Messages

46

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: Beauty dish for Canon 600EX-RT flash

« on: January 18, 2013, 01:38:11 AM »

I have several beauty dishes, including the 14" Lumodi.  I like the Lumodi, but the main problem is how flimsy the speedlite mount is.  It's basically just a piece of cardboard with velcro strap, not sturdy at all, and I suspect it won't last long especially in the field.  Lumodi 18" comes with better mounting system, but 18" is a bit too large for true portability.  My other dishes are larger studio units, heavy and not portable. 

Something like this may be worth looking into:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Beauty-Dish-Diffuser-Kit-for-Canon-430-EX-580-EX-II-/221177631242?pt=Camera_Flash_Accessories&hash=item337f36d20a

47

Lenses / Re: Canon EF 35mm f/2L IS Review from the Digital Picture

« on: January 16, 2013, 05:09:49 PM »

Now where is that Canon 50mm f/1.4 IS ? 

48

EOS Bodies / Re: Auto_focus Acting Up

« on: January 15, 2013, 04:39:03 PM »

I have the same problem with both of my bodies, in low light and trying to AF on fast-action.  It boils down to the fact that I just don't think the 1DX's AF is as good as all the hype when it was first released

I believe this is true.  The Ai Servo AF on 1Dx and 5D III does not seem to warrant all the initial hoopla, especially in Ai Servo.  However, I just got my 5D MkIII back from Canon Service, where I had it cleaned and checked before the warranty ran out.  I did mention to them that the Al Servo mode seems to have tendency to misfocus, and the service summary mentions:

"Confirm autofocus to factory standard (Ai Servo).  It was found that the adjustment of the AF assembly was incorrect, causing the focus to operate improperly.  Electrical adjustments were carried out on the AF assembly.  Product function was confirmed."

There is no way to perform proper A-B testing of Ai Servo in exact same situation pre and post "AF adjustment," but I do believe the Al Servo focusing is working perceptibly better now, which is very difficult to quantify. If your recent Canon body is having unusually worse-than-expected Ai Servo performance, it may (or may not) be worth it to have Canon Service check it out before warranty runs out.  They probably need a cleaning anyway..

49

Reviews / Re: Review - Canon EF 50 f/1.2L

« on: January 14, 2013, 01:51:29 PM »

The only people who bash the 1.2L are the people who can't afford it.

That is not true.  I can easily afford it.  I bought it  I used it.  I returned it.  The focus shift issue was the reason I returned it.  I don't care how sharp or not sharp a lens is if I cannot focus it accurately. 

Do you remember the date code on that 50L and on which camera body?  Reading through the large amount of user reviews out there, one gets the feeling Canon changed *something* with the 50L in the last couple/few years without official announcement, either some sort of hardware/firmware change or maybe even change/tightening of QC.  People with the latest batch of 50L and camera bodies seem much happier than before, e.g. I am very happy with sharpness and focusing of 2011 50L + 5D MkIII combo, with -3 lens microadjustment. 

50

Reviews / Re: Review - Canon EF 50 f/1.2L

« on: January 12, 2013, 01:17:57 PM »

The only people who bash the 1.2L are the people who can't afford it.

I don't know about that, but despite all the bashing about its sharpness, according to Lensrentals testing, the 50L is the sharpest lens from f/1.2 to f/2.0 including alll Canon, Zeiss, Nikon, and Sigma 50mm choices. 

What I love about the 50L is how it retains such nice contrast and color below f/2.0, which is something my Canon 50 f/1.8 or 50 f/1.4 could not do, not to mention the superior bokeh of 50L .

http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2012/01/the-great-50mm-shootout

51

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

« on: January 10, 2013, 03:29:11 PM »

The X100s is looking on paper to be a very capable street shooter...

I'm sure the X-Pro 2 is going to be very similar.

ET

Personally, I'm thinking X-E1 MkII with the new sensor and a bit improved EVF down the line is what I (and many) would like to wait for at a lower price point than X-Pro 2.

52

Animal Kingdom / Re: MY dog

« on: January 09, 2013, 08:31:13 PM »

EOSD1341bw by drjlo1, on Flickr

53

Lenses / Re: Making the most out of a 50 1.2?

« on: December 24, 2012, 06:21:25 PM »

The more I use the 50L for portraits, the more I am appreciating its slightly more "human" rendering of sharpness.  Most of us non-models without full make-up are shown in a more glowing and forgiving light IMO compared to other bitingly sharp lenses.

54

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: The seemingly amazing Sigma 35

« on: December 21, 2012, 12:29:09 AM »

Why fix what ain't broke?   

My thoughts exactly.  I love my 35L to pieces, which also happens to be smaller and lighter than Sigma. 

On the other hand, if Sigma can come up with a 50 mm f/1.2 with super sharpness and great bokeh, that might be something to consider instead of my 50L.  And no, I've tried the Sigma 50 f/1.4, and that is not good enough.

55

Lenses / Re: New Sigma 35mm f/1.4 for Canon getting awesome reviews

« on: December 07, 2012, 01:40:08 AM »

35L is smaller and lighter, which I appreciate very much for all-night shooting.  My copy of 35L is already super sharp, and I really don't need it any sharper in the center; if so, it might even be too sharp for people shots.  In fact, if I plan to shoot portraits, I may grab the 50L over 35L for a little softer rendition..

56

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

« on: December 04, 2012, 01:31:00 PM »

Will not on my shopping cart until I see FF sensor.

X2 but I'm afraid the chance of that in Canikon land is very, very slim.

57

Lens Gallery / Re: Sigma 35mm 1.4

« on: December 03, 2012, 10:14:07 PM »

OOF lights at f1.4 showing mild ringing/onion:
http://chernicoff.us/images/9Z9C1183.jpg

At f/1.4, aren't the round lights overly football-like in shape? 

58

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: 5Dmk3 doesnt play with kenko teleconverters

« on: December 03, 2012, 07:35:26 PM »

To get the Kenko 1.4x to cooperate with your 5DmkIII, you must first disable AFMA and then *take one picture*. After that you can swap on your TC and everything should work normally – apart from having AFMA. You can also re-enable AFMA immediately as long as your TC+lens combo doesn't actually use it (i.e. has +0 setting).

I tested this with 100L and 200L/2.8 using the "blue dot" TC.

I just tested this with 5D III, 100L, and Kenko 1.4x "blue dot," and nope, it still doesn't work.  After the "workaround," when I press shutter, the camera STILL freezes up, with taking the battery out the only way to revive it.

59

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Sigma 35 f/1.4 DG HSM First Impressions

« on: November 21, 2012, 05:18:43 PM »

I always welcome any good third party lenses.  That really is the only way to force Canon from pricing their lenses so stratospherically in the long run. 

BTW. For the gallery.  For the several Sigma lenses I've used, I have noticed a little bit of color balance difference from Canon L glass.  Anyone else notice this?

60

Lenses / Re: Hold out for EF 35/2 IS or jump in with classic 35 1.4L

« on: November 20, 2012, 03:53:23 PM »

Shoot, Rokinon 35mm f/1.4 at Groupon for $399.  35mm isn't so bad to manual focus..

http://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-rokinon-wide-angle-lenses?utm_campaign=UserReferral_rp&utm_medium=raf-121015-10r1act-lk&utm_source=uu5948210