canon 40d or 50d

[john woosh]

Hi i am thinking of upgrading my canon eos 450d but i cant make up my mind what to get the 40d or the 50d is the 50d worth the extra money. i will be using it with the canon 100-400 lens. kind regards john

[Nikon Kid]

Hi i am thinking of upgrading my canon eos 450d but i cant make up my mind what to get the 40d or the 50d is the 50d worth the extra money. i will be using it with the canon 100-400 lens. kind regards john

Thats the upgrade I did 50d, will you like it, I like mine,

Thats all I am going to say on the subject as its a can of worms :eek!::-O:brains:

Take a look in my gallery, see what you think, not the same lens but hey who's counting

[Hottentot]

Hi i am thinking of upgrading my canon eos 450d but i cant make up my mind what to get the 40d or the 50d is the 50d worth the extra money. i will be using it with the canon 100-400 lens. kind regards john

I replaced my 350D on Saturday with a 50D, it is slightly larger and feels more balanced and easier to hold on a 100-400. Went for the 50D purely because of the increased pixel count over the 40D. Its worth the extra money if you want the extra pixels.

Cheers
Aidan

[tdodd]

John, there are numerous threads on this topic, or which cover pertinent ground, and I, owning both cameras, have contributed to a number of them. The most recent thread is here - http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=147765.

If you search this forum for "50D" I'm sure you will find many more threads, which will hopefully be helpful to you. Here's a shot from today with my 50D and 100-400. First the full image and then a 100% crop. No edits. By the way, this was just a test/practice shot, not a keeper, so I know the composition is a bit pants. I was more interested in checking AF, exposure and IQ. As far as those things are concerned, I'm not complaining. :)

It may be worth noting that I need an AF microadjustment setting of +8 for my 100-400 to get perfect focus. At this distance and magnification (in the 100% crop) my DOF was about 6mm, requiring perfect focus accuracy. It's so long since I've used my 40D that I have no idea whether it is as accurate without adjustment. I don't use it any more.

[JohnZ]

I love my 40D ! And it would appear that I am one of the few on this forum who has yet to suffer the dreaded "Error 99". Tempting fate ? Probably but if the worst comes to the worst I will have to get a poxy 50D.......HaHa.

[postcardcv]

Hi i am thinking of upgrading my canon eos 450d but i cant make up my mind what to get the 40d or the 50d is the 50d worth the extra money. i will be using it with the canon 100-400 lens. kind regards john

Only you can decide if the 50D is worth the extra money over a 40D - the extra MP could be nice, it has better AF in live view and micro adjust (who knows how helpful this is), but who knows if it's worth the extra couple of hundred pounds over the excellent 40D. If you have a look around you'll find plenty of comparisons between the two cameras which might help you to decide.

[john woosh]

thanks everyone going for the 50d

[Nikon Kid]

Probably but if the worst comes to the worst I will have to get a poxy 50D.......HaHa.

John John you are a naughty boy

[tjsimonsen]

John, I'm sure you will be happy with it. But be aware that the biggest improvements over the 450D will likely be in the camera body (better built, handling, VF, AF, buffer, and frame rate). I doubt you will see much (if any) improvement in IQ since the 450D still seems to top of the line in that respect (among APS-C cameras at least).

Thomas

[DB/GD]

I have the 40D, upgraded from the 400D. Love it to bits. Next upgrade for me will be the 50D's successor, as i'm pretty sure that will have video capture.

[icetree]

I currently have a 1000D and am thinking of upgrading in the future. I didn't know whether to choose 40D or 50D either. I think I might go for the 50D too. Let me know how you find it!

[Keith Reeder]

I love my 40D ! And it would appear that I am one of the few on this forum who has yet to suffer the dreaded "Error 99"
Never happened to me, and I've had the 40D since September 2007 and 20,000+ actuations.

In terms of overall bang for the buck - especially with regard to IQ/noise performance/AF - there's no better camera: unless the 50D does something you need that the 40D doesn't, I'd pick the 40D any day.

And just for clarity, I could have a 50D if I wanted one: I've chosen not to.

[Chris Galvin]

Never happened to me, and I've had the 40D since September 2007 and 20,000+ actuations.

