He had long, blond, rock star hair. He had a Rodin torso, righteous ball handling skills and smokin’ girlfriends. He had that tennis outlaw thing going on with the earrings and bandana, and he had my full attention, along with millions of other American women who were relieved to have a counter-fantasy to their boyfriends’ appreciation for short, white skorts.
But most importantly, Andre Agassi, circa 1990, had a Canon Rebel.
It was a 35mm camera in those days, granted, but autofocus had only hit the film SLR market five years earlier, and the idea that normal people, not just those courtside guys with the 5-foot zoom lenses and God-know’s-what stuffing the pockets of their safari vests, could actually take compelling photographs was new. Canon brought high-end photography to the mainstream with the Rebel, and Andre’s “Image Is Everything” ads (what hot pink swim trucks by a Vegas pool had to do with tennis or f-stops, I’ve no idea…and no complaints either) helped give Canon a majority market share that continues to this day.
The digital Rebel, the first sub-$1000 D-SLR with a zoom lens, made its debut in 2003, followed by the Rebel XT in ‘05 and now this autumn, the Rebel XTi, which landed on my desk recently in a crimson box.
The XTi has plenty of competition these days. Nikon’s D80, Sony’s Alpha, and the Olympus E-330 all give us that clear-eyed SLR quality for a nice price. Still, camera shop owners all over the country are telling me that the XTi is currently best in class, delivering the most features (I like the little pixie show on the display when the new “integrated cleansing system” is dusting off the sensor) for $799 body-only or $899 with a standard zoom lens.
The Rebel’s still got technical merit, 16 years after Andre gave it sex appeal. It’s been a great show, watching these two hot shots come of age. (Take some notes, Walkman!) Once a babe, always a babe, you know? Just keep developing smart, new features to go with that lissome body and you’ll have our perpetual attention.
Righteous ball handling skills? What planet do you live on? Iverson has righteous ball handling skills, Agassi had a kick-ass return.
Indeed. I’m thinking of the time he returned Andy Roddick’s 149 mph blast.