Messages

616

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: Which second speedlight should I buy?

« on: January 10, 2013, 11:50:20 AM »

So this is a cheaper version of the 600? Is it compatible with Canon speedlights and will work with my 430EXii?

Currently, no one has reverse engineered the new Canon rt protocol so 3rd party flashes are optical remote only or completely different radio trigger systems with the added bulk.

- the new 600EX-RT to future proof my setup. Obviously with the 430EX II I know that the radio functionality won't work but hopefully the next speedlight I'd buy would be another 600EX-RT so it would make the setup more flexible. I'd also sell the Flex/Mini as the 600 would be my new Master.
- another 430EX II...if I do this do I have to buy another Flex TT5 to make them both talk to each other? If I do then it seems pointless to take this option but let me know.

Sometimes the optical link is annoying, but in 90% it works just fine for what I shoot so that I'm happy with my 600rt+430ex2 combination.

I wouldn't recommend buying a 2nd 430ex2 (with 3rd party triggers) if you need any of the "big" flash features: faster recycling time, more power (with diffuser, bounces), external power option, 200mm reflector (600rt), build-in reflector card, head can tilt a little  forward, much better on-flash menu, strobe function, fec bracketing

617

EOS Bodies / Re: Which is better? 5D MKII or 6D?

« on: January 10, 2013, 11:25:58 AM »

I just sold my 5D2 and replaced it with a 6D last month. I can without hesitation say that the 6D is hands down a better camera than the 5D2 in every way except price.

+1  - though the 6d is missing platinum cps in europe, 1/8000s, 1/200 x-sync, 150k shutter

The 6D is better in low light for sure and the images in general look slightly better. For just about everything else, the 5D mark II is better. The 6D is definitely not a 5D replacement. It is more of a 60D upgrade.

Absolutely not - it may be a 60d-like body, but has numerous small but very convenient advantages over the 4+ year old 5d2, and even the 5d2-style af on the 6d has more precision than the predecessor - look at the list here: http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=11309.0

618

Lenses / Re: January 8, 2013 Announcements?

« on: January 10, 2013, 09:52:57 AM »

Here you go:

Doh - if Canon continues like that (strange IS video primes, L cinema lenses) more people might start buying 3rd party lenses like the latest Sigma models - but in this case, what reason is left to shoot with a Canon camera? Yes-I-know-thats-provokative-and-the-5d3-is-stellar-yada-yada, but at least that's the way I feel with the 60d (-> Nikon d7000) and probably soon the 6d (-> Nikon d600).

619

Lenses / Re: January 8, 2013 Announcements?

« on: January 10, 2013, 02:13:42 AM »

January 8, 2013 Announcements?

What happened to CR as my primary, trusted and reliable source :-> ?

620

EOS Bodies / Re: Are you really serious about 6D?

« on: January 09, 2013, 05:33:33 PM »

You're missing the point of the 6D

Many people are missing the point - unlike the 5d2, the 6d is build to be able to be produced much cheaper - right now it's nearly 10% below the release price (€200 less than €1999) , and that after only about 2 weeks of general availability in Germany!

So it seems the 6d will stay well below the 5d3, maybe even more than the current €1000 - and might even reach the Nikon d600 level. And @€1600 the weaknesses may be seen in a more forgiving light, at least the 6d is able to focus with af assist in under 2-3 seconds :->

621

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Sigma Launches the Sigma USB DOCK

« on: January 09, 2013, 05:15:24 PM »

Actually, considering that OSX and Linux are very similar under the hood (both are flavors of unix)

But MacOSX is BSD and Linux is, well, Linux - the unix versions have split decades ago and are often very different, just because they both use a forward slash for directories and run gcc doesn't mean much for porting software, esp. if it relies on hardware features like usb.

622

Lenses / Re: Just bought a new Canon EF 70-300L IS USM lens.

« on: January 09, 2013, 02:57:09 AM »

I have spoken to people who have one and they love it. What are your experiances? Good? Bad?

Good/Bad is relative, for me the 70-300L has a very good price-weight-size-reach-iq-build-is combination, on ff is still ok as a longer walkaround, the one problem is that af @f5.6 is not optimal making this an "outdoor" lens in contrast to the 70-200/2.8. And the 70-300L doesn't work with Canon tc (but with Kenko).

Imho its really funny how the reputation of this lens rises, when I bought it a year ago most reviews basically said that its overpriced and the iq is not good enough, esp. in comparison to the non-L model. But now that the new Canon "double the price" strategy is in effect, the 70-300L esp. in combination with a rebate is a good choice. But of course I'd switch it for the new Sigma 120-300/2.8 for free ;-)

623

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Thinking of downgrading my 5d3 system

« on: January 09, 2013, 02:36:51 AM »

I think a 200g difference is a make or break amount

I'd speculate that a lot more people want/would like a lighter camera bodies, amateurs as well as pros that shoot for hours and hours.

It has hasn't been legit to ask for it because just as the 70-200ii the "the" lens to get of course everyone wants a sturdy, full-metal body that is build like a 1d tank - or you probably needed your head checked. But now that Canon has released the 6d suddenly there are lots of people around who very much like the idea (though not the specs) of the 6d.

Disclaimer: its-just-fine-people-buy-expensive-heavy-gear-for-amateur-purposes-but-ymmv

624

EOS Bodies / Re: What Canon Body is threatened buy the Nikon D5200?

