Unboxing the Canon Digital Rebel XTi / 400D

Posted on 02 March 2007 by


I’ve never owned a Digital Single Lens Reflex camera before, and it took much cajoling, prompting, begging, and bribing (mostly with promised gift purchases of guides and field reference cards) before I finally took the plunge and bought a Canon Rebel XTi. See, I’ve been using a Casio EX-Z1000, and while I like the camera well enough…let’s just say that my pictures won’t be winning any blue ribbons at the state fair. And although the Rebel isn’t as professional as say, a 30D, 5D, or a 1D, it’s a huge step up for me.

My box from Amazon actually arrived Wednesday, but I showed supreme self control and waited until Thursday to tear into it – because I was working on the OtterBox 1920 Treo Case review and needed to finish! My ex wasn’t quite as reserved, however. He cut the tape and peeked in the box to make sure the camera was actually in there – and then he nicely sealed it back so I could still share the unboxing with you all. ;-)

So let’s take a look…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 01

Clearing away the air-filled packing insulation…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 02

…the Rebel’s red box is revealed!

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 03

Warranty paperwork…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 04

…program CDs…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 05

…and two user manuals. I am sure that there is a perfectly good reason for two, but I hope to never really have to read them. I was given a copy of the Digital Rebel XTi/400D Digital Field Guide which includes tons of color pictures – and was not written by a droid. Hopefully it will answer all of my questions as they occur. ;-)

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 06

Underneath the paper section, I immediately see a neck-strap that I can’t imagine ever wearing…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 07

…the battery charger, starter lens…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 08

…and the camera body, wrapped in double layers of protection.

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 09

The body feels solid, not overly large, and it looks a bit odd without a lens attached.

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 10

A protective cap covers what would otherwise be the camera’s gaping maw…

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 11

It will take me a while to get used to not using the camera’s display to take all of my photos.

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 12

I do have a Speedlite 580EX flash on order, so there will be something to fit in that top mount. You can’t really tell, but the dial is set to the “green box”, or Automatic. I suspect it will need to stay there for a little while, as I learn my way around this thing. :-P

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 13

Here is the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 Lens which came with the set. It is supposed to be a pretty good all-purpose lens; I really doubt that I will outgrow it anytime soon.

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 14

Once the lens is attached, the camera suddenly looks so professional! I’ll bet my pictures start looking better almost immediately! Okay…maybe not for a while and after lots of practice. ;-)

geardiary unboxing canon rebel xti 15

I also ordered a 4GB CF card and a two light shooting kit; hopefully there will soon be a marked improvement in my review photos.

I still need to get a tripod, however. Anyone have any good recommendations? Or are they all about the same? Or did I just utter blasphemy? :-P

This post was written by:

- who has written 1699 posts on Gear Diary.

I started Gear Diary on September 30, 2006, and my goal was that this not be an easily labeled site. We all have gear that we use daily – some of it electronic and some of it organic. I think it is fascinating to explore the equipment that makes our lives easier, more entertaining, more productive, and more manageable. My hope is that Gear Diary visitors will find this site to be a comfortable and friendly place to discuss interesting topics – and not only those that are tech related, as well as a location to discover various types of gear – whatever that term may end up implying – that they never knew existed. My specialty is in-depth reviews written in a layman’s terms, because everyone can understand technology, sometimes it just takes a little translating. +Judie Stanford

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  • http://www.geardiary.com Mitchell Oke

    That is one gorgeous camera!! Love the black case much better than a more common silver one. You will be taking some sweet photos with that baby :D

    Nice box too!!

  • http://wonderdawg777.blogspot.com/ Kerry Woo

    Jeez! I’m becoming like a modern day Pavlov’s Dog, drooling every time I see a unboxing and then going to Amazon.

    Must. Get. Help.

  • http://www.geardiary.com Allen Hong

    The camera looks like something Darth Vader would use (LOL).

    I prefer the silver body of my Canon Powershot A630 though.

    I didnt read the manual and user guide that came with my cam,
    Judie are you going to read yours or just stick with the Field Guide?

    Oh, btw… my cam came with two manuals and users guides, one in english and one in spanish. I think your manuals are the same too.

  • http://www.jerryraia.com Jerry Raia

    Congrats Judie! You are going to love that camera!

  • handy

    is this the camera that comes with a live preview, or am I thinking of another camera?

  • http://www.geardiary.com Allen Hong

    As for tripods, I currently use a short table top one for my camera. While mine has no pan and tilt ability, it does raise the height of the cam to take nice pictures with the self-timer… I imagine that the Rebel is very heavy and that maybe could limit the choices for certain types of tripods.

  • http://www.geardiary.com Judie Hughes

    Thanks guys! :-)

    @Allen – I am going to set it to “green box” and scan through the field guide. My hope is that I’ll eventually be able to take photos in full manual mode…but I have no illusions that it will be anytime soon.

    The Rebel really isn’t that heavy. It is light enough that I wouldn’t mind taking it on a hike. However, with some of the available lenses it could quickly become very bulky. Crumpler is supposed to be sending a camera bag for me to review, so hopefully that will make everything even more portable. :-)

    @Handy – it doesn’t show a preview before taking a picture, but it does show a couple second captured image after the fact.

  • http://wonderdawg777.blogspot.com/ Kerry Woo

    Judie,
    Maybe an future article is in order as to how you arrived at making this particular purchase? Price, features, reviews, recommendations? With all the various choices out there, how does one make a good decision for a good buy?

  • http://www.geardiary.com Judie Hughes

    Ha – it’s called compromise! I wanted a 30D but couln’t justify the expense! ;-) Nah, there were obviously other factors, and maybe you are right – I should just write an article about it. :-)

  • http://www.justanothermobilemonday.com netsyd

    Congrats on the new camera. We (my wife and I) picked up a 350D 8MP XTi right before Christmas and I love it.

  • http://www.geardiary.com Judie Hughes

    netsyd, that’s good to hear. Was there a big learning curve?

    I am still having trouble with the whole “use the viewfinder” thing. I don’t like my nose touching the LCD. ;-)

  • http://www.justanothermobilemonday.com netsyd

    I wouldn’t say there’s a giant learning curve… I’ve done a couple posts at JAMM with pictures taken by the Canon.

    But I keep hitting the 5 second timer with my nose :)

    My wife took some really good black and whites with it not too long ago. Personally I’m looking forward to my daughter’s soccer season – that’s when I’ll really get a good chance to mess with it. Doing reviews with a good camera helps a lot in getting the reader a true view of whatever it is you’re reviewing, but the family stuff is what I really want to remember!

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