Messages

1

EOS Bodies - For Stills / What can I do with my old 350d?

« on: May 02, 2012, 06:59:11 AM »

Since upgrading to a 5dm2, my 350d has been pretty bored sitting there with nothing to do.

Does anyone have any suggestions with what I can do with it?

2

Street & City / Re: Etiquette of Street Photography

« on: January 25, 2012, 07:04:41 PM »

I like this conversation - and I'm surprised with the direction it has taken.

I actually see both sides of the argument that distant.star and Orangutan present.

I personally would tend believe that the intention behind the photograph is just as important as the photograph itself, hence there is a part to be played by street photography, especially if there is a message behind the photograph.

For example, when you watch the video posted earlier on Bruce Gilden, although his photographs are striking his attitude comes across as somewhat rude and overbearing.  Jumping in people's faces and taking photographs is a little over the top.  Although his pictures are cool, I'm not sure how much real value there is in this.

On the other hand, I came across another street photographer called John Free - and he presents himself in an entirely different way all together.  He speaks from the heart, and you can just tell he has a passion for the message he's trying to convey, rather than just getting a shot that looks cool.

If you're interested, it's well worth watching this video where he gives a brief intro to himself, and then talks through some of the photos he's taken over the years:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if1V0RBj_qs
	Small | Large

(There is the occassional noise of trains passing by which can make it a little hard to hear what he's saying sometimes, but I believe what he's saying has a lot of value, so it's worth sticking to it and listening).

3

Lenses / What is Lens IQ?

« on: January 23, 2012, 10:26:47 AM »

I hear a lot about lens IQ - but what is this exactly?

4

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: What makes a photographer, a photographer?

« on: January 20, 2012, 09:44:41 PM »

If you want to be a photographer in Iceland:

"Working as a photographer or calling oneself a photographer requires a masters degree in photography from the Reykjavík Technical College, or a similar degree from another industry-based school in Iceland"

Link: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photography_and_the_law#cite_ref-50

 

5

Street & City / Re: Etiquette of Street Photography

« on: January 19, 2012, 07:39:41 PM »

Thank you so much to all who replied - I'm finally able to give karma, so +1 to all!

The responses have been fantastic and there is definitely a lot of food for thought - thanks for all the useful links too!

I like the advice to smile - I would agree that a smile should diffuse most situations - as does looking natural and relaxed.

And I particularly liked distant star's "who the hell are you?" card idea - I may give that one a go!

I'm not so paranoid about police - I'm in central london which is quite touristy and the people are colourful - I just don't know what I would say in case I'm asked why I'm taking peoples photographs.

****
On a side note, I used to live opposite a pub, and subsequently managed to capture some fantastic shots of late night punch-ups and people vomiting on the street(!)

Unfortunately those images are currently on a corrupted hard drive, but assuming I ever get round to recovering the images, would I be allowed to for example use them as part of a portfolio or otherwise publish them in any way?

What are the ethical and legal implications of publishing street photos where the people are potentially identifiable?

****
On another side note - I just watched the video of Bruce Gilden linked by passerby - omg! I would love to be able to do that!

Incidentally the link didn't work (black screen), but this link works:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nc1RrQXidlY
	Small | Large

6

Street & City / Etiquette of Street Photography

« on: January 19, 2012, 08:48:22 AM »

Street photography is one of the areas I enjoy - in particular photos of people - however I must admit I always hold back from taking the pictures I truly want to take because I feel nervous about taking photographs of the public.

For example, the other day I saw someone asleep on the metro so out came the camera, but I was paranoid that the guy would wake up or the passers by saying something to me.  My heart was beating and the adrenaline pumping - I just took one picture and hoped for the best.

When I looked at the photo afterwards, there were so many ways I could have improved on it if I wasn't in such a hurry.

I guess I'm unsure if we're allowed to take pictures so brazenly of the public (admittedly in public places).

Has it ever happened to anyone where a member of the public has taken offence to having their picture taken?

