Cali_PH said:

Just did the test, 3 of my 4 springs failed on the slide...not too happy, but glad I found out before I put them on my cameras, unlike the unlucky people that actually had their cameras drop. I hope PD is paying for any repairs necessary.

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There were about 50 affected customers at the time when they sent out the advisory, so no additional people should be affected unless they didn't access to their emails.

an interesting all-in-one travel camera with 21mm wide-angle, but no GPS.... no deal.

Here in Paris, Objectif Bastille announces it for the end of october for 1795 €

http://www.objectif-bastille.com/epages/ObjectifBastille.sf/fr_FR/?ObjectPath=/Shops/objectifbastille/Products/71334

jrista said:

hoodlum said:

Olympus will introduce tomorrow the first lens with dual VCM for autofocus.

http://www.43rumors.com/precision-camera-discloses-full-olympus-40-150mm-lens-details/

TWO IS BETTER THAN ONE
Smooth, rapid autofocus is a crucial factor in image quality. The 40-150mm f2.8 PRO’s innovative, industry-first Dual VCM (voice coil motor) AF delivers. Separating the focusing mechanism into two lens groups controlled by individual linear drive motors makes AF performance extremely fast and, with no gears involved, nearly friction-free and incredibly quiet.

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That is something entirely different than this patent. The motor described here drives the diaphragm to stop down the aperture, which is quite different than the focusing groups in a lens.

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Concievably you could use the same preload motor and drive motor design to speed up focus movements, however i dont think the USM motor is the weak link in the focus chain, although i could be wrong.

dmosier said:

Khnnielsen said:

Here is my take on Canon and their video DSLR.

If Canon want to do the smart thing they will bet some money on Cinema EOS line. Where I am from the C300 has been hugely popular among production companies and broadcasters.

The main reason I think is that it bridged gap between the DSLR and the large sensor camcorders. If you have worked with a ENG camera, you know how a camera should feel and work, if you want to an effective tool.
We want to use all our Canon glass with a large sensor, but the DSLR hassle can get tiredsome. The answer have been C300 for the most part.

If think Canon have a good chance to cement their position in this market if they make an effort with the Cinema EOS line.

On the other hand, if the 5d Mark IV is a complete game changer, it might turn out different, but I wouldn't get my hopes up just yet. .

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The thing is, the market for video DSLRs and the market for the Cinema EOS cameras are not the same market. They never were. A dude may stretch his wallet to get a 5D to shoot some short films, but there was no way that guy was ever going to pony up $15 grand for a C300.

Literally all Canon had to do to own the micro budget marketplace was to take all of the existing components of a 5D and put them into a more video-centric ergonomic body, and throw in the Magic Lantern video features as software. That's it. That's what people have been begging Canon for these last four or five years. They didn't have to create new sensors or even 4k recording, any of that. But they never built it. Instead they came out with cameras that had most of those features but priced $10k above people's reach, so only actual production companies could afford it.

Now, even if Canon did come out with a Cinema 5D tomorrow, it would be too late. The tech has moved way beyond it, way beyond what even the Cinema EOS line is capable of, and for far less money. There isn't a single thing that the 5D or 7DII can do with video that isn't done better by somebody else, for the same price or less.

That's the bottom line.

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This. +1

mackguyver said:

Mt Spokane Photography said:

What I saw was a pop up ad covering the screen. Click bait at its worst.

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Sorry about that - it didn't do that to me. I didn't watch the video, just scrolled down through the review.

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Interesting video, it really gives an idea of what can be done with a tiny camera in a phone, thanks for the Post.

Picked up my iPhone + yesterday here in Australia, eyes aren't what they were, Phone gets bigger each year, be slapping an iPad to my ear soon.

Don Haines said:

Phil Indeblanc said:

I opt for Medium Format because what I shoot demands it. My customers demand it. Life would be MUCH easier if I didn't have to bust out a 4x5/MF dB for a shoot. Work would be much smoother.

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Are you using a digital back on your 4X5? If so, which one and do you like it?

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Sorry for the long time gap. I haven't been getting email notifications.

I currently use the Phase One P25 often. I also use a H25backup, and have used a Hasselblad CF39, Phase One P45, and a more current IQ180

I'm sorry and understand I sound stubborn about this. It is only because I see this segment getting zero attention from Canon, who I have over $20K into.

On the flip side I DO see SONY, and Nikon address these areas. I also see Pentax 645z in action, and ALL MF dB's in the same common denominator. Even Sigma(As there is no need)...So Canon is alone. It is now so commonly spread, that having no AA as become a marketing tool. When working with difficult subjects like reflective product, and you have ZERO absorption surface. Everything is reflective high polish you can see how big a difference AA vs no AA is.

