Messages

5011

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Is there insurance for a 5Dmk 3?

« on: April 02, 2012, 02:46:02 PM »

Does it fall under homeowners?

Yes, provided you don't sell any pics or generate income from it.  If it's strictly a hobby, it can be covered, but not automatically because it will most likely exceed the item and category limits for a standard home policy.  Instead, contact your insurer and get the photo gear added (some companies do that as a rider, others as a separate but linked policy - State Farm calls it a personal articles policy, for example, it's the same one as for high-end jewelry, fine art, etc.).  I pay $7.60 per $1000 gear per year, no deductible and full replacement value, and everything is covered (theft, loss, damage) worldwide.

If you sell any pics (or generate income from it)...would you have to have a business insurance policy for it?<P>

Yes, in that case you cannot cover it under homeowners, and you'd need a business policy.

5012

EOS Bodies / Re: Is 5DIII softer than 5DII?

« on: April 02, 2012, 02:38:41 PM »

Delays for separate products don't constitute "vapor-ware". Vaporware implies that the announced product might not actually exist.

Vaporware: Products announced far in advance of any release (which may or may not actually take place).  Vaporware is in the eye of the beholder, or not visible to the eye of the beholder, as the case may be. 

The bottom line remains the same, whatever jargon you want to use - in the last 2-3 years, Canon has a terrible track record of getting their announced high end photo gear into the marketplace on schedule.

5013

EOS Bodies / Re: Is 5DIII softer than 5DII?

« on: April 02, 2012, 02:30:57 PM »

On a side note, it looks there is a second OLPF in the 5DM3.

Yes and no.  The confusion comes from the fact that what we call the 'anti-aliasing' filter actually has two components that are essentially polarizers, one oriented horizontally and one oriented vertically.  The two filters are separate within the assembly, with a 1/4-wave plate in between (necessary to convert the linearly-polarized light from the first filter into circularly-polarized light, else no light would get through the second filter, like when you orient a pair of linear polarizers at 90° to each other, the same principle that variable ND filters use). 



The horizontal layer of the AA filter, 1/4-wave plate (what Canon calls the 'phaser layer') and the IR cut filter are bonded together, and this assembly is what vibrates for the 'self-cleaning sensor'.  The vertical layer of the AA filter is bonded to the sensor itself (well, on top of the microlens array, which sits on top of the Bayer mask, which sits on top of the sensor). 

5014

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon hurry up! Nikon's face-detection & Sony's Exmor sensors are killing us!

« on: April 02, 2012, 01:30:31 PM »

What if I told you I'll make a camera with Goat detection ? would that change your thinking?

Only if the camera emitted a bleat instead of a beep for goat focus confirmation...   

5015

EOS Bodies / Re: Is 5DIII softer than 5DII?

« on: April 02, 2012, 01:15:57 PM »

Never use servo with big glass...

Shhhh...don't let all those guys on the sidelines with big white lenses in on your secret to getting crisp shots...   

5016

EOS Bodies / Re: Are 5DIII users beta testers?

« on: April 02, 2012, 01:13:05 PM »

I was wondering why the 5DIII came out BEFORE the 1DX camera...

Because Canon is a publically-traded company and wants to show a profit, and the 5DIII will be much more profitable than the 1D X, based on volume.

Still, implicit in your question is, "Was the 5DIII released before it was ready?"  Possibly - there are known issues (acknowledged by Canon) with both the 5DIII and the DPP update that was required to support it.

5017

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: New to flash photography - softbox or diffuser and other must have accessories

« on: April 02, 2012, 01:09:58 PM »

does one typically use a diffuser for when they are bouncing?  There is a diffuser built in on the 600ex but i thought that was so that it could hit the wider focal lengths. (note i haven't had the chance to read the manual yet, so I realize my question is a little naive)

In that situation, a diffuser sends a little bit of the light forward toward the subject, while most of the light is bounced.  The 580/600 flashes have a catchlight panel that does the same thing, but since it's at 90° to the flash it only works effectively when the flash is pointed straight up, which is less effective for bounce.

5018

EOS Bodies / Re: Is 5DIII softer than 5DII?

« on: April 02, 2012, 12:58:50 PM »

Woah, one delay and you declare vapor-ware. That's strict.

Try counting again...

EF 24-70mm f/2.8L II - delayed
EOS 1D X - delayed
EF 600mm f/4L IS II - delayed
EF 500mm f/4L IS II - delayed
EF 400mm f/2.8L IS II - delayed
EF 300mm f/2.8L IS II - delayed
EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye - delayed

For the 500 and 600mm supertele lenses, the delays have exceeded 1.5 years and are still ongoing!

