Canon 14mm II for "Yangshuo, China"

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#21
Few thoughts about Yangshuo.

The show was produced by John Emo who did the olympics plus films such as Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. For the show IMHO the best place to sit is at the first wide aisle, about halfway through a lot of dancers come here in traditional dress and its a good photo opportunity. At the front you will be looking at the back of their heads.

The area is changing a lot and its getting harder to find great views around the town as they are now building upwards. The view shown on the CCTV of the mountains behind Yangshuo, which is magnificent no longer exists, without heavy photoshop removing modern buildings. (Chinese tourist photo's are not subject to our standards authority quality testing and are usually quiet old. In fairness to the Chinese they don't seem to mind, so the system works for them. I have been disappointed several times however)

Think you would find a lens that doesn't take filters a problem as you will really need ND grads to get the best from an image, or bracketing, also a TSE 24mm or 17 as suggested may be a better panoramic view as you would loose a lot from a 14mm crop. Depends on time really. I like the view from the Yulong Bridge, which is great, depending on the light. Haven't experienced much in the way of visibility issues other than rain, the mist adds drama to the kunst mountains, so long as you are prepared for it. Polarisers help a lot with keeping the foliage natural, and reducing reflections in the water, not really seen much in the way of sun in the area.
 
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#25
lion rock said:
Dylan,
Hope you will have a great trip to HK/China.
My experience with tours in China is that if you join a tour group, a fair part of the time would be spent on shopping. I went to two of these tours and they hurry you up so they can take you to shops.
My friend and his family went for a trip and hired a "private" car with an English speaking driver/tour guide thinking that there would be no shopping. It still did, but finally my friend insisted that they did no more shopping. The attitude of the driver changed to one that was indifferent to my friend and his family.
I would not know how the tour guides would treat a Westerner, but being Chinese tourists, we're not treated well in this respect.
Click to expand...

Westerners would be treated the same, at least to what I see in the Lonely Planet guide (I haven't been sightseeing in China with guides).
The guides are paid commission by the shops. And the shop will claim that whatever you bought at another shop is fake, but their shop has the real goods. Ad infinitum.
 
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#26
I used to hire English major master student from a local university when my chinese was even worse than it's now. Even if you add a private car, it won't be super expensive and the experience will be much better. Unrushed, non standard but good facts, tips on real local joints.

My tip would be either that or no guide. Group tour in china are aweful.
 
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#27
Grumbaki said:
I used to hire English major master student from a local university when my chinese was even worse than it's now. Even if you add a private car, it won't be super expensive and the experience will be much better. Unrushed, non standard but good facts, tips on real local joints.

My tip would be either that or no guide. Group tour in china are aweful.
Click to expand...

I been travel from US to China last 10yrs. I still can't pickup the chinese language. All I know is "Ni-hao" = hello and "sei-sie" = thank you.
 
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#28
Dylan777 said:
I been travel from US to China last 10yrs. I still can't pickup the chinese language. All I know is "Ni-hao" = hello and "sei-sie" = thank you.
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Well I don't know Yangshuo but a lot of sites are now accessible to unguided non chinese speaking foreigners. I wouldn't be afraid to let english only speaking friends visit Beijing or Shanghai by themselves. 10 years back it was a different matter.

In less common places (like my current residence Chengdu), the major things (like the panda base) are close to english friendly but the life isn't.
 
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#29
Dylan777 said:
I been travel from US to China last 10yrs. I still can't pickup the chinese language. All I know is "Ni-hao" = hello and "sei-sie" = thank you.
Click to expand...

Those were my first two things I learned in Chinese (Mandarin). Third was "hao gao" (so tall!), since I'm 6'6". Didn't need to go to school to learn that.

You should learn to say "ting bu dong" (I don't understand), it's the classic laowai (foreigner) response here.

Grumbaki's idea about an English major is excellent ... if they can speak an understandable English. I had to turn down 4 out of 6 English Majors as candidates for a secretary, due to poor English skills. :o

/PS: The official pinyin is xie-xie, as X is pronounced as an S in English.
 
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#30
Dylan,

Since you have a few weeks, I'd suggest renting the 14mm now, if possible, to see if 'works' for you. If you don't have a large subject, it can make things look very small. Holding it level, things look fairly normal; tilt it to get some interesting effects.

A couple of shots I did right after buying the original 14L.
5495559768_5faf082373.jpg


5503086183_ff7e69a2a8.jpg


Like using a fisheye, remember to watch your feet. Oh, and don't go walking around with it while looking through the viewfinder or you will bump into things! (Yes, voice of experience. :-[)

Good luck and happy shooting!

-- Dan
 
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#31
DJL329 said:
Dylan,

Since you have a few weeks, I'd suggest renting the 14mm now, if possible, to see if 'works' for you. If you don't have a large subject, it can make things look very small. Holding it level, things look fairly normal; tilt it to get some interesting effects.

A couple of shots I did right after buying the original 14L.
5495559768_5faf082373.jpg


5503086183_ff7e69a2a8.jpg


Like using a fisheye, remember to watch your feet. Oh, and don't go walking around with it while looking through the viewfinder or you will bump into things! (Yes, voice of experience. :-[)

Good luck and happy shooting!

-- Dan
Click to expand...

Thanks Dan.

I might take your advices, rent it for couple days. I did have a chance to play with Nikon 14-24 + D800 through a friend. I love the effects of UWA lens, esp @ 14mm.
 
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#32
So, to sum up, do you intend to get:

2 x 5D3 bodies
14mm 2.8L II
24-70 2.8L II
70-200 2.8L IS II

I think it is a very good combination.

