Best Budget Canon Camera — Canon SL2 Review and Video Test
– In this video, I review the Canon SL2, one of the smallest and
lightest DSLRs on the market, that is packed with features. Coming up. (upbeat music) (camera shutters clicking) Hey, what's up guys? Sean here with Think Media, bringing you the best tips and tools for building your influence with online video. And on this channel we do
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in the description below.
I'll list out all of the specs
and features of this camera, as well as anything else I forgot. Let's jump into the review. So the Canon SL2, also known
as the 200D internationally, is a new camera offering from Canon that's kind of in a special category, and that is a kind of mini DSLR. One of the standout
features about this camera is the fact that it comes
in weighing under one pound, and it's packed with a
lot of cool features, so it's pretty extraordinary, everything that you get
in such a small package, and in a way, it's kind of a cool option, if you were considering
between mirrorless and DSLRs, because it is so light,
and it is so portable, but yet you still get access to the full, normal range of Canon lenses that will all mount on this camera.
So the SL2 has an APS-C
CMOS 24.2 Megapixel sensor. Now it's really cool because this is the same sensor or a similar sensor to a lot of the more
expensive Canon models, yet they put it in this small body, and really budget offering, so then you can get great
photos, and great video images. It's also got the upgraded
DIGIC 7 Processor, which means that it's gonna'
handle low light better than even models with the older processor, as well as operation is very fast. As you scroll through
the menus, everything, the camera fires up fast, you
can do everything really fast, so that's super cool.
And then one of my favorite
features of the SL2 is that they added dual pixel
autofocus to the AF system. Now, other Canon models
had a hybrid autofocus and Canon's always been
pretty good at autofocus, but dual pixel is absolutely incredible. So that means this is a great camera for shooting YouTube
videos or for vlogging, to not only be able to see
yourself on the screen, but be able to have face tracking and be able to have it follow focus really well for creating videos. We've already taken
this out for a few tests basically with this setup, and you can see some of
the footage right here of what it looks like, kind
of in a vlogging situation.
Pretty incredible, and we
even did some motion shots, and the way it was able to track focus during those shots was,
again, super impressive, and that is all, you know,
to the dual pixel autofocus. And one thing I always
recommend for people is that if you are looking
for any Canon camera, always look for that dual pixel autofocus, 'cuz it's just so good. Next up is the LCD screen.
Now the LCD screen is super bright. It's awesome 'cuz it flips to selfie, pretty essential for
shooting YouTube videos, or definitely for vlogging, or just for convenience, of course, even from shooting behind, or even for shooting photography, to be able to do low shots and high shots, having the variable LDC screen is great. And it's touch screen. Super responsive, very easy to navigate the menus
quickly, change settings. All touch screen, and then of course you also have the dials as well. And then like most new camera models this is stacked with Wi-Fi,
NFC, and Bluetooth technology. And so I love the Wi-Fi feature. I downloaded the Canon App, or
I've had it for a long time, and actually if you aren't
using the Canon App, highly recommended, a great
way to do remote shooting, if you're a solo creator, it's a great way to even monitor yourself on video with the Canon App. But what I like to use it for is mainly shooting photos on the road that are better than a smartphone, and then using those to
put them on Instagram or use them for social media.
And so you could see
some examples here from, we were up in North Seattle out on a boat, and I was shooting just on
the SL2 with the kit lens, and I'll actually link
to this Instagram post in the description below. You can swipe through the carousel to see some of these photos. But pretty impressed with this as a photography camera as well, although mostly here on Think Media we talk mainly about video. But definitely solid choice
for both photo and video and that Wi-Fi is a great feature. Then for shooting videos, you've got 1080p at 60 frames a second so no 4K here, but as
I've said in past videos I think that for the average shooter, especially the average
YouTuber or content creator, you're usually not using
or editing 4K anyways.
So a lot of times when I
vlog, we'll go on the road. I like to keep it at a 1080p, and I've been traveling
a little bit with this. But what's so great is that they added that 60 frames per second, so we've already been kind of testing out some of the slow motion. We went out just doing a
little bit of running stuff. I'm training for a half marathon soon, so we were kind of shooting some footage to kind of test out that slow motion, even a few, just kind of
messing around on a penny board, you can see some of
these shots right here.
And so, great video quality,
1080p, and then 60 frames, super smooth video, great autofocus, but then of course you can slow that footage down in editing which is super cool to
have 60 frames a second. The SL2 also has an
external microphone jack, which is huge, because, of course there's some mirrorless cameras and even point and shoots, that maybe you're
considering and looking at, And one of the downsides to a lot of those is that they don't have that mic input. So if you do want to just take it out and shoot the audio direct off the camera, you can do that, but then if you also want to set up a studio setting like this, or just put a small microphone for on the road, like this, that mic jack allows you to get that better audio for your videos. The SL2 also has a cool
feature assist mode, which is kind of like for those who are just getting started
in video or photography, so this is actually one
of my top picks this year for one of the best cameras, really just all around for YouTube, but also one of the best cameras for those that are newer in getting
into photography and video, and want a camera that they
can learn and grow with.
And so that feature assist mode in Canon, I know that seasoned pros or whatnot, that's not something they're into, but if you haven't really, you know, done much shooting yet, it's actually a very
helpful kind of menu system to learn the ropes of
setting up your aperture, and your shutter speed, and what things are going to look like, and it just kind of walks
you through everything, so very user friendly as a camera overall. Additionally, the SL2 uses
Canon EF mount lenses, which is like the standard lens system, I mentioned that earlier in the video.
