Canon EOS 650D Performance Test

While automobile manufacturers renew at the facelift especially the appearance, the camera industry is increasingly a different path outside, everything remains the same, the innovations can be found under the hood. That makes the brand new Canon EOS 650D is no exception - your case is similar to the 600D predecessor as peas in a pod. However, under the plastic cover, much has happened. How will the changes work in practice, clarifies this review. And of course we are going to detail the question of how it is with the image quality of the EOS 650D with its 18-megapixel sensor.

Ergonomics and processing If you compare the current Canon EOS 650D next to its predecessor, the 600D, it seems as though the new Canon merely replaced the nameplate. Tries, the new great-great-great-granddaughter of the legendary 300D conceal not only that her case is made of vile materials in the petrochemical industry. The relatively smooth plastic, the chassis of the 650D is not just a valuable aspect. But once taken in hand, this small deficiency is quickly forgotten. The slim grip stretches quite far forward, he is also coated as well as the well-shaped thumb rest on the camera back-slip. Canon has placed nearly all controls right at the case. For thumb and forefinger easily accessible there a decent sized mode dial sits on the top plate. It offers no less than 14 adjustment positions and locks in abundance - accidental change is virtually impossible. The same applies to the Hauptwählrad under the index finger - again this is quite tight as you want it. The trigger could be like a little bigger, but convinced with two clearly defined pressure points.

Less enthusiastic about the call switches and buttons out on the back. You have got quite small and are sometimes too close together. Thus, while the 650D can be much better live than on its predecessor. Because the EOS 650D comes up with a new feature that simplifies operation noticeably: The screen is touch-sensitive, it accept input via finger, Tipper and wipers. Brand new is not the idea, for example, Panasonic equipped for several years selected system cameras with a Canon EOS 650D: from resistive touch display [photo Media North]. Canon has, however, decided on a capacitive touch screen. This most commonly used in today's smartphone technology reacts to the lightest touch. Have they done with the possibilities become familiar, the 650D can use amazingly fast. A tap of the "Q" symbol is enough, and the display is a pleasantly large icons and controls. Even two-finger gestures dominated the camera, such as the zoom in playback mode. If required, we will also set the focus point a finger tipsters to the desired image section or the picture is taken.

The monitor is also distinguished by its display performance: He has a diagonal measurement of three inches at a very high resolution of over one million pixels. The display is under blinding midday sun just enough bright pity that the display brightness will not automatically adjust to the ambient light, they must be set manually. There can be 180 degrees swing it to the left of the camera and can be 90 degrees down and 90 degrees up and 180 degrees can be folded forward. So not only ground-level photos come without contortions, but also overhead photos, even self-portraits at arms length or snapshots from the Canon EOS 650D with 18-55 mm IS II hips are not a problem. As with conventional DSLR cameras, the viewfinder image appears only in Live View mode on the display, it is a small button turned on quickly. If you want with the EOS 650D more classic photograph, so a look through the viewfinder must be content with a typical class comfort. The viewfinder image is due to the cheap Penta mirror design a bit dark and not very big.

Rather average, the battery capacity. The relatively small lithium-ion battery type LP-E8 holds at best down to 440 shots. He is refreshed in a separate charger, while thus, an optional second battery to supply the camera power. Place the battery is in a compartment that is accessible from the bottom of the camera. Whose door is however so large dimensions that it is best if not blocked by a small tripod plate. The tripod mount of the EOS 650D is made of solid stainless steel and sit where it belongs - in the optical axis.

Features Canon 650D which has perhaps not necessarily lush but a rich array. Who wants to concentrate on his subject, and does not want to take care of the recording technique leaves, all the camera settings Scene Auto Selector. Intervention, there are not only the flash can be disabled. Slightly more control the Creative Auto offers "blurred background / sharp" with features such as, continuous shooting, and specifications for the color rendition as "cold" or "warm". Alternatively, the desired scene mode such as "portrait" or "landscape" mode dial on the grip specify directly. All these automatics offer quite a few control options, such as no Canon EOS 650D with 18-55 mm IS II [Photo: Media North] exposure compensation, ISO sensitivity is always fixed by the automatic system. After all, can be configured so-called "neighborhood effects", such as "darker / lighter". Even the inevitable lately "creative" effects not waived the 650D, they alienated the recordings, for example, with corn, plots them soft or giving them a miniature effect. Alternatively, can the Canon at "creative filters" baptized functions well only in playback mode to an image.

With the EOS 650D Canon leads by two special features on multiple recordings that some manufacturers have long been a common practice. The "night shot without tripod" takes four photos that are then charged to an image that rushes significantly less than the single exposures. And the backlight automatic combines three different exposures pictures so that even at very high contrast scenes with shadows and highlights are well drawn. However, you can not configure the Auto HDR not, you are at its mercy, the mercy. In practice, the function was found to be not fully developed yet. The image results were all too bright with lights and ausreißenden lack depth - so overexposed classic. This problem would be easy to fix by specific Dodge, but like all the scene modes can also be the lens to automatic exposure compensation! Flexible displays on the other hand, the program "night shot without a tripod." It can even be combined with a fill-in flash, the flash will fire perfectly adequate only for the first image-sequence. Have been saved for the Canon 650D has a special depth-automatic "A-DEP" - which is certainly bearable.

