Canon SL2 Review, Part 1 — Adam Leahy Photography

Canon Rebel SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, 40mm f/2.8, 60mm Macro, 100mm f/2 lenses.

As a photography & camera enthusiast, something that appeals is a small & powerful image capture device. Phones of course work well in some cases, there are compacts, and mirror-less cameras. The dSLR is usually the biggest camera that enthusiasts would consider, and Canon makes a really small one, the Canon SL2, which aims at being small like a mirror-less.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/2.8, 1/30 second

The image above is shot into a mirror, I am experimenting with the flip out screen. The Canon SL2 is designed to focus mainly with the flip out screen. I think it works well for a dSLR, so well that in most cases the back screen focuses better than through the view finder. With that said, the focus system through the view finder is among the worst in current dSLR's. And with that said, in general dSLR's focus well through the view finder. So, in conclusion, this does focus pretty well through the view finder, but the screen is quite good and I found myself using the screen to focus almost all the time. More on that later.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/60 second

I liked the flip-out screen for instances like this above, for low point of view images. I found that the Image Stabilization IS on the 28mm f/2.8 IS lens worked well. I shot it routinely between 1/15 second and 1/30 second using the back screen. I have fairly shaky hands as a photographer. With a 28mm lens and no IS I would usually feel safe at 1/60 second hand held.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/25 second

Not having your face smashed behind the camera is liberating:) I have spent a lot of time with Olympus and FujiFilm mirror-less cameras, and I love screen focus, especially with a screen that rotates in some way. With this said I have not worked with a screen focus system that works as well as through the view finder on my Nikon D4, the highest end dSLR's still have an autofocus (real world) advantage over the mirror-less systems. In the photo above I am shooting with my arms extended down.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/8, 1/50 second

I like not having to bend over to get a shot like this, just use the screen!

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/4, 1/15 second

In the images above I would not have gotten them in focus, with out the superb IS from the Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS lens. I would have to bump up to 1/40 to 1/60 second. Could I have pushed it to 1/8 second? Well, I tried it, and I didn't have perfect results. Some good, some not perfect. I am really a stickler on perfectly sharp focus, so I tend to not push the lower limits of shutter speed, both with and with out IS or VR, or whatever brand system I might have in my hands.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 6400, f/4, 1/1000 second

This camera lies between the Canon Rebel 6 or 7 and the 6i or 7i in build quality & features. I think it is a nice upgrade from the base Rebel series. I have worked with the Rebel series cameras in my classroom dating back to the first one, the xti. I think these are incredibly good cameras for the price and you can never go wrong with one. The SL series and the "i" versions have a little nicer build quality than the base series, and I like that a lot. Is it worth the price upgrade? It depends on your budget. If you need to spend as little as possible, then find a refurbished Nikon or Canon at www.adorama.com if you have a bit more to spend and want to treat yourself with the tool for your passion, then upgrade to the SL2 if you want small, and the "i" version of the Rebels, or the d5000 series for Nikon. I am mainly talking about dSLR's here.

Canon SL2, Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/125 second

Canon SL2, Canon 40mm f/2.8, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/125 second

Canon SL2, Canon 100mm f/2, ISO 100, f/2.8, 1/125 second

The three images above are shot with different Canon primes, 28mm IS, 40mm and 100mm. My thought going in was that I wanted to see the difference in focal lengths, just with distortion and shallow depth of field. Those things are noticeable and you can look for that yourself. What was most important from this test was that I could hand hold the 28mm IS lens, and the 40mm lens with perfect focus. I could not hand hold the 100mm lens without getting at least some blur. These are shot at 1/125 second, a shutter speed that normally I could hand hold pretty successfully with all of these focal lengths. I used the flip-out screen with all of these, and I just couldn't control my hands from shaking too much, without the camera braced against my face, like I would focusing through the view finder. So, I guess I like the combination of screen focus with an image stabilized lens best.

I am focusing with the classic view finder in this image above, notice the sharp focus on branch at right. I was not able to get that with screen focus with this lens and shutter speed combination. 100mm focal length and 1/125 second shutter speed.

Canon SL2, Canon 100mm f/2, ISO 100, f/2, 1/200 second

Canon SL2, Canon 100mm f/2, ISO 200, f/2.8, 1/125 second

Canon SL2, Canon 60mm f/2.8, ISO 800, f/5.6, 1/165 second

The image above is with Canon's superb 60mm f/2.8 macro. Screen focus, and I feel it works really well with macro!

Canon SL2, Canon 60mm f/2.8, ISO 800, f/5.6, 1/100 second

With the image directly above I have the camera resting on the ground sitting next to it with the screen out. I am using manual focus, which is nice with live view on the screen. This is lot easier to work with compared to lying down with my face on the back of the camera. I find that really precise focus is better through the view finder, but the screen does a pretty good job. In this image I would have been more accurate focusing through the view finder. I mean that out of the series of images I would have gotten more of what I intended with focus. There is a 2mm focal plane here, and it's hard to nail it where you want. With the screen focus in this case I focused where my best estimate was, then rotated manual focus a hair one way, shot, the opposite way, shot. So, I basically bracketed focus in my shooting sequence because I knew I could see exactly what I was doing. I could see 99% of where focus was, but in macro, that is still not quite good enough.

I am a real world reviewer, part time professional photographer, full time photography teacher. I don't focus my reviews on specs, technical data or hype. Do an internet search on those things, you can (will) get lost in that stuff, losing your ability to make the best decision. Hopefully I have addressed some information that is meaningful. I tried to cover things that matter most in everyday use, without the hidden advertising to buy new and more expensive gear.

The Canon SL2 is one of my favorite dSLR's because it is built well, small and capable in the enthusiasts category. It is not a professional level camera, although a hard working, artful person could start a business with this camera. The lenses I used were Canon 28mm f/2.8 IS, which I recommend highly, it is sharper than the older generation of inexpensive Canon primes. The IS system works really well. Canon's 40mm f/2.8 pancake lens is a real gem! Cheap, small and sharp. It makes the total size of the SL2 very small, it's one of my favorite set-ups for this camera. The 100mm f/2 from Canon is a really great lens too, and perfect for portraits that bokeh, and shallow depth of field are a must. It is a bit sharper than the Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens. Finally, the Canon 60mm f/2.8 macro is a very good lens, sharp in the mid apertures where you want it, and the manual focus ring is firm with a nice feel.

Update (November 27) Just a bit more information, starting with a basic comparison with the Canon SL1. I have used the SL1 quite a bit for the last year, my classes have two of them in their set of cameras that they can use. I love the SL1, the only downside really is that the battery life is a bit short. Canon says the SL2 batter life is better for regular photography, using the screen to focus eats the battery life more. My experience, it that the battery in the SL2 last a lot longer than the SL1, even with a lot of screen focusing. I think the battery is a non-issue with the SL2. The cameras use different batteries, the SL2's is a bit bigger. Three big advantages for the SL2 are the flip-out screen, which I love for enthusiast level photography, 24 megapixels vs. 18 megapixels, and in-camera wifi. I think the SL2 is a good and worth while upgrade. If you have an SL1 already, don't buy the SL2 thinking you have to upgrade, just use the SL1, it is awesome! If you are deciding between an SL1 and SL2, get the SL2.

Here's a link to a comparison Here is a link to buy at Adorama I like Adorama, especially for used gear, and refurbished. The link here to a new SL2 w/kit zoom lens.

Part 2, of the Canon Rebel SL2 is coming soon and will focus on pictures of people.

Take a look at a similar camera by Nikon, the D5600.