john_baker4

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<p >Further to the above, the 1 Series is big, heavy built like a tank and can be a pain to carry, but is a total joy to use. The 5 is smaller, lighter but then again, it is also a joy to use! I personally find the ergonomics of the 1 to be more intuitive and slightly easier to access and use, I also wear glasses and find the viewfinder to be better in the bigger camera. It totally depends on what you want to do, the 1 is a photo machine and will keep up with most situations in all conditions, the 1.3x factor is great for telephoto work and gives extra reach, but can be a pain for ultra wide-angle. The 5 is amazing for landscape, portraits, but is no slouch and can go quickly when needed. Bottom line, like all things you do tend to get what you pay for, there is a reason why the 1 series cost more, but then again you could almost get two 5’s for the price, or a nice white lens to take real advantage of the larger sensor! Both cameras are great, but only you can decided what price point is right for you and what features are most important. I normally suggest hiring one of each to see what works for you, you may be surprised.</p>

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I was a C1P convert for many years, I recently tried C14 which has some nice features over and above its big brother, it is not perfect as it misses many pro features, but it does show where the software is going. It will be good to see what the new Pro version includes when it is finally released. However for general work I have started using Lightroom and I am really enjoying the process, it has reduced my old workflow considerably. Basically it has 5 seamless areas, Library, Develop, Slideshow, Print and Web and you can move in and out of the modules as necessary. I can now do around 98% of the work in one system, without the need to make additional copies. It has a large number of editing features (WB, levels, curves, spotting, horizons, sharpening, noise, etc) and integrates very well with CS3 if you need to export and do anything more complex. I really like its ability to output feature rich, web galleries at the click of a single button, here is one from the weekend http://www.jfbclick.com/Birds/index.html - I really hated LR at first, I was firmly stuck in the C1P workflow which I agree is a proven formula and it does work very well, the bottom line is that LR can produce results which I believe are as good as C1P, in less time and with less effort, so I would suggest it is well worth a look.

You can get away with a normal flash, I picked up a nice second hand flash bracket which I use and it works perfectly. I find it invaluable as it allows me to get the shutter speed up and stop the lens down. The addition of a good flash diffuser (it was a Lightsphere II) helps, but is not essential, a good understanding of flash exposure compensation helps, here is my normal macro set up in action...

There are a couple, the above two are very good. I quite like Jacobs, which is only a couple of mins further, but they have a massive SH selection - see http://tinyurl.com/2rsbym

Picking up the point about eating batteries, I have found that using an external battery pack really makes a big difference and improves the recycle times considerably. A point to note is that continued use of the LS can put extra stress on the camera hot shoe, it is worth knowing how to remove the cover plate and tighten the four screws holding the hot shoe on the camera. I had this problem recently with my 1D MkII when I took over 1,000 flash shots in two days ? I found this link explains how to fix the problem quite well - www.conraderb.com/flashrepair/

F4 is fine in the digital age, when all you need to do is crank up the ISO and you can easily re-gain the stop. The DoF thing is a factor at the longer end, but far less at the wide. Plus given the option of really heavy glass with f2.8 or an easy to carry lightweight, I would go for the f4. All you need to do is fit an extension tube and you then have a credible IS Macro, works quite well when you don?t have the real thing! If this works this is hand held at 40"<div></div>

The best product for this is the Optech ?Hood Hat?, basically it is a simple neoprene sleeve that slips over the fitted lens hood and grips onto the body of the lens. I have a large one which fits on my 35-350L and my 17-40L see http://tinyurl.com/27tevr

Nice thread which teases out many of the macro issues, all I would like to add is that the tripod ring is not only good for tripods, you can also use flash brackets with it as well. I also tend to use a single 550EX either straight on the camera or on the bracket with a Lightsphere II to diffuse the light, works very well for me. My trick is to use program mode and set the exposure compensation on the camera to at least -2 EV (-3EV if I can get away with it), this forces the camera to stop down to f13/f16 at 1/250?

 

Below is a picture on my macro kit<div></div>

Simple solution would be to get some extension tubes; you can then use them on your current 50mm, stopping down will help!

 

Also when you get your proper macro lens you can then use the tubes to get greater than 1:1. Plus you can fit them to a telephoto, you will be surprised at how many insects lurk just beyond your range, an extension tube will allow a longer lens to get at the action, I have seen great results from 100-400s, straight 400/500/600 or even these lenses fitted with teleconverters and tubes. I have just started experimenting with tubes on my 24-105 it works really well and gives me the benefit of IS as well.

