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Canon EOS 50D 15.1MP Digital SLR Camera (Body Only) From Canon List Price: $1,399.99 Price: $1,371.00 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Ships from and sold by OneCall 15 new or used available from $1,329.99 Average customer review:

Manufacturer Description

Canon’s new EOS 50D bridges the gap between the novice and the seasoned pro with a perfect combination of high-speed and quality. It features an APS-C sized 15.1-megapixel CMOS sensor for tremendous images, new DIGIC 4 Image Processor for fine detail and superior color reproduction, and improved ISO capabilities up to 12800 for uncompromised shooting even in the dimmest situations. It features a refined 3.0-inch Clear View LCD (920,000 dots) monitor, supercharged Live View Function with Face Detection Live mode, plus a number of new automatic Image Correction settings and HDMI output for viewing images on an HDTV. Pick up the EOS 50D and you’ll experience true digital inspiration!

Canon EOS 50D Digital SLR Highlights

New 15.1-megapixel CMOS sensor with improved noise reduction
The EOS 50D features a newly-designed 15.1-megapixel APS-C sized CMOS sensor which is capable of recording up to 4752 x 3168 pixels with full 14-bit A/D conversion for extremely fine tonal gradation. Ready to capture images in an instant, the sensor is designed to work with Canon’s EF and EF-S lenses with a conversion factor of 1.6x. It’s capable of recording at sensitivities previously too noisy for shooting in low light or subjects in motion. With a maximum ISO rating of 12800 combined with a 4-level High ISO speed noise reduction function, images that would have been impossible without the use of a strobe or flash become simple to record.

Capture up to 6.3 fps, in bursts of up to 90 JPEGs

Next generation DIGIC 4 Image Processor for faster processing
The EOS 50D operates with such effortless speed that operation is nothing short of intuitive. With instant startup times, speedy autofocus and minimal shutter lag, the EOS 50D is one of the fastest cameras available today. It can shoot up to 6.3 fps, in bursts of up to 90 JPEGs (using an UDMA CF card), 60 JPEGs (using a CF card) consecutively or 16 RAW files, so you’ll never, ever miss a shot.

DIGIC 4 Image Processor
This next generation DIGIC 4 Image Processor offers finer details and even more natural color reproduction, compared with the previous DIGIC III Image Processor. Since Canon’s DIGIC 4 chips use advanced signal processing technologies, they provide even faster operations, including write times to UDMA cards. It also enables Face Detection Live mode to detect and focus up to 35 face(s) to capture the best possible shot. Further, DIGIC 4 offers the improved Auto Lighting Optimizer that corrects brightness and contrast automatically, and Peripheral Illumination Correction for up to 40 EF lenses. DIGIC always maximizes performance between the capturing and recording stages of digital photography.

3.0-inch Clear View LCD The EOS 50D features a bright, high resolution, 3.0-inch Clear View LCD monitor with 920,000 (dots/VGA) pixels and a broad viewing angle of 160 degrees horizontally and vertically. It offers a brighter and more detailed display than the EOS 40D, includes a new smudge-resistant coating, and is perfect for accessing camera settings like ISO, Metering modes AF Point selection and flash options. Plus, it’s superb for reviewing, editing and deleting photos or composing new images in Live View Function.

Live Face Detection Mode AF

Enhanced Live View shooting includes Face Detection Live mode
The EOS 50D features Canon’s most advanced Live View shooting thanks to the number of focusing modes available including Quick mode, Live mode and Face Detection Live mode. You can zoom in and navigate the composition 5x or 10x normal size, enabling critical focus. There’s even 2 overlay grid options, perfect for lining up vertical and horizontal lines. In the studio, the camera can be controlled remotely with Live View Function when the camera is connected to a computer through a USB cable, or wirelessly if the optional Wireless File Transmitter WFT-E3A is used.

9 cross-type high-precision sensors for accurate target subject acquisition
The EOS 50D has a high-precision 9-point wide area AF that uses cross-type points at f-stops of f/5.6 or faster, enabling the camera to focus faster, more accurately, and in difficult lighting situations. AF sensitivity is a stunning EV-0.5 to EV18. Adding to this AF performance, the EOS 50D incorporates a diagonally mounted cross-type sensor that is sensitive to both vertical and horizontal lines at f/2.8, perfect for enhanced operation in dim light. The EOS 50D has a number of focus modes, including One-Shot AF, AI Focus AF and AI Servo AF.

