It's simply a great camera.

“It's simply a great camera.”

Written on: 01/09/2011 by wilsonjo (5 reviews written)

This was my first digital SLR camera - I'd used film SLRs before and digital compacts but couldn't afford the price of a new SLR, then I saw the EOS 20D on eBay and managed to get it for around £200.

I very soon bought a zoom lens for it and have taken a few thousand photographs in the four years I've had it. I use it for motorsport photographs for my own enjoyment and for this I put the camera on a tripod and use a wireless remote. I've managed some very good photographs with this method.

I tend to carry it around with me, especially to family gatherings and as a testament to the camera (certainly not to the photographer), if I do turn up at one of these events without my camera, people are disappointed!

By todays standards, the 8 Megapixel sensor isn't state of the art and because I do tend to crop my pictures - often heavily, I'd like something a little more modern, but for a hobby camera, it's great and has for me, proven very reliable considering the abuse it's seen.

I love the viewfinder (I really can't use these screen only cameras), even at the higher ISO settings noise isn't all that apparent and the continuous mode is very useful.

If you're thinking of buying a digital compact and want a camera for taking something more than simple snapshots, have a look around for a second hand EOS 20D - it's a great cheap starter digital SLR and if you decide to put more effort (and money) into the hobby, any accessories will still be compatible provided you stick with the Canon series.