geoff_doane

December 3, 2018

"I never had a camera that stop at a particular frame by reading the roll length. Can you give an example? "

Although my earlier Canon EOS film cameras would always give me 25 frames on a nominal 24 frame roll, the EOS 3 (the last, and only one I still sometimes use) will rewind after it takes the 24th frame. It has to do with reading the second row of contacts on the film canister that specify roll length, All the others only read the first row that designated the ISO speed of the film.

All of them would rewind after shooting 36 frames on a 36-frame roll. 20 years ago posters on Photo.net would complain bitterly about that fact, convinced that Canon was robbing them of at least two frames on every roll!

January 14, 2018

I just purchased a new Manfrotto tripod and MHXPRO-BHQ2 XPRO ball head which has a PL200 quick release attachment . The Manfrotto catalog indicates that the PL200 and older RC2 (which is what I have for my existing cameras and lenses) are compatible, but I seem to have a fitment problem. There is a very slight sideways wobble when the old plates are used on the new ball head. The new plate that was included with the ball head is fine.

None of the older plates wobble in an old model 200 video head that I also have, so I don't think they are bent or worn. The two plates appear to be the same dimensionally, at least without breaking out the calipers and measuring them. The only obvious different is a small circle, cast in the corner of the RC2 plates. That may prevent the pate from sitting on the corner (the release lock sits underneath this circle when the plate is in place).

Has anybody else had this problem? What did you do about it?

Thanks for any light you can shine on this.

January 12, 2017

I shot about 10 rolls of Provia F last year. 6 of them are still in the freezer, waiting for me to expose another 4 before sending them off to Dwayne's in Kansas for processing. Compare that to roughly 7000 digital images last year (between two DSLR bodies).

I think I still shoot film partly because of a sense of nostalgia, and there is that feeling of anticipation when the processed slides come back, and I see the images for the first time on the light box. I almost always shoot slides in tandem with digital, so I can do some test exposures with the digital if the lighting is tricky. The film camera is almost always on a tripod too, which probably helps with the composition and overall sharpness.

November 29, 2016

The plastic bag trick might be necessary if your house is particularly humid, but mine isn't (in the winter time), so I've just left the camera and lenses in the camera bag for a little while to warm up, and never had a problem with condensation.

In fact, the only time I have had a condensation problem was in Florida, exiting an air conditioned car and trying to use the camera in that humid environment. Once I discovered the problem, the camera bag stayed in the trunk, where it would be closer to the outside temperature.

October 20, 2016

Good to hear that you are now satisfied with the purchase.

I thought there might be some value in pointing out that just because the camera has started counting at 7000 doesn't mean that the shutter has been fired 7000 times. If this camera was the floor model (sounds like it may have been and was repackaged when you wanted to buy one), it may have had many different cards in it when customers wanted to take test shots and inspect them at home on their own computers. I know I've done this before when evaluating a new body.

If the internal count on the body is less than the highest number on the card, the next image will increment the card number by 1, not the internal count. In fact, the internal count then becomes the same as the card's. The only way (that I know of) to prevent this, is to insert the used card and then reformat it, before taking the first exposure.

So, if somebody put a card that already had files on it numbered in the 7000s in the camera, fired off a couple shots, and then removed the card, it's quite possible that the camera would appear to start counting in the 7000s when you unpacked it, without having actually taken anywhere near that many shots. However it does mean you don't have a "virgin" camera, and it should have been sold as "demo", open box", or something similar, not "new".

August 15, 2016

The ONLY advantage a 5D would have over the 7D is the fact that it's full frame, and that might not even be an advantage in some circumstances. I owned both for a short while (until I upgraded to a 5DIII), and I honestly think the 7D outperformed the 5D except in its wide angle capabilities.

If I was you, I'd be looking at another (used) 7D as a backup. You already know its quirks and features, so there is no learning curve.

Coincidentally (or maybe not), my 7D failed in a similar fashion to yours. The repair cost was still less than half the cost of a used replacement, so I went ahead and had it fixed. The camera repair shop indicated that it wasn't the first one they had seen with this problem (power module, which may explain the dead battery in yours), so it's possible Canon has a bit of an issue here. It came back from Canon Repair with a filthy sensor too, which actually required wet cleaning to remedy.

