Just picked up the 550D
 

Park Cameras have them in stock now.

Just picked up the 550D, its raining and getting dark very quick in the uk but i'm shooting on. Quick tests look great, very small camera.

Love it.

James

It's about time we got some good weather. This rain, sleet and cold rain has gone on for too long!
Enjoy your new toy in the rain. :)

drats- over here in the colonies we must wait unitl march

carefull- its not waterproofed

EDIT: I guess it is in stock in some US stores- hmm

Congratulations James!

Can you confirm that it has full manual control over shutter speed, ISO and aperture in video mode? I remember reading that it had 'exposure control' but it was ambiguous whether this meant full control like the 7d or only Aperture priority.

Thanks,
John

Hi John, yes it has full control in video mode. It also has a dedicated dial for video so you don't need to select manual. You control the Auto/Manual video in the main menu once you select the video mode on the top dial.

Monitor Feed
 

Hi,
I heard that the T2i/550D does not send a monitor feed out via the HDMI port the way the 5D/7D/1D do. Is this true?

That may be the deciding factor for me buying one or saving up for the 7D.

Thanks,
DAve

I ordered the body only from an authorized dealer on eBay this afternoon. They had 2 available and sold both within an hour. Shipping in 1-2 business days via FedEx..awaiting a tracking number.

The total damage came out to $799 - $63.92 Instant Bing Cashback -$15.98 eBates -$15.98 eBay Bucks = $703.12 delivered. My T1i's on eBay already with a bid. :)

Just arrived - boy, is it small and light!
 

My 550D is sitting here waiting for the battery to charge.

It came from Park Cameras, came with a Kit lens and a few other bits.

Compared to my Nikon D200, and a colleague's 7D, it is VERY SMALL AND LIGHT. Toylike. Only when you hold two side by side do you realise just how small and dinky this thing is.

The whole ensemble feels like a pimped up consumer DSLR because that is exactly what it is. There is no way any security guard, police officer, busybody, naredowell or animal will mistake this for professional kit. And because of that, I love it to bits already.

A quick question... Does the 550d have a true live preview on the LCD screen, showing exactly what your recording will look like, or is it an automatic preview?

I'm asking because I've stepped into the world of DSLR's with the Pentax K-x. I love it for stills but in video mode you get an automatic preivew on the LCD screen, and as soon as you hit record it switches to a true live display and looks completely different. It makes it almost impossible to set exposure correctly.

The 550d will be a bit of a sideways upgrade for stills if I do get one but will be alot better better for those times I want it for video.

Thanks,
John

After some time of posting here and feeling like I'm not part of the club, finally got my 550D. Waiting for the battery to charge.

Unfortunately I couldn't find "body only" anywhere so I had to get that kit lens... Oh well, I'm a complete dSLR noob anyways so might as well play with this glass until I get the hang of it, then move on.

Having never seen that Pentax in action, from what you're describing, it's a true live preview. The screen does not switch in any way from "photo" to "video" quality. Focusing using the screen seems to be easier on this than on the 5D for some reason, or I've just gotten better at it. You can't use the "focus assist" magnification while recording, which would be a MAJOR help, but it's actually an incredibly sharp display, so if you have good eyes, you can hit your focus without any extra gear. If anything, the screen actually looks WAY BETTER than the final result- makes you want to have people watch your final films on the camera!

not sure about the HDMI port but if you read a recent thread from a couple of weeks ago, people were discussing this and it seems like they WERE getting an HDMI preview... I know the SD preview works fine...

HDMI preview in HD works fine. It switches to 480p when camera is recording, which is the same limitation as 5D mk2 with single image processor.
7D and 1D has dual processor so the HDMI preview stays HD even during recording.