Canon 50D first shots

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 8:34 PM

Hi all,

I decided to treat myself to the Canon 50D after recently selling my 1D mark III. Don't ask why I sold the 1D - it's a long story.

With the camera I went for the kit lens bundle with the new 18-200mm F/3.5-5.6 IS lens. I didn't need the lens as such as I already have the focal lengths covered by some of my L lenses but I figured on occassions when I want to travel light it might come in handy. (And the whole kit really is light compared to what I'm used to)

Anyway today I took the new gear for a test drive and thought I'd share my thoughts. Firstly I'm really glad I got the lens - on first impresssions it seems to be a cracker. And the camera - superb. I had the 40D previously and felt at home with the new model. Mainly, today was about the ISO performance and the IQ. I'm really pleased with both and (again on first impressions) I would be happy to use it in a church or at a disco if this is the standard of noise control. Below you will find a couple of images which I have converted from the RAW file but have done nothing else with. The Canon DPP RAW software had NR set to nil.

This is a squirrel taken at ISO 800.

And this was taken at ISO 1600. The focus point was on the body as the camera was struggling with keeping focus on the head. In hindsight I could have used manual focus but this picture is all about noise - right?

So there you go. Some high ISO pics for you to have a look at and a few opinions from me. Tomorrow I'll give even higher ISO settings a go and post some more.

TTFN

jonnypb · 20-09-2008, 9:39 PM

congrats on your purchase i'm sure you'll enjoy it

would love to see some indoor/low light pics with the ISO bumped upto 1600 to see how it does compared to the 40D

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 9:47 PM

Here's another - this time with the focus on IQ rather than ISO performance.

Again, taken with the 18-200mm lens. No adjustments at all but I resized it to make it quicker to upload.

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 10:00 PM

And another - ISO 800. No PP work. Just resized.

I'd be interested to hear from Nikon users as to how this compares to the D3, D700 etc.

FWIW I'm posting these shots as they were taken by a regular Joe Public. Not some tech wizard from Canon or a specialist website or mag. Personally I find it easier to relate to real-world images.

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonnypb

congrats on your purchase i'm sure you'll enjoy it

would love to see some indoor/low light pics with the ISO bumped upto 1600 to see how it does compared to the 40D

Will take some shots just for you tomorrow night.

Ryan

richard plumb · 20-09-2008, 10:11 PM

nice. Look forward to some more shots. Where did you pick it up BTW?

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 10:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richard plumb

nice. Look forward to some more shots. Where did you pick it up BTW?

Thanks chap.

I got it from Jessops in Cambridge. It seems supply is pretty limited and I was certainly given some false promises on delivery by a couple of retailers. But Jessops came up trumps.

richard plumb · 20-09-2008, 10:42 PM

wow, they actually had them in stores? Their website said no pickup from stores. Don't suppose they pricematch RGB do they?

oh, and curious why you bought this when you also have the 5D? Do you have them for different things?

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 10:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richard plumb

wow, they actually had them in stores? Their website said no pickup from stores. Don't suppose they pricematch RGB do they?

I know - their computer didn't even recognise the barcode - it took AGES to actually buy the thing.

RGB are certainly the cheapest. I called Digital Depot as they were saying they would match any rival offer. So when I mentioned RGB tech they just slagged them off and said they didn't price match against them. They said they had heard reports of poor service from them and muttered somthing about where they get their stock from. Typical case of bad-mouthing the competition I suppose

Many people slag off Jessops but at least you can see the whites of their eyes when you're dealing with them

I always get on well with them and have certainly bought a fair bit of kit from them over the last couple of years.

I reckon if you ring around you'll get a 50D. You might pay a bit more than you want but I'm sure you'll get one.

Good luck

Oh - and yes I'll use the camera's for different subjects and I can't afford to be without a backup. So depending on what I'm shooting will depend on which I turn to first. Portraits and weddings will mostly be 5D (Full frame excellence). Wildlife, action and maybe low light occassions will be 50D (subject to further test drives). The 1.6 crop has it's uses too.

richard plumb · 20-09-2008, 10:58 PM

interesting. enough difference in FF to be noticeable? May try a dabble in FF then...

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 11:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by richard plumb

interesting. enough difference in FF to be noticeable? May try a dabble in FF then...

IMO FF is really special. I'm still amazed at times by the quality of the images I get from my 5D. I came to the FF scene fairly recently and as such I'm in no rush to upgrade to the 5D II.

