New ZEISS SLR Lens Family for ZE and ZF.2 Mounts

Re: Zeiss Announce Milvus Lens Lineup

sdsr said:
Normalnorm said:
For me manual focus died with the advent of today's "modern" viewfinders that favor brightness over the ability to see focus.

Focus confirmation is nice but isn't really manual focus. Rather it is analogous to manually setting the exposure to what the meter says instead of letting the camera set it for you. Both results are the same just one lets you think you are doing work.

That's where mirrorless cameras with EVFs come in; MF is enjoyable again and perhaps easier than before.

Anyway, here's a first-look review of the new Zeiss 85mm:

http://www.dearsusan.net/2015/09/13/402-zeiss-milvus-1-485-brief-review/

His description of the tightness of the focus ring reminds me of my experience with the Makro-Planar 2/50mm. Otherwise a brilliant lens.
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Broken LCD on 5DIII

raptor3x said:
rfdesigner said:
Stewart K said:
Thanks very much for this, I'll keep it in case for future. Unfortunately I paid the full amount already and I'm waiting on the part (new screen glass, sorry I should have been more descriptive in the title) coming now, I knew it was expensive but I simply did not want to take my camera apart, just fancied a rant at my own stupidity ???

I found this some time ago and it seems a very low risk way of removing either screen and getting a really professional, as new, final look

http://www.instructables.com/id/Canon-DSLR-LCD-Glass-Fix/?ALLSTEPS#more-anchor

That won't work for any of the newer bodies where the LCD is bonded to the glass in order to reduce reflections.

He is talking the top LCD which is not bonded on. The process is the same as the video. The rear LCD is bonded.
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UV Filters, Do They Really Protect You?

I am, much to my wife's annoyance, the guy in front that doesn't run the orange light, and I am never late.

The frustrating thing in discussing trying to discuss things with you is too often you are in complete denial, like the 600mm thread where you believe it is a 400 MkII, even though the geometry is completely wrong. It is there right in front of your own eyes and you still deny it. You also refuse to answer simple questions and when your points are shown to be wrong you just throw up other equally fallacious stretches of your imagination non issues.

Also, this is s gear forum, I appreciate that, but the gear is there to create a visual medium. In general I don't post images but I have posted hundreds of illustrative examples that clearly demonstrate the point or issue I am talking about, you don't and I wish you did. Heck you won't even say if you have your Sony yet!
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New PowerShot G17 Coming in Spring [CR2]

What makes you think the G16 has been discontinued?

Vista said:
So the G16 is officially discontinued and the last of the stock is selling off at decent prices. Where's the G17 announcement? it seems clear (at least to me) the big sensor rumours for a G17 were likely the G3X.

Why am I asking? I bought a G16 and ruined it in a sailing adventure (water). Lucky enough to have credit card insurance pay for it so do I buy another G16 before they're all gone or wait for a G17. I actually asked Canon Canada that question and they wouldn't/couldn't say what was coming (not surprisingly). The G3X is just way to big for me, G7X doesn't have enough zoom and no viewfinder (screens just don't work in really bring sunlight), G16 was in a sweet spot...
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Review: Canon EF 200-400 f/4L IS 1.4x

johnnycash said:
I use it with additional 1.4x III to shoot at 784mm and the quality is not stellar all the time even at 560mm, but I figured out it is mostly due to atmospheric refraction making very distant object unsharp and hazy, which you can attribute to hot air, dust in the air, etc.
The longer the focal length of your lens is, the more you face exactly this problem, in particular haze by flickering heated air above ground. I had to learn that the hard way once when I moved to the 500+ mm tele range.

I agree with all of you that Dan Carr's eagle images tell most about the 200-400's performance. Given the fact that he used two TC's in this combo, the results are quite impressive. Canon's 200-400 is definitely much sharper than Nikon's original 200-400. I've seen many large size prints of images shot with the Nikkor - they all displayed a softness that was typical for this lens. Nikons new VR II should be much improved, of course, but the built-in TC of Canon's zoom is really a very nice feature. But, using teles mostly for birding, I'll stick with my 500mm prime. I think, the 200-400 is the perfect lens for a wildlife trip in Africa. It surely delivers an optimum mix of flexibility and best possible optical performance.
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Which lens for hiking?

I really like telephoto and my experiences with the following combos are good:
5D + 100mm Macro & EOS M + EF-M 22mm or
5D + 70-200 f/4 & EOS M + EF-S 10-22mm via adaptor
Dream combos:
5D + 100-400 ii & EOS M + EF-M 11-22 or
5D + hypothetical 40-200 f/4.0 + EOS M + EF-M 11-22
EOS M is a very comfortable body for seldom used lenses because it fits with lens in a lens compartment of a photo backpack. And you have the option to use the tele on APS-C.
Another idea would be to use the EOS 100D (SL1) instead of the EOS M to stay into "one" system.

