olivier_de_lame

Hi,

I do not have neither of these lenses, but I have 135 mm F2 L (I love it). I have also 50mm F1.8. I would not try to use 50/1.8 because its AF motor is too slow for an event like a wedding. Notice that 135mm F2.8 SF does not have USM, so it might be too slow also. About the lenght of the lens, if you can estimate the distance you will be from the subject, and its heigth (+ a little reserve: so 2m = 6 feet) you can estimate the length of the lens.

For me 85mm should be OK for indoor shoots while 135 mm is better for outdoor.

Regards,

Olivier

Thank you,

It will be useful if I go to Japan.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I have an Elan 7 (not E) and I use quite often the focus-point selection when the object is close: it is than difficult to use the central point and recompose, because the focusing plane is modified. When the object is far this problem is less accute.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

Although I do not have the 50mm 1.4, I would second the opinion "Don't save the money...": for portrait you need a fast AF, and the 50mm 1.8 micromotor is too slow.

Regards,

Olivier

Hi,

I have an Elan 7; In SOME OF THE BASIC MODES ONLY, the on-camera flash pops up if there is not enough light; if for some reason the flash is prevented from popping up, there is an error code on the display, and you have to open your flash by your-self: the camera does not try a second time. I think you can also reset this by putting the camera to off, but I am not sure. Of course it will also not pop-off if you put another flash on the camera, but then there is no error.

The camera NEVER closes the flash by it-self.

Probably while wanting to close the flash you have prevented it from popping-up while pushing the button half-way by mistake.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

Not a definitive answer:

1) The price you give for 50mm 1.8 seems to me erroneous: in B&H a NEW 50mm 1.8 is 69.95 $ (64.95$ imported.

2) I have 50mm 1.8 I (metal mount), and now I think I made an error when I bought it: it is sharp, and very good all in all, but the AF is slow. I will buy a 50mm 1.4 once. If you are making landscape photos, no problem; but for action or portrait the slow AF is a problem.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I have an Elan 7 (not e) and (amongst other lenses) 50mm 1.8 I and 28-90mm USM. I do not have any problem with any of the focusing point, although the central point is the best (expected: it is cross type). The 50mm 1.8 is much better than the 28-90, BUT AF is much slower: it is not USM. I will surely buy a 50mm 1.4 later because of this.

Regards,

Olivier.

You need a circular polarizer.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi

I do not know anything about this lens, but in http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/ there is basic information about a 400 mm 4.5 SSC that was first marketed in October 1975.

(http://www.canon.com/camera-museum/camera/lens/f_lens.html)

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

As stated before, most probably the yellowish cast comes from the lighting. The blurry problem can come from autofocus problem: if I am right, you have an Elan 7 and you come from a 28-90mm USM; exactly the same way I went. At f4 1/60 you should not have too much camera shake, but the 50mm f1.8 is NOT usm; this means that the focus takes much more time than with USM. I have still (after two years of use) sometimes difficulties to focus when photographing people. You have to wait till you are sure to have the right focus. Recomposition is also sometimes problematic.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

From what I understand you would like a long OUTDOOR portrait lens (portrait and street photography) suitable for wildlife. I own the 135 f2, and given that you have a multiplying factor with your 10D, I think it is applicable for you. Of course 85 f1.8 or 100 f2 come also into account. One question is: do you need a large aperture? If it is the case, the zoom are out and then really I would go for the 135mm f2.

Regards,

Olivier

Hi,

I think this question has already been asked 100 times, so my answer stays the same: I have the 50 mm f/1.8 Mark I (in metal, with a distance scale (II does not have one), ...) in general it is considered has having the same optical quality as Mark II, but much better build. I know for sure I will replace it once with a 50mm f/1.4 USM, because the AF of f/1.8 if very, very, very slow. If you are photographing landscape, it is less important; if you are doing portrait you will miss photos with f/1.8 . BUT f/1.8 is cheeper.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I have no knowledge about film processing, but some on distilled water. Pure H2O water should be at 7.0 ph. However distilled water is almost never pure: in practice the main gaz that gets diluted in the water is C02 and this brings the Ph closer to 6.0 . My experience comes from aquarium where I used to put distilled water to replace evaporated water. To verify this you can take a little sample of water, and make bubbles by blowing pure air (not from your respiration). This should bring the Ph closer to 7.0 . Blowing afterwards with your respiration will bring the Ph back to 5.8 .

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

Yes the 28-90 zoom lens is not of a very good quality; however if you have the intent to develop only 10x15 cm prints (~ 4x6") it will be OK. You might be disapointed if you want to make bigger prints to put on a wall for instance. The 75-300 USM is already of better quality.

You are right about USM: USM is very desirable especially to make photos of childs and babies: it is very fast and you do not have too much time: for landscapes it is less critical.

A real problem you will have (or at least it is a problem I had once), with zoom lens (even of better quality than yours) is that you cannot use a large apperture to isolate your subject; moreover for babies you cannot use flash (at least until the color of their eyes is stabilized that means until the age 2). This is one of the reasons I use mostly fixed lenses.

