jcolwell

<p>I have two 420EX that I use with a 580EX, 58OEX II and/or ST-E2. It's a fine flash on your EOS camera (which controls it), and it's a fine flash for off-camera use, when you have a more advanced unit to control it. <br>

I do not agree that E-TTL is basically useless for doing something creative - you just have to learn how to use it.</p>

<p>...nope, here it is.</p><div></div>

<p>...and here's the second photo.</p>

<p>I use Op/Tech SLR AF and AF-Pro soft pouch body covers on my gear when I shoot paintball. These body covers are designed to completely cover a camera + short lens, and so I cut off the end of the lens cover part so that my bigger lens sticks through (I use 300/4L IS on 1DII, 70-200/2.8L IS on 1DII and 24-70L on 5D). This gives really good protection to the lens mount area, where it would probably be a pain to take a direct shot. I cut a flap in the back of the body cover to line up with the finder. It's easy to fire the shutter right through the body cover, and it's also easy to slip your fingertip under the edge of the body cover to adjust the Main Dial. It's also easy to open the back of the body cover to get at the control buttons and LCD. Also, I cover the barrels of the lenses with custom-fitting cylindrical sleeves made of thick, clear, sheet plastic and held together with duct tape (it's better for this than gaffer tape). The lens sleeve goes from the front of the body to the base of the hood (which is always attached). It's easy to turn the zoom and MF rings, because the sleeves aren't stuck to the lenses. It's even possible to use some of the lens control switches through the sleeves, like the IS 1/0 switch, but not the smaller flat ones, like zoom range and AF/MF switches. <br />

<p>I use the same approach when shooting outdoors on ships in bad weather, and I add a Op/Tech hood hat to the end of each lens, to keep spray off the front element while I'm not actually shooting (the lens caps go in the bag at the start of a shoot).<br />

<p>I attached photos of a 5D with 24-70L and 1DII with 70-200/2.8L IS. The AF-Pro cover fits very well on a gripped 30D (or 40D/50D), and it's a bit tight on the 1DII bodies that I now use instead of 30D bodies.<br>

<p>(edit - it looks like the 24-105L in the first photo, not the 24-70L. Anyway, I'm sure you get the idea.)</p>

</p>

</p><div></div>

<p>What's your budget?</p>

<p>Congratulations. I'm sure you will enjoy it. <br>

 

<p>I thought I'd mention this in case you didn't know: dust on the sensor becomes more visible as you stop down, because the DOF increases both at the subject and at the sensor. It's quite possible to have some dust that isn't visible at something like f/1.8 or f/2.8, but it leaps out at you for apertures of say f/11 and smaller. Of course, dust also falls off the sensor, but it'll reappear when you least expect it, unless you clean it out.</p>

</p>

<p>Take a deep breath. Exhale. Grab a camera and go take some photos. Spend less time reading about problems that others report. When you have a problem, get it fixed. Take a deep breath. Exhale...</p>

<p>It's Domke Grippers for me, for camera weights up to a 1dII with 70-200/2.8L IS. Anything heavier gets a strap on the lens (usually a Domke Gripper).</p>

<p>It's probably your battery. When the battery gets cold, it rapidly looses capacity and this can affect the camera metering, AF and all kinds of other things. When the camera comes inside and teh battery gets warmed up, it works fine. Next time, take a second battery and keep it inside your clothes. When the first one gets flaky, swap them and use the warm one while the cold one warms up. I've used five kinds of Canon DSLR in temps down to -25deg C, and the only thing that stops working is the battery.</p>

Here's a recent photo.net thread that has dozens on links on using manual focus lenses on EOS bodies, including the ones Steve mentioned - http://www.photo.net/canon-eos-digital-camera-forum/00SA3D

There are three manual focus SMC Pentax "K" mount 32/2 lenses; SMC Pentax 35/2, SMC Pentax-M 35/2, and SMC Pentax-A 35/2. The first is the best and the -M is the worst. There is a M42 screw-mount SMC Takumar 35/2 from Pentax that's also very good. OTOH, I recommend the Contax Carl Zeiss Distagon 35/2.8 - it's at least as good as the SMC Pentax 35/3.5 (which is rated more highly than the best 35/2), and it's better than the highly regarded Carl Zeiss Jena MC Flektogon 35/2.4 - I've compared all of them head-to-head, and I kept the Zeiss (and an EF 35/2).

