Canon 400D (Rebel XTi) Review

[RonS]

I used a canon Elan7 35 MM camera for a couple years before deciding I really wanted to go digital. My first try at digital was a Canon ELPH S400 bought in January of 2004. The Digital SLR’s were out of my price range.

Just before Christmas I started to look for ways to get a Digital SLR. The Point and shoot just couldn’t deal with action shots. I have 8 Grandchildren and I love catching them in action.

I bought the Canon Rebel Xti body only and used my lenses from the older 35 MM camera. I think my old lens is just a little higher quality then the one that would have come with an Xti kit. I also have a Tamron 70-300 zoom lens that works on the Xti.

The nice part of moving from my Elan7 to the Xti is that there is very little difference in most of the controls. I really like to shoot with RAW and Fine/ Large JPG selected. Only get about 52 pictures on a 512 MB memory card, but I like the flexibility that the RAW data gives. I use PhotoShop Elements to deal with the pictures. It works well.

I also like the flexibility of being able to shoot anything from full auto to all the various presets and manual modes. I have recently been experimenting with the various manual settings for my flash. Shooting in AV mode with largest aperture for indoor flash shots works well. I picked that tip up just a week or two ago.

I have been impressed with the battery life that I get. I don’t use the flip up flash, which probably helps. I have an older Canon 420EX which works just fine.

Overall, I think this is an excellent camera for the hobbyist or beginner. I have always been impressed by the quality of the Canon product.

[stuart]

INTRODUCTION:
The new canon eos 400d/rebel xti is the latest entry level dslr model on offer from the hughly successfull 350d , reading other reviews some of the new features are a welcome suprise and some features were expected.

FEATURES AND DESIGN:
1- Larger lcd screen for playback and shooting infomation
2- 9 point a/f system
3- sensors to automatically turn off the lcd as your eye comes close to the veiwfinder
4- 10.1 megapixels
5- picture styles
6- self cleaning sensor
7- 3 frames per second
8- compatable with ef and efs lenses
9- 0.2 second start up time
and the list goes on

VERDICT:
The canon is a brillant camera, simply enough for a beginner who doesnt even know what a camera is to use(turn it on , set it on full auto, press the button) , to the keen photographer,right through to the professional who can alter pretty much everything to get the shot he wants
The camera feels good to hold although the grip is a tadd to small all the buttons and dials are easy to use and get used to,& hey its digital if you make a mistake you delete it . I like the way its simple enough to start of with but has heaps of features so that as you get more knowledgable and adventurious you can alter stuff/so you dont have to buy "a better camera latter" its such a joy to use and easy to use you will be taking photos of everthing and loving it once you have this camera you will be glad you made the switch ENJOY

[googlit]

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/119/cameras/68_model_large_b81d14098f.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/cameras/canon/eos_digital_rebel_xti/)

Check out the usage stats on this camera at flickr (http://www.flickr.com/cameras/canon/eos_digital_rebel_xti/).

[Murtasma]

I just bought this camera a week ago with two lens. I used to have a PowerShot S3 well I still have it but, never use it now. I love this camera the only problem is it tends to over expose photos. Easy fix is usually I underexpose my pictures by 1/3. Plus shooting in RAW you can correct any minor exposer problems.

The interface is excellent my only gripe is you have to hold a stupid button down to adjust the Av. They should have used a wheel like the ipod instead of the 4 way cursor with a button in the middle.

Other then that an excellent slr

[RonS]

I love this camera the only problem is it tends to over expose photos. Easy fix is usually I underexpose my pictures by 1/3. Plus shooting in RAW you can correct any minor exposer problems.

Interesting that you find your camera over exposes. I feel that mine underexposes by about 1/3 stop on outside stuff. If I correct for that - then my flash stuff doesn't seem to work out right. :( You are right about shooting RAW data. Only thing is it takes a quite a bit of effort to process the RAW to get JPEG's for development.