Upgrading from Canon 450d.. what to get?

Trev Rich

Trev Rich

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OK my budget is only around £600 and I will need to get extra batteries, grip etc etc for whatever I buy next.
I am not selling the 450d because I want the second body.

I was looking at getting a 550d but is it worth it?
I have read that teh noise is worse on the 550d despite the functionality of teh 6400 iso?

Can anyone advise? I want to get a new body in the next week..

Cheers..

Trev :)
 
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Second hand or new? Personally I went from a 400 to a 40 and then onto my 7, a good second hand 40 is well within your budget
 
In some respects on paper the 550d is better, but as a package I'd be happier with the 40d.

Magnesium alloy body. Better weatherproofing. Faster FPS. Faster top shutter speed. Brighter viewfinder.

The 550d is smaller and lighter - but to me that makes it more 'toy like'. The XXX range is the BMW 3 series.. The XX range is the 5 series.. and the X range is the 7 series...

If you had the chance would you choose a 3 series or a 7 series? Both would get you to Glasgow in one piece - but many people would certainly prefer the 7 :)
 
I was in a similar position several months back and opted to upgrade my 450d to a 600d. I found this to be a massive upgrade personally and I would never go back to using a none articulated screen. Since then I have upgraded to a 60d but the change hasn't been that noticeable, although I do prefer using a bigger body.
 
Am all in a flurry now!! lol....
Thanks all for your help so far..
Am wondering wether to go for a 40d or a 50d..
Is there much difference? the 40d offers me more with spare change that I can buy grips and batteries with.. etc etc..

any thoughts?
 
Both the 40 and 50 are great cameras - I've owned both. I do prefer the 50 - but bearing in mind your budget and wanting to purchase extra bits, the 40 is a good choice.

The 50 has a better LCD screen, better low light ability - although some argue more noise - but I didn't see that myself...
 
You'd be able to get a used 50D and grip and a couple of spare batteries from 7dayshop for within your budget.
 
Oh and in the classifieds here someone is selling a spare charger and extra genuine batteries so with a gripped body, you can charge both batteries at once :)

(Yes it's me!!)
 
Well look at it another way - if you buy a used one - and for some reason you don't think it's for you.. There's a very good chance you can sell it for the same price as you bought it.. Whereas if you go out and buy a shiny new 550d, it'll be worth a fair bit less as you walk over the shops doorway into the street (or the postman delivers it)...

So I'd say go down the 40/50 route to start.. And if it's not for you - sell up and go back to the XXX range :)
 
Ive just gone from a 450D to a 550D and to me at least its a big improvement. Ergonomically its easier to hold, the metering system is getting it "right" more so than the old and ISO noise is way way lower than the 450D for the same settings.

Even 6400 on the 550D is marginally less noisy than 1600 on the 450D (and i classed 1600 on the 450 as unusable for any decent photo). Obviously 12800 is bad but you'd need to be really desperate to be shooting at that anyway.

Obviously the 550 has the full HD video along with external mic socket etc if you want that sort of thing along with the Magic Lantern firmware if you're really into it.


What camera is going to depend on what you shoot and budget. If its sport/action/birds then you likely dont WANT a full frame as you want the crop factor and maybe a 7D for the AF system.
If you've got some EF-S lenses you may not want a full frame as you'll need to upgrade everything else too.

For me at least the 550 is a big improvement on my 450 with the added bonus it'll fit in my underwater housing although i cant use video there.
 
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i'l tell you a story...

a while back when the 450d was having it's pre production reviews i convinced myself this was a worthy upgrade from the 350d so as soon as it hit the shelves i bought one thinking there wouldn't be too much difference between the 450 and the 40d well let me tell you how wrong i was
i sold the 450d a matter of weeks after i bought it and purchased a 40d
the 450d feels like a toy compared to the 40d
the 40d has better image quality faster frame rates and better high iso capability
i was very happy with my new camera :)
so what do canon do a couple of months down the line ?
out of nowhere release the 50d
i ended up buying one and to be honest there's not a lot of difference between the 40 and 50d but i fancied the higher pixel count for wildlife
i kept hold of the 40d for quite some time and eventually sold it to fund a 5d mk1
another great camera which has now made way for the 5d mk2
 
I went almost same route to yours and got myself 60D, never been happier. Perhaps 2nd hand 60D could be an option...?
 
Thanks all :)
Think I am going down the route of the 40d.. but will also look at the 60d..
I dont want a full frame camera as not sure if my lenses would work with them.
Will let you know..

