The camera has a good weight/feel. Very easy to use. Lense selection is good. Excellent price/performance.

Unable to mount camera as hard drive. This is very very annoying(I mean please, most others do). Prefer to use iPhoto as it has a more useable interface than the Canon Photo Capture Software.

Overall, this is an absolutely excellent camera. I compared it to the Nikon D70 and found it to be a better value.

Great images Familiarity of controls for Canon users Compatibility of lenses/flash to film Canons Relatively easy to learn controls Battery power with the optional grip is good Good value for what you get for the $

No eye-control focus like the Elan 7E Concern over keeping sensor clean Won't mount as a drive, need a card reader

First let me state, photography is a hobby not a livelihood for me. So, this is a practical and creative perspective vs technical perspective. I've had this 20D for about 6 weeks and had been using a Canon Elan 7E for several years. The move to the 20D was pretty easy. Most of the controls were similar enough and the additional digital features and controls are not too hard to pick up. I have three Canon lenses and a Canon flash, so I purchased the 20D body only. I received the camera on a Friday night and was taking pictures the next morning. Overall I'm pleased. It's great to have high quality digital images without having to scan film. It makes playing around with and printing images dramatically more easy, fun and immediately gratifying. The images from the 20D are impressive. Without using most of the many available features and just using ISO, aperture, shutter speed, an understanding of exposure and the basic image management features, you can great images right out of the box. I'm sure over time I'll work through the features of interest to me like white balance settings, etc.. Being able to change ISO shot-to-shot is great. The camera has a solid feel, though a bit heavy. There are three shortfalls on the 20D for me. The sensor was dirty from day one. Spots were visible in solid color images like a blue sky. I had to send the camera in and have Canon clean it. Canon turned it around quickly and it's fine at the moment. The note Canon sent back said one free sensor cleaning, suggesting to me it may be a frequent occurance. We'll see. The second issue for me was losing eye-control focus I had on the 7E. I knew this going in and hoped it wouldn't be too much of an issue. If you never had eye-control focus, it's probably not. If you're accustomed to eye-control focus, you lose significant speed and ease of use. The toggle controller works and so do the two control dials, but I'm not sure even with practice that I can come close to the eye control on the 7E. Additionally, with the optional vertical grip, you can't reach the toggle, so you have to use the dials to set the focus points and they're not as intuitive as the toggle. The third issue is that you need to buy a separate card reader if you want to modify images on the computer and put them back on the memory card to take them somewhere for printing. The 20D won't mount as a drive. though my daughter's $200 Nikon point and shoot will. Not a huge deal, but annoying. On the software front, I already had Photoshop Elements and I've really only used the Canon software to open and process RAW images. Despite the two points above, it's been fun and I'm pleased. The 8-megapixels, reasonable price and being able to keep with the Canon platform (vs $3,000 replacing lenses and flash) were enough to get me to jump to digital with Canon. If you own Canon lenses, want to go digital and you're something less than a full-time pro photographer, the 20D has enough reasons merit strong consideration.

Customer Service

Generally helpful on the two occasions for which I called. Turn around time on sensor cleaning was around a week. They also send post-service online survey to track customer service performance.

Similar Products Used:

Canon Elan 7E film camera

Build quality Great resolution Controls & features Very fast start up & restart (from sleep mode) times Very good autofocus in low light

None noted yet.

I had the 10D but was irritated by the long restart from standby & it's autofocus issue at low light, like at wedding receptions. I've found the 20D with it's .2 second start up time & great autofocus at low light makes this camera a real pleasure to use. I like the controls on the back, it's resolution, the flexibility of what type & size of image you want to shoot - RAW only, JPEGs only, or RAW+JPEGS combined. I'm going to Alaska this September & I'm a bit concerned about weather sealing, but I'll just have to take extra precautions to make sure moisture is kept out. For some reason, the sensor of my old 10D got dirty frequently (yes, I turned the camera off for lens changes) & had to have it cleaned 3 times in the 7 months I owned it. I haven't had the 20D cleaned once since owning it from January & the sensor still appears to be clean (shooting against a clear blue sky will reveal dust on the sensor). For the money, I'm very happy with this purchase.

Customer Service

Not used yet

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS30/7E Elan Canon 10D Canon AE-1

Build quality, Speed, Features,weight, Writing speed, image quality, Image size- rersolution.

