drmaxx wrote in post #13063122
This is a serious question - I am thinking about 'upgrading' to a 'better' body but have a hard time to see the benefit in terms of picture quality.
Reading POTN now for quite a while there are all this quotes about the Rebels: "better point & shoot", "beginner camera", "entry level", "base to move up", ....
I shoot with a Rebel 450D for a few years now. I am comfortable with producing decent pictures even under more difficult conditions. I use most of the buttons on my camera frequently and shoot raw.
Now, I am looking at the other Canon bodies and have difficulties to be able to identify a good reason to switch. And yes, I am aware of the specs (higher ISO, faster shutter speeds, ..). But it seems to me that most of the 'upgrade' are bells and whistles and not much an improvement in picture quality (e.g. like going from a compact to a SLR).
So, here's my question:
Did anybody switched from a Rebel to an xxD or xD and his pictures improved? Why? Or: Did you switched and
you improved as a photographer because of the new camera (UI, ...)?
OK, here's the deal with upgrading your body...
First, image quality isn't really that much different between the DSLRs. Newer DSLRs have greater resolution, as do full frame DSLRs (usually), but that will be useful to you only if you need to crop heavily or if you need to print very large. Otherwise, the image quality will be very similar at lower ISOs.
At higher ISOs, things start to look a little different, but images from bodies as old as the 20D can be made to look remarkably good with modern postprocessing software. The biggest factor by far in determining the image quality is going to be your exposure, which determines how much of the camera's dynamic range you're using to record the image you want. Dynamic range has improved somewhat over time, but not dramatically. Even the 10D is capable of recording nearly 11 Ev of dynamic range. Full frame gets you only about a stop better than that.
The biggest jump in image quality will be had by going with a full frame camera, but as I've said elsewhere, even that will yield a relatively small improvement. The out-of-the-camera sharpness will be a little better, and the resolution will be higher, but that won't matter unless you're printing large. The tones will be a little creamier at lower ISOs, by about a stop, but I suspect that even that is something that will take a trained eye to really notice. The noise will similarly be more controlled on full frame, by about a stop, at higher ISOs in comparison with crop cameras of the same generation. If you stick with crop cameras, the only image quality improvements you'll see by going with a newer camera will be higher resolution, and noise at higher ISOs.
No, image quality isn't a good reason to upgrade unless you find that you need the best possible image quality you can lay your hands on. If you're in a position where image quality is that important, you'll want full frame and you'll already be unsatisfied with the image quality you're getting. But for your specific case, where you're apparently not going to be happy with anything but a major improvement image quality, there's no reason to upgrade to get it, because the improvement will be nothing like the improvement you get by going from a point'n'shoot to a DSLR.
And that leads to the real reason to upgrade your body: the ability to capture the image more reliably. More capable bodies are faster, more responsive, and tend to have better autofocus systems (even the full frame cameras have improved center autofocus points). The extra speed means the camera will obey your command when you command it, without delay. The better autofocus systems will increase the reliability with which you'll get in-focus shots, which will in turn increase your keeper rate.
However, much depends on how you use the camera and, as importantly, how you want to use it. If you shoot a lot of high-speed action, then fast, precise, and flexible autofocus will be much more important than if you're shooting still subjects. If you have a lot of lenses and are having trouble with some of them in terms of getting precisely focused shots, it's possible that the microadjustment feature on some of the newer bodies will prove useful. But if your demands on the autofocus system are relatively straightforward and unsophisticated, then the autofocus system in your Rebel may be entirely sufficient.
The bottom line is that you shouldn't bother upgrading your body unless you have a specific reason for it and know what that reason is and how best to satisfy it. That reason, whatever it may be, will determine what body to upgrade to. If you don't have any good, solid, specific reason to upgrade, however, then you shouldn't, because it means your camera is giving you everything you need and want.
Older camera bodies are just as capable of capturing stunning images as they always have been. The 10D thread that's still active is an excellent example of that, and is but one such sample thread. There are several others.
And yes, the above probably goes against quite a lot of the "conventional wisdom" you see being bandied about here. This is a gear forum, after all. But money is hard to come by, and there is little reason to spend it unless you have some specific need that can be fulfilled by doing so.
