Need advice on Canon 500d/550d

kullas

kullas

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Hi, I'm a new member, but I've been snapping away for years using my Dads Canon 20d. Now I'm finally able to get my own, and I wanted advise on which would be better, the Canon 500d, or the 550d.
I'd like to hear from owners, what are the pros and cons to these cameras.

Plus, it would be good to know what the best accessories are. I want to get a remote, but what kind of lenses and flashguns work well for these.

Thanks for your help :)
 
Hi Kullas, i am new here too, there will be plenty of people here that can help you, what are you wanting to photograph and what is your budget, for the camera/ lens/ and accessories.
 
Well, I have the money to get either camera in a local shop to me, its just a matter of if its better to spend a bit of extra money on the 550d.
My budget after that isn't very high, but I could afford another few things second hand.
I want to be able to do all sorts, from portrait to landscape and sport racing. I'll have the typical 18-55mm lens, but what others would be best?
 
kullas said:
Well, I have the money to get either camera in a local shop to me, its just a matter of if its better to spend a bit of extra money on the 550d.
My budget after that isn't very high, but I could afford another few things second hand.
I want to be able to do all sorts, from portrait to landscape and sport racing. I'll have the typical 18-55mm lens, but what others would be best?
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My advice would be to stay in at least xxD bracket. 40d and 50d should be really affordable now, and they are much more sophisticated and easier to use than the 'baby' canons. Also look at the old 5d, which is a lot of a camera for not much more.
 
I owned a 500D for a while, I felt that I had progressed quite quickly and it simply didnt have the ability to keep up with me. Whilst others might disagree, ive now upgraded to the 650D in order to get a newer sensor, better noise, better features, etc. Whilst the 500D was great whilst I was a beginner I felt that for not much more I could get a better camera with a better sensor and better noise performance.
 
You can buy my 500D from me if you want! :D
 
Hardly sophistication. "better" ergonomics is very subjective - some people prefer the smaller less bulky size. Both are equally usable. Rear scroll wheel - well use it if you want but the method on the xxxDs works just as well.
For that money you're getting a camera that other than feels a bit different does nothing more than a 500/550D or in the case of a 40D an inferior sensor and processor to boot. In terms of photography there's nothing the 40 or 50D will do that the 500 or 550D wont do and they DO have features that are improved.

Im struggling to see why anyone would want a 40D over a 500/550 and even the 50D has a few features missing compared to the 550.
Image quality and photography features wise the xxD models don't give you anything more at all.
 
I think a lot of the comments here are either snobbish or simply wrong.
The 550D is better than the 500D mainly because of improved metering taken from the 7D. They both have the same processor.
I think DP review stated that the 500D is basically a 50D in a 450 body, make of that what you will. And obviously neither the 40 or 50D will let you try video.
I have a 500D which I'm going to change soon for a FF. The 550D is better but not massively and I can't say I've ever thought I wish I had a 550. I don't know what the differential in price is, maybe it is money you could spend on other kit like a tripod or filters?
 
For a while I was using a 40D and a 550D for sports stuff. Sold the 40D as it just can't compete with the 550D sensor. AF was better on the 40D though.
 
Thanks guys for all this info. Its really helpful.
I can't really stretch to a 40d/50d though, I'm been saving up just to afford the 500d/550d!

I'm not really fussed on spending more money on a camera just for better buttons and stuff, I'm purely interested in shutters and exposure and stuff like that.
Like I said, i've been using my Dads 20d for years, and he's still using that for car and motorbike races, so I know that even a camera like that can keep up with that speed, then it'll be okay. Plus I never really used its own settings, I always adjusted things myself manually, thats the way my Dad taught me.

So I'm really just looking for a simple, yet efficient camera. And the store i'm looking to get it from, it's the only ones I can afford right now.
But keep it coming guys, I still wanna hear what you guys think, it's really helping me decide :)

Plus, my friend recently got a 450d, what would be the big differences between that and the ones i'm looking for, apart from obvious megapixels.
 
