newbie saying hello

Hi, all. Newbie to the forum here.

 

I'm looking into buying a Canon 20D but in order to do that I need to

sell a few items to generate some dollars. I'm not advertising

anything, just looking for advice because I've never sold

photographic equipment before.

 

Can anyone tell me what I can expect to get for the items below?

Where should I sell them? At a local shop, Ebay, or other?

 

Should I get anything appraised?

 

I'm only an amateur photographer and don't use my equipment all that

often so its all in great shape. All items were purchased at B&H in

NYC.

 

1. Canon EOS A2 body (purchased brand new in 1999) still in very good

condition.

 

2. Canon EF 17-35mm L-series (purchased brand new in 1999 for well

over $1400 if memory serves) which was only ever used on two

vacations. Looks like its still brand new. I kept it in a safe the

whole time except for my two trips.

 

3. 540EZ Flash Unit (purchased brand new in 2000 for about $350 if I

recall correctly).

 

4. VG-10 Vertical Grip

 

 

A few questions about the 20D:

 

Is the 20D much better than the Rebel XT? My brother-in-law has the

Rebel XT and it just seems so cheap compared to my A2. I put my flash

on his camera and it was so top-heavy it hurt just to hold the body

in my hands to take photos.

 

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Looking forward to being an active participant in this forum.

The XT (the Rebel 350D) is the small brother of the 20D. It's the pure consumer version of the 20D: it is plastic, smaller, and lighter. The 20D is a much more serious camera body.

<p>

Keep your 17-35L lens and use it on your new 20D. You'd be lucky to get more than $450 for it since it was completely replaced by the 16-35L. Remember, the 20D's price will drop in a couple weeks after PMA.

Ken,

 

Are you serious? What's wrong with the 17-35 lens that made it lose $1000 in value just by getting aging (while in storage)? Mine is in mint condition. I don't get it. A serious manufacturer flaw? Demand? I just saw someone on Ebay auctioning theirs off for $1000 (0 bids). It takes great photos. I really don't want to part with it but need to in order to buy a DLSR.

 

Tell me more about the 20D's price drop. What is a PMA? How big of a price drop are we talking and why is it dropping?

 

Sorry for all the questions. I'm just finally starting to get "into" photography. Something I tried to do almost 7 years ago.

<p>Ken wrote:</p>

 

<blockquote>The XT (the Rebel 350D) is the small brother of the 20D. It's the pure

consumer version of the 20D: it is plastic, smaller, and lighter. The 20D is a much more

serious camera body.</blockquote>

 

<p>Not sure what "more serious" means, but there are a number of threads here

discussing the relative merits of the 20D and the XT/350D. Most people will agree that

images from the two cameras are identical and that there are some interface/feature

differences. These <i>can</i> make a difference if your photography uses them but for

many the 350D/XT hits the sweet spot of performance, weight, size, and price.... and they

would rather invest the extra money in more/better lenses.</p>

 

<p>Dan</p>

When I put my EF lens (28-105mm) and 540 EZ on the Rebel XT, it felt like a point-and-shoot on steroids. This is just speaking from a camera handling perspective.

 

So what you're telling me is that I'm potentially looking at spending $400 more just to have a more-balanced setup?

A couple aspects in your favor about getting a good sale price on your used 17-35 is that its

replacement (the 16-35) is fairly expensive, around $1300 so people may be willing to fork over half of that for a much older lens. The 16-35 has definitely improved over the 17 in sharpness.

 

You need a lens for your new 20D or similar so why no just keep what you have? I cannot see anywhere where you'd gain unless you want an ultra-wide for the 20D and in that case the only lens is the EF-S 10-22.

 

The 350D is an entry level DSLR and I do not see you as entry level here. You'll appreciate something sold, heavier, and larger in your hands when using excellent lenses.

It is my understanding that a 20D would be better handling / balancing when mounting

larger, heavier and longer zooms onto it. Especially if you have large man hands. This is

not a scurillous issue, as you handle the camera each and every time you use it.

I agree with "don't sell the 17-35"...unless... you want to sell it to me!

 

You'll need that flash too! To see what sold items have fetched on eBay, you must log in, go to advanced search, check the completed items box, then do do your search.

Don't forget www.craigslist.org (which I heard eBay has bought)

Agree with above post. Keep your 17-35mm. As for the camera and in my opinion, if it hurts your hand to hold it, don't even think about getting it no matter what. What's the point if you don't enjoy using your camera for photography?