New Lens Peripheral Illumination Correction setting
Canon’s exclusive Lens Peripheral Illumination setting takes into account any light falloff in the corners of the frame and corrects it, making for a perfectly exposed image. Correction data are detected automatically on a number of Canon EF lenses and can be entered manually through included the Canon EOS Utility software.

Updated EOS Integrated Cleaning System
The EOS 50D’s Self Cleaning Sensor Unit eliminates stray dust that enters the camera when changing a lens or when out in the field. The sensor’s IR-cut/Low-pass filter cleans itself automatically with ultrasonic vibrations every time the camera is turned on or off and features a new flourine coating to minimize dust adhesion. Dust missed by the cleaning unit is captured by Canon’s Dust Delete Data Detection software and can be erased from the image file.

Self Cleaning Sensor Unit

Self Cleaning Sensor Unit
A key element of minimizing dust is preventing it from clinging to the front surface of the imaging sensor. To combat this, the EOS 50D features a Canon-designed Self Cleaning Sensor Unit. The low-pass filter at the front of the sensor shakes off dust automatically with ultrasonic vibrations, removing dust from the sensor assembly. The EOS 50D also has a coating on the front surface of the low-pass filter, to increase its resistance to dust sticking to the sensor.

Dust Delete Data Detection

Dust Delete Data Detection
Dust that may still remain on the front of the sensor can also be erased with software included in Digital Photo Professional (DPP) Version 3.3 or later software. A simple test shot of a plain, white object can be taken, using a menu setting. This Dust Delete Data image is analyzed in-camera, and the location and size of any remaining dust is added to any subsequent pictures taken. This data is transmitted along with the image, whether JPEG or RAW, and can be either manually or automatically erased in Canon’s DPP software. This added software option ensures the cleanest possible image, perfect for printing or archiving.

Creative Auto goes a step beyond full auto with on screen setting display The EOS 50D has a new Creative Auto mode and a quick control screen that helps novice users narrow the gap between fully automatic and manual control. While the camera will remain by default in fully automatic mode, frequently changed settings like flash, exposure compensation, image quality and more are all accessible through one easy screen interface designed for intuitive, quick action. A provided shooting guide serves as a quick-reference for on-the-fly operation.

HDMI output for displaying full high-resolution images on a HDTV The EOS 50D includes a new HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) output device that enables High Definition display of your photographs on any HDTV with HDMI ports. It’s remarkable to behold the details of your photographs in Full HD, and it’s easy with the EOS 50D. Resolution is set automatically to match the TV to which you’ve connected, and images are displayed in a full-frame 3:2 ratio with blacked out bars to the left and right of the image.

Compatible with over 60 Canon EF/EF-S lenses and most EOS System accessories

EF & EF-S Lenses
The EOS 50D is compatible with all Canon lenses in the EF and EF-S lineup, ranging from ultra-wide angle to super telephoto lenses. Canon lenses employ advanced optical expertise and micron-precision engineering to deliver unprecedented performance in all facets of the photographic process. Special optical technologies, such as Aspherical, ultra-low dispersion, or fluorite elements are featured in the universally acclaimed L-series lenses. And Canon's Optical Image Stabilizer technology is featured in select lenses to minimize the effect of camera shake. Through Canon lenses, photographers can truly maximize the quality and liberating performance of the EOS 50D.

Flash Photography
The EOS 50D features the acclaimed E-TTL II flash metering system. With any of the flashes in the EX Speedlite line, E-TTL II provides reliable flash output whether shooting fill-in flash pictures in sunlight, or using flash in total darkness. With E-TTL II, the exact same 35-zone metering sensor used for measuring ambient light is also used for flash metering--giving even finer metering command of the image area. If you prefer a broader area for flash metering, there's a menu setting to change to "Average" flash metering--where the entire 35-zone area is measured evenly for flash exposure.