And just for clarity, I could have a 50D if I wanted one: I've chosen not to.

Me too and I have had mine since the 40D was launched same as Keith

[postcardcv]

Never happened to me, and I've had the 40D since September 2007 and 20,000+ actuations.

In terms of overall bang for the buck - especially with regard to IQ/noise performance/AF - there's no better camera: unless the 50D does something you need that the 40D doesn't, I'd pick the 40D any day.

And just for clarity, I could have a 50D if I wanted one: I've chosen not to.

I used to shoot a pair of 40Ds and never had a single error 99 on either. I sold both last year but recently picked up another which is running fine too. I think that the reason for hearing about a largish number of errors may be down to the shear number of 40Ds out there being used.

I think that upgrading from the 40D to the 50D is not an obvious route, but coming from a 450D the extra features on the 50D may well be worth the extra money. I've recently tested a 50D and was quite impressed with it, I've decided to buy one and give it a proper testing so hopefully I'll soon be able to post some real world comparisons.

[Ceejay2000]

Warehouse Express are saying today (Aug 10) the 40D is discontinued.
Even though they have two kit options left in stock, but no body options.

[JohnZ]

Well that`s me wrong then isn`t it. Neither Peter, Keith or Chris have had the dreaded "Error 99". Oh well back to the drawing board.

[Nikon Kid]

It wont be long now before the announcement of the 60d/7d

[RyanEustace]

postcardcv how did you get on with the 50d , would you rate it over the 40d ?

[john woosh]

postcardcv how did you get on with the 50d , would you rate it over the 40d ? very pleased with the 50d dont know about 40d never used one.but the 50d is much better balanced with the 100-400mm than my old 450d

[kim]

I moved from the 40d to 50d and the difference is obvious to anybody who has had both.
The 50d is a superb camera, excellent focussing - simple to use and the results on the 50d to my mind - are much better and worth the extra cash.

[postcardcv]

postcardcv how did you get on with the 50d , would you rate it over the 40d ?

To be totally honest I've not been out taking photos enough lately to have fully tested the 50D - but my first impressions are that it is a very nice camera to use, but not a big leap forward from the 40D. Many of the improvements are of no real interest to me (better LCD is nice but not vital, I've not used micro adjust, live view AF is nice but I just don't use it).

I moved from the 40d to 50d and the difference is obvious to anybody who has had both.
The 50d is a superb camera, excellent focussing - simple to use and the results on the 50d to my mind - are much better and worth the extra cash.

Interesting comments, I'd not noticed any difference in the AF performance of the two camera. I've not really found that the extra 5MP makes much difference and if anything I think the 40D has the edge at high ISO.

[Roy C]

I moved from the 40d to 50d and the difference is obvious to anybody who has had both.
The 50d is a superb camera, excellent focussing - simple to use and the results on the 50d to my mind - are much better and worth the extra cash.
If I remember rightly Kim, you had a particular focusing problem with your 40D which I am sure is not representative of all 40D's. I am still using my 40D and find the focussing superb.
There was nothing in the 50D that attracted me to update but I am looking seriously at the 7D but will only buy after all the beta testing is done and the faults ironed out ;)

[kim]

If I remember rightly Kim, you had a particular focusing problem with your 40D which I am sure is not representative of all 40D's. I am still using my 40D and find the focussing superb.
There was nothing in the 50D that attracted me to update but I am looking seriously at the 7D but will only buy after all the beta testing is done and the faults ironed out ;)
Hi Roy,
My 40d was not faulty - I was able to do a direct exchange with Camera Exchange and believe me they certainly tested it. I just find the focussing on the 50d so much faster, it is virtually instantaneous. I find the extra pixels and crop factor superb and I like the way I can use a much higher iso - just to mention a few things. I also prefer the larger monitor. However I agree that these things are all a matter of personal taste.

[postcardcv]

My 40d was not faulty - I was able to do a direct exchange with Camera Exchange and believe me they certainly tested it. I just find the focussing on the 50d so much faster, it is virtually instantaneous. I find the extra pixels and crop factor superb and I like the way I can use a much higher iso - just to mention a few things. I also prefer the larger monitor. However I agree that these things are all a matter of personal taste.

