Canon Elan IIe Review

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My Canon Elan IIe Review

Pros: Inexpensive, versatile, easy-to-use
Cons: Bulkier than a point-and-shoot, accessories get expensive

I chose the Elan IIE based on a friend's recommendation. It was the first SLR I purchased--but even in retrospect--it was an excellent choice. More solid than the Rebel series, and much more affordable than the EOS-3, the Elan II is a perfect compromise for non-professionals.

Like I said, I didn't know anything about photography when I bought this camera; I wanted to learn. The automatic modes of the camera worked great while I was discovering the intricacies of aperture, depth-of-field and exposure. Now that I understand the technical aspects, I rely entirely on the "creative" modes that give the user greater control.

Click on me to go to my photo gallery. All the pictures there were taken with the Canon Elan II-e.

I will recommend against purchasing one of the "kits". You can buy this camera with a Canon 28-80 zoom lense. I regretted doing this. Instead, buy the camera body by itself and purchase either the Canon 28-135IS lense (around $450) or one of the 28-300 "super zoom" lenses from Tamron or Sigma. If you're concerned about image sharpness and you have the extra cash, the Canon Image Stabilized lense is a great match to the Elan--that's what I use on a daily basis. The super zoom lenses from third party manufacturers produce images similar in quality to the 28-80 zoom lense included in the kit, but they're vastly more useful because of their extended zoom range... and not much more expensive.

I'd also recommend against the eye-controlled auto focus. I thought this was a cool feature, and tried to use it for several months. Ultimately, I just turned it off because it didn't work reliably enough. Most of the time it was fine, but after I missed a couple great shots because it focused on the wrong point, I gave up on it. Further, if you hand the camera to someone else for a shot, you would have to turn it off anyway (or recalibrate it for them).

I use the 380EX flash instead of the built-in flash. On the larger lenses, the built-in flash is useless because the lense blocks the light. I've also purchased a telephoto lense and a wide-angle lense. The telephoto lense is the 75-300 from Canon--useful and cheap. The wide-angle is the Sigma 17-35--very sharp, but useful in limited situation.

So, in summary, this is a camera that can grow with you. It accepts the entire line of canon accessories... and if you ever do outgrow this body, you can buy a bigger Canon and not lose your investment in lenses and flashes.

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hi aon6ohsv98cg9mpv good luck (1/10/2009, 9:59 PM)

Do u like takeing pictures of animals? (10/23/2006, 5:30 PM)

hi tony do you only take pics of animals ???? (7/30/2006, 6:48 AM)

what do you think would be the next step up from this camera? (7/3/2006, 11:47 AM)

i love cats to u dumb freak (4/28/2006, 9:38 AM)

ALL OF YOU ARE DUMB FREAKS!!!!!!!!!!!! TALKING ABOUT YOU LOVE A CAMERA (4/14/2006, 3:01 PM)

I love cats to and I get great pictures of them whith this great cameara on e-bay it's called a Canon Elan 11e (3/28/2006, 7:09 PM)

Dont u??/ (2/26/2006, 4:16 PM)

I LOVE CATS (2/26/2006, 4:16 PM)

You can get a nice (2nd hand) Elan II on Ebay for around $85-100 plus S&H. (9/8/2005, 3:04 PM)

Hey Tony, thanks for all the info it all really helped me with my science project. your great and great pictures. Thanks again! (3/31/2005, 12:51 PM)

Hey Tony, thanks for all the info it all really helped me with my science project. your great and great pictures. Thanks again! 3/31/05 (3/31/2005, 12:51 PM)

What is the going price for the Elan IIe? (7/22/2004, 2:46 PM)

You are so hot (7/21/2004, 10:21 PM)

Thank you very much for your comment. I was palnning to buy a canon 3000 v, but, you have changed my mind. (7/2/2004, 2:41 PM)

I owed a Canon A2E for 5 years with the eye-control focus and loved it. (6/30/2004, 10:11 AM)

you serf I serf we serf (6/16/2004, 10:06 AM)

you got problems kid!!! (6/16/2004, 10:05 AM)

my ginnypig name is oreo she is an gril she is black and white she is small (5/15/2004, 8:51 AM)

hey keep taking pictures your doing good I like taking picturs to (1/28/2004, 11:38 AM)

Do you ever get tried of taking picture (11/25/2003, 4:21 PM)

I like the picture you took (11/25/2003, 4:19 PM)

how do you turn off the automatic flash on this camera? (4/8/2003, 1:37 AM)

tony, recently purchased the canon elan II. i am new at photography, can you give me some basics on using the features and different modes available, thanks. (2/17/2003, 8:47 PM)

Hi. I just ordered a used Canon Elan IIe off EBAY. Thanks for the advice... (2/5/2003, 10:12 PM)