Messages

1066

Lenses / Something New to Argue About

« on: April 01, 2011, 11:50:01 AM »

I get bored with the never ending bigger megapixels vs. more megapixels war.

So, I thought I'd ask a new question that could start up a different battle for a change. Seriously though, I would like hear some informed opinions on this.

In practice, is there a diminishing return on focal length and if so, at what focal length would most people consider that diminishing return to occur?

Let me explain: As a user who is not an engineer, my experience has been that there are big gains in reach at the mid-range of telephotos. (Going from a 135mm to a 200mm feels like a big jump and going from 200mm to 300 also feels like a big jump. Going from 200 to 400 is huge.)

But, it seems like at some point, the gain in reach from a longer lens doesn't really offset the downsides of size, weight, speed, cost, etc.

I'm not talking about professional sports or wildlife shooters, but rather, for us mere mortals who have to pay for the equipment ourselves and can't charge it off to a client base.

Of course, ISO speed enters into this as well. Shoot with a shorter lens at a lower ISO and crop, or use a longer lens and a higher ISO?

Telephotos are often described by angle of view and the gains in angle of view get incrementally smaller as the lens gets longer. Is it really worth shaving a couple of degrees off the angle of view? What's that really mean in practice?

And, of course, there is the whole issue of APS-C crops. Since a 200mm feels like a 320mm and a 300 feels like a 480mm on a 1.6 crop sensor, how does that affect the trade off at the long end.

I got the idea for the question while reading the discussion board on the Sigma 50-500 and wondering, with my 7D the Canon 100-400 scales out to 640mm, while the "Bigma" scales out to 800mm. But really, what does that mean in practical terms? Would that extra 160mm really be noticeable at those lengths?

Just offering this up as new point of discussion while we all wait for news from Japan.

1067

Lenses / Re: Sigma 50-500mm Opinions

« on: March 31, 2011, 10:05:14 PM »

Be sure to read the blurb about this lens on LensRentals.com http://www.lensrentals.com/rent/canon/lenses/supertelephoto/sigma-50-500mm-f4.5-6.3-hsm-os-for-canon. Pretty favorable, but the "potential autofocus defect" is kind of a concern.

I think I'd rent it for a week before buying.

I've considered this one too and would also like to hear from actual uses. It's not any cheaper than the Canon 100-400mm and I'm just not sure if the extra 100mm is worth it if it means less sharpness and marginally slower aperture.  I'm still waiting for the mythical Tokina 100-400 stabilized lens.

1068

EOS Bodies / Re: 5D Mark II Stock Shortages in US?

« on: March 29, 2011, 03:11:41 PM »

I would not over-interpret this

Smart advice. A lot of the fun of rumors sites is to see how other people read the tea leaves. But really, only Canon knows what may be causing shortages of camera bodies or lenses. Recently, there has been a lot of speculation here that the earthquake and tsunami may be affecting supplies. But, while that sounds logical to those of us outside of the company, we really don't have any accurate information to even support that.

In fact, I've found that just because Adorama or B&H state on their website that a product is not in stock, that isn't always the case. I've ordered products from Adorama before when they have said they are temporarily out of stock only to have it shipped within a day or two. I suspect, but don't know, that some of the big retailers say a product is out of stock once their inventory falls below a certain point.

I'm guessing they track their sales pretty closely and rather than risk disappointing customers by not being able to deliver a product that's been ordered, they put up the warning when stock falls below a certain minimum. Also, they probably get shipments every day from distributors and might not know just how many of an ordered item will actually arrive on a given day.

This is just my speculation and not any more valid than anyone else's. But, just a caution not to read too much into these things.

On an unrelated but positive side note, it looks to me from CanonPriceWatch.com that prices for the 7D are starting to fall back to pre-rebate levels for the second- and third-tier sellers. (Of course NOBODY has the body in stock anyway). I'm guessing (this is a rumors site) that Adorama and B&H prices will also fall back to their previous levels once shipments start coming in and they need to compete with the other sites.

1069

EOS Bodies / Re: The 60D Needs AF Microadjustment

« on: March 29, 2011, 01:58:39 PM »

alex, you've lost me in the second half regarding the nikon shoe...

I assume he means something like THIS (Amazon link).  That one, like most of the 3rd party hotshoe covers sold for (and listed as compatible with) Canon dSLRs, press the microswitch at the front of the hotshoe and 'trick' the camera into thinking an external flash is mounted, which disables the pop-up flash.

I think there's a little more to it than that.