In your case:
For hiking perhaps your 60D with 70-300 zoom plus the Olympus compact might be a good "team" ...
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Where are the Rumors? EOS 5D Mark IV

kubelik said:
jrista, purely out of curiosity and not meant to be sarcastic - what's keeping you from investing in a 1D-type body? from your webpage and based on your comment above, it sounds like at least for the wildlife part that a 1D X (or even perhaps an older 1D Mark IV) could be a better fit for half of what you do, no?

The 1D bodies are just too expensive, and the gains are becoming marginal. There isn't going to be much if any real IQ benefit. Maybe some relative to other Canon cameras...it's really tough for me to spend that kind of money when I can have top notch IQ in a competitor's camera for much less.

There is probably at least twenty grand worth of equipment I need to buy for astrophotography. I'm buying things bit by bit, and I'm looking at spending somewhere around $5500 to $6000 on a mono CCD camera and a couple sets of filters soon here. I put about $2800 into a new 8" Ritchy-Cretien telescope and robotic focuser and a bunch of additional parts to adapt my 5D III for use with it earlier this year. I also need a new mount, something much more reliable than the one I have (which cost me $1400), and that will cost me about $7000-$10,000. Finally, at some point, after I get the mount, I have plans to get a larger telescope. Something larger than my current mount can handle. It will either be a 14" Celestron EdgeHD, which is about $5000, or a 16" Ritchy-Cretien Truss design, which is about $8000.

Buying expensive Canon equipment just isn't in the books in the face of all that. :P I'd be willing to spend $3000 on a 5D Mark IV if it had solid improvements in frame rate, metering, and AF performance, as well as at the very least the same level of IQ improvements as the 7D II and 5Ds. I'd obviously prefer IQ on the level of an Exmor, but I stopped holding out hope for that a long time ago, and have no intention of building up hopes for it any time soon. The 5D IV, if it gives me the performance characteristics I need and want, will probably be my last Canon camera for a long time.

If Sony keeps improving their adaptive AF technology in the future, and I can get Canon-like AF performance with my 600mm f/4 lens out of say an A7r III with at least 6-7 fps, it is entirely possible I'll ditch Canon bodies alltogether. They just....don't impress me anymore. I'm a details oriented guy. The details matter to me. Canon has been ignoring a detail that REALLY matters to me for a very, very long time...instead trotting out vaporware products like 120mp DSLRs and 250mp sensors every couple of years to rattle the cage and keep people interested, rather than investing that money on creating something real, tangible, that they can put into an actual consumer product that people can put in their hands and use. That irks me, as I waited, loyally, for too many years, and never got the IQ improvements I was looking for, while the rest of the DSLR & mirrorless world kept plowing forward.
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Antique Pocket Watch

dpc said:
AlanF said:
This watch has some interesting features.


Very nice! Do you know the story behind the engraving?

http://www.queenvictoriaonline.com/Assassination-Attempts-on-Queen-Victoria.html

"Arthur O'Connor

In February, 1872, when about to alight from her carriage after a drive, a youth rushed at the Queen with a paper in one hand and a pistol in the other. The Queen's attendant, John Brown, seized the lad, who as usual, was found to be not quite right in his mind. Arthur O'Connor (for this was his name) was an Irish boy of about seventeen who had brooded over his country's wrongs till he fancied he could do some good by making Her Majesty read a petition he had drawn up on behalf of the Fenians. He had accordingly climbed over the railings to carry out the project which John Brown so promptly interrupted. But his damaged pistol was found to have no ball in it. Public indignation was strongly expressed on the occasion, and the culprit was soon put under care suited to his mental condition. The Queen had already been on the point of issuing medals to domestics who had served her long and faithfully, and so now John Brown had the first gold medal and an annuity of twenty-five pounds."
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Fewer megapixels please!

quod said:
Lift the shadows and then we will see who is smirking. You don't get it.

No, you don't. I can - if I need to (which I don't, because I know how to use a camera) - I can lift shadows in my Canon files by up to 5 stops. And just ti head off the question, I worked out the trick simply to see what could be done.

It's easy if you know what you're doing. But knowing how to use a camera properly means not stuffing up exposure so much that big shadow lifts are necessary.
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Media Types in Germany For Announcement of New Zeiss Otus Lens Today

Zeiss missed the boat with the "macros". That they do not go to 1:1 is beyond belief. I loved the 100 mm/2.8 MP C/Y. EXTREMELY versatile. Now I find myself putting extension rings in and out all the time with the 100/2.0MP/ZE. One stop faster, utterly pointless in macro. The idea that it can double as a portrait lens is so un-Zeiss. Use the right tool for the right purpose: 100MP 1:1 or 85/1.x.
Milvus has zero appeal for upgrade. Looking forward to the new Otus.
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Using (old) DSLR or point and shoot as a webcam?

