Canon EOS 650D test: Improved autofocus lets you shoot any kind of zoo

When last summer company Canon declared release of the next high-level amateur DSLR EOS 650D, the first reaction on the published characteristics was calm: in figures there almost all repeated data of the previous model. But appearances can be deceiving, and underneath the same numbers were big changes. Getting ahead of myself, I’ll tell you about my personal impressions. These changes are aimed at changing the camera from an obedient and precise tool into a more responsive creature with its own logic, which does not blindly do the will of a photographer, but carries on a dialogue with him and fully participates in the common cause – taking pictures. Actually, this process has been going on everywhere for a long time, and in the area of smartphones and computers it has already progressed quite far obviously, this transformation of cameras by smartphones is prompted. And although the author has nothing to do with smartphones and initially treated the innovations with caution, I can say at once that after the first quarter of an hour of communication with the camera, it turned out that all for the better and, indeed, the new camera controls are more pleasant and interesting.

Basic specifications

Sensor – CMOS 18 megapixel, 5184×3456 pixels,

Lens interchangeable, Canon EF mount, EF-S,

Image stabilization – not in the camera, some lenses have optical stabilization,

Protection against dust is available, automatic and forced,

Viewfinder is optical, pentameter, 0.85x, 95% of the frame,

Display tilting on two axes, Clear View II TFT LCD, 1 040 thousand. pixels, 75 mm diagonal visible image,

Focusing – Hybrid phase and contrast focusing system, single and tracking. Works with some lenses of modern design. 15 focus points, modes: multi-point, center, user selectable

Touch-screen controls, including focus area and shutter release

Shutter speed range – 30-1/4000 sec, long manual , flash sync 1/200 sec,

Shooting modes – P, A, S, M, intelligent auto mode, 8 scene modes, video,

Exposure metering is 62-zone, center-weighted, spot, partial. Exposure compensation ± 5 AV,

Built-in flash, GN 13, exposure compensation ± 3 EV, wirelessly compatible with Canon’s external flashes,

Sensitivity Auto 100-6400, ISO 100-12,800 extendable to 25,600 ,

Picture formats – RAW 14 bit , RAW+JPG, JPG,

SD SDHC SDXC memory cards,

Burst shooting – single, continuous up to 5 fps, self-timer with delay, remote shutter, exposure bracketing,

Full HD video shooting with auto or manual focus, MOV,

Interfaces – High speed USB, HDMI mini C, external stereo microphone, remote shutter button, wireless connection via Eye-Fi cards,

Power – Battery LP-E8, 7.2 V, 1120 mAh,

Dimensions – 133×100×79 mm without lens ,

Weight 575g without lens and battery ,

Approximate price 21 000 rub. body

Electronics, controls, ergonomics

Let’s move on to specifics. The EOS 650D features a new processor and sensor, which is the main thing in the camera.

In addition, tilting and rotating around two axes LCD screen became for the first time in the history of SLR cameras touch screen and actively participate in the management of the camera, and this is a completely new philosophy of management.

The sensor now has groups of pixels for phase detection autofocus, the fastest autofocusing technology in a DSLR.

It makes continuous autofocus possible when shooting video, and Live View photography has improved dramatically in terms of speed of focus, though we must admit that traditional autofocus when viewed through the viewfinder is still faster. Nevertheless, the process is underway, and in terms of video recording the novelty differs from previous experiences strikingly and for the better.

New features required a new control, and here we have to say a lot of good things about the LCD touch screen. In general, freely rotating screen, which still can boast a minority of SLRs – a great value, and when it is available, the meaning of looking through the viewfinder decreases radically. If photography is a way of self-expression, the point of view becomes a fundamental starting point. If you want to shoot more or less close-ups, the screen can help you change the impression of the picture with a single movement of your hand as some photographers joke, often the main limitation is the short stature of the shooter, otherwise the pictures would be more expressive .

And in the old days there was a reason for the popularity of rigid aluminum cases for large and medium format: if necessary, they could make a photographer 40 cm taller .

