theuerkorn's Full Review: Canon EOS-20D Digital Camera
Kits are often a great opportunity to snatch typically more expensive individual components and bundle them into a discounted package. The same is true for the EOS 20D which can be had with or without the lens. Does it make sense to get the kit or simply skip to the body only and get a better lens? I guess it depends on each individual situation, but in general the included lens is an excellent choice to get started with little extra expense.
Since the lens is the only difference to the body only package, let's focus on it ...
THE 'NEW' EF-S 18-55mm USM
Even if you still have the orginal EF-S 18-55mm lens that came with the Digital Rebel, you still may want to take a look at the revised version with USM (Ultrasonic motor drive). The main reason for that is within the EOS 20D (or Digital Rebel XT for that matter) as USM is required to enable the newest revision of Canon's flash metering system called E-TTL II.
Beyond this important feature for mostly indoor photography, both lens versions are identical and no further benefit can be expected from the revision. It can be bought separately for $150, but that money might as well be invested into a better overall lens like the EF-S 17-85mm f4-5.6 IS USM which you might 'need' sooner or later anyway.
Both versions of the EF-S 18-55mm lens provide a maximum aperture of f4 (at 18mm), which is the reason why the 20D is not going to utilize its center high-precision focussing. That would require a f2.8 aperture or better. For that purpose the EF-S 60mm f2.8 USM is currently the only lens in the EF-S series that allows this feature.
Both kit lens versions are very light-weight and small in size. Compared to that, the EOS20 weighs a lot, but once you migrate to more serious lenses, the difference to a Rebel XT becomes almost insignificant.
Biggest handicap of the kit lenses is that the lens both changes length as well as orientation during focussing. This is especially cumbersome during outdoor photography with polarizers or graduate ND's. Especially critical is the use with close-up filters which make AF impossible. Beyond that it's of little significance. Further, the flimsy construction of the external lens barrel allows for unwanted changes even after the AF lock is activated and may make your shots somewhat unpredictable.
The kit lens allows to render pictures fairly sharp and is similar to even more expensive lenses. However, it falls behind when looking strictly at chromatic aberration. While this phenomena haunts many zoom lenses, the 18-55mm cannot match any APO, Diffractive Optics or other designs to reduce those dreaded color fringes.
Nevertheless, the kit lens doesn't make a bad photographer as a professional grade lens doesn't automatically guarantee great pictures either. However, the kit lens shows some weakness regarding sharpness and chromatic aberration.
Note: Despite officially being compatible to "all" EF lenses, Canon's dSLRs may reject older lenses due to chip incompatibilities. If you see "Error 99" when using a 10* years or older lens, chances are that you are receiving this message because the camera rejects the old lens, especially if it works fine with the lenses listed above.
HIGHLIGHTS
The camera is pretty much the same as the one in the "body only". So what else is there to say about it? Well, since you're here I will at this point cover selected additional features that stand out for the 20D. For more information please refer to the EOS 20D (Body Only) review. (Note: Both reviews contain complement each other and contain different information to make it easier to digest. Hence, you might check them both out.)
High Resolution: Eight Megapixel generally are enough to fill a letter sized page with photo quality (300dpi). However, the Beyer configuration in the 20D's sensors is only half the truth and the needed interpolation guilty of 'bluring' the picture slightly (and some color fringing at high contrast lines). In essence, this is also degrading resolution a little bit and makes it somewhat comparable to a 5 Mpx Foveon sensor (scaled to 8 MPx). (Watch out for the inflationary use of the term MPx in Foveons.) This is nothing to blame the Canon sensor for, but one reason why the Foveon gets by with less. Note: Motion induced blur and digital noise (at high ISO) might reduce reduce 'real' resolution despite the 'physical' 8.2 MPx. Further, the kit lens' resolution (blur limited) is slightly lower than the 8 MPx sensor, and only a better lens can make use of the real resolution.
Display: The display is relatively small with 1.8 inches and only 0.1 MPx. However, keeping it that small has a positive impact on battery life. For one, there is no good way to display 8 million pixel on the camera anyway, and the picture is composed using the optical viewfinder while the display remains dark until the shot is complete. Most useful information is displayed in the histogram and the over-exposure warning. Color reproduction is dependent on the viewing angle and one should not judge from the picture's appearance on the screen but rely on the histogram and close examination at maximum zoom for proper exposure and sharpness.
Sensor Size: The EOS 20D sports the same size sensor as the other 'prosumer' cameras from Canon (D30, D60, 10D, 300D, 350D). Aside from the resulting "lens factor", the size also gives it a significant advantage over most poin-n-shoot cameras who's sensors are typically much smaller. In the end it matters how much light each cell gets to work with and bigger cells are naturally more sensitive than smaller ones. (This is the main reason for point-n-shoots having visible noise even at ISO 200 or 400.) Compared to the more professional full frame sensor, the APS sized CMOS in the 20D is a little bit at a disadvantage but mangages to pull off even ISO 400 virtually noise free. (For night exposure choose a slower ISO and longer exposure for best results in digital cameras.) Especially suprising is the noticeable but very mild mannered noise using ISO 1600. Even the extended mode (ISO 3200) is quite usable when enabling the noise reduction.
Magnesium Alloy Body: The body is about the same size as the 10D and slightly bigger than the traditional Rebel and even more so compared to the new XT. However, size is barely an argument when you plan to use all kinds of accessories like battery grip, external flash and professional lenses. (All of those add up enough to turn a photo shoot into a workout.) Construction is great and rubber mouldings around the grip ensure you can hold on comfortably. The slightly rough alloy surface is of great quality and my only problem is near the handle where the roughness 'files' enough finger nail off to show white streaks. Other than that, it feels sturdy and all components fit very well.