Hello (again),

My standard search engine is Bing, only because I like the daily images. But it is not the best at searching as I discovered when I checked on Google with the above subject. Turns our there are a number of ways to use an old DSLR as a webcam.

Just one example is here: http://sparkosoft.com/how-to-use-dslr-as-webcam

I've not tried any of them as yet, but if I get it to work I'll post back any results in case it is of use to anyone else.

Cheers,

P_R
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Intermittent Button Function on 1DX

No complaints from Canon customer service that is for sure to say the least. I am lucky enough to pick up and drop off at the NJ repair site and have always been treated well.

I think I just had too high of expectations for the weather sealing. That said the camera is a few years old. Not to mention much of my shooting occurs in a water housing in the surf (never once had any leaks or failures). Camera is always in, or around salt water, even for portrait and wedding jobs. Inevitable cost of the job I guess.
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Canon Announcements Coming August 14, 2015

AWR said:
jeffa4444 said:
AWR said:
And I was so sure something would come up. We are believers by nature.

So... Canon Expo at NY 10-11th and IBC at Amsterdam 10th to 15th next month.
There's strong rumours that Zeiss will introduce new OTUS and Leica whole new system.

353 days to Rio and the new 1D X II and/or 5D mark IV will take 6 months from announcement to be available.

Why has it been so quiet...
IBC is a broadcast event so I would be surprised to see Leica debut a new system unless it was all about video. Likewise a new Otus lens from Zeiss who already make different cinematography lenses from the CP.2 series upwards.
Oh my. The day IBC starts there's a rumors about the new OTUS...
Be careful, the train is leaving the station.

"CP.2" :D

No new Otuses as far as I can tell -- but Zeiss did announce a major refresh of their non-Otus Canon/Nikon mount primes:

http://photorumors.com/2015/09/10/zeiss-announces-milvus-new-line-of-full-frame-manual-focus-lenses-for-nikon-and-canon-dslr-cameras/

Prices are in the non-Otus Zeiss realm, i.e. $1-2k.

- A
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Advice on 300mm F2.8 L

Zeidora said:
I've used 25 and also 25+13 mm Extension tube on the 300/2.8 IS (I). It works, no question. I wonder whether people have evaluated side-by-side close-up performance of IS (I) and ISII, possibly even with extension ring. In general, teles are optimized for infinity focus (or somewhere close there). They may focus close, but IQ may suffer.
Then the question becomes, with 50 cm closer close-focus distance of the ISII (2 vs. 2.5 m), is IQ maintained, or does it degrade? Putting an extension ring on a 300 is certainly not a typical application either, well understood.

Just recently pondered that and whether my approach to that subject matter is appropriate or in need of revision (300 with extension ring, or 180M +1.4x). This thread came along just by fortuitous coincidence.

Somehow, I really doubt that the IQ of the big whites falls off as MFD is approached. If it does, is it noticeable in real life, or is it a data point for measurebators?

If you were to use something like a 300 f/2.8 near MFD all the time, then doing AFMA at the distances that the lens is used would certainly help. If you are at MFD without an extension tube, you will likely be close to infinity focus with an extension tube at the same distance (or further than infinity, depending on the extension tube(s) used).

One thing that the 300 will do is obliterate the background much more effectively than the 180 will, at non-macro distances.

The 300 will also focus much, much faster than the 180 by itself, not even considering the 1.4x + the 180.

In some ways, extension rings kinda suck because you lose infinity focus. You really need at least 2- the 12mm and 25mm (Canon tube sizes).

I'm gonna have to try putting an extension tube between the TC and the lens and after the TC to see what happens.
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German fotoMAGAZIN Review of New Tamron Prime Lenses

The German fotoMAGAZIN already had the two new Tamron prime lenses SP 1.8/35 and 45 mm DiVC USD for da detailed review in the 10/2015 issue.

Both get a 5 star "super" test result (best label).

They say that in their tests
- both have only litte vignetting at F1.8 (APS-C: about 0,8 aperture steps, FF: -1,1).
- both have only little barrel distortion (up to max -0.8% at FF)
- both deliver a really high resolution at both APS-C and FF
- both have excellent mechanical built
- both have outstanding MFD in their class

Conclusion:
"The restart of the SP line is a real success."
"Both prime lenses deliver optically and mechanically superb results."

Sounds very promissing to me.

Wi-Fi / GPS on 5D MK IV - Patent

AvTvM said:
tpatana said:
If I had to choose the location for the antenna based on what I know about antennas (and really not that much what's inside the camera), right behind the Canon-logo is the best spot (on non-flash bodies especially). That's solid piece of plastic, so you could have the antenna outside the metal frame. No worries about water sealing, almost no chance of placing hands or any other object to block the antenna. No hinges or anything. Perfect.

+100

you may want to quickly patent the idea, before "oh so innovative Canon" discovers this solution. ;D

you mean like the exact description of the patent?
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