Movie/Video Mode

Canon EOS 1100D Review (Rebel T3 Review) – Movie/Video Mode

Canon EOS 1100D review: Movie/Video Quality

The movie clips we shot came straight from the camera as MOV files, meaning there’s no need to process files before they’re useable on a computer. Quality is good, with a rate of around 28 Mbit/sec proving quite reasonable for the 1280×720 resolution. There’s also the possibility to shoot at either 25 or 30fps for best compatibility with both PAL and NTSC (UK and USA) TVs, though no cinema-like 24fps mode available here. Although the 1100D can capture HD files, it’s the lower-res 720p rather than 1080p.

Canon EOS 1100D review: Movie/Video Record Time

The most you’ll get out of the 720p HD mode at 25fps is around the 17min mark – but that depends on what you’re shooting (it varies based on what the compression will be throughout). The higher 30fps frame rate will use up a little more space and therefore result in shorter clips. Theoretically it’s possible to shoot up to 29mins 59secs, but this won’t be realised in practice due to a maximum 4GB filesize limit (based on FAT-32 formatting limits).

Canon EOS 1100D review: Movie/Video Focusing Modes

It’s possible to activate single autofocus during recording, though we’d advise not doing so as the system is the same contrast-detection system as per live view mode. This means that over- and under-focusing are particular AF problems during recording unless, of course, you choose to opt for single fixed focus or it’s even possible to manually focus with the lens itself (though it’s tricky to hold the camera steady for the latter).

Canon EOS 1100D review sample image – click for full size gallery

In the Menu options there’s also a Quick mode. To explain: this will quickly jump out of live view, attain focus, then jump back into live view and make recording all the quicker to jump into. When outside of live view the screen will black out, so it’s a case of trusting the focus’s acquisition. Of course this mode can only be used in advanced of capture, not during.

Canon EOS 1100D review: Movie/Video Manual Control

There’s not the ability to pre-set aperture, shutter or ISO preferences before or during recording. However, it is possible to lock the exposure using the AE button which can be particularly useful. Saying that, using the autofocus will up the exposure in order to attain better contrast and this will undo fixing the exposure (and the brightness/exposure adjustment it’ll show in real time in your final clips).

Canon EOS 1100D review: Movie/Video Sound

The linear PCM sound quality is certainly decent, though the kit lens is so close to the microphone that any autofocus sounds will be amplified to the point of them becoming the most dominating sounds. It’s not possible to utilise other microphones as there is no mic input.