Accessories for my husband's new 30d

Hi. I'd like to get my husband some useful and practical accessories to go

with his new EOS 30d for Christmas, but I don't know where to start. The

camera will mostly be used for family and travelling photography. We're also

expecting a baby, which is one of the main reasons he made the purchase.

 

He already has an accessory kit which includes the Delux Gadget Bag EX 180,

Battery Grip BG-E2, and Battery pack BP-511A. He also has the EF-S 18-55 Kit

which incldes zoom Lens Ef S18 (55mm), Wide strap, Battery Charger, another

battery charger and pack, as well as interface and video cable. Finally, he

has an EF 16-35mm F2.8L USM Lens.

 

Any advice you can offer would be very helpful. I'm looking to spend b/t $150-

$300.

 

Thanks!

Jessie

Jessie,

 

An external flash is always a good idea, especially for portraits of the kids. They're mostly done inside where you might find the built-in flash to be very inadequate. The Canon 430EX is available from B&H for about $230, I think there's a rebate on it currently. Good luck.

The external flash is a great idea. But if you do, get a pack of rechargable AA batteries (in sets of 4 as the flashes use typically 4), they fly through regular ones and it gets costly if not rechargable. That shouldn't be too expensive.

Canon 50mm f1,8 lens will be good for baby-pictures without flash.

Another vote for the flash - the 430Ex is a bargain. It offers a lot of features for the price. He will love it.

Get the 50mm f2.5 macro. Got to have some picture of those small hands and feet. The 50/1.8 won't do that without some help.

50mm f/2.5 macro and 50mm f/1.8 - without auxiliary light - will get VERY thin Depth of

Field. Which makes the use of these lenses - without flash - rather limited.

 

So get the flashgun first, like our fellow BP'ans recommended.

Flash is not bad, but if you are travelling a lot you might want to buy a tripod - so you also can get some pics of the family using the timer... buy a sturdy one like one from gitzo or bogen and an oversized ball-head.

 

Cheers

Andreas

Flashgun is not so great on the little eyes.

The inexpensive 50mm F1.8 gets my vote for available light photography.

As a "stocking filler", a good blower for blowing dust off the sensor, perhaps even an "Arctic Butterfly" brush.

 

Stofen Omnibounce to go with the 430EZ, which is a very good idea.

 

You don't say what you have on the digital-darkroom side, but you certainly need a USB 2.0 High Speed card reader (MUCH better than connecting the camera to the computer), very inexpensive, and a DVD-RW drive for backing up images. Rewritable DVD is very good for intermediate backup on an incremental basis, and you can burn up 500 raw images onto each standard writeable DVD.

 

A good printer, because you will obviously want to send pictures of the new baby to lots of people! The Canon 8500 is the more recently introduced A4 version of the excellent 9950 that I have. May be a bit outside your Christmas price range, but don't forget about it for some point in the future. You can get very inexpensive printers that are not too bad (the manufacturers apparently make their money from the paper and inks), but they would not do full justice to images from a 30D.

If we're talking tripods - an excellent suggestion! - you might want to consider the

GorillaPod, Jessie. Extremely versatile.

 

For the 30D, with telephoto lens up front or flashgun on top, you will need the heavy-duty

"Gorillapod SLR-Zoom".

 

Looky here: http://www.joby.com/gp3.html.

<a href="http://www.adorama.com/CAHSE1.html">Handstrap</a> <br>

 

<a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&Q=&is=REG&O=productlist&sku=164264">Remote control of the flash</a><br>

 

Polarizing filter in the correct size for the lens<br>

 

Ekstra memory cards<br>

 

1.4x or 2.0x extender, as he doesn't have a telelens.<br>

 

Manfrotto table tripod .<br>

If he has the 16-35 L, I am assuming the 18-55 does not get much use any more... You could get a lens like the 50mm f/1.4 or the 85mm f/1.8, but someone who paid $1400 for a L series lens is probably picky about his lenses. He may be planning to get the 50mm f/1.2 or one of the four 70-200mm L zoom, so your purchase might be wasted.

 

The flash is certainly a good option, but what I would recommend is you get a color calibrator for his PC monitor if he doesn't have one already. Monitor usually have color casts, and if you are editing photos on an uncalibrated monitor, you will correct for the cast and end up with over-corrected images in the other direction. A calibrator is a little gizmo that looks like a hockey puck dangling from a cord, you put it in front of the monitor, and it goes through the colors and measures them so you can accurately compensate for any cast.

 

The decent monitor calibrators (avoid the Pantone Huey!) cost between $150 and $250 depending on how sophisticated the software you want. The good models are the Monaco OPTIX XR, the GretagMacbeth EyeOne display and the ColorVision Spyder2. Each of these is available in an entry-level or a pro version, the hardware is the same, the only difference is in how much control the software gives you. Unless your husband is a control freak, the base package should be sufficient.

Poul BH , dec 02, 2006; 12:28 p.m.

Handstrap

Remote control of the flash

Polarizing filter in the correct size for the lens

Ekstra memory cards

1.4x or 2.0x extender, as he doesn't have a telelens.

Manfrotto table tripod .

 

It should be noted that telextenders won't work on the lenses the OP mention.

The 430ex flash and 50mm 1.8 are great suggestions. I'd add the 28-135mm IS as a good travel lens and the 10-22 for landscapes if the budget would go that far (or maybe next Christmas).