Who when shooting would leave nothing to chance or the automatic functions can adjust the EOS 650D largely on his ideas and the respective conditions and subjects. On request, the complete exposure control manual or semi-automatic with preset the aperture or shutter speed. To avoid vibration, the camera is equipped with a mirror lock-up. A preview button, the control can be the depth of field, Canon has also been thought. The ISO sensitivity can predetermine the ambitious photographer on hand, the sensitivity reaches up to ISO 25600. The Auto ISO selects a maximum of ISO 6400, the upper limit may be limited to lower values. The 650D also makes it possible to configure the internal image processing in many areas such as for sharpness, saturation and contrast. Furthermore, you can adjust the strength of the noise reduction. If desired, the bracketing on 650D, with a range of up to 2 EV, the exposure can be a very wide range of + / - 7 EV correct. The possibility of exposure has proved in practice to be very useful, but the 650D tends to a very ample exposure.

Hardly anything to be desired, the flash system of the EOS 650D, external flash units, the camera controls even wirelessly. That being said, the camera has everything your heart desires: Flash exposure compensation, slow sync, rear-curtain sync on - to name but a few.

While its predecessor was not exactly a sports fan, the EOS 650D sprints with continuous shooting in JPEG format going around five frames per second (fps). This is not a record-breaking pace, in many situations, however, sufficiently fast. In practice, much more important than an even higher burst rate is that the 650D by holding her top speed of 39 remarkable recordings. Only after that it falls within the continuous run, being at a rate of 3.6 fps proves staying power. That and the fact that the 650D is even after long continuous rows immediately ready to fire again, indicate a very fast image processor and data bus. The buffer memory, however, seems to be sized just a little: For bulky RAW images is the sprint after only six shots to end, then it goes on with a very contemplative burst rate of 0.8 fps.

In video, Canon has at first glance left everything as it was. Like its predecessor, the 650D in full HD resolution films of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels, the frame rate is a maximum of 25 frames per second. Is filmed at 50 frames per second, the resolution drops to 1,280 x 720 pixels. However, the 650D offers the videographer more than the previous model. So she stands now with the internal microphone on the movie sound in stereo. But much more important: The 650D is now visible in the video tracking the focus continuously. With the new, equipped with stepper motors EF-S 3,5-5,6 / 18-135 mm IS STM that works amazingly well. The images show hardly a pumping focus, the focus is adjusted pretty fast and convenient to the point. Above all, the STM is in focusing lens is not the slightest peep from it - it is completely silent sharp. Quite different, however, the EF-S 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II, the set objective, which we have tested the camera mainly: It grinds when focusing like a coffee grinder, set the control commands to the autofocus very hesitant and unsure . Who puts in his video value to a continuous focus tracking comes to the new STM-around lenses barely. Learn more about this and focus on the new technology of the 650D in the following section.

With the Canon 650D lens performs a new auto-focus method, the so-called "hybrid auto focus" via the main sensor. It is in Live View mode and video recordings. The hybrid auto focus, a special group of light-sensitive cells in the center of the image sensor calculates the focal distance by first comparative phase measurement. The advantage of this method is used, moreover, of the separate AF modules all DSLRs: Per phase comparison can identify the camera quickly, whether the subject is in front of or behind the current focal plane and adjusted so the distance on a train. Unlike the contrast measurement: Here the focus point will initially run over, to find him at all. The autofocus is approaching when the contrast measurement of the optimal setting in ever-smaller increments. This rapprochement attempts manifested in video recordings in that the focus is adjusted very slowly and almost pumped into the picture. Quite familiar to Canon's innovative comparative phase measurement on the main sensor, however, apparently not. You are at the 650D only the general direction, finally, the focal point then determined by contrast measurement - hence the term "hybrid auto focus".

The brave new world the 650D focus, however, has a small catch: The hybrid AF only works in conjunction with the new STM-lenses, so currently the EF 2,8 / 40 mm STM and the EF-S 3.5 to 5 , 6/18-135 mm IS STM. Here stepper motors move the focus elements in the lens, this "stepper motor technology" is the correct focus point very quickly and accurately. At least in theory. Whether this is also true in the photo-practice, had the EOS 650D equipped with STM-zoom in the lab to prove. In fact, this combination in Live View mode is about 30 percent more quickly than the camera with the EF-S 18-55 mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II (the kit lens, which we tested the camera mainly). But really fast is the Live View autofocus is not even with the STM lens. It takes about two seconds for the Canon EOS 650D with 18-55 mm IS II [Photo: Media North] has found the camera focus point and released. Certainly an improvement over the more than three seconds to the 18-55 mm needs to focus - but still slower classes, as the classical phase AF. If the camera is not operated in Live View mode, the shutter lag including autofocus maximum of 0.43 seconds with the 18-55 mm, 18-135 mm in STM it falls considerably short of 0.26 seconds.