Thanks all for the advice. Maybe I should keep the 17-35 after all since I like it so much. Would be stupid to sell it at a big loss.

 

As far as the flash goes, the 20D needs an EX flash in order to do TTL metering, right? Mine is an EZ which has A-TTL, not E-TTL. I was however recently able to use it on the 350D but only in manual mode. Come to think of it, this may be a chance for me to finally learn how to use manual flash settings since I don't have to worry about ruining film anymore with a DSLR.

 

Should I get an EX or stick with the 540EZ?

Hi Chris,

Check on Ebay to see what they are getting for your equipment. I feel that you will be disapointed. The PMAs is a photo equipment Show that a lot of the manufactures use to bring out thier new stuff. It's held the last of Feb. If they bring out a replacement for the 20D the price should fall on the old one. You may want the new features for around the same bucks. You will probably want to keep every thing except the film body as you won't be able to replace them for any where near the same price. The 20D is a better built camera than the rebel XT. It is well worth the extra bucks. I kept my eos film body just in case I needed a full frame shot. Sell your wife,hound dog,or pickup truck what ever it takes.Just get digital:-)LOL,bill

Do not get an EZ flash for a 20D. Get an EX for sure -- either the brand new 430EX, or the fairly new 580EX. Also lots of people still love the 420EX and the 550EX with modern DSLR bodies. Both those Speedlites have been replaced by the 430 and 580 but you still might be able to find brand new ones even though Canon no lnger makes them.

Hi Newbie. :o)

 

Chris you may want to go here and read about the 20d vs the XT.

 

http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/digital/eos_digital_rebel_xt_vs_20d.html

 

DK.

Hi Christopher,

 

I can't imagine using an SLR camera and on camera flash without TTL. Sure, it's certainly possible and it has its creative uses. Some photographers prefer it. As for me, I like the ease of TTL. When I put the flash on camera, albeit rarely, I always choose TTL. It allows me to concentrate more on creativity, rather than the technical. I can vouch for the 580EX too. It had performed well with my 1DII. I used to have a 550EX but it had some issues in TTL mode. Usually, 1/3 to 1/2 stop underexposure. When others in my area expressed similar problems, I replaced it with the 580. Oh, BTW, cool name.

Christopher,

 

Try out an XT with the Battery Grip fitted, it makes a substantial difference to handling, and will still be cheaper than a 20D.

Seems likely now that I'll be getting the 20D. Should I buy the memory card now? B&H has a $100 rebate for Lexar 2GB 80x compact flash. Maybe I should take advantage of it even though I don't have the body yet.

For memory cards, I found that the Sandisk Ultra II's 1 GB cards are rated in the top handful of cards as far as speed matched to the 20D body. Don't waste bucks on really high speed cards, if they don't really improve the bandwidth, which in this case is limited by the body. Look on Rob Gailbraith's site for card speed/body tests. Very useful.

 

Amazon is current selling these cards for $59. I bought two a while back for $79 each, with $20 rebate, so that's the same price these days, without the rebate hassle.

 

1 GB cards give about 69 pictures (plus or minus) in RAW + Large JPEG mode on the 20D. That's a bit better than two 36-exposure rolls, each. I figure I'd rather have about that many pictures on a per card basis, and have more cards, so if one gets ruined/corrupted, I don't lose literally hundreds of shots.

Christopher,

 

Definetly keep your 17-35mm L. As for the difference between the 20D and the XT I would rather shoot the 20D. I like the buttons out in the open rather than buried in the setup menus. I have shot through both cameras. I agree the XT feels like a P&S but I have large hands. As for getting a very balanced camera feel opt for a vertical grip also. It sure gives the extra balance with longer or heavier lenses. As for the flashes sell the EZ and buy the EX model. If you can afford the 580EX it offers the E-TTL II metering, as apposed to the older 550EX which is just E-TTL. Either flash will work on the 20D or the XT just remeber that you can't take advantage of the newest features with the 550. Also if you plan on slaving any flashes the 550 or the 580 can both do the job. I have used both of them also. As for CF cards, Canon doesn't support the high speed cards like the other manufactures. But remember eventually you will have to download the cards and most card readers do support this higher rate of transfer. Nothing like waiting 10 min. to download your 2Gig card at 1x. Just some advice. JP