Buying a Camera

[Lumaka]

I'm trying to decide if I should buy Canon T2i, T3i or 60D. I think that the 60D is better than the others but; it comes with only one lens 18 - 135, is that a good enough lens for landscapes(sunsets)? or do you think that the other 2 are as good as the 60D?

[AaronCR]

All 3 have the same sensor and processor.  18mm should be about the same on either lens.
Buy the T3i or 60D if you want to control an off camera flash someday.

[CR Backup Admin]

I'm trying to decide if I should buy Canon T2i, T3i or 60D. I think that the 60D is better than the others but; it comes with only one lens 18 - 135, is that a good enough lens for landscapes(sunsets)? or do you think that the other 2 are as good as the 60D?

You get what you pay for.  The 18-135 is a low cost superzoom and it appeals to someone who wants a walk-around lens and is pleased by the better quality and speed over his point and shoot.  And, if you can work around the weaknesses, it will capture excellent images.

However, if you are a person who obsesses over quality, it might be dissappointing.  The cost to upgrade a lens is very steep, for more $$, you might get a wider aperture, better construction, faster AF, and sharper edges / corners.  Only you can decide if spending $$$$ for a "L" lens is worth it.  One thing is that its not going to make your images any better composed, which is 90% of their value.  If you have fantastic views and composures, they will be technically sharper and clearer when printed at huge sizes.

However, if you are a craftsman who just loves to work with fine tools and can afford them, the "L" lenses are wonderful to work with.

[Lumaka]

Thank you for your help...which lenses would you recommend and what do you think about extended warranty?

[AaronCR]

I'd start with the kit lens and a tripod.
The 10-22mm is great for wide angles.  The 28mm f1.8 is great for seeing colors at night.
The 14mm f2.8 for $2,200 might be the ultimate landscape lens.

[foto]

I bought the 60D recently and am a little dissapointed in the weight. The T3i is a lot easier. Consider it if you are planning to walk around with your camera.

[CR Backup Admin]

Thank you for your help...which lenses would you recommend and what do you think about extended warranty?

First lay out a good groundwork to be able to advance your capabilities.

The 18-135 is a excellent starter lens. You can always sell your kit lens later without losing any money, since you get a big discount when its bundled with the camera.  It has its limitations, but so do all lenses.  Learn them, and how to work around them.

Buy yourself a good piece of software (Adobe Lightroom), and a book to learn to use it.  You will get better quality images by learning to use RAW and to properly develop the images than spending money on a lens that might not be the one for you.  Lightroom is wonderful, but you will not easily discover all the wonderful features without some training. 

Once again, learn to take and develop images using RAW rather then jpeg.  Take lots of photos of the things you like.  Get a fast SD card, and a fast card reader.

You might also consider a external flash that can be controlled remotely by your 60D.

Then, if you want something different, look at the focal lengths and apertures by using the Lightroom metadata filter.  You will be able to see just how many of your images are taken at each focal length, aperture, shutter speed, etc.  This may help you to decide on the next step that would be best for YOU. .

Do not go out and spend hundreds of dollars on a lens that might not fit your type of shooting.  People will tell you what they would do, but that is of no help to you.  Learn and the next step will become clear to you.

[match14]

I would go for either the T3i or 60D.

[sharagim1]

buy canon l lens 17-40. great lens

[Act444]

I had a T2i and upgraded to the 60D for the faster speed, better focusing and (slightly) more features.

Using the same lens with both, they basically take the same images. I assume the T3i is the same. It just depends on the feature set you want. If you don't need bells and whistles, you can save a few hundred dollars, get the T2i and then use the money saved to get a better lens. If budget is not an issue, though- can't go wrong with the 60D. Among the three cameras you mentioned, you're paying for features, really- not image quality. That will come down to which lens you put on the camera.

As for which lens- that's really subjective. I have a handful of lenses but they serve different needs for me. The EF-S 10-22 is a common lens used among landscape photographers- perhaps that plus the stock lens will be good enough, but hard for me to say because only you know what your needs are.

[awinphoto]

Body wise they have similar sensors and processors, however only you would be able to answer if you need the speed, extra ergonomics and top LCD and if you want the size... The 60D (and on up) are heavier than the rebels but it's not bad.  I dont mind but I admittedly always shot with the xxD series and on up so I never had the digital rebel to weigh in comparison.  If you can deal with the weaker ergonomics and slower speed and overall preformance, you could get a better bang for your money to get the T3I with an L lens, maybe the 17-40 or 24-105 Ls to start or settle for the 17-55 IS for an in-between lens... Then in the future, if you want, upgrade to the 60D or 70D or 7D MII when you have more experience with the camera and lenses under your belt.  Thats my 2 cents.  Good luck!

[DJL329]

I'm trying to decide if I should buy Canon T2i, T3i or 60D. I think that the 60D is better than the others but; it comes with only one lens 18 - 135, is that a good enough lens for landscapes(sunsets)? or do you think that the other 2 are as good as the 60D?

As someone else also said, the 28mm f/1.8 is excellent for landscapes/sunsets (I use it for them all the time).  Here's an example:

http://www.outdoorphotographer.com/photo-contests/2nd-annual-the-great-outdoors/gallery/562701-end-of-winter.html

Also, read up on how to take good pictures (composition, framing, exposure, etc.), because good photography happens with a camera, not a computer.  Your time is better spent taking pictures, than fiddling with .raw files.  You can get brilliant colors with .jpg files by changing the "Picture Style" settings from their defaults and setting the white balance correctly before you start shooting.

Good luck and have fun!

[pinnaclephotography]

As the T3i/T2i/60D all have the same sensor, and will provide the same visual result, you need to decide if the additional features are worth the additional cost.  In the case of landscape photography, I think the T3i would be the best choice as the variable angle screen would be quite advantageous for tripod work or anything involving inconvenient angles.  The price jump to the 60D gives you a bit more FPS (not important for landscape work) and a significantly better viewfinder.  Ergonomics also come into play, but that is a personal thing based on your hand size/shape.  You need to decide what criteria are most important to you and make your decision based on that.

If you are looking for a decent lanscape lens, the Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8 (the original, non-image stabilized version) is a great option to start with.  Otherwise the wide angle options by Tokina (11-16mm, 12-24mm) are generally superior to Canon's APS-C offerings.

Another option you could consider is to ignore APS-C sized sensors and get a lightly used Canon 5D (the original) for about a grand.  Despite its technical obsolescence, the image output of original 5D still crushes any crop sensor out there for landscape work.  The lack of sensor cleaning and live view are the most significant drawbacks.  But if you really want to get into landscape photography, the 5D classic is the most economical route to get the best output.

Here are a couple example shots from my 5D (all with the 17-40L)

Lower Lewis Falls by posthumus_cake (www.pinnaclephotography.net), on Flickr


Crashing Cape Kiwanda [explore 9/22/10] by posthumus_cake (www.pinnaclephotography.net), on Flickr


The Mountain by posthumus_cake (www.pinnaclephotography.net), on Flickr

-Matt Peterson
http://www.pinnaclephotography.net/

[pinnaclephotography]

Thanks documentaryman.  All three are single exposure, while using a circular polarizer and graduated neutral density filters.  The first shot is basically straight out of camera, minus a few dust and water spots that I removed.  I don't do HDR.

[ions]

I love your stuff pinnacle but "crushes" is a bit of a stretch to say the least.