Canon Digital Rebel XT 8MP Digital SLR Camera with EF-S 18-55mm f3.5-5.6 Lens (Black)

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5 Reviews

1. With over 500 reviews what can I offer, not much, I just wanted to share my little experience.

   After I reluctantly handed over $60 to JCP for newborn pictures I decided to save money by investing in a good camera and taking my daughters monthly portraits myself.

   It has been an exciting 5 year foray into photography with my little Rebel. I learned all the basics and have been off of manual mode for a couple of years and have been wanting to upgrade. The most important lesson I could pass on to a “newbie” is, “No photographer is as good as the simplest camera.” ~Edward Steichen.

   ~~This past month my little XT has been dieing a slow terrible death. First the battery was draining after only two hours. Then the camera wouldn’t function in manual mode. Once the lens wouldn’t focus in auto mode I knew it was gone. But of course I still tried once in awhile. But with a full battery it won’t turn on. After 5 years of being throw in the back seat with no camera bag, dropped many times in sand, dirt, water, snow, and being “washed” by my daughter, it has become part of my family. An extension of me. I don’t know if anyone will recognize me without it covering half my face. I will definitely miss my XT.~~

   If I wasn’t ready to upgrade I would take it to a doctor. But lucky for me right around the corner the 60D is due to be released. That coupled with a Canon EF 50mm f1.4 USM Standard & Medium Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras, I will be a happy camper for another 5 years.

   Best of Luck.

2. I have had this camera for over five (5) years and I absolutely love it. I have never had any problems with this camera and it has performed amazingly. I have taken around 50,000 pictures with my Rebel and it is still going strong. I have the same original batteries that I got with my camera. My batteries have always lasted a long time before needing to be recharged; when I shot sports I could use one battery for roughly the whole day. Canon products are very high quality, which is what you can expect with brand name Japanese electronics. The Canon lenses are also fantastic; I have owned the high-quality standard 50/1.4, the portrait 85/1.8, the mid telephoto 70-200/4.0, the amazing 100/2.8 macro,and the wide-angle 17-40 L. These are all fantastic lenses to put on your Rebel, and you can rest assured that there is a whole range of Canon products to suit your needs. The only downside to these products is that they are quite expensive.

   As far as the Rebel, the only complaints I have are these:

   1. The amount of noise at 1600 ISO makes these pictures generally unusable.
   2. The AF system is not robust enough for sports; you can do it but it’s hard.
   3. The grip, somewhat small, can take getting used to.
   4. The camera can’t take too many RAW or high quality JPEG pictures in succession (important for sports).

   In general this camera is a dream for most peoples uses. Eight MP will give you high-quality prints. Unless you want to blow up your pictures to poster size this camera will be great for you.

3. I’m a professional photographer who not only started out with this camera but still use it exclusively. Now with that said, I did invest in some high quality but affordable glass and some off camera flashes with triggers. The next step up from this camera would probably be a full frame camera that would cost thousands of dollars. This little affordable camera will take you VERY far. It has plenty of megapixels even for enlargements up to 11X14 without losing quality. I shoot models, family portraits and weddings and have never wished for a better camera. I think my only complaint and it’s minor, is that the LCD screen is rather small. If you want to see the quality this is capable of check out my flickr site [...]
   Buy this camera with the 50mm F/1.8 lens, the 18-55mm IS lens and a cheap Sunpak 383 flash and you’ll be happy with your pictures -providing you read up on how to use it to maximize the quality of this camera. Good place to start is blogs and especially the forums on flickr….everything you ever wanted to know or ask has already been addressed there…just search

4. Allow me to preface this review by saying that I love my little Rebel and would hate to part from it. It was great when I was just learning how to deal with a dSLR – easy to use, simple controls, intuitive (much more so than the Nikon I use occasionally)…all-around a great little guy.

   However, for the really serious photographer, it leaves some things to be desired. The autofocus is slow, and faulty for dark places. The ISO goes only to 1600, and even then the noise is nearly unmanageable. 1600 is not that great either – I am lucky that I have a f/1.8 lens. There have been times where I have shot at f/1.8, 1/30, and still been underexposing by 2/3 of a stop. Thank goodness for the RAW format!

   For what it is, the Rebel is great. Just don’t expect it to be more.

   Oh – and that 18-55 f/3.5-5.6? it is a good thing to skip. Get a 50mm f/1.8 instead, or a Sigma 17-70 f/2.8-4.5, or be like me and get an 85mm f/1.8. All better lenses, and the 50mm is even less expensive.

5. This item works wonders. It was everything I expected. It is extremely helpful with my photography, I mean, of course, it’s a Canon. I was very pleased with my purchase.