Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT / EOS 350D Review
11/12/2005 - Updated 12/14/2005
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Here's my first single lens reflex digital camera. What
I ordered was a Digital Rebel XT kit with an EFS 17-85mm
zoom lens. The reason for going with Canon's EF-S 17-85mm
f/4-5.6 IS USM is the wider zoom range and IS (image stabilizer).
I'm also hoping that the additional cost implies that the
17-85mm is a much higher quality lens than the 18-55mm
kit lens. |
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Inside the "kit" box was a box for the Digital
Rebel XT camera and a box for the EFS 17-85mm
zoom lens. Since this review is about Canon's' Digital
Rebel XT, I'll leave the lens out of it since I have a
separate review for this lens. |
| What's Inside the Box |
|
1 - Rebel XT camera body with body cap
1 - NB2LH battery pack with protective cover
1 - CB-2LT battery charger (some may come with a CB-2LTE which
uses the included power cord)
1 - IFC-400PCU USB interface cable
1 - VC-100 Video cable
1 - EW-100DBII wide camera strap (with eyepiece cover)
1 - EOS Digital Solution CD
1 - ArcSoft PhotoStudio CD
1 - Software Instruction Manual CD
1 - Camera warranty card
1 - Lens warranty card
The following comes in two sets, one in English and the other in
Spanish:
1 - Pocket Guide
1 - EOS Digital Rebel XT/350D Manual
1 - Software Guide
1 - Battery Pack NB-2LH Instructions
1 - Lens Instructions
Not included: CF (CompactFlash) card
[Specifications]
|
| Camera Body |
 |
 |
 |
| Front |
Back |
Left |
 |
 |
 |
| Right |
Top |
Bottom |
Looking at the camera body, you can't help but notice that
it is all plastic which may attribute to it's very light
weight at 17.1 oz. (485 g). The plastic is smooth and has
a matte finish while the grip has a non-slip texture finish
which, unfortunately, still feels like plastic. That aside,
the majority of the camera's body is solid and after several
months of use, it's mostly scratch free. I'm somewhat careful
about handling the camera, but sometimes I get into situations
where I lose my footing, and, well... things happen.
My main concern is the use of thin plastic for the battery and CF cover/door.
Although they are reinforced with metal, they do feel somewhat flimsy,
and I have no doubt that one of these days I'll break them off. Luckily
that hasn't happen yet. Rubber is used for the terminal (video, remote,
USB) cover/door so, for the moment, no worries here.
A also have a small concern with the clear plastic that is used over the
LCD panel/monitor. I know that plastic scratches based on my experience
with my iPod nano. What you don't want to do is wipe the screen clean of
dust, fingerprint/nose smudges with your shirt, however, I do this all
the time and have done it for several months. The difference between my
nano and the clear plastic used on the Digital Rebel XT is that Canon must
use a different type of plastic. Maybe a polycarbonate (Lexan) or some
scratch resistant coating was used because there are no scratches on the
clear plastic... yet. |
|
I would like make a remark about the grip. It is
small, even for my small hands. My little pinkie
just barely fit on the grip so I'm not sure how this
grip will be able to accommodate others with larger
hands. The good thing is that all the controls are
accessible with the index finger and thumb. When
shooting in aperture/shutter priority or manual,
I find myself using the middle finger on the shutter
button and index finger on the dial. It simply makes
for quicker adjustments on f-stop/shutter speed. |
|
Removing the body cover reveals the mirror. Unfortunately
this is the most vulnerable time for the mirror, focusing
screen and, eventually, the sensor because dust/particles
in a normal environment do exist and, when you have
air movement, the risks are even greater. Every time you
change your lens, it gives dust, and other particles, a
chance to enter your camera so it's a good ideal to keep
this exposure to a minimum. |
| CF Card |
|
The CF card I'm currently using is a 2GB Sandisk Ultra
II CompactFlash card. It's reliable, fast and, for me,
somewhat affordably priced. I also have a 1GB, same make,
that I use whenever the 2GB is filled up. It doesn't happen
often, but it did once. It's not a card that I could recommend
because, from what I've heard and read, there are supposedly
better, and faster, ones out there. But the Sandisk suits
me just fine. |
| The following chart may help determine what size
CompactFlash card
you will need (needless to say, get the largest you can
afford). |
| Image Recording
Quality |
Image File Size
(Approx. MB) |
Possible Shots* |
| 128MB |
256MB |
512MB |
1GB |
2GB |
4GB |
 |
Large Fine |
3.3 |
37 |
73 |
145 |
290 |
580 |
1160 |
 |
Large Normal |
1.7 |
70 |
140 |
279 |
558 |
1116 |
2232 |
 |
Medium Fine |
2.0 |
62 |
123 |
245 |
490 |
980 |
1960 |
 |
Medium Normal |
1.0 |
117 |
233 |
466 |
932 |
1864 |
3728 |
 |
Small Fine |
1.2 |
105 |
210 |
419 |
838 |
1676 |
3352 |
 |
Small Normal |
0.6 |
198 |
395 |
790 |
1580 |
3160 |
6320 |
 + |
Raw + Large Fine |
8.3 + 3.3 |
11 |
21 |
41 |
82 |
164 |
328 |
|
Raw |
8.3 |
15 |
29 |
58 |
116 |
232 |
464 |
|
| *These numbers vary widely. As an example, I generally
shoot in 'Large Fine' mode and found that pictures that
have a lot of details, such as a field of flowers (no sky),
creates huge files. I have one JPEG image that is 7.18MB.