The term "macro" refer to the ability of the lens to enlarge the subject: if you make a photo of a bee and you get a bee of 5 cm on your 10x15cm print, it can make a big effect. As such the macro capability is related to the focal lenght divided by the minimum focusing distance. In fact I think that even with your 28-90mm (which has a minimal focusing distance of 0.38m you can already make close-up (not real macro) of feet or hands. You will have to use a smaller aperture, because at close distances the depth of field (that is the area around the focusing plane that stays acceptably sharp) is small. Here, outside of specialized macro lenses, I doubt you will find a real advantage by using fixed lenses.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

Actually I think as harvey platter: from my experience, even with a very bad lens (28-90) I can get a blue sky, and with a very good lens (50/1.8 or 135/2) I can get a "white" sky. It depends very much on the angle between the direction of the shoot and the sun, the presence of clouds,... and above all of the correctness of your meetering. If you want a blue sky you should base your meetering on a spot in the sky (and compensate to get a good apperture/speed for the other parts of the picture).

In fact the brighness of the sky is so high during most of the day, that to get a good sky, it is much easier to take picture early in the morning or late in the afternoon.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I have an Elan 7 (Not e, it is equivalent to EOS 33). In the beginning I used quite a lot the built-in flash (~ 50% of the time). Yet I found that the battery hold for some 30 rolls. I do not expect the eye control to consume a lot.

I would be surprised if your problem was due to the age of the batteries: this kind of batterie hold for years. The only explanation (outside of a problem in the camera) could be that the batteries have been used before you bought them.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

About the 50mm: I had also hesitated between 50mm 1.8 and 50mm 1.4 . On the end I found a 50mm 1.8 Mark I and I bought it. In fact I think now it was an error: this lens is not USM and the AF is pretty slow (and noisy). If you need a good AF, take 50mm 1.4. Depending on your usage, you could also look for the 50 mm 2.5 Macro: as always there is a compromise between the needs, the money and the capabilities of the lens.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I own the 50mm f1.8 Mark I. In fact I bought it after I read all the reviews praising its high quality. It is a high quality lens, but outside of the very good build quality of the 50 mm f1.4, I think you have to take into account that 50mm f1.8 (Mark I or Mark II) is not USM. This is a good reason why I will probably buy a 50mm 1.4 later: the AF of 50mm f1.8 is really too slow.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi Phil,

I have the 135 mm f2 L (and I like it very much). I use it amongst other things to take portrait of childrens. A very nice feature is the ability to take photos from close (the closest focusing distance is 0.9 m, really close). I have heard that some people had some adaptation problems with the full-time manual focusing, but for me it is a non-issue. I had no flare problem, but the hood does not disturb me.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

Of course there is a question of personal taste; however both landscape and enviroment portraits seems to me to lead to a wide lens. I think in your case 24 mm is the best choice. Notice however that 24mm f2.8 is not USM.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi Kenneth,

I have just got mine from B&H "imported". So far so good: good feel, fast USM, ... and not too expensive. Will be able to say more in some times.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi Mark,

To answer your question, I do not have experience with third party lenses. However as quality is not a big issue, I would expect them to be good enough. I never really took photos (outside of snapshots) on a boat, so I am not sure a tripod will work as well as on earth. Here your 75-300 IS can be very effective.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi Mark,

I do not understand why she did not send back the extender when she saw she cannot use it. Yes it is not a good practice to send back an article that is perfectly functionning, but it can be done if you find an accord with B&H.

I do not see any good lens for a little budget; there are some third party lenses for less than 500$ that go till 400mm (or till 500mm for 600$); it depends which quality you need: for WEB publication or for 10x15 cm (4x6 inches) even Vivitar could be sufficient. In any case only Canon has IS.

Sorry,

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi Chris,

I do not think you can buy from Canon directly, but as apparently you are in Europe (EOS 1000 is Rebel II in the USA if I am not confusing). As far as I know there are no manual camera in the EOS serie, but you can always switch your lens to MF.

I own the Canon EF 50mm 1.8; it is a very good lens. However if I had to buy it a second time, I would buy EF 50mm 1.4: USM makes the difference: faster quieter and more precise AF can make the difference between a good shoot and a missed shoot.

Regards,

Olivier.

Hi,

I did not use really EOS 3 nor Elan II, however from the specifications I see both have the same AF working range (0-18 EV). As EOS 3 is newer and has much more autofocus sensors (45 sensors with 7 cross-type for EOS3 and only 3 with 1 cross-type for Elan II), I would expect EOS 3 to perform better, but not so much as to justify the expense. Notice that EV4 @ISO 100 is very low: at ISO 100 it means an apperture of 1/4 s with f:2.0. If your childrens are playing inside, you can add lighting: in my home at night I find at least EV6 to EV7 @ISO 100 (when I put the lights on).

Regards,

Olivier.