I think mirrorless is surely the direction, and yes, an in-between mirror space gap can make it much easier. I forget the brand years back, I briefly worked with a camera years back that would take filters on the lens mount.

zlatko said:

Chuck Alaimo said:

uggg... where to start. For one, the whole respond respond respond thing is growing quite tiresome. Maybe, just maybe canon has a plan and they are releasing things according to that plan? But, for the sake of playing along...

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Exactly! The whole "respond" / "response" / "answer" notion assumes that cameras are like sentences in a conversation and can be tossed into production at a moment's notice.

It's more likely these products are conceived far in advance of any competitor's announcement, with countless planning, production and testing stages leading up to release. Every part has to be designed and produced. Every material has to be sourced. Every employee has to be trained. It goes on and on .... Large companies plan and plan and plan because they have to coordinate and direct a mass of people, machinery and money over long periods of time in order to achieve their goals. They have short-term plans, mid-term plans, and long-term plans.

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R&D is continuous.

DSLRs are modular products by design. This gives the manufacturer a lot of leeway to create a variety of products from a smallish pool of common core modules. If the interfaces are already specified then then R&D can be done separately for each module even by different teams or business partners around the world.

Certain interfaces are common in classes of EOS cameras:
Spatial interfaces (e.g. lens mount, flange distance, battery compartment etc.)
Media interfaces (e.g HDMI, SD, CF etc)
Electronic interfaces (e.g. for Sensor, DiG!C, AF, Metering etc.)
etc...

One of the other advantages of modular design is being able to leverage existing modules which have been already been through the R&D/testing mill. This allows them to be bring products to market faster. The better the engineers understand the platform, the more reliably they can connect the modules with minimal QC issues.

It is entirely possible that Canon has already designed and specced three different 6D-II prototypes and are just waiting for the right time to pull the trigger on launching either option A, B or C.

So when I say "respond to..." I don't mean Canon's engineers need to sit around a table this afternoon and design (from scratch) a reply to Nikon's announcement. I also mean the years of work that's been going on behind the scenes developing (Prototype module X) and (Brand new top plate Y) combining with (Wifi module that worked last time) with (good old Tilty-flippy-LCD) and (LP-E6N)....etc

AcutancePhotography said:

Mt Spokane Photography said:

Same as the CR Rumor published last July. The guy probably read it here

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Rumours based on rumours? Not a good sign.

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Happens all the time, just like circular logic. We see a lot of people posting links to rumors on other sites, and they reference to a different site, and so on. Sometimes they lead back to CR, usually not.

MonkeyB said:

i definitely looked at the d-lites but found some build issue reports with the units and also the trigger for the camera shoe (skyport issue in general). didn't notice a battery option either. i'd rather go with the bowens gemini myself, if in europe.

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The units are manufactured in India to keep the price relatively low, but I have no issues with my set. The actual D-Lite RX looks better built than the previous IT model. The stands are also economical models, but they support the units well, and I can also use the with a Manfrotto boom without issues - just added a sandbag.
They come also with the newer Skyport Speed. The good of the Skyport is it's very small and light, the downside is it's run by a button cell, if it's almost depleted it could work erratically, better to keep a spare around because it's not a common type.
The system is also compatible with the USB controller that allows units to be configured from a Windows or OSX PC. There's no portable battery option if you need it, probably not to eat into the Quadra product.
Sure, you can get build a better kit buying separate items, but for a beginner this is a simple comprehensive and versatile solution.

I must say I'm a little disappointed after looking at the recent image comparisons between the 70D and 7D II. I will still wait for actual reviews to surface before making my decision, but may end up saving myself some money and now go for the 70D / 6D combo. It would be nice if Canon announced a considerable price drop on the 5D III next month at the PhotoPlus Conference/Expo. Would be a great way to counter Nikons D750...

tomscott said:

Probably struggle on the 5Dc too.

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Can't speak for any of the other lenses but the 24 2.8 rocked pretty hard on my 5Dc. Really vignette-y but who cares, its a 5 second fix in PS/LR and it was a sharp wide prime for like $150. I only sold it because I got a 17-35 2.8 for ultra cheap that is pretty much just as good. Of course, I'm not super picky with the wides and I can barely bring myself to care about edge performance so your mileage may vary...

Steve said:

Two things

- I really don't think Samsung expects to just storm the high end pro market and upset the Canikon hegemony overnight with the NX1. Seems to me they are trying to make in roads to the enthusiast market and garner some attention with a crazy spec list.

- I've seen pros shooting sports with m43 and Sony cameras, as well as Canon and Nikon. People think that the only "pros" out there are the top tier guys shooting international events for SI and forget that most of them are actually low level guys cranking through high school football games for local papers.

