I've been a Canon user for 15 years and had various models of P&S cameras, the most recent was an advanced model bridge/superzoom (SX40 HS) and I felt it was time to finally make the commitment and upgrade to a DSLR (I didn't want to do it until I felt I could sink some money into lenses). Being on a budget and not willing to stray from Canon, I chose this one and I've been quite happy with it.
For a hobby photographer who is serious enough to want the control of shots and the versatility of being able to use lenses (which are far more of an investment) this one will do fine. As far as DSLRs go, it's small and not too bulky to take on day trips and vacations for snapshots and powerful enough that you can take excellent portraits and landscapes with it as well. The kit lens is pretty low quality which is the reason for 4 stars rather than 5 - my suggestion is to spend the extra bit and get the IS kit lens with it, I wish I had.
I'm assuming that most people looking at this model are considering their first DSLR purchase. I see many people walking around with a DSLR with a kit lens attached and shooting on auto, which is a waste of your money. This is the first of many large purchases and a lot of learning if you are going to fully utilize this camera, if not, consider finding a decent point and shoot, it'll do just as good of a job for you. In the last 4 months since I've had this camera, I've spent another $700 on gear that still has not given me the range I had with my bridge camera. I still pull out my SX40 HS to do macro shots because it's an additional $500 for a macro lens. For those hobby photographers upgrading from film SLRs or from an older similar model however, you can't go wrong.
Canon has always had great customer support and the transaction and shipping through Amazon was quick and seamless.
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Top reviews from other countries
S. Vogt
A great little DSLR worth your consideration.
Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2011Style: ISVerified Purchase
Bill
Great bang for the buck
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2011Style: ISVerified Purchase
Bill
Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2011
The menu was a LITTLE confusing at first, but I quickly got the gist of things and am taking good pictures with the camera. Having used the full-auto settings and just dabbling with the advanced settings, I'm very pleased with the purchase and I think anyone who is either new to DSLR cameras or who doesn't want to spend over $1000 for a 'pro' or 'prosumer' DSLR will also be very happy with it right out of the box... or ANY of the T series cameras for that matter.
If you're going to be shooting in RAW (or like I do in RAW+L) I recommend getting AT LEAST a 16GB card, if not a 32GB card. The included battery is a champ. It lasts a good long time & charges quickly. I was going to get a 2nd battery, but I don't think it's necessary at this time as it lasts for several hundred shots. The manual says it takes 2 hrs to charge a fully depleted battery, but the math doesn't work out that way. The included charger is portable & charges the included 860mAh Li-Ion battey at a 580mAh rate, so a full charge should be about 1.5hrs. I'll have to time it when I need a full charge & have the spare time to check it every 10 mins or so beyond the 1hr mark.
Only a few negatives:
* When using the fully automatic settings indoors the white balance is just a little off, but this is fairly common w/all brands in the entry-level range. It can easily be corrected in photoshop, or by manually choosing one of the white balance lighting scenarios (incandescent bulb, fluorescent, or sun) depending on your situation. My outdoor shots look great on full auto settings.
* Having not used an SLR type camera in a NUMBER of years (I've never owned a DSLR), I found that the manual it comes with is not very thorough, and neither is the larger PDF manual on the included CD. However; it's not Canon's job to teach you photography and therefore I think the manual is just adequate. The only real trouble I had was trying to figure out how to attach the included eyepiece cover when shooting on a tripod w/studio lighting using auto exposure settings... it's not explained anywhere. You need to slide off the cover that is there already (the eye cushion) and slide on the cover... duh! Cripes O Mighty! They explain how to attach the camera strap (like you really need to read that...), but not the eyepiece cover?! Those experienced with SLR photography don't need any more, those totally new are covered by both the instuctions & the quick-start guide; but, those in-between won't find the info they're looking for here... get this book: [[ASIN:1118094972 Canon EOS Rebel T3/1100D For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))]]
* There is no memory card included. Even a tiny one would be appreciated for the completely new user to start shooting right away when buying the 'kit' version. It may be the 1st D-SLR for the majority of it's purchasers, but it's probably not anyone's 1st digital camera in general.. so you probably have one of these lying around already.
* A textured grip would be nice, but like the exclusion of a memory card, this is helping to keep the price down on this puppy.
In summary:
Is it a good camera for the $$: Yes, 4/5*
Is it a good camera in general: Yes, 4/5 (auto white balance could be better, textured grip would be nice)
Is the 'kit' worthwhile: Yes, 4/5 (including even a tiny SD Card would be nice for the camera newbie)
Good instructions: Barely, 3/5
Would I buy it again: YES(1)
Recommend to a friend: YES(1)
Overall rating: 4/5
* Revised due to recent price drop on T4i, see 4/6/2013 update at the bottom
(1) If you can't afford the T4i
**-- Update - 6/1/2012 --**
Took it to Jones Beach last weekend, for the Memorial Day airshow. After walking around to find some other Canon users, I learned how to use some of the manual settings in order to get shots of the fast-moving airplanes & jets flying around. I didn't need help in so much as how to change the settings on the camera... but more what settings I would need to be using.
Anyway... I got some GREAT shots! The only issue I had was my telephoto lens didn't have IS, so I had a very fast shutter speed manually entered to make up for any hand shaking. The result is that while the jet shots look great, I have stationary propellers on the older aircraft. That's not the fault of the camera, but of my inexpensive EF 75-300mm non-IS lens. Now if only someone can teach me how to use photoshop effectively :)
Here are just a couple of shots from that airshow: [...]
