nick_doan

The 24-70/2.8L is a high quality lens and will always give decent picture quality, but shooting sports at 70mm on the long ned might be difficult. The 70-200/2.8L IS is a fairly heavy lens, but very handholdable for two to four hours. Shooting football with it is kindof hard, for plays more than 20 yards away it really doesn't have enough reach. You could try it with a 1.4x TC and see if that helps. I shoot football mainly with a 70-200 IS lens on one camera and a 300/28 on the other. (I iwsh I had a 400/2.8 but cant quite afford it yet.) I'm probably going to add a 1.4x TC to my 300, and hope that I can maintain a shallow enough DoF.

For indoor sports, I think the 70-200 as ideal for Basketball...Hockey it does okay in well lit arenas, but some times it isn't long enough.

A monopod can be helpful, but I wouldn't call it *necessary*

The Stofen Omni Bounce does nothign to soften the light source if pointed directly at the subject. It's only good if you are bouncing it off a ceiling. Since the Omni Bounce extends from the body of the flash, you get some light thrown out all around the edges, and the rest is thrown out the front.

Since, the light source has not changed size however, there is no softening of the light. This is a basic lighting concept, but hard to remember sometimes.

If you are shooting in daylight, make sure you set the custom function for Automatic Fill Flash Reduction off. Basically, ETTL works, you just have to learn *how* it works. The 10D is probably the camera that ETTL and the 550EX work the best with.

fyi, you *can* disable the pre-flash on the 550EX by setting it to manual. It is therefore no longer E-TTL, and no longer using the pre-flash for evaluative metering.

I do this sometimes when I need to fire an optical slave and only have my 550EX handy.

Georges,

I use a 550EX in FP mode that allows me to shoot at as fast a shutter speed as I like. On my Canon 1D, that's 8 frames per second. Attached to a Quantum Turbo battery, and only using the flash as fill, I've gotten 5 or 6 frames at 1/500 with flash. If you are suing the flash at full power though, even with the Quantum Turbo, it takes a full second for the flash to recycle.

I am not sure if FP mode is compatible with the A2, but it might be worth it to you to check...and check the 540EZ which is the flash that is most compatible with your camera from what I recall.

Mary,

I also own the 10D as well as the 1D. You might find that even though the 10D has more megapixels, the 1D will hold its own in print resolution up to the largest of print sizes. I know of one photographer that uses his 1D to capture images for Billboards, and you can't get a much larger print than that.

The only real difference in my experience is ehen you make an extreme crop. At that point, the 10D has a better chance of resolving more deatil. But, in similar frames, I really feel like my 1D resolves the finer details better. Especially when shooting at ISO1600.

I regularly make 8x10 prints from a Noritsu printer with both cameras, and I can't tell the difference. (I think it's all in the post processing at that point.) I wouldn't hesitate to to an 11x14 or 13x19 unless I'm cropping to less than 1/3 of the frame.

Finally, the 10D does have almost 2/10 of a second shutter lag. I never noticed that on my Eos 3. Then 1D has almost none. I shoot mainly sports (football, basketball), and it's definitely a concern. I don't know how fast you need to snap the shutter shooting birds...but the 1D is just a better all around camera. And, the AF is unmatchable, I feel like it's about 3 times faster than my 10D.

What camera are you going to be using? There is nothing wrong with the 135/2L but it sounds to me like spending just a little more to get a 70-200/2.8 L IS would be a lot less hassle for you, and you wouldn't have to worry about changing teleconverters all the time.

I wonder why you haven't thought about just buying the Canon 70-200/2.8L lens without IS and a 1.4 telelconverter with it. That would still be about 300 dollars cheaper than with the IS lens.

Personally, I have no real problem with the 2X TC, and know many shooters who use it. I own one and use it occasionallym and though there might be some slight degradation with it...it hasn't been enough to stop any photos of mine from getting purchased.

Jacek,

I have heard more than one complaint from some Canadian news photographers that have trouble with their 10D's not firing while shooting inside of cold Hockey Arenas. It's just starting to get to be winter there, so I'm waiting to hear if more trouble starts up in the colder weather.

I've shot my 10D at Sun Devil Stadium in 107 degree F heat. And, it's hotter than that on the field in direct sunlight. My 10Ds functioned well under those conditions, though they got hot to the the touch. Most of the people used to shooting in that stadium carry small towels with them to cover their camera bodies...

