Released in March of 2016, the Canon 1300D, also knows as the Canon Rebel T6, has been around for a while. Despite its relatively advanced age for a camera, is it still usable in late 2022, and beyond?

Have its features aged too much, perhaps being surpassed even by smartphones now, or is it the case that, if handled properly, this camera can still produce awesome images?

In this review, we’re going to dive deep into what this little camera can, and can’t do, and whether it’s still a good buy.

Let’s begin.

Size & Build

One look at the body of the 1300D, and the first thing you’ll notice is its relatively diminutive size. Measuring 129mm x 101.3mm x 77.6mm, and weighing in at just 485g, with battery and card, this camera is lightweight, and relatively small, making it easy to carry around with you wherever you go.

Even though I personally prefer larger camera bodies, I get that I’m not necessarily representative of the larger population, so I’d say its small size is a massive plus for most people.

In terms of build quality, the T6 feels sturdy in the hand, and it is made from a combination of carbon fibre, glass fibre, and polycarbonate resin. Whilst it doesn’t feel as premium as a Canon R5 for example, given its price, it feels high quality enough.

Image Quality

When discussing image quality, it’s important to bear in mind that the T6 is not only a six-year-old camera at this point, but it was also an entry-level camera when it was released.

Sensor

With that in mind, its 22.3mm x 14.9mm 18MP CMOS Sensor will enable you to take some amazing shots, if you know what you’re doing.

A camera, just like any other tool, is limited by what its operator can do. If you understand things such as lighting, composition, how to interact with your models, and more, you’ll be able to create some beautiful images.

Remember, some of the most famous photographs ever taken were captured using very rudimentary equipment.

Processor

Now, since we’ve brought up lighting, the T6 has a DIGIC 4+ processor, and its ISO capacity ranges from 100-6400, with the option to extend it to 12800.

Given the age of the camera, and the older DIGIC 4+ processor, photos taken in very low light conditions will probably be noisy, though obviously which lens you’re using will dramatically change your results.

Something like the Canon 18-55mm kit lens will struggle more in low-light, when compared to something like the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4, or even the f/1.8.

Shutter Speed

If you’re looking to capture fast-moving subjects, like photographing sports, or wildlife, the shutter speed goes up to 1/4000s, but continuous shooting can only do 3fps. That means that if you hold down the shutter button, and take a burst of photos, the shutter will only click three times in a second.

This is pretty mediocre by modern standards, but at least you have the option.

Autofocus

When it comes to autofocus, you have 9 AF points, and no Dual Pixel AF. You still have autofocus, and it will perform ok, but it’s not quite as good as what you have on the Canon 77D, or 7D MkII for example, which do have Canon’s legendary Dual Pixel AF.

Video

Now that we’ve covered image quality, at least in terms of photography, let’s talk about this camera’s video capabilities. Unfortunately, it’s not exactly great, especially by today’s standards.

It can do 1080p, but only up to 30fps, though if you are willing to shoot in 720p, you can do 60fps.

Autofocus

Once you add the fact that the T6 doesn’t have Dual Pixel AF, and only 9 AF points, you can start to see why this camera isn’t exactly favoured by many for its video capabilities.

Now, this doesn’t mean that you can’t get great video with it, it just means that it takes a bit more work. A slow car can get you from A to B, but a fast car will get you there faster.

Now, there is a silver lining to all of this. If you’re a beginner, I’d actually recommend that you get a camera like this, to learn video. Not only will it be relatively inexpensive, but the limitations that this camera has will force you to be creative in ways which a more expensive camera would not.

If you have a super expensive camera, why bother getting good at manual focus? A camera like this, as unspectacular as it is by today’s standards, will force you to learn, through its sheer incapability.

Focus

It can’t focus properly? Better practice manual focus then. It’s not exposing photos right? Better switch to manual mode, and learn how to balance shutter speed, ISO, and aperture. It doesn’t have very good dynamic range? Better learn how to control your lighting, so that dynamic range doesn’t matter as much.

I think that, at least for beginners, this is the value that a camera like this can bring to your life. Once you’ve learnt, you can graduate to a better camera, like the R, or even the R5, and at that point, you’ll be able to pull much more out of those cameras, as you’ll know your craft.

Didn’t expect me to go on for quite so long about the video capabilities of a DSLR this old, did you.

Now that we’ve covered video, let’s look at the thing which will allow you to see what you’re actually doing. The screen.

Display

On the back of the Canon 1300D, you’ll find a 3″ screen, which is pretty standard, but don’t expect to be blown away by it. I mean, it’s a piece of glass that shows you what you’ve been capturing.

You can’t flip it, or do anything with it really, either than stare at it in frustration when the camera’s autofocus misses.

Control

In terms of control, you have the usual buttons and knobs. Nothing spectacular, though if you’ve used a Canon camera before, you’ll pretty much immediately know your way around.

