T3i or SL1 gift for daughter?

<p>My daughter is in college and is going to be taking a couple of photography courses. I thought it would be nice to upgrade her original Canon Rebel digital body and original 18-55mm lens as a surprise. She's not a beginner and knows a good bit about photography already. I've owned the T3i and personally liked it. So here's where I am.<br>

For the exact same cost I can get:<br>

Canon sl1 with 2 lenses 18-55mm IS II STM and 55-250 IS I think it was<br>

or<br>

Canon T3i with just the 18-55mm IS<br>

here are my only concerns from what I know about each:<br>

sl1 - shares a card and battery port at bottom of camera so no option to add a camera grip later and I've heard the battery life is not that good.<br>

read reviews that say the iso can be pushed more but has significantly more noise so would that really be a plus?<br>

has touch screen but really thinking she would prefer manually setting stuff, and I've read manual settings can be cumbersome<br>

t3i - is now an older model but still takes good images<br>

older processor, sl1 has newer processor<br>

video doesn't auto focus, but not sure how much video she would be shooting<br>

anyone have experience with either? I went by best buy and played with the T5i and I did like it a lot, basically a t4i from what I've read, but not sure it's better than other two considering the difference in price.</p>

<p>Is there any particular reason you are only considering these two units? Obviously, nearly <em>any</em> EOS digital camera would be an upgrade for her, even an XTi would be a significant improvement in IQ and pixel count. Considering the age of the equipment, I (personally) in your shoes would be considering a used Rebel in the T1i-T2i range, along with a lens or two to expand her range (if the 18-55 is working).</p>

<p>Limiting yourself to these two cameras, especially on a fixed budget, seems less than optimally effective, and, believe it or not, something which expands her capability significantly (like a 50/1.8 or a 30/1.4 - or even a flash that can swivel and bounce) doesn't necessarily involve a new camera body.</p>

<p>Just some thoughts to ponder.</p>

 

<p>I also heard the battery life of the SL1 isn't so good.<br>

Nonetheless, I did not take my SL1's charger with me on a recent trip to FL and the Keys. Brought the Canon battery and two aftermarkets, shot over 600 shots and several videos and never even needed the third battery. Seems more than reasonable to me. My only gripe- like some car's gas gauges the levels do not go down in linear fashion it seems. Full to empty is fast, although it is 300+ shots at least.<br>

I love the SL1, matched it with a 20mm Voigtlander MF lens and have a tidy little package that can fit in a coat pocket. The 18-200 Canon lens is a great "one lens" travel setup as well.</p>

<p>Lynn, I would offer to contribute some amount of money towards new camera equipment. There's certainly no instant gratification to that approach; however, I think she needs to be the one to select the camera and lens(es) for two reasons:</p>

<p>First, you say she already knows a good bit about photography. As such, she probably has some notion about what she does and doesn't like in a camera. She might already have her eye on a specific model. Something you select for her might be completely what she didn't have in mind.</p>

<p>And second, you say she will be taking a couple of photography classes. The professor might specify what sort of camera the students are to use. In fact this is very common. A young lady in my family recently took a photography course for which she had to buy a full manual film camera. I can't begin to describe the tone in her voice and the roll of her eyes when she hung on that word "<em><strong>MAAAAN</strong></em>UAL." But that's the camera she had to use.</p>

<p>Not sure where my response went I typed in last night but...</p>

<p>Marcus thanks for response, she pointed out a few she liked and she's worked so hard to get to college I just want to get her a brand new in the box model. <br>

Robert thanks for info on the battery life, that sounds like plenty of life for the normal user especially with a back up battery.<br>

Sarah, I should have been more specific so i'll add a bit more info. Only requirement is it has to be a dslr with ability to shoot manual or some advance modes, no mirrorless or bridge cameras. When she was home last we went to Fry's electronics and these were the three models she had her eyes on. She doesn't like Nikon and I tried to lean her towards the 60d but she likes the rebels due to size and weight.<br>