Software

Canon EOS Digital Solution Disk (Version 17.0)
The EOS 50D comes bundled with an updated Canon EOS Digital Solution Disk, which features powerful software programs designed to extend the EOS experience to the computer. These include Canon's EOS Utility (Version 2.5), Digital Photo Professional (Version 3.5), ZoomBrowser EX for Windows (Version 6.2), ImageBrowser for Macintosh OS X (Version 6.2), the Picture Style Editor (Version 1.4), PhotoStitch (version 3.2), WFT Utility (version 3.2). Each application is designed to perfect the captured images and streamline the digital workflow.

EOS Utility (Version 2.5) for Macintosh or Windows handles the connection between the camera and computer, whenever they’re connected via USB. It allows remote controlled shooting from the computer, handles downloading of images from the camera to the computer, and allows seamless linking to either Canon’s ZoomBrowser/ImageBrowser or Digital Photo Professional software once images have been copied to the hard drive. Furthermore, it’s used to upload settings back into a USB-connected camera.

Digital Photo Professional (Version 3.5) is an image processing program that enables high-speed RAW image processing, high-speed previewing for real-time image adjustment and support for sRGB, Adobe RGB and Wide Gamut RGB color spaces. Because it’s CMS (Color Management System) compatible, Digital Photo Professional allows for easy image layout and printing in Adobe RGB in conjunction with Easy-PhotoPrint and PictBridge printers. It also features the Dust Delete Data Detection tool for cleaner images.

ZoomBrowser EX (Version 6.2) for Windows and ImageBrowser (Version 6.2) for Mac OS X are the easy, user-friendly options for viewing and editing of JPEG and even RAW image files. Both allow viewing of numerous types of images including finished TIFF and BMP files. Both also have a variety of search options for finding images, allow re-naming of single images or batches of files, and offer a variety of options for printing without using a separate image-editing program.

Picture Style Editor (Version 1.4)
Canon’s Picture Style Editor enables photographers to create custom Picture Style profiles that can be used to customize the appearance of JPEG and RAW images captured with EOS Digital SLR cameras. Picture Style files created with Picture Style Editor can be loaded into the EOS cameras that support Picture Style and may also be used when processing RAW images in Canon software applications Digital Photo Professional, ZoomBrowser EX (for Windows) and ImageBrowser (for Mac).

Disappointed?
I was excited to get the 50D today, but am disappointed with the "supercharged" Live View feature. It only works in Creative Zone modes, not basic modes.

Update: A fellow commenter suggested trying Program Mode (P), as that gives some automatic adjustments, but no auto focus. Still disappointed.

Absolutely amazing pictures
I have been using this camera for about a week, with a couple of hundred pictures. My 40D is a year old, and agree with those who say that the 50D is the camera Canon should have introduced in its place. In spite of the 40D being an excellent piece, it was not a Nikon D300 contender. Now, Canon's latest is the one with which they can strongly fight back in this highly competitive semi-pro camera market. I know that sooner or later it will be surpassed but, for the moment, this is the best you can buy for its price, and in fact, more. My key awareness for a camera of this caliber is to produce no less than technically outstanding images, and this device excels in every aspect to get them, so I'm absolutely pleased with its results; its resolution is better than most of the competitive cameras. Don't take my word for granted: I invite you to visit http://www.imaging-resource.com/ and compare sample images of this camera with, say, Nikon D3 (yes, Nikon D3) at ISO 100. It's not perfect, I know, but neither is the EOS 1Ds Mk III, nor the Nikon D3.
I wish I have the latest in camera technology every year, but not always can I indulge myself, and with the actual crisis, I know that a lot of you can neither. But, be assured that this camera can withstand a good long time in your hands, without getting obsolete. Its high quality level and electronic advances that let you produce absolutely amazing pictures won't let you down in a long time to come.

Detailed Review of the Canon 50D - I love this Camera!!!!!!!!!!!!
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
It has been just over a year now since I purchased my Canon 40D. At the time, I was just beginning to take my photography really serious. Since then, a lot has changed. I have now become a semi-pro. I still have my full-time job as an IT Manager here in Miami. However, I do a lot of photography work, especially events, on the weekends.