This is a subject which has bothered me for years, and I'd love to hear peoples opinions: Is there an etiquette to street photography?

7

Landscape / Re: Winter Milky Way Time Lapse - (Canon 5D MK II)

« on: January 18, 2012, 06:48:21 PM »

It depends on the focal length, the wider you're shooting the longer exposure you can use.  What lens were you using?

thanks for the reply - now that you pointed it out, it does makes sense that a wider view would allow for longer exposures.

(For the record I was using the 24-105 - taking the photos at 24mm)

8

Landscape / Re: Winter Milky Way Time Lapse - (Canon 5D MK II)

« on: January 18, 2012, 11:16:18 AM »

I shoot Manual, @ f2.8 , in Raw.

Also to add: 30 second exposures, ISO 3200, White Balance 3400K. I don't think I mentioned those settings on here.

Harles99 - I was blown away by your video - truly well done.

One question though...  if you're taking 30 second exposures, how have you not got star trails?

Inspired by your pictures, I tried taking some images of the stars a few nights ago and found that above 15 seconds the stars start to trail   

9

Lenses / Re: Suggestions for macro zoom lens

« on: January 17, 2012, 07:23:28 AM »

Honestly, I smelled terminology trouble from the get-go..."macro zoom lens" indeed. 

...yeah yeah!

On a different note, does anyone know where in London I can try out a TS-E 90mm lens to see what it is like / how it works etc?

10

Lenses / Re: Suggestions for macro zoom lens

« on: January 16, 2012, 08:42:02 PM »

Wow! Thank you guys for all your helpful replies - I'm genuinely impressed by the advice you've all given.

i use the 100mm L with a tripod and slider. i use the slider to zoom in/out and/or focus.

^^^ I didn't even know that such things existed... if I end up going with the 100mm, then I'll definitely get a slider.

If small product photography is important to you, I'd suggest not getting a macro lens, but a tilt-shift instead. The TS-E 90mm f/2.8 is ideal for shooting small products. The problem with a macro lens is depth of field - at macro distances, DoF gets really thin (as little as a couple of millimeters or less), so you need to use a very narrow aperture - that means you need lots of light, but also, at narrow apertures your images get soft due to diffraction (starts costing you sharpness at about f/7.1 on 18 MP APS-C or f/13 on 21 MP FF.  Tilt gets you the DoF that a macro lens can't deliver even stopped down way past the point where diffraction results in a soft image.

^^^ Thanks neuro - I've always loved what can be done with TS lenses, but could not justify getting one - however with your explanation and then seeing the examples you linked to the TS is looking like a good contender

************************
lol... Maybe I should clarify what my uses actually are:
************************

The objects I'm photographing are items measuring between 5-10cm in length.

The camera I used in the past was a 350d with a sigma 28-70 f2.8.

The sigma has a reasonably close focusing distance and being a crop sensor, I got a bit more magnification from this setup (the long end would be equal to around 112mm I guess) - therefore I could fill the frame reasonably well.

I recently upgraded to a 5d mk2 and the 24-105mm, but I'm finding that on some of the smaller items I am unable to get in close enough to achieve the effect I want - I just need to be able to get a little bit closer than the minimum focussing distance of the 24-105.

For instance sometimes I want to photograph maybe a 2-3cm section of a item, (often at an obscure angle) using f2.8 to get a specific look, but the 24-105 just falls short.

With my previous setup (the 350d and 24-70), I could set up on the tripod, take a 30mm shot, a 50mm shot, and then zoom to 70mm and get the same shot close up (this is why I was asking if there are any macro zooms).

I don't know if thats necessarily the best way of doing things, but I found it worked well for me and I had a good workflow using this method.

I guess all I need is a lens that has a closer focussing distance, and not neccessarily a macro lens.

However having said all this, neuro's suggestion with the TS lens might actually generate better results (even without all the zooming in and out!) - so I'm definitely going to look into the TS lens a bit more.