5019

Lenses / Re: Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II Delayed? [CR2]

« on: April 02, 2012, 12:49:57 PM »

I posted earlier about the 1D X being allocated to CPS members first in some countries. That does NOT include the USA..

That's good news for me.

Of course, given the way Canon releases have been working lately, even if my B&H preorder is high enough on the list to get a camera from the first shipment, I still might not see the camera until 3Q...

5020

EOS Bodies / Re: 5D Mark III & Possible 1D X Issue With PocketWizards

« on: April 02, 2012, 12:44:48 PM »

On the plus side, you can now get a $25 rebate on flexes and minis while you struggle to get it to work with your 5D3.
http://www.pocketwizard.com/25rebate
The rebates are mail-in, though. I hate mail-in rebates. I never bother with them.

Thanks for the heads-up on the rebate.  FWIW, it seems that Amazon.com is taking work out of the system, and just selling directly it at $204 for the FlexTT5 and $174 for the MiniTT1 (the post-rebate prices) with no mail-in hassle required. 

Now the question for me is, do I get another FlexTT5 to go with the 600EX-RT that I just ordered, in the hopes that PW will be able to update the firmware to support the 600EX-RT?  Not yet, I think...  Fortunately, the rebate runs through the end of May, hopefully PW will have something by then, and we'll also know if the range limitation issue of the 580EX II is seen in the 600EX-RT or not.

5021

Lenses / Re: advice re lenses for travel photography

« on: April 02, 2012, 12:13:27 PM »

IMO, the best general purpose lens for an APS-C camera like the 60D is the EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, followed by the EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS.  The latter is slower but has a broader range, so it's most useful for outdoor shooting; the 17-55mm offers a faster aperture making it useful indoors and for portraits.

Depending on budget, a very nice lens kit for APS-C would be:

EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5
EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS
EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6L IS
plus a prime lens, perhaps Sigma 30mm f/1.4 or Canon 50mm f/1.4

5022

Lenses / Re: 24-70mm f2.8L II USM EF Lens on sale at camera canada, any one order from them ?

« on: April 02, 2012, 11:56:15 AM »

What makes you think it's shipping in 2 days?  Is it this line?

"Shipping is usually within 1-2 days."

That line seems to be shown for every product they sell, including the hood for the new 24-70 II, even though that product is listed as Special Order, and also including the 1D X which is listed as Out of Stock. 

5023

Canon General / Re: Why pay over the odds for 5D mkiii ??

« on: April 02, 2012, 11:44:55 AM »

...it's not uncommon for at least a couple of those lenses to cost multiple times as much as a single camera, a few of them about as much as a camera, and several of them more than a top-of-the-line point-and-shoot camera....

Lol.  I've got filters that cost more than many top-of-the-line P&S cameras, and my cheapest lens (not counting TCs) costs more than the G1 X, which is a pretty damn expensive P&S...

5024

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: New to flash photography - softbox or diffuser and other must have accessories

« on: April 02, 2012, 11:39:15 AM »

At the most basic level, what you usually want is soft lighting.  The larger the light source, the softer the light (that's why P&S cameras and dSLR pop-up flashes are so harsh).  So, a bigger softbox means softer light, but you also have to get that light close to the subject.  For on-camera (or on flash bracket) use, the largest softbox that's feasible is something like the Lumiquest Softbox III (8"x9") - anything bigger is just unwieldy and needs to be mounted on a stand.  Personally, I usually use a small Sto-Fen diffuser on my strobes, and bounce them off the ceiling.

Also, getting the light source further from the lens axis helps (close = red eye).  The OC-E3 cord and a flash bracket can be very useful for getting the light a bit further from the axis.

The best place to go to learn the basics is the Strobist 101 blog.

5025

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: Canon 600EX/RT + Softbox question

« on: April 02, 2012, 11:34:23 AM »

FWIW, the power of the 600EX-RT is the same as the 580EX II (the 600EX has a higher guide number because of the longer zoom capability of the head; at 105mm zoom the guide numbers are the same).  So, if you've used a 580EX II you know exactly what the output of the 600EX is like.

Is there enough power in the 600EX's to use a softbox larger than 48" or is that size to large?
I've also seen both  a 32"+ 36" Octobox, which are  possibilities.

Depends on how high you're willing to push the ISO, I suppose, as well as on how close to the subject you can position the softboxes to the subject(s).

I wouldn't go larger than 48", I think.  Also, for larger softboxes you might want to consider a bracket that allows you to mount both of them in a single softbox.