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EOS Rebel XTI / 400D ?

T

Tim Wardlaw

Limp Gawd
Joined
May 13, 2002
Messages
360
Hey Gang,
I'm and wanting to get into photography and would like to buy the Canon XTI. However, I don't know how I should do it...?

I have been searching around and the cheapest body I can find is at dell.com for 499. With an 18-55 it is 699ish. So I then decided to look around on ebay.com to see what could be had there. There are so many options here I don't know where to start, so I ask here what you folks would do.

First off... there are a ton of different "deals" posted daily, such as this one here
http://cgi.ebay.com/Canon-EOS-Digital-REBEL-XTi-400D-SLR-2-Canon-Lens-NEW_W0QQitemZ290229235761QQihZ019QQcategoryZ147173QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It has a few added items as well as two lenses. Now for one, as I mentioned, I am new to all of this so I need some guidance. I hear and have read that the Canon lenses are good to start. However, I see that there are a multitude of lenses to choose from. This link has the 18-55 and the 70-300. Great for a start I presume. Now to add to that I see some other posting such as this one here
http://cgi.ebay.com/Canon-EOS-Digital-REBEL-XTi-Camera-5-LENS-4GB-Mega-Kit_W0QQitemZ290228696536QQihZ019QQcategoryZ147173QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
This kit has Sigma lenses and this post here
http://cgi.ebay.com/Canon-EOS-Digital-Rebel-XTI-400D-W-BONUS-LENS-1GB-PK_W0QQitemZ300222590039QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item300222590039&_trksid=p4295
with a Tamron Lens???

Has anyone delt with this in the past? Is there something I should watch out for? What package type is better with regards to the lenses? I would assume the canon lenses are of the better?

Or an alternate route would be to just buy a camera from Dell for 499, or wait a while as I would assume the price will drop with the recent launch of th XSI. Then buy a better IS 18-55 or 70-300 lens?

I think I will also check out some of my local shops as they may have some used ones and/or packages.

Sorry if this seems all over the place, it's hard to keep a steady thought process while writing and playing poker at the same time :p

Anyand all advice is appreciated and I look forward to joining the slr world soon!
( My recent trip to Punta Cana inspired me to get more involved in photography as result of all of the complements on the photos I took with my point and shoot.)
Thanks!
~Tim
 
As an eBay Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
i wouldn't buy from ebay, and definitely not from DELL!!! http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ is the way to go for me, and many other photographers. great deals, low shipping rates, and amazing customer service. you can't go wrong with BHPhoto. actually, once you buy from them, you might as well just sign over your savings account to them :p
 
actually it's funny that you name that site as a co-worker of mine told me of bandhphoto.com and I just checked them out. Same site so it seems.


Any comments in regards to lenses? I would like to get a telephoto since i get a lot of deer that cross my property usually about 100 yards out. Would a 70-300 do the trick?
 
I would totally agree with northrop http://www.bhphotovideo.com/ its probably the only place I shop for all my photography needs.

That being said I have bought a couple of bodies off eBay before, and your defiantly taking an extra risk not buying from a trusted site like http://www.bhphotovideo.com/

Let us know your budget and we can help you choose what you would want to buy.
 
ok well lets say I buy the body with a a lens for the $650. I would maybe spend up to 300 on a lens. However, if I got the body only then a lens, maybe closer to 400. I just figure that the 18-55 is a good general lens.


so lets just say 850- 900 total. (less is ok too :D)

And remember I am new and don't need cream of the crop, but if a better lens is worth the extra cash straight up then that's what I will do. I have read that spend well on the body, but spend better on your lens.
 
Xti and 40d are 2 diff fields really

XTi line is entry level DSLR, the D line is the next step up... if your just starting, get the XTI and spend the money on a good all around lense, after some time you can get a D line or something once you have used the XTI to it full abilities and need to grow.

your better off spending money on good lenses also. an XTI and a good lense will be better then a 40D and a kit lense.

take a run over, and i suggest to register if your getting into photography:

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/


issue of buying from ebay is you get lense made for north america and ones for asia, and warrenties arent interchangable, Nothing wrong with buying camera from Dell, but really, dell is a computer place, B&H is a media place.
 
ok since your budget is so low you might want to look at the Rebel XT for your body. You'll save about $150 and you probably won't miss any of the features you get with the XTi other than the larger screen. If you go with the XT I wouldn't recommend buying the kit the lens that comes with the kit is pretty crappy, just get the body.

As for lenses for your wildlife photography I would recommend you get the Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L, that plus the XT is going to put you slightly over budget but that lens is worth it, it's optically great and physically well built.

For a more gerneral purpose lens get the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8. It's cheap, sharp, fast, and great for portraits and low light conditions.
 
Hey Tim,

If you do what I did, it sometimes takes awhile. But I got an XTi body for $319 shipped from dell.com about a month and a half ago.

But, here's what I did, I registered over at slickdeals.net, set up a deal alert thingy, and it sent me a PM as soon as anything related to XTi, SLR, showed up in the deals.

Also, I think there is a clearance of the Rebel XT at Best Buy's right now. lemme check on that for you.

Also, Tim, I have a couple of lenses I would like to sell as well, that I bought when I first entered photography not too long ago, but have recently upgraded for a trip.

One is the Canon 18-55mm IS lens. It's almost the same as the kit lens, but it has Image Stabilization. The other is the Canon 75-300mm. Both are great starter lenses, and mine are in pristine condition. Both would have boxes, and I believe both still have the warraty cards. Both are also USA versions.

So, I just wanted to let ya know!

