Messages

526

EOS Bodies / Re: Which Canon 60D Kit Lens? (Plus 550D)

« on: July 06, 2011, 09:12:49 AM »

I bought a Olympus 50mm f/1.7 last weekend for $15.  Since we were talking a 15-85mm IS lenses at $800, $50-$100 is cheap.

The Nifty 50 is a good lens, but, for video, its manual focus, and if you have ever done much manual focusing with the 50/1.8. you would be very happy with the feel of a vintage manual focus lens.

The low resolution of 2K video does not require a super high resolution lens unless you are doing it for the big screen.

Okay, let's look at same-priced options:
60D $900 + $17 lens
Costco, get a T2i (18-55mm & 55-250mm) $849.99 + tax

Which do you think a non-pro is going to get more mileage out of for all around use?

I think you need to consider the audience; $17 is nice, but no zoom or AF is pretty much a deal breaker for anyone starting into photography. 

Your suggestion has merits, but when most entry-level DSLR shooters don't even exit auto mode . . . recommending  Manual Focus Only options seems like it will fall on deaf ears.

-----
Now that I look at it, you could score $200 on the two kit lenses there and have a 15-85mm for $560 providing you felt like working for a deal.

527

EOS Bodies / Re: Which Canon 60D Kit Lens? (Plus 550D)

« on: July 05, 2011, 09:15:00 PM »

Thank you all for your very insightful and fast replies!

After reading through them all I thought the 15-85mm lens sounds perfect and will definitely try stretch the budget if it's a bit more, but looked it up, over £550, sadly thats pushing it too much at this stage.
Currently think the best bet for me is to probably go with the 17-85mm USM one and expand later, might go for the 50mm 1.8 prime too at that price.
So many little things to reply to, will do a few:

- Thanks for the site link neuro, a fluid head Manfrotto tripod is the one I'd look to get at some point yeah. Thanks for the flash advice too, will look into those at a later point.
- LuCoOc, not familiar with the M42 mounts, will look into it, sound rather cheap? Which one/s did you get?
- Clint, thanks! Consider the 18-135mm off the list, convinced me =)
-Haydn1971, Ahh making me wish I had extra budget for that, bet the extra 2/3mm is useful too!
- dstppy, I think I'd feel limited without some sort of zoom lens for general shooting, though will try get the 50mm soon as. Kinda got my heart set on the 60D over the t2i/550D though.
-Mt Spokane, I'm very much aware its not a camcorder and it has no in shoot auto focus, though it would be very nice/handy it's not something that is needed.
- Eagle Eye, good advice, pretty much what I'm gunna do I think

These replies have been seriously helpful thanks a bunch! Just found out my grandfather has an old film Canon he doesn't need anymore, only has 2 lenses and are the old FD mounts which is a shame.

Honestly, the difference in a picture between a good (super) lens with an adequate body . . . and a good (excellent body) and a poor lens, will be day and night; respectively.

Seriously, get an XSi and a super lens instead of spending all your money on a body and getting a crap lens.

528

EOS Bodies / Re: Which Canon 60D Kit Lens? (Plus 550D)

« on: July 05, 2011, 09:09:41 PM »

I ran into a similar decision last month and went the Canon USA refurb store route.

Refurb 60D Body $799.00 USD
Refurb 24-105mm f/4 L $919.00 USD


If the online currency converter I used is correct for both it was around £1066 before taxes. Got any trustworthy American friends and don't mind a 90 day US-only warranty?

Canon refurb store usually eats up all it's price benefit with shipping and tax

Honestly, I've got the 24-105mm L and the 15-85mm EF-S and I have to say the latter has been my choice for shooting.

529

EOS Bodies / Re: Which Canon 60D Kit Lens? (Plus 550D)

« on: July 05, 2011, 01:00:00 PM »

I'm looking for one thats going to provide the best all round image quality and versatility.