 

After a lot of research I finally went for the Tamron 180 as it around half the price of the Canon. I found this review to be particularly useful www.nnplus.de/macro/Macro100E.html the bottom line is all the dedicated macro lenses are very good, it is just a matter of picking your price point and features you want.

In the UK you can get branded goods from EOS Magazine www.eos-magazine.com - see http://tinyurl.com/37opf8

The simplest way is to take the multiple images then combine using layers and masks. Here is one I did last week. Tombstoning (the art of throwing oneself of a cliff into water) taken in Plymouth (UK).

 

Technical bit, my MKII on slow does 3 frames a second, this picture is a combination of 8 pictures. I reckon there are 6 pictures from the top of the cliff to the bottom, which equals 2 seconds. Someone told me that a body falling through space would travel 4.9m in the first second, 14.7m in the 2nd second so a total of 19.6m or nearly 65ft.

Hi Tom ? sorry for the delay in responding, this was an old Gary Fong Lightsphere II which I found second-hand in a camera shop. It is great for what it is designed for, but it is a joy when used with macro, it scatters the light enough to give a good coverage. I tend to use programme and -3 exposure compensation and let the flash take the strain, most of the time I use 1/250 at f20 and it delivers stunning results... Here is another one, with the flash.

Not sure what happened there, here is my macro kit?

Thanks for the comments on the bee, re the hood and tripod mount. I find the tripod mount invaluable; I do a lot of flash work with my macro and occasionally on longer shoots fit the lens into a stroboframe bracket, which is then attached to a monopod. The tripod ring allows the camera to rotate in the bracket without any problem, I can then brace everything together and still bob in and out to get focus, it works for me. Hood is essential on the Tamron as the front element is not recessed ? here is a photo of the kit in action.

All depends on what you are looking to take, you will possibly find that 1:1 is enough, but if you need bigger you can always add some extension tubes. I would really love the MPE but cannot justify the cost. I found this to be quite an interesting review of the various options - www.nnplus.de/macro/Macro100E.html

 

I was in the same predicament started looking at the 100 Canon and ended up getting the Tamron 180. I was swayed by the quality and the extra working distance, I must admit that I have been rather pleased with it. Recent shot...

If you can get into a decent pro shop they may have most of the range available. I must admit I went in looking for a Domke and then went through everything else, actually trying to load my normal working rig and then through a process of elimination ended up with the HP Large - it was the only one which did what I wanted, with a little bit of space left for growth.

I also wish the bag had the handle, as it would add that extra flexibility and at times it needs one. I believe mine came complete with the leather shoulder pad ? check it should be included! But the Domke Postman's Pad is a much better solution.

I occasionally go out with the camera around my neck with a small zoom attached and drop another couple of lenses in the bag. I must admit I went through lots of different bags and firmly believe that there is no perfect bag, there are just better options for different jobs. I also have a Billy 445 which is really great when doing a static assignment, a joy to work out of, but a total pain to lug anywhere. I have a big rucksack, the tendency is to overload and it then gets seriously heavy ? I am getting too old for that sort of thing. I have a full LowePro belt system, which was my preferred option before the HPL arrived. I like to mix the HPL and bits of the LowePro belt system, as that works really well, put your heaviest lens on your waist belt, it helps on long days.

Further to my last that was the Hadley Pro large I was talking about, the smaller ones are just a bit too small - Sorry for any confusion.

It is my preferred bag; my normal working kit includes 1D MkII stored with the lens off, old 35-350L plus Sigma 12-24 plus either a converter or extension tube. I can also fit a 550 EX in one of the front pouches as well. Plus Giotto blower, spare battery, memory, pens, etc. I also load goodies between the insert padding and the side of the bag, great for polar filters, etc. I don't normally carry a laptop. The lenses do get swapped for others so a 100-400, 70-200, 180 macro, 17-40, 24-105 fit just as well.

 

Works great around town and is good out in the country, occasionally if needed I will carry various extra options on a LowePro belt kit. Weak point is possibly the strap and would strongly recommend the Domke Postman's Shoulder Pad which works really well.

I believe that the E2 has been designed for new TIN OXIDE Coated Sensors, so it is really designed for owners of Sony A100 and Canon 400D SLR's. But I believe that the E2 may be used with conventional CMOS/CCD sensors.

