Canon T5i - Disappointing Limitations??

[dsmyth411]

Hello Canon Community,

I am a DSLR newbie who just purchased a T5i kit with 18-55mm IS STM stock lense and also added a 55-250mm IS II zoom lense.

I have been testing the camera by shooting my favorite subjects in bright sunny daylight - family, close-up portraits, kids, distant portraits, architecture, and landscapes.  I have tested all the SCENE settings for skyline shots at night.

Aside from sunny, very still, close-up portraits of family, which have been good, and daytime landscapes decent, I unfortunately have to say that I have been surprisingly DISAPPOINTED with the results of the T5i straight out of the box, using all the Auto-Preset settings at highest size/resolution.   So I just want to check in with others to see if my expectations of the T5i are too high, or if better results can ONLY be achieved in Manual settings or with better expensive lenses.  Because I have been using a Powershot A510 the past 10 years and it seems to produce nearly the same results using the presets!  I feel like I have also seen photos just as good taken with friends' iPhones and Androids.

All my photos, whether with the stock lense or zoom lense, are blurry, grainy, or noisy when viewed on my computer at 'actual size'.  At reduced web-viewing size they look fine.  But I would like some of my skyline shots to be printable at actual large-format size, and blurry buildings and windows are just not acceptable.  With the zoom lense at the beach on a sunny day, birds and sailboats are not sharp from afar, even using a tripod, and with the auto-focus pin-pointed on the subjects!  All nighttime skyline settings have tons of noise and grain at actual size, once again using a tripod.  

So, while I have plenty to learn about the T5i's manual settings and photography in general, and know that I am limited to a certain extent without expensive lenses, it seems to me the T5i is just a point-and-shoot in a bigger, more 'professional-looking' body.  I wonder if I should return the T5i and just buy a cheaper, higher-megapixel, more portable point-and-shoot instead...While I was hoping someday to move into more professional-quality landscape, action, & modelling photography, the lense costs are just too prohibitive in the nearer future.  So should I just stick to consumer grade cameras at more affordable prices for now?

Thanks for your advice.  I hope that maybe I am just doing something really wrong.  But I am not a total noob, as I have been producing decent shots with the A510 for sometime now.  

Don

[TTMartin]

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@dsmyth411 wrote:

Hello Canon Community,

I am a DSLR newbie who just purchased a T5i kit with 18-55mm IS STM stock lense and also added a 55-250mm IS II zoom lense.

I have been testing the camera by shooting my favorite subjects in bright sunny daylight - family, close-up portraits, kids, distant portraits, architecture, and landscapes.  I have tested all the SCENE settings for skyline shots at night.

Aside from sunny, very still, close-up portraits of family, which have been good, and daytime landscapes decent, I unfortunately have to say that I have been surprisingly DISAPPOINTED with the results of the T5i straight out of the box, using all the Auto-Preset settings at highest size/resolution.   So I just want to check in with others to see if my expectations of the T5i are too high, or if better results can ONLY be achieved in Manual settings or with better expensive lenses.  Because I have been using a Powershot A510 the past 10 years and it seems to produce nearly the same results using the presets!  I feel like I have also seen photos just as good taken with friends' iPhones and Androids.

All my photos, whether with the stock lense or zoom lense, are blurry, grainy, or noisy when viewed on my computer at 'actual size'.  At reduced web-viewing size they look fine.  But I would like some of my skyline shots to be printable at actual large-format size, and blurry buildings and windows are just not acceptable.  With the zoom lense at the beach on a sunny day, birds and sailboats are not sharp from afar, even using a tripod, and with the auto-focus pin-pointed on the subjects!  All nighttime skyline settings have tons of noise and grain at actual size, once again using a tripod.  

So, while I have plenty to learn about the T5i's manual settings and photography in general, and know that I am limited to a certain extent without expensive lenses, it seems to me the T5i is just a point-and-shoot in a bigger, more 'professional-looking' body.  I wonder if I should return the T5i and just buy a cheaper, higher-megapixel, more portable point-and-shoot instead...While I was hoping someday to move into more professional-quality landscape, action, & modelling photography, the lense costs are just too prohibitive in the nearer future.  So should I just stick to consumer grade cameras at more affordable prices for now?