June 27, 2016

I used a 5D as my primary camera for about 8 years, before "modernizing" with a 5DIII. The MK III is an improvement in almost all regards except two that stick out for me. I can only get a burst of 7 shots on the newer camera vs. 12 for the original (shooting RAW + small fine jpeg). And the AWB doesn't seem as good on the MK III under less than ideal lighting conditions (dull, overcast daylight). Of course the white balance can be tweaked in post, and I do that for any image that warrants it, but it was a little surprising that Canon got the AWB algorithm right for the 5D, but seemed to drop the ball with the MK III.

All in all, those are rather minor complaints. The 5D was a dust magnet, and had no auto cleaning function like the newer cameras. I love the built-in level in the MK III, and the faster burst rate (even if it is shorter) can be handy too. Also, although it's difficult to know for sure without objective testing, I think the focus is more accurate too.

I decided to upgrade when I did because I could get a reasonably good deal on a new MK III, and there was still some resale value left in the 5D (unlike the XTi I have sitting at home that's perfectly operational, but worth about as much as most consumer film cameras these days). The guy who bought it was ready to go full frame, and I think he's been happy with the purchase.

July 8, 2015

My first ( well, actually my wife's first) DSLR was a black original Rebel, bought at a local store here in Halifax, so they certainly were not just imports. Somewhat ironically, she bought it without a lens, and used the silver 24-85 zoom that had been part of the kit with her previous camera, a Canon IX APS.

July 8, 2015

If you already have a 6D, I think the 7D is the way to go. I had a 5D/30D combination in my camera bag until last fall when I replaced the 30D with a lightly used 7D. The 7 was miles ahead of the 30 (no surprise there), and an improvement even on the 5 in many respects. It certainly can shoot faster, and I think the AF is more accurate (although that is difficult to quantify). The 5D's buffer could only hold 12 RAW/small jpeg files at roughly 3 fps, while I haven't found the limit yet for the 7D. The only downside I can think of for the 7D, besides it not being full frame, is that the files are roughly twice the size of the 5D's.

I've since replaced the 5D with a 5D III, so I'm back to having two cameras with a very similar user interface, the same batteries and chargers, and very similar performance. The 5D III is rather pedestrian in the buffer department however, only allowing 8 shots before it runs out of room. That has caught me a few times. The two cameras also seem to treat colour rendition differently under less than full sun conditions (same EV on both bodies). Subjectively, I find I prefer the 7D, although I'm sure the full frame files could be tweaked to obtain similar results.

I believe the 6D only uses SD cards, while the 7D only accepts CF. You can't mix them up that way, although that might be a disadvantage if you run out of one type on a long session. Unlike the 5D, the 7D allows you to customize the file name prefix, so you won't get a conflict with the other camera. The 7D also has a very useful built-in level in the viewfinder. Since I started wearing eyeglasses a few years ago, I've had a tough time getting images level, and the level function and grid illumination help a lot with that.

And although it's not recommended to take new gear on a "once in a lifetime" trip, that's exactly what I did with the 7D about a week after I bought it. I had an assignment at work that involved spending a bit more than 24 hours on Sable Island, a small spit of sand about 200 miles off shore in the North Atlantic. There isn't much there except shipwrecks and about 400 wild horses. Because we were flying out in a very small plane, we were very constrained with how much equipment we could take. That made the choice to take the 7D (with the built-in flash if I needed it) and just a couple lenses easier. I was also concerned about getting dust on the 5D's sensor early in the trip, and not being able to do anything about it. The 7D has automatic sensor cleaning, which so far seems quite effective.

And just in case you ever want to shoot video, the 7D can do that.<div></div>

January 13, 2014

I made a trip to the same area with my wife and daughter in March 2007. In our case, we hired a guide for the day. It's not cheap, but having somebody who knows the territory was an advantage for us. We were only in Page for one day, and he looked after us from dawn to dusk. March turned out to be a good time to visit. It was below freezing at night, and the floor of some canyons had snow, but during the day it was an excellent temperature for hiking. It was also cold enough that there was virtually no chance of rattlesnakes being active!

We started the day at Upper Antelope Canyon, and managed to get there before the crowds got too thick. I was aware ahead of time about the sand, so left the same lens on the camera (17-40 on a 5D) all day. Even so, some goobers managed to get on the sensor early in the day. Even early in the morning, light was filtering down to the bottom of the slot. The floor of the upper canyon is level, so almost anybody should be able to walk through it, if that is a concern. I didn't find it dusty, but there weren't hoards of people yet either, and I was able to use the tripod for a number of interesting shots.

