Useful Buys

Books

We picked up this book, Canon EOS 50D Digital Field Guide by Charlotte K. Lowrie to learn how to maximize the benefits of this camera.  I was already impressed after reading a few chapters as the information was clearly explained and the content was applicable to both amatuer and professional photographers.  There was a good number of supporting photo examples, which is a plus for me as I am a visual learning type of person.  I attempted to read through parts of Fundamentals of Photography: The Essential Handbook for Both Digital and Film Cameras by Tom Ang and I would recommend the Digital Field Guide over that any day.  The issue with the Tom's book was that it was written in an extremely convoluted manner and required a lot of re-reading. 

Accessories

Photography experts recommend buying backup batteries.  The battery that came with the Canon EOS 50D, BP-511A, lasts for approximately 800 shots.  For someone out in the field, back-up batteries is a must since missing a photographic moment due to battery failure or drained battery is a huge loss.  The question I was faced with was whether or not to buy a Canon battery or a 3rd party battery. 

Advantages to buying Canon:

1. If something in the camera fails due to malfunction in the battery, Canon will fix it provided that the warranty is still valid.
2. Canon is a trusted name in quality so there is less risk of buying a bad battery.

Disadvantages to buying Canon:

1. EXPENSIVE!!!  Canon is atleast 3 times more expensive than 3rd party batteries.
2. Thats about it.

Although the advantages outweighs the disadvantages, I read on several forums that Sterlingtek manufactures quality and reliable batteries that exceed the power capacity of Canon's (by 30%!).  User reviews were mainly positive and the occasional negative comment was because they received a dud. 

I bought their SterlingTek's POWER Canon 2 Pack BP-511 Battery 2000 mAH and now waiting to receive it in the mail. 

I plan to write a seperate post later to review the book in more depth once I finish reading it and also to review the battery performance.