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Canon DSLR
Home > Digital Camera Reviews > Canon Digital Cameras > Canon DSLR
Canon EOS 30D Digital Camera Review
by Patrick Singleton
Published on May 16, 2006
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– Just like the 20D – a good, 8.2-megapixel workhorse
– Excellent image quality
– 2.5-inch, 230,000-pixel LCD
– Quick Dial and four-way controller for quick, flexible navigation
– 5 fps burst rate
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| Dislikes |
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- Just like the 20D – no improvements in imaging performance - Important controls require menu access
- Default Picture Style, “Standard,” oversharpens and oversaturates heavily
- Viewfinder accuracy is relatively poor
- Lacks commander flash capability (Nikon technology on D70s and D200)
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Conclusion
The Canon EOS 30D has several important refinements over its predecessor, the Canon EOS 20D, and it maintains that camera's many strengths. Its solid build, excellent image quality, and respectable speed (5 fps at 8.2 megapixels) make it a very attractive camera for a range of users. Weddings, portraits, photojournalism, family pictures, and even landscapes are perfectly within the Canon EOS 30D's scope, as many thousands of 20D users have proven. Photographers who own other Canon SLRs have a very good option in the 30D: it can be either a step up from the Rebel or Rebel XT or a moderate-cost backup to the 5D or 1D series. The 30D feels very substantial and professional compared to the Rebels, and its interface and build quality look just fine in comparison to Canon's more expensive cameras.
It's a little tougher to weigh the 30D against competing cameras. Nikon's D200 has a few big advantages over the 30D: 20 percent more resolution and a much better interface and controls. The D200's image quality is better at ISOs under 320, though worse at the high end. We're convinced that the D200 is a better deal at $1700 than the 30D is at $1400, but not by such a margin that we'd tell Canon owners to sell an inventory of lenses.
Finally, we remain puzzled by the 30D's lack of innovation. Look at Canon's history of cutting-edge cameras and lenses and you'll find more ground-breaking equipment than most companies can point to. The Canon EOS 30D simply doesn't match the advances Canon usually makes.
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