Camera 500D

The Initial Experience.

Focus and speed: Automatic, fast, accurate in all available modes. In any case, this is true with the supplied kit lens 18-55mm IS. In focus-tracking is still accurate, and also for movement-images quickly enough.

Manual focus of course, also works. But why? Exposure and focus can be set to spot or evaluative. This is sufficient for practice.

Handling: This material is OK. The camera seems robust and stable. Only in comparison with the magnesium-Teddy from Nikon, Canon, Pentax, Olympus is seen and felt it better. The camera is great for my hands not the optimum, but it can still work well with it. The "low" weight has advantages and disadvantages. The balance is thus more in the direction of the lens, you have to carry less. Stabilization by hand is not sufficient given. Anyone who comes from a compact camera, and has never worked with an SLR, will find the camera but as a very high quality and very large.

All buttons and controls open up after a short acclimation. The monitor is of excellent quality.

However, the monitor I use only for movies and for settings. In the pure photography mode, I shut it off permanently, because I'm used to at first, use the viewfinder of an SLR, and second is the Live View focusing a slow wit.

What exactly is this live-view? In my view, a pure marketing gimmick for people who come from digital compact cameras. The viewfinder is much faster and the first images the way you want them and how you see them.

I use the movie mode in the 720p version. Give me perfect, and the results are reproduced at 30 frames per second, also in a liquid. Unlike others, I find the video function is very nice and helpful. Here you MUST use the Monitor Incidentally, since, because the mirror pops up, the viewfinder remains black.

For the Main Point: How are the Pictures?
I can only write something about the standard system, ie, body image stabilization with the kit lens 18-55mm.

Quite amazing in my eyes the noise performance, image stabilization and the detailing of the camera in poor, low-light conditions. I've shot in street lighting, clear photos of moving objects are not from the hand to ISO 1600. Super.

Here the noise behavior of the camera is really very good. Both RAW as well as in JPEG Fine. Indoors, I leave the flash off and the images are generally 1A.

Enables you to pinpoint the flash of a face against a light background, for example, add, control the camera performs a really great job: The images are not "flash is dead" but really brightened only by the relevant authorities. The rest, of course, remains.

The level of detail is extremely high, though many details are available, which differ in color. BUT: In contrast to low light conditions, the texture behavior in the sunshine in JPEG mode is improved. Regardless of whether program, aperture or aperture priority and even in purely manual recording level> the texture behavior, and also the highlight of treatment are not optimal.

Texture says: The surface treatment. Here for example is from my white shepherd dog in the snow in sunlight, sometimes even a white mass with two button issues, and I quite a lot of aperture, time, white balance, etc. I experimented. DAS may also have a good compact better. This could be, as is the dynamic behavior at high dynamic range of the recording in JPEG mode, with a firmware adjustment mE be improved.

All in all, the EOS 500D, but a very good, fast camera with excellent picture quality in almost any lighting condition, which dedicated amateur photographers offers everything they need when they do not want to shoot in the rain or the Sahara. The image quality in RAW mode is probably just as well as in the two-digit and APS-C models from Nikon and Canon.

I do not know yet whether I'll keep it. If I had picked myself a DSLR and would not get this as a gift, it would probably become a Pentax K-7th

Why?

I once had with a Rolleiflex in the Sahara. After the repair and cleaning was almost as expensive as the camera itself. A water-and dust-tight enclosure is m.E. worth a lot and for a reasonable price, offers, in conjunction with a magnesium body and video recording, only the Pentax. > How Will see. For, from this level of photography, the EOS 500D back in the digital compact class level now also even () anymore.

With the purchase of the EOS 500D, I am very satisfied. In the past 2 months I have photographed almost every day and the camera was able to test it very extensively. I would recommend the camera every ambitious amateur photographer with high demands on image quality and a purse, is not sufficient for the more expensive models.

+ Very good image quality (for this price range I am very happy) (The most important reason to me)
(-) 15 MP irritates the kit lenses do not completely off (which makes this kit lens, however, already?).
- Image Stabilizer in the lens makes the lens a little more expensive.
+ If there is good in the hand. All the buttons easily accessible.
- The auto focus is out in difficult lighting situations and problems again.
+ Video mode (HD).
(-) Full HD "only" with 20 frames (The fact that the Camera 500D no video camera, I'll explain in the section Video Quality)
+ Very good and Raw Series Exposure Mode

The picture quality is very tidy, even if the kit lens, the 15 MP of course, not exploits. This at least is at the top is no problem, because not everyone wants to spend even just 800 euros for a good lens. In retrospect, I regret it, but something I did not like the zoom lens with 18-200mm bought, for a lens in the telephoto range () is for zooming very highly recommended.

(Otherwise I retrofitting: Canon EF-S 4,0-5,6 / 55-250 IS lens Canon EOS One disadvantage of the model that the image stabilizer is sitting in the lens, which makes them more expensive and offers only little advantage (The image is already stabilized in the viewfinder). The high iso adjustability of the Camera 500D is indeed useful to take a snapshot of the night, but images beyond ISO 400 are generally well-conditioned. make (with the iso 1600 is no pictures for a poster print)

In handling, I think the relatively small and lightweight camera is ideal. Criticisms of the material, I can only barely understand, because the camera does not approve of the look and feel of the camera is not important to me personally.

The menus are somewhat confusing, at least initially, but no one buys dslr if you want to invest any time into it and after a while you find your way around easily. For a quick snapshot of the automatic mode delivers very good results.

