Canon 20D: Raising the Bar for Prosumer Digital SLRs

General Image Quality

For these pictures, both the 20D and 10D were reset to their factory default setting. A Canon 50mm Macro lens was used for each camera. The 20D was set to Parameter 2 while the 10D was set to Standard. Both cameras were set to record in in JPEG mode (Large/Fine). The pictures were then taken using modes in the "Creative Zone" with Auto WB. The shooting information can be seen directly under each thumbnail. Click on a thumbnail to view the full-size image. The crops below the thumbnails are 100%.

50mm ISO 200, 1/500, f/9.0 Click to enlarge.

50mm ISO 100, 1/640 f/5.6 Click to enlarge.

50mm ISO 400, 1/400, f/7.1 Click to enlarge.

50mm ISO 3200, 1/200, f/6.3 Click to enlarge.

28-135mm (I.S. enabled) ISO 3200, 1/100, f/3.5 Click to enlarge.

28-135mm ISO 800, 1/500, f/5.6 Click to enlarge.

The first two samples show that the 20D is capable of producing sharp, well-exposed, and low-noise images. In the third sample, we were looking to see how the 20D could handle an image with some very dynamic lighting. Although the dynamic range is pretty good, it does not appear to be noticeably different than that of the 10D. The fourth and fifth images clearly show the 20D's amazing low-noise capabilities at ISO 3200. Both images were handheld - something that would be hard to do (particularly the chapel shot) on the 10D at ISO 800 or 1600. As for other aspects of image quality, the 20D is very similar to the 10D. Both cameras use a low default sharpening and saturation setting. Most people shooting in JPEG mode will probably want to boost the sharpening level as both cameras are very conservative with the default setting.

ISO 3200 Comparison

Below, we have compared the 20D to the 10D in their abilities to shoot indoor high ISO images.

20D	10D
28-135mm ISO 3200, 1/180, f/5.6 Click to enlarge.	28-135mm ISO 3200, 1/100, f/5.6 Click to enlarge.

As this handheld shot comparison clearly shows, the 20D is able to produce impressively low noise images at its highest ISO setting. The 10D image, on the other hand, suffers from a massive loss of detail. This comparison is important because it shows that the 20D provides the freedom to shoot low light subjects without a tripod and still achieve usable results.

Long Exposure Comparison

For our long exposure comparison shot, we set both the 20D and 10D to ISO 100, Auto WB, and Large/Fine JPEG mode. The picture was taken from the same tripod with mirror lockup enabled. For the 20D, we took a picture with and without NR (Noise Reduction).

20D	20D (NR)	10D
Click to enlarge.	Click to enlarge.	Click to enlarge.

Interestingly, the 10D image comes out a bit sharper in this comparison even though it has several stuck pixels throughout the image. In the 20D image without NR, there is one red stuck pixel (as shown in the crop). However, when NR is enabled via the Custom Functions, the stuck pixel does not appear.