<p>Mark Hubsand's compatibility list at <a href="http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/adapters_5d.html">http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/adapters_5d.html</a> shows OK for the Leica-R 35/2 on 5D. Have fun! Jim.</p>

What Bob said.

Here's some links you might find useful.

 

<p> <a href="http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eosfaq/manual_focus_EOS.html">Bob Atkins</a>

<br><a href="http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-manual-lenses/">NK Guy</a>

<br><a href="http://members.tripod.com/rick_oleson/index-99.html">Rick Oleson's lens mount pages</a>

<br><a href="http://www.a1.nl/phomepag/markerink/mounts.htm">W.J. Markerink's Camera Mounts and Registers Page</a>

<br><a href="http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/compatible.html">16-9.net Canon 5D Adapted Lens Compatibility lists</a>

<br><a href="http://medfmt.8k.com/bronmounts.html">Robert Monaghan's Lens Mount Converters FAQ</a>

<br><a href="http://medfmt.8k.com/third/mounts.html#list">Monaghan's Interchangeable Lens Mounts</a>

<br><a href="http://www.pebbleplace.com/Personal/Leica_db.html">Canon Leica-R Compatibility database</a>

<br><a href="http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/#TIAOOF">Harold Merklinger's The INs and OUTs of Focus</a>

Harold Merklinger's The INs and OUTs of Focus http://www.trenholm.org/hmmerk/#TIAOOF

 

<p><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/board/55">Alternative Digital Systems & Lenses forum</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic2/574010">Altering Pentax K Mount to Canon Eos 5D</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00LgIJ ">5D adapter for Contax, or for rollei</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/541453/0#4693802">OM or FD on Canon</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic2/499803">Canon 5D and Zeiss lenses - What to look for?</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00JBXb">Nikon F mount lenses to EOS body adapter</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00J01o&tag=">Practicality of M42 telephoto to XT and film bodies</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00ExzY ">K and M42 lenses on EOS</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00EA9Q">Problems with stop down pin from Adaptall2-M42-EOS</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic2/469342">Non-Cpu lenses on 5D</a>

<br><a href="http://www.16-9.net/lens_tests/compatible.html">16-9.net Canon 5D Adapted Lens Compatibility lists</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic2/306575">Zeiss/Oly -> 5D Compatibility List</a>

<br><a href="http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00M1fq">FD lens on an EOS camera - what you think?</a>

<br><a href="http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/599074/0#5273579">Hassy on EOS</a>

<p>The 300/4L IS produces excellent results on its own and with the EF 1.4x Extender. As a bonus, its 1.5m minimum focus distance (MFD) lets you take great closeups as well as long shots. The 400/5.6 has a much longer MFD of 3.5m, but is a much better choice for "birds in flight" (BIF). </p>

<p>Canon rated the 20D shutter at 50k cycles, and the improved shutter on the 30D was rated at 100k. My 20D is at about 75k cycles now, and keeps on ticking. If the battery removal mentioned above doesn't fix it (and I doubt that it will), then you probably need a service call. It sounds as if its brains may be scrambled. I had the "main circuit board" replaced in my 20D in 2006 for about $300 CA. I'm pretty sure it was internal corrosion damage from shooting in the heavy rain until the camera stopped functioning. Anyhoo, it might be time to look around for a new/new-to-you backup camera.</p>

