My new (used) 50D

[GadgetRick]

So I bought a 50D off my good friend (and photographic mentor) over the weekend. He upgraded to a 7D. We had a chance to get together and shoot my son's wrestling tournament on Sunday. Anyway, my first impressions of the 50D are it's a beast of a camera.

I got the 50D with battery grip. I picked up the Canon 50mm f1.8 and got the Canon 18-200mm lens as well. I shot only with the 50mm at the tournament.

The first thing I noticed--and love--is Canon didn't bury all of the useful functions in menus and sub-menus like I found on the Nikon D90 I borrowed (I switched from Nikon to Canon). All of the functions you'll want to change seem to be accessible via a button or dial spin. Very useful as it was quite annoying to have to go through menu after menu to get what I needed.

I also notice the shutter is extremely quiet compared to the Nikon D50 I have been shooting with and the D90 I borrowed. I understand the 7D is even quieter. Never realized how distracting the shutter click can be until I got this quieter shutter. Nice...

The camera (obviously) is much sturdier than the D50 and the D90. Feels like a tank. I understand the higher-end cameras are built even stronger.

I thought it would take me much longer to get the hang of the Canon after learning on the Nikon but that hasn't been the case. The intuitive layout has helped for sure but the layout seems to make sense (for the most part). So I'm not searching for functions because they aren't there, rather, I'm searching for functions because I haven't gotten the muscle memory of where the buttons are just yet. A few photo shoots and I'll be fine. I also thought I'd have a tougher time getting used to the, "backwards," meter (compared to how Nikon does it) but I'm over it already.

Love the LCD screen--much better than the D50. But, then again, that doesn't surprise me as the LCD screen on the D50 is a bit dated.

I shot some high-ISO shoots at the tournament (ISO 1600) with mixed results. Now, in all honesty, the gym was the 2nd worst-lit gym I've shot in. I'm not quite disappointed in the results as I got some useable stuff but would have liked to have seen better. I have a feeling, once I get better with the camera (my shots got better as the day wore on--with less noise), the results will be acceptable.

We also noticed--on both cameras--when we were shooting with a big wall as a background (was sort of a beige color), our colors came out muted. However, when we had the crowd in the background, the colors popped much better. I was shooting with center focal point and spot metering (forget what they call it on Canon). I was metering (as much as I could) off the wrestler's face. Was a curious thing actually. Wondering if anyone has seen this before. It's good to know though.

Overall, I'm digging the camera. Part of it (I'm sure) is I'm moving up--WAY up--from a Nikon D50 but it also seems to be a solid camera. I understand the ISO performance won't be as good as my friend's 7D but I just don't have that kinda change yet. I think this will give me a lot of quality shots once I get used to it.

Figured I'd write this for anyone considering the 50D. Not a, "review," like you can find online but might be useful for others considering it.

[OsmosisStudios]

The section of the market with the D90/50D is a strange section in that the D90 and 50D dont really match-up, spec wise. The D300s is more like the 7D, but the D300 is more like the 50D. The D90 doesn't have a canon counterpart. COmparing it to anything Canon is misleading.

[GadgetRick]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

The section of the market with the D90/50D is a strange section in that the D90 and 50D dont really match-up, spec wise. The D300s is more like the 7D, but the D300 is more like the 50D. The D90 doesn't have a canon counterpart. COmparing it to anything Canon is misleading.

You're right, sorry I mentioned it. Basically, just wanted to paint the background to how I arrived at buying the 50D as I was (seriously) considering the D90 as you know. I realize it's sort of in between the D90 and D300 (maybe even matches up to the D300).

Oh, I also don't mean to bash the D90 at all as I think it's an awesome camera. I switched to Canon for various other reasons--not because the gear isn't good or Canon is better. My reasons were more for logistical issues and things like that than gear issues. Oh, I also got a good deal on the 50D and it's fairly new (10kish clicks). So I sort of couldn't refuse.

[zona5101]

Originally Posted by GadgetRick

You're right, sorry I mentioned it. Basically, just wanted to paint the background to how I arrived at buying the 50D as I was (seriously) considering the D90 as you know. I realize it's sort of in between the D90 and D300 (maybe even matches up to the D300).

Oh, I also don't mean to bash the D90 at all as I think it's an awesome camera. I switched to Canon for various other reasons--not because the gear isn't good or Canon is better. My reasons were more for logistical issues and things like that than gear issues. Oh, I also got a good deal on the 50D and it's fairly new (10kish clicks). So I sort of couldn't refuse.

the most important thing is that it fits you and feels "right" to you leaving you more time to concentrate on your image and less time hunting for a feature or control.

