T2i vs. T3i vs. 60D

[Bruce Foreman]

Originally Posted by Robert James

Correct me if I am wrong as I have read this in a few places but isn't the t2i video pretty much the same as the 60d?

I actually have all 3 cameras (7D, T2i, and 60D) and the video quality from them looks identical to me. Which one I reach for at any given time is dependent on specific feature.

Heading out the door and don't know if I need a camera but feel I should have one with me...
...T2i with "kit" lens for it's light weight and convenience.

Project with largely still photos...
...7D for it's extra bright 100% prism finder and with 17-40mm f4L and/or 70-200 f4L (weather sealed combos.

Most video projects...
...60D for it's audio improvements (although I'll still use Zoom recorders for double system sound), and the other cameras may come into play if I run a multi cam setup.

But all 3 have the same video quality.

[James Strange]

I too have 7d, 60d and t2i

Video is idenitcal

Heres my thoughts them

7d pros

Build quality
CF cards (vs sd, i really prefer cf, not really a reliability issue, cf is just more rugged)
Better for stills (fps, af etc... Not a facor for me as i do only video)
Dedicated wb button (handier than youd think)

60d pros
Swivel screen (still works great with lcdvf)
Man audio (not as good as t2i with ml)
Better build thabn t2i but not quite as good as 7d


550d/t2i

Cost effective
When you add a battery grip its pretty bulky (in a good way)
But most of all, MAGIC LANTER!!

So, unless stills is big part of your work, 7d loses to 60d and to t2i imho, even if stills is important, its not like the 7d or t2i is bad for stills, 7d is just slightly better

If im honest wit myself, ill probablt be selling the 7d and getting another 60d or t2i

Its all abiut magic lantern for me, And its out (in pre alpha or something) for 60d

[Paul Digges]

I do a decent amount of still shooting so for me the 60D was worth the extra money for things such as the remote flash feature and better AF. I didn't know the 7D had a dedicated WB button, I'm sure that is actually really handy. I'm always flying back and forth between WB settings for stills. I really just need to buy an Expodisc and be done with it.

Also it's probably worth mentioning that these three cameras all come with 500$ worth of Red Giant software right now from B&H.

[Taky Cheung]

What does that software do?

[Paul Digges]

Comes with Magic Bullet Quick Looks which is color grading software for Photoshop and NLE's, also some mac only thing called Grinder which looks like their version of NeoScene and some other products I'm unfamiliar with but I'm sure are pretty great considering they are Red Giant.

Here's the link to what all is included:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/find/ite.../REG/type/witb

[Pat Flores]

owning the 60D and then playing around with the t2i and t3i I have to say that I am glad I shelled out the extra money for the 60D...perhaps its just me nitpicking but going through the controls on the Rebels they felt more toyish..

The 60D body feels much more solid.

Personally I am not comfortable enough using ML...yet....but then again it took me a while to jailbreak my phone but when I did I loved it....

[Nigel Barker]

I have been shooting with a 5DII for the last couple of years & just bought a T3i/600D & am really happy with it. After being so used to the 5DII it feels 'right' in my hands in the way that Panasonic GH2 never did. It's a little smaller & lighter but with the Canon 17-55mm F/2.8 lens it feels weighty enough & especially now that I have got a battery grip (with a built-in interval timer even!) it feels even better in my hands & like a proper grown up Canon DSLR. It has the ariculated screen of course which is nice even though I am used to using the fixed LCD of the 5DII with a loupe. It has manual audio levels but I always record separate audio anyway. I cannot dial in degrees Kelvin for the White Balance but never do that on the 5DII either nor do I use the top LCD screen. I can still do a custom WB if necessary. I don't miss the extra rear wheel either as to be honest when shooting video with the Canon DSLRs your don't need to fiddle about with the settings much just ISO (dedicated button just like the 5DII) & aperture press a button with your thumb while turning the little top wheel (versus using the rear wheel).

The killer feature for me is the 3X HD crop mode that gives me the equivalent of an 80-260mm F/2.8 lens for free & there is little or no moire or aliasing. Even if the T3i/600D wasn't 75% of the price of the 60D it's worth getting just for this feature.

