I've used both. I own the 15-85 and my sister has the 18-135 STM. Both have been used on those trips where you are packing really light, a Rebel and one zoom.

Both are sharp, fast focusing lenses that can produce great images. The color/contrast might be a tad better on the 15-85, but that is just my subjective, non scientific feel. I haven't used them side by side so it could have been the different environments.

Personally I prefer the zoom range of the 15-85. 15mm (24mm FF equiv) is a big jump from 18mm on the wide end. Can be useful shooting landscape shots, or indoor architecture shots. But as others have said, it's a personal thing. Some may prefer having the longer reach instead.

One small point, the 18-135 STM is not parfocal. It's not a big deal, but I find it annoying that the instance you change zoom range the view is out of focus. Also, I prefer the USM over the STM. And the 15-85 does have a heavier, better build quality feel to it. The STM is well, a kit lens.

Don't really think one can go wrong with either. But I give an edge to the 15-85 and I was able to get mine used for $400 in perfect condition so I was quite happy. But certainly no big complaints over the 18-135 for a long weekend I used it in NYC.

NancyP said:

I have to get around to trying one of the adapters with the dandelion focus confirmation chip.

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It certainly helps. The nice thing about the Dandelion chips is that you have more flexibility to customize things to your liking, although the interface for doing so is...clunky.

Snodge said:

For the most part, hyperfocal for infinity is fine as during the day most of the time where infinity is needed, f/8 ot f/11 is what I use, however with my lens with this fix, night time handheld shots that require f/1.4 are definitely problematic. It may depend on the subject as to how noticeable the focus or lack of focus is.

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Wide open I would say the natural infinity distance with this fix is roughly 45-50 feet away. Stopped down about two stops recovers full infinity focus. That works perfectly for my applications of the lens; it may not work for yours.

The EF 100 f2.8L IS USM Macro lens in my bag has seen a lot of action and at least 50% of it was as a regular 100mm lens. Cannot fault the quality and Ive found no problem using it manually which I do most of the time but on the occations Ive used it in autofocus its equally been great for keepers so I for one will stick where I am.

Hi do you know when price in Europe will drop as well ???

FTb-n said:

The 1Dx arrived today. It came with an English manual and a US power cord. But, I had to change the menu's from Japanese (I think) to English. For what it's worth, I had no problem registering it with Canon USA.

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Congrats and welcome the 1D X club 8)

privatebydesign said:

Aglet said:

Canon has better lenses argument doesn't quite wash with me. Canon has some DIFFERENT lenses that are desireable but does that impact as many people as would improved raw file quality?.. I doubt it.

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It might not wash with you, but the only independent figure we can look to is sales, and those don't support your opinion.

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marketing and strategy = success, no dispute Canon's a leader in that area.

but sales figures ≠ technical superiority in this market much the same as in, for example, the automotive market.

So is Canon the Ford F-150 of the camera world?... Gets the job done, almost everybody has one, but they wish it was a little bit better?..

Great site. I just downloaded an app on my phone also. Thanks!

PS - The Alexa Mini starts at $45000, so Canon has a lot of room to work with :

Creeping_Death said:

Hey guys,

I still don't understand why they don't offer the 6D in both Kit varaints, with the L and with the STM so everybody could choose which one they prefer. But it might be true that the strategy here is to get people in the FF market with the STM, and then make them buy the 24-70 or the 24-105 L..

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I agree. To me, it is like a car dealer/mfg offering a model stripped down or with only one trim package. Why don't they offer kits with many different options?

Danzq said:

Hi!

Im in such a happy position right now that we (me+the wife) are about to move into a bigger house which has the option for a small home studio. Im very excited and currently looking for some decent home studio light sets.

I usually prefer to buy quality products that last a bit longer and are better in use. After doing some research I've found that quality studio lighting kits can be quite expensive. This has caused me to look into the 2nd hand market.

I actually got a pretty good deal on a Multiblitz 250 studio kit with 3 head units, stands, umbarellas, syncs and some reflectors - all in a aluminium casket. Does anyone have experiences with this brand/kit? My friend has offered me this so I'd be quite confident buying from him.

Tips and suggestions are welcome. I cant wait to get my hands on some lights and start working and learning!

