Messages

1

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon EOS 7D L Announced, Shipping in May

« on: April 02, 2013, 02:35:20 AM »

really cool for 3d video, one left hand version, one right, without a large gap...

2

EOS Bodies / Re: Big Megapixel Camera in 2014

« on: February 08, 2013, 01:56:23 AM »

In other words (like I suspected) Nikon's D800 completely blindsided Canon.

So not to loose face and stem a possible hemorrhage of photographers into Nikon's camp, Canon releases disinformation rumors.

First:  We may be releasing a high MB camera soon.
Second:  Uh, we STILL haven't released a high MB camera because it's taking longer because it's neeeewwwwwww sensor technology.
Third:  We have to upgrade the lens first.

Last one really amuses me because it implies that Canon lens suck compared to Nikon.  Nikon didn't need to upgrade their lens for people to instantly see massive benefit from the D800.  Will a whole new slew of Canon lens be needed to see a difference with Canon new high MB camera?

Sad.

i have to agree. in my world (advertising photography), so many professionals have ditched canon for nikon, and more have ditched medium format. i only know of a few photographers still shooting medium format, because its a pain in the ass. i have considered buying a d800e for the meantime so i don't need to use my p65 so much, but i have so much invested in canon lenses. and some canon lenses are really unavailable in nikon. i use my 50 f1.0, 85 f1.2, 200 f1.8 and ts17 for almost all my shoots, and nikon has none of these.

i dream of having a fast shooting high megapixel canon, my life would be so much easier. i wish it was out soon.

paul

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EOS Bodies / Re: Is Canon EOS-1S the Name? [CR1]

« on: October 06, 2012, 04:53:39 PM »

9000$? Why not just get a MF system then? 

because it will be able to focus properly , have a decent iso, and shoot at a decent rate.

i own medium format with a p65+ (owned a lot of different systems of medium format over the years) and i am eagerly waiting for an easier to use system. i hope the canon is it.

paul

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1D X Sample Images / Re: 1D X - 1 Thing you would Add or CHANGE? either physically or Firmware

« on: September 30, 2012, 05:43:46 PM »

7.
Support for the EC-S focusing screen. Seeing the dof and focus is a great aid and truly missed from the 5d2.

i discovered that the 1dx takes all the old 1dsmk3 screens- all the EC focusing screens. i used the ec-s in a 1dx and it was soooo nice- i shoot at f1.2 a lot, so this made a massive difference.

- things i would like improved-

1/ magnify button moved back to where it was on the ads.
2/ the lighting up of the focus points made at least twice as bright, this projecting on the focus screen cannot be seen when shooting a lot of subject matter.
3/ clean hdmi out for video
4/ 60fps at 1080p (or 120!)

a more dreaming list-

A/fast wireless tethering
B/a way to shoot that you can have live focus through an external monitor and shoot stills without any delay (its too slow at the moment), better yet, allow one monitor to frame the shot, and allow a second monitor to have the image zoomed 100 percent (great if you can dedicate a focusing person on those real hard focus problems).
C/more focus points spread out wider around the frame. i did a quick look at a whole pile of advertising photos and the focus points where they are now do line up with 60% of the shots i saw. most were outside the focus points in the middle.

paul

5

EOS Bodies / Re: 46.1mp Canon DSLR Previewed at PhotoPlus 2012? [CR1]

« on: September 23, 2012, 04:17:56 PM »

I hope this rumor is true and canon has a high MP offering very soon. I need more megapixels as my clients crop my shots heavily and I want to retire my slow and painful contax p65+. Im sure a 46mp canon may not quite be as good quality than my phase back- but I'm most situations a camera with these specs will make the phase one redundant.