The affordable standard zoom lens EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS II, Canon EOS 650D with the kit as. Tube and bayonet are - as usual in this price range - made entirely of plastic. This need not be a serious disadvantage, which makes set-lens Despite its handy weight of 200 grams by no means a cheap impression. Relates to small camera, it covers a focal length range of 29 - from 88 mm, the minimum focusing distance is about all zoom levels across at quite short 25 centimeters. Moreover, it is equipped with a filter thread, its diameter is 58 millimeters. The initials "IS" in the model number indicates that the kit lens is equipped with an optical image stabilizer. With his help, according to Canon to steady shots with longer exposure times to four stops than non-stabilized lenses possible.

Canon EOS 650D with 18-55 mm IS II Picture Quality Like its predecessor, the EOS 650D also solves with 18 megapixels on an APS-C sensor to be quite high. Canon has therefore resisted the temptation to deliver by increasing sensor resolution ostensible selling points. As the youngest member of the EOS family in terms of image quality beats the 650D had the brief but intense practice and use in harsh laboratory test of digcamworld show. The extensive and detailed commentary test protocol can be viewed for a small fee and download as a PDF file - see related links.

In the test lab, the 650D was equipped with the standard zoom lens EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS II. This affordable kit lens stopped down to at least F8 shows a balanced development focus of the center to the edges. Only at full aperture the sharpness decreases slightly to the image edges, noticeable in the photographs is this little hot but not waste. The measurement resolution is, however, a less uniform picture. The highest resolution achieved, the camera-lens combination at F8 with an impressive maximum value of 49 line pairs per millimeter in the central focal range. Marginally worse dissolves the lens to wide angle or telephoto. Considerably stronger, however the loss of resolution at the image edges is marked down - he is at F8 about 20 percent and occurs all the more apparent will be displayed depending on. Has no problems with the lens vignetting - the Canon EOS 650D is Randabdunklung barely measurable, but not visible in the photographs. More problematic is there already that the standard zoom in the lab shows pronounced fringing on contrast edges. In practice, these chromatic aberrations are less annoying - also because the camera can correct it automatically.

Despite the very high pixel density, the EOS 650D to about ISO 1600 has hardly any problems with noise. Although the signal to noise ratio of 40 dB initial good at ISO 100 from decreases continuously, but only at below ISO 1,600 the critical limit of 35 dB. Beyond this stage, however, uses the ISO noise reduction a powerfully, the texture sharpness then leaves the green zone. And so the shots from ISO 3,200 look soft and detailarm, but until 6400 are certainly still use them for prints in postcard size. This is also supported that the EOS 650D allows natured especially luminance noise, which significantly onerous color noise but usually well under control. Few problems with the camera has high-contrast scenes, their input dynamics is the way up to ISO 3200 high at around ten f-stops, then takes a clear trend visible. In practice, the EOS 650D showed a slight tendency to overexpose. "Exposure to right" in itself is a good idea - but ausfressende lights or too high black levels should not provide this exposure method.

Not quite as flawless is the issue of tonal 650D. Only at the base sensitivity of ISO 100, the camera differentiated on average over 224 excellent tonal levels. But even at ISO 1600 it differs only slightly more than 128 tonal levels per channel - the images seem so undifferentiated with increasing ISO speed, striking. With the color fidelity, it does not quite know the 650D. It tends to be something altogether rich colors, this is especially true for cyan and orange tones. Serve with the crisp right vote for the Canon EOS 650D battery and memory card compartment and the tone curve for basic sensitivity slightly high texture sharpness - the EOS 650D is designed by default to a strong visual impact. So they wasted potential for subsequent image processing. This applies no less to the standard tuning, already the default "neutral" delivers images that optimize much better and can reprocess. A supreme, the EOS 650D features also still in RAW format.

"Facelift a success" Bottom line - this label may be the Canon EOS 650D gladly adhere to the handy case. Canon has improved the successor to the 600D in two major ways: The sensitive touch screen simplifies operation immensely. And the new Hybrid AF, the camera in Live View mode and when shooting video tracking the focus quickly and safely - but only in conjunction with the equally new STM lenses. In addition, the burst rate increases to about five shots per second, new Scene Modes automatically handle difficult situations by multiple exposure. With its rather large range of equipment, the 650D is aimed at both inexperienced photographers as well as advanced amateurs. The latter are, however, not with the kit lens EF-S 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 IS II satisfied in all respects - The 650D certainly deserves better quality optics. Too bad also that the single-action plastic case sold the true qualities of the camera slightly below market value. For that we know the 650D with a good image quality to please, which is matched Canon typically crisp. Here the only significant criticism is the light meter - he would not hesitate to impose some restraint and do not expose so abundant.