Samsung still hasn't released any sample images from this camera. I keep checking around and haven't seen any yet. Not really a good sign when one of your selling points is a brand new type of sensor tech....

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Samsung is a relentless organisation. If they are serious about this market, they will find a way sooner or later.

Thank you for the heads up on this deal.
Placed my order last night, I got my email confirmation today.

Sample images from the 7D Mk.II look great - much improved
image quality AND colour at high ISO for both picture and video.
Can't wait to get my hands on it!

Tip from a pro - treat yourself to some Sony Eneloop rechargeable batteries.

They are seriously awesome ... They will increase performance, last longer and recycle faster.

Try them in a Canon battery pack or ebay equivalent.

I use them all the time.

I would think that the 70D would give a floor level idea.

raptor3x said:

AcutancePhotography said:

And each type of photographer is making the right decision....for them.

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Except for Tokina with their new 70-200, a.k.a. the flare machine.

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I am sure there are photographers who like that lens too. Togs are a strange and diverse breed. ;D

sanjosedave said:

I started using Canon when I picked up a used AE1.

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I got started with Canon the same way. Bought a used AE1 from an individual who needed money. Moved on with a A1 and then a couple of F1s. Eyes started to age....as did the rest of my body...so went to an EOS AF camera. And am still with Canon, the latest being a pre-ordered 7D II. Too old to change.

I like the way Kelby writes in his Photoshop books. Easy enough for this old man to understand.

The manual (user guide) for the G7 X is now available for download from: http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/3/0300016123/01/psg7x-cu-en.pdf

privatebydesign said:

Not my idea of minimal processing, besides, what you are saying is the appearance of detail in the bird is actually uncorrected noise. Which is a point I have made many times too.

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+10

IMHO minimal processing is just correcting known technical issues

Lens profile (chromatic and distortion correction)
Sharpening as determined previously and scientifically to overcome any lens softness, but that's all.
Levels and curves.
Saturation and colour balance (but even this can be overdone)
I just about accept selective noise reduction, but only to reduce in camera noise, not to make an artistic choice.

Beyond that is artistic choice.. and that's fine, but I don't count it as minimal.

Orangutan said:

dilbert said:

dmosier said:

Jackson_Bill said:

Sadly, it sounds like moving the 7Dii to video is more important to Canon.
Very disappointed.

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I have no idea why one would think this camera suggests "video is more important to Canon." Because honestly I see this camera as living proof that Canon actually couldn't care less about video. The video capabilities of this camera would have been interesting about four years ago. As it is now, for cinematographers, this camera is dead on arrival.

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You're wrong - Canon cares a lot about video. Canon especially cares a lot about the folks in video that have money to spend. And Canon wants as much of that money as they can get (Canon is a corporation afterall.)

So why would Canon sell you a $1800 DSLR to do video when they have a $10000 video camera that they'd rather you buy instead?

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You're basically on the right track, Dilbert. My guess is the 7D2's video will be optimized for producing excellent amateur video -- something mom & dad would be proud to show their child's grandparents. It should be easy to use, etc. It should have enough features to lure the some fraction into higher-end gear. Under no circumstances should it directly compete with their pro gear.

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That's about right. Amateur video. At a time when I can pay that same dollar amount elsewhere for a camera that allows me to shoot professional looking video.

So why shouldn't they make a camera for less than $5k that competes with their +$10k pro gear? Because everyone else already is.

400 5.6 + 1.4 on crop difference - http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/ISO-12233-Sample-Crops.aspx?Lens=278&Camera=736&FLI=0&API=0&LensComp=278&CameraComp=736&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=1&APIComp=1

It's not bad

300 2.8 Should be a no brainer. It quickly becomes a 600 5.6 and then coupled with the 7dmk2 gives you plenty of focal length for both birds and cars.

The IQ on the 300 2.8 is incredible and it is much lighter than the 400. The weight alone makes this an easy decision. 2.35kg vs 5.3kg

I have used both versions of the 300 and the latest is a massive improvement on version 1. I can only assume the same for the 400.

Here is an image from the 300 2.8 IS II

9VIII said:

Head over to our 7D lab samples page for both the RAW and JPEG versions of our Still Life target

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Can you open them?

With grocery stores, big manufacturers try to squeeze out smaller players by flooding the shelves with their products, even putting different labels on the same product and selling it as a bargain brand.

That might be Nikon's Strategy. If a potential buyer walks into a camera store and sees nothing but Nikon DSLR's, more of them compared to Canon or Sony, they might be inclined to buy Nikon.

Certainly, they won't go wrong with Nikon or Canon.