Oportunity to buy an EOS 550d for a great price, should I?

[Madkat]

A colleague at work is offering me his EOS 550d for a very reasonable £200(body)=£20(standard 18-55 lens) As far as i can tell by comparing it to prices on Ebay and Gumtree.

Its in very good nick, practically new and i know it's been looked after and i would be mainly using it for landscape shots when out walking and hiking. My main reservations are its bulk, the Tamron SP 10-24 Wide angle lens he's showed me seems to take noticeably better images than the standard lens and the Panasonic lumix compact range can produce some undeniably great shots and still be light and easy to carry when out walking.

With enough expensive hobby's already i don't want to be ending up getting distracted by spending more hundreds on X,Y and Z lense's (or so the wife tells me) but i like the idea of having complete control with the DSLR over the compact starting out as an amateur.

I'm tempted but should i be looking elsewhere?

[DavidY]

It's a good price, but if you are not careful DSLRs can become a photography gear lugging hiking trip, rather than a pleasant walk.

If you fancy a DSLR, then buy one with the kit lens, and get used to using the camera with the kit lens, not all landscapes have to be super wide!!! Then you can make an informed decision about whether to stay with the DSLR or go for something more compact, you shouldn't loose any money moving the DSLR on (that is buying this s/h 550d).

If though you are serious about a DSLR, you'll have to weigh up that you'll probably need a wider angle lens (this will be probably 3 times the weight of the Canon Kit lens), you'll need a tripod (this will probably weigh at least as much as your camera and lens combo plus a bit!!), it all starts to become a photography expedition.

I started with the DSLR and then went to a Fuji CSC, mainly for weight reasons. Some of the landscapes on here are taken on DSLRS (some lug about some very serious gear), others on compacts/CSCs, there are stunning examples of images from both, good gear won't instantly make you a good photographer.

[58warren]

Good price for the 550D. I sold a 600D to a colleague just before Christmas for £320.00 (again immaculate and very light use only). I now have a 700D with the new 18-55 STM and 55-250 STM lenses which are a great improvement in quality and also don't have that annoying rotating front element - which really frustrates when using graduated or polarizing filters!

I also have a Panasonic Lumix TZ40, which to be honest gets much more use due to its compact size, 20X optical zoom and GPS/WiFi facilities.

The SLR gets used for airshows and motorsport, whereas the Panasonic accompanies me on weekends away, holidays and general day to day use.

[Madkat]

I should probably add i already have a compact in the form a Finepix F610, Old i know but takes surprisingly good photo's so if i wanted a camera with me when going on more rugged walks that would come with me. The DSLR if i got it would be more for walks rather than hikes but like you say i suppose the thing to do is try it with the standard lens, dont get tempted by this lens and that, get my photography skills up. Then if it's not working out move the camera on and hopefully get my money back and invest in a better compact.

[Mojocvh]

A St Sardos sunset taken with a Olympus FE-230, which is smaller than a fag packet....



I guess it's what you want to lug around.

Mo

[Madkat]

The Conundrum i have is that bridge camera's are turning out to be the best option and you can pick them up for a surprisingly good price and they have a much more flexible focal range than this Canon without having to spend the same amount again as the camera on different lenses.
They also have largely the same features as a DSLR however with less control but lighter weight.

Do i invest in a DSLR or make do with a Bridge camera? Argh.

[fido]

Madkat said:

The Conundrum i have is that bridge camera's are turning out to be the best option and you can pick them up for a surprisingly good price and they have a much more flexible focal range than this Canon without having to spend the same amount again as the camera on different lenses.

How much range do you need (or think you need)? I find that my 70D + 55-250 covers everything on the long end and if I need high quality or low light capability then I put on a chunky 17-55. Think you should play around with the kit 18-55 until you find out what you are really missing. The 55-250 is a relatively cheap upgrade.

[Mr Will]

Madkat said:

Bridge camera? Argh!!!!

This is the correct response when confronted with a bridge camera, followed by running away as quickly as possible.

[Madkat]

fido said:

Madkat said:

The Conundrum i have is that bridge camera's are turning out to be the best option and you can pick them up for a surprisingly good price and they have a much more flexible focal range than this Canon without having to spend the same amount again as the camera on different lenses.

How much range do you need (or think you need)? I find that my 70D + 55-250 covers everything on the long end and if I need high quality or low light capability then I put on a chunky 17-55. Think you should play around with the kit 18-55 until you find out what you are really missing. The 55-250 is a relatively cheap upgrade.

I think that is probably the wisest bet then when (if) i get used to a DSLR at least then i have the OPTION to do other stuff with it..

[Madkat]

Well i bought the 550D and after a weekend snapping away i have to say i'm both happy and very impressed it's the only camera i've ever used that can not only take half decent shots of our two cats indoors but also with very good quality.

on a walk in the peak district on Saturday it struggled a bit with the hazy conditions but then i think most camera's would of been the same. Got some great (first time) slow shutter speed shots of a stream so really happy with the purchase. With a little post processing in gimp some of the over exposed images in bright sunlight have come up trumps although Gimps auto white balance feature seems to of enhanced some images further.

I'll upload a couple when i get home in case anyone's interested.

[flat-planedCrank]

Madkat said:

Well i bought the 550D and after a weekend snapping away i have to say i'm both happy and very impressed it's the only camera i've ever used that can not only take half decent shots of our two cats indoors but also with very good quality.

on a walk in the peak district on Saturday it struggled a bit with the hazy conditions but then i think most camera's would of been the same. Got some great (first time) slow shutter speed shots of a stream so really happy with the purchase. With a little post processing in gimp some of the over exposed images in bright sunlight have come up trumps although Gimps auto white balance feature seems to of enhanced some images further.

