X

On the road with the Canon EOS 600D

Byron Bay provided the spectacular backdrop for a shooting tour with Canon, a hands-on experience with the new range of EOS and IXUS cameras for 2011.

Lexy Savvides
Lexy is an on-air presenter and award-winning producer who covers consumer tech, including the latest smartphones, wearables and emerging trends like assistive robotics. She's won two Gold Telly Awards for her video series Beta Test. Prior to her career at CNET, she was a magazine editor, radio announcer and DJ. Lexy is based in San Francisco.
Lexy Savvides
Byron_1.jpg
1 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Sun, it rises

Last week we were lucky enough to have the chance to test out a bunch of different cameras from the 2011 Canon range, including the Editors' Choice-winning EOS 600D, 1100D and IXUS 220 HS.

The location? None other than spectacular Byron Bay on the north coast of NSW. Click through for images plus our thoughts on the cameras.

Alexandra Savvides travelled to Byron Bay as a guest of Canon Australia.

Most photographers know that the best time of day to be out and about is around sunrise and sunset each day. While the thought of being tucked up in bed can be a lot more appealing than making images when it's cold outside, the sacrifice is well worth it when you can get shots like this. Taken on the 600D, image straight from camera.

Byron_2.jpg
2 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Fired up

By now you've twigged that being up early had to be for something more than just standing in the long grass — hot air ballooning!

Byron_3.jpg
3 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Up, up and away

The colourful balloon begins its ascent just as the morning mist is starting to lift.

Byron_4.jpg
4 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Poster perfect

Anyone need a ride?

Byron_5.jpg
5 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

From a great height

Cruising at an altitude normally reserved for small planes, the view from the balloon is spectacular. Just make sure not to drop your camera.

Byron_6.jpg
6 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Topography

Taking some obvious influence from professional photographer Jackie Ranken, we used the black-and-white creative filter in the 600D to achieve this look.

Byron_7.jpg
7 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Anyone for a coffee?

There's no supplies on board the balloon, so as the morning coffee craving starts to hit we fly over this crop circle formation. This farmer obviously has a great sense of humour. A croffee circle?

Byron_8.jpg
8 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Down to sea

Back on terra firma we head to one of Byron's most spectacular beaches, Watego. This shot was made by applying two creative filters on top of each other — first the toy camera effect, then the miniature effect with the focus set on the surfers. The blurred background, rather than being a product of a wide aperture, is created in-camera.

Byron_9.jpg
9 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Bokehlicious

Another example of the miniature effect, this time applied on a shot that was taken with a wide aperture to start with. The miniature effect can be applied either horizontally or vertically on your photos. It also emphasises and saturates colours from the original photo.

Byron_10.jpg
10 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

A slice is nice

A friendly Byron Bay worker poses for a photo at lunchtime. They're a good-looking bunch, the Byron locals.

Byron_11.jpg
11 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Colour me in

With time to spend exploring the local highlights of Byron Bay, no visit is complete without a trip to some of the local art galleries. We went a bit crazy with the minature effect here, can you tell?

Byron_12.jpg
12 of 12 Alexandra Savvides/CBSi

Trip the light fantastic

Taking the IXUS 220 HS out for a night spin, we were able to capture this shot by using the long exposure setting at 1 second.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos