Canon EOS Rebel XS Digital Camera Review

Canon EOS Rebel XS

Digital Camera Review

Sep 04, 2008 - By Tim Barribeau
3.6 The EOS Rebel XS (1000D in other territories) is Canon’s newest entry level SLR. Physically similar to the Rebel XSi, it offers 10-megapixel resolution, a 2.5” LCD and Live View mode. Priced at $699 with a bundled 18-55mm lens, the XSt impressed us with good performance in low light, and with a high dynamic range. How did it compare to its bigger brother, the XSi, and the slew of other entry level SLRs on the market right now? The answers lie in the full review that follows.
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Auto Mode (6.00)
Auto mode shifts the camera into fully automatic operation, removing almost all user control options.  ISO, white balance, metering and auto focus are not adjustable in this mode, and shooting controls are trimmed down to only single shot, ten-second self-timer, or continuous self-timer. This last mode has a 10 second delay, then shoots a user-defined number of images at three frames per second.

Movie Mode (0.00)
As with most SLRs, the Canon Rebel XS does not have a movie mode.

Drive / Burst Mode (8.25)
The XS has five different drive modes. Single shot is self-explanatory, and continuous mode shoots a respectable three frames per second as long as the shutter button remains depressed, with the only limit being the number of images your card can hold. Of the three self-timed modes, two are the standard two- and ten-second , and one is more interesting: continuous self-timer. This sets the timer for ten seconds, and then shoots a user-defined number of photographs at three frames per second. You can choose from two to ten shots in this last mode. It’s particularly useful for grabbing group shots, to make sure you get at least one image where no one is blinking, sneezing or in the middle of falling over.

Playback Mode (6.00)
Playback Mode on the XS is standard fare, and offers nothing particularly groundbreaking. Pressing the Play button sets you into Playback Mode where photos are navigated using the four-way buttons and deleted with the Trash button. Images can be zoomed in up to 10x with the button on the top right of the camera, and zoomed out to four or nine thumbnails with the button just to the left. Pressing the display button alters the amount of information shown during playback, and can show just the image, image with number of photos, histogram with file information or four histograms and limited file information. This final option shows the histograms for RGB as well as brightness.

Custom Image Presets (4.48)
Most SLRs don’t feature extensive image presets, and the XS is no exception. It offers six custom image presets: Portrait, Landscape, Close-up, Sports, Night Portrait and No Flash. While this list is slim, it still covers the majority of situations. Sadly, however, when shooting in these modes you can alter almost no settings, preventing you from slightly tweaking the picture.

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