Formally announced on February 7 and available in early March 2011, the Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera and DIGIC 4 Imaging with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens becomes the company’s flagship entry-level model and is accompanied to market by a budget-priced T3 variant as well. No fewer than six Rebel models are currently displayed on the Canon USA website, so entry-level folks considering a Canon have their work cut out for them wading through all those choices.
The major differences between the T3i and the T3 (aside from a $300 higher MSRP for the T3i) are an 18 megapixel sensor vs. 12.2; 3.7 frames per second (fps) continuous shooting rate vs. 3 fps; a spot-metering exposure option; an articulating 3.0-inch monitor vs. a fixed 2.7-inch and 1080 HD video vs. 720 HD.
Take a quick glance at the Canon EOS Rebel T3i and you will hardly be surprised at its form and style. It looks just like many other entry-level and mid-range DSLRs on the market. Look closely at the back of the T3i, however, and you will see one of its coolest features: a 3-inch vari-angle LCD screen rated an impressive 1 million pixels (before you go wild, realize this is pixel count is just slightly more than the 921K of Nikon’s D7000).
The key point is its flexibility compared to the Nikon, which has a fixed screen. With the Canon, you can hold the camera over your head or aim low while pressing the shutter. This opens a world of new angles for your photography, and you should definitely make use of it if you buy this camera. On the top is the hot shoe for accessories, which sits behind the auto pop-up flash, the mode dial, power switch, display and ISO buttons as well as jog wheel to make menu adjustments.
The shutter is angled on the grip. The mode dial is typical for Canon, with a mix of common scene and manual options as well as a movie setting. The newest is “A+” — Scene Intelligent Auto — which is a souped-up smart auto. Here the camera analyzes the subject in front of it and adjusts Picture Style Auto plus the Automatic Lighting Optimizer, auto white balance, autofocus and automatic exposure. We found it worked well, but there are plenty of tweaks available for Picture Styles once you move out of A+.
The back of the Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP CMOS Digital SLR Camera and DIGIC 4 Imaging with EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens has that great screen and an optical viewfinder with 95-percent coverage and 0.85x magnification. It is not the brightest viewfinder we have ever used, but it is definitely workable. It is surrounded by a rubber eyecup and a nearby diopter control lets you adjust it to your eyesight.
You will also find the usual blizzard of buttons including Menu, Info, Live View, Exposure Compensation, Q, Playback and Delete. The four-way controller gives quick access to AF, Picture Styles, burst/self-timer and white balance. In the top right corner are two buttons to enlarge or shrink the size of your images during playback.
The camera body and whichever kit lens you choose (our review sample had the 18-135mm stabilized lens). You also get a hefty 324-page owner’s manual, strap, body cap, USB and A/V cables, battery and charger.
The battery is rated 550 shots without the flash, 440 using the flash 50 percent of the time, per CIPA. These are solid specs and unless you are recording video all day long, the battery should survive an extended outing in the field. You also get two CD-ROMs. One is the EOS Digital Solution Disk with Mac and Windows software for editing photos and developing RAW files. The other is the software instruction manual.
The Canon EOS Rebel T3i has an 18-megapixel APS-C CMOS sensor, the most potent the company offers without stepping into pro ranks like the full-frame EOS 5D Mark II (around $2,500 body only). Unless you are covering a living room wall with gigantic prints, 18 megapixels is more than enough for most shutterbugs. Burst mode was engaged (roughly 3.7 frames per second) with grid lines enabled.
We attached the supplied 18-135mm zoom, which has the 35mm equivalent rating of 28.8-216mm so it is fairly wide angle with a bit of telephoto reach. Then it was time to start capturing the first inklings of spring — yes, with even some color from the first crocus of the season. There was plenty of color indoors with cut flowers, orange cats and so on.
This is an enjoyable camera to shoot. It focuses quickly and has a quick response. It has nine focus points with one cross-type. We hate to mention it again, but our most recent favorite DSLR — the D7000 – -has 39 AF points and nine are cross-type. The T3i’s menu system is easy to follow and since it is targeted to first-time DSLR buyers, descriptions appear on the LCD to describe what aperture-priority is, for example, when you dial into that mode.
Speaking of the screen, it is great, and although we could not really see the difference between the D7000’s 921K pixels and Canon’s 1.04MP, color was excellent and we had no problems shooting in direct sunlight. The ability to twist the screen as you move into different positions is one of this camera’s great strengths and tops the Nikon.
The T3i supplies basic Eye-Fi wireless integration–you can enable or disable the card and the camera provides connection strength information. For bracketing, you are still limited to a three-shot bracket and a range of two stops around the center, though the complete range goes up to seven stops in either direction. It supports wireless flash.
However, there is no way to save custom settings, no creative features like time-lapse or multiple-exposure shooting or filters (only a handful of postprocessing effects). Furthermore, with increasing resolutions, the ability to shoot raw plus small or medium JPEG–as opposed to full size–is not just a pro necessity anymore, especially if you plan to transmit wirelessly. For a complete account of the T3i’s features and operation, you can download the PDF manual.
For the price, the T3i is a great choice for DSLR videographers–though the cheaper T2i can still suffice if you do not need the articulated LCD–and is a solid choice for creative still shooters. However, while the image quality and general shooting performance are top-notch, if you are upgrading to shoot sports, kids, or pets, the T3i may not be able to keep up.
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