Funny, first off, I love the Canon 70-200/4L and think everybody who can afford one should own one. Second, I hate to be carrying camera gear around when I'm trying to enjoy myself.

When I went to Disney World, I found the most convenient camera to bring was a Canon Elph...the APS film version...because I could put it in my pocket, ride rides with it, run across the park, and completely ignore it except when I really needed to take a picture. Nowadays, i miht opt for the Canon S400, the digital Elph, but mainly for the same reasons.

If I were going to document a family's excursion to Disneyland, I might bring all my gear... But, that's different. You can record an event, or you can participate in it. It's very hard to do both. (maybe you should ask your family how they feel about it...)

Josh,

A 300D might be a good camera if you don't really want to think about the camera at all, and just want to be able to point it at things and shoot pictures, and to change lenses every once in a while. Most photographers are a bit more technical than that and might feel limited by the 300D. I've only played with one in a camera shop, but I have shot with a D60, and own a 10D... The D60 is a decent camera for it's time, and though it has a few issues, it's still a great camera that can make good pictures. I know more than one newspaper photographer who have been assigned these cameras (D60s)and won't be upgrading for a few months yet.

I've personnally been shooting with 10Ds the last few months and really like them. If you can afford the extra $500-600, i'd highly recommend it. But, i'd prefer a D60 over a 300D at the same price.

Helpful suggestions from people...but the one main thing you want to consider in shooting High School football is that HS Stadium lighting sucks. Even with an F2.8 lens, you are going to have trouble topping speeds of 1/250 at ISO1600 in the best of high school stadiums. And, 1/250 isn't really fast enough to capture fast motion football.

Get a flash, the 550EX with a Quantum Turbo battery would be my suggestion.<div></div>

70-200 4/L with a 1.4x TC should still autofocus on the digital rebel. It'll give you almost the range you want, and still stay as sharp as one of Canon's sharpest lenses can get you.

Just make sure your shutter speeds are 1/300 or less when using the combo...

I know for certain that I never set my E-TTL pre-flash off. And, I have no trouble using my 550EX to set off the two B800s I was playing with over the weekend.

I might have had 2nd curtain synch set though.

Interpolation is not a bad thing. I am not sure where you got that impression. I can interpolate a 6megapizel file into enough data to make a 40x60 print out of the Canon 10D.

If you have the $35 to invest, you should buy Scott Kelby's Photoshop for Digital Photographers. It's not at all about photography, it just shows us how to manipulate our images (ste-by-step) once we have gotten them into a usable format (whether from a digital camera or a scanned slide).

He has an interpolation scheme that works very well on page 86.

Umm, the Canon 1Ds has a full frame sensor so there is no "equivalent" focal length. I'm not sure what you are trying to get at Melvin. All the EOS SLR lenses fit on any Canon dSLR, and the good ones are still good, and the bad ones are still bad.

If you don't understand the need or draw of SLRs, then there is no real point ot having this discussion.

Are you using the in camera formatting or the File Viewer formatting?

when I first got my cards (Sandisk Ultra) the in camera formatting only gave me about 240megs out of 256megs, but when I formatted it using the File Viewer tools, It gave me about 250megs. Not sure why this happened, it just did with both cards.

Personally, I prefer the A2 to the Elan7. I'd probably sell the 7 and keep the A2 and get an Eos 3. If I wanted to stay with film. Are you feeling limitations with your current gear? That's the only reason I see to get a new body. If you don't feel limited by your bodies' capabilities, why not spend the money on lenses? Don't get me wrong, I love my Eos 3. It was much cheaper than the 1V, and did everything that I needed it to do.

As for not going digital...it's still a camera. If you are proficient with your other cameras, switching to a 10D is easy. You are just using CF cards to record the image instead of film. And, if you pro lab is keeping up with the times, they probably have facilities to print your digital images easily. My lab will even do image editing if I request it. (Generally, I request that they print my digital files the way I present them.)

Something to consider.

Thanks for all the great advice guys. I think of myself as fairly competent with a camera, and I have been doing a lot of test shooting with my 10D since I got it.

I am going to try this with the 28/2.8 (45mm equivalent). I'll have my film cameras with me too, so I'll have this shot on Portra 160 just in case.

I'm fairly confident that I can pull this off at a respectable level. I've seen past prints, and they were taken with manual 35mm cameras. And, for the past 20+ years, they all have been taken in the same place with teh same arrangements. I won't be able to do much to change that.

