be a reason. They are essentially equally great with respect to image quality.

2) Megapixel Count – 15 megapixels is indeed qualitatively better than 6 megapixels, but 15mp (t1i) and 12mp (5000D) from similar sized sensors is again not much real difference. There are point and shoots with higher megapixel counts on tiny ccd sensors, doesn’t mean they are better. Again, image quality of the d5000 and t1i are both great and is no reason to pick one over the other.

3) 1080p video – The t1i has it at 20fps, the d5000 doesn’t have it at all. But the 20 fps on the t1i renders this essentially pointless. The human eye needs about 24fps for the illusion of smooth continuity. If you will be using video, you can consider both 720p.

Now for what I believe are valid but minor reasons to pick one over the other:

1) LCD difference: canon’s is almost double the resolution and bigger, nikon’s can swivel out. I prefer the higher res and bigger size to the swivel. The higher res is very important as you will be able to tell if a shot had problems that you couldn’t at lower res. This is really an important factor that is hard to emphasize in words but makes a huge difference once you see it.

2) movie mode differences: nikon d5000 is fully manual here including for the focus. the canon is fully auto here including a pretty slow and disruptive auto focus. For an SLR you WANT manual control, especially of aperture so you can control the depth of field to make videos that are less home video looking and more ‘artsy’. If you wanted full auto, get a point and shoot that does video. Fortunately for canon, there are workarounds to be able to control aperture, but they are a hassle. But my opinion is to get the Canon based on the auto focus. It is not really useable during movie capture (loud slow and disruptive), but you can atleast use it before hand to get focus. It brings quite a bit of convenience. And you can look on the web for hack ways to manually control the aperture. The Canon is also 30fps at 720p compared to 24fps at 720p for the nikon. You can get a 25% slow motion effect with the canon without going under 24fps, where as with the nikon doing any slow motion will mean choppy frames (under 24fps).

Everything else I feel comes down to personal factors like form factor, feel in hand etc.

Canon Digital Rebel XSi 12.2 MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Black) Review

I sold my beloved Nikon D70 after four years of use. I still miss it. I purchased a D40, but it never felt right. Picture quality was good, better than the D70, but I had to go through menus to do most everything (changing white balance, ISO, formatting the card, you name it), whereas the D70 had dedicated buttons. That makes all the difference in usability. Besides, the D40 does not even autofocus with my beloved 50mm 1.8 lens. Are you kidding me? I returned the D40 after 3 days of use.

I was lookind at the D80, 40D, the D300, the XTI, and this one. All good cameras (at the end of the day, they all take excellent pictures). it’s the usability/sweet price/new features factor that counts. 40D and D300 are expensive for me (not a pro). The XTI is getting old (still good though, and very good price). The D80 is very good, a bigger brother of my beloved d70, but still old: no sensor cleaning, to highlight tone priority, does not ship with a bundled VR lens. You are basically buying a 2006 camera in 2008. I did not like that.

I found this XSI at Circuit City. It felt right in my small hands. It had most of the buttons I need to make changes quickly. I still have to go to a menu to set my custom white balance (the D70 had a button for that). Same thing to format the card (button combination on the D70). Auto ISO is not as smart as Nikon’s implementation. Other than that, the camera is excellent. All the other buttons are there. It has an RGB histogram (very important; it lets you see if you are clipping individual colors). Picture quality is great. Very little noise (Canon’s CMOS sensor is cleaner than Nikon’s CCD on the D80), very pleasing skin tones (I take lots of pictures of my daughter and wife).

If the D80 had the same 2008 features as this one (highlight tone priority, self-cleaning sensor, bundled VR lens), I would have gotten that one. It’s still a great camera. This one is just a 2008 camera with features found in the semi-pro 40D and the pro 1DS.

I’m very happy with it

Sigma SD14 14MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) Reviews

Sigma SD14 is a fabulous camera, capable of producing exceptional, vivid and professional quality photos that can impress your friends, but it has several shortcomings.

I have used this camera for three months and took over 4000 pictures with these four Sigma lenses: 30mm f1.4, 50mm f2.8, 18-200mm OS and 70-300mm APO. I also have the Canon Rebel XT and Nikon D40 systems.

SD14 works great when there is a lot of light, like shooting pictures during daytime outdoor or inside a well-lit studio. Without sufficient lighting, pictures can be dark and grainy. On the other hand, Nikon D40 produces better indoor pictures.