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I have a 550d and my mate has a 500d, he wants my 550d.....
The 500d is still a great camera and if you dont want to do hd video it will save you some money. But as others have said the 550d has a newer bits inside too.

I find the 550 a little noisy at higher ISO's which you might be using for your motor sports, I am a bit fussy about noise though. If you add Magic Lantern firmware to either the 500 or 550 you get a load more options to play with. The 550 only shoots about 3.5 fps, not sure what you are used to on a 20d, but not much better I guess.
 
Bambi72 said:
I have a 550d and my mate has a 500d, he wants my 550d.....
The 500d is still a great camera and if you dont want to do hd video it will save you some money. But as others have said the 550d has a newer bits inside too.

I find the 550 a little noisy at higher ISO's which you might be using for your motor sports, I am a bit fussy about noise though. If you add Magic Lantern firmware to either the 500 or 550 you get a load more options to play with. The 550 only shoots about 3.5 fps, not sure what you are used to on a 20d, but not much better I guess.
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What are the reasons your friend wants yours?
I study Media, and do filmwork, so hd video may come in quite useful, so its good to know. (Obviously a good camcorder would be better, but who can afford it all!)
I wasn't sure of the fps on the 20d so I looked it up, apparently it's 5fps, but I may be wrong, I'll have to ask Dad sometime. But if anyone else is able to still do motor sports with these cameras then it wouldn't be a problem.
Do you ever find there is much difference between the two in terms of exposing and balancing and things like that?
 
kullas said:
Hi, I'm a new member, but I've been snapping away for years using my Dads Canon 20d. Now I'm finally able to get my own, and I wanted advise on which would be better, the Canon 500d, or the 550d.
I'd like to hear from owners, what are the pros and cons to these cameras.

Plus, it would be good to know what the best accessories are. I want to get a remote, but what kind of lenses and flashguns work well for these.

Thanks for your help :)
Click to expand...

My advice is go and handle either model and see if you can get on with it. Personally then I chose my 1st DSLR I had a choice of 3 models. Nikon D70s, and 2 Canons, the 350D and 20D. I bought the Canon 20D because it felt comfortable to handle. The 350D was too compact and just didn't get on with the Nikons functions.

Personally I don't give 2 hoots about bl@@dy video I'm buying a camera to take photos not video but that seem to be the way things are going.

If you were happy with the 20D why not buy a used one you could pick one up for less than £150/200 then put a larger proportion of your money in buying a decent lens.

At the end of the day, it's your money so you have to feel comfortable using it
 
I chose the 550D as my first dslr and ordered it without even seeing one in a shop let alone handling one. Imagine my surprise when it turned out to be perfect for what I wanted and the size and weight was good as well. Great IQ from it and the ISO handling is surprisingly good as well. Jpegs are superb straight from the camera and raw shots are crisp and clear.

I liked the camera so much I gave it to the wife instead of selling it when I got a 7D and 5D MkII pairing. I then borrowed it back for a while when I sold those to get a 5D MkIII. I only ended it selling it when I had a 5D MkIII and a 60D and the wife got a new 650D and there was just no more need for it. The 550D is a fantastic camera and you'll get some fantastic photos from it.
 
gnirtS said:
Hardly sophistication. "better" ergonomics is very subjective - some people prefer the smaller less bulky size. Both are equally usable. Rear scroll wheel - well use it if you want but the method on the xxxDs works just as well.
For that money you're getting a camera that other than feels a bit different does nothing more than a 500/550D or in the case of a 40D an inferior sensor and processor to boot. In terms of photography there's nothing the 40 or 50D will do that the 500 or 550D wont do and they DO have features that are improved.

Im struggling to see why anyone would want a 40D over a 500/550 and even the 50D has a few features missing compared to the 550.
Image quality and photography features wise the xxD models don't give you anything more at all.
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Blimey, someone needs to do some research! High speed shooting? FPS? 1/8000"shutter speeds, significantly less shutter lag, all cross type AF points, pentaprism viewfinder? I wont bore you with the rest, but the 50d especially has a huge advantage over the 550d.