Shutter Speed: The EOS 20D provides shutter speeds from 30 sec all the way to a professional grade short 1/8000 sec, but more important is the shutter lag time of 65ms from the time you press the trigger until the shutter goes to work. The difference to 160 ms of the Digital Rebel XT is apparent in action shots when the object is moving out of focus or composition in the time it takes the camera to execute the shot. I noticed that when taking shots of our puppy which never sits still (when he's supposed to) and makes it very hard to keep in focus with the Digital Rebel due to shutter delay and the lack of a predictive AF servo. On the other hand, the 20D breaks no sweat when snapping our "whirlwind" in focus every time.
IR Photography: Canon recently introduced an IR version of the Digital Rebel in Japan only, but that's the only model I am aware of in their lineup. The EOS 20D contains the same IR filter as most other digital cameras and eliminates the admittedly niche application of creative IR photography. Check out this link for what you're missing ...
http://www.marsdenarchive.com/library/
Battery: The EOS 20D makes it slightly easier to upgrade to from a Digtal Rebel than the XT. The main reason for that is in the battery size, as the 20D uses the same BP511 form factor as the EOS 10D and the Digital Rebel, while the XT uses a smaller version. So in my case that's great since I intended to use the set of extra 1500mAh batteries I already have. The included 1390 mAh battery is rated for 400 - 600 shots and it will do that if you refrain from reviewing pictures and playing with the Autofocus too much, especially when using a IS lens. I actually just 'finished' a shoot where I heavily reviewed pictures (2 - 4 times per shot) and focussed often without taking a shot (which activates the USM and IS of my lens) and the battery lasted only about 100 shots. (Good idea to have a backup.)
Data Safety: Canon's design intent for data safety goes a little overboard with the door hiding the memory slot. Opening it will immediately shut down the camera. Unlike the power switch, the EOS 20D does not complete writing action in this case. A menu option to allow opening with an audible warning rather than mandatory shut down would have been better. However, unlike the Digital Rebel, the time to record your pictures is relatively short anyway and you would have to be very time critical to encounter problems with this design "flaw".
Custom Functions: The 20D provides as many as 18 useful custom function which sounds complicated but is nothing other than enabling mirror lock-up, long-term noise reduction or ISO extension (to ISO 3200). Most of them are quite useful and some should only be changed if you know what you're doing. This is not to be confused with the preferences, which holds 27 parameters like picture quality, white balance, format, autoplay and so on. Custom functions are more of an extension to the existing funtions and parameters.
RAW power: The most memory intense storage format is the RAW format and the EOS 20D uses an enhanced version (from a Digital Rebel's perspective) noticebale by the new extension *.CR2 versus the older *.CRW. The benefit is mostly maximum control over your pictures and storing them without any losses. The high quality Large JPEG doesn't have visible artifacts either, but RAW is the easiest to correct regarding White Balance and peace of mind (that many parameters are still flexible). The RAW format is restrictive and converted best by relying on Canon's included Digital Photo Professional software. However, it's best when having enough storage available. (i.e. 1, 2 or 4 GByte Extreme III)
SOFTWARE
The latest line-up of digital EOS cameras comes with the same software package and even older Digital Rebels can now download the latest version of Digital Photo Professional.
Digtial Photo Professional 1.6: This is by far the most powerful software in the whole package to view, correct and convert your pictures from RAW to
EOS Capture 1.2: A simple tool to remotely (via USB) adjust main settings and snap the picture with automated transfer to the computer. You don't even need a media to be present in the 20D. However, there is no preview due to the SLR handicap and that makes it less useful for portraits etc. where timing is key. Product photography might benefit, but overall I don't see the point since it's easier to simply use the camera's controls.
Photostitch 3.1: Canon adapted Ulead technology for this automated photo stitching tool which does quite well for many applications but is also a little bit limited for users that need more control. In that case you may want to take a look at Photoshop CS. Either way, make sure to use the same shooting parameters for each individual 'tile' to ensure best quality of the end result.
Viewer Utility 1.2: Vastly improved over the version that was distributed with the Digital Rebel, though somewhat redundant with the also included DPP software which is more powerful for RAW pictures, but doesn't provide functions to directly access your camera's parameters (i.e. owner's name etc.).
SUMMARY
The EOS 20D kit is defined by a good but basic lens which makes for a great starter pack but most likely is not needed if you already own Canon EF or EF-S lenses. (Provided, they go all the way to 18 mm for proper wide-angle.) If you're more serious about it, skip the kit and invest the money in a better lens to make use of the 20D's potential. If this is your first SLR, the kit provides you with an easy way to get started.
The camera itself and the included software are identical to the non-kit version and are just as great. Go for the EOS 20D if you need speed, but make sure to check if the Digital Rebel XT may be enough. If so, the $300 differential may be wisely invested in a good lens which is necessary for either camera.
At the current pace, even the EOS 20D is not here to stay -- just yet. It's powerful and potent enough to satisfy the craving for top notch equipment at least for a year or two. After that there is no guarantee that the itch will not take you back onto the upgrade path. (Watch out for advertising traps though.)
8.2-megapixel sensor captures 3504 by 2336 pixel JPEG or RAW images Includes 18-55mm (3x zoom) f/3.5-5.6 autofocus lens, EF mount compatible with all ...More at Amazon Marketplace
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