Getting the 20D tomorrow

[booggerg]

!!! what CF card do you guys recommend? I currently have a normal Sandisk 1giger. What is the most cost effective brand/model out there? I haven't had a need for high performance CF cards before so I'm at a lost. thanks!

[markubig]

i have a 2GB and a couple of 1GB Sandisk Ultra IIs. If you plan on shooting RAW get at least a 2GB card. I shoot RAW and fit about 200 shots on the 2GB card. And yes, a high performance card does make a difference w/ a 20D. your normal sandisk will work, but won't be as fast as a high performance card.

[markubig]

oh and congrats on the 20D . . . trust me, you will LOVE IT!!! I know i love mine.

[DwightMcCann]

I also urge Sandisk ... we're still recovering from a recall from Lexar for their Professional 80X cards where we had to send them back at our expense and they were replaced with whatever Lexar felt like in terms of refurbs, etc. I'm using exclusively Sandisk Extreme IIIs, but they are pricey. I think Mark is right on the mark with the Sandisk Ultra IIs and 2G is a great size, but if the 1Gs may be the current price point. If you can afford it, get two! BTW, I have a 20D coming Friday ... the one noted in my .sig.

[lostdoggy]

Yes Ultra II all the way you can find th 1GB for around $75 if you look hard enough.

[JABACo]

Got my 20D Monday and love it so far. I still use my 10D with both having Ultra II 1gb's

[jscotti]

I'm happy with a 2G Ultra II card that I found a good price on at Newegg. I'm thinking of getting either a 1G Ultra II card as backup or maybe a 2nd 2G for those longer trips. My 2G card holds around 500 full resolution jpeg images and about 160 RAW+jpg images (with some dependence on the ISO setting due to less efficient jpeg compression of noisier images at higher ISO).

You need at least something like the 60X speed of the Ultra II cards to fully make use of the faster I/O with the Digic II processor, though the performance tests I saw before getting the camera put the Ultra II at the same level as far as the 20D was concerned as the Extreme & Lexar 80X. Those will probably be faster if you use a card reader, but the 20D's I/O speed is a little below them all, so you won't gain much while shooting with the more expensive Extreme or Lexar 80X CF cards.

Good luck with your new camera! I can't take enough pix with mine.

Jim.

[booggerg]

Wow only 500 JPEGs on a 2G card!?!? I really need to get used to 8meg coming from my paltry 3meg D30...


Man this 20D Shutter is loud!!!

[jscotti]

Wow only 500 JPEGs on a 2G card!?!? I really need to get used to 8meg coming from my paltry 3meg D30...

Yep, it sure eats up the CF space! The 2G card gives about 1.8G of space as my 20D sees it and I've gotten up to 1.7G of images on it at a time before downloading after a trip. I had more than 450 images in that case with some RAW+jpg mixed in with the jpegs.

Man this 20D Shutter is loud!!!

It sure is! I was trying to show a friend how I might take a stealth image the first day I had my 20D and when the shutter went off, I almost jumped out of my skin ! :o So much for stealth. I guess you need to use a nice telephoto and shoot from a longer distance to achieve any level of stealth. It had been a few years since I last used an SLR (good ol' trusty K-1000), shooting with a TLR and point and shoot digitals since then - all those have rather quiet shutters.

Jim.

[tim]

Wow only 500 JPEGs on a 2G card!?!? I really need to get used to 8meg coming from my paltry 3meg D30...

I only get 110 RAWs on my 1GB cards!

[Michaelmjc]

I dont see the difference in speed with my normal sandisk and the ultra II's...

[markubig]

I dont see the difference in speed with my normal sandisk and the ultra II's...are the Rebel XTs supposed take advantage of the faster CF cards? I believe that the 300Ds didn't and only the 20Ds and up can take advantage of the faster cards . . . i remember reading that somewhere.

[felix21685]

according to the rob galbraith website
the 20D writes raw at 5.654 MB/sec onto a ultra II
and the XT does it at 5.787MB/sec

at jpegs the xt is a little slower than the 20d though
but according to that and raw..its the same if not faster..by a hair

[markubig]

according to the rob galbraith website
the 20D writes raw at 5.654 MB/sec onto a ultra II
and the XT does it at 5.787MB/sec

at jpegs the xt is a little slower than the 20d though
but according to that and raw..its the same if not faster..by a hair thanks for clearing that up Felix http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gifhttp://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif

[felix21685]

no probalo... i was shocked that it was a little faster at raw.!
i thought it was slower in both.but its almost the same u know.

[Salleke]

thanks for clearing that up Felix http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gifhttp://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_biggrin.gif

Two months ago I bought a Sandisk EXTREME III 2 GB for my 20 D. Everybody thinks that these CF cards works faster in the 20 D and it is not.
The Sandisk standard CF cards perform with the same speed in the 20 D as the Sandisk EXTREME III.
I know that on the Rob Galbraight website it is stated otherwise but in real tests it does not show at all. I have done the tests several times.
I think that the 20 D don't take advantage of the faster card in it. The write speed of the 20 D is to low,
so every CF card you put in it works evenly fast.
The CF cards are faster but the 20 D is the slowest link in the chain.
IMHO don't buy the more expensive Sandisk EXTREME III for now, but go for the cheaper models.
In 6 months the EXTREME III CF cards will become cheaper anyway.