You need to look past the sensor and actually look at the rest.
 
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I have got a 550D and think it's a great camera. I don't use the video facility much, but it's a nice extra. I really like it's small size and weight. The only downside I can see is the frames per second for motorsports compared with the xxd bodies.

My husband has a 50D and I have borrowed this to take football photos (along with a different lens on my 550D). The 50D has the advantage of more frames per second - which I really liked.The 550D is 3.7fps and the 50d is about 6fps I think. The 50D is bigger and bulkier and at first I much preferred the layout of the buttons on the 550D.You get used to the buttons - it does make life a little easier having quick access to all the options on the 50D.

To my untrained eye, I haven't noticed any difference in the image quality between the two. Usually I use the centre focus point for sports.

I am now very lucky to have upgraded to a 5DMk3. I have no plans on selling my 550D as it's so much easier to carry around on those days when you're not specifically planning on taking photos.

I'm not sure this helps, but thought I would share my experience. For me, if it were just between the 500 and 550 I think I'd go for the 550.
 
I was in this position a year ago, and ended up going for a very good deal on the 500D which was much cheaper at the time. I've no regrets at all - it's a great camera and the money I saved went on lenses instead.

If they were the same price, I'd get the 550D - why not - it's essentially the same camera with a slightly upgraded sensor and metering. That said, I've never found the 500D wanting in either department - out of the camera JPEGS are excellent, I've shot at up to 3200 ISO with good results, and the metering *always* seems spot on to me - I've never doubted it. The 550D shoots better video - it's does full HD at 24fps rather than the crippled 20fps of the 500D - that doesn't interest me at all but it might make all the difference for someone else.

The 500D, 550D and 600D all share the same Digic 4 processor (only retired finally with the 650D)... really they're all very similar cameras with near identical handling so if you're happy with the xxxD design then simply pick the highest number you can afford I guess, remembering that whatever you spend on the body is money you can't spend on lenses, and they're arguably more important.

Oh, you ask about the 450D - main difference between that and the 500D (other than the incremental improvement to sensor etc) is the 500D has video and live view. More importantly for me it also has a much higher resolution screen, making it much easier to check focus etc on the go.
 
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Thanks guys, this is helping loads!

I wasn't worried about the video before I seen the 550d had HD, and the only reason it makes a difference for me is that I am a film student and it may come in handy.

Another thing I was wondering is about the lenses, I am considering spending the extra money on getting a lens if I get the 500d, but how do I tell which lenses will fit with the 500d or the 550d (I'm assuming they are similar enough that they will fit both).
Its hard to know which ones will fit. The one I'm looking for the most is a wide angle lens. The one with the camera will be a 18-55mm lens.

Thanks guys!
 
kullas said:
Thanks guys, this is helping loads!

I wasn't worried about the video before I seen the 550d had HD, and the only reason it makes a difference for me is that I am a film student and it may come in handy.

Another thing I was wondering is about the lenses, I am considering spending the extra money on getting a lens if I get the 500d, but how do I tell which lenses will fit with the 500d or the 550d (I'm assuming they are similar enough that they will fit both).
Its hard to know which ones will fit. The one I'm looking for the most is a wide angle lens. The one with the camera will be a 18-55mm lens.

Thanks guys!
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All canon EF and EFS lenses will fit, as will all current third party lenses in Canon fit.

Really wide angle lenses (circa 10mm) are expensive, even second hand you're looking at £300 plus.
 
Yep, any canon EF or EF-S lens will fit either - as will most third party lenses - the only thing to be careful with is some older third party lenses, made for film cameras, that may not be compatible with digital.

Physically the 500D and 550D are extremely similar - but the EF mount is universal to all Canon DSLRs in any case.

