| After some time for me to explore the camera I | | | | One really great feature is that it shoots video |
| now have a review of the new Canon EOS Digital | | | | too. Though not quite as robust as on the EOS |
| Rebel T1i (500D). This camera is the latest in the | | | | 5D Mark II, which supports 30fps for its 1080p |
| Digital Rebel series (what I call value priced pro | | | | capture, the T1i's video still surpasses that of the |
| consumer models). It falls in the $600 to $800 | | | | Nikon D5000 that is limited to 24fps 720p. The |
| range, depending on accessories and lenses. | | | | movie quality is solid, but I stick with the 30fps |
| For me, the T1i was a giant leap up in megapixels. | | | | 720p and avoid the High Definition mode of |
| My first digital camera was the trend setting | | | | 1,920x1,080 because it is only 20fps, and the |
| original 6.3 Megapixel 300D Digital Rebel that I | | | | motion looks a bit jerky. You can manually invoke |
| have used for thousands of pictures over the last | | | | AF while you are shooting, which is useful, but |
| several years. It worked great for me and I | | | | remember that it's slow and creaky. Initiating |
| skipped many an upgrade until the market | | | | focus creates some jerkiness, but at least you do |
| reached the 15+ megapixel range. Then, my | | | | not have to stop, focus, and restart; I definitely |
| wonderful wife gave me a great birthday gift of | | | | prefer having the option. Like many of the |
| this new camera. | | | | low-end implementations, it uses mono audio |
| I ordered it from Amazon, got it in several days | | | | (there is no mic input). |
| and started to shoot right away. The first thing I | | | | I had the opportunity to shoot a major men's |
| had to remember is that the camera kit with the | | | | tennis tournament in October and got some great |
| 18-55 EF-S lens did not include a flash media | | | | shots of tennis legends Todd Martin, Andre Agassi |
| device (it used SDHC cards). Now what was | | | | and Jimmy Arias (among others). The camera |
| Canon thinking? If I had not remembered to read | | | | was great in less than perfect lighting for the |
| the fine print, I would have been waiting to pick | | | | night matches. I used the Auto ISO setting and it |
| one up before I could take my first picture. This | | | | stretched the settings of the camera to be fast |
| is like buying a car, but they did not include the | | | | enough to catch the action with some very |
| tires. | | | | artistic blur of the ball and racquets. The daylight |
| Well, with that out of the way, the camera is | | | | matches allowed me to set the camera at very |
| great. It has a 3" LCD screen in the back that | | | | fast shutter speeds and freeze those yellow |
| displays not only your pictures in review, but the | | | | tennis balls in mid flight and the players in mid |
| settings you have. On most counts, the T1i offers | | | | stroke with feet off the ground. |
| some pretty nice specifications, highlighted by the | | | | Those Auto ISO setting got me in trouble several |
| 15-megapixel APS-C size CMOS sensor (for | | | | weeks later when I was in the mountains trying |
| Canon's traditional 1.6x focal-length multiplier) and | | | | to get shots of the fall colors with Auto Exposure |
| same nine-point user-selectable autofocus system | | | | Bracketing (AEB). I have used AEB before and it |
| as the predecessor XSi. The APS-C size sensor | | | | works great and allow some great opportunity |
| means that it is a "cropped" sensor that captures | | | | for HDR merging of shots later. However, it is |
| a slightly smaller view than traditional 35mm | | | | only logical if you are shooting in Auto-bracketing |
| cameras or the Canon big professional cameras | | | | you have to turn Auto ISO Off lest all the auto |
| costing in the over $2500 range. I drool thinking | | | | configurations conflict and create an image that |
| about the possibilities. | | | | averages out everything to its most dull form. |
| The camera has received very good reviews | | | | Now I know better. |
| regarding its image quality and I can say that the | | | | All in all the Canon T1i is great camera for more |
| human photographer is the only weak point in | | | | advanced amateurs and the cost challenged |
| getting a good shot. It has the full range of image | | | | professionals. I will stick with this one until I can |
| sizes from small.jpg to RAW. I shoot almost | | | | figure out how to get one of the Canon big boys. |
| entirely in RAW mode (this saves a very big file, | | | | I look forward to many years of shooting and |
| but has all the information available for use in | | | | learning about how to capture nature's beauty in a |
| Photoshop). | | | | digital image. |