The EOS 60D is a well-built dSLR that exudes a quality feel in hand. It has a nice ergonomic grip and an articulating LCO, as well as an 18 MP sensor derived from the 70. It isn't as well built as the 70, and is slightly smaller, bu t has almost the same button layout, with dual dials and a status LCO. However, the but*tons on the left of the LCO have moved to the right, to accom*modate the articulating LCDs mechanism. The buttons near the status LCO feel clicky, and are set flush in the body, making them a little less intuitive. The 600 isn't weather sealed. The Nikon 07000 feels better built, with slightly tighter shut lines.


The ergonomics of the 60D are a bit questionable, with play and delete buttons being located on opposite ends of the camera. The 4-way joystick seen on the 70·and SO Mark 2 has been moved and is inset in the rear dial. With its 9 cross point focussing system, the 600 focuses fast, but the focus points feel a bit sparse, and are not configurable. We prefer the focussing of the 07000 and the 7D. The LCO on the 600 is a bit sharper than the 7D, bu t the dif*ference isn't very noticeable.


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At base ISOs, the 600 offers a clean, detailed output. The col*ours are punchy, and there's a lot of detail. There's no noise at ISO 400, and just a little at ISO 800. We noticed the 60D trying just a bit harder to remove noise and therefore there is a little loss of detail. The D7000 in contrast offers even less noise, while maintaining more detail and higher dynamic range, noticeable in the quality of the highlights it produces. At ISO 1600, the 600's output is largely clean and noise free, but more detail is lost. ISO 800 and 1600 show similar levels of noise - a
very good result. At ISO 3200 there


some chroma noise visible, but the output is still largely clean. The effects of some ham- handed noise control is visible however, as more detail is lost and textures appear a bit flat. ISO 6400 shows a lot of chroma noise in 100 per cent crops along with some loss of detail, but when viewed at a normal size, the output is still quite punchy and pleasing.