HELP Rebel XT or 20D?

My decision journey so far:
Looked at Nikon D70s. I’ve rejected this choice because of price/quality/speed of available lenses, useless histogram, extra software required to utilize RAW and excess noise issues (compared to Canon). Having to spend extra $ to buy Nikon Capture 4 & Noise Ninja narrows the cost gap between the D70s & the 20D. Factoring in shutter life probably makes them equal in price. The lens issue(s) eliminates Nikon from further consideration, in my mind.

My needs as a hobbyist only are as follows:
General Photography – I’m interested in all types at this point
Travel Photography – Will be in Europe next August. Before this trip I will add a zoom telephoto lens (either the EF 70-200mm f/4L USM or the EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM or some other yet to be determined lens). I hope that using the camera during the next 8 months will give me the experience to make that selection.
Architectural – this is business related. I have a need to be able to shoot exteriors for marketing purposes. Interiors would be nice, but I will never have the necessary auxiliary lighting to do properly (I’ll leave that area to the professionals). Eventually I will add a super wide lens as I don’t think the 17 is wide enough even for casual architectural interiors.

My experience: As a design professional I’m comfortable with artistic side of photography. I’ve owned a Pentax manual SLR (now defunct) for 35 years. I know a little bit about cameras, but am truly humbled by the knowledge expressed in these forums. Currently I’m stuck using my wife’s Coolpix 775, yuck. The limitations of this camera are frustrating, but the slowness of the auto-focus and shutter lag drive me crazy. My personality dictates the ‘need for speed’.

So . . . . . here’s where I need help. In my mind the XT is just big enough, size-wise, to be acceptable. I covet the 20D because I think it is a better camera, but probably don’t really need it now. The 20D with the 17-85 is within the budget (its not so much the money, but my wife probably thinks I already have too many toys). Reading these forums has convinced me that this camera may not be my last. Perhaps I should be thinking more about glass & less about bodies. Here are my choices as I see it:

Package 1
Digital Rebel XT (black)
EF 17-40mm f/4L USM
EF 50mm f/1.8 II

Adding about $100 gets me to the following:
Package 2
Digital Rebel XT (black)
EF 17-40mm f/4L USM
EF 50mm f/1.4 USM

Adding an additional $200 gets me to the following:
Package 3
20D
17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

I’m leaning toward package 2. The choice of the 50mm f/1.4 is clearly rebate driven. Under any other circumstance the 1.8 would be adequate.

All comments welcome
Thanks in advance
Kevin

Hmmmm. In my opinion, the XT with th L glass is the better direction to go considering the XT isnt much different than the 20D.. just less bells and whistles. but if you can afford the 20D and get by for now with the kit lens id say go for that because you might like to have the extras the 20D offers. Big descision huh? lol so is it, great lens good body or great body, good lens?
-zacker-
-zacker-

so you tell us. if you are a hobbyist, what are the advantages of the 20d over the xt that you would actually utilize?