If you are upgrading from a point and shoot camera and have less than a thousand dollars to spend, I suggest you get the Nikon D40 with its kit lens and the AF-S 55-200mm VR lens. Number of megapixels does not matter, but the sensor size does. D40 has the same sensor size as D300!

If you don’t look at price tags when you shop, then the Canon 1Ds is for you. It’ll cost you ten grands when you include a couple of L lenses and flash speedlights.

SD14 is not an all purpose camera. It is suitable as a 2nd camera to an entry level or prosumer DSLR cameras. It let you take artistic and lively pictures to wow your friends without breaking the bank.

Pros:
1. Wow quality photos. Picture colors are absolutely amazing.
2. Camera relatively cheap.
3. Sigma professional lenses much cheaper than the Canon and Nikon counterparts.
4. Great for taking still subjects such as portraits, flowers, architectures and landscape.

Cons:
1. Slower auto focus when compared to the Canon and Nikon systems.
2. Metering less accurate when compared to the Canon and Nikon systems.
3. Battery life relatively short (150/250/400 photos for SD14/Rebel XT/D40).
4. Some Sigma lenses haves quality control issues. I had to return the 30mm f1.4 lens because of back-focus problem. It has worked fine after the exchange. Sigma USA customer support is friendly.
5. Camera system crashes a bit too often. Need to restart and waste 2 seconds every time.
6. Slower burst rate. Not suitable for shooting birds or race cars unless you are really good.

Nikon D700 12.1MP Digital SLR Camera with 24-120mm f/3.5-5.6G ED IF VR Nikkor Zoom Lens Reviews

here are already a lot of reviews of the D700 on Amazon.com so I will focus on the current D200 user who is considering upgrading to a D700. If affordability is an issue and/or you have a lot invested in DX lenses (I will explain why later), skip the D700 and either buy a D300 that are being discounted since it is late in its product life cycle or wait for a successor to the D300. Another alternative to consider is the new D90.

I’ve been using the D700 for about a month and will offer more subjective than quantitative comments. If you want a technical review, I would recommend the D700 forum at nikonians.org or Ken Rockwell at www.kenrockwell.com (even if you don’t agree with him, I think he provides a valuable service to the photography community).

My top 3 reasons in no particular order for upgrading from a D200 to a D700:
1) It is just outright faster (remember I am comparing it to a D200) – I shoot a lot of “capture the moment” photos(okay, you can call them “snapshots”) and the D700 focuses and meters noticeably faster. This is very important when I am covering events and taking photos as opportunities present themselves. I may only have one chance to get the photo right (I do shoot in continuous mode but not necessarily with bracketing).
2) The photos I take, especially the colors, appear to be much more accurate (again, just a subjective opinion). I use Photoshop CS4 a lot but fine that with most photos that I take with the D700 there is not a lot of need to make adjustments for levels, sharpness and hue/saturation. Most of the time I just crop/resize and print – this saves me a lot of time. Most of the time I am using matrix metering and auto-area focus. The auto white balance works great although I am shooting RAW right now since the outdoor shots where I live are in the snow.
3) The D700 with its great photo quality at higher ISOs allows me to take more available light (not necessarily limited to low light) photographs especially indoors and late afternoons/early evenings. I like this a lot because I find it less intrusive than taking people photos with a flash. There is no red eye problems; people don’t tend to freeze up; and it minimizes lighting issues.

However, the big “BUT” is that you are likely to need to buy the newest Nikon full frame lenses if you really want to achieve faster, better and available light photos. There has been a lot of criticism of the 24-120mm/3.5-5.6G kit lens but I think it is just fine for a general “walk around” lens. If you are shooting in lower light situations or a single subject focus in aperture mode, then the constant apertures found in the 24-70mm/2.8G and the 70-200mm/2.8G is really what you need. You can add the 14-24mm/2.8G if you do landscapes. They are expensive, big and heavy but they are as fast and sharp as can be. Older full frame Nikon lenses work well and will take great shots but they are slower (ex. I have an 80-400mm without the internal motor so it is noticeably slower). Prime lenses would be good alternatives. Overall, there are fewer available lenses for full frame since a lot of the current product focus is on DX lenses for the various lens manufacturers (not just Nikon).