For video quality. The video quality is great and looks good for a small video of family and for Youtube to create. (20 frames instead of 30 does not fall heavily on) However, you can adjust the focus during the shoot only manual and all other settings are made automatically. This is very very annoying because the camera would be readily able to provide the user with such possibilities. (That is not the case, probably is because otherwise the appeal of video mode more expensive models would be lost and would like to earn money on these Canon). So far there are no hacks the firmware to fix this. The sound quality is ok.

More Detail...

Schedule I would however like mentioned above, the money for a telephoto lens and a flash unit.

We bought the camera from about 4 weeks as a replacement for a very good "analog" camera and an older SD card camcorder.

The most important criteria (the highest priorities were first)
1. Price <1000EUR at> 8MPixel and including Lens
2. very low noise and no artifacts.
3. Fast focusing and tripping.
4. Image stabilizer.
5. the ability to record HD videos.
6. built-in flash.
7. Consider using the LCD display.
8. Look-and-click abilities, i.e. without additional manipulations can simply switch on and make sharp images.

After a few hundred pictures and snapshots () usually in a rather dark environment and multiple shots can be said:

Prio 1: Met.

Prio 2: Image noise can be truly classified as "very low" and is virtually inaudible to ISO400. Even at ISO800 images are still very good. Artifacts are not visible. -> Meets

Prio 3: First place Disillusionment: The "Live View" mode (real-time display of the image on the integrated LCD), the focusing lasted several seconds. For high-speed photos, this is not really applicable. In the subsequent reading of the manual, this problem was then solved: The "Live View" mode does not seem to also be integrated "classic" AF using the camera. If "Live View" turned off the camera is in operation and uses a conventional viewfinder Typical SLR remarkably fixed and easily configurable multi-point. Order can now be mapped very dynamic scenes reliably sharp. The only difference compared to the commonly used digital cameras: It is now looking through a viewfinder again Met ->.

Prio 4: the kit lens has a nice stabilizer -> met.

Prio 5: Again, we first were groping in the "Sharpness" trap. Hardly the video mode is enabled, it takes focus when pressing the button for several seconds until the subject is in focus. Here, too, helped the manual. There is a simple and practical solution: set the video mode simply using the "Menu" key to the AF mode to "Quick Mode". When the Focus button is now pressed, the focusing again on the very fast part of the SLR Camera. The only restriction: the quick focus seems to be only before the start of a recording function. When running the recording, it takes several seconds to re-focus. Apart from that, the image quality of the videos really great and even in very dark lighting conditions, noise.
-> 90% satisfied (deduction wg. Focusing Method)

Prio 6: The flash is ok. -> Met.

Prio 7: met in principle. We need to display only in Video Cam - mode.

Prio 8: The camera has a good fully automatic mode switch - press release - photo is done -> Met.

In summary: Very good purchase. If you want to use not only the fully automatic mode, it is worthwhile to read the manual a few "falling around" too.

Additions:
a. The next purchase will be) a bigger zoom lens (18-200mm. The kit included in the 18-55mm zoom lens is quite ok, but it irritates the potential of the camera is by far not enough.
b. Good news: The software supplied including remote control of the SSW is also running on a Mac.

More Detail...

Have I bought the EOS 500D as entry-level DSLR to search the web, benchmarking, and long conversations with (amateur) photographers.

Compared to the Sony Alpha 500, the Olympus E 620 and the Nikon D5000 (all of which I had in my hand and have tried), I opted for the Camera 500D due to the big screens, in an attempt to use and easily understandable menu navigation and the more feature-rich In this price range. Also foldable displays did not affect the other brands very solid and the Camera 500D was better for me in the hand.

The manual is for anyone to understand and also the kit lens 18-55mm is for me as a beginner in this focal length perfectly adequate (the equipment can even be extended).

It will not make the live image right away great photos, but it costs a little taste (yes nothing works) also das.

In video mode, the autofocus can be heard very loudly in the recording which is why I prefer manual focusing.

Experienced photographers will convince some technical details not particularly yet they use it partly as a slight second camera.

The bottom line is you get the money for a good companion while hiking, on vacation and all the situations with which an amateur photographer will then face.

It has good facilities and after acclimatization, it is easy to use.

More Detail...

I was always enchanted by Canon cameras, they still possessed, unlike other cameras which I always had higher resolutions.

In the SLR range, I have since 1996 with Agfa, Pentax and Minolta experiences, and was the last in 2001 the latest. In 2009 I finally bought by a friend of his nearly three years old EOS 400D, because he wanted to grow, the Camera 500D. After four weeks I had become accustomed to it eventually did so about 300 photos, all of which were kind of nice. But my friend came with the Camera 500D is not at all clear, and wanted to get back its EOS 400D, and asked whether it would make me something. I said no, but when he told me then announced that he wanted to return to the Camera 500D AMAZON, I made the proposal then just take over the Camera 500D. He advised me on it though, but that does not bother me much.

Even though I was somewhat skeptical at the beginning of my decision I could convince the reviews here and elsewhere in the net a bit. Also a photographer friend with me just praising the RAW section of the Camera 500D in the highest terms.

Meanwhile, I was twice on short trips and I have a little shot over 600 photos with the Camera 500D. For the most part, the pictures are all made something up on a few shaky. That to me is still not in my head, how to blur digital recording. Basically could inability of the photographer or the image stabilizer on the lens are, the very obvious technical weaknesses. With the lens of the EOS 400D in the case of the EOS 500D is not even good shots Sogut as possible.

Nevertheless, GDP in the photo-sensitivity levels between EOS 500D and EOS 400D worlds.

Overall, I do not regret my decision for the Camera 500D is not a second.

Perhaps crossed the shaky shots with the Camera 500D only by my view of the effects on low for the correct use of the excellent camera?

For more great tips and necessary information on similar topics by the author, read his guides on EOS500D.ueuo.com

Check for Low Price Now!...