I really love my 40D but as I started doing more and more professional work I realized three things:

1. I needed a second camera body
2. I needed a camera with a more professional focusing system.
3. I needed a camera with even higher ISO performance

It was rumored back then that the replacement for the Canon 5D would be out in the first quarter of 2008. I decided to wait for it. However, when the time came there was no news from Canon about the 5D replacement. This was back in March 2008. The Nikon D300 had now been out for a while by then. I thought about buying it but I decided to wait until it was fully reviewed by dpreview as I wanted to see if Nikon had really finally addressed the high ISO performance issues. I ordered it one day after it was reviewed by Phil Askey on dpreview.

Since then, I have been using both the Canon 40D and the Nikon D300. I know it is a bit of a strange combo. People are always surprised when they see that I am using a Canon and a Nikon together.

I took all three cameras - Canon 40D, Canon 50D and Nikon D300 - over the weekend to the Miami Seaquarium to see how the new Canon 50D compared with both of them.



SECTION 2: NEW/CHANGED FEATURES
A. High-resolution LCD Screen
The LCD screen is still 3 inches. However, Canon has now increased the resolution from 230,000 dots to 920,000 dots which is the same as that found on the Nikon D300. Of course, this makes it a lot easier to check images on playback to see if they are sharp and in focus. More important, however, is the fact that Canon added a two layer anti-reflective coating which makes it way easier now to review images in bright sunlight. It is a lot easier to review images on the Nikon D300 than the Canon 40D. However, the Canon 50D definitely surpasses the Nikon D300 when reviewing images in bright sunlight.

B. 15.1 Megapixel CMOS Sensor
I think the MP increase is the biggest surprise to me since Canon has always been conservative when it comes to this. However, this increase now seems to be the trend as the new Canon EOS 5D Mark II has gone from 12 MP to a whopping 21 MP. I was always puzzled by the fact that the baby Canon Rebel had more MP than its big brother.

I can clearly see the difference in the quality of the images produced by the 15.1 MP Canon 50D and those from the 10 MP Canon 40D. For a casual shooter this is not a big deal. However, for professionals shooting events this is really useful. Whenever I shoot an event I try not to turn it into a photo shoot. People are there to have fun. That is the first priority. I need to be able to get my shots fast. Many times this means getting the shot and then doing some cropping to make it perfect. Having 15 MP to play with can be a life savior here. Of course, if I only did portraits where I have time to pose my subjects this would be less important to me.

There is a small difference in the quality of the images from the 15.1 MP Canon 50D and the 12.1MP Nikon D300.


C. High ISO Performance
The ISO setting control how sensitive the image sensor is to light. As the light gets lower you can increase the ISO to avoid using the flash. This is really important when you want to shoot in available natural light such as at dusk or at dawn when the light is really beautiful. Another example is when you want to photograph a bride and groom during the first dance without using the flash so you capture all the romance. The downside to increasing the ISO is that the resulting photos will tend to get grainier as the ISO increase.

The Canon 40D allowed me to go to ISO 1600 and then expand it to ISO 3200. When I just started out doing casual shots this was okay. However, I find that I often needed to go higher than 1600 and of course I was forced to use ISO 3200. On the Nikon D300 I could go all the way up to ISO 3200 standard so if I needed to use anything higher than ISO 1600 I would use the Nikon D300. That way if I only needed ISO 2000 I could use that setting rather than use ISO 3200. I must let you know that Nikon did fix the high ISO performance issues that plagued its DSLRs prior to the Nikon D300.

The Canon 50D now comes with a standard range of ISO 100 to 3200 just like the Nikon D300. However, the concern that I had was that with the big increase in MP count there would be much more noise (grain) at the higher ISOs. The more MP you have the more noise you tend to get at higher ISOs. I would have much preferred a smaller MP count and better high ISO performance. However, the engineers at Canon have really outdone themselves this time. The high ISO performance of the Canon 50D is just as good as the Nikon D300 even though it has 3MP more. Much of this is due to the fact that Canon is now using gapless micro lenses on the image sensor. This seemed to have really increased the light gathering capabilities of the pixels.

The Canon 50D ISO can be expanded to 6400 (H1) and 12800 (H2). The Nikon D300 can only be expanded up to 6400. However, on the Nikon D300 you can go from 3200 to H0.3 and then to H0.7 before you get to H1.0 which is 6400. This is more flexible than having to go straight to 6400 since you should generally try to use lower ISO speeds.