Lack of Spot metering. I wish lense included with kit could have been batter.

This is my first DSLR. I was about to go for MkII but £££ reason bought this one. After 5 months use I am very happy with decision, no complaints/regrets whatsoever. Startup time, speed, features, build qrality ....every thing u need is there. With 17-40 LUSM I am getting some beautifull results. Software comes with it is quite good and easy to use.

Similar Products Used:

Non digital. EOS1V, Bronica etc.

1. Overall quality 2. Relative ease of use 3. Great sensor card

Obviously, I wish it had a "full" sensor rather than the l.6 X sensor. But for the price?

This is my first high-end digital camera. I have been spoiled for many years by my Canon 1N. The 20D has exceeded my expectations. I purchased it with a EF-S 18-85 mm lens. The reviews are correct--this is the number 1 digital camera for under $3000. My results have been outstanding--including a recent 16 X 20 enlargement. I recommend buying a Battery Grip BG-E2--for two BP-511A batteries and the Power Adapter CA-PS 400 which can charge two batteries at once. The Magic Lantern Guide on the EOS 20D is also very useful.

Customer Service

Not needed

Similar Products Used:

1. Canon 1N 2. Canon Elan 3. Canon Rebel

Very well made. Fantastic autofocus reliability Battery life Colour detail Instant startup Very fast write times

Small LCD screen Soft image focus can concern some people.I personly find the results ok if i turn up the sharpness control to maximum.

8.3 megapixel digital SLR using the EOS 35mm lens mount.

Customer Service

Not used yet

Similar Products Used:

Only non digital SLR's Minolta Dynax 7000i Minolta Dynax 700si

alloy body, 5 frames per sec, 9 point focus

the scroll wheel on the back of the body is a bit of a reach for my (girly sized) thumbs. probably better handled by a guy.

Cute lil' slr. Used for a month as a trial, and decided to be definately a good buy for those wanting a decent megapix, without losing half a wallet.

Just about everything really! But mainly: - the image quality (contrast, sharpness, and the 8Mpixels) are superb - the build quality (looks very professional) - functionalities (everything any serious amateur will ever need, and probably more)

- Battery Grip not very strongly built - Colour saturation too neutral for my test (doesn't get close to Velvia, but this can be acheived in photoshop) - Would be nice to have spot instead of partial metering

After much though, I finally decided to make the plunge into digital photography with this camera. I bought it as soon as it came out back in Sept 2004. Absolutely no regrets so far. Image Quality: I use it with the Canon 28-135mm IS and 100-400mm IS lenses. The sharpness is very good. Pictures printed on my Canon i9950 printer on A3+ paper just look amazing (really like professional poster). My only slight dislike is the colour saturation. Even when set to its maximum colour saturation leve, the pictures do need some post editing in order to get the colour vibrancy that Fuji Velvia 50 slide films can produce (which was my film of choice when shooting landscape on my EOS30 film SLR camera). But that said, very good results can still be acheived (see my website for many examples www.sambitton-photography.com). Contrast is very good. The noise level is very low indeed. I was able to shot some handheld pictures at hot air balloon nigh show. Shot all the pictures at 1600 ISO and, yes of course you do have see some noice, but it is completely acceptable. Camera Functionalities: It has everything any serious amateur can need. Spot metering would be nice instead of the partial metering. It is very easy to navigate through the various menues and everything is quite self explanatory. The 9 focusing points is a nice touch and can be usefull at times (especially when shooting portraits or for landscape when working on a tripod and wanting to focus somewhere without having to move the camera). The small "joystick" like button can be used to select the focus points. This is quite good although can be a bit diffcult for the selection of the focus points located at 45deg off the center. But like everything with a little practice it becomes easier. I wished the ISO speed setting was always visible, either on the small LCD screen or in the view finder. The LCD screen can be lit which is very usefull when shooting in the dark. Build Quality: I found it very well built. Has a much more professional feel than the Canon EOS30. The battery grip BG-E2 that can be attached to it is usefull to get a good hold of the camera. Only down thing is that the grip is not of very strong built quality and doesn't do the camera any justice in that respect. It does fit the camera that well and is very prone to dust and water. One of my concern when I bought it was the specified temperature range (0 to +40degC). The 0deg was the most worrying for me as I do mainly landscape and nature work. But so far it has performed flowlessly even during the strong winter we've had this year in Switzerland. I used it at temperature down to -15 deg without any problem (only the image stabiliser of my lenses were starting to complain).