<p>Heavens, no!  I'll sometimes leave the white L's and big-body 1DII's at home when I'm going into a dicey area, and leave stuff in my non-photo backpack when it's not being used, but otherwise, it's best to simply proceed with caution.  OTOH, I did remove the Canon logo from my 20D with a bench grinder, but that's a different story.</p>

<p>I've been using an Adidt M1 (RS-80N3 clone) from eBay and an original Canon RS-80N3 for about 4 years now with no problems. The Adidt has the shutter button at the end away from the wire, and the Canon's button is at the end where the wire comes out - I prefer the Canon arrangement, but it's no biggie.</p>

<p>I bet there'll be no difference at all if you use a remote shutter release, like the RS-80N3.</p>

<p>I prefer using the horizontal angle of view (AoV.h) to compare focal lengths for different aspect ratio formats. A 300mm lens on 8x10 has the same AoV.h as a 43mm lens on a 35mm format body. On the other hand, if you want to replicate the subject content in those 8x10 photos, with the same perspective, then you should match the vertical angle of view (AoV.v), and crop the sides to match the 1.25 aspect ratio of the 8x10 format - a 35mm lens on a 35mm format body gives the same AoV.v as a 300mm on 8x10 format.</p>

<p>I broke my 70-200/2.8 L IS <a href="http://tinyurl.com/5uo5wn">http://tinyurl.com/5uo5wn</a></p>

<p>I've done it many times as well - no worries.</p>

The 5D and 40D are both fine cameras - I have one of each. Sometimes the bottom plate can loosen up a little,

which probably explains the creaking you mentioned. You just look for a little Phillips head screw in the right

location, push the plate in so it's tight, and then tighten up the screw. The one for the region you show in the photo

(which did upload OK) is just inside the battery compartment door. Make sure to use the right size screwdriver (i.e.

very small), or you'll strip the head (or your friend will).

 

As for which camera you should get, that depends partly on what you will be shooting and how much you can

spend. Both cameras will do a fine job on most types of photos. Compare the fit & feel of the 5D and 40D in your

hand - this can be a decider. If you're likely to do a lot of landscape and/or macro, then the 5D might be a better

choice. If you're likely to do a lot of action shooting, like sports for example, then the 40D might be a better choice.

In either case, you'll need a decent lens or two, and so you have to keep an overall budget in mind. That budget

should also cover a decent tripod and ball head.

 

As for getting a used 5D, don't worry too much about external cosmetics, except for big dents. Just put it through

the paces by taking a bunch of photos (it'll help if you can bring somebody familiar with the body). Read the user

manual (http://tinyurl.com/5ys22q) before going for the test drive. Select "sensor cleaning" on the tools menu and

have a good look at the surface of the sensor; dust is OK, marks are not so good (then turn the camera off and on to

go back to normal). Use mirror lock up (MLU, .Fn-12), one-shot AF, AI Servo AF, different metering options, single

shot and high speed drive (well, it's not that fast on a 5D). While MLU is engaged, take off the lens and have a close

look at the shutter curtains; any kinks, scratches or uneven wear are not good (esp. for one with only 1300 shots).

You can verify how many shots it has taken using the freeware app "1Dcount" on a photo from the camera.

 

You should be aware that warranties are not transferrable. Canon will always want to see the original purchase

receipt before doing warranty work (the registration card is of no value). Having a name on the receipt that's different

from yours is a red flag. You can claim it was a gift bought for you by the original purchaser (in which case it is

covered), or you can tell the truth - I suspect that they sometimes just don't ask, but if they do ask and you're

honest, it's not covered.

Sinh Nhut's right too - I must have missed his reply while writing mine.

Geoff's right. In addition to reducing focus time for targets more than 3m away, the limiter can be a great way to avoid focusing on closer and undesirable foreground features like a grillage, fence or net, like you'd find in a hockey arena - just stand about 2 metres behind the net and shoot away at the action on the ice - it's almost as if the net's not there at all.