Separate story – selective focus on the LCD screen with a point-and-sharpness indication at the touch of a finger. The camera responds quickly, the effect can be seen immediately. You get used to this kind of convenience very quickly, and we can guarantee that it will soon be widespread.

In general, it is surprisingly easy and fast to operate the camera with the screen.

A special icon is permanently displayed on the screen, touching it brings up the main menu, which consists of a number of symbols that stand for practically all the parameters related to shooting. Touching any of them brings up the corresponding menu, and one or two taps can quickly change any shooting parameter or camera setting, and the process is not only quick but also clear: in most cases, the scales appear on the screen and the desired value can be set instantly, not by tediously touching one point repeatedly.

Of course, the camera also has classic thumbnail controls. Their arrangement is traditional for a Canon camera the only noticeable change: the lever on and off the camera appeared a third position – the video , and if you have experience with any of the previous models of the company, change any shooting options is not difficult for you.

It turns out that the camera has two parallel control systems and they coexist peacefully without getting in each other’s way, and the photographer is free to choose which he likes best.

It can also remotely trigger coordinated external flashes wirelessly, making it easy to achieve many studio effects when shooting outdoors, on the beach or in the woods.

The camera’s ergonomics are fine, which is not surprising: Canon has a lot of experience in this area.

Good thing the camera isn’t too tiny and rounded – it’s easy to hold with one hand. The case is made of firm and pleasant to the touch plastic, the screen rotates smoothly without backlash, the motion of all buttons and rotating wheels is moderately elastic and changes are distinctly fixed – everything is up to the mark here.

Shooting

EOS 650D has a complete set of shooting modes, typical of a good modern camera: it has professional modes P, A, S, M, designed for the knowledgeable user comprehensive set for the amateur who still believes the automatic more than himself, which passes with time, the intelligent automatic mode, which independently selects the most suitable in its opinion, the shooting parameters green icon on the mode dial , and a number of standard scene programs.

The test shooting was done on a winter day, it was getting late afternoon, the sun came out and the contrast in brightness of the surrounding world was quite high. By experience no SLR, even the most professional one, can guess in such conditions what you want to express in the frame, that’s why the possibility of quick exposure compensation after the first test shot is very important.

The EOS 650D is no different in this respect from other amateur models – the process takes a second or two. It’s worth noting that the default exposure metering gives quite reliable “average” variant, without any evident bias in light or shadow, and if you get a hankering to add expressiveness to your frames by changing brightness, practically any shot taken without exposure compensation is good enough for further processing in photo editor.

Naturally, I had to introduce exposure compensation when snow occupied a noticeable part of the frame or when the animals came out of a dark cave. In this respect, the rules of exposure are still in effect, and beginners should learn them without blaming the camera.

We took pictures with two lenses produced simultaneously with EOS 650D and designed specially for work with the new autofocus system – universal zoom 18-135/3,5-5,6 IS and “pancake” 40/2,8, and in a zoo zoom was in demand much more. Lens-camera interaction is great, focusing, exposure metering – everything is fast and smooth.

Even in the difficult light conditions of a winter evening, when the sensitivity of 1600 ISO was not enough everywhere, the focusing with the not brightest zoom, including the tracking zoom, was performed without problems. Optically, of course, the “pancake” is better, but the zoom is also quite good at capturing fine details in the frame. I suspect, though, that the 4 extra steps that the stabilizer claims to bring are more in the realm of wishful thinking than reality, but the stabilizer is clearly working and very useful.

By the way, the main highlight of these lenses is a new STM motor which changes the aperture value smoothly instead of jumps as before, which ensures great quality of video clips in brightness fluctuations.

Picture quality

Color rendering of the frames received is typical for Canon cameras – natural and without saturation, which sin amateur DSLRs of yesteryear however, this applies to the shooting in PASM mode, in the story programs saturation can be justifiably high . Contrast is medium, so be careful when shooting high-contrast scenes with snow, or the highlights might turn white. Anyone who shoots with a Canon camera can also be advised to study the effect of different image styles: they significantly change the frame, and this is an effective tool.