On the other hand, a picture of the moon against a dark
sky using a 70-300mm zoom lens was only 1.02MB. Typically
my pictures range from 2.5 to 4MB. |
| Battery |
 |
 |
| Inserting battery |
NB2LH left |
 |
 |
| NB2LH left |
CB-2LT charger |
Having used compact digital cameras in the past, and I
still do, it's always a good idea to have a spare battery.
The NB2LH battery used in Canon's' Digital Rebel XT fully
charges in 1 1/2 to 2 hours. It is small, in fact, it's
not much larger than the battery used in a PowerShot Digital
Elph, however, the battery life in the Digital Rebel XT
is nothing short of amazing. To
give you an idea, I can fill up and entire 2GB memory card,
shooting in Large Fine mode on one full charge.
The Digital
Rebel XT is very efficient when it comes to battery usage.
You can start up the camera and take that first shot in
less than half a second. It is that
fast. You have to understand that during the
course of taking a picture, the battery has to power the
circuitry, calculate f-stop and shutter speed, display
information on the LCD panel and in the viewfinder, drive
the AF (autofocus) motor and IS (image stabilizer, if lens
is equipped with one), flip up the mirror, charge
the CMOS sensor, drop the mirror, process and transfer
image to memory card and, finally, display the image
on the LCD monitor. The Digital
Rebel XT can go through that cycle approximately 400
to 600 times on one charge. I should mention that my previous
camera was a compact digital which naturally explains why
I'm am so impressed with the speed and battery life of
Canon's' Digital Rebel XT. |
| Flash |
Since the camera is aimed more towards the consumer, Canon
incorporated a built-in-flash into the Digital Rebel XT.
There is also a hot shoe on top of the viewfinder for external
flash units. When in any of the fully automatic modes and
where there is insufficient light, the flash will automatically
pop up. When in the semi-manual/manual modes (what Canon
calls the Creative Zone), you can pop up the flash by pressing
the flash button just above the lens release button.
The flash on the Digital Rebel XT is more than adequate
and better than the ones found on compact digital
cameras. It is ready to fire almost instantly and
offers quite a bit more range and coverage.
When shaking the camera, you'll hear a rattling noise
that sounds like it's coming from
the flash. Rotate the camera from horizontal to halfway
from vertical in either direction, and you will hear
a faint click. The people at the camera store informed
me that the noise is coming from the horizontal/vertical
orientation sensor and is noted on page 5 of the
instruction manual where it states,
"When you change
the camera’s orientation between horizontal
and vertical, the camera orientation sensor will
make a small sound. This is normal and not a defect."
Since
I'm not a reader of manuals, I generally tend to panic
when something seems to be out of the ordinary (well... that's
just me). |
| Photographs taken with Canon's' Digital Rebel XT |
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| Subject: |
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Full Moon |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/500 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/5.6 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
400 |
| Focal Length: |
|
300.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
A fairly clear and warm night. There was some light
haze and city lights nearby. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
|
Park Festival |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/400 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/11.0 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
400 |
| Focal Length: |
|
83.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Hundreds of people were gathered at this event prior
to the 4th of July fireworks display. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Fireworks |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
11 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/8.0 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
100 |
| Focal Length: |
|
85.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Temperatures was around 80-85 degrees F and you may
notice one hot pixel at the upper right corner of the picture (tripod
used) . |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Boulders/Rocks |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/800 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/11.0 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
400 |
| Focal Length: |
|
130.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
One of the many hills in Riverside, California. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
|
Apartments |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/500 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/5.0 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
100 |
| Focal Length: |
|
50.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
Brand new apartments, only a handful are occupied. |
|
 |
| Subject: |
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Family Room/Kitchen |
| Model: |
|
Canon EOS DIGITAL REBEL XT |
| Shutter Speed: |
|
1/50 sec |
| F-Stop: |
|
f/5.0 |
| ISO Speed: |
|
400 |
| Focal Length: |
|
17.0 mm |
| Notes: |
|
None. |
|
| All the photographs above have been taken
in jpeg mode, and reduced 50% in Photoshop with moderate jpeg compression
to conserve disk space and bandwidth. Camera was handheld using autofocus
and image stabilizer (unless otherwise noted). No color corrections,
level adjustments, sharpening or croppings were made. |
| Conclusion |
Canon's' Digital Rebel XT, as I've mentioned before, is
an astounding camera. Being a compact digital camera user
and previous Canon F-1 SLR film user, I found this digital
single lens reflex camera to be extraordinarily versatile
in its features and wide range of shooting modes. The
ability to change lens from super wide to extreme telephoto
adds to the versatility, albeit at at cost.
It is quick and ready to go the moment you turn on the
switch. This is probably the one feature about this camera
that constantly impresses me the most.
I have very few cons about this camera and the one I had about
the rattling noise, which still annoys me, is not a concern. However,
I'm somewhat disturbed when it comes to long exposures because I
do get some random hot pixels and this occurs on warm to hot days/nights.
They sometimes start to appear at around 80, or more, degrees F at
around 1/15 second exposures where I will find one or two of them.
Then the hot pixels exponentially multiplies to twenty or more. Here
is an example of a 30 second exposure, ASA 400, lens cap on, ambient
temperature 96 deg F, in the shade (hot pixels have been circled)
<<image
size: 3456px x 2304px, 161KB>>. I understand that this
is normal and can be Photoshopped out but it is still a nuisance.
I've recently noticed hot pixels in long exposures taken with my
compact digital camera, now that I know what I'm looking for, so
I am realizing that this may be inherent with all digital
cameras.
Other than a couple of issues... I find this camera a joy to use.
:-)
Gary Kawamura |
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