I'll upload a couple when i get home in case anyone's interested.

Congrats on your new camera I'm sure your 550D will do all you need, plus it has the advantages over smaller sensor'd bridge camera alternatives.

I'd say grab a prime (non-zoom) 50mm f1.8 for about £75 to get an idea of what wide aperture 'fast' lenses are like in comparison to zoom kit lenses. Can't do that with a bridge camera

[Ireland]

I've a 550D a few years now and it does everything you are saying you need

I've a Sigma 10-20 lens and I've just ordered a 50mm prime as described above and those coupled with a kit lens they'll probably do most stuff you want (you'll eventually want something with a bit more zoom but for now you'll be fine)

Now all you need to do is have fun with it ...

[58warren]

Madkat said:

Well i bought the 550D and after a weekend snapping away i have to say i'm both happy and very impressed it's the only camera i've ever used that can not only take half decent shots of our two cats indoors but also with very good quality.

on a walk in the peak district on Saturday it struggled a bit with the hazy conditions but then i think most camera's would of been the same. Got some great (first time) slow shutter speed shots of a stream so really happy with the purchase. With a little post processing in gimp some of the over exposed images in bright sunlight have come up trumps although Gimps auto white balance feature seems to of enhanced some images further.

I'll upload a couple when i get home in case anyone's interested.

I think you'll find the 550D great for your first DSLR. You can pick up a used Canon 55-250mm is II lens on eBay for relatively little money (£60-80 for what originally retailed at around £200). It's not the best zoom in the world, but I've had some great pictures from it over the years. The new STM version is a better, sharper lens with more elements, but you'll be looking at over £200 online and quite a bit more in a high street retailer.

[Madkat]

58warren said:

Madkat said:

Well i bought the 550D and after a weekend snapping away i have to say i'm both happy and very impressed it's the only camera i've ever used that can not only take half decent shots of our two cats indoors but also with very good quality.

on a walk in the peak district on Saturday it struggled a bit with the hazy conditions but then i think most camera's would of been the same. Got some great (first time) slow shutter speed shots of a stream so really happy with the purchase. With a little post processing in gimp some of the over exposed images in bright sunlight have come up trumps although Gimps auto white balance feature seems to of enhanced some images further.

I'll upload a couple when i get home in case anyone's interested.

I think you'll find the 550D great for your first DSLR. You can pick up a used Canon 55-250mm is II lens on eBay for relatively little money (£60-80 for what originally retailed at around £200). It's not the best zoom in the world, but I've had some great pictures from it over the years. The new STM version is a better, sharper lens with more elements, but you'll be looking at over £200 online and quite a bit more in a high street retailer.

I'm already considering a zoom lens now after a stroll in the woods last night and wanting to take some pictures of the squirrels but unfortunately i couldn't get close enough with the kit lens. Maybe next time i'll bribe them with some nuts . A wide angle lens is definately on the shopping list for later on but firstly i need to get my mits on a carry bag and a tripod. I've heard that a balloon filled with rice as a mini bean bag makes and excellent travel camera rest. A balloon takes no space in your luggage and buy some rice when your there and hey presto.

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Thanks for the advice all.

[LongQ]

Madkat said:

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Shoot RAW and do it with your editor of choice.

If you insist on using the camera's jpgs there will be a style for what you want or a setting or two somewhere. But using an editor you can do what you like with the images (within reason.)

[flat-planedCrank]

Madkat said:

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Just to 2nd what LongQ said: shoot RAW and then do any conversions / effects you want in 'post production'

That way the camera is capturing and saving all the possible data it can, this gives you most flexibility for editing.

This is certainly the case for B&W images where adjusting colour values for the conversion can significantly effect the final image.

[Madkat]

Here are a couple i took of our two critters, one's arguably better than the other, got some slow shutter speed shots and some landscape shots too.

[Simpo Two]

Madkat said:

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Photoshop. Don't try to play about in camera.

Madkat said:

That looks like a ginger cat that's looked in a barrel of gunpowder and been blown up cartoon-style

[Madkat]

Simpo Two said:

Madkat said:

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Photoshop. Don't try to play about in camera.

Madkat said:

That looks like a ginger cat that's looked in a barrel of gunpowder and been blown up cartoon-style

Lol i see what you mean, never seen that though i sometimes call her guiness cat as she looks like a settling pint. Anyway. There is a monochrome setting for black and white but as you say any colour picking is to be done later in Gimp.

Here's one i did with a little saturation increase in Gimp:

[flat-planedCrank]

Madkat said:

Simpo Two said:

Madkat said:

Anyone know how to do colour picking on this camera i.e. only capturing reds, blues or greens etc and is there a function for B&W?

Photoshop. Don't try to play about in camera.

Madkat said:

That looks like a ginger cat that's looked in a barrel of gunpowder and been blown up cartoon-style

Lol i see what you mean, never seen that though i sometimes call her guiness cat as she looks like a settling pint. Anyway. There is a monochrome setting for black and white but as you say any colour picking is to be done later in Gimp.

Here's one i did with a little saturation increase in Gimp:

That looks a touch blurry? Maybe the camera shook a bit during the exposure?

FWIW I'd use flickr over ThumbSnap, there's no watermark on the images and I've never had compression issues