The default focus setting seems to me to “sharpen” the picture a bit, although this is only noticeable when viewing it at 100%, but I don’t have any complaints when viewing or printing it normally. With a little practice, which takes a couple of minutes, any photographer can easily adjust all the most important image parameters contrast, saturation, sharpness to his or her liking.

Grain and noise at high sensitivity are quite tolerable and do not exceed the standards of the latest cameras. Anyway, the frames shot at 6400 ISO are quite fit for printing, especially if they are edited, and certainly for posting on the Internet. Noise in shots taken at sensitivities up to about 800 ISO has virtually no effect on the image.

Conclusions

It’s worth mentioning that this refers to amateur shots taken at default settings. But you should understand that this is a tiny fraction of camera’s potential. In good hands it captures great shots. When a photographer switches to RAW format, he has a tremendous amount of power over the image.

Yes, it’s a bit of a learning curve, but it’s easy, interesting and contributes to self-esteem. And then it will appear that Canon EOS 650D is quite capable to absolutely professional results: its shooting speed, modern exposure metering and improved autofocus can capture any scene within the known limits.

Pictorial test

Backlighting experience. I had to introduce a negative -0.7 exposure compensation to achieve the silhouette effect. That’s not surprising, since shadows take up quite a bit of space in the frame, and the camera honestly tried to convey them with detail. The tracking autofocus was checked once again: by touching the screen it was ordered to follow this pair, and it did it perfectly.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/1000 sec, f/5.6, ISO 100, exposure compensation -0.7.

The snow leopard behind the thick glass moved pretty fast, but the camera had no problem catching it the moment it was in the right spot in the frame, the continuous autofocus did not fail.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/80s, f/6.3, ISO 125.

Taken indoors with quite low light, also through glass. The main problem in this shot was getting rid of the glare on the glass – I had to wait until fellow attendees covered them up with themselves, hardly suspecting it.

Canon 50/1.8 lens, aperture priority, 1/60 sec, f/2.8, ISO 1250, exposure compensation -0.3.

The little goat came out to take a walk… The shot was taken to explore the features of the new stock 18-135 mm zoom at its extreme telephoto position. It turned out to be able to “hold” the flare just fine, its resolution of course drops a bit but is still good enough for an amateur optic, but don’t count on the stabilizer to hold up too much hope.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/200 s, f/5.6, ISO 400, exposure compensation -0.3.

The shot is quite contrasty, but honestly preserved details in both shadows and highlights, and the camera exposure metering worked great, in my opinion. Interestingly, at not the shortest focal length here 22mm, t.e. 35 mm in recalculation for the full frame and the f/5.6 aperture sharpness from edge to edge, from infinity to the very near.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/320s, f/5.6, ISO 400, exposure compensation -0.3.

The same normal zoom works well at close range. Here the lens is focused at 3m, the usual distance for portraits. No complaints about saturation and color rendering, brightness and contrast. Because of the reflection of the bright sky in the water, I had to adjust the exposure compensation as low as possible.

Canon 18-135/3,5-5,6 IS, aperture priority, 1/125 sec, f/5,6, ISO 320, exposure compensation +0.3.

The extreme teleposition of the zoom is 135 mm, which in recalculation on a full frame will make 216 mm. Not excessive, but I managed to get this feathery close up, and the individual hairs on the feathers are distinguishable. True, the exposure correction of +0.7 clearly wasn’t enough to adequately capture the snow.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/250s, f/6.3, ISO 800, exposure compensation +0.7.

The slanting, almost horizontal evening light creates some interesting scenes, and it’s important to have a not so bulky camera to catch them! The picture is quite contrasty, but EOS 650D handled it very well: the shades and lights are shown at their optimal brightness without any exposure correction.

Canon 18-135/3.5-5.6 IS, aperture priority, 1/160 sec, f/7.1, ISO 100.