Big news from Canon earlier this week: They announced a new DSLR that is a bold step forward where it matters to me most: price. I’d been holding off on taking the plunge into DSLR filmmaking, because the field is moving so rapidly and I didn’t want to plunk down a couple thousand bucks on something that would be outdated in a few months. But at a retail price of just $800, Canon just removed that concern with the Canon 550d/T2i.

This new camera, which is rumored to begin shipping any day, features virtually the same video capabilities as the 7d, complete with selectable cinema framerates and a fat APS-C sensor. The result, when paired with good lenses, is dreamy shallow depth of field in a handheld camera.

Another big factor for me: This camera uses SD cards! This might not seem like a big deal, but I absolutely HATE having to plunk down the big bucks for different types of media. I already have invested in 3 SD cards that I use in my JVC HM-100, and absolutely LOVE them: they’re tiny, and hold nearly an hour of 1080p HD video per 16gb card. Sweet.

This camera allows me to join what I expect will be legions of videographers who want to take the visual quality of their work to a whole ‘nother level – without breaking the bank. This camera will allow me to put my money where it belongs – on buying great lenses.

This camera doesn’t address the issues that have kept me out of the dslr filmmaker fold previously – it still is a 35mm stills camera with video bolted on. No articulating screen, no good audio features, etc. But at this price, it doesn’t matter. A camera will come along before too long that will fix that, and let me use the glass that I’ll begin buying. I already have two very fast 35mm Nikon lenses that, with a $10 adapter I bought on Ebay, will work fantastically on this new Canon. Thanks Canon for making a game-changing product that allows me to join the DSLR filmmaking revolution.