Canon T1i vs T2i

[Happy_Mummy]

I have asked for advice several times now about cameras and have narrowed it down to these two, but other than a newer model and $300 I'm not sure what all the differences are in the cameras and whether it is worth shelling out the extra money (or airmiles!) on the T2i.

I'm new to slr and not familiar with the lingo. The use for the camera will be mostly to photograph my 3 kids and family events, as well as some landscape scenery. I also would like to have video recording. I have missed so many photos with my current point and shoot camera (Olympus C5060) because it is slow to start and can't keep up with finger shooting (after 3 shots in a row it has to contemplate life for 10 seconds to save the photos)! From my understanding the slr would start up faster and have less lag with saving photos. The photos will mostly be used in photo books, so they won't be blown up really big, and I don't intend to sell the photos, so photo file size is not a huge deal. That said, with the really good pics of the kids we blow them up to 8x12, and sometimes if the photo was taken landscape but works better as a portrait we will crop it. I'm not too worried about the quality since my current camera is 5.1mp and both the cameras are higher than that, I also realize that there is more to it than the number of pixels!

I'm not sure how to decide between the two cameras. I have been to a camera store and they were really selling the T2i, but I never thought of asking about the difference between the T1i and T2i. From my understanding the T2i is basically the newer model. I thought only the T2i did video, but I noticed an add today that the T1i does hd video as well. Features that I liked with the T2i that I would definitely like are:
-a remote (I realize this would be extra - not sure if the wired remote is what I'm thinking of. Currently I have a wireless remote that I can use to take group photos without popping up and down like a yoyo to take a few photos using the self timer.)
-focus tracking - so that I might be able to get a child in focus while on a swing or running or crawling, or or or!
-video
-enough photo quality that I can blow them up to 8x12, and even more than that if I crop a landscape to a portrait or vice versa.

Does the T1i do all these things? If someone could explain the differences between these cameras in plain english it would sure be appreciated!

[rharrison]

I have developed a policy of buying the second newest thing in a product line. I find that, at least on the consumer level, the price difference between best and second best isn't worth the premium. The T1i will do all of the things you want and you can take the left over $300 and get the 50mm f1.4 prime lens. You'll be really happy with some nicer glass and it will still be a good long while before you need to upgrade.

[inkista]

The T1i only does 720p hd video at 30fps (20fps for 1080p, which isn't even film speed). The T2i does 1080p hd @24/25/30 fps video and has an external microphone jack. It mostly all comes down to better video performance and capability. If video isn't your thing, the T1i will probably do just as well for you.

Here's a more detailed outline of the differences between the T1i and T2i:

Canon EOS 550D / Rebel T2i Review: 1. Introduction: Digital Photography Review
(Scroll down to the "What's New" section.)

[hazardoussmoker]

The only other thing I can add to what has already been posted is this. The T1i is capable of 15.5M pixel images where the T2i can do 18M pixel images. Other than that and the video recording capabilities the 2 are virtually identical.

Unless you plan on shooting a lot of HD video the T1i is just as good as the T2i in my opinion.

[Henry Wilt]

Inkista and hazardoussmoker have already said it but I'll add my 2p worth.
If HD video is important to you then you will be better with the T2i, visually and audibly as the sound can be greatly improved with an external mic..
I have the T1i and am very happy with it, but in my case I rarely use the video. That said, when I do the quality is fine for my purposes, usually just catching the kids doing something daft or other.

If it was me I think I would go with the T1i and save the other $300 for a reasonable flash and/or an additional lens (eg. a nice fast prime lens that you can use in low light) until you have got used to the camera and know what you want/need.

[theosus]

Originally Posted by Henry Wilt

Inkista and hazardoussmoker have already said it but I'll add my 2p worth.
If HD video is important to you then you will be better with the T2i, visually and audibly as the sound can be greatly improved with an external mic..
I have the T1i and am very happy with it, but in my case I rarely use the video. That said, when I do the quality is fine for my purposes, usually just catching the kids doing something daft or other.

If it was me I think I would go with the T1i and save the other $300 for a reasonable flash and/or an additional lens (eg. a nice fast prime lens that you can use in low light) until you have got used to the camera and know what you want/need.

As a T1i owner Im very happy with it. Yes the T2 will do full HD video - but do you own a blu-ray burner? The best you will get saving your kids video to DVD will be 640x480 anyway. The external mike will give you better audio, but then you have to carry it around.
Im happy with the save rate of the memory card, i use a class 6 and it does video and photos fine at this speed. The t1 will do video fine at class 4 at 640x480, too.
I use the video rarely too, but it has worked fine for me. And its much easier to use than some of canons cheaper hd video cameras. We have one for work and saving and converting the files is a pain in the BUTT. With the t1 I just copy and play.

[Chaotic Beds]

One thing about the T1i lacking a mic input - every sound your lens makes from zooming or focusing will be recorded by the internal mic.

The flip side, as mentioned, is that you have to deal with an external mic to avoid that. There's a lot of different potential issues involved with that...

[Happy_Mummy]

So what I'm seeing by these comments is they are pretty much the same camera, but the video is better with the T2i, and there are more mp, but at the size I will be printing that would likely be unnoticed?

I followed the link someone posted and noticed the following things that I would like to better understand or clarify:
-"ISO 6400 no longer in 'expanded' range (12,800 max remains the same)" due to long cold winters and since I mostly take candid shots for memories of the kids rather than that "perfect" kid shot the lighting in my house relies on the flash all the time. I have yet to find a pocket of light in my house that does not require a flash. With that background info my question is two fold. First off what does "expanded range" mean (is it like digital zoom where it is pointless, or something that actually kind of works?)? My second question is whether the T2i's high iso makes things really grainy, or is it clearer?
-I noticed it mentioned a new movie/live view button. one thing that I liked about the T2i was the one button to start recording a movie, rather than spinning the dial at the top of the camera, does the T1i have this ability as well? Also is it possible to take still shots while recording with either the T1i or the T2i?
-it spoke of gapless microlenses. Does this make much of a difference?
-does the 63-point iFCL metering make much of a difference? It looks like it could be noticed if taking photos of things that are red, am I on the right track here?
-for movies, from a previous comment in this thread it looks like you can actually use your zoom while recording with both cameras, did I red that right? also will the lighting adjust as needed while recording? and can both cameras adjust the focus (or can I adjust the focus) while recording? What is highlight tone priority?

I think that is all my questions for now. As for what I would use the video for, mostly it would be for candid kid moments - Martin's first steps, kid moments that I don't want to forget like playing in snow, etc. Now that the kids are in preschool I would like to be able to use it to record their school concerts. I would like to see it replace our separate camcorder we have mostly so that we are only carrying one camera rather than two and also because (as a previous poster already commented) it is a pain to get the video on to the computer for editing and the date stamp is wrong if I don't pull it off the day the video was taken. Something that was also mentioned in posts was that you could hear the zooming. Was it really loud, or just kind of there?

[jough]

15.1 MP t1i will print a high-res (300 dpi) photo at 15.84 inches wide by 10.56 tall. That's more than what you're going to need. Bottom line is if you're not planning on doing any serious HD filming, than everyone above is right and you don't need to spend the extra money.

The 18 MP t2i will take the same photo, only it could be printed (at 300 dpi photo quality) at 17.28 inches wide by 11.52 tall.

I have a t2i and do use the video portion, but if I didn't need that, I probably would have bought the t1i.