For the rest of the day, we travelled to Round Valley Draw in Utah. The guide did the driving and provided lunch, while we took in the landscape. Round Valley Draw is wider, deeper, and much longer than Antelope, and has a few spots that require rudimentary climbing skills with ropes. We walked about 2 or 3 miles down the canyon before doubling back. The geology here is also quite different with a lot of harder rock mixed in with the sandstone. That also means that the canyon is strewn with boulders, so the hiking is much more challenging. Because we were doing a lot of walking here, I didn't take the tripod, but still used the 17-40 for all my shots.<div></div>

January 2, 2014

" It may turn out this is necessary, you've shorted pin 13 and 14 which are +5v, and ground. This explains the symptoms - camera wide - and may have done other electronic damage... either way, I wouldn't try to turn on the camera again until those pins are un shorted!"

Good diagnosis here, but I think the bent pin is actually 13, or if I'm looking at it upside down, 38.

http://pinouts.ru/Memory/CompactFlash_pinout.shtml

The good news is, these are both +5V, so if you break one off, the other will still power the card. I actually had this happen in a Marantz PMD-660 portable audio recorder. The center pin in one row was bent. I attempted to straighten it, figuring I had nothing to lose, and it broke. But, the recorder worked, and continues to work. I didn't give it much thought at the time, but the diagram above explains why.

And if you screw it up, a competent repair shop should be able to replace the socket. This requires specialized tools and skills, so I wouldn't recommend trying it yourself unless you do this kind of repair for a living.

Geoff

January 3, 2013

If you want to match Nikon, you'll have to change the direction you mount the lenses too. That's more than a simple firmware hack. :-)

Personally, I've just treated the dials as water faucets. I spin them ccw to open up, and let more light in, cw to close it down. Unfortunately, the ISO doesn't work the same way, but I've made my peace with that.

June 13, 2012

I shoot primarily digital these days, with a 5D and 30D, but I still take slides from time to time, and bought a used EOS 3 a couple years ago to replace my worn out mid-level film cameras. I'm pretty sure it's the last film camera I will ever buy, since it's built like a tank.

Focus accuracy is better than the two digitals, but one thing I miss, now that I wear glasses, is the diopter correction that the digitals provide. It's also incredibly loud (I think it had the reputation of being the loudest of the EOS line, back in the day).

And yes, it's heavy. Mine is even more so, with the vertical grip/battery holder. I think you would definitely want to try one of these before committing to lugging it around for a wedding.

I would also rule out the 1/1N, not only because it's likely had a hard life, but it also doesn't take advantage of the E-TTL flash (EX series flashes) that has been pretty much standard for the last 15 years.

I'm afraid I have no experience with the 1V, so I don't know how it compares to the EOS 3 in terms of weight/noise.

March 25, 2012

“Poison Ivy” sounds like a mysterious woman, that only a chosen few will meet under a full moon ;)

I'm not sure that was exactly what the Coasters had in mind.

<a href="

Luckily there's not much poison ivy around where I live (or poisonous snakes), but I think I did get messed up with some poison sumac once while out shooting. I have to remember to look where I'm going while crashing through the underbrush.

March 5, 2012

Harumph! 36 MP is nothing. You might as well skip all that, and buy one of these with 40 MP:

<a href="http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/27/nokia-announces-808-pureview-belle-os-4-inch-display-41-megap/">http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/27/nokia-announces-808-pureview-belle-os-4-inch-display-41-megap/</a>

Not only does it have more pixels, you can make a phone call with it. :-)

With a bit of luck, the D800 will give Canon a run for their money, and the price on the 5D3 will drop some by the time I'm ready to replace (or augment) my trusty 5D MKI. And even though it is now 6 years old, and I paid full Canadian price for it, I'm not regretting that purchase a bit!

July 25, 2011

To my mind, the beauty of the 5D/30D combination is that the user interface and batteries/chargers are virtually identical, which makes operation simpler and requires you to drag less stuff along on a trip. It also gives you the "free" magnification factor of the crop body. (It's the combination I have at the moment.)

Unfortunately, the logical upgrade from this combo would be the 5DII and 7D, which is more coin than I'm likely to plunk down any time soon. In the OP's situation, another 5Dc might be the most affordable and useful option. For my purposes, the 5D/30D combination is still working.

