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- Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 21 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
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4 out of 4 people found this review helpful
5.0 stars
"Great light weight DLSR,"
Pros: quality build, highest iso in it's class, great low light ability without a flash, takes fantastic photos, best display of the class, light weight and easy to travel with.
Cons: non that I can see.
Summary: I was switching from SLR to DSLR finally and. wanted a good quality light weight compact DSLR for traveling. I looked at the Nikon D5000 and the Canon T1I. The Nikon D5000 is the direct competition to the T1I. They are on the high end of the "entry level DSLR" but it is more of an entry level semi pro cameras in my opinion.
I like that Canon used a similar sensor as the EOS 50D, a "semi/pro camera". While the Nikon uses the sensor of the a "consumer product sensor" of the D90. Also l Ike the fact that the body is still made in Japan as oppose to Thailand with the Nikon.
This camera feels good in the hand, like my older film EOS, I had. It is very light but ridged. The nikon just felt more like a toy compare to the T1I. It made the decision easier that all canon EOS lens fit each other. My film EOS is 12 years old, and all the glass I had worked with this camera. A really plus for any canon user thinking about upgrading, it could save you some money on glass.
I had friends that had the D5000 and T1I, and the picture quality were both excellent, to say one was better then the other is splitting hairs. They both took great pictures. They both took pro quality photos actually. So my decision came down to non photo quality items.
The AF function of both camera perform well. Did not really notice any advantage of the 11 AF point of the D5000 over the 9 of the T1I. The D5000 seemed a tad faster in burst shoot also.
The 3" high res LCD made reviewing the shot so much easier, which made it is easy to over look the canon's lack of a swivel screen. Think that is why the D90 also has a high res fixed 3" LCD as oppose to the 2.7" swivel that the D5000 has. The screen quality is one of the biggest reason I choose the canon.
I have to give the canon view finder the edge over the D5000. It seems larger. And it made shooting with glasses on easier. And I can focus the dioptric to my eye without glass also.
I am not a flash user in general,s the canon's 12800 ISO ability gave it a edge over the D5000's 6400. Both built in flash perform well for snap shot shooting.
The fact that the screen was left of center and the main function bottoms and nav control was on the right side made one hand operation easier while shooting. The Nikon config was not as well suited for one hand operation with the operations buttons on the left side and nav button on the right. I also found the canon lay and interface to be easy use and understand. I found the D5000 to be a bit over the top with their gui. But for someone new to photography, they may like the addition info, but most likely will not need once they get the dlsr and photography basics down.
It seems to me that the T1I match up against the higher end nikon D90 quite well even though it is not the nikon that is competes at on price point and level. D5000 is the one the T1I is pitted against.
I have a HD camcorder I travel with also, so the D5000 and the T1I HD video ability was not a factor in my decision. But I took a 1080P video with T1I, and it look fine on my Mac. The 720 mode the canon was just as good as the nikon. So I give the canon the edge here with the full HD ability.
The kit lens with the canon seem to be on par with the nikon, both plastic mounts. Think the nikon may have a very slight edge over the canon in this department. It seems to focus a bit quick. But I like that both were stabilized lenses.
So even if I did not have canon glass already, the screen and ISO ability of the T1I gave it the nod over the D5000 for me.
Where to buy
Canon EOS Rebel T1i (with 18-55mm IS lens): $719.00 - $899.00 | store | price | in stock? | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
 | $769.00 | Yes |  |
 | $769.95 | Yes | |
 | $769.00 | Yes | |
 | $899.00 | Yes | |
 | $799.99 | Preorder | |
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