I think I would like the 46mp camera to be in a 1dx type body, and happy to pay a good price for it. If you use a camera professionally then the gear will be paid off in a matter of months. Camera gear is far cheaper than it ever has been. I paid 15k for my original 1ds, and one job paid the camera off.

paul

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EOS Bodies / Re: Is a 46mp Canon EOS-1 on the Way? [CR1]

« on: September 13, 2012, 01:37:28 AM »

i did a quick telly up of all the professional advertising photographers i know (im friends with quite a few), and i would say half have changed to or about change to nikon.

i would too, but im not a fan of nikon lenses, and am waiting eagerly for a better sensored higher res camera than my very disappointing 5dmk3.

paul

Everyone is always "about to change"...  what percentage actually did change?   Not just giving you a hard time...  it's a good point.  Advertising photographers really do have value in the higher resolution and there's a few on this forum that are also "about to change to MF if Canon doesn't put out a higher res body soon".  Their reason being that price has come down on MF digital backs to make the leap but they will stay with Canon for cost, ergonomics, lenses, etc. IF a higher res body comes out.

I know eight photographers that have changed.
a couple were old nikon lovers, but many had never owned a nikon digital camera before. the couple of architecture photographers I know that own canons for the 17TE lens (which is outstanding) haven't moved because of that, but one of them has been testing the d800 and is impressed- comparing it to his aptus 75s back with both res and latitude.
These guys tend to shoot medium format with alpas, but there are plent of situations they need to shoot architecture but cant get the full authority (think china), so if they had a high MP canon with the 17te they can sneak great quality shots without looking much different than a tourist.

One guy I know who shoots a pile of very famous big billboard and displays changed from contax/phase to d800.
Hes says is more important to shoot a higher volume than have a few more megapixels. the d800 apparently has enough to retire his medium format back

thats the real reason i want more megapixels- i want all the speed of a dslr and higher iso than my contax phase p65+ so i can retire that and make my life easier. unless you are a tripod/ static shooter, medium format is a pain in the ass to use.

if you see on my site (www.paulrossjones.com), i shoot open a lot, and my clients often demand medium format files sizes, but i want to shoot the speed of a dslr.

a high MP canon would solve this for me.

paul

7

EOS Bodies / Re: Is a 46mp Canon EOS-1 on the Way? [CR1]

« on: September 11, 2012, 01:45:01 AM »

In my opinion, if Canon does not launch an cheaper model around 2500-3000€ with 35+MP, they will loose a lot of photographers.

Are they 'losing a lot of photographers' to the D800 now?   

Yes

P
Can you please post a link to the sales figures/reports/ranking that back up that claim?

Why? You post sales figures that they're not. That is the clear implication of your question.

Sorry, but my sentence ended in a question mark. Yours did not.  Which one is a statement?

My point is that claims of 'outselling' or 'users switching in droves' are bogus - regardless of which way people claim the advantage - AFAIK, there are no data to support either claim. Thus the 

I'll thank you to not put words in my mouth, though...

i did a quick telly up of all the professional advertising photographers i know (im friends with quite a few), and i would say half have changed to or about change to nikon.

i would too, but im not a fan of nikon lenses, and am waiting eagerly for a better sensored higher res camera than my very disappointing 5dmk3.

paul

8

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon EOS-1D C Available?

« on: August 26, 2012, 04:44:31 AM »

Value for stills? Don't understand this camera? Why when the 5d3 and 1DX are roughly the same MP's and do a great job with stills, and with video up to a point. The difference is the 4k image quality which seems to have become the professional threshold for high end video cinematography. Why have that feature on a DSLR if it wasn't targeted specificly at the motion picture industry. Why produce it in a DSLR body? Obviously the size of the 1DC means it can be mounted in places where larger and bulkier camera bodies cannot fit or need to be hidden or as a crash cam. Act of Valor was shot for the most part with 5 and 7D's. That leads me to believe this camera was specificly aimed at the pro movie making industry. 

