Moving up to 40D / 50D

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blackjack

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nikki blake
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Hi, I hope you do not mind me posting as I am not a fab photographer on a huge budget which seems to be the requirement on other forums :( I am however a lady who loves her photography and is keen to learn and improve.

I currently have a Canon 350D, which I purchased secondhand as my first DSLR. I had previously worked with a film SLR for a good few years. I have had the 350D for some time now and basically really like it, however I do feel I would like to upgrade my camera body now and having looked around and read loads of different reviews I am looking at the 40D or maybe the 50D (secondhand obviously).

My 350D is great but I am keen to get more megapixels to hopefully improve the sharpness and quality of my photos, and once I have got the body upgraded I will look to saving for some better glass too then.

Any thoughts, opinions or anything else on the 40 vs 50 would be great, infact any help or thoughts at all would be fantastic.

Many thanks one and all
 
Hi, Images from the 40d are excellent and it is leagues ahead of the 350 for features. 50d adds focus calibration, better LCD and few other bits, again images are excellent so go for what your budget allows :)
 
Both are great cameras and huge upgrades from a 350D. Not a lot changed going from 40D to 50D but AF micro adjust is nice for fast glass...
 
Hi

Budget will be the decider for you - you'll be happy with either model. I've the 40D and am very happy with it and get cracking shots with it.

The 50D is a slightly newer camera (they were run side by side for a short while) so will carry a slight premium over the 40D.

If budget allows, you could always look to the 60D ??

Good luck and hope this is of help...
 
I upgraded from a 350D to a 50D and was really pleased with the differences, ISO performance, screen, build quality, physical size, extra MP for tighter crops.

The best bit for me though was having a second scroll wheel, so that when shooting in manual you can set aperture and shutter speed on different wheels.
 
blackjack said:
Hi, I hope you do not mind me posting as I am not a fab photographer on a huge budget which seems to be the requirement on other forums :( I am however a lady who loves her photography and is keen to learn and improve.

I currently have a Canon 350D, which I purchased secondhand as my first DSLR. I had previously worked with a film SLR for a good few years. I have had the 350D for some time now and basically really like it, however I do feel I would like to upgrade my camera body now and having looked around and read loads of different reviews I am looking at the 40D or maybe the 50D (secondhand obviously).

My 350D is great but I am keen to get more megapixels to hopefully improve the sharpness and quality of my photos, and once I have got the body upgraded I will look to saving for some better glass too then.

Any thoughts, opinions or anything else on the 40 vs 50 would be great, infact any help or thoughts at all would be fantastic.

Many thanks one and all
Click to expand...

Wait. You are doing it in a totally wrong order. Glass always comes first.
You didn't tell us what you have but considering your remark I will presume it is something basic like the kit lens. You should really replace that as a priority now.

40D is a good step up, but seriously get glass first or the improvement will be minimal.
 
For the improved screen and quailty of the image in review I would go for the 50D.

The only real dissapointment I had with my 40D was the inability to properly judge image sharpness on the rear screen.

HTH

David
 
POAH said:
40d has better IQ compared to the 50d
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No it doesn't.

It's pretty much identical up to iso 800 unless you crop (where the 50s is significantly better) then the 50d pulls away at high iso where it has the advantage.

But we've discussed that historically in detail already.

My 50d is better at high iso than my fairly recently attained 5d mk1 (which will be up for sale shortly!).
 
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If you can afford it, I would say the 50D, however the 40D is an amazing camera still.

You could go for a 40D and lens upgrade (if you dont already have some good glass) instead of a 50D?
 
odd jim said:
No it doesn't.

It's pretty much identical up to iso 800 unless you crop (where the 50s is significantly better) then the 50d pulls away at high iso where it has the advantage.

But we've discussed that historically in detail already.

My 50d is better at high iso than my fairly recently attained 5d mk1 (which will be up for sale shortly!).
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it's not identical - canon ****ed up with the 50D and the fact you think it has better high iso than the 5dmk1 says it all lol
 
Ok then!

How did they "****" up with the 50d, it's better in every respect.