While I can get such great IQ with 12mp the 21mp can wait..............Although the hype will proabably get the better of me

jonnypb · 20-09-2008, 11:05 PM

I've seen/heard a few people jumping from a 40D to 50D but is there a big diffence between the two? I know the 50D has the Digic 4 and AF adjustment. But apartment from that are there other things that are improved over the 40D? ISO performance, AF???

It's got more mega pixels and i presume on the same sensor size so will that not have more noise or will the digic 4 combat against noise?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanyboy

Although the hype will proabably get the better of me

I think it does to all of us!!

ryanyboy · 20-09-2008, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonnypb

I've seen/heard a few people jumping from a 40D to 50D but is there a big diffence between the two? I know the 50D has the Digic 4 and AF adjustment. But apartment from that are there other things that are improved over the 40D? ISO performance, AF???

It's got more mega pixels and i presume on the same sensor size so will that not have more noise or will the digic 4 combat against noise?

I think it does to all of us!!

I think the difference is pretty significant. Digic IV, IQ and ISO all make it a worthwhile upgrade in my opinion. Then there's the micro adjustments for individual lenses, superb LCD screen, and improved live view (if you like that sort of thing).

Haven't shot much where the AF tracking has been tested but it was holding focus really well today with slow moving/static obbjects. The only time it struggled was with the bird above where I was trying to get it to hold focus on the small target of the birds head in low light.

Also - I've not stuck a really fast lens on it yet. Can't wait to try it with the 70-200 F/2.8.

**Ian_S** · 21-09-2008, 7:24 AM

Great stuff. For comparison here's an ISO1600 shot from a 40D in suitably dark horrbile conditions.

This was shot handheld at 1/200s, f/6.3, and this is a 100% crop from the medium/fine JPEG. I shoot RAW+JPEG so have the RAW available if people would prefer to see that. This is a 100% crop, noise reduction is off in camera for high ISO, no re-sizing or any PP has been applied, and no sharpening other than the in-camera JPEG settings. So it should be reasonably representative of what the 40D can deliver.

If the 50D can do that at say ISO6400 then me and my CC will be cursing it very, very, loudly!!

richard plumb · 21-09-2008, 8:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanyboy

IMO FF is really special. I'm still amazed at times by the quality of the images I get from my 5D. I came to the FF scene fairly recently and as such I'm in no rush to upgrade to the 5D II.

While I can get such great IQ with 12mp the 21mp can wait..............Although the hype will proabably get the better of me

thanks. May keep an eye out for bargain 5Ds when people upgrade to the mark II.

I'm tempted to get the 50D (have a 40D) as it just seems an overall more rounded camera. I use liveview quite a lot, so the LCD would be useful, and the micro adjustment at the very least will help me sleep at night not worrying about front/rear focus on lenses that were probably fine in the first place :D

ryanyboy · 21-09-2008, 7:16 PM

Ok, as promised I've now shot some high ISO pics. All of these were shot at about 7.15pm this evening. I shot with RAW and Large JPEG and below are the results.

ISO 3200 RAW

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3082/...8b118afc_o.jpg

ISO 3200 JPEG

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3214/...2e2fa116_o.jpg

ISO 6400 RAW

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3006/...8c244a00_o.jpg

ISO 6400 JPEG

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3034/...88717b1c_o.jpg

ISO 12800 RAW

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3295/...9b2ae93f_o.jpg

ISO 12800 JPEG

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3144/...e4e402d9_o.jpg

So there you go.

The first thing I noticed was what a wonderful job the in camera noise reduction does as the JPEGs are clearly much better the RAWs.

All NR & sharpening in ACR was turned to nil so these RAWs really are as RAW as can be.

Personally I think the 6400 JPEG is usable but not so sure about the 12800. And obviously the RAWs would only be usable after some tinkering in ACR. I haven't got that far yet though.

What do you think folks?

richard plumb · 21-09-2008, 7:37 PM

that 6400 looks great. 12800 JPEG might be usable with some NR software on smaller prints. Certainly 6x4s. What setting did you have the NR set to? and thats just JPEG,so in theory you should be able to get better results from the RAW with careful processing

I'd be interested in some sRAW comparisons. In theory again, the smaller files should reduce the noise quite a bit. And 7.1 is still plenty (even 3.8 is fine for 6x4s)

Any idea if high ISO NR affects the buffer size for continuous shooting?

ryanyboy · 21-09-2008, 8:28 PM

Hi Richard,

The in-camera high ISO NR setting was standard. Other options are Low, High and Disable.

Only the High setting affects the buffer.

I only shoot L JPEG out of habit alongside RAW. Not shot using sRAW yet but's worth a try.

Out of interest I used the ACR software to reduce the noise of the RAW images on the car pictures. I couldn'd get the images to look as god as the out-of-camera JPEGs though

Probably something I'm doing wrong as I'm not the greatest PP expert.