-Dan

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Looks like the whole thing is quite inexpensive so I wouldn't think about it too much.
(this store sells it used for $ 299 http://columbuscameragroup.com/page/3/)
I am sure it will be a while until you run out of things you can do with it and look to upgrade.
Congrats on getting to build a home studio

TommyLee said:

yeah ...looks fake ... for reasons mentioned..

but I would STILL like to see MTF ... and also Lenstip's coma test on it.....
just to see how it would do against other fakes....

Tom

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I hope it offers better sharpness, contrast and coma. 'IS' would be very beneficial as long as they do not increase the price too much.

Dear Dylan,

i'm very glad to hear that you were able to get as much of your gear covered by insurance as you did. And, congratulations on your new kit. It sounds like you are going to have hours and hours of fun with your new acquisitions.

Best regards,
Carol

boiseblake said:

Thank you all for your advice. I ended up Picking up the 16-35 F/4 and am working on getting the samyang. I was able to pick up a used but in perfect condition 16-35 f/4 locally for $775. I absolutely love that lens. Nancy that link was incredibly useful as well. Thank you all for your responses. I greatly appreciate it!

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Another option is the rokinon 24mm f1.4. I can take night shots with very short exposures or very low ISO on my 6D

Frodo said:

It would be great if more DSLRs used pixel-binning. This is where the signal from four or nine pixels is aggregated into one signal. This increases the effective size of the pixels and reduces noise at a significant cost in resolution. My G10 employed this and produced 1.9 megapixel images. Noise definitely declined at high ISOs but I found that the reduced file size limited the value of this. Now if the 50 megapixel 5DS used pixel binning, that would be exciting! 7MP would be very useable.

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Thank you Frodo. I wasn't aware it was called 'Pixel Binning' but you've just described what I was hoping the 5DS would be capable of offering as an option with MRAW, a way of utilising the data gathering power of 50MP but for those occasions when you want a smaller file but still retaining reasonable resolution and low noise.

Having heard from other respondents and read other articles I now realise MRAW is a different beast altogether and doesn't offer what I was after but perhaps Pixel Binning could.

If the 5DS doesn't provide an option as standard, I wonder if the clever folks behind Magic Lantern could find a way!?

Short as that box is, it must have the new prototype "telescoping ladder effect" lens in it ... compact to carry, but extends out closer to the target ... can't wait to try this one across Grand Canyon. No more magnifying with your feet.

Report crashes of the beta test version so they can be fixed before its released. Tell them which camera, which computer brand and OS version. Also be sure that you have updated your Video card drivers, that's a frequent cause of issues.

Never thought about that, but most likely that's it. Thanks for the tip!

Besides the obvious IQ question, the big thing to evaluate is the usability. Can it be handheld and get usable photos at the extreme zoom? I've had 3 Canon SX 50's and each one acted differently with long focal lengths, my current one is just OK, I plan to use it next week on a short vacation, if weather permits.

Got one. Like it alot. Happy to see it is more than competitive with the others. Sure I would love a lens that had perfect MTF charts for both sag & tan at pixel size of the 5Ds, etc at f1.4 - heck while dreaming dream bright, why not f 1.0!

While theoretically possible, look at the price differential of the best 50mm that Roger posted a few weeks ago.

Chasing that next identifiable bit of resolution is a monumental effort in engineering, manufacturing, and I suspect weight as well - which all adds up to yet bigger dollars.

Everything is a compromise, though in this case not so many.

GuyF said:

I'd read somewhere (not on CR) that you can stack both mk3 TCs but only if you add the 1.4x behind the 2x as the 2x has a recessed rear element allowing the insertion of the protruding front element of the 1.4x.

Can anyone confirm this?

Guy.

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That is incorrect. You need to have an extension ring between the two.

Mt Spokane Photography said:

A victim to low cost Chinese Imports. As Chinese products get to be better quality, it going to happen more and more...

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The April 1 timing gave me momentary hope. But yes, they're almost certainly a victim of low cost Chinese imports. My Photoflex lighting accessories were such a welcome breath of fresh air in the quality department. They replaced annoying, low cost, easily broken Chinese imports. So with Photoflex gone, I hope the void is filled with better quality imports. They are improving steadily.

-pw

AvTvM said:

http://www.canon.de/for_home/promotions/macro_cashback/
not as nice as the Canon UK spring 2015 cashback, but better than nothin' ...