You might be thinking that it is absurd that anyone should want to use ISO 6400 and worse ISO 12800. However, there are times when getting the shot is more important than the quality of the shot itself. A good example here is when shooting sports. If the light becomes very bad for whatever reason you will need to increase your ISO as much as possible to get high enough shutter speeds to freeze the action.

D. Auto ISO Range (100 to 1600)
I have been to Butterfly World on several occasions to get photos of butterflies, birds and the tropical plants there. It is normally very sunny so to save time I shoot in Aperture priority mode. This allows me to simply set the aperture and then let the camera automatically set the shutter speed based on the current ISO and aperture settings. One thing about South Florida is that one minute it can be very sunny and then in just a few minutes it can become real cloudy. The problem this pose is that when it becomes real cloudy the shutter speed selected by the camera can be so low that it would result in camera shake which in turn results in blurry images. When I just started out my photography this actually happened to me as I would simply forget to check the shutter speed that was selected by the camera.

The auto ISO feature lets the camera automatically change the ISO to suit the shooting mode. For example, when in aperture priority mode if the camera detects that the shutter speed selected would result in camera shake it automatically increases the ISO. This feature is available on the Canon 40D. However, the maximum ISO it would automatically set is 800. The Canon 50D will now set ISO up to 1600 which is a lot more flexible.

The Nikon D300 actually takes the auto ISO concept further by allowing you to set the maximum ISO you want the camera to set and the minimum shutter speed you are willing to work with before the camera start to automatically set the ISO. This gives ultimate control to the photographer.


E. Burst Buffer
Another concern I had with the big increase in MP count was the impact it would have on the burst rate. With the MP count going from 10 to 15 this would normally result in a much slower burst rate. However, the new DIGIC IV image processor is a lot faster than the previous DIGIC III processor so the burst rate is pretty much the same at 6.3 frames per second from 6.5 frames per second. If you use a UDMA card with the Canon 50D you can buffer up to close to 90 large/fine JPEGs versus the 75 on the Canon 40D. The Nikon D300 can store up to 100 large/normal JPEGs at a burst rate of 6 frames per second. With the optional MB-D10 batter pack you can get 8 frames per second.


F. Lens Peripheral Illumination Correction
It is just a fact of life that the light entering a lens tends to fall off around the edges. This tends to be more pronounced when the lens is wide open. The resulting photo will appear dark around the edges. You will see it sometimes referred to as Vignetting. It is more common on cheaper lenses. However, even the most venerable and expensive lenses are not immune to this problem. I have sometimes seen it on my professional grade lenses such as the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 L IS lens and even the Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 G lens.

If you have Photoshop CS3 you can quickly correct this problem. However, that is still one more thing that you have to worry about which increases your workflow. The Canon 50D has a database of 26 lenses that it will automatically correct Vignetting for. In addition you can enter another 14 models. This feature can be a really big time saver when you have many photos that were shot with the lens wide open. An example of this would be a photo shoot in natural low light where you have to shoot with the lens wide open most of the times. I remember one such shoot that I did with both the Canon 40D and Nikon D300. When I returned home I had to sit there and review each photo in Photoshop CS3 for Vignetting and fix the ones that I found. This is despite the fact that I had used two professional grade lenses for the photo shoot.

This correction works with JPEG as well as RAW images.

Note that this feature is turned off by default. The reason is that Canon has no idea whether the lens that you are using will work with this feature. Even when you activate it you have to check to make certain that you see "Correction Data Available" which confirms that it does work with your lens. If not you can add your lens to one of the available 14.

The Nikon D300 does not offer Vignetting correction but it does offer chromatic aberration (CA) correction which is not on the Canon 50D. CA is the colored fringes that you sometimes see in photos. The colored fringe normally happens along some edge in the photo where there is strong contrast. A good example is a photo of a white house with green trees in the background. The edge where the green trees meet the white house in the image is a good candidate for some kind of color fringing. Once again, this is something that can be corrected in Photoshop CS3 but anything that can be done by the camera will save a lot of time in post processing.