July 2, 2011

Hmm, maybe the same thing will hapen with my EF 35/2. The AF/MF switch fell off one day, so before I lost the part, I tacked it back on with small dab of crazy glue. MF was fine, but AF hunted hopelessly, so I've stuck with MF since then. It's not really a hardship, since the arc form drive wasn't exactly speedy anyway.

My 50/1.4 was purchased used in 1998, is perhaps my most used lens, and gets used practically every day. So far, it has performed flawlessly, and I'm constantly surprised by how much detail is there when pixel peeping. But just in case, I do have a 50/2.5 macro on my EOS 3 as a backup!

May 27, 2011

I destroyed a 350D body by mounting a 50mm lens I had "repaired" onto it.. (some electrical short inside the lens fried the body). So think several times before trying this.. you might end up spending more than you expect. I know I did.

Hmm, I knew I was hanging onto those old EOS film bodies for something.

August 25, 2010

If you are planning to keep the 30D as a backup, the 5D makes even more sense, since the control layout is virtually identical, and it uses the same batteries. After owning the 5D for a few years, I bought a reconditioned 30D as a backup and to use for "long lens" shots. The 5D is significantly better for resolution (obviously), the larger viewfinder, and its focus accuracy. The only situations that I would actually choose the 30D first are if I need the length (the quite affordable 200/2.8L becomes the equivalent of a 300/2.8), or the built-in flash.

FWIW, I've owned the 5D since January 2006, and have shot about 3-4000 images per year with it. Other than having to clean the sensor periodically, it's been trouble free. It travels in a padded Lowepro backpack, but I don't exactly baby any of the gear.

August 18, 2010

Have you re-sized them so that Windows Picture and Fax Viewer doesn't have to do any re-sizing? I typically use that application for "slide shows", but re-size to 1024 pixels wide and apply appropriate sharpening, and don't have any complaints with it. It's possible that DPP is applying additional sharpening that gives it the edge (uh-oh, a pun).

Oddly enough, I find DPP does a terrible job of displaying TIFFs. I generally convert to TIFF with no sharpening, but they always seem to look very soft.

June 29, 2010

I was in Toronto's Pearson Airport Sunday, and walked past this installation:

<a href="http://www.scotiabankcontactphoto.com/public-installations/187">http://www.scotiabankcontactphoto.com/public-installatio ns/187</a>

My first thought was, "Gee, those pixels are are about a quarter inch square". Then I went back and read the caption and artist bio and discovered that the photos were all lifted from flickr and were low resolution to start with. As an amateur photographer myself, I was somewhat miffed that someone would collect photos from the 'net, give no credit to the original photographers, and pass the collection off as their own work. To add insult to injury, I assume that Scotiabank paid the "artist" a tidy sum for this. BTW, the printing on some of the panels was rather less than professional, with ragged edges on some. She did get all the horizons level, as far as I could tell.

Thoughts?

June 17, 2010

May be a dumb question and right under my nose...

Yes, it is literally, right under your nose.

June 8, 2010

I had this happen to a number of images, but it wasn't the fault of the camera or CF card. I had just installed two new hard drives in my computer, and set them up as a RAID array. About half the images I copied to them from the CF had this type of corruption. Removing the RAID configuration solved the problem (on any newly copied images), and they've been fine ever since.

Luckily, I still had all the images on the CF cards, and was able to transfer them after removing the RAID. I now rotate through several cards and don't format them until I'm ready to use them again so that my backup path is a little bit longer.

June 8, 2010

I'm not sure about the 5DII, since I don't have one, but on all the EOS bodies I've owned, it's done by setting Custom Function 4 to "1". It's my default setting because it ensures that the camera will only attempt to focus when I want it to, not when I push the shutter release. I can't imagine not using it when employing a tripod, for instance. It does slow down the process of focussing and taking a picture I suppose, but that isn't usually an issue for the kind of photography I do.

April 7, 2010

I can get my sensors virtually spot free at f/22, with just dry cleaning with a static charged brush (they may not stay that way for long, but that's not the fault of the cleaning), so I would hope a "pro" charging for the service should be able to do just as well. It's worth learning how to clean the sensor yourself. You may get a piece of junk on the sensor on the second day of your trip. All you really need is a clean synthetic hair makeup brush of the appropriate width, and a can of compressed air. (The compressed air is for cleaning and charging the brush, NOT for spraying the sensor.) It may take a few tries to get all the junk off the sensor, but the experts seem to agree that it's pretty hard to damage the sensor if you don't do something stupid.

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Posts posted by geoff_doane