Edit:
I knew I saw something about clearanced XT's at Best Buy. Granted it's not the XTi, but hey, money talks sometimes!!
http://forums.slickdeals.net/showthread.php?sduid=300877&t=817152
 
Has anyone bought a used camera from B&H before? I see the XT used
Here
Not a bad price at all I would think for my needs.

then I could get a better lens and stay in my budget. The Canon EF 70-200mm f/4.0 L looks great, but are there any other options that I could choose from?
 
I have not bought from BHPhoto before but as everyone here states, they are awesome to deal with and they are a very honest company. So if you see something you like, call them up and start asking away. But note they are based on the East Coast and most of them are Hisedic (sp?) Jews, which means they close down early Friday and dont open again until Sun Down on Saturday. Little different but still a great company none the less.

As MrGuvrnment said, I would join at POTN forums and start looking around on their F/S forums. I picked up a nice Canon 20D body with all the normal stuff (except lens) for $400. Great camera that I will never grow out of, only had 6500 clicks on it and is about 3yrs old (little brother to the current 40D).

The main question, other than budget, is what do you plan on shooting? If you plan on just messing around right now, then I would invest in the NEW 18-55mm IS Kit lens from Canon (not the old kit lens, note the new one is IS = Image Stablized) that is if you can find it. Other wise you might want to look at spending $300-$450 on a nice lense like the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 XR Di II, Sigma 18-50mm f/2.8 EX DC MACRO or maybe even the Sigma 17-70mm f/2.8-5.6 EX. All are great lenses that have had really, really good reviews. Or what else you can do is go to their WTB forum and post what you are looking for, your budget and see who bites!

Anyways good luck and have fun
EDIT: Here is a perfect example of what you can find on the POTN forums. Used XTi body with Tamron 17-50mm for $700 all together.
 
You may also want to look at the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS.

It's about the same price as the 70-200mm f/4.0 L, it will give you a little more reach compared to the 70-200mm f/4.0 L, plus it has image stabilization.

The disadvantages are that it's not as sharp as the 70-200mm f/4.0 L, it's not as fast either, optically the 70-200mm f/4.0 L is way better, and not as physically well built as the 70-200mm f/4.0 L.

I've shot with both these lenses and I would definitely go with the 70-200mm f/4.0 L. The 70-200mm f/4.0 L is from Canon's professional level line of lenses the L series. General speaking these lenses are superior to any of their "consumer grade" lenses.

Like I said earlier you also defiantly want to check out the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 it is a great starter lens that I still use frequently to this day.
 
Like I said before, I've got the 18-55 IS that I can sell for a decent price if you just get the body!!

And the 75-300 f/4-5.6 USM III as well.
 
Rebel XT + Tamron 17-50 is a good combo. If you want something for shooting indoors, look into a Canon 35mm f/2 or a Sigma 30mm f/1.4.

On the telephoto side, a deer 100 yards out is going to be pretty far away; a 300mm lens won't get you there. My guess is you'd need at least 500mm, if not longer
 
the kit lense is so "horrible" it is a decent walk around lense, but does lack, but for most it is moer then sufficient and once you learn your camera you can actually take some really good pictures with it

or look for Canon's nifty fifty.
 
Thanks for all the input everyone! That is one thing that I have learned over the years as a [H] member, there are always people here that are more then willing to help.

What I think I will do is buy the XTI with the 18-55 lens to start. I believe it was around $650 for both. That will be more than enough to keep me busy. For only an added $100 over the XT I figure it will be worth it. After some time hacking around I can look into buying another lens (BrinNutz I'll PM you about price for that 75-300 :) )

Thanks again everyone, all your input is greatly appreciated!!

I look forward to joining the DSLR club soon and posting some newly snapped photos with the XTI.

Cheers,
~Tim
 
good choice, as much as people diss the "kit lense" for someone like yourself it is more then enough!

as said, check that forum i posted above, you think [H] is useful, well think of it this way


POTN is the [H] of the Canon photography world.....
 
MrGuvernment said:
POTN is the [H] of the Canon photography world.....
Click to expand...



+10000


Tim, it'll be a helluva deal!

BTW, I'd do what I did if you have the patience. I bought my XTi body brand spankin new for a total of $331. Then got the 18-55 IS lens refurbished for $149.

I've since picked up a 70-200 f/4L and 100-400 L IS. Now I just need two other lenses, the Canon 10-22 (or Sigma 12-24), and the Sigma 24-60.
 
BrinNutz, I noticed the deal at Dell the other day as well. Right now I am trying to sell off my old buoyancy compensator and regulators from my scuba gear to pay for the camera.

Once they are gone I will probably go for the deal at dell.
 
I'll keep my eye out. I just saw the XT kit on clearance for 385 today. If you go today, they hve a 15% off coupon also. So...yea, but its no XTi! =)
 
Well I got the Rebel XTI!

It was kind of a spur of the moment thing, but it was worth it. Yesterday was my girlfriends University Graduation ceremony and I figured that I should have a nice camera to mark the occasion. So I searched around and found a Canadian site that offered it at 649. Dell had it for 100 less, but Future shop won't match a US store. So, I went up to future shop 1 hour before the ceremony and grabbed the camera less $100 from there posted 749 and a 2gb CF card.

Wow.. The pictures are amazing. The kit lens isn't that great for long shots or movements with out a tripod ( most likely I am the cause of the blurry shots since I was learning how to use it as the day went on ). I am more then happy with it and will post some pictures a little later on.

Thanks for all the help here folks.

Now.. all I need is a telephoto lens... :p BrinNutz
 
PM'ed ya back Tim. I was out of town all weekend at the Naval Academy graduation photographing it for a really close friend and prior classmate of mine (I went there as well).
 
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