This brief article outlines my thoughts on the Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR. This article should not be considered a "review," rather it should only be considered a short impression instead. Perhaps I'll write up a full review on it later.
I have to say that I am pretty pleased with the Canon Digital Rebel XT SLR. This model is the successor to the widely acclaimed Canon Digital Rebel SLR which was released in late 2003. Although I haven't had a chance to use this camera as much as I would of liked, all of the images I've captured with it greatly exceed my expectations.
The colors are crisp, vibrant while the images are sharp as a tack. I mainly shoot in the RAW format. Think of RAW as a "digital negative." With a RAW file, one can manipulate the image more so because the file itself requires processing. Most digital cameras capture in JPEG format which requires the camera to process each captured image in-camera. With a RAW file, the file is not processed in-camera. It's up to the user to process the RAW file. By doing so, one can adjust the visual properties of the file to a certain degree. RAW is not for everyone, though. Most people would be perfectly content with shooting in the standard JPEG mode on the Digital Rebel XT, which it does indeed do. Better still, if you have a card big enough, you can even capture in JPEG and RAW at the same time; this way, you'll have a JPEG image and a RAW file image of the same shot, just in case you want to tweak the image via the RAW file. I myself just shoot in plain RAW most of the time. I enjoy processing my photos. I think shooting in RAW allows the photographer to see the little details and settings in each image more closely than if he/she shot in JPEG, but that is just my opinion; But hey, everyone has their way(s) of doing things.
Battery life is superb. Image quality is superb. The price is a steal. What more could anyone ask for? Well, I'd be happier of they included an LCD display protector, but I won't complain all that much. I ended up purchasing a set of PDA overlay LCD protectors and they work just fine. I simply measured the dimensions of the Rebel XT's LCD and cut the PDA overlay accordingly with a sharp pair of scissors. Now, I don't have to worry about the LCD getting scuffed up as much anymore. All in all, my gripe is not a big one.
Anyway, that's my brief impression on the Canon Digital Rebel XT.