Archive for: review
The latest Canon midrange L zoom
Justin has completed his review of the Canon EF 24-70 f/4L IS. It’s a lens that has been pretty polarizing since it was announced. Some people loved the idea, a nice and light IS zoom and some people questioned why they’d buy it over the EF 24-105 f/4L IS, especially videographers.
I’m still on the fence, while I do like the lens, I’m not really sure it’s worth the $1400 pricetag, unless size and weight are your biggest concerns.
Says Justin…
“I’ve never found the 24-70 focal range particularly exciting. It’s not wide enough to create an interesting level of distortion, nor so telephoto as to create a special compressed and isolated “look” to your subjects. I never LOVED my 24-70 f/2.8 L, I just used it every day. Like that lens, the 24-70 f/4L IS is a tool; one that is more than capable of getting the job done.”
Read the full review of the EF 24-70 f/4L IS | EF 24-70 f/4L IS at B&H Photo
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Is this your next 35mm lens?
With Canon being slow in replacing their decade old EF 35mm f/1.4L with new technologies, Sigma has stolen a ton of hype from both the Canon & Nikon sides with the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM.
Is this the best 35mm autofocusing lens you can buy for Canon at this time? It just might be. There’s a couple of drawbacks, but for the money, I think you’d be hard pressed not to at least consider this wonderful lens from Sigma.
Says Justin
“The Sigma 35mm f/1.4 is the finest lens I’ve ever used from the company. It has impressed me more than many of Canon’s own primes. Perhaps some of that is a bias because my expectations were slightly lower or I was at least cautiously optimistic about this offering. Either way, I have been thoroughly sold on the lens and have given up my quest for a Canon 35mm f/1.4 L even if Canon does replace their lens soon (which they should).”
Read the entire review here | Buy the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM
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New review up
Justin has completed his review of my favourite Canon lens, the EF 24mm f/1.4L II. I’ve never had anyone come back to me and say that I’m wrong about how good it is.
Says Justin…
“One of the most impressive lenses I’ve ever used, in build and quality of images, yet I still sold it. Why? I found myself missing focus very often, this is a personal handicap, and not any fault of the lens. If you live in the world of wide-apertures and can rock a fifty or eight-five wide-open then this lens will certainly lend itself to your style and kit.”
I think this is the perfect fast prime for anyone that has APS-C, APS-H or a full frame camera. It’s especially great if you have cameras with various sensor sizes.
Read the full review | Buy the EF 24 f/1.4L II at: B&H Photo | Amazon | Adorama
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From DXOMark
I know you may be getting tired of hearing it, but the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG lens is an astounding accomplishment by Sigma, or any manufacturer for that matter.
DXOMark has reviewed the lens and has found it to be a new benchmark for excellence, and the fact that it’s under $1000 is icing on the cake.
From DXOMark:
“Sigma has stated previously that it was upping its game with new pro-level lens designs and the new 35mm f/1.4 DG HSM is not only on a par with OEM lenses optically it surpasses them in most areas, especially in both acutance and resolution.”
*Note: The review is for the Nikon mount version, but it should be identical to the Canon mount version as far as performance goes.
Read the entire review | Buy the Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG for Canon $899
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From DPReview
The folks at DPReview have completed their extensive review of the pretty great Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II. Did they like it? It seems so, although the usual price complaint comes up again.
Says DPR..
“The answer, as usual, isn’t necessarily clear-cut, and depends on each individual photographers’ needs and preferences. Compared to the previous version, it offers weathersealing and a welcome reduction in weight. The Sigma can’t match it optically, especially on full frame, but is so much cheaper that many users may well be willing to overlook this, particularly if they use APS-C cameras. The Tamron looks like a very worthy competitor, offering impressive image quality, image stabilisation and weathersealing all in one package, and we aim to assess it fully in the near future. But quite simply the Canon offers such exceptionally good optics that, if you’re after the very best, there’s simply no other choice.”
Read the full review | Canon EF 24-70 f/2.8L II $2049 (add to cart)
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New review
Justin has posted a new review for us. This time for the Canon EF 85 f/1.2L II, Canon’s king of lowlight for now. It’s a lens that’s hard to use well at the beginning, but if you give it some time, you’ll grow to love it and all its quirks.
