Recommendations for film body

[mike_lemon]

I'm an amateur 30D owner and would like to get my wife an updated film body that

can use my Canon lenses. Plus, it would be nice to have a film body for B&W work

I'd like to try in the future.

 

The Elan 7 line looks pretty good, and the comments seem to indicate it is a

nice, light camera. How does it compare to a Rebel film body?

 

Also, is there an issue with using EF-S lenses with film bodies?

 

Thanks!

[anov]

Also, is there an issue with using EF-S lenses with film bodies?

 

Yep, big one. It's not usable on film bodies.

 

I would see if I can get an EOS 3 used, those can be had for around 200+ or so. Not light but once you see the huge viewfinder, you'll find that smaller viewfinder sucks.

[mike_lemon]

Hmmm....that's about the same size as my 30D. I'm a little worried about her toting that around.

 

It also doesn't have the auto-modes, which isn't an issue for me but it might be for her.

 

My 30D has a decent viewfinder. Is the 3 really that much bigger?

[mendonphoto]

Pass on any of the Rebel Cameras. There's nothing wrong with them - they're fine beginner cameras. But, it's a buyers' market for used film cameras. I think you can get something nice for pretty cheap.

[steve torelli]

The suggestion of an EOS3 is a good one. A 35mm film body with auto modes?

Hmmm.......the current Rebel film bodies have full auto, but why not just get a digi P&S if you want small and light and full auto?

[anov]

Mike:

 

EOS 3 has P mode just like your 30D, but it lacks built in flash.The 7N is not a bad choice either.

 

I compared the 40D VF against the EOS 3, and the 3 wins hands down.

[marc_bergman1]

The EOS 7 is a good choice. It is quite and light weight. It has a good viewfinder.

 

The EOS 3 is larger and has a great viewfinder. It is very responsive. It is also very loud. The shutter noise is a great deal louder than the EOS 7.

[mark u]

In reality there is little to choose between the viewfinders of the better late Rebels and the Elan 7 series bodies. The Elan has a little better ergonomics via the second dial on the rear (and an E version offers eye selection of the focus point) and slightly higher performance in terms of maximum frame rate and a few other minor bells and whistles: it's also slightly larger. Some comparisons here:

 

http://photonotes.org/cgi-bin/camera-lookup.pl?camera1=eos300x&camera2=eos300v&camera3=eos300&camera4=eos30v&camera5=eos3

 

One feature of the Rebels not replicated in other cameras is the one button press always available partial metering. A downside of Rebels earlier than the 300X/T2 is the inability to force AI Servo use other than in Sport mode - but at least you get to choose the film you are using in Sport mode rather than being limited to 400 ISO in a Rebel DSLR.

 

The EOS 3 is an altogether different level of camera. Use it, and you may start wanting to upgrade to 1 series DSLRs - unless you dislike the bulk and noisy shutter..

[stephen sullivan]

Give your wife, your 30D and buy yourself the 40D and Photoshop CS3.

 

Why, with film, processing and printing charges going up and up, it's cheeper to

shoot Black & White Digital. Plus, more and more labs will develop B&W Film only

to scan and print digitally, as goes for E-6 and C-41. Why not just cut out the

middle-man, go digital all the way.

 

All of your lenses EF & EF-S will be shareable between the 30D and a 40D. Not a

30D and any Full Framed Body, Digital or Film.

[kari v]

"My 30D has a decent viewfinder. Is the 3 really that much bigger?"

 

Even the cheap Rebel has bigger vf and EOS 3 is a pro body (and old manual focus bodies like T70 and T90 are pure size/brightness bliss).

 

For next to nothing weight and auto-modes Rebel is a nice camera. Battery grip helps hugely if you want to make it sturdier, even more than with the digital Rebels, and you can use standard rechargeables. Plastic feel: I have taken mine through -20 C winters, given it a fair share of dirt and it has received some knocks, no problems. If your wife doesn't hammer nails with it, don't worry too much.

[mike_lemon]

I don't have the budget for a 40D. If I was going to spend that much, I'd wait until I'd saved up for a full-frame digital.

 

Thanks for all the info. Very helpful.

[mike_lemon]

Let me add that the primary reason this came up is she is envious of my (70-200) zoom lens. Her little P&S film camera zoom isn't comparable. A digital P&S isn't going to have a comparable zoom either.

 

Plus, she likes film and knows how to handle it, whereas if it was digital, I'd end up doing a lot of "tech support", if you get my drift. :)

[robert lee]

The best value is the A2e/EOS-5, about $80. The best camera is the follow on, the EOS-3 at about $250.

 

I'd avoid the top of line 1 series. The cameras are fantastic, but most reasonably priced ones are beat up. You don't want a camera that spent most of its life in a loan pool.

[mark_audacity_romberg]

Second the A2/EOS 5. KEH.com has several for as cheap as $60.

