Camera Labs

Guys and gals need some help in which Canon dslr and lense to get. My budget is $1400. I will be mostly shooting little league baseball. I have been reading all the great articles Gordon has done on the different Canon dslr. So now I have information overload and my brain is about to melt. it is between the 60d or t3i any help will be great help..

thanks in advance

While the 60D's faster burst rate and more AF points would certainly be useful for baseball, my concern would be that, at ~$900, that only leaves ~$500 for a telephoto zoom lens.

It will help that (I'm assuming) you'll be shooting in daylight, so you might be able to get by without IS and won't need anything particularly fast/bright. But even then, at ~$700, Canon's 70-200mm f4 L will put you over your budget.

You might be able to squeeze in Canon's 70-300mm f4.0-5.6 but, as noted above, I don't know if you really need IS or the 200-300mm reach for little league games.

And while there are other cheaper lenses, most of them aren't as good optically.

Personally, since lenses are generally more important than bodies in the long run, I'd go with the T3i + 70-200mm f4 (and upgrade the body later). Or really try to stretch my budget now and get the 60D with the same lens.

Mark

Completely Agree - I have the 70-200 f/4 IS that was $800 second hand. And if you get a cheaper body, you will get very good images. Then as time goes on by, the body will become less important and you can upgrade. People I notice tend to either NEVER or rarely upgrade their lenses. Its the body that gets replaced every few years. Sometimes the body gets sold or given to someone who wants to get into photography, so lets say you have a friend who likes to take photos, you can sell the body then get yourself a better camera and you keep the lens.

70-200 f/4 is great but if you want to get the version with Image stabilisation, the extra 200 bucks is well worth the price. And if you can find one on Ebay, its normally between 800-900 bucks you can purchase one for. Leaving enough for a 1100D or a store that still has a 450D or a 500D at cost.

In my experience, I sometimes wish I spent more on my first lens than I did on the body.

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1) Olympus OM1 [Zuiko Auto-S 50mm f/1.8]
2) Pentax MZ-60 [Sigma 28-90 & 100-300]
3) Canon 7D [EF-S 15-85 & 70-200mm f/4 IS]

Leo's Flickr Page

Leo & Maestro thanks for your replies. One last question would you guys recommend I rent the lense to give it a try and feel before making such a purchase.

Thanks

It's an expensive way to try it out but it's not a bad idea at all - a body and a lens are on my wishlist now after a really good experience from hiring them.

One thing I would suggest keeping in mind is that even if you hire then buy the same lens SKU, you may not get the same results due to some lenses suffering from back or front focus. It's not guaranteed to happen but it's a possibility though it occurs more with certain lenses - for example with Canon's L lenses, I've heard far fewer occasions of differences in performance between the ones they hired and the ones they purchased.

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Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

I would also agree that investing in a lens may prove wiser choice and go for the 600D if your budget is not flexible. It's noticeably slower than the 60D in terms of its burst rate and its lower count of cross-type AF points does put it at a further disadvantage but it's not unsuitable for sports photography - I've taken shots of Formula 1 cars driving by and amateur football matches with my 550D - it just takes a bit more patience and practice for timing your shot.

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Bodies: Canon EOS 550D w/ Magic Lantern
Lenses: Tokina AT-X 116 Pro DX f/2.8, Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM, Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS, Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II, Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM
Accessories: YongNuo Speedlite YN-468 Flash, Neewer Macro LED Ring Light, Meike Battery Grip, YongNuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Trigger & Receiver YongNuo WR-128 Wireless Remote Control

You're quite welcome.

On renting, while I certainly agree that it would be a good idea to make sure a big ticket item will work for you before you buy, it would make even more sense if you had an alternative. i.e. if you were wondering whether or not the f4 version would be bright enough before buying the (more expensive) f2.8, then I would be more inclined to recommend renting.

That said, I think you should at least check into the merchant's return policy, specifically the restocking fee relative to the rental fee.

Mark

thanks guys for all the different ideas... I decided on the body to go with the 60D. lenses up for grab still