Ryan

dave_bass5 · 22-09-2008, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanyboy

FWIW I'm posting these shots as they were taken by a regular Joe Public. Not some tech wizard from Canon or a specialist website or mag. Personally I find it easier to relate to real-world images.

Nice line up of gear for a regular Joe

that new lens looks pretty good (for the price).

I really want bothered by the 50D coming out but the more i read about it the more i want (not need) it.

As a 40D owner i see the 50D as an improvement in certain areas but nothing that i really must have but as i want to get a Sigma 30mm f/1.4 and have had three bad copies in the past the micro adjustment looks like the biggest draw for me.
Can i ask hows the LCD? I know its better than previous Canon's. Is it now better when zooming in to check focus after taking the shot? I find my 40D is ok to check that its close but of course its the thumbnail thats the problem not the LCD.

And nice shots by the way. I too would like ot see some high ISO indoor shots if you have any.

ryanyboy · 22-09-2008, 2:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave_bass5

Nice line up of gear for a regular Joe

Can i ask hows the LCD? I know its better than previous Canon's. Is it now better when zooming in to check focus after taking the shot? I find my 40D is ok to check that its close but of course its the thumbnail thats the problem not the LCD.

And nice shots by the way. I too would like ot see some high ISO indoor shots if you have any.

Thanks Dave - the LCD is a great impovement over any existing DSLR without a doubt. I took a picture of a cat earlier and when I zoomed in on the thumbnail I was blown away by the clarity and sharpness of the image - especially the whiskers.

The colours look good too and the menu system is a little prettier graphically. All good stuff but obviously not a reason in itself to upgrade.

Ryan

dave_bass5 · 22-09-2008, 2:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ryanyboy

Thanks Dave - the LCD is a great impovement over any existing DSLR without a doubt. I took a picture of a cat earlier and when I zoomed in on the thumbnail I was blown away by the clarity and sharpness of the image - especially the whiskers.

The colours look good too and the menu system is a little prettier graphically. All good stuff but obviously not a reason in itself to upgrade.

Ryan

Cheers Ryan.
Having a valid reason to upgrade is not something im familiar with LOL.

ryanyboy · 22-09-2008, 2:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave_bass5

Cheers Ryan.
Having a valid reason to upgrade is not something im familiar with LOL.

Good point!

Thatsnotmynaim · 28-09-2008, 4:28 PM

That 18-200mm looks great. I'm thinking getting the 50d with the 18-200mm kit lens as would love that lens for holidays. If you don't mind me asking where did you get it from and how much? I see some HK companies selling the package for £1130 on eBay, but I think I'd get stung for the import TAX on top, on the other hand Jessops are asking £1599 which seems a bit steep. Looking for something UK in stock (but not £1600) or HK with fast delivery so I can get it for Wed/Thur!!

ryanyboy · 28-09-2008, 6:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sjameson

That 18-200mm looks great. I'm thinking getting the 50d with the 18-200mm kit lens as would love that lens for holidays. If you don't mind me asking where did you get it from and how much? I see some HK companies selling the package for £1130 on eBay, but I think I'd get stung for the import TAX on top, on the other hand Jessops are asking £1599 which seems a bit steep. Looking for something UK in stock (but not £1600) or HK with fast delivery so I can get it for Wed/Thur!!

Hi mate. Ta for the feedback.

I don't mind you asking at all. I got it from Jessops for £1600 and because I didn't pre-order they wouldn't let me have the memory card and bag that they had been advertising

I wouldn't have minded but I've put so much business their way that I thought they might have been able to do something. The manager offered a half price memory card but even at half price they're still dearer than Amazon!

Anyway, the 18-200mm lens is good as an all rounder but I decided to sell it a few days ago as I already have three L lenses which cover these ranges. I couldn't justify using the 18-200m when I had had (imo) better lenses back home. Although if I ever go abroad or somewhere where I want to travel light I bet I'll regret it

Still I got £50.00 more than I paid for the lens (assuming it cost £400 above the body only price) so I can't grumble.

With regards to yourself I personally wouldn't buy an import due to warranty/tax issues and the fact that if I'm not happy with something I like to know that I can take it back and speak to someone in person.

Having said that I wouldn't hesitate to buy one from one of the UK internet retailers like Park Cameras, Jessops, Jacobs,Warehouse Express or Digital Depot as they all have a shops too.

Maybe try one of those I just mentioned. Also RGB tech had some really good deals but I'm not sure what they are like to deal with. (I've heard good and bad).

Good luck wherever you get it.

Ryan