Topics

1

Lenses / Canon 24-70 2.8 ll or 20-60 2.8 mark 1 ?

« on: May 11, 2013, 07:21:14 PM »

I've been increasingly tempted to replace my 24-70 2.8 with the new mark ll model.
I was surprised and quite disappointed to discover how much wider the new lens is at both ends of the zoom !

I always wished the lens was a little longer, a 24 to 85 would be ideal. Discovering the new lens is now shorter at  "70mm" makes me less eager to purchase it even with improvements to sharpness.  I wonder what the acceptable tolerances are when naming a lens focal length ? Is it a 20-60 f 2.8 mark 1 ?

2

EOS Bodies / 5D 1DX joystick problem with sports

« on: September 19, 2012, 01:50:58 AM »

 5D MK lll autofocus impresses me, and I can get by with a 6 FPS motor drive for action.
What drives me crazy, and is a serious problem when shooting sports, is the function of the joystick and autofocus selection.

On my old 1D MK ll bodies programming a home setting for AF was easy and reliable. Whenever I hit the home button AF would return to the center sensor every time.  The 5D MK lll, and 1 DX I presume, can't do that. Pressing the joystick in switches AF to the home setting ( the center for me ) only every other time. It alternates between "home" and previous AF positions.

When I press the joystick in or bump it by mistake I never know what AF sensor will be selected and it tends to move all over the place and is a disaster for shooting sports. While struggling with the camera while shooting football for my newspaper I couldn't help wondering how photographers successfully covered the Olympics with the 1Dx ( or 5D )

How is everyone dealing with the unreliable joystick performance for critical action photography ?

3

EOS Bodies / Alternative 5D MK lll grip review

« on: June 20, 2012, 10:33:53 PM »

A preliminary review of the alternative 5D grip can be found in "Third Party Manufacturers"

4

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Best strategy for processing MK lll RAW files ?

« on: April 24, 2012, 12:54:00 PM »

After years of shooting jpgs I want to shoot RAW with the new 5D MK lll. I'd also like to beging using the Xrite Passport for batch color correction. I believe it requires conversion to DNG files. This is all new to me so I would appreciate advice on the best current way to process RAW from the new camera. I'm also about to switch to Mac after years of using PC computers.

I'm a pro, learning to use a new camera, new file format and new computer all at the same time.

Thanks

5

EOS Bodies / Sleeping Joy Stick

« on: April 10, 2012, 11:01:23 PM »

Any way to keep the MKlll joy stick awake ?
When covering action events it's not good to have to continually wake up the JS with a shutter button tap.

6

EOS Bodies / Lighting up a selected 5D AF sensor

« on: April 07, 2012, 01:09:18 AM »

The solution I've found for lighting up a select 5D AF sensor is to use AI Focus, or One-Shot.
Coming from 1-D MK ll bodies that feature helpful light-up options, I've been concerned by the possible lack of it in the MK lll.

It's great the 9 boxes on the 5D MKll screen are gone because I really prefer a plain screen.

I'm accustomed to using Servo AF, so I'll be curious how AI Focus works for my subjects. I'm trying to take my time to really learn the manual and the camera, as well as the new 1-DX AF guide.

I'm curious to hear from others how AI Focus works for movement and action.

7

EOS Bodies / 5D MK lll arriving a little early ?

« on: March 12, 2012, 02:54:06 PM »

My dealer informed me this morning that Canon is shipping their 5D order "in a day or two" and they'll ship my order this week.

8

EOS Bodies / 5D MK lll Intelligent Viewfinder and focusing screen reviews ?

« on: March 11, 2012, 12:46:25 AM »

With all the hands-on reviews of the MK lll, how about some comments on the Intelligent Viewfinder and focusing screen.
After using 1-D bodies for years I'm not crazy about having AF boxes on the screen of my MK ll, so I welcome the change in the new camera.
Can it be set up like 1-D so the selected AF lights up only briefly ?

How bright is the focusing screen and how well does it perform for manual focus ?

The best screen I ever had was the crisp and sharp, glass, all-matte K screen in my old F-1n film cameras. The gold standard for manual focusing.

Also, isn't odd that the viewfinder is described as APPROX 100%. It's either 100% or not, right ?

9

EOS Bodies / 5D MK lll Auto Focus for action

« on: March 08, 2012, 02:08:46 AM »

The one thing lacking from all the 5D MK lll previews is auto focus performance for action photography.
It's an important question.
Six frames-per-second is plenty fast, but how will the 5D track action subjects ?  How will it compare to the older-but-popular 1-D MK lln, the 1-D Mk lV,  7D, or others ? 
 
If you purchase a 5D, will you need another camera for action photos ?

Since the 5D will be shipping soon, it's time to talk about auto-focus performance for sports and fast-moving subjects.

10

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Canon 5D MK ll grip with AA's

« on: February 27, 2012, 12:49:29 AM »

Does anyone have experience using AA's in the 5D MK ll grip instead of two LP-E6 batteries.
I'd like to use 6 Powerex AA's and recharge as needed instead of ordering a 2nd LP-E6.
Any comments ?
Thanks
Rex

11

EOS Bodies - For Stills / 5D MK ll LCD protection

« on: December 06, 2011, 11:11:01 PM »

Switching from the 1-D MKlln to the 5D MK ll I notice how much closer the viewfinder is to the LCD.  Should I be concerned about my reading glasses scratching the screen ? I really don't like the idea of applying screen protection but want to avoid scratches.  My 1-D LCD's have proven to be pretty tough but I'd welcome comment from 5D users.

Thanks