Another one of these threads.. (Opinions needed!)

[dougie1142]

Hi guys, this is another one of those threads...

I am currently swaying between getting a 40d or a 50d. I've seen small advantages between both and i just can't decide whether to spend that bit more on the 50d and have a slightly more futureproof camera?

The kind of photography i do just now is very much of motorsports and car's in general, still and action. I also love wildlife photography, and many of my pictures of cars are taken in dark/night time situations where better ISO functionality would be a big help!

I Currently use a 350d which is getting a bit old and tired and think its time to move up the ladder. I can afford both cameras but obviously the 40D is much more comfortable.

Lens's i currently use are: Canon 70-200mm F4L and Canon 50mm F1.8 II.


Any help much appreciated!

 

[Bythesea]

I have a 40D and have found it to be a great camera. having said that I would go for the 50D given your two options as it does look like an improvement. Whether any camera these days is future-proof though is another matter

Looking at DPReviews verdict on the 60D it looks as though Canon have changed direction with that one so the 50D may be the end of the line for that particular branch. If I upgrade my 40D I am more likely to go to the 7D, though at the price it may be some time !

 

[dougie1142]

I have a 40D and have found it to be a great camera. having said that I would go for the 50D given your two options as it does look like an improvement. Whether any camera these days is future-proof though is another matter

Looking at DPReviews verdict on the 60D it looks as though Canon have changed direction with that one so the 50D may be the end of the line for that particular branch. If I upgrade my 40D I am more likely to go to the 7D, though at the price it may be some time !

Thanks for the reply! Taken on board what your saying...

I do have to think to myself though, at this moment in time i may be better saving money and getting the 40D and then using the spare cash to opt for a couple of Flash guns as i need a set of them aswell! I was looking at the 7D and it is definately perfect but just cant justify it just now, so by futureproof i was kind of meaning until i can afford a 7D And i'm sure the 40d would do me fine until then.

In terms of the 60d, i just don't think it appeals to me, i would probably go for the 550d if i wanted something similar to what the 60d offers, but it'd either be the 550d or the 7d and to be honest with the price difference i'd go with the 7d. Pretty dissapointed that Canon have gone down this route with the **d's

Thanks again though.

 

[ab2012]

what route please are you referring to?Thanks.

 

[LongLensPhotography]

For your lenses why not 5D mk1? Much better camera than these two.

 

[dougie1142]

For your lenses why not 5D mk1? Much better camera than these two.

Ah i see, i completely blanked that out of my consideration! I will look into it, thankfully i've not 100% set my mind on it just now. I'll put some more money towards a camera as i'm not in a rush to buy one yet. I'd like something for next spring/summer, see what prices are like after Xmas (Sales )

Thanks for your help.

 

[magicaxeman]

For your lenses why not 5D mk1? Much better camera than these two.

For motorsport and wildlife? the FF would work against him and offer no distinct advantages, if he was doing landscape or portraits/low light work then it would.
The 1.6X crop factor is a real help when needing to extend your lenses reach.


I'll repeat what I said in another thread about the differences between the 40D and 50D, for me anyway there is enough to warrant choosing the 50D.

The improvements over the 40D would be:

Micro focus adjustment (nb - this is not on the 60D or the 40D)
Larger ISO range (up to ISO 12800)
Better noise handling + 4 levels of noise reduction as opposed to on or off
Auto lighting optimiser icon now in VF + 4 levels of ALO as opposed to on or off
Interchangeable focus screens
Peripheral illumination control
Contrast detect AF in live view
Face detect AF in live view
Digic 4 processor as opposed to the old digic 111
HDMI out
3 inch LCD with 4 times the resolution of the 40D screen ( 40D = 230,000 px - 50D = 920,000 px)
3 different sizes of raw file (Full res, 7.1MP and 3.8MP)
Increase in sensor resolution, only really handy if your cropping images

The downsides:
Slight reduction in frame rate (0.2fps reduction)
Loss of 1 custom mode (40D =3, 50D = 2)