Messages

16

Lenses / Re: Sigma 50-150 2.8 OS vs Canon 70-700 2.8 IS II for crop cameras

« on: August 27, 2012, 11:17:39 PM »

i rented both and tried them out.. canon focused much faster, images seemed crisper too. its more expensive.. felt sturdier.. the sigma was a good lens.. i got some good shots out of it.. but the canon is a better lens.. but you pay for the "better."

17

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon's Next Full Frame Camera [CR2]

« on: July 16, 2012, 02:19:53 PM »

i really like the idea of a smaller lighter full frame, i dont need 9 fps.. or 60 focusing points. what i do need is the low light performance and the high ISO performance of the 5d mk III.

i know this wont be a perfect camera, but i'm really looking forward to seeing what really comes out and the performance of it. Nikon is really pushing Canon in good new ways. competition is a good thing.

D

18

Lenses / Re: Good, inexpensive zoom lens? Beginner here.

« on: July 03, 2012, 12:25:36 AM »

my vote would be a used tamron 28-75mm f2.8 you can find them on ebay pretty reasonably priced.
its got amazing quality and goes a little wider than your 40mm and gives you some zoom too.

D

19

Lenses / Re: Need sharp wide-open

« on: June 28, 2012, 11:39:15 PM »

i love my sigma 10-20mm lens.. i really want to like sigma's other lenses.. i am also hoping for a cheaper alternative to canon's 35mm L lens.. i've rented multiple copies of sigma's 30mm f1.4 and i want to like it.. i really do.. but the autofocus in low light is useless. and thats where i'd use such a lens. even a 35mm f1.8 i could live with.. at around 600-800.00 but i cant justify 1200.00 lens right now.

20

EOS Bodies / Re: 7D Firmware officially announced

« on: June 28, 2012, 08:15:17 AM »

sounds really nice, sure wish they would have added 5 or  7 AEB bracketing... seems simple.. but other than that its a nice little upgrade.

21

Lenses / Re: Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 Pancake

« on: June 27, 2012, 03:49:41 PM »

i've only taken a total of 10 shots with mine, but so far i'm very happy with it. it is okay at 2.8 but by f4 gets very sharp. focus is tedious at 1ft from subject.. but thats just the nature of being that close. over all i'm happy with it. def faster and quieter than the 50mm f1.8. my 50mm f1.4 is in the shop (for the 4th time) for repairs. the 85mm f1.8 seems to focus faster, but its 2x the price. i think for the money its a great deal

22

Lenses / Re: Canon EF 40mm f/2.8 STM Quick Review

« on: June 27, 2012, 12:25:43 PM »

here are my initial tests with a 7D. focus's faster than 50 f1.8 but not as fast as the 85mm f1.8.. i really like the min focus distance

23

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Canon EOS 7D Firmware Version 2 Coming Soon

« on: June 08, 2012, 02:40:43 PM »

5 or 7 AEB bracketing would sure be nice.. considering what else they are doing it should be a simple addition. i hope they dont leave that only to the 5dmkIII and above

24

Software & Accessories / Re: Best PC product for HDR

« on: May 29, 2012, 11:26:33 AM »

i've tried all the major ones.. and always come back to photomatix pro. Nik's HDR Pro is good.. but i cant seem to get the results i want out of it.

i typically use photomatix pro then move it into photoshop for a little more editing.

25

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: What if you started from scratch again? Total Loss...

« on: May 29, 2012, 10:55:57 AM »

i'm going through USAA. i have 5k of coverage. for 60.00 a year. it covers my canon 7d, and lenses.

26

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: What if you started from scratch again? Total Loss...

« on: May 29, 2012, 09:46:51 AM »

had this happen to me a few years ago. thank goodness i had insurance to cover it.

if i had to do it now.

i'd probably get a t3i, 50mm f1.4, 85mm f1.8, and tamron 28-75mm f2.8
 

27

EOS Bodies / Re: Who is waiting for Canon Mirrorless?