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS 300 Canon EOS 30E

+ image quality (8MP, low noise,) + auto focus + WB options + "affordable" pro level camera (value) + instant on + battery life + everything "fits" -- I like the wheel on the back! + easy adjustments +

- 1.6 crop factor - error 99 & error 05 (only 3x / 2500 pics) -

WOW! or enter your own exclamatory remark! This camera produces fantastic images with minimal post-processing. The RAW (.CR2) images are easily edited in the DPP software that comes with the camera before exporting to Photoshop or your favorite editor. (I wish it would have shipped witrh Elements 3 instead of 2) I have had the camera for about a month now, and have taken nearly 2500 pictures. Forget about the "basic" zones, go for the complete picture control that this camera offers. For indoor sports (high school basketball), I try not to use a flash so as to not disturb the play. That means pushing the ISO to 800 or 1600. And while pictures at 1600 do show some grain, I am able to stop the action in most cases. I can always use Noise Ninja later. The ISO 800 pics have little to no noise, and colors are beautifully saturated using the EF 28-135 IS USM lens. The kit I bought came with the Sigma 28-70 & 70-300 lenses, and I am somewhat disappointed in them. They are ok, but when compared to teh EF lenses ... well, we can save that review for another time. Suffice it to say that I am satisfied with my Canon EF 28-135 IS USM until I can afford to stock up on "L" glass. The autofocus is fast and reasonably accurate. This is my first autofocus camera, and that takes a little getting used to at first, but then let it do its thing even in low light! The auto focus is fairly accurate once you learn how to use the potential of the camera. And, speaking of fast, it is a joy to take action shots witht the 3-5 frames per second shutter speed. No, it is not the blazing fast 8 fps of a 1Ds Mark II, but then again, neither is the price! If you shoot in RAW mode, this may slow down after a few seconds. Using the flash for these pics will also slow you down. The batteries seem to last forever. I usually get between 300-500 shots, depending on whether I use the flash and how much review time I use on the LCD. The on camera flash is a little bit better than useless. Like any on-camera flash, it tends to produce well lit, though flat exposures. The E-TTL metering system seems to work fine for exposure control, and you can adjust the flash output manually if you don't like the results. Personally, I am going to invest in a 580 EX for my flash needs, few though they are. White balance tools - yes they make a huge difference in image quality. The pros have known this for years, and now the technology exists for the rest of us. You will find your image quality improve 100% by simply using the custom white balance setting. Now, this is not a perfect camera though. Recently, I have had error 99 and error 05 codes pop up. I have been able to get beyond the errors easily enough (turn off the camera, or at worst, take out and re-insert the batteries), but it is frustrating to say the least. The other downside is that this camera, like so much modern technology, seems to think it knows better than you. I am still puzzled why there are times that it will not let me fire a shot, even in manual mode. Presumably something tied to the auto-focus.

Customer Service

not needed yet, though I do forsee some kind of service for the error codes

Similar Products Used:

none

high ISO image quality great ergonomics all the benefits of a SLR takes canon lenses

price high in my opinion 1.6 crop factor built in flash seems a bit weak

I've had the 20D for almost 3 months now, and have used it for two major photo events so far, and have been very pleased with it. Being able to change ISO on the fly is wonderful, along with getting good results at ISO 800 or higher. Shooting under tungsten or mixed light without having to use a color filter on your lense is another benefit with the 20D that I really appreciate. This is my first digital SLR, and I don't regret buying it and leaving film behind. My turnaround time has improved remarkably. Although it will take all canon lenses, there is a 1.6 crop factor, so your lenses won't behave the way you're used to using them. I went ahead and got the 17-85 EF-s lens along with it, so I could shoot the range that I'm accustomed too. This and a number of minor differences still take a bit of getting used to. I've upgraded to the newest 1.1.0 firmware, and my pics look good. Don't have enough experience with the camera to really tell the difference.

Customer Service

no experience

Similar Products Used:

Canon EOS Elan Olympus C-5060