Pete.

I know you probably want to buy him a lens, but as others said, having bought the 16-35 f/2.8 for himself already, I have a feeling the lens he want is a 70-200 f/2.8 for the telephoto end..........way more than you $300 limit.

 

With the speed (ie the lower the f/ number the faster the lens) of these zooms being 2.8, all but the darkest localities are covered. so, although the 430Ex with a diffusor (sto-fen is good) is a good idea, he may like natural light more than flash (another reason for buying such high priced fast zooms)

 

So, I too think that a really good gift would be a monitor calibrator. Especially if he has an LCD monitor (vice CRT). LCD monitors NEED to be calibrated frequently. The difference in getting your minotor calibrated will not only have better looking images on screen, but your prints from those images will also be better. The above commentors choice of no frills calibrators is a good one..........for instance, the calibration hardware itself for Colorvision's Spyder units is the same for the $150 unit as in the $300 unit...just the software and extra's (truely just extra) add onto the price. I own and use the Spyder2. Works great.

 

Plus you can use the extra money to buy him some more memory cards. They are dirt cheap these days. I own about 5gigabytes worth of cards and when I go visit my twin grandchildren (2 years old), I sometimes get a little worried about not having enough cards.........heh.

 

And then a stack of 100 DVDs to archive all the pics he takes would be beneficial in getting the stuff off his internal hard drives. Then for his birthday, youu can buy him an external USB hard drive to store pics he wants readily availble. Storage of all these pics he will be taking of the newborn is going to be a major problem in no time at all.

"50mm f/2.5 macro and 50mm f/1.8 - without auxiliary light - will get VERY thin Depth of

Field. Which makes the use of these lenses - without flash - rather limited."

 

In my opinion, the narrow DOF is what makes using these optics at wide apertures so

attractive. Stopping down to F16 for a "clinically" sharp photo of most humans is not

flattering or desirable. I shoot most of my portraits wide open or near wide open and love

the creamy bokeh and de-emphasized backgrounds. Nevertheless, the EF 50 2.5 CM is

among Canon's

sharpest optics and one of my favs, wide open or stopped down.

 

However, I agree, the 430EX Speedlite would be a great gift. Another possibility is a nice

tripod, e.g., a Gitzo or Bogan.

I have a hunch you have now gotten so many diverse recommendations that it is perhaps

harder than before to know what to do.

 

Photo equipment is often pretty personal. What is best for one person is not useful for

another. Perhaps a gift certificate that he can use to select the gear he really wants would be

a good alternative?

 

(I know that's what I'd prefer in ths case... ;-)

Dan has a point....my son wanted to get me photography equipment a couple of times. So, he bought me a gift certificate to B&H Photo in NYC, NY. They have EVERYTHING, so he can pretty much get what he wants. And maybe, if you can talk the rest of the family into doing the same thing, he will have a bigger pot of money to work from. I know that i myself would consider it the BEST christmas ever if everyone in my family gave me a B&H Gift Certificate. By the way, you don't have to actually go to the store for the gift certificate OR to buy stuff using one.......all can be done on line.

 

However, I caution on doing this with "lesser stores"......I won't mention their names, but B&H IS the store to do this with........hint, hint.......heh.

If it were me, I'd want the canon 100 mm macro prime lens..yes, I know it's about $400 at Adorama but I would love it. Flash is ok if he is picky about his set up...I have a 30 D and I find the attached flash sufficient. Next choice if $400 is too much of a stretch would be the prime canon 50 mm. I bought one...it's cheap looking and light but it is the sharpest lens you can buy for the money. Other cool accessories are leather strap handle, a Kata camera bag (those are cool)

another vote for the macro 100 2.8. to get into that little face, you might want something a little longer.

Here's another vote for the 430EX flash. With lenses you never know what he has in mind to get himself, and as mentioned he may be picky about what he gets.

Flash a newborn eyes do not go well together. Therefore I echo the recommendations for a 50/1.8. The 50/2.5 will enable him to get much closer and get more dramatic shots. However, it is significantly slower and in low light conditions he will have to boost ISO. Come to think of it, both are within your budget......

 

OT: I envy him so much..... :-(

 

 

 

Happy shooting,

Yakim.

If you look at the flash, make sure it is the "EX" variety, they are the newest.

I'd second a polarizing filter, for the 16-35 lens, and the type you want is "circular". The diameter of filter for that lens is 77mm (you can verify, that same number is on the front of the lens). This page http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Our-Current-Photography-Accessories.aspx has info and advice on the filter. For starters, an explanation of why you might want one, and how they're used.

 

One other thought: IMO it's a very good idea to have a good quality UV filter on front of the lens at all times, to protect the front element. If he hasn't got one already, worth getting one of those as well.

 

For both, I'd recommend the brand B+W and the type MRC (Multi-Reflective Coating). With the polarizers, B+W offers both regular thickness and slim.

 

Slims are less likely to vignette (show in the edge of the pictures), but need special caps and are a little harder to get a grip on when rotating. I'm not sure if the slim model is needed for the 16-35. It may be the regular is ok by itself, but starting to vignette if stacked on top of a regular uv filter. Maybe someone can comment?

 

Looking at what he has already, looks like a couple of mis-steps, but he has a fine camera and one hell of a good lens. On the 1.6 crop body it's still virtually all on the wide side of normal perspective, but not bad.