Connectivity

When it comes to connectivity, rather surprisingly, this little camera has WiFi capabilities. If you install the Canon app on your phone, I suppose you can transfer photos over, or use your phone as a viewfinder.

This isn’t something that I’ve ever really used with my cameras, as I like to either just take the SD card out, and pop it into my laptop, or connect my camera to my laptop via USB.

Vlogging

So, when it comes to vlogging, just how useless is the Canon T6? Actually, it’s not quite as useless as you might think.

Now, yes, you don’t have a flip screen, so you can’t actually see what you’re doing, but technically you can still vlog with it.

The fact that the camera has a cropped sensor might be a bit of an issue though. You see, if you put a 50mm lens on it, and hold the camera at arm length, it’ll mostly just capture a close-up of your nose.

A lens that might make it useable for vlogging is something like the Canon 18-55mm kit lens, especially if it has IS in the name.

By keeping the lens zoomed all the way out, you should be able to vlog with this camera, especially if you use something like a Gorillapod.

Again, it’s not recommended for vlogging, as you don’t have a flip screen, but you can technically use it for that purpose.

YouTubers

How about if you want to film content, such as for YouTube. If you stand in one place and talk, without moving too much, it will actually do the job.

You can probably even get something like the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 or f/1.4, and get some really buttery blurred backgrounds.

You’d need to have more than an arm’s length between you and the camera though, and to be honest, I don’t know how well this camera will be able to focus on your eyes when filming at f/1.4, or even f/1.8.

Storage

In terms of storage, as you might imagine, this camera has only one SD card slot. Usually, I like having two card slots, like on my main camera, the Canon R5, but one is to be expected for an entry-level camera.

The main reason why you’d want two cards, is for redundancy. If you have two, you can set it up so that photos and videos get saved on both. In the unlikely event that one of your SD cards becomes corrupted, you still have a backup.

This is really useful when doing commercial gigs, but obviously, you’re not likely to be doing that with a Rebel T6 camera.

Battery

So, what about battery? The Canon 1300D uses an LP-E10 battery, which should give you up to about 500 shots. This isn’t bad, but it’s not great either.

Make sure you purchase a few spares if you’ll be out taking photos all day.

Durability

When it comes to durability, as you might expect, this camera has no weather sealing. As a result, you’ll generally want to avoid exposing it to water, dust, that kind of stuff.

If it’s just the first camera that you’ve purchased, and you just want to use it to learn, then I suppose you can get more adventurous, but if this is a camera that you’ll want to use for a few years, I’d be careful with it.

In terms of maximum shutter count, I wasn’t able to find an exact number for this camera, but it’s probably around 100,000.

If you happen to know exactly what the number is, make sure to comment down below, and let us know.

Maximum shutter count is the theoretical number of photos that you can take with a camera before the shutter, again, theoretically, fails. When purchasing a camera second-hand, which you will be doing for the T6, as it is discontinued, you’ll want to check what its current shutter count is.

Any respectable seller will post the number on their listing, as the number will affect the value of the camera. If there is no shutter count present, or if the seller refuses to tell you what it is, move on. The number is probably really high, and they might be trying to sell you a camera with a very limited lifespan.

Compatible Lenses

When it comes to compatible lenses, you have an almost inexhaustible list of EF and EF-s lenses that you can use with this camera body.

If you want to learn about some of these lenses, I have a playlist on my YouTube channel where you can get started.

Conclusion

So, in conclusion, should you buy this camera?

Despite its age, it can take some great photos, if you know what you’re doing. If you don’t know what you’re doing, this would actually be a great camera to get started on.

Why?

As mentioned before, its many limitations will actually force you to not only be creative, but learn how the camera actually works, which will make you a better photographer in the long run anyway.

Even though it’s not specifically great at anything in particular, it can be used for portraits, landscape photos, street photography, and more.

In fact, it might be great for street photography, as the fact that it’s an older camera might actually make you less of a target for thieves.

I almost never use my Canon R5 outside, except for remote locations, like forests, as I don’t want to draw that kind of attention.

And, even if the camera does get taken off of you, it’s probably not going to break the bank for most people.

Which?

If you’ve already learnt a bit about photography and videography, and you’d like to graduate to something more mid-range, feel free to have a look at the camera review playlists on my YouTube channel.

I’ve reviewed all sorts of cameras, from the Canon 77D and 7D MkII, to the Canon R, and Canon R5.

If you’d like to purchase any of the items I’ve mentioned in this article, or see how much they cost in your country, I have a link down below where you can view them.

Thank you for reading my review of the Canon 1300D (Rebel T6). I invite you to have a look at some of my other articles. We have something for everyone, whether you’re interested in audio, or cameras and lenses. Alternatively, if you prefer video reviews, feel free to have a look at my YouTube channel.

Product Links

Down below you will find all of the items I talked about in this article.