« on: May 26, 2012, 09:16:04 AM »

i dont think there will ever be a perfect solution out there.  i am totally waiting on a canon mirrorless. i'm really curious to see what route they take with it. i hope they take a very different route than the competition. There are a lot of consumer/pro-sumer 4/3 mirrorless options.. all are good.. but from the reviews all seem to have some big flaw.. the Sony Nex system gets great reviews but lenses are limited.. i had high hopes for the Olympus OM-D .. but its getting really mixed reviews.

i'm hoping Canon goes high end with their mirrorless. Yes, they'll get a lot of nay-sayers for the price of it.. but a high end mirrorless solution that sets the bar on quality and low light would be really nice.

Everyone wants EF mount for this full frame.. if they do that.. what will be the benefit of mirrorless? the camera will be roughly the same size and the mirrored DSLRs.. do i really want to put a canon 70-200 mk II on a "small" mirrorless solution? is it really small at that point? even the primes are big lens comparatively to a mirrorless camera. my 85mm f1.8 is a fairly small lens on my 7D.. but on a mirrorless solution it wont fit in my pocket..

i know making cameras is all about tradeoffs.. i'm definitely waiting to see what comes out of canon.. they could take this in so many different directions.

i'd like 1 of two solutions.
1) in a perfect world i'd really like something about the size of the Canon gx1.. and i hate to say it.. but something with a new lens mount allowing much smaller lenses.. (something i could sneak into a concert that doesnt allow "professional cameras"

2) an all out professional quality mirrorless solution with EF mount and APC or FF sensor. if they do this i hope they work hard on the user interface of the camera. they dont just tack on the user interface from the 5dmkIII or 7D. i dont want a frankenstein of a camera just cobbled together from other design teams. i hope they really use this as a complete new form of camera.. and get edgy and experimental. touch screen? app on iphone to control it? who knows.. but really turn the camera world upside down with it. Nikon really threw down the gauntlet with the D800.. i'd really love to see canon throw a completely solid curveball back.

D

28

Lenses / Re: Samyang 85 1.4 vs canon ef 85 1.8 - which one to choose?

« on: May 17, 2012, 06:15:02 PM »

i cant speak for the Samyang, but i own and love the 85mm f1.8 canon. one of the main selling points of this lens is the lightning fast autofocus.. if there is little to no difference in price, why not get autofocus? the diff between f1.4 and 1.8 is very little in the big scheme of things.

29

Lenses / Re: Alternative for the 24-70mm?

« on: May 09, 2012, 04:07:18 PM »

its an older lens, but still one of my favorites. Tamrons 28-75mm f2.8

amazing lens, about 1/2 the size and 1/2 the weight of the canon 24-70mm. doesnt have the build quality and weather sealing, but for every day photography.. for the money its an amazing lens.

http://www.amazon.com/Tamron-28-75mm-Aspherical-Canon-Digital/dp/B0000A1G05/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336594009&sr=8-1

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EOS Bodies - For Video / Re: Thoughts on my first real shoot with the 5DIII

« on: April 25, 2012, 04:44:14 PM »

i rented a 5DmkIII for the week for a concert i was asked to shoot last weekend. I normally shoot with a canon 7D. i really didnt expect to see any drastic difference in performance from the 5D mkIII.

after shooting with it for a week.. i can say its a VERY nice camera. Much Much better low light performance than my 7D. i really only started seeing real grain in images about ISO 6400 but the images were very workable and usable.  The concert was in a hole in the wall bar with terrible lighting. I used prime lenses, 24f1.4 50f1.4 and 85mm f1.8 all focused incredibly fast and accurately.

i've shot many concerts like this with my 7D. the 5D mk III seems to focus faster and i seem to have gotten more in focus shots when the band was on the move than i normally get with my 7D.

the interface is very close to the 7D only real change/annoyance is they moved the Q button and the zoom button . after a little time, i adjusted and everything was fine.

overall i'm incredibly pleased with the camera.. will i buy one? no i cant justify the price over my 7D.. but for 150.00 to rent for a week, its def worth another rent.

Darrell