Elliott’s Blog

 I have had my Canon EOS XSi (known in Europe as the 450D) for one year now, and I’d like to give you all an update of my experience with it.

Equipment

• Canon EOD XSi
• Canon EF-S 18-55 mm f3.5-5.6 IS
• Canon EF-S 55-250 mm f 4-5.6 IS
• Canon EF 50mm f1.8
• Tokina 11-16 mm f2.8 (purchased 6 weeks ago)

The Newly Discovered Good Parts

I bought the 11-16 mm Tokina lens, and this lens seems to be very, very good.  The constant f2.8 is way cool, and the 11mm wide angle is stunning!  So, the “kit lens is not too wide” gripe is mollified.

I discovered how to rent lenses: lensrentals.com.  I rented the amazing Canon 85mm f1.2 L lens recently.  This lens issweet. But it was less than spectacular for me, probably because of my inability to focus manually effectively (see below).

RAW mode, coupled with the bundled Canon software, gives excellent control over the final image quality.  I took some pictures by candle light at Channukkahhh and processed the images to stunning results.  The biggest piece of that is the color balance control (which, I have now discovered, all of the image tools I had been using already have).

The Problems

In my previous post, I mentioned some shortcomings of this equipment.  In summary, I said that this is still a great choice, but there are a few little problems.

These problems are still there, and (I think) I feel a bit more strongly about them.  My biggest problem is my difficulty in getting truly sharp pictures.  By this, I mean that when I look at any image I take at 100% (that is, with enough magnification to see individual pixels), I almost always see evidence of camera motion.

One piece, mentioned previously, is the lightness of the camera.  The motion of the mirror seems to be shaking the camera in a way that neither image stabilization nor holding it steady can mitigate.  Even shooting on a tripod is problematic!

Another piece of this is that it is impossible to focus this camera manually.  This is a real problem for me, having always focussed cameras by hand, up to now.  There is no chance of focusing through the lens with any accuracy because there are no focusing aids available.  (I just discovered this focusing screen, for $105.  I might have to buy this little toy.)  The Live View focusing is enhanced by a 10X magnification view, but there is so much image motion when you touch the lens, and the focusing ring on each of my lenses is so light and so sensitive, this method is pretty much useless.

I am learning about Lens Microcalibration,  which my camera does not have.  Maybe this is part of my lack-of-sharpness problem?

I am beginning to suspect that my 55-250 zoom’s IS is faulty.  I have done a simple test on this lens and published the results here as a PDF document.  I took 4 pictures: At 55mm and at 250mm; with and without stabilization turned on.  I fixed the shutter speed at 1/125 second, which I might be able to hold steady without stabilization, but WITH stabilization should be very sharp.  (I actually took 8 pictures (two at each setting) and selected the sharper on in each case.)  I concentrated on holding the camera very steady.  Look at the results for yourself, but I do not see any sharp pictures, and there is only a small difference between stabilization on and off.  Here is a very sharp image taken with this lens, but not by me.

The eye cup on the viewfinder keeps falling off.  It clicks onto the eyepiece, but only barely.  The action of putting the camera into my backpack is often enough to jar it loose.

Tentative Conclusions

My experience with Canon’s in-the-lens Image Stabilization is less than impressive.

Maybe I should have gotten the Canon 40D, or the 50D.  The price of the XSi is still a BIG advantage.  And some of the professional reviews say that there is very little difference in image quality between the XSi and (in particular) the 50D.  These two reasons were why I did not seriously consider a ?0D.  But the professional-level controls (especially the easily interchangeable focusing screens, and the availability of focus microcalibration), and the heavier body are looking pretty good to me right now.

I am tempted to rent the 70-200mm f2.8-L IS lens, if only to see if my suspicion about my big zoom are justified.