G. Live View Functionality
If there was one feature that I really missed from back when I had my Canon S5 IS point-and-shoot camera it was face detection. It's a feature that people always asked me about since the Canon 40D and Nikon D300 both had live view but no face detection. When I use live view on the Canon 40D and Nikon D300 I normally focus manually so I can zoom in on the face and then tweak the focus to make sure that it is as sharp as possible. With the 50D I can now save some time by using the new Face Detect live view mode. I also tried it with groups of people and it is pretty good at detecting the faces there as well.

The refresh rate for live view on the Canon 40D/50D is 30 frames per second which is twice that on the Nikon D300 and even the Nikon D3. This makes the Canons better if you want to pan in live view.

One of the biggest advantages of shooting digital is the ability to review a shot immediately to make certain it is good. Because the LCD monitor is just 3 inches, most photographers doing professional work also zoom in to check the focus and sharpness of the photo. You cannot simply look at the brightness of the image on the LCD monitor and assume that the exposure was good. For example, if you are in a dark room and take a photo, when you view it on the LCD monitor it will look very bright but that is because you are in a dark room. The exposure might not be really good and it is possible that the photo is actually underexposed.

When you are doing critical work the best way to review a photo is to view the associated histogram. This is nothing more than a grayscale graph of the tonal values in the photo. An ideal histogram is shaped like a dumb-bell or like a wave that goes up and then down. It goes from black (shadows) on the left and gradually to white (highlights) on the right. A quick check is to see if any of these are clipped (cutoff). If the highlights are clipped it means that something in the photo was overexposed. If the shadows are clipped it means that something was underexposed. If most of the values are to the left (shadows) it generally means that the photo is underexposed. If most of the values are to the right (highlights) it generally means that the photo is overexposed. The Canon 50D has a live view histogram. This is something that is somehow missing from the Nikon D300.


H. Quick Control Screen
One feature that I really have enjoyed using on the Canon 40D is to use the LCD screen to set my shooting parameters such as ISO and drive mode. However, I had to push the info button twice for the screen to appear and I still had to use the buttons on the top of the camera. The Canon 50D has improved on this concept. Now all I have to do is push the multi-controller straight down to get into what is now called the Quick Control Screen where the shooting parameters are displayed on the LCD screen. Also, I can now use the multi-controller to simply select any shooting function and the use the quick-control dial to change its settings. Of course, this is a lot easier than having to make selections by pushing different buttons on the top of the camera.

The Nikon D300 has the same kind of functionality here as the Canon 40D. However, the user interface is a lot friendlier on the Canon as the names of all the icons are also displayed as well. Remember that the Nikon D300 is targeted at more advanced shooters so it does not bother with showing the names of icons. It does not even come with any automatic modes like the Canons.

I. Creative Auto Mode
When you use the Full Auto mode the camera controls just about everything. You cannot even decide whether you want to use the flash or use continuous shooting. The Canon 50D no longer has a C3 mode dial. It has a new Creative Auto (CA) mode dial. When you use this mode dial the Creative Auto screen comes up on the LCD monitor. The settings start out just as if you were shooting in full auto mode. However, you can use the multi-controller to select and make changes to any of the following: flash firing, picture brightness, picture style, image-recording quality. You can also decide whether you want to use single, continuous or self-timer shooting.

There is one special change that you can make here that needs special mention. You have probably seen some beautiful portraits where the background is beautifully blurred. This not only makes the subject stands out but also gives the portrait an overall artistic look. The only problem is that you have to be able to set your own aperture to achieve this effect. The Canon 50D has now changed all that. When you are in CA mode, you now have a graphic slider on the Creative Auto screen that you can drag one way to blur the background more and drag it the other way to make the background sharper. There is absolutely no need for you to have any idea about aperture and depth-of-field. You can now produce portraits with beautiful backgrounds (bokeh) simply by dragging a slider!

Since the Nikon D300 is targeted at advanced shooters you won't find something like this on it. It is assumed that if you are buying a camera like that, that you already know how to set your own aperture and shutter speed etc.


