Regreting my XSi

I have the older Drebel, and I can honestly say that the kit lens is pretty bad. Throw a Sigma 30mm 1.4 on it and it will shine! It is a modest investment that will make your jaw drop. However, I should not have to convince you of this, if you like the Oly... get another Oly! Borrow some lenses, (better quality ones!) and then make a decision. Buying a 40d with the same lens will only further your frustration. You really do need to spend some cash on a few lenses. Get a prime, and go from there.

Your observations are well taken. I'm sure the next few posters will jump all over you for daring to criticize a Canon. But I too have noticed that all pictures taken with the Canon (and I have used the Rebel, the 10D, and the 20D) appear soft and need post processing sharpening to look good. They also do blow out highlights. On the other hand the colors are very pleasing and flesh tones are beautiful. Maybe the Olympus sharpens all this stuff up in the camera before you see it?

Another thought. You might try a Pentax. Or a Nikon. They come right out the camera very sharp. I don't think it's totally the Canon lens (the new 18-55mm IS actually has garnered some very good reviews) I believe it is something inherent in the processor.

Hi Richard, Just a few thoughts,

I mostly shoot really wide landscapes and want edge to edge sharpness with a lot Depth of field. I mistakenly thought the Canon's 12mp vs. the Oly's 8 mp's. would make a big difference.

Resolution will have no effect on sharpness. Sensor size can have an effect on DOF with a given lens though. (And while I'm a Canon user, I think Oly makes fine cameras and lenses) Anyway...

If you're comparing out-of-camera jpegs, well, in many ways you're really comparing Olympus's interpretation of the RAW data versus Canon's since jpegs are processed in-camera and those processing algorithms are proprietary to the manufacturer. You might see if you like your RAW files better.

I personally wouldn't judge an entire company's lens line on the basis of a kit lens either. I suspect Oly may have - or may have had - a clunker or two themselves.

About the softness: It may be helpful if you could post images because it's possible there's a problem with either your Canon lens or body. Stuff happens - UPS could've kicked your box out of the back of a truck somewhere and something's out of alignment. I've only had to use Canon's service a few times and each time their NJ service center was excellent when needed. Anyway, take 5 minutes to shoot a well-lit newspaper taped flat against a wall, using a tripod, and trying several apertures and focal lengths.

Another thing to consider: It's quite possible that Olympus simply applies more aggressive sharpening to its jpegs than Canon does.

One reason - maybe - to stay with Canon isn't the individual camera or lens but the entire system offered. Perhaps you'd like to do some bird photography some day for example. Does Olympus offer the same kinds of products (really long lenses) as Canon in that area? (I don't know - maybe they do!)

Finally, if indeed the Oly is a better camera for you, then there's nothing wrong with that. I suspect you could get most of your money back for the Canon on Ebay - although I certainly hope you sort out the problem and end up keeping it. Good luck!

What Picture Style did you use? What are the saturation/contrast/etc settings? Have you tried shooting RAW and post-process?

No point in changing cameras if you don't even bother to find out what they are really doing.

BTW, is the Enter/Return key broken on your computer?

Pfft.

I have had the 10D since the day it was introduced, have compared over 1000 images from the 40D and XTi in some depth, and have recently spend 2 hours gear fondling a friends XSi.

First: Canon quality / features on the lower end at this point is a function of the date released, not the money spent. The XSi seems to have almost all the useful features of the 40D. The 40D and XTi seem VERY similar in image quality.

Second: Live view is a waste of time as a practical matter. I cannot fathom when I would use it. The shutter lag and lack of AF is RIDICULOUS.

Third: I have worked with Canon "styles" or "shooting modes" since I bought a EOS 630 in 1989; and I STILL don't understand how they work. I stick with Av and M. If Super lazy: P.

The XSi should be able to take AWESOME pictures. If you can't get reasonably sharp images at F8 on a tripod. . . . there is probably something fundamentally wrong and you should post some samples. If your highlights are blowing out: The XSi can EASILY tell you this, and you should dial in a stop of Exposure Compensation. If this makes the shadows too dark. . .then you simply asking the impossible of a dSLR.

This is not a knock on Olympus. I would expect that camera to take AWESOME pictures as well. Post samples of those as well. :)

Who sold you the camera? If you show him your soft images, would he be willing to swap your camera for one that works better? As you know, lots of people do get sharp pictures from Canon cameras, even with the kit lens, and even without sharpening in PhotoShop. Otherwise, we would all switch vendors. I admit that when I photograph a scene with both sunlight and shadows, I have to set exposure compensation to -2/3. That's with a 350D. All modern cameras, including Olympus, are capable of taking great pictures. It sounds like you got a lemon.

Now that was a long paragraph. I got lost a couple times trying to move my eyes to the next line. But I think you said the Rebel sucks and your Oly is great.

Now I have no doubt the Oly is a good camera. However it's a different camera than the Rebel and, like people, each camera has unique strengths and weaknesses. It's up to the operator to learn those strengths and weaknesses in order to make the best of his gear. I'm sure if I ran your Oly like it was a Nikon or a Canon I'd be disappointed with IQ. On the other hand, I know without a doubt you can get great results with the XSi once you learn its operational and post-processing idiosyncrasies. However that's up to you. If you run it like a point 'n shoot you should expect point 'n shoot results.

First, shoot RAW, pay attention to the histogram (keep to right but don't clip) and process in DPP. Play with the Picture Styles and parameters in DPP until you find a pleasing look. Once you see a pattern of settings that work most of the time, save as a recipe. If you set up similar settings in-camera you can save a lot of mouse clicks in post-processing. And, to rule out technique, use a tripod and cable release (disable IS) for some stopped down sweeping landscapes. Remember, expose RAW files to the right but don't clip.

"Second: Live view is a waste of time as a practical matter. I cannot fathom when I would use it. The shutter lag and lack of AF is RIDICULOUS."

Personally I don't use LV much. But I did try a bunch of times and by gum it works pretty darn well. In fact, AF works great on my 40D in LV mode. Once you activate AF in the menus, use the AF-on button to focus. Shutter release is almost instant since AF isn't tied to it.