Canon EOS 1 Vs. Rebel Vs. Elan (Best)

[brandon_shahan]

Hi and thanks in advance for any help.

 

I've been looking through posts all day about different EOS

cameras. I have had an older Rebel G on extended loan for over a

year and it's probably time to buy my own. Looking through posts,

and prices on ebay, it seems the Rebel G is more of an amateur camera

and the Elan, (as well as other EOS) considered, or priced, more

professionally. I am wondering what is so special about the Elan. I

see that the Elan has eye focus, more focusing points, and maybe more

advanced modes. But which camera takes the better photo? Would this

rely more on the glass attached?

 

I tend to take, or would like to, more portrait shots. Second

would be considered landscapes and then sports. The only lens I'm

using now is the 35-80 that came with it. I've used the 85-300 for

some ball games and liked it. I almost always have my camera on the

aperture priority or Manual and use it as the shutter priority, so I

don't have a lot of use for the different pre-programmed options, but

I do like the meter being built in so I know if the exposure is close

or not. So I guess my big question would be whether or to spend the

money on a more expensive camera if I'm not using the majority of the

features? Or stay with the Rebel and buy better glass? Would a Rebel

take the same quality of picture as an Elan, or any other Canon 35mm,

if the lens and settings were the same?

 

Anyways, I'm obviously new to all this and any help would be

appreciated. Thanks again,

 

Brandon

[chuck_dowling]

Hmmm. Good question. In the long run, assuming you have good focus, it really comes down to the glass and the film. The Rebel is a beginner's camera, and is not as robust as its big brothers as far as mount, weight, and yes, features. If you are satisfied with the Rebels feature set, then go with it. You have been using it for a year, so you know the answer to that. I don't like how my Rebel 2000 uses the film backwards, that is, it loads the whole roll of film out, then stroes it back in the roll frame by frame. The frames come out numbered backwards. I also like a heavier camera, I drink a lot of coffee. If you do buy your own Rebel, many folks will tell you not to get the "kit", as the lens that's included is very poor.

[hisham_atallah]

Theoretically the body has no effect on image quality.But if you need fast autofocus, you'll get sharper images with the Elan. If you're shooting off a tripod at low shutter speed, mirror lock-up on the Elan will give better results. Shooting in manual is much easier with the Elan because of the wheel at the rear of the camera. With the rebel you have to use the front wheel to change both shutter speed and aperture.

[rcpeters]

I own a Rebel Ti and an Elan 7. I would purchase better glass.

[PuppyDigs]

"Theoretically the body has no effect on image quality."

 

If you use the same lens and shoot a still life scene in manual mode using the same focus and exposure settings with both a Rebel and EOS 1V, you'll get the same results. However, life is never that simple.

 

The question to whether or not a body gives better results depends on your shooting style and preferences. I find the metering of my EOS 3 more accurate than my Elan 7E and 10D, especially in tricky light. Yes, an experienced photographer can compensate and get great results with center-weighted, spot or guessing, but when working fast I get more well exposed chromes with my EOS 3 than with my Elan 7E. Also, the EOS 3's AI servo is much better than the Elan 7E and delivers more well focused shots.

 

Expensive bodies tend to have larger and more vivid viewfinders, something which is not only a compositional aid, but can be inspirational. For example, one look through an EOS IX viewfinder (small & dim) and you may not want to take a picture. The same scene is much more inviting through the EOS 3 viewfinder.

 

Personally, I's get the Elan 7E over the Rebel Ti and thus leave a little room to grow.

[John Crowe]

Better Glass!!!

 

My wife has an Elan IIe which is still a high end camera, though not worth nearly what it was when I purchased it. Thankfully she does not use it very much, because I have read in postings here that it is built quite poorly. Flash mechanisms are breaking and so are the main dials, ridiculous for a camera introduce only a few years ago. When the A2E was launched it was second only to the EOS 1 and it too has the same problems resulting from poor build quality. My T90 is still going strong after 17 years and several thousand photographs!

 

It seems that the top Canon camera is the only one built to last. For the price of one of those you could go through several of the least expensive ones, and you know they will all be outdated very quickly with respect to autofocus abilities - "built in obsolescence".

 

Better glass makes all the difference in the world! Good luck!

