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Canon
Cameras Lineup
Many times I am asked: "Wich camera do you
recommend?" The answer depends entirely by your budget and by
the features that you need. In this page I give an overview of the
current Canon lineup; of course, before choosing your new reflex I
recommend to read also in-depth reviews and the full specifications
list, available on the manufacturer's website or on other websites
as Dpreview.
Here I analyzed the Canon lineup because it is the system that I use
and the one I know better, but if you are choosing your first
reflex, I recommend to give a look also to other similar bodies (the
Nikon system is as good as Canon, but there are some differences in
the cameras and lenses lineup, so choose carefully the one that
fullfills your needs).
Canon
cameras currenly in production
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Canon
EOS 450D - Amateur (12.2 mp, APS-C, ISO
100-1600, 3.5FPS x 6RAW, US$ 800, 2008) The Canon EOS 450D is the
entry level camera in the Canon lineup. It has some nice
improvements in comparison with the 400D - 3" LCD
screen with Live View (that features contrast-detection
autofocus, for the first time in a Canon DSLR), extented
battery life, new menu system with customizable "My
Menu". On the other hand, in spite of these
steps forward, it has made two steps back: first, it has
12 MP sensor and 14 bit RAWs - that means larger file sizes
without any real improvement in comparison with the 10MP, 12
bit RAWs of the 400D. 12 megapixels in the same sensor size means
more noise than 400D (and the 400D was already noisier than
350D), and a small resolution advantage that you will see
only if you shoot with apertures larger than f/8 (due to
diffraction). And the 14 bit depth in my opinion is just
marketing hype - I have not seen yet any clear proof of the
its advatanteges, in particular in low-end sensors as the
one of 450D.
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The second step back is the burst, that
has gone from the 3FPS x 10 RAW of the 400D to 3.5FPS
for...just 6 RAWs; this is another negative effect of the
larger file sizes. Overall,
I think that it is a good camera, but it could have been better. I recommend the 450D to those who have a
limited budget: if you can not spend a lot, buy the 450D and
good lenses. A 450D with high quality lenses give better
photos than a 5D or even 1Ds3 with average lenses!
Similar bodies: Nikon D80, Sony A200, Olympus
E-510
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Canon
EOS 40D - Semi-pro (10.1 mp, APS-C, ISO
100-3200, 6.5FPS x 17RAW, US$ 1,150, 2007) The Canon 40D is
Canon's fabolous mid range camera! I have it since few
months and I love it; it has an excellent price/performances
ratio. The image quality is excellent; even though it is not
a step up from the 400D; the features instead are much
better than 400D - it is much faster, it has live view
(extremely useful for macro), and overall better built
quality. If you don't have a very high budget but you want a
first rate body, I recommend the 40D, in particular for
wildlife photographers - the high pixel density helps to
capture distant subjects, and the high speed is another
bonus. The 40D is a good choice even for macro
photographers, thanks to live view. If you have a mid or
high budget and are interested exclusively in landscapes,
instead, I'd suggest to consider a FF camera as the 5D.
Similar bodies: Nikon D300, Sony A700, Olympus E-3
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Canon
EOS 5D - Semi-pro (12.8 mp, FF, ISO 50-3200,
3FPS x 17RAW, US$ 2,100, 2005) The Canon 5D was a
revolutionary camera when it was announced, two years ago,
and it is still unparalleled. It is the only fullframe
camera with a price tag around 2k, and it offers excellent
image quality - high resolution and much lower noise than
40D, 400D and many other cameras. The body is good, but not
better than 40D, and in terms of features it is worse - it
has not live view, it has a smaller screen, it is much
slower (3 FPS vs 6.5 FPS), and it lacks of many of the new
features of 40D. On the other hand, the fullframe sensor
allows to use the wide angles at their best - in particular,
you can use lenses as the Sigma 12-24 or the Canon 15mm
Fisheye to get their unique angle of view.
Similar bodies: currently there are not similar
cameras!
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Canon
EOS 1D Mark III - Pro (10.1 mp, APS-H, ISO
50-6400, 10FPS x 30RAW, US$ 3,850, 2007) The 1D3 is a
sport and wildlife photographers dream - if it works ;-) The
majority of 1D3 bodies sold between its announcement and
october 2007 have AF problems; at the time of this writing,
it seems that canon has finally sorted out the AF problems.
The Canon 1D3 has very low noise (even tough the new Nikon
D3 seems even better) and it is the only camera currently
avaible that has 10FPS at 10 megapixel resolution and with
AF traking. I recommend this camera to nature photographers
that have an high budget and are specialized in wildlife and
action. This is a camera for pro and advanced amateurs, it
has a wide range of features but you need some experience to
fullfill its potential.
