CANON EOS 550D with EFS 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

What is that thing again?

It’s a Digital Camera! The EOS 550D or EOS Rebel T2i is a high performance, digital single-lens reflex camera featuring fine detail CMOS sensor with 18.0 effective megapixels, DIGIC 4, high-precision and high-speed 9 point AF, approximately 3.7 frame per second continuous shooting, Live View shooting and Full High-Definition (Full HD) movie shooting. The camera is highly responsive for shooting at anytime, provides many functions fitted for advance shooting, and offer many other features. Well, that’s what written in the Instructions Manual.

Inside the box, the package consists of;

The Camera itself, CANON EOS 550D

Canon EFS Lens, EFS 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS (with lens covers)

Canon Battery Pack, LP-E8 (with protective cover)

Canon Battery Charger, LC-E8E (with the power cord)

Canon Wide Strap, EW-100DB III

Interface Cable

Stereo AV Cable, AVC-DC400ST (I’m not going to use this, I am TV-free)

Canon EOS Digital Solution Disk

Canon EOS Software Instruction Manual

Canon EOS EOS 550D/Rebel T2i Camera Instruction Manual

Canon Photography Booklets (Describing Macro Photography, The awesomeness of Canon Flash, and The IS feature in Canon range of lenses)

1+1 Year Warranty Card from Canon Malaysia (Cool)

8GB SD Card (yeehaw… free stuff)

Factory default smell (The best of them all)

Outside the box, I also get;

Canon DSLR Bag (Red)

2 Huge plastic bags (Purchased this package during a thunderstorm)

Err, Okay…

Technically, it is a Digital Single-Lens Reflex, AF/AE camera with built-in flash. It supports SD memory card, SDHC memory card and also SDXC memory card. Image sensor size is 22.3mm x 14.9mm with a wide compatibility with all Canon EF lenses and EF-S lenses.

Type : Digital, single-lens reflex, AF/AE camera with built in flash.

Recording Media : SD, SDHC, SDXC memory card

Image sensor size : 22.3 x 14.9mm

Compatible lenses : Canon EF lenses (including EF-S lenses)

Lens Mount : Canon EF Mount

Image Sensor Type : CMOS sensor

Effective pixels : 18.0 megapixels

Aspect ratio : 3:2

Dust Delete Feature : Auto, Manual, Dust Delete Data appending

Recording Format : Camera File System 2.0

Image Type : JPEG, RAW, JPEG+RAW (super huge space required)

Image Processing : Standard, Potrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful, Monochrome, 2 User Define

White Balance : Auto, Preset (Daylight, Shade, Cloudy, Tungsten, Flourescent, Flash), Custom

Viewfinder : Eye-level pentamirror

Autofocus Type : TTL

AF points : 9 AF points

Focus Modes : One Shot AF, AI Servo AF, AI Focus AF, Manual Focusing (MF)

Metering Modes : 63 zone TTL

Exposure control : Program AE( Full Auto, Portrait, Landscape, Close-up, Sports, Night Portrait, Flash off, Creative Auto, Program), Shutter-priority AE, Aperture-priority AE, Depth-of-field AE, Manual Exposure)

ISO Speed : ISO 100 – 3200 set automatically, ISO 100 – 6400 (Creative Mode)

Shutter type : Electronically controlled, focal plane shutter

Shutter speed : 1/4000 sec to 1/60 sec, 1/4000 sec. to 30 sec

Flash Built in : Retractable, auto pop-up flash

External Flash : EX-Series Speedlite

Flash metering : E-TTL II autoflash

Drive system : Single, continuous, self-timer

Continuous Shoot : Approximately 3.7 shots/sec.

Live View Shooting : Live Mode, Face detection Live Mode, Quick Mode, Manual

Movie Compression : MPEG-4 AVC/H.264

Audio Recording format : Linear PCM

Movie Recording format: full HD (1920x1080) 30p/25p/24p, HD(1280x720) 60p/50p, SD(640x480) 60p/50p

LCD Monitor : 3.0” TFT Color liquid-crystal Monitor, 1.04 million dots

Image Display Format : Single, Single + info (Basic, Detailed, histogram), 4 Image, 9 image, image rotation

Direct printing : PictBridge compatible printers (JPEG and RAW), DPOF 1.0

Interface : Analog video, USB, HDMI (Type C), In terminal (3.5mm), Remote switch, Wireless Remote Controller.

Dimension : 128.8 (W) x 97.5(H) x 75.3(D) mm

Weight : 530gm, 475gm(body only)

Hmm…

It has been quite some time since I put my hands on a DSLR, a Canon 20D and Canon EOS 300D aka digital rebel. Things have been change a lot since then… Canon 300D sports only 6.4mp back then, and this not so new kid, has been upped with 18.0mp. The kit lens also has been upgraded with Image Stabilizer (IS), which is also quite helpful for not-so-steady, aging hands of a so-so, stay-noob photographers like me.

Typically, it is frustrating yet usual situation, blurring happens, due to camera shake. It happens usually when using cheap zoom or telephoto lenses, shooting at night or in the dark. The Canon IS lenses provided with the package minimizes this problem. The IS lenses detect camera shake with a pair of built in gyro sensors, shifting lens components in the direction of the vibration to counteract it and prevent blurring. When the shutter button is pressed halfway while the IS function is on, compensation for camera shake is activated in just 0.5 seconds. Since the potential optical performance of the lens is optimized, better images can be captured.

Basically, the shutter speed that photographers able to shoot without blurring is 1/focal length, and by right the faster shutter, lesser probability of image blurring. Canon claims that these IS lenses can achieve the same blur-free clarity at shutter speeds that are 2 to 5 steps (increment) slower. What can I benefit from there?

Improve framing accuracy. The IS stabilizers enable accurate framing when we fill the frame with part of the subject. While the viewfinder image is blur-free, one can check every detail and make subtle framing adjustments.

Improve concentration on precise focusing. The IS clarify the viewfinder image, therefore enable us to be more focus on the subject at hand, say fine tune the images, defocusing some part of the picture or softening the tone.

Capture fleeting photo opportunities. Clear and blur free images enable us to capture rare gesture or other momentary occasions.

Improve Panning. The IS simplify panning greatly by compensating vertically or even horizontally, especially of subjects in motions.

OoO… Okay!

The price for the aforementioned package was RM2,000.00, by Fotokem Malaysia, with a 1+1 year warranty from Canon Malaysia. It was not a bad deal. Free 8GB SD plus a cool looking red Canon DSLR bag. I have been thinking of getting myself a Red Canon 1100D with the red bag, at a price of RM1,850.00. I ditched the plan, when I stumbled with this better priced and more superior model, than the later. Oh, I can’t take pictures of living things. But heck… there’s a lot of dead objects that I can shoot at, cars, homes, laptops, plants, flowers, kitchenware, cloths, undergarments and toiletries.