Letter to ed: I read both your reviews on the Canon EOS 550D and the Canon EOS 60D. At the moment I’m in doubt between these two bodies. My lens of choice will be the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM.

 

Letter to ed: I read both your reviews on the Canon EOS 550D and the Canon EOS 60D. At the moment I’m in doubt between these two bodies. My lens of choice will be the Canon EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM.
The reason I have doubt is the viewfinder of the 550D.
I read some posting on the internet that the pentamirror is less bright and is sensitive for dust. The pentaprism gives a better viewfinder image and of course no dust issue. Years ago I used the Canon EOS 600 (35mm analogue film), this body has a pentaprism. So I know that, but I have no experience with pentamirror.
At the moment my camera is the Canon Powershot Pro1.
But I want to move back to SLR, being DSLR these days. Because of the vari-angle LCD screen, like my Pro1, I’m think the 60D is a good choice. The body is a little larger and heavier than the 550D. But, with the 550D I doubt because of the pentamirror and because this body is possible a little to small in combination with the EF-S 15-85mm lens.

Margaret’s reply: You’re correct in assuming pentamirror viewfinders aren’t quite as bright as pentaprisms – but the difference isn’t as great as some people claim and would be compensated by using a faster lens. I haven’t done any comparative tests but my gut feeling is there would be less than a stop difference.

The issue of dust is also interesting and would depend on how well the pentamirror components have been sealed. The only problem would be if dust actually got inside the finder assembly. Otherwise, dust would be just as likely to affect the outer surfaces of the system, regardless of whether it was a pentaprism or pentamirror.

I assume a manufacturer like Canon would have looked into this issue and produced a sealed unit that wouldn’t allow dust to enter. So it wouldn’t be any different from a pentaprism in this respect.

The main advantage of pentamirrors is they are lighter. They are also probably cheaper to manufacture – but what impact that would have on camera pricing I simply don’t know.

The 15-85mm is a good kit lens and a significantly better performer than the 18-135mm lens that is also offered in Canon’s kits.