I'll see if I can't post something when I get back.

Thanks,

Nick.

I just got a 10D, and have no plans on getting rid of my Eos3. I am very used to my Eos3 (having switched from an A2), and expect a fairly long learning curve moving into the digital world.

OTher than the learning curve though, I am also very used to the workflow of my film cameras, and am giving myself plenty of time to change over. I like to shoot a lot of black and white, develop and print myself, and don't see myself giving up much of that... But, getting the 10D is going to open up a lot of doors that had been closed. I just had a client bail on a three months contract because they did not have any ideas what film and processing cost. 10-15 rolls of Fuji Press 1600 with processing and contact sheets done by a professional labs, followed with print costs for their marketing materials completely freaked them out, that was before discussing my fees.

With a digital camera, I think I could have offset a lot of that, and they might have met my (minimal) fees and printing costs. (I am not going back to them though, they were very unprofessional about it all.)

Anyway, my point is that, I am keeping both. And, plan on using both in the future.

Nick.

I haven't posted here in a few weeks. Work instituted new internet

policies and this site got cut off.

Anyway, I just picked up a Canon 10D ($1350 at Best Buy with 10% off

and 18 mos. no interest financing! Yay!! And a 4 year Best Buy

warranty for $99; who needs Mack?) One of my purposes is that I am

going to my wife's Family Reunion in Iowa last week celebrating 150

years since her Irish Ancestors settled in America. I'll be taking a

family portrait against a Rust-Red barn of between 60 and 90 people.

This image will join other images of the approximate size of 20x30 in

the living room of the family farm. In the past, these images were

all taken by 35mm at ISO100 on consumer film, and once with a medium

format camera done by a local professional.

Anyway, I am putting up my skills against all of these past

photographers, and am hoping the 10D can produce an image at least as

good. For lenses, I'm going to try to use either the Canon 28/2.8 or

the 17-40/4L at ISO 100, and taking a custom white balance that

afternoon at the farm.

I have yet to know what the weather will be like in Lansing, Iowa on

July 5th, but come rain or shine, I have to be there.

Anybody with any suggestions or pitfalls I should look out for?

Generally, the entire family lines up against the barn; which has a

slight hill leading up to it, so the rows are staggered. About 10-15

people wide, four or five rows of people, with the little ones and

the elderly sitting in chairs in the front.

Thanks for any advice and comments! :)

Franciszek,

I, too, have noticed you posting this misinformation about the ES-E1 software before, so it isn't just Isaac. It shows a lack of knowledge of the camera, the software and how Windows XP works in general. (Did you know that Windows XP has compatibility modes that you can set on each executable so that you could run it as a Win98 process?)

Adorama and B&H and other vendors are just vendor sites with quick blurbs about products. if you want real product information go to Canon's website, or find a reliable review site that has copied the specs directly from Canon.

Kim,

Since nobody has said it directly, the Rebel and the Elan7 are missing a very big feature for photographers. The Spot Meter. If you want to be a serious photographer, you should learn all about exposure and metering, and not having a spot meter is a serious handicap. Granted the Elan 7, has a "partial" spot meter, but a true spot meter is just more versatile. Hence, my suggestion on the Eos 3.

Teleconverter?

You must have a better head on your tripod than me...my Eos 3 is a little front heavy with this lens, especially with my 2x TC on it.

Tempe Camera in Tempe, AZ for $150/day. Renting it for 10 days would cost you $1500. Might as well buy one, then sell it for $1450 if you decide you don't like it.

Just call a pro photographer in your area, and ask him where he rents equipment.

Tiffen?

AFAIK, Tiffen still makes uncoated filters. I like their filters, because they seem to use an uncoated glass, that is a lot easier to clean than Multi-Coated filters. They're less likely to scratch, and even their colored filters have the colorization inside the glass somehow.

But, to the original poster...I'd probably go with the Hoya. Just the HMC though, their super-coated Pro filters streak a lot in my opinion.

Hmm, a 1V would be nice, but if you can't afford the lenses, maybe you should step down a little.

The cost of 1V would buy an Eos 3 and a 70-200/4L. That way you get a Pro-Body and an L lense! :)

Get the 24/2.8 and the 50/2.5 macro, and you're well covered in focal lengths.

The 1V is a wonderful camera, but the Eos 3 is almost as good for most purposes. Think of the Eos 3 being 8 x better than your current camera, and the 1V being 10X better. That will make it easier to decide. ;)