7. The EOS 300D As A Digital Reflex Camera

The SLR camera market was restricted for a long time, but has developed considerably. The EOS 300D can thus be compared with its closest competitors, the Fuji S2 Pro, the Nikon D100 and (in a fratricidal dual) the Canon EOS 10D. To this trio there can now be added the Pentax *is and the Olympus E1.

There is a remarkable homogeneity as regards price between these cameras, all of which are sold at around the $1900 (2000 euro) mark as regards the E1. As for the rest, only the Olympus is satisfied with a resolution of 5 megapixels, the rest proudly advertising their 6-million-pixel resolution. The Olympus should anyway be excluded from this quick comparison, since the image ratio is not that of the hitherto sacrosanct 24x36mm and it incorporates a new and unique system. At least it's new and unique for the moment. The other cameras remain traditional SLR models, both in their design and in their targets. Among these select few, only the Canon EOS 10D can reasonably claim to have a professional finish. The Fuji S2 and Nikon D100 are based on the same architecture as the amateur model (in this case, a Nikon F80), but are not as rugged as their successors that will soon be making their appearance, you can be sure. Finally, the quality of the Pentax *ist case is similar to that of the D100.

If the Canon EOS 300D is thus in direct competition with the S2 and D100, it nevertheless remains less desirable from a technical point of view (among other things, as far as light metering is concerned). All of its competitors offer the functionalities (though minus the perfection) of the film SLR "big hitters". Although the Canon is relatively rugged, its use as a professional camera is liable not to last as long as an S2 or a D100.

Lastly, it's good to know that the image quality delivered by the EOS 300D is VIRTUALLY IDENTICAL (i.e. very clearly comparable, in colorimetric, noise, rendering, and definition) to the Canon EOS 10D, the Nikon D100 and the Fuji S2, when used under similar conditions, of course. This should be cause for concern for Nikon and Fuji, and we impatiently await their response.