I'm sure you can use it as a still camera but why spend what may eventually be a $10k body vs an $8k body just to shoot stills and have a feature/s you won't need or use.

why would someone shoot a 4k movie with a camera with hdmi and the weird shape that the 1dc is? I shoot a fair bit of video with my 5dmk3, and its size is an advantage. but the 1dc is as large and as heavy as c300/c500 and the form factor is wrong for a motion camera.
Act of valor is a competent bit of film making, but you cant tell me there isn't a bit of canon sponsorship and PR going on there.
for most movies, the cheapest bit of the whole project is the camera. the slight price advantage of the 1dc wouldnt really be a big motivation to use it imo.

but i feel if they had added a decent quality 1080p or 2k video at full frame, then they would have made a great camera for people like me- who want a stills camera that doesn't excellent quality video. however, the 1dc will output 4.2.2 into a external recorder I believe. maybe that will be its redeeming feature.

paul

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EOS Bodies / Re: Canon EOS-1D C Available?

« on: August 25, 2012, 04:41:26 PM »

i dont quite understand this camera.

its great that it has 4k. but the real strength i would have thought is to have 4k as a full frame camera- this is what would make it unique, and the best at something.
but it crops to super 35 when shooting 4k.  it also shoot 24frames only at 4k, which is ok for cinema, but not much good for TVC's.

but, hardly anyone really needs 4k, so i guess thats not a big deal. (ive asked many very good DPs, and they say 2k is more than enough res for all their work).

It does however shoot 1080p with full frame up to 60p which is great, but does so at a very reduced 4.2.0! why??? so you are paying for a 15k camera that shoots 4.2.0 for any usable stuff...

then the final very unprofessional aspect of this camera is the mini hdmi out- it doesn't have hdsdi out. this is the most unreliable/ unprofessional aspect of all hdslrs. its the biggest pain when ever i shoot.

so, why will people buy this camera with these specs? i can see the c500 selling like hot cakes, but this 1dc with all its limitations and weird dslr form factor seems odd. i think people that really need 4k will spend the extra for the c500- which really does have a great feature list.

i would have been keen on a 1dc being a photographer that shoots a little video, but the 4.2.0 1080p makes it pointless compared with a 5dmk3 or a idx.

paul

10

EOS Bodies / Re: Big Megapixels Coming Soon? [CR1]

« on: August 21, 2012, 03:44:07 PM »

It´s true that the 5D Mark III is only better in speed and AF.

But I don´t like the image quality from the D800E. In my opinion it´s not advisable to put more than 30 megapixels on a FF chip.

If you compare the image quality from the D800E with the image quality of a medium format camera the D800E loose, because the image is totally unsharp. But it´s all a question what are you willing to pay for the best image quality.

in what way are the d800 files lacking?

in all my tests the d800 absolutely leaves my 5dmk3 files for dead. far better dynamic range, especially in the darks. when the darks are lifted, the file just lightens, doesn't have any of the ugly clumping canon grain.
I have only tested up to 1000 iso (the most i ever need) , and the d800 looks better then as well- more film like in the grain. The 5dmk3 has a terrible low light quality- especially when the light has a colour cast.
the resolution is a lot more, upsizes better.

if you test the cameras- you will see that more than 30mp does hold up with sensor. the files are sharper, the graduations are smoother. have you actually shot both cameras side by side?

i also have a 60mp phase back on a contax, and although this is sharper than the nikon, i think i prefer the d800 files for the look over the phase (that has the same horrible low dark grain as the canon).

also, the tethering into a macbookpro retina with usb3 is a lot faster than the 5dmk3/usb2 - even though the files are almost twice the size.

I have tested a rented d800 for 2 days now side by side with my mk3, and file wise i can honestly sat the nikon eats the canon.

i dont really like the handling or the lenses of the nikon, so im holding out for canon to come up with an answer to the d800.

paul

11

EOS Bodies / Re: Big Megapixels Coming Soon? [CR1]

« on: August 21, 2012, 03:42:15 PM »

It´s true that the 5D Mark III is only better in speed and AF.

But I don´t like the image quality from the D800E. In my opinion it´s not advisable to put more than 30 megapixels on a FF chip.

