mr._b

Even the 30D would be a worthy upgrade form a 10D. I would be among those who think you will probably miss the build quality (and features) of the x0D series.

Money was an object for my recent upgrade from a 10D... 2 more MP, 1.5 FPS faster, 75 vs 30 shot buffer, sensor cleaning and liveview were not worth paying double what I got a 30D for.

Based soley on observations out and about, this isn't very surprising. Of all the SLRs I see out in public, a great many of them are the entry-level Nikon D40/60s.

Thoughts? ...keep the better one.

Can we see some samples? What settings were used on the camera?

Get a used 30D. The 450D takes great pictures, but it will feel like a cheap toy compared to what you have now.

After getting my first dSLR last year, my first 'big' lens purchase was the 70-200mm F/4, but I didn't already own a zoom.

 

I can easily suggest the 50mm f/1.8 just because it's fast and quite cheap. Since you already have 18mm to 300mm covered, you should have a look at what you've been shooting after a few months and see what focal length(s) are deserving of better glass.

If you can't afford a 30D, just get another 20D. Duplicate cameras shoud make switching to the backup as easy as possible.

I'd love to recieve an EF-S 17-55mm, but a 35mm f/1.4L would be an intriguing gift too.

<img src="http://mrb.tagclan.com/gallery2/d/3455-2/IMG_6084_001.JPG">

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I've been trying my hand at sports photography shooting Tulane University baseball games... even on a crop camera my 70-200mm F/4 lacks the reach though.

 

http://mrb.tagclan.com/gallery2/myphotography/tulanebaseball/

The JPEG-only thing makes a certain sense but it would be nice if they they allowed RAW with a custom function.

Do you know if they cleaned and/or calibrated the lens?

The Sigma Corporation is pleased to announce the new large aperture 50mm F1.4 EX

DG HSM standard lens. For Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Sony...

 

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0803/08031801sigma50mm.asp

 

Having briefly owned the Canon f/1.4 lens with the broken focus wheel I find

this news quite interesting... can't wait to see the reviews.

I would consider getting a 30D instead. While the 450D makes great pictures, it won't be nearly as pleasant to hold as the 10D. To me it wouldn't even feel like an upgrade since the xx0D cameras feel like cheap toys by comparison.

 

Even if you get an X0D camera you still might miss the feel of the 10D. the 20D and 30D feel a bit smaller and the Canon BG-E2(N) vertical grip for the 20/30/40D is crap compared to the 10D grip.

I have the MKI lens with metal mount, distance scale and proper focus wheel which I use on my 30D. Frankly, it's a bit too tight to be widely useful to me but I own one because it's the cheapest way to get good low light performance. Ultimately it is just about money for me. If I could afford the 35mm f/1.4L I'd happily unload my 50mm.

I suspect my 70-200mm F/4 L is having a similar issue and would like to send it in for a checkup. However, i'm not the original owner and I don't have the proof of purchase or warrantee card. How does Canon deal with that and does anyone know about what they charge for such service?

I have both a 2gb and 4gb Sandisk Extreme III cards. They work great and apparently can take a lot of punishment. I know the 2gb version is faster on paper but I haven't noticed any difference between them. The "eggs in one basket" is a mild concern for me but I'm just an amateur. I would guess anyone genuinely worried about this would stick to 1GB cards.

I've been using Scotch tape, works fine.

I'd get two more spare batteries. You can buy them for reasonable prices online.

Thanks for pointing this out. The time/date on my 30D was off and it might have been a while before I noticed.

For me, buying a lightly used 30D on ebay was the best option. I got lucky and scored a nearly new one for $650. I also had the benefit of selling my 10D so it wasn't too painful.

 

If you're on a tight budget, skip the 40D for now and spend more on glass.

I looked myself briefly but couldn't find it so I just photographed the relevant section. - http://mrbsdomain.com/gallery2/junk/IMG_5923.JPG.html

I'd stick it out with my 17-40mm until I had the money for the EF-S 17-55mm F/2.8 IS or the 24-70mm F/2.8 L.

I did not intent to sound exceedingly condecending, but as my opinion is probably a widely held one, it would affect the practicality of your trade. That being the case, Bob's advice to just sell and buy the L glass it probably the best idea.

I suspect it's the card. I experienced somewhat similar symptoms with a bad card in a 10D last year... the 40D may handle bad cards differently though, the bad card frequently crashed my camera.

 

btw: Sandisk replaced that card with a new one after an RMA request.