Messages

16

EOS Bodies / Re: No 7D Mark II in 2013? [CR2]

« on: May 13, 2013, 12:55:59 PM »

All is not in vain 

If nothing else this thread has made me want to come over and see a couple of Western Grebes perform their mating dance. 

Trouble is I don't intend to swim one handed whilst holding the camera up above the water, and I can't afford a 600mm lens 

What to do ?

17

Landscape / Re: Post Your Best Landscapes

« on: May 13, 2013, 09:40:34 AM »

Landscapes are my favorite to photograph but I can never really capture the true beauty that I see with my eyes.  The view from the top of this mountain was incredible but the picture is mediocre at best.


Summit by Joe Beckwith, on Flickr

Portrait can be challenging for landscapes at the best of times. The rock in the foreground is taking up around 55% of the frame. The (rather boring) sky is taking a further 40% of the frame. The focal point is about 5%. This is not how you will have been seeing it as you admired the vista.

Under mid day white, flat light you will never record the scene photographically as you believed you actually saw it.

18

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: SL1 or Fuji X-EX1 or Sony Nex 6?? Would like your thoughts

« on: May 13, 2013, 07:22:05 AM »

Of course, there's always the Fuji X-Pro1 with both an optical viewfinder and EVF.  Best of both worlds. 

While I'm not an EVF advocate and generally prefer an optical viewfinder, I find an EVF sometimes useful in low light because of the way the EVF can boost the image - Easier to frame and ensure focus is spot on.  When it is REALLY dark, you'll get a lot of noise, but I'm not sure is a pentamirrored, low magnification SL1 would be any better.  EVFs are also much better with infrared filters - Anyone tried focusing or framing through an OVF with an R72 filter recently?   Without removing your eye from the viewfinder, there is also instant playback of the image you've just taken, focus peaking, image magnification, and the ability to see how the photo looks before taking the photo, along with adding some extra information such as a level, grids, highlight warnings etc.  Like most things, some downsides but also some upsides.

Fair points.

The truth is there has never been so much choice. Kids in candy shops etc   

19

EOS Bodies - For Stills / Re: SL1 or Fuji X-EX1 or Sony Nex 6?? Would like your thoughts

« on: May 13, 2013, 05:25:03 AM »

NEX 6, Mirrorless is the future.

Nope.  Mirrorless is the ancient past.  Most of the early digital cameras used electronic viewfinders.  There's a reason DSLRs ate their lunch: You can't usefully use an EVF at night or in the dark.  EVFs blow out your night vision in one eye.

Having used both, I really can't imagine ever going back to the dark days of EVFs.  And by dark days, I mean dark nights, and by dark, I mean in the one eye that you've had up to the camera, and light in the other.... 

+1, and EVFs have many other drawbacks from a good OVF.

Also I have always found that people actually enjoy looking through a good optical system

I'd get the SL1 - in fact I might very well !   

20

HDR - High Dynamic Range / Re: Post your HDR images:

« on: May 12, 2013, 02:19:36 PM »

I don't know, any good?  I tried to get the sun behind the steeple but couldn't get an angle on it.

I think you've got the exposure gradient throughout the picture spot on; it look 'real', which for my tastes is preferable 

21

Technical Support / Help ! How to configure 6D to direct AF point control

« on: May 12, 2013, 10:33:15 AM »

Being blokes, and we don't do manuals, can someone tell us how to configure the 6D to enable direct focus point control similar to Custom Function C.FnIII / 3 on the 5D mark ii ?

We have found the C Fn to enable direct AF selection with the 8 way controller, but there then seems to be no way of quickly returning to the centre point only as there is on the mkii by pushing the toggle in. I had assumed that the obvious button would be to press the 'set' button, but this seems to be disabled when having direct control of the 8 way controller.

On the C Fn menu for the 'set' button it doesn't list anything to do with AF.

Confused 

22

Lenses / Re: What can tilt-shift lenses do that post-production cannot?

« on: May 12, 2013, 02:51:37 AM »

We don't use them at Building Panoramics. We did try, but they just weren't necessary for the way we produce our pictures.

The digital and computer age I guess. Before that we did use the facility on large format film.

