t2i/t3i vs 60d (contemplating decisions)

Background Yes, this is going to be my first SLR camera and I think the 60d would be a tab advance (like driving a yaris and then trying to drive a ferrari), but I would love some insight on these three. I don't have a budget but i don't want to spend an arm and a leg if that makes sense for a nice sold built camera (but of course the lens will be). I refused to buy a used camera since i never had good experience, and I will consider doing it for lens once i learn how to id goods from possible broken ones?

In a previous post about lens recommendation, I wanted to take dog agility/ fast action playing (... and etc), landscape/ nature, birds, some macro to say the list. Ultimately three lens (something along the lines of 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens, EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM, and a great/simple indoor-outside len(any comments or recommendations about these are welcome?)).

Again, this is going to be first SLR camera and my wife gave me the thumbs up for this. I do understand this is going to take time to learn over time to get/enjoy the most of the camera (and i don't get frustrated on learning new things). I would love to understand, hear, and read recommendations, stories, or comments.

-Thank you the help- Graham.

IQ-wise not a big difference between the three. Biggest advantage of the 60D, as far as I'm concerned, is the larger size and improved ergonomics. The Rebels are tiny.

Get a 60D through the Canon Loyalty Program for about $640 plus taxes.

If you can afford it with the lenses you want, get it!

I love the AF system, for fast action! Only the 7D has better from the affordable Canons. But I found the 60D's pretty good. I am not sure what the T2i/T3i have...

If you can afford the extra for the 60D will still being able to afford good lenses then is say get the 60D.

They all have similar (actually might be the exact same) sensors. For the extra money you get a larger body, back scroll wheel, bit more control, petaprisum (makes the view finder a bit brighter), and all 9 AF points are cross type.

If you can't swing the extra cost with out having to make compromises with your lenses then get the t3i or t2i. Both with give you about the same results just with a few less features.

Also your yaris to ferrari statement is a bit off. It would be more like going from a yaris to a Camry. Little bigger, couple extra features but will still get you from point a to point b with our being a race car.

Get the 60d. The extra features will matter more to you than you think when you become more experienced. You'll like the viewfinder, shutter, top LCD, battery, etc over the Rebels. T2i was my first DSLR but I picked up a 60d after 1 1/2 yrs because I realized I wanted those extras. You're more likely to outgrow a Rebel before you outgrow a 60d (just my experience).

nmlvaio101 wrote in post #14069063
Background Yes, this is going to be my first SLR camera and I think the 60d would be a tab advance (like driving a yaris and then trying to drive a ferrari), but I would love some insight on these three. I don't have a budget but i don't want to spend an arm and a leg if that makes sense for a nice sold built camera (but of course the lens will be). I refused to buy a used camera since i never had good experience, and I will consider doing it for lens once i learn how to id goods from possible broken ones?

In a previous post about lens recommendation, I wanted to take dog agility/ fast action playing (... and etc), landscape/ nature, birds, some macro to say the list. Ultimately three lens (something along the lines of 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens, EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM, and a great/simple indoor-outside len(any comments or recommendations about these are welcome?)).

Again, this is going to be first SLR camera and my wife gave me the thumbs up for this. I do understand this is going to take time to learn over time to get/enjoy the most of the camera (and i don't get frustrated on learning new things). I would love to understand, hear, and read recommendations, stories, or comments.

-Thank you the help- Graham.

Graham, an old Alabama hall of fame high school football coach/athletic director who recently passed gave me some great advice in one of our many great interviews. He said as an athletic director, ask for as more equipment than you will need your in your first year because your budget will likely never be bigger.

If your wife is approving you to get the camera you want, get that refurbished 60D from the Canon Loyalty Program for $640 (pre-tax). You will have a hard time explaining why you need more camera if you go low now and want something in a few years.

If you are worried about the refurbished camera's being a used camera, there are many testimonials on this forum from people who have bought refurbished 60D's. Mine, for example, had about 350 shutter actuations on it. Others have gotten them with under 100, 50, and even 15. Canon checks each camera before sending them out, and they include a 90-day warranty. If it isn't up to your standard when you get it, you can ship it back.

Yes, the 60D's successor will no doubt be great when it comes out in the bottom half of this year or the first quarter of the next. That said, you are getting a lot of camera for the price point (it was over $1k new when it came out). You'll like being able to shoot your dogs/birds at 5.3 fps as opposed to 3.7 with a rebel. The auto-focus has cross-points, too, which make it faster than the rebel line. You'll also like the way the 60D feels balanced with a bigger "L" lens on it, as it is heavier than the Rebel and has a killer grip on it.

The camera handles nice, and is pretty easy to use (this is my first Canon, owned a Nikon D40 before this and the Canon is much easier to use in spite of being a class up in camera). The rebels and the 60D were all made to be user-friendly, something the pro and semi-pro photographers fussed about. They were expecting it to be more customizable like the 7D, and instead Canon made it amateur-friendly. That's not to say this isn't a camera you can grow with, though. There are all the custom modes you will need on the 60D.

It is true the T2i, T3i, 60D and 7D all share a sensor/have the same MP, and you will get similar picture quality out of each. The articulating screen on my 60D is something I've used quite a bit in taking low and high angled pics. It is great when I take the occasional movie of our baby, too.

Another thing you are gaining with the 60D is battery life—it uses the 5D and 7D's professional-grade battery.

Like you, I also had to get the approval from the wife. She initially balked at the price, then gave me the okay when Canon put their refurbs on sale for 15% off. The Canon Loyalty Program, which I didn't know about back then, gives you 20% off.