It was mentioned that lighting might be an issue with the TS lens - I have elinchrom flash heads and softboxes at the moment, however I think I'm going to sell them and get some continuous lighting units instead - would this be enough lighting for use with the TS lens?

Incidentally, I did consider extension tubes as well, but I get the feeling that I'd end up constantly removing and replacing extension tubes - or I'd have to take pictures from 2 metres away!

11

Lenses / Suggestions for macro zoom lens

« on: January 16, 2012, 07:28:25 AM »

I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions/recommendations regarding macro lenses.

I need a lens for photography of small-ish items (such as lighters / coins etc).

The Canon 100mm f2.8 macro seems really good, and I'm tempted to get it based on reviews and sample pictures - but ideally I would have prefered a zoom lens so that I don't have to keep moving the tripod back and forth to get in close or move away depending on the size of the item.

Canon don't seem to make a macro zoom lens however, so does anyone know if there are any fast zoom macro lenses made by third parties which have a comparable quality to the Canon 100mm?

Thanks in advance

12

United Kingdom & Ireland / Re: Best place to buy photographic equipment in the uk?

« on: January 16, 2012, 07:14:12 AM »

I can vouch for Hdew Cameras - I bought my 5d mk2 and 24-105mm from them - they had the best price for the kit and they threw in a free 3 year warranty. 

I will most definitely be using them again.

13

EOS Bodies / Re: 5d mkiii insanity

« on: December 25, 2011, 11:24:48 AM »

Personally, as someone in the same boat, I just wanted to say thank you. Murphy's law should now come into effect...  Canon will therefore officially announce the 5DMk3 within a month.

Yes, i know!  But honestly, I can put my hand on my heart and say 'I don't care'.

Canon could announce the mk3 tomorrow, and I wouldn't lose any sleep over it - I thought I would, but after having the mk2 to play with I am very happy with it and have been making good use of it already.

There is a lot to learn with the mk2, and maybe in a year or so after the mk3 gets to market, then I might sell the mk2 and get the mk3

I'm just glad that my crazy obsession has been resolved (...for now!)

14

EOS Bodies / Re: 5d mkiii insanity

« on: December 24, 2011, 06:11:42 PM »

Yeah, but you really should have waited for the 24-70mm f/2.8L II...   

lol neuro.... u got me!

That's actually the reason why I didn't get the 24-70 2.8L with the 5d ... precisely because of the II rumors around!

Arghhhhhhhh!!!!! the insanity never ends!!!

 

15

EOS Bodies / 5d mkiii insanity

« on: December 24, 2011, 01:08:56 PM »

Hi All

I'm new here, but have been a visiting this site since late 2010.

I got into photography when I bought my first SLR (the Canon 50e)... then I bought a 350D when it first came out, and I've been using that up until now.

I really missed the full frame field of view, but the sheer convenience of digital over film essentially made my 50e redundant.

I discovered what the 5dmkii could do a year ago - and have been drooling over it ever since.

So anyway, cutting a long story short, I was on the brink of buying one last year, but after discovering this website and reading about the impending release of the mkiii, I thought I would hold out.

First it was said that it might come out Oct 2010.. then Nov 2010, then Jan 2011, then March 2011, then Oct 2011, then Nov 2011.... Now speculations are that it will be announced sometime in 2012.

Lately I was visiting this site everyday, like I had some sort of obsessive compulsive disorder - I think I was actually going a little bit crazy!

I finally couldn't take it any more so last week I took the plunge and purchased a 5dmkii with 24-105L...

All I can say is WOW... it's everything I wanted and more!

Coming from a crop camera, the field of view of a full frame camera is like discovering a brand new world.

I cant believe I waited over a year for this damned mk iii, and then finally bought a mk ii.

Anyway, I just wanted to give some advice to anyone else suffering from mkiii insanity, to do yourself a favour and take the plunge.... you won't regret it!

*takes a HUGE sigh of relief* phew.... I'm glad I got all that off my chest