Things that are different where the EOS 20D is better
The EOS 20D has a rear QCD (Quick Control Dial) which can be used to set exposure compensation, flash compensation, shutter speed or aperture in manual mode and has several other functions. The same functions are available in the Digital Rebel XT, but require the pushing of buttons. The advantage of the QCD is you can do things faster and without taking your eye from the viewfinder.
The EOS 20D can shoot at 5 frames/second, the Digital Rebel XT can shoot at 3 frames/sec probably will never care
The EOS 20D can shoot a burst of 23 high resolution JPEG frames before the buffer fills, The Digital Rebel XT can shoot 14 frames again you wont care
The EOS 20D has 9 autofocus zones, the Digital Rebel XT has 9 may be useful, but the 7 is pretty good
The EOS 20D provides full cross-type performance with maximum apertures as small as f5.6, yet it achieves up to 3 times the standard focusing precision when used with EF lenses featuring maximum apertures larger than or equal to f/2.8. The autofocus system of the Digital Rebel XT is inherited from the film Rebel XT body and has normal precision f5.6 sensors. The EOS 20D autofocus is specified to operate in 1 stop lower light than the Digital Rebel autofocus (-0.5 EV vs +0/5 EV)
The EOS 20D autofocus is faster than the autofocus on the Digital Rebel XT
The EOS 20D has a top shutter speed of 1/8000s, the Digital Rebel XT has a top shutter speed of 1/4000s unless you are shooting the surface of teh sun, not sure youd utilize the 1/8000
The EOS 20D has a flash x-sync speed of 1/250s, the Digital Rebel x-sync speed is 1/200s again, not sure if this matters
The EOS 20D has a pentaprism with a 0.9x viewfinder magnification, the Digital Rebel XT has a pentamirror with 0.8x magnification. who cares?
The EOS 20D has a highest ISO setting of 3200, the Digital Rebel XT has a high ISO setting of 1600. not sure its a huge advantage, but its nice to ahve. maybe too much noise for you to handle though
The EOS 20D is good for 1000 shots (no flash) on a single battery charge, the Digital Rebel XT is good for 600. i have filled a 4gb card and the battery still had juice, the battery life is more than enough for the xt, trust me. unless you are shooting weddings or soem other 10 houre 1000 shot event
The EOS 20D has a PC terminal for use with an external flash or strobe, the Digital Rebel XT does not. [I]a 5 dollar hot shoe adapter handles that problem[/I
The EOS 20D has a high performance shutter designed for increased reliability (100,000 cycles), the Digital Rebel XT has the normal Canon shutter (about 50,000 cycles). as a hobbyist, youll probably see another body you want before this thing dies
The shutter lag time of the EOS 20D is 65ms, the shutter lag time of the Digital Rebel XT is 100ms. i have not ever seen a shutter lag proble with teh xt. itd be hard pressed to see 35 millisecond difference.
The high-speed mirror drive give the EOS 20D a shortened viewfinder blackout time (115ms) compared to the Digital Rebel XT (170ms) again 65 milliseconds, is that a palapble difference?
The EOS 20D sensor (8.2MP, 22.5 x 15mm) is very slightly larger and has slightly more pixels than the Digital Rebel XT sensor (8.0MP, 22.2 x 14.8mm).
this is a difference to consider, im not sure if 20d users would say they notiuce a difference. most tests seem to indicate marginal differences
The EOS 20D has a multi-controller on the back of the camera can be pushed in eight directions, as well as down in the center, to simplify selection of the AF point, correction of white balance, trimming of images during direct printing, scrolling of magnified images etc. The Digital Rebel XT uses push buttons for the same functions.
The EOS 20D has top, front and rear covers made of a magnesium alloy for added strength and rigidity. The top, front and rear covers of the Rebel XT are plastic.
The EOS 20D has 18 custom functions, the Digital Rebel XT has 9 (List of XT custom functions) i havent used my custom functions yet, but you may


Things that are different where the Digital Rebel XT is better
Price - a no-brainer. The Digital Rebel XT is around $500 cheaper!
The Digital Rebel can use the low cost ($25) RC-1 and RC-5 infrared remotes. The EOS 20D can't.
The Digital Rebel XT is lighter than the EOS 20D (17.1oz vs. 24.2oz)

Package 2. You WILL want a better body (don't we all one day). The glass will come with you and stay for the ride.

Think of a body as a disposable item.

Graham

2!!! No question.

Ro1

oh yeah i guess i should have voted.

NUMBER 2!

Thanks for the feedback. Hard to know whether I would miss the extra features that the 20D has without having some experience with a digital SLR. The real issue for me is to accept the idea that the body will become obsolete quicker than the lenses & that it's pointless to pay for bells & whistles that I may never use or at least not miss. I guess I was looking for confirmation that XT users love their cameras and don't think about upgrading more than once a week.

I would go with package 2. I just ordered the 50mm 1.4 and the 17-40L. Can't wait until they arrive. One day I'll replace my 300D, but nice glass is more important for myself as an amature. I don't need, but would like the speed of the 20D. But I think I'll get more use out of the new lenses.

ok i have never used a 20d but i relly have no desire to move up to it either. i am perfectly happy with the xt and have not thought about the 20d. there are gross exaggerations about its small size. i am 6' 3 225 lbs and it feels just fine in my hands which is one of the main reasons i hear people want the bigger 20d.

As I mentioned in another thread, they are the same in terms of image quality. And in fact, I find myself using the XT more often. Its just so easy to carry around because of the smaller size and lighter weight. By the way, Package 2 is my choice here.

I'd vote No# 2 also. I have to say I'm very happy with mine, I have used a 20D and my images come out the same no matter which camera I use. I do day-dream at times about upgrading but to a 1D/1Ds not a 20D, I just don't see enough of a difference for the type of shooting I do and I'll never afford the higher end units. But that said the 350D/Rebel XT does the job fine, I just like to drool over the thought of the others (good thing they are moisture sealed lol)

I would never consider upgrading my 350D to a 20D......a 5D on the other hand.....

But seriously, the limitations I have found with my 350D are 1) the glass and 2) me.
I can fix 1, and will over time improve my lenses, but 2 I guess just takes practice.

Package 2 gets my vote!