Incidentally the clue to the naming is that EF lenses are "full frame" and will work on literally any Canon EOS body, film or digital. EF-S lenses are made for cropped bodies - they're cheaper and work perfectly any of Canon's APS-C cameras like the 5xxD, 50D, 7D etc, but not full frame models like the 5D.
 
hi I have just purchased (dec) the 650d I traded my 50d. The 50d is better built but nowhere as advanced as one would expect taking into consideration the time differential. The 650d was purchased for these technical advices over the 50d ie swivel LCD which is a boon for my macro work, the built in transmitter for speedlites. 18m sensor. Touch screen. The only thing missing is an electronic level. The downside to the change is the plastic finish and the switches feel less solid the upside to this is it's very light. So much so that my canon 100 mm is usm macro lens is heavy in comparison. All considered this is A lot of camera for the money. IMHO Try to save for the 650d it's still more advanced than the 550d. Regards. Mike
 
In this instant with the budget available, 550D seems to be the best choice because there is the HD video function as well as it's within budget.

But I can't believe the few posts talking about how slightly older xxD is not as good as xxxD. pro-body cameras have heaps of advantage over entry level! the sensor inside is less than half the story, all other features of the camera dictates how the camera will handle. For that reason, although the 5D mark 1 classic is old, it is still many many times better than any of the latest APS-C camera out there.
 
Also, as you progress as a photographer, "features" matter less....
 
Pro bodies have advantages and disadvantages - yes the build quality is better and you get a better (prism) viewfinder an an extra dial, you also pay much more for often older tech, and they're bigger and heavier to boot. One size does not fit all, which is why Canon (and other manufacturers) make more than one model!

Re the 650D - it's worth pointing out that most of the improvements here (the new sensor and AF design etc) are primarily aimed at making the xxxD line into a better video camera - photographically there's really not much to choose between the 550,600 and 650D in my opinion. The latter two add a tilting screen, and touchscreen respectively; the other changes are almost all about video.
 
550d is simply amazing for video - the colours, the clarity, 60 fps for slomo... Some videos shot on 550d simply take my breath away, like this one

http://vimeo.com/10314280
or this one (slow mo):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1Nw8SiG-OM

The only major downside for video (although it applies to all, even most modern DSLRs) is that you HAVE to use manual focus for moving subjects.

650d has 11 (?) cross type focus points, 550d has only one- biggest difference for me. But noise performance is better too.
 
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Borsch said:
550d is simply amazing for video - the colours, the clarity, 60 fps for slomo... Some videos shot on 550d simply take my breath away, like this one

http://vimeo.com/10314280
or this one (slow mo):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1Nw8SiG-OM

The only major downside for video (although it applies to all, even most modern DSLRs) is that you HAVE to use manual focus for moving subjects.

650d has 11 (?) cross type focus points, 550d has only one- biggest difference for me. But noise performance is better too.
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There are lenses now that allow AF with video. The new 18-135 being one.
 
odd jim said:
There are lenses now that allow AF with video. The new 18-135 being one.
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As I understand it, AF will still hunt and lag behind. Not from first experience, but I have not seen any action videos shot on dslr with AF.
 
Borsch said:
As I understand it, AF will still hunt and lag behind. Not from first experience, but I have not seen any action videos shot on dslr with AF.
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Nope, no issues with the new step motor'd lenses.
 
odd jim said:
Nope, no issues with the new step motor'd lenses.
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Hm, what do you mean by issues though? Can one shoot a video of a running dog, ice hockey game or even a similar video to the 550d slow mo vid that I posted a link to in this thread, relying purely on AF with new lenses?

Any links for such videos? Maybe I should consider a 650d, I thought that camcoder like fast AF was still years away for DSLRs:thinking:

EDIT: Here's a video of AF performance of 650d + EF-S 18-135 IS STM combo. Imho it is very slow and unfit for fast action http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7euJW3W2Wg
5:35 on this vid sums it up http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iye3on_RNas
And from Digital Rev site
The drawback to STM (ie stepping motor) is it is slower to focus then USM; so less suited to action shots, but still very useable for amateurs.
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http://www.digitalrev.com/article/canon-s-stm-and-pancake/Mjk0MzA3ODI_A
 
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Finally got the 550d now, and I'm happy with that. Thanks for all the advice guys :)
 
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