J. High ISO Noise Reduction
Earlier on I told you that as you start using really high ISOs you will start noticing more and more grains (noise) in the photos. Cameras like the Canon 40D, Canon 50D and Nikon D300 all offer a custom setting which allows you to specify whether you want the camera to reduce high ISO noise. You might be wondering why the camera does not simply always try to reduce high ISO noise. Well, there is a trade-off involved here. As you try to reduce the noise you will lose some of the details. If you are taking a photograph and you need to preserve details even at the expense of some noise you can simply chose to turn off high ISO noise reduction. If it is more important to get a clean photograph even though you might lose some of the details then you should turn high ISO noise reduction on. One major drawback of using high ISO noise reduction is that it greatly reduces the burst rate. This is another reason why it is turned off by default.

The Canon 40D offers just 2 settings here - on and off. The Canon 50D allows 4 settings - standard, low, strong and disable. This gives you much more flexibility as you can chose to use a low setting rather than just an on setting which is the equivalent of strong.

The Nikon D300 also has 4 settings which are pretty much the same as those on the Canon 50D even though they are named slightly different.


K. Micro AF Adjustment of Lenses
Starting with the Canon 40D, Canon started trickling down some of features from the professional 1D Mark III DSLR. One feature that did not make it down to the Canon 40D is the ability to fine-tune the AF on your lenses. This advance feature is now on the Canon 50D. You can chose to adjust all lenses by the same amount or you can actually adjust up to 20 lenses individually.

This feature is also on the Nikon D300.

L. HDMI Output
One of the biggest advantages of shooting digital is that you can review your shots right away as well as show them to your clients or friends right there if you have a display unit that you can hook your camera up to. Of course the craze these days is HD. Everything just seems to look better in HD. There was no HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) output on the Canon 40D so you could not do a slideshow on a HDTV. With the 50D you can now do that. You can now take some really cool photos of your kids and view them right there on your HD television which makes a huge difference from viewing them on a non-HD display.

The Nikon D300 has this feature.


M. Auto Lighting Optimizer
When you photograph a scene that is evenly lit your camera does a very good job of setting a proper exposure to ensure that your main subject comes out bright enough. However, if the scene contains high contrast areas of brightness and darkness it can trick the camera and cause your main subject to come looking really dark. For example, if you try to photograph your friend with the sun behind him you will most likely find that your friend comes out looking really dark. This is because the bright light from the sun in the background tricks the camera into believing that there is more light on your main subject than there really is.

The auto lighting optimizer feature enables the camera to better handle these kinds of scenarios by lightening the dark areas in a scene such as your friend while still keeping the details in the bright areas such as the sun in the background. This feature was not on the Canon 40D but it was added to the Canon Rebel XSi which came after it. With the Canon 50D you now get this feature but with 4 settings rather than just the enable and disable settings found on the Canon Rebel XSi. You can choose from standard, low, strong or disable.

This feature is on the Nikon D300 with similar 4 settings.


N. New sRAW
There is a new extra small raw file format. With the 50D you now have the option of shooting RAW files at 3.8MP, 7.1MP and of course the whopping 15.1MP.


O. That Darn Print Button
I don't know what is it about that darn print button that Canon just refuses to get rid of it. Yes, it is still there on the Canon 50D. However, this time you can use it as a shortcut to live view. This is a welcome change over the Canon 40D. On that camera I had to store a short cut to live view in the My Menu tab. Now with the Canon 50D I can turn live view on and off by simply pressing the print button.


P. New Function Button
The jump button is still there but its functionality has changed. It is now a function button that you can decide which of the following menu items you want it to activate: LCD Brightness, Image Quality, Exposure Compensation/AEB Setting, Image Jump and Live View Settings. Based on your current shooting scenario you can decide which one of these you want to appear when you press the Function button. For example, at Miami Seaquarium I assigned the LCD Brightness menu to it. This is because the lighting varies greatly from one place to another so I had to keep adjusting the LCD Brightness constantly to review the photos. Instead of having to go through the menu each time it was really convenient to simply press the function button and have the LCD Brightness menu appear - great time saver.


SECTION 3: Is this the right camera for you?
Your buying decision should be based on your requirements, budget and personal preferences.

It is very tempting when comparing the 50D to the 40D to get carried away with the 5MP difference. However, you really need to consider the type of work that you will be doing and the maximum print size that you expect to do. Here is a summary of the maximum print sizes for different megapixels (resolution):
6 megapixels 8" * 10"
8 megapixels 11" * 14"
10 megapixels 13" * 19"

As you can see if your maximum print size is 8" * 10" then you are covered with even a 6 megapixels camera. You should really have a very good reason for needing more than the 10MP found on the Canon 40D.