A couple of final comments – first, I was originally going to sell my D200 to defray the cost of the D700 but decided that there are situations in which I can only take one camera and weight/bulk is an issue. For example, my D200 with the 18-200mm lens is perfect for an upcoming vacation in which I have to fly, not drive. It is a good “walk around” camera. So the D700 has become by camera with a purpose. In my case, this is when I want to take high quality photos at an event such as a wedding or a concours (I like cars as well).

Second, the Canon EOS 5D Mark II is an alternative worth considering, especially if you are going to buy new lenses anyway. I did not consider it because I am very use to and comfortable with the Nikon controls and don’t want to risk missing a shot fumbling with how to change some setting.

Bottom line – I love the camera and would highly recommend it to any D200 user considering upgrading to a D700.

Canon Powershot SX10IS 10MP Digital Camera with 20x Wide Angle Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Reviews

I own the SX10 (and previously a stack of other digital cameras … starting with that SONY MAVICA with the 3.5″ diskettes a LONG time ago), and love it. I previously owned the S5, and it was also excellent. I bought the SX10 for the awesome LENS CAPABILITIES, and have not been disappointed whatsoever. It takes magnificent pics, has that enormous range, is COMPACT, and has that “heft” to it that gives it the feel of a “serious” camera. Now: for the REALITY CHECK: I just bumped into the Canon 40D and 50D models at a local store. You’ve seen them: big, hefty, big lcd (without the cover the SX10 has … can already visualize the SCRATCHES from shirt buttons, etc.), big lenses with those ridges on them that seem to beg you to pick it up and zoom in/out. Then I remembered: I bought the 30D some time ago. Bought all the lenses, external flash, cards, batteries, case, etc. Took it home and, after the battery pack was charged, went into the picture taking drill. I was shocked! A cheaper camera that I had took brighter/clearer pics than this EXPENSIVE get-up I just bought! I took a stack of pics with both: same result. I brought that set back to the place where purchased and that was that. There is no doubt that the 30D was worth the price, to demanding pros, but not to me. And this is the point I am trying to make: for the AVERAGE ‘JOE’ or ‘Jill’, you probably don’t need all the bells ‘n whistles these advanced DSLRs certainly deliver. If you are NOT a pro, NEEDING to manipulate a zillion settings manually and exchange lenses to match what you want to accomplish, this SX10 is probably gonna be PERFECT for you! You will not have to buy an array of EXPENSIVE add-on lenses (read the reviews for the 50D, for example, and you will see that super camera is, in the end, “lense dependent” … that is: the end results will depend on the quality of “the glass” you have attached. This can get to be a VERY expensive proposition for all but the very serious pros). If you, like me, just want GOOD PICTURES without all the fuss, then … in my very humble opinion … this SX10 is probably all you will need for the remainder of your time on the planet (I will admit, after putzing with both the 40D and 50D, I found it hard to walk away without buying one/the other. It’s almost impossible to not be overly impressed with their great appearance, obvious wealth of options, and “heft” value. But, remembering my experience with the 30D, and the fact I obviously was not ready for multiple lenses, and the complexities involved with high-end cameras, I walked away). You can read the attached excellent reviews on the SX10 to find all about batteries, external flashes, bags, etc.

Wishing to add a comment/two about certainly real concerns that run through these reviews: LOSING THE LENS CAP and DROPPING THE CAMERA. For the initial concern: go to RITZ CAMERA, for instance (AMAZON probably also sells this), and buy the QUANATRAY LENS CAP LEASH. It affixes to the lens cap and the camera body, problem solved for $1.99. As far as DROPPING the thing … DON’T!! I use the CANON WRIST STRAP (bought mine via EBAY) and really like it. A thin over-the-neck strap came with the unit (which I don’t particularly like), USE IT! But, do ensure the LCD SCREEN is COVERED when walking around with that neck strap to not scratch the lcd with shirt buttons, etc.

UPDATE: 2-17-09: I’M BACK … again. I could not resist the urge to get another SLR. I bought a real GOOD one, bought more lenses, flash, etc. AND, just like the one I brought back before, I BROUGHT THIS ONE BACK! The BOTTOM LINE is: THE PICTURE. This expensive array did NOT take better pics than the CANON SX10IS! I am sticking with this GREAT Canon FOREVER! It does EVERYTHING … and in a wonderful small package. No lenses to lug around and have to change as the scene demands … just zoom on from 28mm to 560mm(!) without missing a beat. Super camera!

