I am a beginner in DSLR Photography, I saw a deal for 20D w/ 2GB Oem card, 11-55 canon lens, and box for it. good shape. $300. good deal?

And most of all is this is a good camera ? My other choices were sony a100/ a200 or nikon d40.

your opinion will be appreciated. thanks

 

It's a great camera and for $300 it's hard to go wrong. It's essentially the same sensor as the 30D it just has a smaller LCD screen on the back. I think it would make an excellent starter camera.

 

yeh - thats a good deal - hop on it
i paid 700 for an xti, 1GB card, bag, and two lenses.

 

Where did you find it, just watch out for some shady places.

 

yea its a good camera, but you might be able to find a 30D for slightly more money than that 20D.

 

i got it from local private seller.. thought it was a good deal so i jumped on it.. i didn't have to worry about him being shady when he pulled up in a tricked out e46 m3. he said he was about to get d90 for his birthday.

 

11-55?? or did you mean 18-55? if so which version? the older non-stabilized or newer version with Image Stabilization?

 

Great camera.

I just bought a used 10D for $200 bucks at my local camera store to use as a run around camera when I don't want to lug my 1-Series around. It looked to be hardly used at all. The 10's and 20's are super cheap and still make nice pictures.

 

I bought a used 20D about a year ago for $500. I bought it from a local photog who kept it as a backup. From the looks of it, it was hardly ever used.

So yes you got a great deal on a good starter camera

 

20D is far more than a starter camera - It wouldn't surprise me if it's the last
DSLR you ever need.

I owned the 20D for a good 3 years before jumping to the 40D, and here are the biggest differences between the two, in order of importance to me.

1) Higher dynamic range. You don't get owned nearly as much by bright skies.
2) Faster autofocus for bright (F2.8) glass due to more cross sensors.
This was only an issue with the 20D for shooting servo. 20D is plenty fast otherwise.
3) Slightly faster frame rate - enough that a handheld 'One burst HDR' is quite doable.
However I've found the Dynamic range got boosted enough that I didn't need it.

Ummm, I think that's it really. High ISOs might be a bit cleaner. There's the usual
riff raff improvements that have little to no effect on making your pictures better, imho.
( More MP, bigger LCD, blah blah ) Live view sounds interesting but I've only used it
maybe 5 times, ever.

- Frank

 

+1 I loved mine the three years I had it, and for $300 it's a good deal. Great camera and good for sports too. OP, do you know how many shutter actuations is has?

 

i just sold mine to BLKOUT_typeS to upgrade to the 40d. 20d is a solid camera... not too sure bout that lens you got though... never heard of an 11-55

 

He must mean the ef-s 17-55.

 

thats what i was thinkin

 

at that price no, hes talking about the 18-55 kit lens.