As for the 5d, it's slow, clunky, and the iq really isnt much different to the 50d or any good crop IMO and that's with good lenses. I'm selling it to put the funds towards the mk2 which is a far better companion to the 50d.

Dont forget I own two of these bodies which I'm referring to and have used the 40d extensively, so you can't change my opinion on this.

And TBH I don't take anything you say seriously as you are another one on here who talks rubbish, one of the reasons I'm actually starting to dislike this place.
 
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odd jim said:
Ok then!

How did they "****" up with the 50d, it's better in every respect.

As for the 5d, it's slow, clunky, and the iq really isnt much different to the 50d or any good crop IMO and that's with good lenses. I'm selling it to put the funds towards the mk2 which is a far better companion to the 50d.

Dont forget I own two of these bodies which I'm referring to and have used the 40d extensively, so you can't change my opinion on this.

And TBH I don't take anything you say seriously as you are another one on here who talks rubbish, one of the reasons I'm actually starting to dislike this place.
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I you don't take it seriously why do you bother replying ;)
 
Rather than having an arguement why dont you discuss the merits of the respective cameras. The OP asked which was better and as I haven't directly used either of these cameras I'm unable to help out directly.
All I can say is that I've read good reviews of both the 40D and the 50D and looking at the specs the 50D with an extra 5Mp's, DIGIC 4 as opposed to DIGIC 3, similar burst rates and focus system then on paper the 50D would be the way to go if the budget allows.
 
We're not arguing.

But when someone posts utter drivel it needs to be corrected, otherwise how is the op supposed to be properly informed?

And I've used both extensively, hense why I bothered to comment.
 
Thank you for your comments, I am sorry if it sparked any bad feelings!

I will have a look at both and see how money goes when it actually comes to it. I have seen some beautiful images from the 40D, really really sharp and some nice ones from the 50D too but somehow they just do not look qite as sharp but maybe its me.

Many thanks for your view and information, I do appreciate it.
 
Sharpness is 99% down to the lens and processing, not the body!
 
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While I was not the one who wrote the review of the 50D, I was in the office and did many of the photographic tests during the time the review was taking place. I can say with complete confidence that both in a studio environment, and in the real world, the 40D is noticeably a better camera (in terms of image quality) even at base ISO compared to the 50D. If the choice is between these two cameras, the 40D is a better choice.
 
Hey dude, Ive just stepped up from an olympus e500 to a Canon 60D and would 100% recommend the camera! Flip screen invites you to play with angles! However it set me back and additional £450 on top of the sale of my e500 so either 40D or 50D will be equally as good when upgrading from a 350D!!
 
FranchiseJuan said:
While I was not the one who wrote the review of the 50D, I was in the office and did many of the photographic tests during the time the review was taking place. I can say with complete confidence that both in a studio environment, and in the real world, the 40D is noticeably a better camera (in terms of image quality) even at base ISO compared to the 50D. If the choice is between these two cameras, the 40D is a better choice.
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I tested both extensively, particularly high iso sport shooting and found the complete opposite!

However, I did find you need to set the 50d up differently to the 40d. Two default "enhancements" need to be disabled on the 50d, the highlight tone priority and the auto lighting optimiser. Otherwise these "enhancements" introduce grain.

Those unfamiliar with the 50d naturally leave these on and while they have their uses, really shouldn't be used under general conditions.
 
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odd jim said:
I tested both extensively, particularly high iso sport shooting and found the complete opposite!
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What can I say? I shot over 10K images over a 2 month period in just about the most controlled environment there is, as well as in the real world, and the dynamic range and noise performance of the sensor in the 50D is just not as good as the 40D. You also need to spend a lot of money on glass to realise the extra resolution of the 50D vs the 40D.
 
FranchiseJuan said:
What can I say? I shot over 10K images over a 2 month period in just about the most controlled environment there is, as well as in the real world, and the dynamic range and noise performance of the sensor in the 50D is just not as good as the 40D. You also need to spend a lot of money on glass to realise the extra resolution of the 50D vs the 40D.
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I've edited my post above to offer a bit more explanation! I agree about the glass though.