**-- UPDATE 4/6/2013 --**
OK, so I've had this camera for nearly 2 years now, and I'm still very happy with it. However; the T4i has come down quite a bit in price due to the announcement that it's being replaced by the T5i. Excellent timing for those of you looking to purchase a DSLR!! If you can spend a little more, I'd recommend the T4i over the T3 by a wide margin. Otherwise, T3 is still the way to go.
Here's why:
1. It's got the new DIGIC 5 Image Processor (Every other Rebel has DIGIC 4) - This is quite an improvement, especially with white balance.
2. More ISO options - in combo w/the new DIGIC 5, this is a pretty big deal
3. It's faster... can shoot up to 5.0 frames per second, continuously - That's a big deal if you shoot sports/action/aviation.
4. You get 18MP - That's fairly significant.
5. In-camera HDR Combines multiple exposures - You probably will want this feature, even if it doesn't interest you right now.
6. That little 'i' lets you use a wireless remote shutter release - may be significant, depends on what YOU need.
7. Slightly larger LCD (3" vs 2.7") that flips out - significant.
8. Touch screen - Mostly Bells & Whistles here, but reviews state it's very functional & intuitive.
To sum this all up, with the T4i you'd gain: better images/video, high ISO performance, touchscreen, less shutter lag, and a few other things. This camera offers many new technologies and additions from Canon that aren't seen on any other camera in their line up (including much pricier cameras like the 60D). If you're wondering about the upcoming T5i... it's the T4i with a new body sculpt, real-time preview of Creative Filters in Live View mode, and a redesigned new mode dial that turns 360 degrees... that's IT!! Same image quality & Features as the discontinued T4i!! By the way, the T4i (and upcoming T5i) outperform the much pricier 60D in terms of image quality (seriously, it does... 60D is getting long in the tooth now). The 60D's advantage is that it is weather sealed and has controls laid out more like a pro body (it has a rear dial just like the 7D, 5D, 1D bodies.) It was a clear upgrade over anything in the Rebel line until the T4i was introduced.
Regards,
Bill
Images in this review
Charles Coffey
The price is right
Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2013Style: ISVerified Purchase
Justin R
Better than you think
Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2014Style: ISVerified Purchase
Mike Acker
T3: My Advancerment from Point and Shoot to DSLR
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2011Style: ISVerified Purchase
Mike Acker
Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2011
First off was evaluation of the lens. The Rebel cameras using the APS-C sensor (22.2 x 14.8mm) have a "crop factor" of 1.6 which means you take the focal length of an EF-S type lens times 1.6 to get the equivalent 35mm "full frame" focal length. So the lens that comes with the T3 is 18-55 mm APS-C or ~ 28 to 90 in full frame (36 x 24 mm) 35mm format. Close focus capability is included. This is an excellent lens to start out with. The old advice, when purchasing a camera: get and keep the standard lens certainly apples here. This 18-55 lens is also called the "Kit" lens and it is ideal for every day shooting, including birthday parties and such.
In learning Digital Photography I have found the T3 to be a good "stepping stone": it includes a number of "pre sets": or "automatic" modes for portraits, pets, close ups, sports, landscapes, automatic, night and such that let you take the camera out of the box, charge the battery and start taking great pix with only a brief session with the "getting started" manual. You do need to learn to charge the battery and install and format the memory card ( be sure to buy one ). And get the lens hood if you shoot out doors. Set the camera on AUTO and go to it!! You can learn to use the additional features at your own speed, as you need them.
The package includes a CD with some *very* good photo editing tools that let you download pix from the camera and then edit your collections. Great stuff, very useful if you like to Play with Pix on Computer -- as is very popular these days!!
Speaking of Playing with Pix on Computer if you are into OnLine sharing, FB, Windows/Live etc you will likely find images in the range of 1024x768 pix are adequate for casual online sharing. Images online do not need to be larger than you can display on-screen. For this reason the 12 m/px T3 will probably be all that is needed for sharing pix online. 12 m/px is 4272x2848 -- much bigger than you need for on-line sharing!!* The 18 m/px of the T3i would be desirable for higher level work, particularly printing where you will want to change the image to 300 dpi or even to 1200 lines/inch. But that is another subject entirely; those interested in this area will likely want to start looking at the EOS 60D and possibly settle on a full frame model discussion of which is beyond my level of expertise. Although it appears to me that improvements in the sensors -- APS-C and now Nikon's CX -- are going to obsolete the old 36x24mm "full frame" systems. "IMHO", anyway. Check out stuff done with the G12 -- using a 1/1.7 (7.6 x 5.7 mm ) sensor
Last but not least: the T3 is a great "stepping stone" offering "point and shoot" or camera control as photographer's choice, and as the EF-S type lenses are compatible through the EOS/Rebel line generally -- a lens that you add for the T3 might be used also on a T3i or 60D that you add later -- which you won't do if you go into a "high end" "point and shoot".
I have already added the EF-S 15-85 IS lens; I'll comment on that, in a month or so.
* the Digital Photo Professional software -- included with the camera -- will let you re-size -- and you can even do a whole set of images in a single "batch" operation -- after you have your selections to upload. Although the camera will let you shoot smaller size original images, I wouldn't do that: If you get a good one: you can't go back and say: I want full resolution. Better to shoot all originals at full resolution.
Images in this review