[Alexander]

Congrats on your new camera. I love mine, also.

As for photos in a poorly-lit gym, I've done some of this recently myself. Don't be afraid to bump the ISO up even higher. I often use 2500 or 3200. The results are ok as long as they are not enlarged too much. (I've been taking some photos of high school girls basketball that are used strictly for the web.) The 50D seems to be able to handle high ISO settings reasonably well. Obviously, the photos are a little grainy with color noise, but some of this can be reduced in post processing. They are certainly usable.

Enjoy you new toy!

Gary

[Ray Dockrey]

What is most important is that you found something for you that works for you, I started shooting with a Nikon D40x that is menu driven. I had a chance to move up to a used D200 last summer and I loved having the buttons to adjust settings. When I had the chance to upgrade about a month ago I could either buy a brand new D90 or a used D300. I chose the used D300 for that exact reason. Having the external controls makes it much easier to change settings on the fly. Have fun with your Canon.

[GadgetRick]

Originally Posted by Alexander

Congrats on your new camera. I love mine, also.

As for photos in a poorly-lit gym, I've done some of this recently myself. Don't be afraid to bump the ISO up even higher. I often use 2500 or 3200. The results are ok as long as they are not enlarged too much. (I've been taking some photos of high school girls basketball that are used strictly for the web.) The 50D seems to be able to handle high ISO settings reasonably well. Obviously, the photos are a little grainy with color noise, but some of this can be reduced in post processing. They are certainly usable.

Enjoy you new toy!

Gary

I'm with you. My problem is I'm (currently) shooting with a 50mm f1.8 as I can't afford a fast mid-range zoom (yet). So I'm having to crop too much which makes the noise more noticeable. I run it through Noise Ninja and it eats the noise like Pacman eating little white dots and blue ghosts. I need to get another lens so I don't have to crop so much and I can run a higher ISO.

[GadgetRick]

Originally Posted by zona5101

the most important thing is that it fits you and feels "right" to you leaving you more time to concentrate on your image and less time hunting for a feature or control.

Yes, it does feel good to me (physically and operations-wise) so I'm happy.

[inkista]

Yeah, I had the same feeling of how the handling improved moving from my XT to the 50D. Dedicated buttons and control wheels vs. menu selections make a lot of difference. I am loving having C1 and C2 so I can bypass the true PITA custom functions I use all the time, like mirror lock-up and setting back-button autofocus.

Originally Posted by GadgetRick

My problem is I'm (currently) shooting with a 50mm f1.8 as I can't afford a fast mid-range zoom (yet). So I'm having to crop too much which makes the noise more noticeable. I run it through Noise Ninja and it eats the noise like Pacman eating little white dots and blue ghosts. I need to get another lens so I don't have to crop so much and I can run a higher ISO.

Two lenses you might want to look at trading up to for shooting in a gym are the EF 85/1.8 USM (aka "Mr. Basketball") and the EF 100/2 USM. They're both in the $400 range, new. Both of them are incredibly fast on the autofocus (unlike the 50/1.8 II, which can hunt a bit more and may be inaccurate in low light), and sport the more advanced ring-type USM, so you also get FTM (full-time manual focus). Terrific portrait lenses. Admittedly, it's not like having a 70-200 f/2.8L IS USM, but they can see you through until you get one, and then stay around as a portrait lens.

And yeah, the damped mirror-slap is something you never realize you wanted until you've got it in your hands. Still not like a Leica cloth shutter "click", though.

[GadgetRick]

Originally Posted by inkista

Two lenses you might want to look at trading up to for shooting in a gym are the EF 85/1.8 USM (aka "Mr. Basketball") and the EF 100/2 USM. They're both in the $400 range, new. Both of them are incredibly fast on the autofocus (unlike the 50/1.8 II, which can hunt a bit more and may be inaccurate in low light), and sport the more advanced ring-type USM, so you also get FTM (full-time manual focus). Terrific portrait lenses. Admittedly, it's not like having a 70-200 f/2.8L IS USM, but they can see you through until you get one, and then stay around as a portrait lens.

Funny you mention this as I was saying to my friend I need the 85mm. I have decided I'm cropping too much on the 50mm so I can use the extra reach. I think that may be my next lens.