I was out this evening at a sort of get-together for ex-
(and a few remaining current) employees of a former place
of work. At one point I was handed a Canon 20D (with the
17-85 IS lens), and told to grab a few shots. After a few
initial problems (the owner had auto-focus uncoupled from
the shutter release, so I had to find which button to push)
I got to try the current midrange Canon offering.
First impressions, in order:
o It's a nice size. It may well be a little larger
than the *ist-D, but it doesn't feel it (unlike the
earlier 10D, which seemed a lot bulkier).
o In a casual setting, I didn't notice the viewfinder
being significantly worse than that on my *ist-D
o USM focussing is fast, fast, fast (and quiet).
No surprises there - I've used USM lenses before.
o The zoom ring moves the wrong way :-)
o The shutter release is so much crisper, and feels
much more precise, than the *ist-D. Pentax are way
behind in this department - tne Nikon D100 was much
better than the Pentax, too.
o Holy cow! The review image comes up immediately!
So that's how that new Digic-II processor performs.
The Rebel XT (aka 350D) uses the new processor too;
that's going to make it look great vs. the *ist-DS.
It's not my camera, so I haven't had a chance to review
the images. But based on the in-the-hand feel, Pentax
have a lot of catching up to do.
Without studying the manual, I don't know if there is a
way of assigning the controls that I'd like; I certainly
didn't like the way this one was set up (the finger wheel
did nothing, and the rear thumb wheel was assigned to
exposure compensation) - no access to program shift.
