Manufacturer: Canon
Description: Semi-Professional 10 Megapixel Digital SLR Camera
Released: September 2006

If you want to look like a really cool photographer who knows exactly what their doing but, in fact, don’t know much about photography or cameras – then the Canon EOS 400D digital SLR might just be the perfect camera for you.

The bottom rung on the high-end Canon camera ladder, the EOS 400D is the much-anticipated update to the 8 megapixel EOS 350 which was released several years ago. While the human eye may not detect the difference between 8 and 10 megapixels, the digital capabilities of the camera do (thankfully) and use the heightened resolution to increase the effectiveness of handy features like inbuilt image stabilisation and multiple, dynamic focus points.

Its pretty easy to take nice photos with this baby, even when it is all set on “Auto” for us photographic simpletons, the speed of the shutter is impressive too, allowing up to 3 shots per second in “rapid-fire” mode and producing crystal-clear, sharp images in “sports” mode. Canon have increased the size of the LCD display from the EOS 350 as well, so all system information appears on the one screen and previewing your images is easy, even in bright sunlight.

The bundled 18-55mm lens is fairly entry-level, but the fact that the new Canon EF lenses have their own built-in anti-shake system along with a self-cleaning feature is pretty impressive. I would still probably recommend buying a kit with more than one upgraded lens, but for us amateurs, the cheapo number will do fine for some practise.

If you happen to know anything about digital image manipulation (i.e. Photoshop), then the real benefits of digital SLR photography will show themselves once you plug the EOS 400D into your computer. Due to the enormous size and clarity of the images, retouching, recolouring and other image effects work a lot better than on standard pictures from pocket point-and-shoot cameras. The EOS 400D will make your images seem like you really know what you’re doing… especially if you don’t.

Pros:
Extremely high resolution, sharpness & dynamic range.
Built in cleaning & anti-shake systems.
9 point auto-focus technology
Huge, bright LCD 

Cons:
Bundled lens mediocre
Better to buy body only + expensive lenses.
Included software is fairly entry-level.

Rating: 4½ out of 5