23

EOS Bodies / Re: No 7D Mark II in 2013? [CR2]

« on: May 11, 2013, 05:30:51 PM »

The CR regulars seem to be in a belligerent mood on this thread.

While I'm on it, can someone explain what a Western Grebe is, and you have to choose between drowning or spending €14000 to get a picture of it ?

24

Lens Gallery / Re: Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM

« on: May 11, 2013, 12:00:27 PM »

  85mm f/1.8 gets more love now on 5DMKIII 

I'm going to commit sacrilege on CR:

I think I prefer this lens to the 135L 

25

Lens Gallery / Re: Canon EF135mm f/2L USM

« on: May 11, 2013, 11:57:24 AM »

Here's a sample taken with the 135L + 1.4xII extender (189mm f/2.8L )  I love that with the Canon extender you can do a separate AFMA and get better AF results.


Strange Magic by Thousand Word Images by Dustin Abbott, on Flickr

@Dustin, I think your 6D has inspired you 

Lovely 

26

Lens Gallery / Re: Canon EF135mm f/2L USM

« on: May 11, 2013, 11:23:55 AM »

 
 .  Interesting

27

EOS Bodies / Re: No 7D Mark II in 2013? [CR2]

« on: May 09, 2013, 04:16:18 PM »

To be fair I think there should be an acceptance that there should always be a compatability between the task in hand, the gear and the photographer. Would Uncle Joe take better snaps of his grand daughter's party with his 1100D or a 1Dx ? Would Gary Samples get such brilliant shots of eagles with a 1100D instead of his 1Dx ?

At Building Panoramics we've just got a 6D because buildings don't move. ( Hopefully ). A 5D Mkiii or 1Dx is just not required - for us.

But the proof that the rather sweeping statement "gear matters" is true lies in the value of photography to day. It is continually declining as 'the gear' has made exception photographs common place. That doesn't mean the talented are any less talented than those who went before them, it just means achieving visual perfection has been made much more accessible.

28

HDR - High Dynamic Range / Re: Post your HDR images:

« on: May 09, 2013, 01:33:32 PM »

well It was not  about the motive, its a bridge against the sun  , it was about  that I can dig out information from one raw file from sun into shadows with out banding and noise in the shadows. You need two different exposure to do the same with a Canon, I can do it hand held you must use a tripod.

Oh no 

Here we go again. You don't honestly think the picture you've posted can technically compete with some of the competent HDR images posted on this thread do you ?

did I say that?
how do you think a competent HDR picture from a d800 looks with 14 stops DR to chose from  and the same approach?
Please , Keep apart what we are discussing and showing.

This thread's about HDR. You're single frame picture isn't actually 'HDR' in this context.

However your post does show that even when using a D800, a single frame exposure in extreme EV range is no match for well blended bracketed exposures, so from that point it's quite useful.

When blending multiple exposures 14 stops of DR has no advantage over anything else anyway.

29

HDR - High Dynamic Range / Re: Post your HDR images:

« on: May 09, 2013, 01:12:41 PM »

well It was not  about the motive, its a bridge against the sun  , it was about  that I can dig out information from one raw file from sun into shadows with out banding and noise in the shadows. You need two different exposure to do the same with a Canon, I can do it hand held you must use a tripod.

Oh no 

Here we go again. You don't honestly think the picture you've posted can technically compete with some of the competent HDR images posted on this thread do you ?

30

Reviews / Re: Why I Chose a Canon EOS 6D over a 5D MKIII

« on: May 09, 2013, 12:56:10 PM »

I've now sold my 5DII and bought a second 6D.  I love the image quality and the operation of the camera.  I like the thought of being able to have two identical, responsive bodies when shooting events.

Well we have now purchased a 6D for Building Panoramics after reading Dustin's ( and others) reviews. Our reasons for choosing it over the 5D mk3 are pretty simple;  the stuff we shoot doesn't move ! We were using a mark 1 and 2 previously, and the faithful old mark 1 has gone, so we're now going to be 6D/5D mk2 users.

We'll post the first proper picture we produce from it on the 6D thread.

We've also got a deal on the 24-70 f4 IS, after colleagues in the States have been waxing lyrical about it, so we'll soon find out for ourselves if it does out perform the 24-105 in practice.