It is interesting that you've noticed such a change in AF performance, I thought that the 40D and 50D had the same AF system (though I could well be wrong). You mention higher ISOs, is it just the ability to shoot at really high ISO that you like or the noise levels at highish settings (ISO800/1600)?

[Roy C]

Hi Roy,
My 40d was not faulty - I was able to do a direct exchange with Camera Exchange and believe me they certainly tested it. I just find the focussing on the 50d so much faster, it is virtually instantaneous. I find the extra pixels and crop factor superb and I like the way I can use a much higher iso - just to mention a few things. I also prefer the larger monitor. However I agree that these things are all a matter of personal taste.
I also think the 40D focuses virtually instantaneous with my birding lens but this has more to do with the lens than the camera. I must have read thousands of post with regards to the 50D v 40D and cannot remember seeing another single post where anyone regarded the AF on the 50D as been so much better than the 40D. As far as I know the AF systems are virtually the same so there is no reason why the 50D should be vastly superior . I have read where some people claim the AF is a little better on the 50D and more still that claim there is virtually no difference between them as far as AF is concerned.

I have, of course, read lots of post where people prefer the 50D because of more pixels, better monitor, Live View AF and MFA and that's fair enough if those things matter to you. I would say that the 50D is a better camera than the 40D but like Peter many of the improvements are of no real interest to me. I have also read countless post's where people claim that the high ISO noise on the 50D is inferior to the 40D and yet you claim you like the way you can use a much higher ISO! most people slate the 50D high ISO performance when compared to the 40D so this I do not understand at all.

As long as you are happy with your camera, then that is great Kim but to give the impression that the 50D AF is vastly superior to the 40D is not a widely held view you must admit.

[kim]

It is interesting that you've noticed such a change in AF performance, I thought that the 40D and 50D had the same AF system (though I could well be wrong). You mention higher ISOs, is it just the ability to shoot at really high ISO that you like or the noise levels at highish settings (ISO800/1600)?

Hi Peter
Technically I could not comment - I can only comment on personal experience. It is the ability to be able to shoot at 800 and 1600 and not have to deal with a high degree of noise - I can only refer to my website and pictures posted on bf which I don't feel show any large amounts of noise. Roy, I am aware when the 50d came out there were a load of criticisms - frequently from people who did not have a 50d - and it did put me off for a while. However I was probably odd in that I actually preferred my old 20d to the 40d - which I still have as a fall back camera. I decided to try out the 50d and was instantly delighted and have been ever since.
Having said all this - it is a personal thing and I can only reiterate what I have already said and that is to me - the 50d is a better camera

[Roy C]

Having said all this - it is a personal thing and I can only reiterate what I have already said and that is to me - the 50d is a better camera
Kim, at least we agree that the 50D is a better Camera (as I stated in my last post) but as far as the AF and high ISO noise being a lot better I think we will agree to disagree on this.
At the end of the day, photographic skills are far more important than the hardware (which is why a good photographer could take a better shot with a box brownie than I ever could with a 1Ds camera :C ).

[hollis_f]

I've not used micro adjust

Pete, I'd spend just an hour or so checking it out. I thought my 300 2.8 was pretty good. Then I tried various MFA values and was quite surprised at the difference -

[postcardcv]

Pete, I'd spend just an hour or so checking it out. I thought my 300 2.8 was pretty good. Then I tried various MFA values and was quite surprised at the difference -

that's a huge difference, I'm surprised that you hadn't noticed an issue already... I'll have to have a play with micro adjust at somepoint.

[tdodd]

that's a huge difference, I'm surprised that you hadn't noticed an issue already... I'll have to have a play with micro adjust at somepoint.
It's the first thing I do when I buy a new camera. I want to start shooting at 100% sharpness, not 99%, so the first thing I do is charge the battery and then stick the thing on the bench. With my 50D and 1D3 I have found that I need an adjustment for most (maybe all) my lenses and, having just bought a 5D2 this week I figured I might as well get it sorted from the off. So far it seems like only one of my lenses needs adjustment with the 5D2, but I am very pleased to have peace of mind that now it will be shooting properly when I actually need it to.

With a camera like the 7D it would be a no-brainer to me to make sure it was set up perfectly before firing a shot in anger. You can afford no errors with the 7D's pixel density.