I've put just over 10,000 clicks on my camera since getting it a few days before Christmas, mostly thanks to shooting a lot of sports for work (and it being my first camera with a burst mode). Learning on the fly has been fun, but it probably tripled the number of shutter actuations I really needed to make. As you can tell, I love this camera and I am glad I bossed up and got the best camera/latest camera I could for the money.

My 50mm f/1.8 ii ($85 refurbished) and 100mm f/2 ($330 used) lenses are great for what I shoot most of the time—low-light sports and portrait-style shots. I originally had the 55-250 mm lens ($205 refurbished, sold later for $165) but it just wasn't fast enough to use for night baseball games. It was, however, a cost-saving alternative to the 70-200 f/4L ($550+ used). Since my 50mm is a tad long around the house and for some landscape, I'm looking at getting a 24mm 2.8 ($200-range used)for that purpose, and eventually a 550ex flash ($200ish used) as well.

There are definitely ways to save hundreds on your way to building a solid kit. I wish you the best of luck whichever route you choose to go!

Get the 60d.
I moved from a Rebel T1i to the 60d.
BEST CHOICE ever.
the battery is worth it alone. 1000+ clicks easy where the rebel was around 400.

add in the back scroll wheel, top LCD, better weather sealing, wireless flash control, better high ISO, larger size and you have a great camera that you wont likely grow out of.

I plan on having mine for years.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. This has been an ongoing debate for some time. I just don't want the get t2i/t3i only to be left wondering about the 60d since its only a few more bucks (easily said). Where I would like to get the 7d, it is way advance and I don't want to be discourage by it. I guess for now I need to find a great everyday lens.

the only difference between the t2i, t3i, 60D and 7D is the features, all have identical image quality.

the best camera in this class for its price/features is the 60D by far, the 7D is all around a superior camera but we are talking about a good few hundred dollars or more in price difference. The jump to a 60D from the t3i is much much smaller.

the 60D is worth it for the semi pro style layout. as a former rebel owner i cant even begin to describe how much better the 60D is over the rebel, it feels more solid, it balances lenses better, fits my hands better, isn't overly heavy. switching iso, shutter, apertures, metering, burst rates, is all at a touch of a button, no digging through menus to do it. the swivel lcd is a god send even if just for tripod work, no squatting down to look into the view finder. the battery life is amazing, i charge it maybe once every two weeks longer if i dont shoot much.

if you get a rebel you may get the bug to upgrade soon after, but if you get a 60D i guarantee you wont want to upgrade to a 7D, the only reason you will upgrade is a decade from now when a new model comes out or if you choose to go full frame. you rarely, if ever, never see any posts about contemplating a switch to a 7D from a 60D.

Go for the 60D, for just a small amount more it has many more features. At first glance their "bullet point" spec sheets may look similar, but go to the specs page on Canon's website and really look at the detailed specs, and you will find the areas where the 60D is much better, such as auto focus, viewfinder, shutter speed, exposure controls, etc.

Keyan wrote in post #14071593
Go for the 60D, for just a small amount more it has many more features. At first glance their "bullet point" spec sheets may look similar, but go to the specs page on Canon's website and really look at the detailed specs, and you will find the areas where the 60D is much better, such as auto focus, viewfinder, shutter speed, exposure controls, etc.

it sounds better too (literally).

I was on the same boat when I was looking for my first DSLR. It was between the T3i and 60D and I ended up with the 60D.
If you have the extra cash for the 60D, go for it. If not then get the T3i. I went with the 60D because it was slightly faster, bigger battery, more cross focus point and (the main reason) the bigger body. it feels better in my hands then the T3i.

Another vote for the 60D. I have had mine since it came out about 1.5 years ago, and it is fantastic. The T3i is also good, but significantly smaller and less rugged. One thing lacking on the T2i is wireless control of off-camera flash using the pop-up. The 60D, 7D, and T3i all have this, and it works exceptionally well.

nmlvaio101 wrote in post #14069063
Background Yes, this is going to be my first SLR camera and I think the 60d would be a tab advance (like driving a yaris and then trying to drive a ferrari), but I would love some insight on these three. I don't have a budget but i don't want to spend an arm and a leg if that makes sense for a nice sold built camera (but of course the lens will be). I refused to buy a used camera since i never had good experience, and I will consider doing it for lens once i learn how to id goods from possible broken ones?

In a previous post about lens recommendation, I wanted to take dog agility/ fast action playing (... and etc), landscape/ nature, birds, some macro to say the list. Ultimately three lens (something along the lines of 100mm f/2.8 Macro Lens, EF 70-200mm f/4L IS USM, and a great/simple indoor-outside len(any comments or recommendations about these are welcome?)).

Again, this is going to be first SLR camera and my wife gave me the thumbs up for this. I do understand this is going to take time to learn over time to get/enjoy the most of the camera (and i don't get frustrated on learning new things). I would love to understand, hear, and read recommendations, stories, or comments.

-Thank you the help- Graham.

See THIS thread for a detailed comparison between the T3i and 60D.

I prefer the 60D's ergonomics over the T2i and T3i. I had a T1i for a year, then moved to the 60D and I really like the difference. The controls and slightly larger size just make the 60D easier to handle. To me, it's worth the extra cost.

nmlvaio101 wrote in post #14069063
In a previous post about lens recommendation, I wanted to take dog agility/ fast action playing (... and etc), landscape/ nature, birds, some macro to say the list.

-Thank you the help- Graham.

if you're into dog agility pics then I agree with the 60D and 7D suggestions - higher FPS rate, AF and buffer. But all three can get you good pics