« on: January 09, 2013, 02:30:08 AM »

Not sure where the 60D fits in anymore

The 60d is/will be phased out, the swivel screen model now is the 650d (with 60d-style af, actually a bit better).

What Canon Body is threatened buy the Nikon D5200?

None, after the experiences with the delays, the initial 5d3/24-70ii price and the 6d features it's clear non-Rebel users (who just own the kit lens) very seldom switch and Canon can get away with just about everything - people complain, but that's about it.

A few professionals who really need the competition's features might jump ship or buy Nikon in addition to Canon (like the high mp d800) - but for the rest the loss when selling Canon is too big, the feel of Nikon is too different, and last not least only Canon runs Magic Lantern.

625

EOS Bodies - For Video / Re: Inside the Canon EOS-1D C

« on: January 09, 2013, 02:20:39 AM »

You shall not alter, modify, disassemble, decompile or otherwise reverse engineer the Software and you also shall not have any third party to do so.

I hope this announcement will be enough to make people leave us alone about hacking the 1D

Thanks for the information, just as everyone else I never read the fine print (and am not a lawyer) :-o

626

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Sigma Launches the Sigma USB DOCK

« on: January 09, 2013, 02:17:47 AM »

I see they've added that ability for the 5D3 and later .

Canon is a very conservative company - the lens fw update mainly seems to be designed to ensure compatibility of lenses with newer camera bodies, on each new generation release there are a few lenses (even newer ones) that need a trip to Canon service because they have issues. But Canon isn't enthusiastic about (too?) many customizations or features, they leave that to Sigma and Magic Lantern.

627

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Thinking of downgrading my 5d3 system

« on: January 08, 2013, 05:25:34 PM »

Not a substantial weight difference and you will lose more money than saving based on the initial price you paid for the gear.

Substantial is subjective, it's not just the absolute weight alone but also the distribution of it (like a heavy flash on a bracket or the longer 70-200L vs the short 70-300L). And when crossing the personal pain/fun threshold, 100-200g might make the decisive difference, esp. if shooting for a longer time.

As for money: Of course selling gear to downgrade is bad business, but money is also lost when letting top gear rot in the bag - esp. camera bodies loose value, like the 30% drop of the 5d3 since release a year ago. Cheaper camera bodies simply cannot loose as much value in absolute terms.

628

EOS Bodies - For Video / Re: Inside the Canon EOS-1D C

« on: January 08, 2013, 05:19:24 PM »

I've been discussing in the ml forum and with the ml devs all over, thus the lengthy post:

The magic-lantern team is very careful to never redistribute Canon-copyrighted binaries or code of any sort, and the kind of reverse engineering that they do is entirely legal.

And changing some flags in the 1dx firmware via ml probably wouldn't be illegal either, Canon doesn't make you sign a contract "no 3rd party firmware allowed" when selling the camera. But as it is, even targeting a whole department of lawyers on a single person might have some impact :-o

However, near consensus among the ml devs is to leave the 1dx alone, not just because Canon says so, but also because ...

a) ml is a community project to add new features to entry- to midrange cameras (5d3 being the absolute top of the line) and only there expand upon some firmware limitations (i.e. more than 3x bracketing), ml is not there to save money for rich people - at least that's not why I contributed source code to ml.

b) it would be stupid because Canon just relaxed a bit about ml (in comparison to plain ignorance) and maybe they'll even make life easier for the devs by giving some answers that save months of reverse engineering - but on the other hand Canon can disable the ml loader mechanism on the next cameras or via the next firmware updates, and that would be the end of it. A real possibility is that Canon tries to void all warranties if they detect ml has ever been installed which would cut 2/3 of the userbase just because of fud.

To sum it up: If someone hacks the 1dx to a 1dc, maybe even commercially ("give me half the 1dx/1dc difference and I'll unlock it") it won't be via ml - personally I hope it won't happen at all, people who actually use 4k in 2013 are most probably well off and should just pay for it.

As for Canon ripping 1dx/1dc users off: A dslr is a computer, the firmware is the software, and it absolutely common to deliver the same software with features unlockable for a price (i.e. 4k on the 1dc) even if the hardware (i.e. your computer) is the same. You cannot demand "I want Photoshop Elements for the price of Photoshop Extended" just because your computer can run it. It's a legit business model, even if people might not like it. I do like it because it makes well-off people pay more, now if Canon would just make reasonable prices for the rest of us...

629

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Sigma Launches the Sigma USB DOCK

« on: January 08, 2013, 02:46:23 PM »

They might. And then prevent 3rd parties like FoCal from accessing those like what they did for the 5d3. And no, I'm not going to stop grumbling about that.

Maybe it does make you feel better there's full FoCal support for the 6d again, Canon might have heard your grumbling!

630

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Sigma Launches the Sigma USB DOCK

« on: January 08, 2013, 01:31:46 PM »

Focus setting

Contemporary, Art and Sports • Updating Lens Firmware It is possible to update the lens firmware via the internet. • Focus Setting Multiple focus setting options are available: 4 categories for fixed focal length lenses, and 16 categories (4 options for focal length) x (4 options for shooting distance) for zoom lenses.

For Sports line • AF Speed Adjustment There are 3 AF speed modes. • Focus Limiter Adjustment Offering customization for the driving range of auto focus enables a photographer to exactly reflect the personal preference. • OS Setting There are 3 OS (Optical Stabilizer) adjustment modes.

I have to say I'm impressed - lenses have reached the digital age at last, it'll be interesting to see if Canon follows and adds more customization options for their lenses directly through the eos cameras.