In defence of the 100D

[adebrophy]

So, my mother - a technophobe with a brilliant eye for a photo and G series addict - insisted against everyone's better judgement that she needed a DSLR. Despite our fears she would never read the manual and unlock all the joys of things like shallow DoF and RAW she bought a 100D, which I had the pleasure of trying out over a recent visit.

And you know when you pick up a product and suddenly realise its a class act.

That.

Despite all expectations, I was so impressed. The smaller size somehow gives the lighter consumer grade body a better feel - like the size and weight now match. The grippy soft touch rubber coating adds to the surprisingly premium feel.

But still. Unlike a real camera its not got enough dials. And then you use the utterly brilliant touchscreen to interact with the Q menus and realise that maybe you weren't so sure about consumer bodies being utterly crippled.

And then I put my 40mm pancake on it. And couldn't stop smiling. It's so cute. Yet so right.

So, overall, I'd not be trading my 5dii for one, but still. This was a camera many on this forum roundly panned when the specs were launched, and I think its worth a few positive shout outs. If I were going to use a smaller crop body, I think this would be a great option, and its so beautifully done that it made me more excited to be a Canon user.

The biggest flaw was making me wonder if I wouldn't rather wait longer to swap my mkii. Maybe a mkiv with a few more of the consumer refinements would be a nice thing to have instead.

 

[candc]

It recieved one of dpr's gear of the year awards. I bought one for a gift and tried it out for a bit. Its a snap to use and its just plain fun. The IQ of the 18-55 stm kit lens is really good, pair that with the new 55-250 stm and you have a nice compact and cheap travel kit.

 

[Don Haines]

I have heard a fairly common response from most DSLR users who have gotten a touchscreen camera.... They hate it until they use it, then they love it.....

 

[candc]

I have heard a fairly common response from most DSLR users who have gotten a touchscreen camera.... They hate it until they use it, then they love it.....

+1

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Why does it need a defense? Its aimed at a certain market segment and is the right product for that segment. It will take fantastic photos in the right hands.

I'd love to have a touch screen on my 5D MK III.

 

[unfocused]

I'd love to have a touch screen on my 5D MK III.

Yes. I've always been ambivalent about flip screens, but a touch screen – definitely a good thing. It would make going through the menus so much easier, faster and intuitive.

 

[9VIII]

Here's hoping the 7DII got cancelled because they put all the new tech in the SL2. (I really want a miniature pro body.)

 

[RLPhoto]

I like the 100D. Its a good idea and If they could stuff a FF sensor in it, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.

 

[mrsfotografie]

I have heard a fairly common response from most DSLR users who have gotten a touchscreen camera.... They hate it until they use it, then they love it.....

Not me.

I'll continue to hate touchscreens. Give me dials I can use while I have my eye on the viewfinder!

Touchscreens have no 'feel' to them, you can't use them blindly AND it makes the screen all icky.

 

[Drizzt321]

I have heard a fairly common response from most DSLR users who have gotten a touchscreen camera.... They hate it until they use it, then they love it.....

Not me.

I'll continue to hate touchscreens. Give me dials I can use while I have my eye on the viewfinder!

Touchscreens have no 'feel' to them, you can't use them blindly AND it makes the screen all icky.

On the larger models with a good dial/button layout, I think a touchscreen can be a good complement for certain functions, however it in no way can replace the buttons & dials which you can access by muscle memory much better. As long as it can be completely turned off completely, it can be useful.

 

[mrsfotografie]

I have heard a fairly common response from most DSLR users who have gotten a touchscreen camera.... They hate it until they use it, then they love it.....

Not me.

I'll continue to hate touchscreens. Give me dials I can use while I have my eye on the viewfinder!

Touchscreens have no 'feel' to them, you can't use them blindly AND it makes the screen all icky.

On the larger models with a good dial/button layout, I think a touchscreen can be a good complement for certain functions, however it in no way can replace the buttons & dials which you can access by muscle memory much better. As long as it can be completely turned off completely, it can be useful.

I've no problem with it as long as the touchscreen is an option. Amazingly the Sony Nex-6 has no touchscreen, but buttons and dials. One of the reasons I bought it

 

[hgraf]

Not me.

I'll continue to hate touchscreens. Give me dials I can use while I have my eye on the viewfinder!

Touchscreens have no 'feel' to them, you can't use them blindly AND it makes the screen all icky.

But the better touchscreen implementations GIVE you the dials. For example, on my T4i you NEVER have to use the touchscreen if you don't want to. Anything you can do with the touchscreen you can do with the buttons. In fact, you can completely turn off the touchscreen if you want.

