Messages

31

EOS Bodies / Re: Will you be disappointed if the 70d gets the same 18mp sensor?

« on: March 24, 2013, 03:34:14 PM »

The 7D is now nearly 4 years old.  To announce a replacement without a significant technology
upgrade would be just foolish - unless you want to sell 6D's and relegate crop sensor to the
amateur market.

32

EOS Bodies / Re: Congratulations Canon to another great Camera release!!

« on: March 21, 2013, 01:38:16 PM »

Interesting Graphic

33

EOS Bodies / Re: $2,800.00 budget

« on: March 21, 2013, 12:43:15 PM »

OK - you got the fever.  Here's a pill.  Sell the T3i ($450).  You've got the 50 1.4 - keep it, it's a classic. If you're happy with the zooms and those models support full frame, keep them.  Now with your $3300 budget do a deep introspection and figure out why you really need full frame.  If you do, buy either the 6D or a 5DmkII - about $1500 to $1800 gone - and you've got at least $1500 for "stuff". If not, buy a 7D or wait several months for the replacement and concentrate on using it effectively and adding $400-$500 to your budget for important stuff. Then examine the pictures you've taken and decide if you prefer close-up or distance opportunities.  Buy to improve your lens at either end of the spectrum.  I'd recommend either the 24L on the "short" side or the 135L on the "long" side.   You may find down the road that you can dump your zooms as plenty of photographers would find the 24/50/135 a perfectly adequate - and portable - kit.  Use the money from selling the zooms for a good flash or two should you discover the "joy" of portable light.

34

EOS Bodies / Re: Congratulations Canon to another great Camera release!!

« on: March 21, 2013, 12:23:18 PM »

OK, now I'm baffled.  This now gives me four alternatives - T3i, T4i, T5i and Twhatever - with very little difference - specs, price, capability - between them.  Canon must have a plan, but right now it looks
to me like different internal development groups were set loose and everything was released.  The new "baby" Rebel doesn't look small enough to draw m4/3 users, the new standard Rebel doesn't have enough "new" features to draw upgrade users.  To quote the king of Siam, "tis a puzzlement!"
The new lens looks promising though, particularly for video users.

35

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Crazy... go Nikon?

« on: March 16, 2013, 09:00:13 PM »

Why not, if you want it, can afford it, and can use it, go for it.  I have a sports car and and SUV - different tools for different purposes.  I don't have to re-learn how to drive when I switch vehicles,
switching between camera brands seems pretty basic.  All this bull caca about differences can be
summed up by personal preferences, prejudices and experiences but realistically there isn't a
huge difference between them.  A little like catholics and die-hard protestants arguing over who's
god is best.

36

Canon General / Re: Should I upgrade to FF or invest in lenses instead?

« on: March 12, 2013, 01:47:37 PM »

Why not go whole hog?  As I read your inventory and requirements, I'd sell everything but the macro and the "nifty fifty" and start from scratch.  Get a 5DIII if the budget allows (if not get a 6D), add
the 16-35L and the 70-200L f4.0is with a 1.4X converter and you're good.

37

EOS Bodies / Re: Need help. Canon 60D for sports--is it better to pony up for the 7D?

« on: March 05, 2013, 10:53:18 AM »

you have a week old 60D - if you're going to sell it, sell it now before the 70D (or whatever it's going to
be called) is announced.  Also, the 7D is old and also due to be replaced this year.   Learn to use what you have - the camera's just the tool.  If you have to spend money and you want to shoot sports - get the 70-300L, short enough for court sports, long enough for field sports.  Work with higher ISO ratings
to compensate for smaller aperatures.   Waterproof?  A 25 cent plastic baggie doesn't look so "pro" but it sure protects the camera. 

38

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Anyone else intrigued by the new Fuji X20 and X100s

« on: February 28, 2013, 11:42:39 AM »

You're working with cropped sensor cameras - so remember the multiplication factor.  Fuji's 35mm is
the equivalent of 52.5 while the 50mm lens is actually imaging like a 75mm.  There's a reason that
for 25 years or so most SLR's were sold with a 50mm "standard" lens.

39

EOS-M / Re: EOS-M With Viewfinder Coming Late 2013? [CR]

« on: February 27, 2013, 12:54:50 PM »

How about a good mount for the FD lenses - then the slow autofocus won't matter and the camera
can be a way to keep using some excellent glass?

40

EOS-M / Re: The Next EOS M? [CR1]

« on: February 27, 2013, 12:51:26 PM »

Does the phrase "perfuming the pig" come to mind.  Canon was way late to the market, took it's strike and whiffed terribly.  They have the money to try again, but the train has left the station.  By the way,
my Fuji XE and several lenses look a lot like what Canon should have offered.

41

EOS Bodies / Re: Will Canon ever move into the Medium Format space?

« on: February 27, 2013, 12:46:49 PM »

Bad idea - too big an investment for too little return.  Besides, with improvements in sensor technology the full frame 35mm size will rival MF within three years.  Even MF titans like Hasselblad are cutting MF prices - you can get the Pentax 645 for not too much more than a 1Dx and gearing up
to produce a new line of lenses with a limited market is really dumb. 

42

Lenses / Re: Best Value "Normal" Lens for 6d?

« on: February 27, 2013, 12:39:36 PM »

The 28-105 bundle with the 6d is a winner.  If you have the 6d or are short of cash, look at the
28-135IS that was bundled with a bunch of cameras.  No, it doesn't have the red ring, but it is
an excellent piece of glass and it's one third the price of the 24-105.  I'd also suggest that  for the
price of the 28-105 you could buy a nice pair of primes - my pick would be the 35mmf2.0 and the 85mmf1.8.  With those two, the 6d and a good pair of shoes, there are very few spots that would be
safe from my photos.

43

Lenses / Re: Lens purchase strategy

« on: February 25, 2013, 12:02:59 PM »

My strategy is simple - purchase a new lens only when the several that I have won't allow me to take
the kind of shots I want to take.  It leads to a rather sparse camera bag, but a rich satisfaction at my
production.  If you find yourself continually moving backward to get the framing you want, buy a wider
angle.  If you find yourself constantly cropping your frames, get an appropriate telephoto.  If you do
neither, you don't need a new lens.  I find my 35mm and 75mm cover just about everything.

44

Lenses / Re: Help Me Build My Lens Stable!

« on: February 24, 2013, 02:19:56 PM »

Keep the 70-200 f4.0 - buy the 1.4 or 2.0 extender.  $500.00
Buy a 17-40 zoom instead of the 16-35 and save $800, $800
get a fast prime - my choice would be 35mm f1.4  $1300
add relatively fast mid telephoto - your choice  85mm f1.8 or 100f2.8macro (non IS) $450
get a better flash ( and remote triggering for your existing 430  $750
take what's left over and choose your camera

45

Lenses / Re: Best lens for baby portraits?

« on: February 24, 2013, 02:05:52 PM »

On a crop body, I'd buy a 50mm - which one would be decided by budget.  I'd buy the 50 f1.8 first,
with the logic that it is not called the "nifty fifty" for nothing - but it's also cheap enough that if I'm
unhappy with the focal length, I could sell it easily and not lose any (or much) money.  My next
choice would be the 50 macro for the sharpness followed by the 50 1.4.  I'd forget about the 50 1.2
as too expensive for the minimal exposure advantage over the 1.4 - particularly with the new bodies much better performance at higher ISO settings. (But if I could have afforded the 1.2, I'd use the money I saved to buy the 35mm f2.0 and the 85mm f1..