Btw Chris.... will be in touch for the grip and batteries ;)
 
Trev Rich said:
Thanks all :)
Think I am going down the route of the 40d.. but will also look at the 60d..
I dont want a full frame camera as not sure if my lenses would work with them.
Will let you know..

Btw Chris.... will be in touch for the grip and batteries ;)
Click to expand...

you'll not be dissapointed, i still have mine and won't be getting rid of it anytime soon
 
I'd go for the 40 or 50 over the 60 though..

As much as many will support the 60, to me it advanced in technology but fell back in build..

It lost the mag alloy body, and went to an articulated screen that's not to all tastes. (It's not to mine).

Keep a check on the classifieds here for a good value 40 or 50 :)

If you can pick up a gripped one - even better...

Don't get too hung up on shutter count - anything up to 25k would be fine in my books. Unless you are a pro - firing them off at full FPS day in and day out - then it'll easily last you that's for sure...
 
If you're looking at that one - ask for photos - don't think the image is the actual camera..
 
Here

This is one on the forum - including a GENUINE grip - the Ebay one is a copy grip.. For the little bit more I'd go genuine :) You could of course always make an offer if you think it's a good one...
 
40D all the way, I've owned a 50 and 40 and to be honest, I prefer the 40! (But its a second camera to my 5D!)

The one above is OK, but considering I just paid £315 for one with about 11k you've probably got some wiggle room!
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=387159


we MIGHT be selling the 40D after the weekend... if the missus prefers her D90 still (although I hope to convince her otherwise) obviously I'd be selling it for the same price but it depends if you're in a rush or not!
 
adamdavi3s said:
40D all the way, I've owned a 50 and 40 and to be honest, I prefer the 40! (But its a second camera to my 5D!)

The one above is OK, but considering I just paid £315 for one with about 11k you've probably got some wiggle room!
http://www.talkphotography.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=387159


we MIGHT be selling the 40D after the weekend... if the missus prefers her D90 still (although I hope to convince her otherwise) obviously I'd be selling it for the same price but it depends if you're in a rush or not!
Click to expand...

You are selling a 40d for £315?
Chris do you still have the grip and batteries?
 
I *might* be.. depending on if the missus likes it or not! It would be everything as per the original thread, although it'd be + postage.

Seriously though the 40D is a fantastic camera :)
 
Going to buck the trend here and say go for the 550D

Despite the build quality that everyone goes on about, not as though a "plastic" camera will just shatter and many highly stressed parts are constructed from polycarbonate these days

I have owned two 40D's and given the 550D has IQ similar to the 7D (my daughter has the 550D so can say that with some confidence) it's definitely an improvement and from an ISO aspect too

Depends what you want from the camera, but from a purely technical aspect the newer camera has come on a fair bit and sure you wouldn't be disappointed
 
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Just the genuine batteries and the extra charger.. Allowing 2 batteries to then be charged at once.. Good if you pick up a camera with grip..

Sales thread
 
I've got the 40d and find it very good. I bought it secondhand over the new 500d at the time as I like the build and feel.
My Dad has the 50d and comparing the two it's hard to choose as the build and feel is the same. If I was in your position I would push for the 50d mainly for the newer processor. The Mp is improved but I don't have an issue with the 40d's 10Mp and the rear screen is a lot better, if you are constantly checking your Pics.

Going back to the car analogy. If you're getting a secondhand 5 series i'd go for the 2008 model over the 2007.
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos50d/
 
Went from a 450D to a 600D and much the same body and using it was similar, apart from the screen i would of though it was the same camera. Now using a 60D and a world of difference, i would go with a camera higher up the range ie, from a xxxD to a xxD so the 40D sounds a good staring place. It really depends on what you need from the body, as the 450D is a good camera, maybe better glass instead.
 
Indeed!!!
1st thouhts are... wtf??? where are all the commands!!
Seconds thoughts were..... omg... listen to that machine gun shutter FPS!!! and the sound.... hmmmmmmm

somewhere inbetween was... wow this feels like a proper camera!!

Gonna take a while to re-learn where all the functions are me thinks.
 
Basically they are in much the same place as on your 450, that's what I found anyway after i'd gotten over the proper camera bit
 
Mostly it's getting used to using both dials, one for aperture, 1 for shutter...
But where the hell do you change from one shot.. burst mode, timer etc..
What I don't like compared to the 450d is the fact that the info on the screen.. on the 450d you could keep it on and it would turn off when you looked through the viewfinder, then come back on again....
 
Push the drive button on the top and use the control on the back to change from continuous etc, I think you can leave the info on the screen, by pressing the info button a couple of times although don't hold me to that as I never had it on mine
 
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