Canon EOS Rebel T1i

Manual Controls

You start out with your basic set of manual exposure options: Program mode with program shift available, shutter-priority (here dubbed Tv, for Time
Value), aperture-priority (Av) and full manual. The single control wheel makes shooting in full manual mode more cumbersome than on higher-end SLRs, which offer two wheels. Here, when shooting using manual settings, the dial changes shutter speed by default, and the shooter has to hold down the exposure compensation button while turning the dial to change the aperture setting. A ltitle too much manual dexterity required for our taste.

Canon also provides an Aperture Depth of Field mode (A-DEP), which lets the shooter set the closest and furthest points that need to be in focus, and adjust settings accordingly. It's an interesting idea, but not recommended if you're in a hurry.

Focus

The T1i maintains the 9-point autofocus system used in the other Rebel models, along with the built-in autofocus illuminator. The autofocus system can be set to One Shot AF, Predictive AIO Servo AF (the camera attempts to follow focus a moving subject automatically) amd AI Focus AF, where the camera automatically changes between the two previous modes based on the behavior of your subject.

When shooting in Live View mode, there are three autofocus system choices. So-called Quick Focus flips the mirror down briefly (momentarily blanking out the LCD view) to use the SLR autofocus sensor, then returns to Live View mode. Alternatively, you can choose Live mode, which uses contrast detection autofocus based on the image sensor data -- a bit slower, but less disruptive. Finally there's face detection mode, which works much as it does on a point-and-shoot camera, finding faces in the frame and identifying them as the autofocus subject. Using the pre-production model of the T1i, we found Live View autofocus about as draggy as usual: we have yet to shoot with an SLR camera that can keep up with fast-moving subjects in Live View mode. Of course, we might be pleasantly surprised when we get a final production version of the T1i in our eager hands.

As expected, manual focus is also an option, and here Live View offers a useful add-on. While in manual focus mode you can magnify the on-screen display by 5x or 10x, providing a great close-up view for precise adjustments.

ISO

ISO settings span 100-3200 in the official range, and add ISO 6400 and 12800 as extended settings.This is a step up from the Canon XSi and XSm, which top out at ISO 1600.

White Balance

In addition to the auto white balance setting there are six white balance presets -- daylight, shade, cloudy, tungsten, fluorescent and flash -- plus the option to take a custom reading.

Metering

The Canon T1i has four metering modes: Evaluative, Partial, Spot and Center-Weighted Average. The combination of Partial and Center-Weighted Average is unusual. Basically, Partial covers about a third of the frame, while Center-Weighted Average has a smaller target area, and Spot is a smaller target still.

Shutter Speed

Shutter speeds range from 1/4000 second to 30 seconds plus Bulb for extended exposures.

Aperture

The aperture range will, of course, depend on the lens attached. The kit lens is an 18-55mm zoom with a maximum aperture range of f/3.5-5.6. Depth of field preview is provided.

Image Stabilization

Unlike Olympus and Sony, Canon continues to leave image stabilization to the lens, rather than build it into the camera body. The kit lens does include image stabilization.

Picture Quality & Size Options

The Canon T1i boosts resolution to 15.1 megapixels, compared to the 12.2-megapixel resolution of the Canon XSi. JPEGs can be shot at three sizes, each with two compression settings; the maximum image size is 4752 x 3168. The camera can also store RAW files, either alone or with an attached JPEG.

Picture Effects

The T1i uses the Canon Picture Styles system to tailor color reproduction, sharpness, contrast and saturation to the subject at hand. There are six preset Picture Styles: Standard, Portrait, Landscape, Neutral, Faithful and Monochrome, along with three slots for users to store their own Picture Style settings.

The provided Picture Styles can be tweaked to suit your preferences.