I guess what I'm trying to really figure out is a lot of reviews I've read only talk about EOS Rebels as "entry level cameras" but in the hands of someone that knows there way around a camera the result can be great. I have made some nice prints off my T3i with a 24-70mm lens attached. I'm mostly curious with the touchscreens on the sl1 and the t5i if using the manual buttons instead would bury the advanced features so deep that it would just be frustrating to a more advanced user? Particularly with the sl1 that has buttons that do double duty? </p>

<p>The SL1 is a compact version of the T4/5i. They all have the same sensor. The SL1 doesn't have the articulating screen but it does have some updates the T4/5i doesn't.<br>

I have purchased two SL1s for family members and they love it, especially compared to the SX260s they were using. Each has the Canon 18-135 STM lens. One daughter wanted an articulating screen so she has the T4i and the 18-135 STM.<br>

The SL1 is a fantastic camera for the money and everyone loves the small size and light weight. There have been no problems with battery consumption and no one has a spare battery.<br>

The Canon 18-55 STM is a surprisingly good lens. As others have suggested, for a photography course you might need to add a lens to facilitate more creative aperture options. The 50 f/1.8 or 40 f/2.8 STM are both relatively inexpensive, sharp and obviously allow shots with larger apertures. </p>

<p>I forgot about the Touch screen. The SL1 was my first touch screen DSLR. Now I wish my 5D3 had a touchscreen. If your daughter uses a smartphone with a touchscreen she will adapt super quick. It just seems so intuitive now that it is frustrating for me to use a camera without a touchscreen.<br>

All the Canon menus are laid out pretty much the same way. Whether you access them by buttons or Quick Menu or Touchscreen, all are readily available. I use a combination of all three on the SL1 and love having those options.</p>

<p>I am all for the cash equivalent idea. </p>

<blockquote>

<p>I guess what I'm trying to really figure out is a lot of reviews I've read only talk about EOS Rebels as "entry level cameras" but in the hands of someone that knows there way around a camera the result can be great. I have made some nice prints off my T3i with a 24-70mm lens attached.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I have never owned a rebel. When I first looked into Canon's EOS offerings, I considered a 10D vs. a Rebel (the original one). Both had essentially the same sensor, but the rebel thought itself smarter than I was. When I looked at it quizzically, it would pop up its flash and threaten me. The 10D was much more intuitive to me and felt better in my hands. Moreover, it knew its place. So that's the route I went.</p>

<p>That said, I don't think there's anything a xxD series camera can do that a rebel series can't -- and can't do just as well. So really it's all about size, build, user interface, and certain performance factors such as burst speed. If your daughter prefers the rebels, so be it! She won't be crippled by her decision in any way.</p>

 

<p>Most definitely the T3i, it was my first camera and iv since become quite familiar with cameras in general.I did wonders with it. Now I use mine to make videos as part of my job and yes the inability for it to auto focus while making videos is ridiculously annoying but I still manage to work with it just fine. I have a couple of exampled here showing the Rebel at work :)<br>

http://www.squidoo.com/canon-eos-rebel-t3i-digital-slr-price-and-review</p>

<p>Let me give you a short and straight answer. Both cameras are very similar from a technical perspetive, don't let minor details blind you.<br /><br /> I<strong>f your dauther seems to be serious about learning photography, I would recommend the t3i.</strong> It has a larger body which is more suitable to hold medium to larger lenses, and also is more ergonomical. It can also be attached to a grip. Once you growth from amateur to enthusiast or even beginner professional, things like ergonomics began to matter more than convenience.<br /><br /> In addition, if video is part of the equation (we are talking about doing some sort of serious video, not point and shoot birthday parties), the t3i's articulated LCD would proved to be very usefull. The autofocus the SL1 claims to have is not ready yet for serious work, so is not a real advantage.<br /><br /> On the other hand, <strong>if your daugther plans to study photography just to know a little bit more and sees photography as a hobby, and also like to take her camera everywhere all the time or plan to travel a lot, the SL1's small size and convenience prevails.</strong></p>