That said, once you TRY it you'll see the advantages. I for one don't use my touch screen to adjust things like shutter speed or iso, but I do use it to change focus points in live view, or when using AF during video. It's also just so obvious to pinch to zoom while viewing images these days, and this camera does that.

Would I choose one camera over another purely for the touchscreen? Maybe. It certainly has it's advantages, but it depends what features it might displace. My point though is the WAY Canon has implemented a touchscreen on it's consumer DSLRs is truly non-obtrusive, and I love it.

 

[mrsfotografie]

Not me.

I'll continue to hate touchscreens. Give me dials I can use while I have my eye on the viewfinder!

Touchscreens have no 'feel' to them, you can't use them blindly AND it makes the screen all icky.

But the better touchscreen implementations GIVE you the dials. For example, on my T4i you NEVER have to use the touchscreen if you don't want to. Anything you can do with the touchscreen you can do with the buttons. In fact, you can completely turn off the touchscreen if you want.

That said, once you TRY it you'll see the advantages. I for one don't use my touch screen to adjust things like shutter speed or iso, but I do use it to change focus points in live view, or when using AF during video. It's also just so obvious to pinch to zoom while viewing images these days, and this camera does that.

Would I choose one camera over another purely for the touchscreen? Maybe. It certainly has it's advantages, but it depends what features it might displace. My point though is the WAY Canon has implemented a touchscreen on it's consumer DSLRs is truly non-obtrusive, and I love it.

It's great that Canon offers people the 'freedom' of a touch screen, but as for the uses you mentioned: "live view, or when using AF during video" - I'm a photographer with no interest in Video and little or no use for liveview except for those rare shots where I can't use the viewfinder. The only problem with these camera's is that I feel I'm paying for stuff I don't need. Too much convergence of technology imho.

 

[Cory]

Here's hoping the 7DII got cancelled because they put all the new tech in the SL2. (I really want a miniature pro body.)

I wonder when we might know of a T6i or SL2. I think one of those is what has my name on it. Nothing bothers me more than articulating screens. Touch screens are good-to-go though.

 

[Maximilian]

So, overall, I'd not be trading my 5dii for one, but...

I am seriously considering this cute one as back up and travel DSLR.
I've read several tests about the fast AF and decent picture quality.
An despite the size it feels really comfortable in my hand.

Now I only have to convince my wife that she needs a DSLR

I only was shocked, when I saw that white freak version released a few weeks ago.

 

[Boyer U. Klum-Cey]

With the recently acquired pancake, the 100D is a solid "take everywhere/don't leave the house without it" kit. Yes, it doesn't do everything a 5diii or a 7D does, but for hit and run, light travel, non-conspicuous snaps, it does the job. And, the kit lens will do decent AF for video when needed.

 

[adebrophy]

Why does it need a defense? Its aimed at a certain market segment and is the right product for that segment. It will take fantastic photos in the right hands.

I'd love to have a touch screen on my 5D MK III.

I'd say it doesn't need defending at all - that was my point. But as I said, to read the forums here when it launched there was actually a lot of cynicism. So this post was to try and balance out that with a bit of "right product for right segment realism" but - above and beyond that to share a really positive experience of a very good bit of product design. And moreover, my point on holding off my upgrade to my 5Dmkii was that the experience of the current crop (unintended pun) of consumer grade bodies and of the 6D makes it a tough time to change. I too would love a touch screen on a 5D body.

 

[Arctic Photo]

I've been going back and forth about a 2nd body to my 5DMkiii. A used 50D, used 600D etc. But I lean more and more towards the 100D. Small and handy and will be more than good enough. Another purpose for me would be time lapse. I assume I can connect an intervalometer to it.

 

[rs]

I've been going back and forth about a 2nd body to my 5DMkiii. A used 50D, used 600D etc. But I lean more and more towards the 100D. Small and handy and will be more than good enough. Another purpose for me would be time lapse. I assume I can connect an intervalometer to it.

It has a standard E3 connector for a wired remote shutter release, so you have plenty of choices for intervalometers out there.

 

[Arctic Photo]

I've been going back and forth about a 2nd body to my 5DMkiii. A used 50D, used 600D etc. But I lean more and more towards the 100D. Small and handy and will be more than good enough. Another purpose for me would be time lapse. I assume I can connect an intervalometer to it.

It has a standard E3 connector for a wired remote shutter release, so you have plenty of choices for intervalometers out there.

All good then. Thanks.