• Welcome to BirdForum, the internet's largest birding community with thousands of members from all over the world. The forums are dedicated to wild birds, birding, binoculars and equipment and all that goes with it.

    Please register for an account to take part in the discussions in the forum, post your pictures in the gallery and more.
ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

canon cameras (1 Viewer)

N

neil brown

Well-known member
Hi there

currently i have the 450d and generally am happy with the camera (its my technique that i am unsure of) however it has been suggested to me recently that the canon 20d and 30d which are available at good prices second hand at the moment are better cameras, i cant afford to upgrade to the 40d or hopefully at somepoint the 7d just now, so could someone advise me if going for these older cameras is a good move or should i be happy with what i have.

many thanks
 
There is a fair bit of snobbery about the entry level cameras, people like to tell you how much better the xxD range are. I'd admit that I perfer the 40D to the 450D, but mainly for the overall feel rather than the image quality. People talk about how the controls are easier to use on the xxD cameras making changing settings on the fly easier, but when I was using a 400D I never felt that this was an issue. The xxD have a higher frame rate (5fps) which can help at times but it's not vital and 3.5fps will be fine most of the time.

I honestly doubt that the change of camera will make much if any difference to the results you're getting. Any of the Canon DSLRs will do the job well, the glass you put on the front will make much more difference. If you want a 20D I'd happily swp with you! ;)
 
I hear what your saying about the 450d pete, I went from a 400d to a 30d and much prefer the feel of the larger body and the controls. although the 30d has only 8.2 mp but it still knocks out decent images.

My opinion would be to sell the 450d in exchange for a good condition 30d.
 
Thanks for the replies, i think if i am honest it comes down to technique (as i hinted at). The lens i have are the canon 100mm macro and the 70-200 L f4 aswell as the kit lens that came with the camera. i Think i may be one of those people who are not steady enough for hand shots, i have a very good tripod and monopod (manfrotto) and never use them. too lazy to learn how in the past but feel if i am to get the results that i should be with this camera then its time i did. sorry total detour from original post but again thanks for replying

cheers
 
Sounds like you need to up the shutter speed as much as anything. Up the ISO if you need to, 800 is pretty good noise wise. I reckon if you want better body the 40D would be a sideways step image wise just giving you better build quality and something a bit chunkier to hold. May be save for the 7D?
 
I like the smallness of the 450 D... I am 5' 6" and feel I can get my hands over the 450 pretty good. I wonder if some of the personal preference isn't just the size of the person to begin with and how their hands fit around it?
The thing that I do not like about the 450 is that the camera mode dial gets accidentally flipped once in awhile as I pull it from my bag. I like to take images in the AV mode and many times I will take a shot as I pull it (without looking) and find the dial has changed to something else. That bugs me......
 
<Thanks for the replies, i think if i am honest it comes down to technique (as i hinted at). The lens i have are the canon 100mm macro and the 70-200 L f4 aswell as the kit lens that came with the camera. i Think i may be one of those people who are not steady enough for hand shots, i have a very good tripod and monopod (manfrotto) and never use them. too lazy to learn how in the past but feel if i am to get the results that i should be with this camera then its time i did.>

Neil ~ I have both these lenses and neither is image stabilised, with the 100mm macro don't even think of using it unsupported unless you have no heartbeat or pulse. You can get away with panning shots with the 70-200, but you should always support for static shots. Both lenses have superb IQ but only if you have good technique to back them up. Don't be self conscious about using a monopod or tripod, it shows that you are serious about your photography. I've been there, and I know.
I have the 450D as well as several other bodies and it is one of the best bodies that Canon have ever produced, don't be tempted to swap (even though I have a 20D for disposal ;~) )
Start using supports and you'll be amazed at the difference in quality from the excellent kit you already own.
 
Niel, if you don't need the higher frame rate or the deeper buffer, you are probably better off staying with the 450D. I have a 40D and a 350D, the former is my wildlife camera, the latter my macro and landscape camera. The only addition I can think of would be a 450D as a dedicated macro camera where the lower frame rate or smaller size of the 450D wouldn't matter, but the superior resolution would.

Thomas
 
many thanks to all of you for your replys and advice, particularly panamaman, i am encouraged and looking forward to getting out there and trying again - armed with tripod
thanks again

cheers
neil
 
<many thanks to all of you for your replys and advice, particularly panamaman, i am encouraged and looking forward to getting out there and trying again - armed with tripod>

Be sure to let us knw how you get on Neil. An incidental advantage of using a tripod is that it slows you down in the sense of giving you more time to think about your shot. A monopod on the other hand may be better for action shots ~ it's horses for courses.
 
Hi Neil,

I have a 450D as well, and have been been pleased with the results so far (and I still very much learning). Have a look at my pictures on my Flickr site to see what I've done so far. The best advice I was given was just to get out there & practice. You might dump a load of shots but there will be some usable ones along the way.

One thing I have picked up is it's the quality of lens that you attach which seems to matter more. I bought a Tokina 80-400mm zoom with my 450D (as it was in my budget at the time), whilst it takes a good photo at below 400mm it's soft at 400mm.

I would love to buy a Canon 400mm f5.6 (and I know there are 2 currently for sale on the forums ;) but I can't afford them at the moment!!) so I'm starting to save for one as I think it would improve my shots no end.
 
The 450 is a very good camera first one I bought, very good with 400mm f5.6 even better with the 50d and hopefully even better with the 7d. There's no problem handholding with 100mm macro I hand hold with 150mm macro just got to up your speed
 
Warning! This thread is more than 15 years ago old.
It's likely that no further discussion is required, in which case we recommend starting a new thread. If however you feel your response is required you can still do so.

Similar threads

S
Second camera body - R7 or 5d mk4??
Replies
1
Views
312
Fowl Mouth
Fowl Mouth
BenjiS
Budget Canon lens
Replies
8
Views
1K
nikitasius
N
T
Upgrading cameras
Replies
4
Views
484
TareqPhoto
T
D
Grey imports.
Replies
5
Views
2K
Bafty
B
O
Canon EOS 80D always slightly "fuzzy"
Replies
14
Views
2K
nikitasius
N

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 2 (members: 0, guests: 2)
Back
Top