Messages

4171

Lenses / Re: Imported vs. USA Lenses?

« on: March 19, 2012, 10:14:38 PM »

Looking at B&H Photo's site, I see they sometimes have two versions of a lens listed; a USA model and an "imported" version that is usually a little cheaper.

What is the difference between the two?

USA models are imported by Canon North America carry a USA/Canadian warranty.  The Gray market models were imported by a different Canon division into a different country and do not carry a US warranty.  They may not have a English Manual, but most of the lens manuals are multi lingual.  The CD/DVD manuals may be multilingual too.
 
However, if you bought your gray market lens from a authorized Canon distributor like B&H, Canon USA has been known to honor the warranty.  If you buy them from a non Canon USA authorized distributor, you will have to deal with your seller to get a warranty.  Some provide a third party warranty. 

4172

Canon General / Re: Is Amazon selling fake LP-E6 batteries or did Canon change design?

« on: March 19, 2012, 10:03:42 PM »

Canon has changed packaging as well as whats printed on the batteryabout once a year.  Three of my four are slightly different, each is a different age.  The new batteries I bought form Adorama and Amazon (not a third party) have the correct hologram.  The other two came with my 5D MK II and later 7D.
 
The original 5D Battery says made in Japan, then I have a made in China, and one that is part Japanese and part Chinese.  One has a date on it, but the others are older and do not.

4173

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: Review: Canon EOS 5D Mark III by Jeff Ascough

« on: March 19, 2012, 09:56:53 PM »

I'm not sure where all the anger is coming from. Jeff is a booster for the brand and a well established and successful photographer (that is why Canon picked him). He takes great images and makes them even better with PP. Maybe all the complainers need to do a little research into what many of the very best film photographers did in the darkroom or had other do for them to achieve the magnificent work that is in galleries today.
I think he genuinely likes (loves) his equipment and is will to say so. That is valuable to Canon and to those that admire his approach to photography. No more and no less.

There are always snarky comments by those starving for attention, and there are critical comments that are serious as well.  You can always tell if its a serious comment, they give at least a reason why they dislike the article rather than dismissing it because of their award winning portfolio that no one has seen.

4174

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Nikon D800 test samples - dpreview

« on: March 19, 2012, 09:33:15 PM »

Comparing the raw ISO 6400 images to the 5D MK II, the D800 looks close to the same, more noise in the white areas, but maybe a tiny bit more detail.  About the same story at higher ISO's. 
 
Thats not a bad thing, the camera is obviously intended for high amounts of detail at low ISO.
 
Maybe we will have some 5D MK III to compare soon.

4175

EOS Bodies / Re: Should I buy a lens or sell the ones I own?

« on: March 19, 2012, 09:02:41 PM »

I haven't seen a problem after installing Adobe Camera Raw beta 6.7 r1.
 
If you open the raw files without the right software, you will see the small jpeg embedded in the raw, and it will have noticibly poor quality.
 
The actual raw files look pretty good to me.

4176

EOS Bodies / Re: Buying a 5DII on a whim

« on: March 19, 2012, 08:39:32 PM »

I had decided on buying the 5D MK III about two years before they finally offered it up.  I ordered it the first morning, and am hoping to see it next week.  You are right though, some of us(me) procrastinate for weeks, months, or years about a purchase.  I'm still on the fence over buying a Canon 24mm L, which for me means I probably won't, if I really needed it, I would have bought it long ago.
 
I think the difference is between needing a new item and wanting one.  I make quick decisions when I actually need something right away.

4177

Canon General / Re: eBay scam?

« on: March 19, 2012, 08:31:53 PM »

If the price is too low to be true, than it is almost always a scam.
 
I saw a 70-200mm f/2.8L advertised on our local craigslist for $400 last week.  I dismissed it as a scam, but after reading it, it was too well written for a scam.  I contacted the owner, and he told me how he bought it new several years ago for film photography, and saw a haze on one of the internal lens elements.  He sent it to Canon, they cleaned it, but could not completely remove the haze.  It was not a fungus.  They told him that it did not affect the optical performance according to their testing.  Then he lost interest in film photography and put his gear away in 2005 never to be used again.
 
I went out to look at it, and it was showroom spotless, as was his really nice home.  He said he would consider a offer, and since I had not tested the lens, he accepted $350.  Then he proceeded to bring out his other equipment one piece at a time, all in the original box and looking unused.  I ended up buying it all for less than the usual scammer low prices.  He even had the original B&H receipts.
 
I, have held the lens to the light, several different ways, it is remarkably clean and clear, and autofocuses accurately.  I can't see a haze, and the images are sharp and detailed.  I'm tempted to sell my 70-200mm f/4 IS and use the f/2.8 non IS for everything.  With my new 5D MK III, I might be able to boost the ISO enough to get fast shutter speeds even in low light.

