Even typically, it retails for around $450-500 body-only. Hunting around or waiting for holiday sales should net you the body and 18-55mm kit for about $450. The T3i is technically a very capable camera, and for the price, it's unbeatable. Why didn't I spring for a T5i, or even an SL1, at this point in late 2013? Honestly.
In order to prevent the aforementioned "fighting over the baby", a couple of months ago I replaced my wife's T3i with a brand new one (since I'd put several thousand shutter actuations on hers), plus the new Canon kit lens and additional accessories (as interest payment). It sits right in that sweet spot of "good enough." But if you put it into the hands of an advanced pro, it will still be sufficient (if, perhaps, not ideal) for their needs, whether they typically shoot with a 5D Mark II, a PhaseOne IQ180 or a RED EPIC. It is incredibly easy to pick up, throw into Av mode and use without thinking. How then is it so monumentally popular? Because it does one thing perfectly: It is, above all things, a camera. Well, how about autofocus or frame rate? Nope, still slow at both. How about control must have the best control scheme, right? No again! That honor tends to go to cameras with both D-pads and thumbwheels (or both in one, like the 5D Mark III). Does it have the biggest sensor? Nope, just regular APS-C. not by a long shot, if DxO Labs are to be believed (and I assume they are). (Do megapixels even matter anymore?) Does it have the most dynamic range? Ha!. It's a fantastic little camera.ĭoes it have the most megapixels? No. I'll let Rob tell you in his own words how he feels about this now almost legendary camera: That is, until we started working with a new writer, Rob Taylor-Case, and he just happened to mention in passing that he owned not one but TWO Canon T3i's that currently reside in his household, both a his and a her model (so that nobody has to 'fight over the baby' so to speak).
I've found it to be just the perfect all-around shooter for my style." This is coming from a guy who has been an active photographer for five decades and has owned a dozen full frame bodies over the years, both film and digital. Our senior lens technician for many years, Jim Tanner, now retired and shooting away tells me that the T3i is still his "go-to camera." I asked him why: "It hits the sweet spot for just about everything that matters to me in a camera. I asked him why and he said without hesitation: "It's all I need and nothing more." .Hmmm. One of our senior editors from yesteryear thought it was better than sliced bread and finally broke down and bought one for himself (after it had already been replaced by the oft' forgotten T4i). Oh, not that we don't respect the T3i, far from it. It's three years old! And while the US is still more enamored with DSLRs than the Asian market according to recent studies, it's still above and beyond what I'd consider normal in an industry where change is constant. Click "Digital SLR" at B&H Photo and, you guessed it: the Canon T3i. Click "All DSLRs" at and you get as your very first buying option. as of today the first two results are for the Canon T3i. Want more? Go to and search for Digital SLR. It beats the Canon EOS M, the Canon 6D and the Canon S120, all popular for the manufacturer, but apparently not nearly as popular (at least not on this site) as the good ol' T3i. It has twice as many landing page views as the Canon T5i, two generations newer down the line. It beats the Olympus E-M1, the Sony A58 and the sleek little Canon SL1. (Yes, top ten!) It is higher than the Panasonic GX7, the Nikon D610 and even Canon's own highly touted 5D Mark III. For the calendar year 2014 thus far, the T3i is one of IR's top ten most read about cameras.
This era's shining example of that phenomenon is the Canon Rebel T3i, a camera that debuted almost 3 years ago (nearly ancient in technological time) and yet is still wildly popular with the camera-buying masses. But every now and then a camera seems to transcend time and the current market and, well, simply stays current long after being past its proverbial prime.
You all know that we here at The Imaging Resource love cameras, and every manufacturer has at least a few true gems out there for all of us to fall for.