peter_mckone

<p>Are ALL of the file on the card corrupt? If so, I bet you have a bent pin.</p>

<p>Is there a photography club in your hometown, where you might find someone with Canon experience who could give you a second opinion?</p>

<p>Reducing time spent in meetings is good. I attended a meeting once (in the US) where we mainly talked about what the agenda should be for future meetings. The organizer was trying to invent reasons to hold meetings. Eliminating chairs might put a stop to that.</p>

<p>I do have a Rebel XT, but I never shoot in jpeg mode, so I can't answer your question directly.</p>

<p>Are you viewing the jpegs and raw images on your computer screen, or printed, or on the camera's LCD? If you are using a computer, what program are you using? The same raw file will look different when it is displayed by different programs. I would expect that if you use Canon's DPP program to a convert raw file, then the the resulting jpeg would come close to matching what you get out of the camera. Is this correct?</p>

<p> </p>

<p>I think you have a good idea. Having an older Rebel + 50mm lens along with a Nikon D70 isn't really "mixing systems", any more than having a Nikon plus a Lumix P&S would be. A 350D with 50mm lens captures great images, for a very low price. And there are times when you just don't want to carry a bigger, heavier camera.</p>

<p>By the way, there's nothing wrong with liking to own hardware. It's a different hobby from photography, but collecting gear is a legitimate hobby in itself, and lots of people find pleasure in it.</p>

<p>To avoid blowing out the sky, I set exposure compensation to -2/3 on sunny days. Since I always shoot raw, I can usually recover shadow detail in post-processing.</p>

<p>Check the settings for the exposure compensation, and in-camera sharpening, and color saturation on the D30.</p>

<p>The 400D almost certainly does have a Tungsten setting. My 350D does. I know because I accidently left it set while taking some shots in full sunlight. The preferred method is to shoot raw and adjust the white balance with the software (DPP) that came with the camera or with Photoshop (ACR).</p>

<p>That should read:<br>

Also, buy a Scott Kelby book for whatever Adobe product you use. The Adobe help often tells you what you could do, rather than what you should do.</p>

<p>DPP is an improvement over the in-camera conversion from raw to jpeg, but it won't "change" your pictures very much. If you need to lighten the shadows, or darken the hightlights, or add contrast to the midtones, consider Photoshop Elements. For about $90 it does nearly everything that an average person could figure out how to do in CS4 during his first two years with that product.</p>

<p>Also, buy a Scott Kelby book for whatever Adobe product you use. The Adobe help often tell you what you do, rather than what you do.</p>

<p>There are amateur astronomers in every city, and they set up their telescopes on hilltops when the Moon is past third quarter. Some of them do astrophotography. Find a group near where you live, and go on an observing session with them. They will be thrilled to have an audience. Ordinary tracking mounts aren't accurate enough for photography. The hardware you need costs several thousand dollars, and takes some time to learn how to use. Using a telescope without a camera is also rewarding, and it's a good way to get started for only about $500. Adequate telescopes are hard to find, unless you know where to look. The ones for sale at sporting good stores are worse than useless.</p>

<p>Was anything else running on your computer? Perhaps it was your computer that slowed down, and not your camera. A card reader won't help with that.</p>

<p>Nice Photo. You could try setting up your camera and focussing while the Sun is still up. Then set the lens to manual focus, so it won't change, and wait for dark.</p>

<p>It's possible that the fuzziness in the photo is due to atmospheric distortion, caused by air above the still-warm pavement mixing with cooler night air. The marine layer also adds to the distortion.</p>

<p>Instead of CS4, you could buy Elements. It includes Adobe's Raw Converter (ACR), as well as most of the functionality of Photoshop. Afterward, if you need a feature that isn't included in Elements, you can switch to whatever version of Photoshop you have.</p>

<p>You can also download a file named "codec", and your PC will display your raw files in Windows Explorer. This works in XP, as well as Vista.</p>

<p>If you want to operate your camera from a computer, and view the images before you capture them, the G10 is a good choice. I can do this with my old Powershot 50, but not with my 350D. The new DSLRs that have "live view" should operate well tethered to a computer.</p>

<p>If you need to capture images in low light, then a DSLR is a better choice.</p>

<p>Set your camera to make jpegs (not raw). Take a hand-held exposure of some object, and then capture the same object using a tripod. Download the two jpegs to your computer. Which file is larger? That will be the one with more detail. Jpeg compression shrinks a blurry image a lot, but images with sharp detail are harder to shrink. Of course you have to repeat this experiment several times to make sure you get consistent results.</p>

<p>Since no one else has replied, I'm going to make a guess, and you can tell me if I'm right. On your PC, in Windows Explorer (not I.E.) you can see thumbnails of your jpegs. But can you see thumbnails of your raw files? I CAN display thumbnails of my raw files, but they come from a 4-tyear-old 350D, not a 5D2. I'm going to guess that if you have installed the firmware update on your 5D2, then you can't see thumbnails for your raw files. Am I right so far? And I'm going to guess that if you install the new Codec on your PC, then you will be able to see these thumbnails. Is that even important? If so, download the new codec and tell me if I guessed correctly.</p>

<p>I would not update the firmware. That just introduces a new variable. If the old firmware caused continuous errors, Canon wouldn't have sold very many 40Ds. And if your camera shuts down in the middle of a firmware update, how will you diagnose the problem then?</p>

<p>When is the long division algorithm going to updated?! Lenses aren't like electronic components. Moore's law doesn't apply. If a lens is designed optimally, there won't be an update, except maybe to lower manufacturing cost. </p>

<p>Why is a card reader faster than a cable if they both plug into a USB port? And how much faster?</p>

<p>By any chance are the photos being downloaded to an external drive, which is also on a USB port? Perhaps even on the same hub?</p>

<p>The loss of detail on the mountain could be ground fog, but the lines in the first image are real. Are the lines present in the raw image? How are you converting from raw to jpeg? How are you transferring the images from your camera to your computer? Have you used the camera long enough that the shutter could possibly be wearing out? Are the lines always in an area that is only one color (eg. blue)? If you turn the camera sideways, do you get vertical lines?</p>

<p>There can be confusion in the phrase "I got used". When I first read it, I though you were saying you had been cheated. I read it several times before I understood that you were referring to used equipment.</p>

<p>You can download the free DNG converter from Adobe. The new 5D is on the list of supported cameras. If you have photoshop, you'll be able to read the resulting DNG file.</p>

<p>http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/cameraraw.html</p>

<p>I may not understand your question correctly... In addition to what Bob said, the focal plane is VERY thin at f 1.8. So even though a sharp image is theoretically possible, your camera's auto-focus has no margin for error. At f 22, everything is in focus.</p>

<p>Go with the XSi. The previous model was the XTi, which is also a fine camera. I think the XS is a lower tier product, designed to compete with the Nikon D40. I don't know what features are missing, but if you buy one, you'll find out. My friend bought a D40 and discovered it doesn't support exposure bracketing, making high dynamic range photos really hard.</p>

<p>I have the 28-135 IS lens and I've had good results from it. Better than the old 18-55 kit lens. The new kit lens is reported to be better. If you don't get the 50 mm 1.4, be sure to get the 50 mm 1.8 (for only $80). Sooner or later you'll find yourself in a museum where flashes and tripods aren't allowed, and you'll be glad to have a really fast lens. And if you want to shoot bugs, consider the 250D close-up lens, to turn your 50 mm lens into a macro.</p>