Well here are my thoughts on the Canon T3i. Its a very nice camera, I love the flip-out lcd screen, especially hand when you are recording. It has a lot of features that will reward you if you venture out of the Auto mode although it does take some practice but the good thing is that its digital, so you can shoot countless photos as practice
...I'd recommend doing a little studying so you can take full advantage of it. The 18-55 IS kit lens is good but not great but since it has Image Stabilization youll get sharper shots if youre shooting handheld, but a tripod is recommended for those long exposure shots. I got the 50mm 1.8 II lens along with it and let me say that its one little awesome lens, very good for portraits and very sharp, especially at 7-11 f-stops
but it doesnt have Image Stabilizer so its a little more challenging and it doesnt have zoom but its inexpensive compared to other lenses and its a great lens, i highly recommend it! Overall I think the T3i is an awesome camera and im very satisfied with it! My next lens will be the 70-200mm f/4L