Sony Cybershot DSC-T700 10MP Digital Camera with 4x Optical Zoom with Super Steady Shot Image Stabilization Reviews

If you are looking for the ideal point-and-shoot camera for your teenager, this is a superb choice. (Great for adults, too!) It fits right in with an active, portable lifestyle– it is light-weight, user-friendly, tech-smart and smart-looking. Sleek. It looks a lot like kin to the itouch phone or itouch ipod, with its square shape and sleek surface on which you prime your menu and edit with the touch of a finger (or included pen). My teenage daughter loves it and assesses it as “superior.” It fits right in with her tech-loving lifestyle. Even the low-light pictures at the skating rink are respectable.

There are a lot of cool features for preparing and editing your photos. They include smile-detection, smile improvement (where the camera can actually sort of stretch the sides of the mouth, weird as that sounds), red-eye removal. There are also arty features such as choosing a center point and surrounding the periphery in monochrome, a starburst feature that adds flair to pics, a blurry edge feature, and ability to write captions.

It comes with a rechargeable battery, a recharger, and built-in memory stick that takes thousands of pictures. I recommend purchasing an external memory stick if you want to take photos to be printed by your local store.

The only non-user-friendly feature my daughter came across was the flash. She said that it was counterintuitive and that the manual did not help her to program it in. She did finally get a friend (who has had this camera for a while) to help her program the flash, and she has had no problems ensue. My daughter is typically tech savvy, so this is notably a salient concern.

Thanks to a reviewer on this site, I have ordered a military-grade invisible shield to protect her screen. I highly recommend it–teens are hard on electronics.

Lastly,she asked for it in grey, which surprised me. I thought she would want one of the flashy colors, but she pointed out that the flashy colors also attract sticky fingers in public places. The muted colors draw less attention.

The price keeps going down. I bought it for $399 a few weeks ago and the price has gone down twice. Cheers to Amazon for reimbursing me the discount when I wrote to them.

Canon EOS 50D 15.1MP Digital SLR Camera with EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM Standard Zoom Lens Reviews.

After owing a Canon EOS 10D camera, which was damaged while traversing a mountain stream during a photo shoot, I wanted to continue with a like-kind Canon replacement. The EOS 50D was just released in October. I purchased it and have been using it for one month now. The 50D is just like my now retired 10D but with a few upgrades.

One significant upgrade is the larger LCD display. It is crisp and sharp and easy to review images captured. While I do like the larger LCD display, there is a downside to the larger LCD display. I have found that my face inevitably touches the LCD display while looking through the viewfinder. This almost always leaves facial marks (oils) much like fingerprints all over the left side of the LCD display. I now find I must keep at-the-ready a soft, clean cloth to wipe it clean to review images clearly. While this is not necessarily a hardware issue, it is becoming somewhat of a major annoyance–especially when on a fast-paced photo shoot. Of course, unless one is as particular about a clean LCD display as I am, it might not be an annoyance. Perhaps Canon could consider moving the LCD display to the right side vs the left in later models.

Another significant upgrade is the better image quality versus my former 10D. The images are now taken at 15.5 mega pixels versus the 6.3 of my former 10D. This alone made my purchase a worthwhile upgrade from the 10D.

I have also noticed a noticeable difference with the 50D to capture a bit sharper images in low or available light situations. While the difference I have noticed is not always a sure thing in every situation, it is noticeable enough that it can often mean the difference between a “keeper” and a deletion. Fuzzy images in low light was a major issue with my former 10D. The sensors in the 50D appear to have been improved markedly.

While the Canon EOS 50D can certainly over-kill for a novice or a point-and-shoot photographer, it does meet all of the quality standards and versatility requirements that I require as an advanced photographer. Whether used fully automatic or manually, this camera has all the technology I need to keep it from becoming a technical drag on my creativity. I consider myself an artist with a camera, not a technician. So, once I learn most of the camera’s features, I make the camera work for me, not against me. That’s everything a Twenty-First Century digital camera should be. And, the Canon EOS 10D certainly is.

While the Canon EOS 50D is not a radical upgrade over more recent Canon digital SLRs, it is for my former 10D. Therefore, I am delighted with my new 50D and would readily recommend it as a quality new or replacement digital camera for any serious photographer.