I have been covetously eyeing a Canon Rebel T6S to replace my dead Rebel XS. That’s a pretty big step even for a Big Girl(TM), but I was really just learning to understand and love the XS and the great photos I could achieve when it died. (Ironic, given how long I had it and how many wonderful photos I took with it ‘accidentally’.) At the same time, I’m willing to acknowledge that I do not have the knowledge or care to do justice to a “nice” camera like my sister-in-law’s 7D. The XS was state-of-the-art for entry level when I ostentatiously got it shortly before AJ was born (mid-2009). It gave me better photos than I deserved for a long, long time. RIP, XS.
That being said, I have very much missed the quality of my DSLR. I have a water/shock/freeze-proof FujiFilm point-and-shoot from the same time period that is 16mp (same as my XS) and is decent for snapshots. It can be, like, taken to the swimming pool or stuck in my purse or brought on a bike ride. It does very well for being durable, and almost nothing for taking quality photos. I’ve become a snob, I admit.
I love it when my sister-in-law is around for family gatherings, because she takes the most compelling, well-focused, well-shot photos of the simplest things. She took a photo of my two boys playing outside once that made them look like catalog models simply with lighting, composition and focus. (I want to link it but can’t locate the original. When I find it, I’ll link it here.)
So, the Rebel XS died its tragic death at the beginning of this summer after 6 years of ignorant use, and I have been pining for a replacement. I’ve been eyeing a Rebel T6S because it has the most functionality and future value available at my beginner/novice price frame [understand that this ‘price frame’ means a whole lot of saving and a tax return devoted to its purchase – this is not a light buy] and is comparable to the 7D without being $1100 body-only. At the same time, I’ve been watching megapixels. I’m a novice photographer, and I approve of achieving your frame with crop if you have to. Therefore, megapixels are important. The market had moved on when I wasn’t looking, and made an abrupt jump from 18 to 26 mps in the 6S. I’m frankly not educated enough for a “real” DSLR(like my s-i-l’s), so the T6S seemed the pinnacle of my ambition. Enough megapixels to crop for failure to frame and the room to learn without the painful curve of “professional” equipment. Something to pin my ideas on for next tax season, anyway.
All of this is grand imagination without the cold, hard cash to fund it, though… And that’s why I was completely amazed to come across a listing in the employee ‘Swap Shop’ at work for a Canon T5 for $400. Running price at the time was around $350 on the web at large so not really a deal, but this was a verified listing from someone who was probably a real person in the local region, and I did NOT have 400 when I saw it. I sent the gal a message asking if she’d hold it for me for a down payment, and she did!
I got my T5 the day before yesterday. I screwed up the checks and the timing and even the price, but right now,I have this glorious camera in my hands. This was taken at 50mm basic portrait preset, literally straight out of the box:
There are more shots, of course, but these are the best from my 5-second, ‘hey guys say hi!’ shoot..
I’m so excited! Thank you Patsy, and the mystery husband who won this camera from somewhere. We will LOVE it, and we will definitely USE it! II hope the money is as much of a blessing to you as the camera will be to us!