emaxxman

How about:

 

- change the name to image.net

 

- have Penthouse sponsor the POW

 

- create an open architecture where software programming savvy users can 'install' their own modifications...kind of like Quake

 

Just kidding.

 

Good luck with your move and enjoy the new digs.

Patrick,

 

I think ezshop is a great place for it. It already is a mechanism for providing a centralized database of reviews/comments for similar products.

 

Adding a film section would great. A user could go and view all films by say Fuji and then see what people have to say about each one.

 

Also, since we're talking about film, it would be ideal if we attach images so people can see how different films look.

Brian,

 

I don't care much about ratings but I do care about critiques. I noticed that my 2 submitted images didn't have ratings. However, one did have a critique. I think it would be nice to also list a count of critiques if possible. This would also help satisfy those that hate ratings by enabling you to place some emphasis on the number of critiques.

 

Thanks,

Thang Hoang

My wife thought this was amusing. A Stylus Epic is all she is willing to carry. She thought it would be amusing to show people how much I carry around (which is nothing really in the SLR world.)<div></div>

Victor,

 

The problem with lenses like the 75-300 is that they are OK in the 70-200 range but really not that great at the 300mm end. I had a Sigma DL version and while it was fun to use, I got tired of not getting sharp images at the 300mm end. In order to get something reasonably sharp, I had to stop down to f/8 or f/11 and use a tripod and/or fast film. This was not possible always. Plus, the small aperture didn't allow be to get the background blur that I like so much.

 

If none of those constraints bother you, then by all means go for it. Like I said, my Sigma was really fun to use.

 

I suggested the 100-300 APO because it's generally regarded to be a slightly better lens (btw, I have no experience with this lens.) For me, I've decided on getting a quality telephoto zoom due their price and weight. I've decided to go the prime lens route for those needs...lighter and higher quality optics.

I disagree. I think Contax will move a number of units that is proportional to their customer base. There is a niche set of Contax owners out there that are willing to pay over $1k for a 50mm. They'll probably be willing to pay the $5300. What else would they do for a digital camera? Sell their Zeiss lenses for Nikon's or Canon's?

www.keh.com is a great place for used equipment.

 

$299 seems well overpriced for that lens.

 

My personal choice would be the 100-300 APO zoom. Go for the older non-"d" lens. It should be cheaper if you can find it. KEH should have some of them used as well.

Look at the lens lineup of Nikon and Minolta. Does Minolta have all the lenses that you think you'll want? If yes, then go for it. It's a better camera than the XTsi. And the XTsi is a rockin' camera for its class!!!

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<a href="http://creekin.net/m5revue.htm">Maxxum 5 review</a>

Out of those 3, Canon has the best lenses. Anything with an "L" designation will be better than anything from Sigma or Tamron.

 

Now the question is, will you be willing to PAY dearly for that quality. Those are 'pro' level lenses and cost quite a bit.

 

To answer your second question: Canon EF 28-105 (or 28-135) and the 70-300mm is a good combo.

 

I would recommend a 50mm f/1.8 as your first lens though. It's a sharp, fast lens. You won't go wrong. Learn with that. I have a number of lenses and I still find myself using my 50mm.

Here is a one flash setup for Canon. I think it would work for Minolta as well. I have the same flash as you and am considering this setup myself.

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<a href="http://www.outbackphoto.com/nature/2001/20010707_macro.html">Single flash macro setup</a>

How do we get missing items added to EZSHOP? I've been asked a few

times for a review of the new Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 EX DF lens. I guess

I'm one of the few that actually have it. I'd like to post a more

permanent review but that item is missing from the Sigma section of

EZSHOP.

I don't have this lens but its macro function is similar to the 70-300DL that I had.

 

Macro will only be available to you at the 135mm end. You zoom out to that, click the switch to macro focusing (this also might lock the lens at 135mm like on my DL) and you get then focus down to 1:2.

 

I had alot of fun with my DL. I got some decent shots with it. However, keep in mind that at the 135mm end, that that is where the lens is most likely least sharpest. That is the unfortunate compromise you have to make.

 

If you don't have alot of money but want both the zoom range and the capable but limited macro capability, then a lens like this is probably worth the ~$200 it costs.

 

If you are really more interested in serious macro photography, then you should invest in a true macro lens. There are some at www.keh.com for around $300.

Bad reviews of the F100? Hmmm...I've read nothing but raving reviews. There are even some that talk about the improvements that F100 made over the F5.

 

Personally, I would go for the F100. It is a higher level camera and newer technology to boot. But then again, I'm not you so only you really know which one is best for you. Ask yourself what features you want and for what will you use the camera. That should decide which camera is the best fit.

 

If you still can't decide which one you need/want, then you should revisit what made you narrow it down to both choices to begin with.

The sales rep is correct. If you only plan on using the "point and shoot" style digital cameras, the Cokin A system is plenty large enough.

 

However, as Jim pointed, the better brand filters are not available in Cokin A size. They do cost a huge amount more though. It depends on how serious you are about your photography.

 

If you think you'll opt for a digital SLR one day or even one of the digital ZLR's like the Olympus E10, you should go for the Cokin P size now to save you money in the long run.

 

One more thing to consider. The advantage of the Cokin system is so you only have to buy one filter to fit all of your lenses. With screw in filters, you need to buy a filter for each lens you intend to use it on. This can get expensive if you have to do this alot. However, if you think you're only ever going to buy a camera with a non-interchangeable lens, then I would opt for the screw in filters. Buy the Nikon adapter and the a step up ring to something like 72mm. Then just buy 72mm filter. This would suffice as well as allow you to buy higher quality filters for less. The only filter you would need a Cokin holder for is a graduated neutral density filter since these can't be circular by design.