The 40d, and excellent as it (still) is, wasn't an improvement over my old 400d iq wise but the 50d certainly was. I wouldnt take the 40d over iso800, the 50d is acceptable at 3200 when exposed and processed properly.
 
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I had both 40D and 50D for a while and when it came to getting rid of one body I opted to keep the 40D as I found very little between them and could get a little more in the way of a return for the 50D. If I was choosing now though (I do more bird shots) I would opt for the higher res of the 50D.

In terms of ISO - I think the Cameralabs review comparing the 40D and 50D pretty much matches my own opinion.

When the EOS 50D was announced, Canon made bold claims about how gapless micro-lenses on the sensor would allow the new camera to match the noise levels of the earlier 40D. That's quite a claim considering the 50% increase in total pixels, but judging from the results below, there's certainly some truth in it.

At 100 and 200 ISO, both cameras deliver silky smooth output. At 400 ISO, pixel peepers will notice a very faint smattering of noise in the background, but again its similar on both cameras. Between 800 and 3200 ISO, both cameras exhibit greater increases in visible noise artefacts, although some may find the new 50D slightly smoother. This would however appear to be down to greater noise reduction on the 50D by default - if you check our Noise Reduction page, the samples with the Low setting are closer to the 40D.
The 50D then bravely goes on to offer 6400 and 12800 ISO modes, but both suffer from significantly reduced image quality. Noise levels are considerably greater, there's visible horizontal banding, and the 12800 ISO sample additionally has more than its fair share of red hot pixels. So we'd avoid the top two sensitivities on the 50D unless you really have no other choice.

But between 100 and 3200 ISO, the EOS 50D really does deliver very similar noise levels to the earlier 40D at a pixel level.

 
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dinners said:
I had both 40D and 50D for a while and when it came to getting rid of one body I opted to keep the 40D as I found very little between them and could get a little more in the way of a return for the 50D. If I was choosing now though (I do more bird shots) I would opt for the higher res of the 50D.

In terms of ISO - I think the Cameralabs review comparing the 40D and 50D pretty much matches my own opinion.

When the EOS 50D was announced, Canon made bold claims about how gapless micro-lenses on the sensor would allow the new camera to match the noise levels of the earlier 40D. That's quite a claim considering the 50% increase in total pixels, but judging from the results below, there's certainly some truth in it.

At 100 and 200 ISO, both cameras deliver silky smooth output. At 400 ISO, pixel peepers will notice a very faint smattering of noise in the background, but again its similar on both cameras. Between 800 and 3200 ISO, both cameras exhibit greater increases in visible noise artefacts, although some may find the new 50D slightly smoother. This would however appear to be down to greater noise reduction on the 50D by default - if you check our Noise Reduction page, the samples with the Low setting are closer to the 40D.
The 50D then bravely goes on to offer 6400 and 12800 ISO modes, but both suffer from significantly reduced image quality. Noise levels are considerably greater, there's visible horizontal banding, and the 12800 ISO sample additionally has more than its fair share of red hot pixels. So we'd avoid the top two sensitivities on the 50D unless you really have no other choice.

But between 100 and 3200 ISO, the EOS 50D really does deliver very similar noise levels to the earlier 40D at a pixel level.
Click to expand...

Do you have a link to that test by Cameralabs?

A key thing I find with the 50D is that if you expose to the right you reduce the high risk of noise especially in the shadows which only gets worse if you try to correct it in PP.

Things I like about the 50D are:

-Micro AF adjust comes in very handy.
-6.3 fps and a decent buffer make action photography easier.
-the 15mp sensor does allow a generous amount of cropping before quality reduces.
 
I've read in more than one place (sorry I can't provide links, let Google be your friend...) that the 350D is a little cracker and indeed capable of giving very sharp images compared to some other Canon's so I'd be careful if changing cameras in search of sharper images.

I find that shooting technique, lenses and processing make more difference than the actual camera. But of course if you think like that you don't get to buy shiny new toys :D
 
Don't dismiss the 30D.... Excellent camera and so cheap these days! I have a 450D (Mod), 30D and 50D and I prefer the 30D for image quality although the 50D is okay :)
 
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