Canon EOS 20D > Reviews (23)

Canon have once again come good with the semi-pro EOS 20Ddigital SLR camera.

I upgraded to the 20D after having a 300D for the past 12 months. Immediately you can feel the better build quality, the magnesium body is more rugged than the plastic 300D body, and the lens mount is more positive when attaching lenses.

I photograph a lot of motor sports, and where this camera really comes into it's own is in the speed of the AF mechanism with it's 9-point focusing, the shutter speed (up to 5 shots per second) the size of the internal buffer (no more waiting around for the buffer to clear before taking more shots) and the very short power-up time (no more missed shots waiting for the camera to power-up). One big benefit over and above the 300D is a ability to use AI Servo in all of the creative modes.

The power of the dSLR camera comes into its own when shooting in RAW. This allows you to use software to manipulate the images to get them just the way you want. The camera comes bundled with a good suite of software to allow you to post-process your images. Be aware though that RAW images are just that - raw with no in-camera manipulation so on first inspection can seem a little soft and unsaturated… nothing that cane be fixed in post-processing

All in all this is a very competent camera, with an extensive range of lenses and other accessories available. It is aimed at the semi-pro or advanced amateur photographer, but with the inclusion of a number of fully automatic shooting modes, a total ammeter could pick-up the camera and take excellent shots.