If you compare the image quality from the D800E with the image quality of a medium format camera the D800E loose, because the image is totally unsharp. But it´s all a question what are you willing to pay for the best image quality.

in what way are the d800 files lacking?

in all my tests the d800 absolutely leaves my 5dmk3 files for dead. far better dynamic range, especially in the darks. when the darks are lifted, the file just lightens, doesn't have any of the ugly clumping canon grain.
I have only tested up to 1000 iso (the most i ever need) , and the d800 looks better then as well- more film like in the grain. The 5dmk3 has a terrible low light quality- especially when the light has a colour cast.
the resolution is a lot more, upsizes better.

if you test the cameras- you will see that more than 30mp does hold up with sensor. the files are sharper, the graduations are smoother. have you actually shots both cameras side by side?

i also have a 60mp phase back on a contax, and although this is sharper than the nikon, i think i prefer the d800 files for the look over the phase (that has the same horrible low dark grain as the canon).

also, the tethering into a macbookpro retina with usb3 is a lot faster than the 5dmk3/usb2 - even though the files are almost twice the size.

I have tested a rented d800 for 2 days now side by side with my mk3, and file wise i can honestly sat the nikon eats the canon.

i dont really like the handling or the lenses of the nikon, so im holding out for canon to come up with an answer to the d800.

paul

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EOS Bodies / Re: More Big Megapixel Talk

« on: August 21, 2012, 03:22:15 PM »

I keep hearing mirrorless.  Does anyone want a mirrorless camera like that?  Why would yu spend that kind of money on a mirrorless camera?  What pro wants to be looking through the LCD?

I don't mean this in an insulting way, but why would canon make a billion dollar mirrorless?

The Single Lens Reflex was the solution to the viewfinder problem in interchangeable lens FILM cameras.  The only reason it sticks around is a combination of tradition and conservatism.  It is a solution to a rapidly vanishing problem.

Remember that before the SLR, the vast majority of interchangeable lens cameras were viewfinder types.  The viewfinder was good for only one focal length; once you changed lenses, either you needed a separate viewfinder or a corrective optic that you looked through.  Both solutions were unsatisfactory (and suffered from parallax), but it was all we had before the SLR.  The only other styles were of course the view camera (where the SLR idea came from I imagine) and the TLR (where you had two lenses, and hence twice the cost).

Today, there is no need to look through the lens when the sensor can provide a perfect view to an electronic viewfinder.

You might still want a shutter curtain (doing it electronically isn't always the best answer), but there is no reason that a shutter couldn't still be there, it would just reverse the operation.  Push the capture button and the curtain closes, then reopens to see the view again.

I for one would consider a FF mirrorless to replace my 5D3 in due course, provided it has all the same capabilities (particularly the high ISO and frame rate).

when im on film shoots, the DPs seem to always complain about lag/latency problems, and missing the real view they had with optical finders. this is with arri alexis- and they have full hd evfs, possibly the best quality. this is why arri is releasing a optical view finder digital camera soon.
these problems will exist for a while until technology catches up.


as for 40mp in a 1dx body- bring it on. charge more if you have to, and improve the low end noise to the level of the d800, and i wont have to change systems.

paul

13

EOS Bodies / Re: Big Megapixels Coming Soon? [CR1]

« on: August 14, 2012, 04:39:02 AM »

I would love:

• A 36+ Mp camera body from Canon
• In a 1Dx-style body
• The best dynamic range delivered at the lowest ISO values
• Deliver more pixels rather than higher frame rates
• Provide the best Live View focus/framing possible, in lieu of 60-point autofocus tech
• Target the still-life/landscape/studio photographer, not the PJ or sports guy
• Eventually eliminate the flapping mirror and provide an eye level HD video finder

exactly what i am wanting. i have tested a d800 along side my 5dmk3 quite a lot, and the d800 files eat the canons files both in latitude in the darks and sharpness. I need more file size, every job i shoot have multiple croppings.
the 5dmk3 has been very disappointing- hardly any improvement for stills over the mk2 except better focus.

but i have a lot of canon glass, and i really like the canon lenses over nikon. i would like to keep with canon, but i am in the situation that i might have to buy a d800.

one feature i would love is wider placement of the focus points. i went through my portfolio and 60% of the shots that subject matter is outside the focus points.

i would happily pay more for the camera over the 1dx. i just want a camera that can finally retire my contax/p65+ .

paul