The Canon Xsi: A Camera with Impressive Capabilities

Photography enthusiasts are always looking for a great deal when it comes to digital single-lens reflex cameras. And the new Canon Xsi should impress just about everyone. Even the professionals may be surprised at how powerful this so-called "entry-level camera" really is.

What is it?

The Canon Xsi is the newest camera in the digital rebel series. Everything is better with this camera. For starters, it has a 12MP CMOS sensor. This allows individuals to take their pictures, and then blow them up to gargantuan proportions. Granted, this is not necessarily something useful for the average consumer; however, it is useful for those of you who sell your images. Bigger pictures may lead to larger paychecks.

Some of the more professional photographers may worry about the smaller sensor size of the Xsi. The more expensive cameras, such as the 40D digital slr, have a larger sensor. Basically, all that means is that the image quality is better than many other digital slr cameras. However, the Xsi is about on par with the 40 D when it comes to quality. So you don't have to worry about that issue.

Other Perks -

The Xsi also comes with a three inch lcd monitor, better battery life, an enhanced dust removal system, and you can still use older lenses. These lenses could be from older versions of the Digital Rebel Xt or Xti series. The Xsi also comes with something called live view, which allows you to see your subject on the lcd screen before you shoot it.

Live view allows you to take the picture without having to look through the viewfinder. This is similar to what most point and shoot cameras do. However, with most digital slrs this is simply not an option. You have to look through the tiny viewfinder to take the pictures. But not anymore.

Who Should Buy the Xsi?

If you're looking for a simple camera to snap photos of your family and friends, then you probably don't need to purchase the Xsi. However, if you want to start selling your photos then you might want to buy this camera. Photography students who are on a budget might also want to invest some money in this camera.

Problems -

The main problem with the Xsi is that the body feels really light and cheap. Even the older Digital Rebel Xt feels more solid than the Xsi. Why does weight matter? Weight matters because many professional photographers prefer their digital slr cameras to be somewhat heavy due to balance issues. If you have a heavy lens and a light camera body, then it's more difficult to keep the camera steady when you're taking a picture without a tripod. But if your lens and the body weigh roughly the same, then it's easier to keep the camera from shaking so much.

Also, if you're coming from a Digital Rebel Xt or Xti then you will not be able to use your old batteries or memory cards. The Xsi has redesigned both of these components, which makes the older ones useless now. So go ahead and sell them on eBay or something. One other thing. Earlier, the live view function was discussed. The only problem with live view is that you have to manually focus the lens when it is on. Autofocus will not work when live view is active. Keep in mind that live view may also shorten the Xsi's battery life if you shoot exclusively with it. So if you were planning on upgrading to this camera solely because of the live view feature, then you may want to rethink your decision.

The Price Tag -

As you may have surmised, the Canon Xsi is going to cost you more than your standard camera. You can expect to pay around eight hundred dollars for the body alone, or nine hundred if you include the kit lens. The price will almost certainly drop if you want to wait a few months before your purchase. But if you can't wait till then you will have to pay more.

Explaining the kit lens -

The kit lens is nice because it comes with image stabilization, but it also feels lightweight and cheap. The value of image stabilization is that it lessens the likelihood of your picture becoming blurry if it's disturbed slightly. So if you have shaky hands, then image stabilization is probably going to benefit you.

The kit lens uses 18-55mm for its focus range, which basically means that it's a 3x optical zoom lens. How do you figure this out, you ask? Simple. All you have to do is divide 55 by 18, which gives you 3.05. This is roughly equivalent to 3x optical zoom. This rule applies to all lenses, so if the dimensions were 28-200mm then the lens would be a 7x optical zoom lens. And so forth.

The Canon Xsi is an impressive digital slr camera that is perfect for photography enthusiasts and even lower grade professionals. You can expect good, high quality photos from this camera. But don't buy it if you're not seriously into photography.