Gripes & Grumbles

What’s Not to Like?

Actually there are several things about theCanon EOS-D30that are either annoying or unfortunate. While image quality isn’t one of them, here are several things that I have concerns about.

Wrist Strap Mishap

Canon makes a very nice wrist-strap that I always use with theEOS3and the1Vand attached motor drives. It makes them much easier to hand-hold. Unfortunately, though theBG-ED3battery grip appears to be designed to accommodate the wrist-strap, the attaching ring on the camera body itself doesn’t have enough clearance for both itandthe neck strap. Minor, but annoying.

I have been told that as of Summer 2001 (at least) there is now an extra mounting ring provided that allows the wrist strap to be accommodated.

 Lens Release Redesign Needed

This is a serious one. The weather has turned cold and I spent an afternoon on the weekend hiking in the woods wearing gloves while using the D30. I had the 70~200mm f/2.8L zoom lens attached. On 4 separate occasions I found that I had accidentally pressed the lens release button. This has never happened to me with the EOS3 or EOS-1V.

In comparing the bodies what I found is that the D30’s body slopes away from the lens release button-surround molding, while on the 1V body it protrudes much more, preventing the same accidental release from happening. Since the lens almost fell to the ground a couple of times this is something that I’m going to have to pay attention to. 

Photographed with Canon D30 at ISO 100. 1/125th sec @ f/3.5 with a Canon 70~20mm f/2.8L lens @ 98mm. RAW Mode.

Autofocus Limitations

In a word, the D30’s 3-point autofocus is simply not enough. Compared to the EOS3 and 1V’s 45 point autofocus it’s a frustrating step backward. Usable, but why does it have to be so limited?

Quick Shooting

If you set the motor drive tosingle shotmode you’ll miss shots. During the 2-3 seconds that it takes to save a RAW file to the CF card or Microdrive you can’t take a shot. The solution is to set the drive tocontinuousmode. At least you’ll be able to keep shooting. The risk is accidentally taking 2 or 3 shots when you only meant for one, but worth it.

No complaints about shutter lag. It’s up there with the best of them. It’s not having the release available the instant that you want it that’s the real problem.

Turn-On Lag

That the camera takes a few seconds to turn on is not a problem. Unfortunately when it’s in "sleep" mode it takes the same amount of time. So, if you’ve been shooting and thetime-outhas passed and the camera shifts itself off, it takes a firm press of the shutter release button and a wait of 2-3 seconds before the camera is available again. Not really acceptable. I would hope that the next-generation EOS digital camera addresses this.