Hi there,

I have a question regarding cameras. In around 2008/2009, I bought a Canon EOS 1000D with some lenses. I practiced quite a bit and liked photography a lot. My main issue with it is that it is huge and heavy (as all DSLR), and I stopped carrying it with me on every occasion, which is a shame as I love “on-the-spot” pictures. And now, I haven’t taken any pictures with it for a few years, and it has been sitting on the shelf. Today, I’d like to go back to good gear, as I’m really feeling the limits of phone photography, but I’m completely out of the game and don’t really know what to look for.

My wishlist would be:

  1. Compatible with my lenses (mainly EF- 50mm and EF 55-200), adapter OK.
  2. Compact enough when mounted with the EF-S 18-55 that I can put it in a (medium) purse/bag
  3. Less than 1000€, ideally in the 500€ range.

I don’t care much for videos. Is there anything that would be fitting, or should I just buy bigger purses and get back to my 1000D ^^?

Thanks for the advice!

[EDIT] I made a mistake in the lens I wanted to keep, it was not so much the 18-55 (which is standard indeed) but the 50mm portrait… that being said, I suspect this does not change the answers given as the mounting system is the same. Thanks a lot for the answers btw. I will have a look at second-hand cameras and build from there. I still would like interchangeable lenses as I would like the versatility and hope to retake my camera for the occasional photo trip.

  • @[email protected]English
    2•1 year ago

    Well, the low end 1000D are kind of small DSLRs as they go IIRC. So most ILC (interchangeable lens cameras) are unlikely to be much smaller - the lens also tends to make up a lot of the space if it’s a Zoom. Primes can be pretty small if they’re wide angle / cheaper / narrow max aperture.

    Also, if you use an adapter and existing lenses, even if the Camera is smaller, the “length” from back to front will likely be the same cause the adapter just adds back that spacing so the lenses work.

    If you’re not limited by the actual image quality and QOL features of the 1000D, then I think a larger purse will likely be less than 500 euro unless it’s designer.

    That said, if you absolutely want a new camera, you should look at the Canon R50 and the R10 (R10 is a better option, costs more) plus the EF to RF adapter. These will give you some of the mirrorless improvements in use, at the cost of battery life. They probably will take higher quality images - 2008 is actually far enough back where camera sensors noticeably improved and got higher resolution.

    You could also cross shop the Canon EF-M cameras - which while pretty much a “dead system” are really small, can use an adapter to use your existing lenses, probably cheaper, and again, if you’re ok “throwing it out later on”, do have lenses that are also quite small for the system.