There is a design flaw with the 7D (probably with the 60D too) where the small microswitch on the hot shoe mount can get bent and come into contact with the small metal contacts that are designed to tell the camera that an external strobe is on the camera. This can happen when the foot of a strobe (or in Alex's case, the foot of a hot shoe protector) pushes the metal contact against the microswitch and then when the strobe or hot shoe protector is removed the metal contacts continue to push against the microswitch and complete the circuit making the camera believe a flash is mounted in the shoe.

This then prevents the camera's built-in flash from popping up when you press the button to pop up the flash.

It's a real problem with the 7D because if you can't get the pop up flash to pop up, you can't use it to trigger an off-camera flash.

I learned about this the hard way and found it mentioned on several discussion boards. The solution, as Alex 007 said, is to use a very small jeweler's screwdriver to separate the metal contact strip from the microswitch. Apparently, Alex had this problem using a Nikon-brand hot shoe cover/protector. Not a big surprise to me as the contact strips on the Canon seems to be very thin and easily bent just enough out of shape to accidentally complete the circuit.

Fortunately, I only had this problem once and it was at home where I had a jeweler's screwdriver handy.

1070

United States / Re: Any photographers out there own a motorcycle?

« on: March 25, 2011, 10:14:37 PM »

Honestly they are not that advisable as a mode of transport in American cities where people are not used to and don't see motorcycles

My only experience is that when I was a photographer for a small newspaper I shot more than my share of motorcycle accidents. Cured me of any desire to have one.

1071

EOS Bodies / Re: 3 More DSLR's in 2011? [CR1]

« on: March 25, 2011, 01:30:00 PM »

The 7D is a great camera, and will produce great pictures even after the 7DMII, 7DMII, 7DMIII comes out. It will still produce great pictures till it gets 150K clicks on it.

Glad to see another happy 7D owner. Just another reason why I don't see a 7DII coming this year. The 7D remains at the top in its category, it is selling great (Note that you can't even find a 7D available right now) and customer satisfaction is off the charts.

Lenses and other bodies have got to be more of a priority for Canon. Incremental differences in other brands aren't sufficient to seriously challenge the 7D and it's going to be a year or two before all the new 60D, T3i and T2i owners are ready to step up a level or two.

If they did release a new model this year, it would be more of a refresh than an upgrade and runs the risk of disappointing. I think they'll wait until they can offer a few more megapixels with a bit less noise at the high ISOs, add in some video enhancements and whatever the new bells and whistles from the next 1Ds might be. Which means we are probably looking at mid to late 2012.

1072

EOS Bodies / Re: 3 More DSLR's in 2011? [CR1]

« on: March 24, 2011, 10:48:31 PM »

Not to quibble, but actually Canon has announced two DSLRs in 2011, the T3 and the T3i.

1073

Software & Accessories / Re: Yongnuo ST-E2 vs Canon ST-E2

« on: March 24, 2011, 07:43:19 PM »

Thanks for the review Sarah.

I was unaware of this product, but after reading about the rotating shoe, I'm very interested. It seems like that alone would make this worthwhile for a 7D owner like myself (Use the built-in flash trigger under most circumstances, but have the Yongnuo available when the setup is wrong for the on-camera trigger).

1074

Lenses / Re: Canon 16-35 2.8L II ir Tokina 16-28 2.8 FXPRO or What

« on: March 19, 2011, 11:38:51 PM »

I'm really not seeing much in the way of gaps in your kit there.

One question: what do you have in the way of strobes? Of course this depends on what you like to shoot. I'm mostly a natural light person, but after getting a couple of 580EXII's (One new, one used) some inexpensive umbrellas and soft boxes (also used) I've been having a lot of fun learning more about lighting. (I still shoot mostly natural light, but I'm trying to learn to master artificial light as well)

The new strobes are so easy to use (practically foolproof), I can't believe it. With the 7D and a 580EXII for off camera flash, you'll be amazed at what you can do with a simple umbrella.

But, back to lenses. If you really need to feed the lens habit, you could consider the 15-85mm Canon. I use that on my 7D about 90% of the time. It's a little slow, but very well built and sharp and the range is perfect for about 90% of most shots.  Alternatively, you might consider a 70-300mm zoom. Even though you have a 100-400mm, that's a pretty big lens to carry around all the time. You're obviously not afraid to use 3rd party lenses, so consider the new Tamron 70-300, for those times when you just don't want to lug around your 100-400mm. It's no "L" lens, but I've been very pleased with mine. Sharp, well built and great IS. A real bargain.

Just some thoughts.

1075

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon Doesn't Need a Compact Camera System

« on: March 18, 2011, 02:04:55 PM »

A fairly transparent strategy.

Senior executives are instructed to get out there and defend the current product line. Message to consumers: "you don't want to buy our competitors' inferior products, even if it is a product that we don't offer. Our quality is better and our products can do anything they can do better."

