Canon EOS 50D Review

Instead of the usual 18 months product cycle, Canon has chosen to release the 50D only 1 year after the 40D. This was porbably due to the intense competition from other DSLR makers like Nikon and Sony. The question is of course whether the 50D is a worthwhile upgrade.

If you are still using a 20D, 30D, then I am sure the 50D wold be a very nice upgrade. If you are an xxxD user (350D, 400D and 450D etc), it is certainly a nice upgrade too.

However, the tricky question is of course whether it is a worthwhile upgrade over the 40D. The 50D basically shares the same body with the 40D. There is no difference in build quality. The 50D gives you 50% more sensor resolution than the 40D. It has a better LCD display, which can be used to critically check image sharpness and focus. It also has other new useful features like AF microadjustment, and those who have been haunted by back-focus lenses would certainly welcome this feature. The 50D does bring a usable ISO 6400 mode, but I failed to see much improvement in noise level from ISO 1600 to 3200.

If you are a birder or other types of photographer who need the increase resolution. the 50D will be a good upgrade. If you have also been haunted by back-focus lenses, the 50D should also help you out. It is overall a nice camera and I don’t think most poeple would be disappointed with getting the 50D. However, the only caveat is that, do not expect the 50D to show any real imrpovement in high ISO performance comapred to the 40D and the competition.

Roland Lim

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