€ 300 CB on 5D III - body only or in kit - no requirement to purchase lenses or anything else

and CB on Macro lenses and ring speedlites - also independently of camera/any other purchases:
€ 100 on EF 100 IS Macro, € 60 on EF 100 Macro and EF-S 60 Macro
€ 100 on MT-24EX, € 60 on MT-14EX ring speedlites

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Canon Denmark has the same promos, with same CB values (when translated into DKK, €1 = 7,50DKK).
In order to qualify, you have to purchase no later than April 30th, 2015.

http://www.canon.dk/for_home/campaigns/kampagner.aspx

EOS 5D3: 2300DKK
EF 100mm f/2.8L: 750DKK
EF 100mm non-L: 450DKK
EF-S 60mm: 450DKK
MT-24EX: 750DKK
MR-14EX II: 450DKK

I do prefer the way Northstar has cropped the images but a lot of the time it depends on the story you are trying to present. In this case, there is nothing to see in the empty bleachers so they should be avoided in the shots. Sometimes you're better off going up in the bleachers and shooting down so that the field is your background - like triggermike's tennis shots.

Unless you are deliberately going for an angled shot, then they should be straightened. Even then it can backfire. I deliberately angled a skiing shot of a friend once as there was no dynamic when it was level but it was immediately picked out by a skiing instructor friend as the angulation in her legs didn't really match the angle I'd placed her on ;D

My choice would be the 5D3. I upgraded from the 7D to the 5D3 and it's hard for me to go back to crop. Crop images lack the pop of FF images. FF has better color depth, better DOF control (as in smaller DOF options), better low light performance, and is most often sharper than crop. Many overlook the latter. The "reach" advantage of crop is offset a but by the fact that crop will give softer images than FF with the same lens. Take a look at the link below which compares the 7D2 with the 1Ds3.

http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=972&Camera=963&Sample=0&FLI=0&API=0&LensComp=972&CameraComp=453&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=0&APIComp=0

I shoot a lot of events and sports (mostly indoor) and prefer to use two bodies -- one with a short zoom and one with a long zoom. For a while, I used the 7D as the second body to the 5D3 and it was frustrating. I wanted every image to be as sharp and as clean as possible. When I switched from a long zoom situation to a short zoom situation, I found that I was swapping lenses between the two bodies. It would have been easier to shoot with a single body.

The 5D3 AF system is extremely good, every bit as good as the 7D. I don't miss the extra 2 FPS of the 7D. However, I do have to be more selective when I burst in RAW because the 5D3 buffer fills up faster. Still, this hasn't been a problem. In low light, I have found tracking sometimes loses focus when the subject lacks contrast. But, playing with the Case settings has resolved much of this.

I'm in a situation where I occasionally challenge the limits of the 5D3 with low light sports -- such as with figure skating. 6 fps (and 8 fps of the 7D) is too slow to rely on. Skaters can rotate 180 degrees between frames. I have to rely on timing, instead. I've been tempted by the 7D2 with hopes that it will track better and the 10 fps may increase the odds of capturing a mid-jump shot with the skater looking in my direction. But, I can't go back to crop for these low light situations. The 7D2 might give me a few extra shots that I'm missing with the 5D3, but every shot will lose the extra pop that I get with the 5D3. My keeper rate with the 5D3 is quite high and I'm not willing to drop down in IQ for the sake of a few extra images.

I understand that the 5D3 still has at least a stop advantage over the 7D2 in noise. I live between ISO 3200 and 6400, so that extra stop is important to me. If you most often shoot below 3200, noise may not be a factor.

For action with more light, perhaps the 7D2 will do fine. It's worth noting that an f2.8 lens on crop has the DOF of an f4.4 lens on FF. So, crop does benefit from this extra wiggle room when tracking moving subjects. It can be off just a tad and subjects will still appear in focus. If the FF body loses focus slightly while tracking, it may be more noticeable. However, when it locks on, the FF body will still have more pop with the smaller DOF and the sharper images.

I must stress that the 5D3 has a fantastic AF system and is an underrated sports body. Personally, I'm in a position to up my game and seriously considered the 7D2 for its advantages with AF tracking and 10 FPS. But, for the reasons stated above, I'd rather stick with full frame. I've decided that the only path up for me is a 1Dx (which is on order, thanks to dropping prices).