[Greg M]

The Elan 7 (not the "E") has many of the features you can find in the EOS 1V and 3, but lacks the very top quality build. Even so, it is a nice, capable camera that costs less than half the price of a new EOS 3 if you buy from a store like B&H in New York like I did. Using the Elan 7 with a set of nicer lenses will allow you to have access to those features (4 fps advance, mirror up, etc) and may sway you to later buy the higher quality body when/if the need arises- then again, it may be all the camera you need. I recently was in a position to put together a nice outfit. I had a definitely fixed, but nice amount of money to spend. I could have gone with the EOS 3 and settled for the 28-105 and 100-300 USM lenses, but instead chose the Elan 7 and s-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d the budget to get both the 17-40L and 70-200/4L. It was a decision I am glad I made. Given the choice, always choose the better glass. It does make a difference in the Canon line.

[ron c sunshine coast,qld,a]

I too heartily recommend better lenses.I have been using an eos 500/rebel Xs for ages and recently got the eos 5 for fast action (mostly for frame rate and focusing).Honestly the 5 is only better when i NEED to shoot a series of shots in a second or so.I actually prefer the 500/Xs nearly all the time, i have enormous respect as to what that little camera CAN do.

[jay_.]

I have 2 1V's. My backup camera (and the one I sometimes take when weight is a consideration)is the Rebel 2000. To me the Elan 7 series is a compromise, and is of no use to me. However by the same token, it might be the ideal choice for a 1-camera guy. If I were still buying Canon film cameras, I would switch the 2000 for a Ti, because of the adjustable eyepiece diopter.

[bill j.]

John Crowe wrote (in part):

 

"My wife has an Elan IIe which is still a high end camera, though not worth nearly what it was when I purchased it.

Thankfully she does not use it very much, because I have read in postings here that it is built quite poorly. Flash

mechanisms are breaking and so are the main dials, ridiculous for a camera introduce only a few years ago."

 

------------

 

Nothing wrong with the Elan II's, my households got a couple of IIe's since 1997 and they're still going fine. There is a known problem with the control dial of the EOS 5/A2

[j._d._mcgee]

I agree with your statement Bill:

"Nothing wrong with the Elan II's, my households got a couple of IIe's since 1997 and they're still going fine. There is a known problem with the control dial of the EOS 5/A2"

 

Same goes for me John, I have had Elan II's and Elan 7's ever since each first came out and have never had a problem with the control dials, mechanisms, etc. Both of my II's, one of which I sold to get a 7, were used QUITE heavily and i wore them down but they still worked very strongly after a good six years of use.

[John Crowe]

Thank-you for the vote of confidence with the Elan IIe guys! I look forward to having it in the family for a long time! For others out there, these cameras seem to be quite a bargain now and although I have not used it extensively it seems to offer excellent control choices.

[brandon_shahan]

Thanks so much for the responses everyone. I think I'm going to go with the Elan 7. I like the fact that it is supposed to be pretty quiet, has more focusing points, and I think the 4 fps is faster than the rebel as well, even though I'd probably never use it. Looking around online it looks like I could get the Elan 7 body for about what I'd pay for a rebel with the standard lens so I'll buy the body and probably go with the 50mm f1.4

 

Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction,

 

Brandon

[zorik_shirman]

May I ask permission to disagree with the saying "The body is just a film holder, just a light box, etc...".

I owned Rebel 2000 before I bought my Elan 7E. Rebel 2000 was pretty good. To some extent, if you mount the same low end consumer lenses on these cameras, you will get same results on a 4x6 print if the pictures are taken in an ideal conditions, such as outdoors, daylight and whatever else might be helpfull to the light metering system of the Rebel. Given more complex shooting conditions, the Elan 7E will take the top. EOS-3 even better in the regard of metering. But, as years go by, light metering of cameras becomes more soffisticated. Both Rebel 2000 and Elan 7E have 35 zone Evaluative metering, for example vs. Rebel GIIs 6 zone evaluative. If you can compensate for the shortcommings of either of those cameras, you'll do great with them. Even with the cheapest body. It will all be you who's doing the work, but with Elan 7E, the features you will be looking for soon in the Rebel, are more easily accessible on the Elan 7E then on the cheaper body, so it will make it easier for you to concentrate on the picture, then on finding a specific function. It all comes down to this. Allocate your funds for the lens or lenses(better get 1 good lens then 2 low end lenses) than think of what body you will buy, because most likely, judging by what you are aiming at, you will be upgrading a body sooner then you think.

[ozz]

I own a Rebel 2000, an Elan 7e and a Canon A-1. I agree that rebel G II has a 6 point avaluative metering and Elan has 35 and Elan also might outperform Rebels metering capacity in very hard complex lightning conditions. I think both Rebel and Elan are great cameras and I carry my elan almost everywhere. However, in very dim light conditions as well as very complex lighting, I always trust my A-1 most of the case, not to mention better glass in the fd line...