Messages

1

Reviews / Re: Review - Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II

« on: November 10, 2012, 06:58:24 AM »

I have both the Tamron which I paid $1000 for  and the 24-70 ii I paid $2200 in Australia, I own heaps of Canon & Nikon Lenses many of them expensive primes and without any doubt after a week of shooting with it the 24-70 ii is the best lens I have ever used. The Nikon 24-70 is only $300 cheaper (best price non grey market) and the Canon is much better.

2

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Nikon Sales Rising

« on: November 07, 2012, 08:43:04 AM »

My Wife and I run a photography business and own the D800/D800E and 2 X 5D mmiii and we use the D800 in the studio work mainly for product photography(with a tripod) and both of us prefer (and always grab) the 5D mmiii's when we are out on the road and need to move about quickly. They are far quicker to capture the moment. Both are excellent cameras.

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EOS Bodies / Re: 5D2 & 1D4 for 1DX?

« on: October 29, 2012, 05:54:58 AM »

+1
Always have 2 bodies if its your source of income...

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EOS Bodies / Re: Big Megapixel Talk [CR2]

« on: October 08, 2012, 07:46:46 PM »

Wow finally a thread that makes sense, and is entertaining 

5

Technical Support / Re: 1D X and Mountain Lion

« on: August 02, 2012, 06:10:47 AM »

Just opened it (2.11.4) on Mountain Lion... works fine

6

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Lovin' my 5d Mark III

« on: July 27, 2012, 07:19:25 PM »

I sold my 7D after I had the 5D mkiii for a month, I simply stopped using it. The reason I bought the 7D was for focus and general shooting speed. I used it every time I thought the focus system of the 5D mkII wouldn't cut it. The 7D is a great camera, but doesn't match the iq of the 5D mkiii at any setting, or the focus system for that matter.

7

Lenses / Re: Lenses that inspire you?

« on: July 21, 2012, 10:50:14 AM »

Whatever inspires you to take great photos, the subject (then the gear) or the gear then the subject it doesn't really matter. I sometimes decide to use a particular lens and other times I select the lens depending on the subject (not to mention the camera too). I love the 135mm F2 a beautiful candid street photography lens. The big/white lenses draw too much attention.

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EOS Bodies / Re: Why is everyone calling the mk3 sensor the same as mk2?

« on: July 19, 2012, 09:22:43 AM »

I own a 5d Mkii, 2 x Mkiii and both the D800 & D800E... I prefer using the 5D mkiii's in most situations. I use the D800/E for product photography as well as some other studio work. I will sell the 5D mkii s as the mkiii are much more responsive, a bit better standard  iSO image quality (and much better higher iso performance) and gives me a better success rates at capturing the correct focus, its a much faster responsive camera. The quality of the D800 is excellent especially if you use good technique and are very careful with lens/camera settings, the quality of the images from the 5D mkiii is also excellent but with little, if any care/setup required. The build quality/weather sealing is far better than the D800 and I prefer the default colour balance from the Canon's. The high ISO performance on the Canon is fantastic up to 12800 (above that there is too much noise for me).
Photography outside a studio is often about being quick and capturing the shot, you can't always stage it. So each camera has its use, yes the D800 has 36+ MP  and great dynamic range at low ISO especially in shadows/black area but the sensor on the 5D is excellent as well and DXO's markings do not reflect the true "picture".
The programs used for conversion from raw has a dramatic impact on the overall quality of the image including noise.
LR, Aperture, Camera Raw 7.1 (I think it may use the same engine as LR), Phocus, DXO, ViewNX 2, Canon DPP. I would suggest comparing the difference and finding what suits you.

9

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Have you considered joining the dark side?...

« on: July 13, 2012, 10:18:54 PM »

I own a dozen Canon/Nikon/Sigma/Zeiss lenses, a great many of them primes and without any doubt the 135 f/2L is perfect, my favourite glass,
The contrast/sharpness and colour i get from it is flawless even wide open.

10

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Have you considered joining the dark side?...

« on: July 06, 2012, 03:46:19 PM »

I own both the D800 and 5D mk III and they are both fantastic cameras, each has advantages depending on the type of photography you wish to do. The D800 has very good resolution and very good dynamic range especially in bringing out detail in shadow/darker areas. The 5D has a much better focus system (with the lenses i use) and it also has a far more natural default (AWB) colour balance. I use the D800 for product photograph/very large print jobs in a studio environment, it is as an alternative to a large format camera. If i leave the studio, I always take the 5D mkIII. I think the 5D mk iii is a much better all round camera (on the go) with a much better build quality, it feels more solid/robust. In the end this is only my opinion, I really think which ever camera you buy you won't be disappointed, if you wish to use them as camera's to take great photos or a tool for a specific purpose. There are plenty of good articles that compare the usefulness of both in a balanced way, the articles that are balanced are far more useful and much closer to reality that the various rants you will also find.

I wouldn't consider the D800 as a replacement for Large format but definitely a change for low MP medium format backs.

I agree totally, as a replacement to a 25mp - 30 mp medium format.... Is what I specifically meant, thanks for clarifying my statement.

11

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Have you considered joining the dark side?...

« on: July 06, 2012, 10:11:38 AM »

I own both the D800 and 5D mk III and they are both fantastic cameras, each has advantages depending on the type of photography you wish to do. The D800 has very good resolution and very good dynamic range especially in bringing out detail in shadow/darker areas. The 5D has a much better focus system (with the lenses i use) and it also has a far more natural default (AWB) colour balance. I use the D800 for product photograph/very large print jobs in a studio environment, it is as an alternative to a large format camera. If i leave the studio, I always take the 5D mkIII. I think the 5D mk iii is a much better all round camera (on the go) with a much better build quality, it feels more solid/robust. In the end this is only my opinion, I really think which ever camera you buy you won't be disappointed, if you wish to use them as camera's to take great photos or a tool for a specific purpose. There are plenty of good articles that compare the usefulness of both in a balanced way, the articles that are balanced are far more useful and much closer to reality that the various rants you will also find.

12

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon 5D Mark III - Price Drop Details

« on: July 01, 2012, 09:08:26 PM »

I purchased one about 2 months ago for 3495 from Teds... when they had a 10% discount. The best price atm is 3,688 for australian stock. Buying grey market is a risk if you get hit for duty (anything over 1000), thats if they check. Kogan are selling it for 3,389.00, which is also grey market but the duty is taken care of.