Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

This has become a wealth of information. This should help Ryan in his decision. So far, the T5i with the 18--135 STM looks like the best package.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Thanks, TommiRuiz. That is really helpful, and makes sense. By the way, Ryan lives in Brenham and will graduation HS next year. He is talking about coming up here to Alaska to attend the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

Walterdad

Try to get him a prime lens with the rebel, maybe a 35mm or 40mm with the lowest f stop that's reasonably affordable - He'll learn more quicker -
Refurbished would be fine with all the equipment.

boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander

If your grandson is up to a sophisticated camera the Canon 7d is the best value in the industry now that the MK2 has been released. Yes the mk2 is better but at less than 1/2 the price the 7d is still a great camera, and with good glass it will last him a lifetime. PS I have one. here is a photo

red barn in the snow

SHLeM52 Loc: Jacksonville, FL

The auto focus on the T5 is the same as the T3i, in that it only the center focus point is a cross type. On the T5i all of the 9 focus points are cross type, and it has the articulated touch screen, and it has the DIGIC 5 image processor while the T5 has the DIGIC 4 like the T3i. I don't have a lot of faith in the touch screen.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Depending on budget, I tend to agree for this specific situation. However, if the budget has some elasticity and if Ryan thinks he will stick with photography I would take a serious look at the T6s.

The T5i + 18 - 135 STM package will serve well, but the T6s with the same lens will take him further on his journey.

As others have said , the T2i , T3i, T4i, T5i will all do the job, but are incremental improvements on each other, the T6i or better T6s is a significant improvement.

Good luck.

jimmya Loc: Phoenix

I've been shooting Canon dslr cameras for several years.
I'm currently using the t3i - upgrading as I went along.

For my money there is only one brand of camera and that is Canon - an excellent choice.

There are higher grade models than the t5 of course but it's really all about your, or his, budget.

Canon's are easy to operate and give you great results.

Good luck

Dutzie Loc: I'd like to know

Don't get anything you can't afford to get stolen!

Bill Emmett Loc: Bow, New Hampshire

For a beginner, the T5i is a excellent choice. That camera will be a good teaching tool, and photography entrance camera. But, I still like the suggestion from a earlier post, about getting in touch with the class instructor about lens selection. The Canon 18-135mm STM is a wonderful lens, for both still photography, and the quiet stepping motor, makes it a good video selection. Also, if video is not part of the class, there are other lenses to consider, and they may not be of the Canon brand. Keep in mind, lenses can set you back thousands of dollars, or just a few bucks. So, be sure of what the class will teach, and what the instructors course will include.

B

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

The T4i and T5i have the same sensor resolution as the SL-1. The T4 & T5 have somewhat lower resoution.
If the choices are SL-1 and T4 (not i), I'd go for the SL1. It's noticeably lighter to carry around all day. If he has big hands, he might find any of the T-series more comfortable to hold.

Whether he gets the kit zoom or the 'nifty fifty', he will want the STM version of the lens. The optical and build quality of each STM lens is much better than its predecessor. Also, the STMs focus more quickly.

The STM 50 has a 7 (vs. 5) bladed aperture and much better 'bokeh'. Its out-of-focus highlights aren't pentagons, like the old version'a are. Also, the old, plastic version is made of frightfully flimsy plastic. The optics assembly is loose and floppy within the fixed part of the lens and the assembly containing the front optics has even been known to fall off.

The STM 18-55 also has a fixed front cell, so filters (like polarizers) won't rotate.

The main differences between the STM and non-STM 18-135 is that the STM version focuses faster and is also a bit sharper. But the non-STM version is also more than merely acceptable-- it's my APS-C 'walking-around' lens.

The 70-300 that the chain stores are including in their packages is crap.
Instead, go for the 55-250 STM. The old, non-STM version of this lens is also better than merely decent. But avoid that old non-IS 70-300 like the plague-- there's reasons they're just about giving the damn things away.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Rocket, are you sure? From what I've seen the facts are not completely aligned with your suggestions. You are not wrong in principle, but the details are a little off, especially as regards your comments on the "T4 and T5".

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

Hold off on the T6i/T6s for a while. There are apparently issues with pinholes in the coating in one of the filters in the 'stack' covering the sensors-- which can cause image artifacts under certain circumstances.

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

Rocket, that issue has been solved. Get with the program , Dude.

You talk about the T4 when no such product exists, you provide inaccurate guidance on other things and you are wrong again with the T6i/T6s information!

Your head is in the right place, but your facts are off. That is NOT helpful. Please pay attention.

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

Good choice for a beginning/intermediate photographer. If his needs get more sophisticated, he can always get something more elaborate later.

Frankly, he shouldn't get too hung up on the number of sensors/cross-type sensors unless he is planning to do serious action photography. (In which case he probably wants to start out with a 7D with the 18-135 STM lens.)

My favorite camera, a Canon 6D, (full-frame) has only one cross-type sensor and another 10 single-axis sensors surrounding it. I almost never use any sensors except the center one on any of my DSLRs, so it's not much of an issue for me. But the 6D is, frankly, more of a landscape/portrait camera with outrageous low-light/high-ISO capabilities than an action camera. (It has a much simpler AF system and a much slower frame-rate than any recent 1D, 5D, or 7D.)

If he needs a wider or longer zoom for an APS-C format Canon, neither the 10-18 STM zoom nor the 55-200 STM zoom can be beat at this time. Each of these lenses is stunningly inexpensive for what it offers.

The wide lens is optically the best APS-C ultrawide zoom (UWZ) lens on the market, is the smallest and lightest available, and is the only Image Stabilized one, it also costs literally half of what any of the others (Canon or third-party) do.

rocketride Loc: Upstate NY

So, ALL of the cameras in the pipeline have already been caught and fixed? That's great news and a very fast and thorough fix considering that the story broke, what?, 2 weeks ago (or is it 3?). And the issue was discovered by users in the wild, not Canon itself pre-release.

Do recall that the OP did mention the T4 as one of the choices. I just didn't catch his error. Oops, I forgot that they skipped the T4 when they tweaked the T4i straight to the T5i after the rubber-grip-compound issues. So sue me.