Just some thoughts/suggestions:

I would swap the 14 II with TS-E 17 L if I knew that I would be able to shoot interesting buildings.
Also, I would get a 70-200 4L IS instead of 2.8 to lower the weight. But then I do have both lenses so I can chose.
(So the last one is more a though rather than suggestion).
 
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#33
tron said:
So, to sum up, do you intend to get:

2 x 5D3 bodies
14mm 2.8L II
24-70 2.8L II
70-200 2.8L IS II

I think it is a very good combination.

Just some thoughts/suggestions:

I would swap the 14 II with TS-E 17 L if I knew that I would be able to shoot interesting buildings.
Also, I would get a 70-200 4L IS instead of 2.8 to lower the weight. But then I do have both lenses so I can chose.
(So the last one is more a though rather than suggestion).
Click to expand...

Thanks tron.

I hate spending money on renting lenses.

I'll rent either 14mm II or 16-35 II as UWA lens. My co-workers and I plan to see a light show in the evening. Therefore, my 24-70 II + 70-200 f2.8 IS II will become handy. I as a prev owner of 16-35 II, I know this lens doesn't perform well at f2.8. It more likely be used at f11 to f16 during the day.

I went through some review sites, some claimed 14mm f2.8 II is sharp at f2.8. I was hoping to get more feedbacks from CR members about 14mm II. I guess not many of us shooting with 14mm II :-\

For now, I'm more leaning to 16-35 II - since still have BW CPL filter.

First body: 5D III + 16-35 II - for all landscape shots
Second body: 5D III + 70-200 f2.8 IS II - people, close-up shots

For night time. I'll swap the 16-35 II to 24-70 II.
 
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#34
Sounds like the 16-35 II is the right choice for you. The problem with the 14 is that most people would opt for another lens to fill the 15-23mm gap, so that's two lenses plus the 24-70 to cover the UWA range. Are the 14L and TS-E 17 better IQ-wise. Yes, but you lose a lot of versatility and time to gain a wider FOV and TS capability, and I don't think that trade is worth it for a short trip. If you lived there or had enough time to get the perfect shots, then yes, those lenses would give better "wow" results. For real estate and architecture, those ultrawide primes come into their own, although even then the 14L is not wide enough and I find myself pulling out the fisheye and defishing it.
 
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#35
Dylan777 said:
I went through some review sites, some claimed 14mm f2.8 II is sharp at f2.8. I was hoping to get more feedbacks from CR members about 14mm II. I guess not many of us shooting with 14mm II :-\
Click to expand...

I shoot with the 14mm f2.8 II. I was able to trade my 16-35mm for the 14mm and it was the best decision I ever made. I hated the performance of the 16-35mm. In the sides it was soft at seemingly any aperture (and it was an unpleasant softness that I can't really describe). The 14mm is very sharp at 2.8, in contrast with the 16-35, it's near perfect. There's vignetting, but it's very manageable and I have no issues with it. Some CA can come out quite strongly at the widest apertures depending on the lighting in the shot.

These images aren't at 2.8, but at these same apertures on the 16-35mm I would notice flawed sides.

http://500px.com/photo/27948633
http://500px.com/photo/26623705
http://500px.com/photo/39501850
 
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#36
Random Orbits said:
I like the 14mm II and TS-E 17 better than the 16-35 II, but the 16-35 II is hard to beat for travel like this. The 14 II is prone to CAs and does not take filters, but it has better IQ than the 16-35 II, is wider and is more compact. Unless you plan on using the 16-35 II at 16mm exclusively, I wouldn't consider the 14mm prime. And the 14mm feels a lot wider in usage than the 2mm difference from the 16-35 II may indicate.

If I had the choice and had sufficient time, then I'd consider the TS-E 17 over the 16-35 II. The shift will help for architecture/landscape shots, and it can help get you some nice panoramas. But it is MF only. In this case, the 24-70 would be the primary, and the TS-E 17 would be for the special shots. If you're going to be crunched for time, then the 16-35 II offers good IQ but is much more versatile.
Click to expand...

14mm II does take ND filters in the rear gel holder.
 
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#37
I'd guess the hiking spot that's being mentioned is Moon Hill that had a natural arch at the top, certainly worth visiting and not hard to access.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moon_Hill

As far as lenses go the 14mm would obviously have some uses but really I think you might find that a bit too wide to emphasize the hills, the 16-35mm seems a much better bet for me and would be the first lens I'd pack for landscapes in that location.

As for what else to take I'd say that depends on what you like to shoot, if you want to take shots from the river cruise for example picking out locals then the 70-200mm would be the better bet, might be useful for some landscapes as well although as has been said mist and smog can often be issues.

The 24-70mm would cover you in the mid range and if you were visiting smaller villages might be a good bet.
 
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#38
dmcb said:
Dylan777 said:
I went through some review sites, some claimed 14mm f2.8 II is sharp at f2.8. I was hoping to get more feedbacks from CR members about 14mm II. I guess not many of us shooting with 14mm II :-\
Click to expand...

I shoot with the 14mm f2.8 II. I was able to trade my 16-35mm for the 14mm and it was the best decision I ever made. I hated the performance of the 16-35mm. In the sides it was soft at seemingly any aperture (and it was an unpleasant softness that I can't really describe). The 14mm is very sharp at 2.8, in contrast with the 16-35, it's near perfect. There's vignetting, but it's very manageable and I have no issues with it. Some CA can come out quite strongly at the widest apertures depending on the lighting in the shot.

These images aren't at 2.8, but at these same apertures on the 16-35mm I would notice flawed sides.

http://500px.com/photo/27948633
http://500px.com/photo/26623705
http://500px.com/photo/39501850
Click to expand...

Thanks dmcb for inside info.

Love the 2nd pix. I did have a chance to shoot with Nikon 14-24 with D800 through a friend. I like the 14mm effects a alot.
 
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