Thanks for your advice.  I hope that maybe I am just doing something really wrong.  But I am not a total noob, as I have been producing decent shots with the A510 for sometime now.  

Don

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The time and effort required to learn to use your camera like a professional will cost you just that time and effort, no money, no expensive lenses needed. To get professional result you need to move out of the Scene modes and learn how to use Tv, Av, and M modes. Also professionals almost always do some post processing of their photos. The T5i is capable of professional results with out buying expensive lenses. It again comes down to are you willing to put the time and effort into it.

=

[ScottyP]

There are a lot of good free tutorials on the Internet. Google for "the exposure triangle" first to get the main central idea down. Watch a few on that then go from there.  

Fast enough shutter.

The kit lenses are not truly great but you should be able to get more acceptable results. If your subject is moving you need a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the action.  

But not so fast that ISO goes up.

But don't go way faster with the shutter speed than you need to, or you push the camera into using high ISO to make the most of the light.  

A Rebel looks great at ISO 100-200.  It still looks pretty good at ISO 400, but blown up onto a 24" or 27" computer monitor you will see some flaws. At ISO 800, however, it will be grainy and there will be much less detail in the image. The borders between lips and face will look jagged and eyelashes will be a bit rough and hard to make out.  Keep in miind, though, that a standard photo print is only 4" x 6" or maybe 8" x 10".  Seen at that size it will not look bad.

Avoid having to crop a lot.   That just blows the image up and enlarges the flaws, making them visible.  Don't expect to crop in 200% or 400% and always have a great image if you are above ISO 200.

[cicopo]

Firstly let me point out there is a learning curve; just because you bought it doesn't mean you know how to use it to it's full potential. Same thing as buying a new Corvette & thinking you're a race car driver.

Secondly printing at 100% is NOT recommended as a photo but can be done for posters viewed from a distance. 50% is considered the safe limit.

Take the time to read the manual, explore web sites devoted to photography & learn what each mode is for, & I'm not talking about modes like scene or sports etc. Those are compromises where a software program tries to emulate skill.

[TCampbell]

“The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it!” 

  -- Ansel Adams

If you leave your camera in full automatic mode you're going to get results that look like they came from a point & shoot camera.  This is normal.

The dramatic images that you've seen DSLRs product (and just to remove all doubt... your T5i absolutely can produce them) requires some knowledge of exposure.

I recommend you go buy one or two books.

A few excellent primers are:  "Understanding Exposure" by Bryan Peterson, or "The Digital Photography Book" series by Scott Kelby (I think it's up to 5 books now but it's the first few books have most of the good info.)

The camera is simply a tool and like any tool it only does whatever it's told.

[dsmyth411]

Okay, thanks everyone for your informative replies.  I absolutely know that I need to learn the manual settings to get the most out of the T5i - something I never took the time to do even with the A510 point-and-shoot.  I just thought that at 3+times the price, a DSLR's auto-presets would and should still blow me away/look more professional, compared to the A510's.  You've put my worries to rest, a bit...  (As an electronic music composer, the preset sounds of a $2000 Waldorf synthesizer certainly are much more 'pro' sounding than a $150 Casio synth out the box.  So while it doesn't mean you can't put a lot of effort into making the Casio sound as beautiful or more as the Waldorf, the Waldorf presets are certainly more 'advanced' to start, and those were my expectations in the digital camera world too I guess.)  

But it's some good reassurance that the T5i is fully capable of advanced professional images with the right knowledge behind it.  I will certainly pursue the educational resources you listed.  I do now wonder if my A510 is also as capable of 'pro' shots with the right training in manual modes!

[cicopo]

In the right hands the A510 can do lots more than most people will ever get it to do BUT it won't be able to do many of the important things your new DSLR can do. Shutter lag, slow AF performance & the small sensor make it un usable for many things you can now shoot.