4178

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon 5D Mark III - Price Drop Details

« on: March 19, 2012, 07:48:53 PM »

I can remember people in 2008 planning to wait for the price of the 5D MK II to drop.  The cameras were almost constantly back ordered for well over a year, and it briefly dropped over three years later to $2,000 last Christmas.  I wonder if they are still waiting for it to drop below $1000 

4179

Software & Accessories / Re: Lightroom for $70 at B&H only on 2/15

« on: March 19, 2012, 07:42:14 PM »

I finally received Adobe's approval for a free upgrade to LR4 from the $70 B&H deal on LR 3.
 
That makes it a better than hoped for deal.
 
If you haven't already done tis, contact Adobe and request a free upgrade.

4180

EOS Bodies / Re: Some unanswered Mk III questions

« on: March 19, 2012, 07:39:04 PM »

Another unanswered question:
What is the live view output resolution of 5d mkIII?

Assuming you mean video, its 720p.  Lots of complaints that it does not output full resolution.

4181

Third Party Manufacturers / Re: Zeiss 70-200 f/2.8 Coming to Canon for NAB 2012?

« on: March 19, 2012, 07:24:22 PM »

The new lens will be a Compact Zoom Cine Lens going up against the $45,000 zoom Cine PL lenses from Canon.  A attractive price for something in this range is far more than most ordinary photographers will want to pay.
 
I can't even begin to guess at a price, but it will be costing a lot more than those low cost $5,000 compact primes.
  "With the success of the Compact Prime CP.2 lenses, many peoplewere asking for compact zooms that fit the small HDSLR and HDcine cameras. Christian Bannert said, “We listened very carefully to the voices of our customers, and we will introduce a line ofvery compact and lightweight zoom lenses to complement the CPfamily.”

If we look at the existing range of Compact Prime lenses from18 mm to 100 mm, what’s missing? Of course, a lightweight, compact long tele zoom, just like the ones still photographers have been enjoying for years. My guess is that the first zoom lens will be somewhere around 70-200 mm. We’ll probably find out at NAB 2012. The tele zoom should be the first in a family of compact and lightweight zooms from Carl Zeiss

The new compact zoom lens will cover full still format 24x36 mm, just like the CP.2 family, providing much more coverage than Super 35. It will be different from any existing zoom, with its interchangeable mount, compact size and light weight. Meet the compact family: a compact zoom joins the compact primes. The new zoom will feature industry-standard geared focus iris and zoom rings. Nobody else has a lens like this; it should be very popular.

The price is promised to be attractive and competitive"

4182

Canon General / Re: Is Amazon selling fake LP-E6 batteries or did Canon change design?

« on: March 19, 2012, 07:01:39 PM »

The main concern besides having poor performance / life is safety.  Someone who is making a counterfit battery is not likely to worry about following the safety laws for Li-on batteries, and they can be dangerous.  Its like a lottery, but with a counterfit, your odds of a fire are much greater.

4183

EOS Bodies / Re: Things to Do while waiting for your new 5DmIII

« on: March 19, 2012, 06:58:10 PM »

My 5D MK II left home today to go to its new owner, its been a great camera, but I've always wanted a even higher low light performance.
 
I still have my 7D.  They use the same batteries.
 
I have the beta camera raw and beta DNG installed, so I will be able to edit immediately.  I will try the new version of DPP.  I don't like having the files turned into huge ones, the Cr2 files are big enough.

4184

Lenses / Re: No 2X extender for 70-300mm L Series

« on: March 19, 2012, 05:52:52 PM »

Canon extenders are compatible only with L-series primes of 135mm and longer, and L-series zooms starting at 70mm, with the exception of the 70-300 L.  There are 3rd party extenders (e.g. Kenko) that do not have the protruding element and are compatible with most Canon lenses.

I hate to be a conspiracy theorist, but it seems lots of things that Canon is doing lately is to push people to buy more expensive equipment. The f8 problem keeps people from putting extenders on lower-priced f4 and f5.6 zooms, and the 70-300 won't take an extender at all.

Just, you know, sayin'...

There are a lot of Canon patents for the rear lens focusing.  They are supposedly able to make a lens smaller, lighter and with improved IQ, but the Canon TC compatibility is lost.
 
Since its mostly a f/5.6 lens, A TC is not going to AF except with the older 1D series bodies. 
 
It is a compromise.  Do you want big, heavy, and more distortion, or give up TC compatibility.  I'll take losing Canon TC compatability, since I can get a Kenko.  There is no work around for the weight, size, and IQ.

4185

Lenses / MOVED: Converting from Canon to Sony - Lense equivalents.

« on: March 19, 2012, 05:44:39 PM »

This topic has been moved to Third Party Manufacturers.

http://www.canonrumors.com/forum/index.php?topic=4439.0