If your budget will cover it, I'd recommend one not on your short list - the EF-S 15-85mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM (along with a body-only camera).  Optical quality is substantially better than the other lenses, and the focal range is excellent for general-purpose use.  It's only 'handicap' is one shared by all the other lenses on your list - a variable/narrow aperture, meaning fine outdoors but not as good indoors.  The EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM is another excellent lens that is faster (wider aperture), but substantially more expensive.  Instead, you might consider supplementing the 15-85mm (or 17-85mm/18-135mm) with the EF 50mm f/1.8 II (aka nifty-fifty, a fast prime that's decently sharp although not well built, and is the cheapest lens in the Canon lineup).  Also, consider an external flash (light from the pop-up is harsh, and IMO pictures taken with that look like they could have been taken with a point-and-shoot) - get one that allows you to bounce the flash off a ceiling (e.g. 270EX II, although I recommend the 430EX II if possible).  Finally, consider a decent tripod - IMO, Manfrotto is the optimal compromise between value and quality (getting a cheap tripod just isn't worth it); although they are commonly used with ballheads, a fluid head will be better for video.

If you haven't run across The Digital Picture yet, there are great, informative reviews of Canon products there.  Here's the link to the EF-S Lens Review page, which has lots of details about the lenses you're considering.

Good luck with your decisions!

I second (third) the 15-85.  It's a superb lens and I've gone back to it as my go-to lens.

If you're stretched for cash but want something now, get a 50mm and a body; avoid the kit lenses.

If you have to choose between the t2i and 60D and you're on a budget, get a nicer lens and the T2i.

530

PowerShot Cameras / Re: PowerShot Rumor: S95 Replacement [CR2]

« on: July 01, 2011, 11:51:51 AM »

Unless your view finder images through the lens, what's the benefit to be gained by squishing the camera up against your face?

Shade. 

Listen, unless you're using a XH G1S, I think you're still gonna get a sunburn regardless of your technique.

Yes. I know I'm going to hell for that.

531

PowerShot Cameras / Re: PowerShot Rumor: S95 Replacement [CR2]

« on: June 28, 2011, 04:06:43 PM »

I was about to buy an S95 as a pocket camera / back up to my SLR but looking back announcements for S90 & S95 have both been on 19th August in 2010 & 2011 repectively so I will hang fire to either get an S100(?) or cheaper S95 depending on what it delivers.  S100 sounds like evolutionary improvement on S95 which in turn was on S90 and is expected to be a 'better' camera following Canon's Kaizen strategy but I may not need it to turn out good pictures.

12mp would be nice but is not essential and wouldn't make me buy s100 over a cheap s95.
5x Zoom again good but better if wide angle goes out to 24mm (to 120) or even 27mm (to 135).   Wider + 5x zoom would make me get the s100.

Other items I would like:
Even better dynamic range / low light handling / even bigger sensor (as rumored for G13).  We can dream.
No change in max aperture unless it becomes f/1.8!
1080p would be interesting but is not essential.  Slomo/fastmo capabilities of Nikon P300 would also be nice.
No increase in size/weight unless building in improved grip.
Move from 460k to 920k screen to rival P300 would also help in-camera review.
Improved start up time.
Closer macro focus.

The S95 (or replacement) are technically P&S cameras and thus, the (in-stock) sweet spot tends to be between The first part of November and the middle of December for hot deals.  Got mine for $299 from Amazon around Thanksgiving. 

That said, clearance time is always awesome for those of us that are frugal as well, but you risk missing out.  Every month or so, I remind her that it's now selling for $400 . . . 

532

EOS Bodies / Re: 1D MK IV now in Stock at Canon Refurb Store

« on: June 28, 2011, 04:00:52 PM »

Refurbished 1D MK IV just popped up today at the Canon refurb store,

New 1D MK IV's are hard to find.  Adorama wants $5500 for one.

$4k OOS . . . musta only had one for sale

533

Lenses / Re: Where to from here?

« on: June 28, 2011, 08:07:47 AM »

One thing you will need to quickly realize is that if you ever intend to switch to full frame you wont be able to use EF-S lenses.

Agreed, you need to be careful about which EF-S lens you choose; for the same reason, you need to understand that EF reviews can be from FF cameras . . . and an 85mm macro is not used in the same way on a crop that it is on a FF.

EF-S lenses also lose value pretty quickly.

Citation required. 