This is designed to prevent consumers from jumping to a competitor or, at a minimum, reduce the bleeding.

When and if Canon introduces an EVIL system they will say: "We identified a market that was not being adequately met by our competitors. This market demanded a quality product and we are responding to it with our new product line. But, for everyone who has invested in our old product line, don't worry, it's still the best and this new product line will simply complement what we already produce."

The only real information coming out of this interview is that it's unlikely Canon will be introducing a compact camera system in the next 2-3 months. If they were planning to do so, the Executives would be told to talk about how Canon has some exciting announcements on the horizon, etc. etc. Sufficiently vague so as not to be pinned down, but specific enough to cause consumers to re-think buying another brand. The fact that they are being told to argue that existing lines are better indicates that Canon needs to buy a little time because they aren't ready to launch an EVIL system yet.

Now, as far as my wish list goes, the ideal Canon EVIL would be an interchangeable lens version of the Fuji FX100 with a small selection of wide-angle and normal primes and short zooms and then adapters to use existing canon lenses for telephoto.

1076

EOS Bodies / Re: Canon T3/1100D Announced

« on: March 14, 2011, 07:50:28 PM »

That, my friend, is positively ridiculous

I agree. I can't imagine why they would remove this feature. Maybe it does have something to do with anti-static coatings. My take away is that Canon must be operating on a very, very narrow profit margin on this model if a long-time feature like this had to be dropped to meet their price point.

I suppose many entry-level users won't even know it's missing, but it seems like kind of a disservice to the customer.

1077

EOS Bodies / Re: 1Ds4 & 5D3 Timetable [CR1]

« on: March 13, 2011, 03:52:32 PM »

The EF-S line of lenses are not high on the list of priorities at Canon.
“L” lenses and the development of them are whats needed to get the most out of the 18mp crop sensors.

Hehehe...  Sounds like a line from a full-frame enthusiast and L-snob  Someone who obviously doesn't understand business.  Canon makes good money on their crop gear.  Furthermore, if you want to get the most out of your 18 mpix crop sensor then EF-S lenses like 17-55 and 15-85 are the way to go.  Why struggle with full-frame ultrawides that have limited focal length range and/or aperture.

This is CR -10, folks.

I agree, unless of course Canon are going to make a 15-70mm f/4L or similar, which is unlikely.

I'm with Match and AJ on this one. The third-party manufacturers seem to be putting a heavy emphasis on developing quality lenses for crop sensor cameras. I can't see Canon ceding that market.

Actually, this statement doesn't make any sense:

“L” lenses and the development of them are whats needed to get the most out of the 18mp crop sensors.

If you need higher quality lenses to get the most out of 18mp sensors, why wouldn't you be developing and marketing these lenses? Especially since the 18mp sensor now dominates the Canon crop sensor line up. Really though, optical quality hasn't been the problem with the more recent EF-S lenses – the issue is inconsistent build quality and speed. There is definitely a market for fast, well-built lenses for crop sensor cameras.

Call it CR -10 or, more accurately, an opinion masquerading as a rumor.

1078

Site Information / Re: Signature Character Limit

« on: March 13, 2011, 03:26:19 PM »

Detlev,

Just so you know, all your links are broken.

1079

EOS Bodies / Re: 1Ds Replacement Soon?

« on: March 09, 2011, 10:58:17 PM »

Do you honestly think they will  let the 5D go almost 5 years without a refresh?

Five years would be Sept. 2013.

Each new technology generation at Canon has been introduced with the announcement of a new 1D camera.

The next technology generation will be no exception - 1DV first and then the other models.

This makes sense to me, although I disagree with the order. I'll wager on a 1D first. A 5D sometime later. Then a 7D. Could be spread out over a year, 18mos or two years.

1080

Lenses / Re: Canon 70-200 f2.8 l usm

« on: March 07, 2011, 06:12:54 PM »

It sounds like you are suffering from the common ailment of buyer's remorse. Don't worry, you made a good purchase.

Consider this: It looks like a used version of the lens is selling on Adorama for just a little less than $100 under the new price. It would have cost you more than that to rent the lens for a month.

So, even if you decide not to keep it, you won't be out that much money.

Also, keep in mind that it wasn't that long ago that lenses didn't even have IS. These days we all act like IS is essential, but we used to shoot all the time with non-IS lenses and never even thought about it because it wasn't an option. Use the lens, enjoy it and think about all the other goodies you can buy with the $1,000 you didn't spend on IS.

If you decide later that you absolutely have to have IS, then you'll be over halfway there when you sell this lens.