<i>2. I get F-2.8 aperture for those really shallow DOF pro effects 3. Its really cheap ..</i>

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You're missing the point regarding the f/2.8 aperture on the Sigma. It's only available at around 28-30mm. At that focal length, you're not going to get the really shallow DOF "pro effect". That shallow DOF that you are looking for is probably from a 80-100mm focal length at f/2.8 and/or close focusing. At the long end of the Sigma, you're looking at f/4. On a Canon, the 105mm end is f/4.5. That's not that huge of a difference regarding DOF.

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As far as cheap goes, when I had bought mine, it was for around $200. To spend another $89 to get at least the Sigma 28-70 f/2.8 is not that big of a deal (and I wish I did) when you consider you'll get a sharp lens at all focal lengths and a higher quality build.

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What good is cheap and "pro effects" when your pictures are not sharp or you have to stop down to f/8-f/11 to get sharp pictures?

Greg,

 

Actually its not really that case. I think it has more to do with your last statement. Relatively speaking, very few photographers are more capable than their equipment. I know I am one of them. If people learned to use their equipment to its fullest potential, there wouldn't be this senseless pursuit for the 'best camera' or 'best' lens.

If you have really bad equipment, then buying quality equipment can improve your photography. However, the equipment above is more than sufficient for producing quality images. You just need to learn how to use them correctly.

Something you need to keep in mind is the Maxxum 7's ADI flash metering is only available with "D" compatible lenses. The Tokina is not a "D" lens. If you plan on taking advantage of this feature of the camera, you'll be limited as to what lenses you can get right now.

 

You'll probably see a noticeable decrease in quality going from a primte to a 3rd party zoom (no matter how well regarded that zoom is.)

 

With respect to your mentioned choices, if you need the 85mm focal length, I would go for it, especially given the fact that you can get if for a 'bargain.' The 100/2 is also a very highly regarded prime lens. However, it's not a "D" lens. The 85 is considered to be an amazingly well performing lens. I haven't read a single bad thing about it. I don't own either one but would love to see a 100 f/2 "D" lens released. The 85mm focal length is too short for me.

 

Minolta is also releasing some new zoom lenses with their version Canon's USM technology. Here is the link: http://www.photozone.de/new.htm

 

You may want to wait on the zoom lenses until these lenses are released.

It's only f/2.8 at the wide end. It goes down to f/4 at the long end. It's OK. It's definitely soft at the long end. You'll have to stop down to f/8 to get acceptably sharp images. The focusing ring is very flimsy. The 72mm filter size is ridiculously large for a lens of this low caliber.

 

For a little bit more, you could get the Sigma 28-70 f/2.8 EX lens. I think www.bhphoto.com has it for $289. It's a much sharper and better built lens. I have the Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 lens and it is fantastic but is almost $400. I'm sure it's not up to the performance of the camera manufacturers matching lenses but then again, those are almost 3 times the price.

 

If you feel you need the zoom range more than the f/2.8 aperture, go for the Canon 28-105 ro 28-135. If you need the shallow DOF the f/2.8 aperture gives you, then buy a 50mm prime.

Here are a number of previous discussions regarding this subject.

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<a href="http://www.photo.net/search/search?search_type=rest&sections=static_pages&sections=bboard&sections=comments&query_string=portrait+lenses">Portrait Lens Search Results</a>

<a href="http://www.photo.net/minolta/lenses">Tamron review</a>

 

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Here is a review of the Tamron lens in a Minolta mount. It's at the bottom of the page in the reader's comments section. It's the first comment. Make sure you read the rebuttals. Based on the following comments, it seems that the Tamron is a little soft in sharpness quality.

Your Quantaray is the same as a Sigma. Is it the 70-300? If you're using fast film and a tripod, you should be OK. It seems that you have recognized some of the issues already that are affecting your images. Now you will need to learn how to overcome them. A good book, practice, and maybe even a class would all help. For me, it was just shooting more and remembering what I did each time.

 

Things to remember when selecting lens:

 

1) It is extremely difficult to create a wide range zoom lens that can gather light quickly, is good optically, and is affordable to anyone other than the U.S. government. It's just a matter of current technology and costs. Therefore, in order for companies to create these 28-300mm zooms at the cost they sell them for, they have to make some pretty big compromises. The biggest one is that they are usually not that sharp at the long end. A 28-300 may be good in the range of 28-200, but it will almost always be horrible after 200mm. This holds true for the 70-300's as well. That is why people will always recommend shorter range zooms.

 

2) When shooting with telephotos, you always want one with as fast of a max aperture as you can get. This will help to increase the shutter speed for sharper images. Telephotos magnify any shake on the lens and the faster the shutter speed, the better. Also, the faster max aperture lenses will have the better optical design.

 

So, going back to your situation. The 28-300 won't help you any because the telephoto end of that zoom will still be just as slow as the quantarary. There are 2 paths for you to take...a 70-200 f/2.8 lens with a 1.4x or 2x teleconvertor or a telephoto prime lens. The prime will give you the best quality. The Sigma 70-200 f/2.8EX is supposed to be very good as well. I'm not familiar with what Pentax has to offer. If none of these are affordable to you brand new, try seeing what you can find used.

Stacy,

 

If you could give us some more details, that would make it easier to recommend something that fits your needs

 

Budget, photographic goals, weather conditions the camera should be able to handle, will you be shooting fast paced action, max size of prints you'll want or do you just want something for the photo albums, are you looking for something simple with little or no desire to expand your lens lineup, etc.

 

My personal recommendation would be a Maxxum 7 with Sigma 24-70 f/2.8 and Maxxum 5600 flash. Of course that would cost you $1500 and be an extremely heavy camera kit to carry around. I recommend that one because that is what I use for all of my shooting right now.

 

If you can answer some of those questions, it would be really helpful.