Any of the better EF-S are subject to the same ups/downs as good EF lenses.
http://www.canonpricewatch.com/product/00040/Canon-EF-S-17-55mm-f2.8-IS-USM-price.html
http://www.canonpricewatch.com/product/00029/Canon-EF-S-10-22mm-f3.5-4.5-USM-price.html
http://www.canonpricewatch.com/product/02852/Canon-EF-S-15-85mm-f3.5-5.6-IS-USM-price.html
http://www.canonpricewatch.com/product/00002/Canon-EF-S-60mm-f2.8-Macro-USM-price.html

534

Portrait / Re: Cinematic Street Photography0

« on: June 24, 2011, 03:38:07 PM »

I noticed you are using the 85mm, and that you are not that far away from the subject. I did try to take street photography with 70-200 + 1.4 TC so to have distance advantage, but in shorter distance, the white lens get noticed. I definitely need to learn from your work, and will check your flickr account frequently !

I'm considernig picking up the 200mm f/2.8L II USM for this type of thing.

You lose the ability to zoom, but you're not as exposed as it's a stealth L telephoto

535

Portrait / Re: Levitating self portrait?! :O

« on: June 24, 2011, 03:31:21 PM »

Take a look at her work, this is the link to her website. i thought it would be inspiring to share it with this community, she uses canon 5dm2
very creative i think!


http://yowayowacamera.com/banana/

Yeah, easy for them . . . all Asian people can fly.  Just ask my wife 

I'm guessing these are photochop?

536

PowerShot Cameras / Re: PowerShot Rumor: S95 Replacement [CR2]

« on: June 23, 2011, 03:19:22 PM »

Actually, come to think of it, the only thing the S95 is truly lacking is . . . a flash that isn't located where your finger intuitively holds the camera

537

PowerShot Cameras / Re: PowerShot Rumor: S95 Replacement [CR2]

« on: June 22, 2011, 10:08:07 PM »

Camera manufacturewrs have had a dismal record of product naming.  They obviously did not forsee the rapid development of digital cameras, and thought that like film cameras, they might pop out a new model every 10 years.

They really need to develop a better plan for naming models.

Well, they went from S80 to S90 to S95 . . . S100 is not inevitable . . .

Honestly, I don't see what's wrong with the MK version. Hell, Honda is so much better than GM just from sticking to a naming convention alone.  The current accord is informally the 8th generation . . . which is perfectly fine as insiders all know what it means, and you can quickly find out with a google search.

538

PowerShot Cameras / Re: PowerShot Rumor: S95 Replacement [CR2]

« on: June 22, 2011, 04:30:44 PM »

Canon has a PowerShot S100 long time ago, a 2MP camera using CF card, probably the first digital Elph, as far as i remember.  They should give the new camera a new name to avoid any confusion.

The new "S95" replacement should have specs similar to the Olympus XZ-1.

I'm thinking the same. Hell, S95 Mk II would be fine.

I just don't see that they'd call it S100 due to the old model.

539

Canon General / Re: Light Field Cameras/Sensors?

« on: June 22, 2011, 09:20:11 AM »

Okay, so, um . . . this seems fairly doable with existing hardware, only technically requiring firmware and/or PC link no?

As far as I could see you could do the easy ones by hand (stills):
Get a tripod, a fast lens with super fast focus motor . . . start with a reference shot with very high DOF.  Then, set your aperture where you want it, and take repeated shots either using different AF points, or even manually focus . . . merge.

Granted, the reality of this is a slippery slope with regard to hand holding, automation etc; you know, genuine usability.  Honestly, I think most of this could be 'faked' with a current Canon models, at least to the extent that you would ever need/want it for a real world situation.

On the other hand, instead of merging these and making them online, it'd make a nice sequential image in a frame

--EDIT--
I got to thinking about it even more and I think I get it, essentially they're talking about streaming sensor data 'realtime' (hah, no such thing, right?) and you can combine the fragments to 'fake' shutter speed, iso, no?

Another thought is if this is conceptually coming from a computer guy, I know where this is going . . . get as much data as possible and cherry pick the good ones . . . Maybe this is lobbying from the memory industry for bigger files

540

EOS Bodies / Re: 60D + EFS17-55 f/2.8 - £1000 at Tesco

« on: June 20, 2011, 11:01:56 AM »

yeah my order status is the same.

the only thing that worries me is:

"For delivery on Friday 31st December 9999 between 11:59pm - 11:59pm"

don't think I'll be home for that time XD

And besides, the 5D3 will probably have been announced by then....


Martin

Yes, but sadly, the EF 8-15mm f/4L Fisheye USM still probably won't be available for purchase yet.