Canon EOS 500 N > Reviews (7)

A year or two ago, when I was on a family holiday, I started fooling around with my dad's old SLR (single-lens-reflex - where the viewfinder shows the actual image through the main lens, unlike 'point-and-click' cameras), and I realised how enjoyable photography is.

So, after coming into a bit of cash on my 18th birthday, I went shopping for a nice camera. Wanting to avoid the bottom of the range stuff, but knowing I am nevertheless an amateur, I went for one range above the base price. By the way, this is a good shopping philosophy....you know you aren't getting the absolute dog ends of the production lines and therefore the worst product. The camera that caught my eye was the Canon EOS-500 N. Here's a quick rundown of the features which I will explain later:

28-80mm zoom lens.
Auto or Manual focus - three focus points.
Timer.
Layover/Multiple frame option.
Red Eye reduction.
Adjustable Frame rate and Aperture.
Creative and Programmed Image Control Zones
Automatic depth of field.
Built in Flash.
Strap.

Cost - in Dixons, £230 (plus a free bag in special offer)

Zooms Lens

Unlike older SLRs, pretty much all new ones have some form of adjustable zoom lens, as opposed to have to change the actual lens unit for different zoom levels. The EOS-500 N has a 28-80mm unit. Many cheaper SLRs have a 35-70mm one. The difference? Sounds small, but 28mm is far superior. It allows a considerably wider picture at close range, so if you want to be able to take decent close-ups, 35mm is simply not good enough. The extra 10mm at the long distance end is also useful. Wider ranges, and telephoto lens of course can be purchased separately and easily attached.

Auto or Manual Focus

Having learnt to take pictures on an old style focus lens, I was a bit hostile towards autofocus. Now I see why they bothered to invent it. You simply choose the zoom level you want, and align the focus points (visible through the viewfinder as three small rectangles) to the target. I'll explain more about the focus points later. Anyway, then you just hold the shutter button half down, and it focuses perfectly - and I mean better and faster than you could manually (The EOS-500 N has a very fast autofocus for its price). This is useful from a lazy point of view, but is also practical - when photographing fast moving objects, you can focus very accurately. But if you don't want this new-fangled technology, you can always turn it off and do it yourself the same as on an old SLR.

Timer

Useful for taking pictures of yourself when there's no-one around!

Multiple Exposures

This is for those arty shots! The EOS-500 N lets you take up to 9 shots on one frame. I haven't actually used this yet, I have to admit, but its another feature!

Red Eye Reduction

Another handy feature for avoiding making your subjects look like devils.

Adjustable Shutter Speed and Apeture

Rightio. A quick lesson in shutter speeds and apertures. The shutter speed is how long the camera allows light onto the film. For a) bright or b) fast-moving objects, a fast speed would be used because a) it prevents the intense light from making the picture too bright as less light is allowed to reach the frame and b) it prevents blur.

The aperture is (in simple terms) the range of focus for a picture. A small aperture allows a greater range of focus on a shot. Small apertures require faster shutter speeds. This is where it gets complicated. Fortunately, this camera is really helpful. I will explain how the EOS-500 N makes it easy in the 'Creative and Programmed Image Control Zones' section after this one. Anyway, this camera allow you to choose the aperture and shutter speeds.

Creative and Programmed Image Control Zones.

This camera has these two zones, which make life an awful lot easier for you. The settings are selected by a 'command dial' - a little knob you turn to select the right option. I'll go round each.

Firstly, the Programmed Image Control zone. These are a load of preset options for certain circumstances. They are Night Shots, Action, Close-Up, Landscape, and Portrait. In each setting, the aperture and shutter speed are preset, for people who don't know what they are doing!

In the middle, the Full Auto option. This tuns the camera into a point and click - aperture and shutter speed are set according to the way the camera sees the subject.

Then, the Creative Zone. This is where the greatness of the camera shines through. The Av and Tv options allow you to select a shutter speed, and the camera selects the appropriate aperture so the shot comes off right, and vice versa. This is an excellent transition towards full Aperture/Shutter speed control, if you take note of what the aperture is for the shot! Of course, there is also the option to control both, and the camera will let you make a mess of it! Then there's the Automatic Depth of Field option, and the control for selecting the ISO - thats alighning the camera with the kind of film you have loaded.

Built in Flash

Yes, it comes with a flash, and it pops up when its required. Of course, you can turn this off if you want! It can be quite confusing, because the ound of it popping up is pretty similar to the sound it makes when it takes a photo!

Strap

For carrying it with, when you want to look like a tourist.

Other points.

This camera has a very user-friendly interface, with a full digital monitor to tell you what you're doing, as well as as little display that you can see when looking through the viewfinder so you don't have to take you eyes off the subject.

Its a very nice camera to hold, and is very light for the price. It comes with a lens cap, but its advisable to purchase a UV filter - not only for the function, but also as a way of protecting the lens if you drop the camera. These cost £5-£10 from any camera shop.

Ah, I forgot about the three-point focus. The three tiny rectangles visible through the viewfinder allow you to choose the focal point of your picture for the autofocus - Left, Right, Centre, or all at once. This doesn't affect manual focus.

OK, thats enough from me! I cannot recommend this camera highly enough - for the price, Canons are excellent value and this camera is no exception. Happy snapping!