Canon 20D...is it still worth buying?

[flipflop]

Hi,
I just purchased a canon 20d with the stock crappy zoom...I bought it used...but is has under 4k exposures. It seems like a nice camera but would I be better saving and buying a 30d or 40d or a nikon d40x or d80 or d200?

Just looking for your input and if you think the 20d are still worth owning?

Thanks!

 

[cmedin]

Is there something that you'd be missing with a 20D compared to a 30 or 40?

 

[flipflop]

I dont know...is there? the larger sensor?

 

[ocean7]

The 30D or 40D won't give you much more than the 20D IMHO. Yes there are more pixels, and yes the LCD is bigger but these are minor upgrades. Oh and the AF is supposed to be improved but unless you shoot high action sports you won't notice. I have been owning a 20D for almost three years now and I still believe it is a fantastic camera. I don't feel the need to upgrade at all, instead I am spending my money on rangefinders :-D

 

[kuzano]

The Canon 30D and 40D are being replaced as we post. If you spend your time worrying about staying up with the model/feature race on dslrs, you better be pushing a huge pile of money in a wheelbarrow, because that's what it's all about. Mfrs, trying to stay alive. It's doubtful if there are many new features you can't live without, or might likely never use. And who said the zoom that came with the 20D is crappy. You certainly didn't get those ideas from reading the good reviews on the 20D at www.dpreview.com or www.steves-digicams.com.

I presume you paid a decent price for the 20D, which makes us all beneficiaries of good fortune when the new models come out. It's a huge rat race to separate you from the contents of your wallet, and people are forking over fistfuls of dough like they actually have it to spend, instead of feeding their babies and paying the rent.

I bet that in the year you get acquainted with your 20D, you won't find anything you can't do with it, and if you do, the 50D and 60D's will have dropped the price on the 40D by megabucks. Use it. If you don't like the lens, there are some GREAT aftermarket lenses at very fair prices that give a better bang for the buck than Canon glass, not that Canon glass is not good..... just over priced like all OEM accessories.

You sound just like me when I was young and used to introduce my new wife to people I met. "Hi, this is my new wife Alice.... Best I could do with the car I owned at the time!"

 

[kuzano]

I dont know...is there? the larger sensor?

Sensor size.... The digital photographers equivalent of Penis Envy!!! 4/3's rules. Smaller cameras, and all the image quality one needs for most purposed.

 

[flipflop]

Hmmm...well truthfully...the reason I bought the 20d was because of all the good things I had heard about it. I have been a Nikon guy my whole life but the d70 sucks in comparison I have used one and did not like it. I buy everything used because I dont like watching things I buy drop in price like the US dollar. 😛

I was just wondering if I could blow images up larger with a newer camera? From what I have seen the camera is capable of taking some nice photos.

 

[ywenz]

everything is worth buying when if the price is right.

Sensor size.... The digital photographers equivalent of Penis Envy!!! 4/3's rules. Smaller cameras, and all the image quality one needs for most purposed.

Hardly.. is there a 24/1.4 lens for the 4/3 system(I should actually say 12/1.4)... Not even close I'm afraid.

 

[trev2401]

Hmmm...well truthfully...the reason I bought the 20d was because of all the good things I had heard about it. I have been a Nikon guy my whole life but the d70 sucks in comparison I have used one and did not like it. I buy everything used because I dont like watching things I buy drop in price like the US dollar. 😛

I was just wondering if I could blow images up larger with a newer camera? From what I have seen the camera is capable of taking some nice photos.

I own 2 20ds and a 10d, and the 20d's excellent for its iso800 shots (11x17s with not much Noise ninja/pp). To me, the 20ds were and still are workhorses, cheap, semi-ruggard, and most importantly, very good noise control, although they give the 'plastic' feel characteristic of canon images.

Don't worry about the falling prices, heck, i just bought another 20d 1 month back for 300$ mint. Yes, the prices are going to fall like bricks thanks to canon's once a year upgrade policy, but who cares? just spend the rest of your money on lenses or on printing and improving, or buy more leica gear. 🙂



Yeah, the newer cameras have better lil bits and pieces with 2 more mps, but hey... if i can still get a beautiful 16x20 with my older 1dmk1, i don't see the 20d lagging much behind the 6 month & 10 month younger 30 and 40d counterparts. FWIW, i've done 16x20s with no interpolation with the 20d.

 

[flipflop]

wonder if I would be happier with a leica m6 +35mm or 50mm lens? I have a g1 i love shooting with because of the sharp images. but i hate scanning negs! I let target do it now...

 

[imajypsee]

I still use the 20D

I still use the 20D

I bought it in Sept '04 and have put lots of clicks on it. For low light it beats the 30D, which I also use for the better auto focus. (I may buy a 40D at some point.)
This photo was made with the 20D at ISO 800, no flash.

click the photo for a larger view; and to see the whole gallery from this session

 

[wray]

everything is worth buying when if the price is right.



Hardly.. is there a 24/1.4 lens for the 4/3 system(I should actually say 12/1.4)... Not even close I'm afraid.

No, but there's a LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH for 4/3 system!

 

[trev2401]

No, but there's a LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH for 4/3 system!

Now that's a sweet lens.

 

[sirius]

40d is a very nice camera. It is a significant upgrade.

It has very usable high ISO speeds similar to the 5d. It also has a higher dynamic range than the 20d and 30d. That a big deal in my books. It has beautiful colour rendition and the af improvements in low light will be helpful.

It's an evolution, but that doesn't mean the less-evolved camera is not still an excellent camera.

 

[flipflop]

I was really thinking of getting the canon ef 35mm f/2 as my next lens because its pretty much a 50mm with the crop factor pretty fast and is supposed to be relatively sharp and it fits my budget...any of you have any experience with this lens?

 

[ywenz]

No, but there's a LEICA D SUMMILUX 25mm/F1.4 ASPH for 4/3 system!

which becomes a 50mm FOV when you consider the 2x crop factor of the 4/3 system.. which is why i said 12/1.4.. there is no such lens, not even close to it..

 

[sirius]

The 35/2 is noisy.

The 28 f2.8 USM and the 20 mm USM are really better choices.

Canon has mostly ignored their fixed focal lengths but their wide zooms are very good. The 17-40 f4 USM IS is a fantastic budget lens, the image shake reduction helps balance the slow speed.

There are a lot of other options out there, but you pay for them.

 

[trev2401]

I was really thinking of getting the canon ef 35mm f/2 as my next lens because its pretty much a 50mm with the crop factor pretty fast and is supposed to be relatively sharp and it fits my budget...any of you have any experience with this lens?

yup, nice lil sharp lens. Great on a 1.6 crop. =)

 

[gavinlg]

20d is great. No worse than the 40d. The d200 is good, but image quality really degrades as the ISO goes up.

The 20d is equal to the 30d. The 30d is more or less equal to the 40d. More MP doesn't equal a bigger sensor, they all use the same sized sensor. 40d just crams more pixels in it. You wouldn't notice a difference in prints.

 

[ywenz]

The 35/2 is noisy.

The 28 f2.8 USM and the 20 mm USM are really better choices.

Canon has mostly ignored their fixed focal lengths but their wide zooms are very good. The 17-40 f4 USM IS is a fantastic budget lens, the image shake reduction helps balance the slow speed.

There is no 28 f2.8 USM it's a 28 f1.8 USM and it's a very capable lens.

There is no IS version of 17-40 f4. There is a 17-85mm IS in the EF-S mount.

The 35/2 doesn't have a USM motor and one important thing to keep in mind that a lens with USM motor also allow manual focus in AF mode, while the ones without USM motor has to be in either a manual or auto focus mode.