[Sam Kanter]

Originally Posted by James Strange

I too have 7d, 60d and t2i

Video is idenitcal

Heres my thoughts them

7d pros

Build quality
CF cards (vs sd, i really prefer cf, not really a reliability issue, cf is just more rugged)
Better for stills (fps, af etc... Not a facor for me as i do only video)
Dedicated wb button (handier than youd think)

60d pros
Swivel screen (still works great with lcdvf)
Man audio (not as good as t2i with ml)
Better build thabn t2i but not quite as good as 7d


550d/t2i

Cost effective
When you add a battery grip its pretty bulky (in a good way)
But most of all, MAGIC LANTER!!

So, unless stills is big part of your work, 7d loses to 60d and to t2i imho, even if stills is important, its not like the 7d or t2i is bad for stills, 7d is just slightly better

If im honest wit myself, ill probablt be selling the 7d and getting another 60d or t2i

Its all abiut magic lantern for me, And its out (in pre alpha or something) for 60d

Alpha 12 for 60D is pretty stable - I've been using it for a few weeks - awesome! 60D with ML is an incredible combo.

[Sean Vergara]

Not sure how many times my comment has been said.

I have the 60d and personally I chose it against the latter for one main reason: LP-E6
2nd reason was ergonomics.

The LP-E6 is king, I work on a lot of short films, music videos, and features films. All the acessories use that battery; I was on a music video for a friend and we had around 50+ batteries for the cameras, kicker lights, monitors and a billion other things powered by the LP-E6

[David St. Juskow]

I don't know the 60D or T3i that well... but what I can tell you is that I'd rather have the T2i than the 5D or 7D. For video, it's a much better fit. The LED screen is much sharper, making it infinitely better for focusing and composition. SD cards are cheaper and newer than CF cards, making it more open to future expansion. The shallow depth-of-field on the 5D is way too shallow, making it even harder to focus... not so with the T3i. Oh... and it's much, much cheaper!

I guess if I were buying today, I might go for the T3i and hope Magic Lantern works on it soon. But it's not a big enough improvement to ditch my T2i.

[Jay Corcuera]

Originally Posted by David St. Juskow

I guess if I were buying today, I might go for the T3i and hope Magic Lantern works on it soon. But it's not a big enough improvement to ditch my T2i.

Believe me, once your t2i overheats when shootin an event your going to want to get the t3i! I am missing magic lantern however, hopefully we get it for the t3i soon..

[Nigel Barker]

Originally Posted by David St. Juskow

I don't know the 60D or T3i that well... but what I can tell you is that I'd rather have the T2i than the 5D or 7D. For video, it's a much better fit. The LED screen is much sharper, making it infinitely better for focusing and composition. SD cards are cheaper and newer than CF cards, making it more open to future expansion. The shallow depth-of-field on the 5D is way too shallow, making it even harder to focus... not so with the T3i. Oh... and it's much, much cheaper!

I agree. I have been shooting video with a 5DII for over two years & the T3i/600D is much better setup for video & the LCD screen is much nicer for focusing. TBH I prefer CF cards as I already have a bunch for our 5DIIs & Canon XF camcorders. I have the probably irrational view that CF cards are more robust because of the metal case &I am always a little worried about losing SD cards as they are little larger than my thumbnail.

I can buy three T3i/600D bodies for the price of one 5DII & have change.

Originally Posted by David St. Juskow

I guess if I were buying today, I might go for the T3i and hope Magic Lantern works on it soon. But it's not a big enough improvement to ditch my T2i.

In my eyes the single big improvement is the 3X HD crop mode that gives you an extra zoom lens without moire & aliasing for free. WIth the Canon 17-55mm F/2.8 I use that means with a couple of button presses I also have another F/2.8 lens with an effective focal length of 50-165mm (or 80-260mm full frame equivalent). The T3i/600D is worth buying for this alone but the articulating screen is nice too.

I have been using the 5DII without Magic Lantern for more than a couple of years so it is not a consideration for me whether it is ever available for the T3i/600D

[James Donnelly]

Originally Posted by Jay Corcuera

Believe me, once your t2i overheats when shootin an event your going to want to get the t3i! I am missing magic lantern however, hopefully we get it for the t3i soon..

The first field test has been done with the new 600D build, and everything worked out great.

About 90% of the functions are working OK at the present moment, so rest assured, ML is on the way soon, thanks to some brave souls who were willing to risk their cameras for the cause.