The other aspect is that occasionally you may want to isolate your subject and the 2.8 will give you a narrower depth of field, part of the problem of the 17-40L is at f4 you tend to get everything in focus if you need it or not. As a 1D Mark II user I sold my 16-35 and bought a 12-24 Sigma? So cannot really help, I still use my 17-40 which is a cracker - Good review over at Luminous Landscape - http://tinyurl.com/s7su

Contrary to what some have said above the 12-24 is as you point out the only truly wide that will work on 1.6/1.3 and FF cameras. I have one and I must admit I am very impressed with it! The 17-40L is a great lens on FF but at 1.6 is less convincing as it comes out a not very exciting 27.2-64mm - The 12-24 Siggy with the 1.6 factor becomes a more interesting 19.2-38.4mm

 

The Canon EFS are fine if you want to go that route, but if you want to end up at FF or 1.3 factor (1D Mark IIN) the Siggy is currently the only way to do it.

 

The Sigma is quite interesting as it has a double lens hood system, removing the end cap allows the fitting of 82mm filterers, this should work fine on a 1.6 factor camera, for FF and 1.3 you remove a second ring revealing a petal hood ? unfortunately this means you cannot really use a filter on the front of the camera. However, there is a facility to fit rear filters if required.

 

Picture wise it is a very good performer at times it is great, however, it can be let down at time by being a little soft at the edges, but this improves by stopping down. Get the lens in its sweet spot f8/f11 and it produces nice pictures. A couple of examples below... [image]http://static.flickr.com/125/322542645_d7763cf152_o.jpg[/image]

 

[image]http://static.flickr.com/124/322542651_95deb147b1_o.jpg[/image]

 

[image]http://static.flickr.com/143/322547365_eb8e11b45a_o.jpg[/image]

Sorry about that, I check and read the board daily and must have missed it going past. Better safe than sorry.

I don?t think this has been flagged on here - Canon has just released firmware

updates for the:

 

1Ds MKII, - http://tinyurl.com/yn4jc9

 

This firmware update (version 1.1.6) includes the following improvements:

Fix the phenomenon wherein the camera does not detect the capacity correctly

when high-capacity recording media are initialized.

 

1D MkIIN, - http://tinyurl.com/afnor

 

This firmware update (Version 1.1.2) incorporates the following additional

functions:

Fix the phenomenon wherein the camera does not detect the capacity correctly

when high-capacity recording media are initialized.

This firmware update applies to cameras with firmware version up to 1.1.1

installed. If your camera's firmware is already version 1.1.2, it is not

necessary to perform this update.

 

and 1D MKII. - http://tinyurl.com/vk7oz

 

This firmware update (version 1.2.6) includes the following improvements:

Fix the phenomenon wherein the camera does not detect the capacity correctly

when high-capacity recording media are initialized.

This firmware update applies to cameras with firmware version up to 1.2.4

installed. If your camera's firmware is already version 1.2.6, it is not

necessary to perform this update.

I don�t think this has been flagged before "EOS Digital Photo Guidebook for

Professionals" - 48 pages of interesting stuff on EOS � just a warning it runs

to 7.6mb so not so good for those still using dial-up

Happy Reading...

http://www.photoworkshop.com/canon/eos_guidebook/index.html

While slightly off topic, I still think it is relevant to you. Below is an extract from a post I made on a UK Photo site after purchasing a very cheap 4Gb SanDisk Ultra II off eBay.

 

"I was amazed to see that eBay estimate that 95% of all USB memory available for sale on their sites is counterfeit, see http://tinyurl.com/evvun - now why is it you do not come across these things until you do this sort of research. Admittedly it was an obscure reference on Australian eBay, which I must admit is not on my list of favourites or one of my normal sources of information. See also http://tinyurl.com/hf8z7 (SanDisk memory cards on eBay), please note this stuff is very current, June 06.

 

Now I suppose the big question would be is this fake memory good or bad? Now I have read some reports that state that some of these cards are actually of a better quality and faster than the original (newer production techniques, later technology, etc), while others say it is exactly the same (same batch, but from an unofficial source), also some saying that they work but are a bit slower (the inferior clone product). There are also some reports of lower capacity cards that have larger capacity replacement stickers attached (4Gb which in reality was only 34Mb) but these are quite easy to spot, especially when used.

 

While I am not that concerned about accelerated write speeds (I rarely blaze away in RAW at 20 fps), however, I must admit I am more than a little concerned due to the sheer size of the 4Gb card which could potentially be holding nearly 400 images, losing that much material in one go would be extremely painful."