How much of an upgrade is 60D/650D from 1000D for low light, concert photography

northcountrygirl

northcountrygirl

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Hi, I currently own a 1000D, with a Tamron 28-75 2.8, Canon 50 1.8 and Sigma 50-150 2.8. I do a little bit of gig/festival photography and hoping to get the opportunity to do more this year. I'm beginning to feel very limited by my 1000D and it's slow burst rate (about 1.5fps in RAW) and it's low light capabilities (only goes to iso 1600). There are a lot of bars and small venues that are just too dark for me to attempt to photograph.

I've had my eye on the 60D or 650D. Obviously there's an improvement in fps but how much of a real world improvement is there for high ISO, low light stuff? Has anyone got any advice? Should I just save up for the 6D? (5D is a no no as it's too big and heavy for my small hands!)

Thanks
 
Both are better ISO wise.

The best of the lot is the 6d.
 
I had a 60D until recently and the wife shoots with a 650D now and TBH out of the 2 the 650D is better for low light shooting as it has an extra stop. I swapped my 60D for a 7D but to be honest if I could of got 650D features in a 60D body (top screen and rear dial) with the AF system of the 7D I'd of had one like a shot. The IQ SOOC in low light for the 650D is very good and can be improved a bit in PP if needed.
 
modchild said:
I had a 60D until recently and the wife shoots with a 650D now and TBH out of the 2 the 650D is better for low light shooting as it has an extra stop. I swapped my 60D for a 7D but to be honest if I could of got 650D features in a 60D body (top screen and rear dial) with the AF system of the 7D I'd of had one like a shot. The IQ SOOC in low light for the 650D is very good and can be improved a bit in PP if needed.
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How does the 650d have an "extra stop"?
 
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I got the 60D and it does the job just fine. I didnt like the touch screen on the 650D because if you are out in colder weather you cant use it with your gloves on. 650D is better if you plan on doing a lot of video. Stick to the 60D if its just for photos.
 
The ISO on the 650D is 12800 (H25600) and it's 6400 (H12800) on the 60D according to the Canon website, I thought that equated to a 'stop' but I may have just had a brain fart. I haven't got a 60D anymore so I can't check for definite.

This also backs up the 650D has an extra stop http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon-EOS-650D-vs-Canon_EOS_60D
4th one down in Advantages of 650D
 
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jethart said:
I got the 60D and it does the job just fine. I didnt like the touch screen on the 650D because if you are out in colder weather you cant use it with your gloves on. 650D is better if you plan on doing a lot of video. Stick to the 60D if its just for photos.
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From the review I read of the 650D, I got the impression that everything could still be controlled by button if you preferred anyway?
 
Thanks for the replies, I understand that the 650D will shoot 12800 compared to 6400 on the 60D but I very much doubt I'd want to use those ISO! Even 1600 is pretty noisy on my 1000D.

Does anyone have a comparison how the 60/650D handles noise at 1600 or 3200 compared to an 1000D? I don't want to upgrade then discover 1600 or 3200 are still incredibly noisy and wish I'd got a 6D.

I've heard you can switch the touch screeen off on a 650D. I loathe touch screen phones so I definitely would be switching the screen off if I purchased a 650D
 
I upgraded from a 1000d to a 650d and found the noise handling far better. I rarely went above 400 on my 1000d and i find 1600 very usable on the 650d
 
modchild said:
The ISO on the 650D is 12800 (H25600) and it's 6400 (H12800) on the 60D according to the Canon website, I thought that equated to a 'stop' but I may have just had a brain fart. I haven't got a 60D anymore so I can't check for definite.

This also backs up the 650D has an extra stop http://snapsort.com/compare/Canon-EOS-650D-vs-Canon_EOS_60D
4th one down in Advantages of 650D
Click to expand...

But that link also states the 60d has better noise handling at high ISO? So it's an advantage that's kind of cancelled out!
 
northcountrygirl said:
Thanks for the replies, I understand that the 650D will shoot 12800 compared to 6400 on the 60D but I very much doubt I'd want to use those ISO! Even 1600 is pretty noisy on my 1000D.

Does anyone have a comparison how the 60/650D handles noise at 1600 or 3200 compared to an 1000D? I don't want to upgrade then discover 1600 or 3200 are still incredibly noisy and wish I'd got a 6D.

I've heard you can switch the touch screeen off on a 650D. I loathe touch screen phones so I definitely would be switching the screen off if I purchased a 650D
Click to expand...

Newer bodies will handle high ISO far better (generally speaking).
 
modchild said:
I had a 60D until recently and the wife shoots with a 650D now and TBH out of the 2 the 650D is better for low light shooting.....
Click to expand...

Accept it, the wife's a better photographer! :D :exit:
 
odd jim said:
But that link also states the 60d has better noise handling at high ISO? So it's an advantage that's kind of cancelled out!
Click to expand...

I kind of doubt that a 0.2 f stop in low noise handling on the 60D is going to make it be that much better than a full stop of ISO sensitivity. Once the 60D has hit it's limit, if you can't get the shot you've had it. I'm not knocking the 60D at all, I loved mine and it gave me a lot of great shots, and IMO the IQ is better SOOC than the 7D I swapped it for. If the 60D had had the AF system of the 7D I'd still of had it now.

And Jack, you may be right, but when it comes to low light photography I just pull out the 5D3 and fire away. :lol:
 
I'm now the proud owner of a 60D. :) I was initially concerned it would be a bit big/heavy but fits in my hand perfectly and the buttons/dials are a lot easier to use, especially the thumb dial.

I've only used it for one small gig so far and I'm not a pixel peeper, but I reckon iso 3200 on the 60D looks like iso 1600 on the 1000D.
Another huge improvement is little red AF points on the 60D light up really bright so at a dim gig it's easy to see. I used to struggle to see the faint AF point on the 1000D which meant a lot of mics instead of faces in focus!
 
Congrats on your new camera, the 60D is a cracker and for SOOC shots I found it handles noise better than my 7D. The rear dial is a great help compared to the buttons on the 1000D. The ergonomics was the main reason I went with a 60D over the 650D and sometimes I wish I hadn't swapped it for a 7D. Now lets see some of your concert photos you've got with it.
 
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