You are here: Home > Digital
Camera Reviews > Canon EOS 20D 8.2MP Digital SLR Camera Review
Review
of Canon EOS 20D 8.2MP Digital SLR Camera
The camera is actually a little
smaller than optimal for a person with average sized hands, the little finger
of the left hand has nowhere to sit and the EOS10D actually feels better. But
in normal use you won't notice this. The viewfinder is small, in many cases you
just have to trust that it really has done a good job of focus because there isn't
enough image for you to see for yourself. I find it quite difficult to be certain
that I even have the camera level. It's also not the brightest viewfinder you
ever saw.
Battery life is very good, even powering an image stabilized
lens, I just filled a 1Gb card on a single battery, that's a few hundred images
and the battery still isn't showing low.
Dust has been a small issue,
there are cameras now that will clean their own sensor but this isn't one. I eventually
found a good hand air blower. You can not use canned air or a brush to clean the
sensor, either can damage the camera badly. Once I got the dust off, it was there
from new, it has remained clean. So maybe it's not that much of an issue. I use
Tokina 24-200, Canon 50mm and Sigma 80-400 OS EX lenses, so I do change the lens
fairly often, so perhaps dust isn't that big an issue.
Switch on is unbelievably
fast, slow switch on times have cost me numerous shots with other cameras, with
the 20D the camera is on by the time you realize the switch has clicked into place.
Speaking of which, on a camera with excellent ergonomics the on-off switch is
about the only thing that doesn't come to hand well, but it's not a factor in
normal use. Just not perfect.
Low light performance has been excellent,
the camera will shoot at 800 or even 1600 ASA with no apparent noise, you can
even configure it to use 3200ASA though I have not.
You do need to be
mindful that the exposure controls on this camera really do do what they say,
you need to keep your eye on the shutter speed and aperture to get the shot you
think you want, this isn't an instant camera that will just make the most of it.
The autofocus is excellent, however in programmed modes you need to pay
attention to which of the focus zones it has actually selected. If there is something
closer to you than the subject you may need to select the correct focus point,
fortunately this is very easy to do, you can hit the control and then select the
focus point using the joystick, both with your right thumb.
Another minor
irritation to me is that if you are using the fully auto mode, which does a very
good job of most things, it will sometimes select the flash even though the autofocus
should tell it that the subject is way out of range. Perhaps I expect too much?
Picture quality? Well, unless you have an absolutely perfect lens and
need to make 36" wide posters you are unlikely to find that the camera is a limiting
factor. I'm actually waiting to see an Epson R1800 because the current generation
of printers can't reproduce the quality I have available with this camera and
my lenses.
Would I buy it again? Sure. Will I trade for the next great
EOS digital to come on the scene? Unlikely. Maybe if it has a larger viewfinder,
this camera already does way more than I need.
Buy the Canon EOS 20D
8.2MP Digital SLR Camera
