 "Canon EOS 1300D: Light & easy for beginners")
A cousin called up the other day. He's been working for a year or so and travels a lot. He'd been clicking pictures of all the places he visits with his phone, but wanted to graduate to the next level - he wanted an SLR. His only condition was it should be light and easy to use. If only choosing one was that simple.
Just then, I had in for review the Canon EOS 1300D (Rs 38,995 with 18-55mm and 55-250mm lenses). Thus the very next morning, I took the camera out for a spin to Delhi's Chandni Chowk - that human settlement which is living history.
The 1300D is light and compact and the button placement is intuitive, my wife remarked. The Live view switch is located right next to the viewfinder (she has a tendency to compose shots in this mode). The memory card, though, is located within the battery compartment at the bottom of the camera (like point-and-shoots) and I suspect a tripod could block access to it.
While composing a few shots on Live view, both my wife and me thought it took a bit too long; even while photographing the play of light on a narrow lane (using the viewfinder), the camera took its own time to focus. And while shooting, the "Q" or quick menu button ensured I didn't need to plumb the depths of the menus.
But the sun was up, we were sweating and our stomachs were rumbling. Off to Karim's we went, near Jama Masjid. In between the 18-55mm lens did allow me some wide shots of the Jama Masjid. But my wife was waiting to try out the food mode at the eating joint and shots of Mutton Nahari didn't disappoint.
At home on the PC, the outdoor shots did seem a bit overexposed, though the streets of Chandni Chowk came alive in vibrant colours. Also, I was able to access the phone's memory via Wi-Fi to dump the photos on my home media server.
I liked the Canon 1300D in parts; if you're in the market for your first DSLR, this could just suffice. That said, the hardware is dated. As for my cousin, he can't figure if he needs a mirrorless camera or a traditional SLR. As I said, it's not that simple.
Just then, I had in for review the Canon EOS 1300D (Rs 38,995 with 18-55mm and 55-250mm lenses). Thus the very next morning, I took the camera out for a spin to Delhi's Chandni Chowk - that human settlement which is living history.
The 1300D is light and compact and the button placement is intuitive, my wife remarked. The Live view switch is located right next to the viewfinder (she has a tendency to compose shots in this mode). The memory card, though, is located within the battery compartment at the bottom of the camera (like point-and-shoots) and I suspect a tripod could block access to it.
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The camera switched on pretty fast, though the display screen took a while to come to life. I snapped a few pictures of the Red Fort, using the 55-250mm lens. Focussing took a while, as is expected in entry-level SLRs. The image stabiliser works perfectly I discovered while looking at the results on the camera's screen. In good light conditions, there wasn't a lot of noise even after extending the zoom lens.
While composing a few shots on Live view, both my wife and me thought it took a bit too long; even while photographing the play of light on a narrow lane (using the viewfinder), the camera took its own time to focus. And while shooting, the "Q" or quick menu button ensured I didn't need to plumb the depths of the menus.
But the sun was up, we were sweating and our stomachs were rumbling. Off to Karim's we went, near Jama Masjid. In between the 18-55mm lens did allow me some wide shots of the Jama Masjid. But my wife was waiting to try out the food mode at the eating joint and shots of Mutton Nahari didn't disappoint.
At home on the PC, the outdoor shots did seem a bit overexposed, though the streets of Chandni Chowk came alive in vibrant colours. Also, I was able to access the phone's memory via Wi-Fi to dump the photos on my home media server.
I liked the Canon 1300D in parts; if you're in the market for your first DSLR, this could just suffice. That said, the hardware is dated. As for my cousin, he can't figure if he needs a mirrorless camera or a traditional SLR. As I said, it's not that simple.