 

Tangent: is there a technical reason for the crummy viewfinders on the xxD series? I

know APS-C is smaller, but couldn't they just increase the VF magnification to

compensate? I understand why the VFs on the DRebels are tiny, consumers don't

care and it saves money, but the two-digit-D series is advanced amateur/semi-pro.

How much does a magnifying lens on the outgoing end of the pentaprism really cost?

[steve_dunn2]

<p>The A2(e)/EOS 5 is a very fine camera ... but if you go that route, be forwarned about a couple of things. One is that it's an old model, introduced over a decade and a half ago and discontinued several years ago. In its time, it was a very, very good camera, and of course a body in full working order is still as capable today as it was then - but the bar for today's bodies is a lot higher, so compared to modern bodies, it's behind in a number of ways. For instance, don't expect its AF system to be able to keep up with that of your 30D. Whether that's important or not to you, I don't know. I was going to mention the issue of being able to get repairs/parts if the thing breaks (dunno about bodies, but this is a common problem with long-discontinued Canon lenses), but if the things sell for so little, just buy another one if it breaks.</p>

 

<p>The second is that this model is famous for having one of its dials break. And this can happen even if you haven't abused it. But, again, if it's that cheap, I guess you can just buy another one if the dial happens to die on you.</p>

 

<p>The Elan 7 family is a great little camera. I used to have a 7E before I went digital. It's one step lower in the product line than the A2(e)/5, but the best part of a decade newer, so there are advantages and disadvantages either way. The 3 is better than either (if you think of it as a replacement for the A2e/5, with the newer technology of the Elan 7 family, and then bump it up a bit in each respect, you've got the right idea), but a fair bit more substantial, shall we say, so make sure your wife is comfortable with it. Although if she covets your 70-200, she's going to have to get used to a fair bit of heft anyway, even if you pair it up with whatever the smallest, lightest body might be.</p>

 

<cite>I know APS-C is smaller, but couldn't they just increase the VF magnification to compensate?</cite>

 

<p>Sure, and then instead of complaining that the viewfinder is small, you'd be complaining that it's dim. If you spread a given amount of light over a larger area, you get a dimmer image.</p>

[robert lee]

"... but the bar for today's bodies is a lot higher, so compared to modern bodies, it's behind in a number of ways."

 

I haven't found this to be the case. When talking about cameras from of the Japanese wunderplastik era, nothing much has changed in as far as camera bodies are concerned (outside of the actual imaging media, of course.)

 

Speaking of which, capabilities like eye controlled focus is not available on any current digital body. This is telepathy on a camera like the EOS-3: the camera focuses instantly where the eye looks.

[jack_welsh]

I bought a Rebel Ti film camera with a 75-300 zoom lens and like it very much. It might be as some say, a beginner camera. But, I bought it mainly for the 200-300 mm lens capability.

[JDMvW]

The very first EOS camera, the EOS 650 is available on auction sites for less than $40. I bought two of them, one for me and one for my daughter. I also got a 620, a 700, and the EOS 5 (the slightly better international version of the A2e. The latter has the same sort of auto features that the 30D has-DEP,M, Av, Tv, and P plus the picture modes. All of mine work fine and you can get rechargeable batteries for them, though the lithium batteries seem to last a long time anyway. The eye-controlled focus thingie is cute, but like voice control of your computer probably sold more items than it was actually useful on.

[john_wintheiser1]

The controls on the Elan 7 are laid out very much like those of the 30D. The controls on the Rebels are set up a little differently. So get the Elan 7 and it will be much easier to go from using the 30D to the Elan and back again. I have an Elan 7 and a 20D. I recommend the Elan 7 very highly.

[luriae]

Personally, I'd recommend the Elan IIe. It can be had for about $30 on ebay right now. It is the predecessor to the

Elan 7. The Elan 7 was an "upgrade" to this camera but with only a few changes that were hardly significant

improvements in reality. The Elan IIe is in the Canon amateur photographer line and if you read some of the older

canon posts, you will find that many profesional 35mm photographers used the Elan II as a back-up camera. The

Eos 3 is in Canons "prosumer" line and is going for about $180-$250 on ebay right now. I own two of the Elan IIe and

one Eos 3. The Eos 3 has some additional custom functions, and slightly more advanced auto-focusing and metering

including spot metering, but the Elan IIe is much quieter, actually focuses faster in many situations, and I prefer the

knobs and levers on top of the Elan IIe to the buttons that you have to press in combination on the Eos 3 and that

little side door you have to open on the eos 3 to access other really small buttons. Also, the Elan II has a built in

flash (for emergencies) and the Eos 3 does not. The reality is, they are both good cameras and take equally good

pictures. You will be able to find accessories for both still around (power packs, remotes, eyecups, etc.)