Here is what you should do. Check off the new/changed features that you think you will need based on where you would like your photography to start and be in a couple of years. If these new/changed features are not really important to you then go with the Canon 40D. You will save yourself some money that you can then use towards buying a good lens. For example, assume that you have $2,000 to spend on both the camera and lens and you are just interested in getting great shots of your children playing soccer and of their dance performances. In that case I would recommend that you get the Canon 40D body ($955) plus the Canon EF 24-105mm L IS lens ($1,040). It is really important to get a good lens. It is better to have a good L lens on a Canon 40D rather than a mediocre lens on the Canon 50D. On the other hand, if you know you want to do strong professional work and you definitely want a Canon then I can highly recommend the Canon 50D with its new/changed more advanced features. You will not be disappointed with this camera. So far I have found it to live up to everything that it promises. I am really blown away by the fact that Canon could really pack so many MP into that sensor and still give great high ISO performance on par with that of the Canon 40D and Nikon D300.

The decision between the Canon 50D and the Nikon D300 is a little bit trickier. Last year when I purchased the Canon 40D, the body was going for $1,299. This means that Canon has only added $100 to make the price $1,399 for the Canon 50D. When the Nikon D300 launched last year, the body was going for $1,799. This difference in price plus the fact that there are still many features on the Nikon D300 that are not on the Canon 50D, tell me that Canon is still not trying to compete directly with the Nikon D300. This is reinforced by the fact that Canon has now even added a Creative Auto mode which is for beginners. In my opinion Canon is trying to provide a DSLR that can be used by both beginners and even professionals depending on the type of work that they do. This is all done at a very reasonable price. The problem that I see right now is that the price of the Nikon D300 is now at $1,550 which means that for just $150 more you can get a much more advanced camera. Two of those key features are the whopping 51-AF focus points versus the 9 on the Canon 50D as well as 100% coverage in the viewfinder versus 95%. You have to decide if the higher resolution, higher ISO performance and a better live view on the Canon 50D are more important to you. If so, then you should go with it. If not, you should go with the Nikon D300. However, be prepared to spend a lot of time learning because there are no automatic modes on that camera. Another important point to consider is the availability and prices of the lenses you will need. Canon lenses are readily available and are also cheaper than their Nikon equivalent. Shortly after I purchased my Canon 40D I simply went on Amazon and bought a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L IS lens. After I purchased my Nikon D300 I had to wait several months before I could get my hands on the Nikon equivalent of that lens. It is constantly back-ordered. When I finally got it I had to pay $300 more than the regular price. I own 5 Canon L lenses and I had no problem getting them - they were all ordered right here on Amazon.

When I did my review of the Canon 40D, someone asked me about the 1D Mark III. I told him that it was way out of the league of the 40D. However, I also warned him about the potential focusing problems that had been reported. I want to mention the only problem I have had with the Nikon D300. It sees purple as blue so if you shoot a lot of purple you will have a problem with it. Since I have been shooting I have only shot one scene with purple. It was a purple flower. I have shot many events and so far this purple problem has not been an issue for me. In any case, if it happened I would have simply used the Canon 40D for those shots. You can check the reviews of the Nikon D300 right here on Amazon for other people who have encountered this purple problem.


SECTION 4: Conclusion
Your camera should make you feel invincible when out in the field. The Canon 50D is a robust and capable camera that produces stunning images even at very high ISOs. However, it is really up to you to decide whether this is the camera that is best for you based on your personal requirements, budget and preferences. Whether you decide to go with this camera or the Canon 40D or the Nikon D300 I can promise you that you will not be disappointed.

You can check out photos from the Canon 40D and Nikon D300 on my website at tajdigistudios. As I do shoots with the Canon 50D you will see photos from it as well. Be sure to check under the Portfolio menu item. If you are new to DSLRs you might want to check out my free course at tajdslrcourse. If you are considering the Canon 40D you should also check out my review of it right here on Amazon.

Cradit By: http://astore.amazon.com/best-prices-digital-camera-buy-now-20

http://astore.amazon.com/best-prices-digital-camera-buy-now-20/detail/B001EQ4BVI