Similar bodies: Nikon D3
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Canon
EOS 1Ds Mark III - Pro (21.0 mp, FF, ISO
50-3200, 5FPS x 12RAW, US$ 8,000, 2007) In the field of
nature photography, the 1Ds3 may interest mainly landscape
photographers, even though the improvements in comparison
with the previous versions make it much more usable as
all-around camera; its speed does not come even close to the
1D3, but it is already pretty good. The features are
essentially identical to the 1D3, except the burst (5 FPS
instead or 10PFS) and the sensor: the fullframe, 21
megapixel sensor a dream for those who want the maximum
detail and for those who often use wide-angle lenses. That
said, in my opinion it is way overpriced - $ 8k is a very
steep price, even for a pro. I recommed it to professionals
who don't need the maximum speed and have a really high
budget.
Similar bodies: currently there are not similar
cameras
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Canon
cameras history
This table lists all Canon digital
SLRs. The SLRs currenly in production are highlightened in yellow.
MP = megapixel; FPS = frames per second; LCD = size and resolution
of the LCD screen; WS = weather sealing; Price
= current price (or street price when the camera was in production).
| Camera |
MP |
Sensor |
ISO
Range |
FPS |
LCD |
WS |
Weight |
Price |
| 2000 |
| Canon
D30 |
3.1 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
3FPS x
3RAW |
1.8",
0.11 MP |
No |
855g |
$ 3,000 |
| 2001 |
| Canon
1D |
4.1 |
APS-H |
100-3200 |
8FPS
x 16RAW |
2.0",
0.12 MP |
Yes |
1585g |
$ 5,500 |
| 2002 |
| Canon
D60 |
6.3 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
3FPS x
8RAW |
1.8",
0.11 MP |
No |
855g |
$ 2,000 |
| Canon
1Ds |
11.1 |
FF |
50-3200 |
3FPS x
10RAW |
2.0",
0.12 MP |
Yes |
1600g |
$ 8,000 |
| 2003 |
| Canon
10D |
6.3 |
APS-C |
100-3200 |
3FPS
x 9RAW |
1.8",
0.11 MP |
No |
890g |
$ 1,600 |
| Canon
300D |
6.3 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
2.5FPS x
4RAW |
1.8",
0.11 MP |
No |
650g |
$ 900 |
| 2004 |
| Canon
1D Mark II |
8.2 |
APS-H |
50-3200 |
8FPS
x 20RAW |
2.0",
0.23 MP |
Yes |
1565g |
$ 4,500 |
| Canon
1Ds Mark II |
16.7 |
FF |
50-3200 |
4FPS
x 11RAW |
2.0",
0.23 MP |
Yes |
1565g |
$ 8,000 |
| Canon
20D |
8.2 |
APS-C |
100-3200 |
5FPS
x 6RAW |
1.8",
0.12 MP |
No |
770g |
$ 1,400 |
| 2005 |
| Canon
20Da |
8.2 |
APS-C |
100-3200 |
5FPS
x 6RAW |
1.8",
0.12 MP |
No |
770g |
$ 2,200 |
| Canon
350D |
8.0 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
3FPS
x 4RAW |
1.8",
0.12 MP |
No |
540g |
$ 700 |
| Canon
1D Mark IIn |
8.2 |
APS-H |
50-3200 |
8FPS
x 22RAW |
2.5",
0.23 MP |
Yes |
1565g |
$ 4,000 |
| Canon
5D |
12.8 |
FF |
50-3200 |
3FPS
x 17RAW |
2.5",
0.23 MP |
No |
895g |
$ 2,100 |
| 2006 |
| Canon
30D |
8.2 |
APS-C |
100-3200 |
5FPS
x 11RAW |
2.5",
0.23 MP |
No |
785g |
$ 1,000 |
| Canon
400D |
10.1 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
3FPS
x 10RAW |
2.5",
0.23 MP |
No |
555g |
$ 520 |
| 2007 |
| Canon
1D Mark III |
10.1 |
APS-H |
50-6400 |
10FPS
x 30RAW |
3.0",
0.23 MP |
Yes |
1335g |
$ 3,850 |
| Canon
1Ds Mark III |
21.0 |
FF |
50-3200 |
5FPS
x 12RAW |
3.0",
0.23 MP |
Yes |
1335g |
$ 8,000 |
| Canon
40D
|
10.1 |
APS-C |
100-3200 |
6.5FPS
x 17RAW |
3.0",
0.23 MP |
No |
840g |
$ 1,150 |
| 2008 |
| Canon
450D |
12.2 |
APS-C |
100-1600 |
3.5FPS
x 6RAW |
3.0",
0.23 MP |
No |
475g |
$ 800 |
Do you have
comments or questions?
If you have comments or questions about this
article, feel free to ask in the Juza
Nature Photography Discussion Forum!
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