But what's cool about that, is maybe you're trying to
decide between, you know, a DSLR or a mirrorless camera. And mirrorless is certainly
a great way to go. Canon's got some great cameras out like the M6 or the M5, or even the old M3, are all great cameras, but they are a different set of lenses that can't really be converted over if you were to go down the DSLR path. So what's cool about
having a super small body that kind of comes close
to that mirrorless size and portability and feel, that can take not just kit
lenses and budget lenses, but if you ever want
to upgrade your lenses or borrow someone's lenses, you could put anything on here at all.
So we actually put the
Canon 50 1.2 on here, and not only do we see
that, of course it works, but also that the SL2 can take some like, incredible photos, and you have access to the entire Canon line of lenses. So I actually have a video out on the best budget
lenses for Canon cameras. I'll link that up on the YouTube card and we'll put it in the description below. But then also what's cool is that Canon has the biggest lens selection out of any camera brand, period, which means that finding Canon lenses is also relatively easy to do, meaning: Craigslist, Ebay,
Amazon used, refurbished, of course new as well.
So getting great glass and great lenses for a camera like this is very easy and that's actually a
huge advantage of the SL2. So what is the investment
to jump into the SL2? Well at the time of
launch, the SL2 comes in at $699 here in the US with the kit lens, and this is actually a new
version of Canon's kit lens.
It's got built-in image
stabilization, it is the STM motor. And this one has kind of more
of an aluminum build to it. Some of them are totally plastic. Nice lens, and as you
saw some of those photos, takes great photos and great video. So just the kit lens and the camera itself is something I think is great for just starting to create content, starting to shoot some photos, even creating YouTube videos, vlogging, and all those things. But also the body itself
comes in at just $550, and so that's a pretty cool price in case you wanted to skip the kit lens and maybe even move into some of those budget
lenses like I mentioned in that video that we linked up. You know, like the Nifty Fifty, that comes in around $100, 15 milimeter 1.8, there's
a 24 milimeter I recommend, the wide angle, 10-18, all these lenses would
work great on the SL2, and so price wise, that is
the initial launch price, and I think it's pretty reasonable, and actually pretty surprising considering you get the
dual pixel autofocus, you get the 1080p, 60 frames a second, you get the build quality, you get things like built-in time-lapse
modes, great features.
You know, I really am thinking
as far as full retail price, it's one of the best budget
cameras on the market for all of the features
that you're getting, and then of course over time that price will probably be driven down a little bit, and once it's been out for awhile, you can even probably grab some deals on like Ebay, or refurbished
deals on Canon's website, or even Amazon refurbished or used, you know, open box situations. So overall the value of the
SL2 is pretty outstanding. So as far as my final thoughts go, I think that the SL2 is a great camera, especially for this
point in the marketplace. I think that at the price for the value and the features you get, it's pretty amazing, and it's kind of the best of both worlds,
and here's what I mean. You know, maybe you're thinking about investing in something
like a G7X for vlogging, and that's actually a great
camera, definitely recommend it, and more portable than
this, but, you know, it doesn't have a microphone jack.
It doesn't have, it doesn't
have interchangeable lenses. So if you want to get a
little more sophisticated, shoot some more stylistic videos, or have a camera that can
expand into other things, you're kind of limited with something like a point-and-shoot camera. You know, mirrorless
cameras are similar to this, but this is so small
and portable and light, that it kind of competes with mirrorless, and you could just skip the mirrorless and jump right into a DSLR that not only is great
for maybe where you're at in creating content today, but also that can expand
into other things. So it definitely is a
great, well-rounded camera, that I think has a really cool place in the overall camera marketplace. Additionally, this is a great camera for just a content creation tool overall, so for shooting photos. Now, photography wise, it does
have 9 points of autofocus, so if you were to ask, "What do you get if "you invest in a little bit more, "like the T7i, or the 70D or the 80D?" And most of the difference that you're gonna' see there is that those cameras are gonna'
be better at photos.
Like, a lot of times the video
won't look a lot different, but you'll get more autofocus points, you'll get maybe more frames per second for how many photos it
can shoot per second. And then you'll also get
different build quality. You'll get maybe more dials. Eventually they add, you
know, like a top view screen, and a lot of things like that. But a lot of those things, in my opinion, are things you can live without. Now, if those are features that you want then definitely, those
are all great cameras, but what's cool is that they've managed to pack, like, all the essentials into this camera to make it a very well rounded content-creation tool. Photos, videos, micro-content for social.
And so if you did want
to be shooting 4K video, you'd have to look somewhere else. And it also doesn't have,
you know, higher frame rates, like 120 frames per second if you wanted to do, say,
like really slow slow-motion. But again, those are features that are usually found in more expensive and higher end cameras anyways, and so, not really as much of the target, or I think even the intent of the SL2. And then one final thought about the SL2. And one of the reasons why
it's one of my top picks for the best cameras for
YouTube this year, is because it has all of the essential
features I feel like, that YouTubers need, specifically, right? When you have the flip screen, you got the great face
tracking, the autofocus.
But it's at such an affordable
price that you could maybe, if you have a fixed budget
for investing in gear, that some people, a
mistake I see them make, is they buy like, the
most expensive camera, and then they have no money leftover to think about lighting,
to think about microphones, to think about tripods. And so what's cool is that
this camera comes in at a price that maybe instead of picking
up a more expensive camera, like say the 80D, you could reinvest that money
in other lenses, in tripods, you know, lighting,
microphones, accessories, even computers or video editing, to really potentially build out a YouTube studio with your budget. Question of the Day! What do you think about the SL2, and how do you think it
compares to other Canon cameras, or even cameras from other
brands on the market? Let me know in the comment section below. So thanks for checking out this video.
Subscribe for more videos just like this. If you want to check out our best cameras for YouTube this year, you can watch that video right here. If you want to watch
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