I picked up a EOS 500N yesterday. Its the QD model, as it has Quartz date printing, which has promptly been turned off.
It came with the battery pack/grip, so popping 4AA batteries makes this a lot cheaper to use. No kit lens came with it, so a 50mm/f1.8 is what’s on the body now. Shooting with digital for the last five years, with various non-SLR and SLR cameras, it does seem to be different when I’m in front of a full-frame SLR!
Initial impressions seem to go with the weight – its very light, even with the battery pack. It only has 3-point AF, and you can’t change it in Program mode. Also, not having the “red lights” light up (for AF points) does seem to take some getting used to. There isn’t a depth-of-field preview button, but its not too bad.
I plan on shooting some wider landscapes with this. Probably get a 35mm/f2, or a 17-40/f4L for this purpose (I’ve been toying with the idea, but the 18-55 EF-S kit lens has always been the stumbling block to my purchase).
Loaded it with Samsung ISO400 film, and will probably spend some time shooting in aperture priority mode, rather than anything else. The built-in flash looks a little toy-like, and doesn’t go up as high as the newer 350D/20D/5D’s, so red-eye will probably be more prevalent.
All in all, I’m excited to be shooting with film again! Hello cross-processing. Hello infrared photography (yes, I know about the IR diode, but I’m going to experiment).
Resources
- Photo.net review: Canon Rebel G body
- Bob Atkins’ Canon EOS 500
- MIR’s EOS 500N page
- Photonotes on EOS500 and IR film – though I’m going to attempt some IR photography with this, without Kodak film maybe… Or to see how badly the fogging is going to be.