Says Justin….
“The more I used this lens, the more I got to know it, the better my images became, and the more impressed I was with it. Often relying on flash modifiers and scenes built with speedlights and strobes, I took pleasure in exploring natural light situations, and allowing focus isolate my subjects instead of contrast. I know that if it was a regular piece in my kit I would likely bring it to every job I had just to try for some of the impressive three-dimensional feeling images it creates.”
Read the entire review | Buy the Canon EF 85 f/1.2L II at B&H Photo
*Note
We’re going to be organizing reviews in a new way shortly, currently they’re pretty cumbersome to get to. Stay tuned.
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Our review of the Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT
Justin has completed his review of the Canon Speedlite 600EX-RT, and it’s a pretty thorough look at Canon’s latest flagship Speedlite.
The review is quite positive and seems to say that moving from a 430 or a 580 may be worthwhile, especially if you want to get more serious about your flash photography.
Justin’s comments
“Have a Canon camera? Need more light? Buy this flash. Flash photography may not be easy to master, but luckily for you, there are so many incredible resources on the internet to help you learn how to use and modify your flash to get the look you’re trying to achieve. All I ever asked for was a flash that actually responded to my needs, making me feel comfortable and confident on a shoot; just like the 600EX-RT does.”
Read the full review | Buy the Speedlite 600EX-RT
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From DPReview
The review of the Canon EOS 6D has been completed over at DPReview. They seem to be fairly positive about it, maybe less so than I am. I think the camera is great with terrific IQ. However, they did notice the same thing that I did, the battery drain with wifi and GPS turned on is quite significant, so be sure to buy an extra battery if you don’t have one.
I also don’t miss the autofocus system of the 5D Mark III when I’m using the EOS 6D, 95% of the time I find I don’t need anything beyond the center AF point. However, this point is personal preference and you may decide you need more cross-type AF points.
From DPR
“If you’re an EOS shooter eyeing the 6D as a more affordable alternative to the 5D Mark III, even as a second backup body, Canon has made your decision fairly straightforward. Still image quality aside, the concessions you’re forced to make for the significant cost savings are substantial. A slower burst rate, less sophisticated AF system with smaller coverage area, and moiré-prone video headline the list of compromises. And while we can understand Canon’s desire to keep the camera’s price down, other seemingly arbitrary decisions, like the inability to save HDR raw images and a DOF preview button whose location is much less useful than it could be, smack solely of product differentiation…..”
Read the full review | Canon EOS 6D Body $1879
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Great stills, not so great video
Gizmodo has reviewed the EOS 6D and found it to be a great still camera. However, they did notice the video produced by the EOS 6D is prone to pretty bad moire, something that doesn’t affect the EOS 5D Mark III.
As I’ve told most people, if serious video is your thing, get a 5D Mark III. We are hoping the moire issue can be resolved somewhat with a future firmware update.
Gizmodo Conclusion
“If you are most interested in stills and don’t care that much about video quality, the 6D is a great value—it produces top-notch pictures, with very few compromises, at a lower price than we’ve ever seen. But if you are looking for the video prowess of the 5D Mark III, plan to pony up that extra $900.”
Read the full review
Canon EOS 6D for $1999 at B&H Photo | Amazon | Norman | Adorama
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Review of the EOS 6D
Photographer Michael Stringer used the new Canon EOS 6D at a wedding and thinks it’s a terrific camera. Below is his review and showcases the high ISO performance of Canon’s little full frame camera.
Some of Michael’s thoughts
“In a nutshell – the 6D is a smaller, lighter and cheaper version of the 5D Mark III if you photograph static (or slow moving) subjects. Handling is different (to the 5D III) but mostly fine and easy to get used to especially if coming from a Canon 60D or similar. Image quality is excellent and predictable and noise at high iso is extremely well controlled and film-like. The build quality is very good – it feels solid but not surprisingly a step below the 5D III. WIFI and GPS are useful additions depending on your needs.”
Read the entire review
Canon EOS 6D for $1999 at B&H Photo | Amazon | Norman | Adorama
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