pete_c1

All the responses, which I should say were surprisingly positive and encouraging for a

beginner, are much appreciated. Other forums are not as kind.

I will stick it out with the c-41 b&w film for the meantime just because I still have 2 rolls to

finish and it might take a while before I dare venture into processing at home or moving to

medium format. A trip to the photo store will be first order tomorrow to see what color

filters I can get my hands on.

Seeing how great the F2 and 105 are, I'm now struggling to recall if my father-in-law said

he was giving it or just lending it...

Again, thanks.

Pete

I've been shooting DSLR for quite some time now and have found a life-long passion in photography.

Earlier this year, I inherited my father-in-law's 40? year old Nikon F2 with 3 lenses: 50mm, 105mm, and

135mm. I then got myself 2 rolls of Kodak Gold, so I could learn how to use the camera. Seeing the final

prints done by a local Kodak lab didn't really create an impression and I guess this could be largely due to

user inexperience. A sales clerk in the same lab though recommended that I try the BW400CN and so I

did. I'm not sure what I did right this time but was stunned when I saw the prints! Great contrast and

sharpness! I'm biased towards low-key when shooting digital b&w portraits but have found that the

images tend to lose some detail. But with this film, I got a lot more detail than I'm used to!

To cut a long story short, I just grabbed 2 more rolls of the BW400 and can't wait to learn more about b&w

film photography. My question is, is there anything I would need to get the most out of b&w film? I've

read in some forums about the need to use yellow or orange filters to create more contrast. Do I need to

invest in filters this early? I generally take portraits, again mostly low-key, but occasionally dabble in

landscape and urbanscape. Is there a better b&w out there in the price range of the BW400CN? It sells

here for around $6/36 exposures.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

Pete

Peter / Kerry / Jos,

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll leave the camera and lens alone for now and use the pencil

eraser if it ever happens again.

pete c

Just got a brand new 50mm 1.4 some 4 days ago and have been enjoying it since on my 30D. Its just that

this morning, I got the dreaded Err99 message.

I've been shooting, on average, around 80 shots per day with this lens. Stopped down to no more than

F4.0 but most of time wide open at 1.4. This is my first lens wider than 2.8 after all.

This morning, I fired 3 shots in succession, at 1/50 F1.4 Aperture Priority, then paused for around 2

seconds to stop down to F1.8 and then fired 3 shots again shooting the same subject. I was surprised to

find the Err99 message on the LCD display. I then turned the camera off, removed and reinserted the

battery, removed the lens to clean the contact points on the cam and lens with a blower, remounted the

lens and powered up again. The last 3 shots were lost.

Immediately started continuous shooting, 4 to 5 in succession, at different F stops - 1.4, 1.6, 1.8, 2.8 and

4.0. No Err99. Used the lens the whole day and shot maybe 300 frames, some single and a lot

continuous, at F1.4 to F4.0, with no problem. Again, no more Err99.

What happened? I've read a number of threads on recurring Err99 problems but none that occured just

once. Has anyone experienced this before? Should I expect this problem to increase in frequency?

Thanks.

James,

I used to own a sigma 28-70 2.8 and used it for a little over a year. In terms of value for

money, the lens delivers because you'd be hard pressed to find another constant 2.8 at the

24-70 range at that price (got it in Dec 05 for less than USD400). Five negatives though:

1) a little soft wide open for my taste. Didn't bother me then until I upgraded to the canon

24-70 and got to compare IQ.

2) the first thing you'll notice will be the focusing motor. The lens doesn't come with USM

(i think sigma calls it HSM) and it gets pretty loud. It sounds like the motor on your 18-55

but 10 times louder, like a dentist's drill. The noise can actually fool you into thinking that

the lens focuses faster than it really does but I've found that its canon counterpart focuses

match faster, specially in low light. If I remember right, there also seems to be a long lag

from the time you half press to the time the motor wakes up.

3) I had my sigma fail after 11 months of use. The aperture blades began to stick when

shooting stopped down so I was forced to shoot at 2.8 all the time so the blades didn't

have to move. Had it fixed by the local rep which replaced the step-up motor? at least

that's what they said. Could have been just a bad copy...

4) the lens is well built and the matte black rubber coating is handsome... until it starts

turning gray and peeling. Some say the gray is due to the natural salts on your hands that

adheres to the rubber coat but I don't see that happening on my canons. The peeling

rubber... well its like human skin peeling after too much sun only that the lens body

doesn't grow new skin.

5) I used to get green colored flare in some of my photos whenever there's a strong light

source, with or without the hood on. Never figured out why and just accepted that fact

after hearing similar comments from other sigma owners.

But don't think that the sigma is all bad. It does take sharp images when stopped down

and like I said earlier, this is an affordable 2.8 so it won't break the bank like the canon

24-70 would. Plus its also light weight and makes for a good walkaround so it also won't

break your neck, again like the canon.

- pete

I agree with Mr William W but if you had to get just one lens, stick with your 17-40 and grab

the 24-70. Its with wide angle lenses that you can afford to be not as fast and F4 isn't really

that slow.

Same thing happened to me over the weekend with my 430 firing on TTL and most shots

almost completely washed out. Just as Rainer described, a quick cleaning of the contact

points did the trick.

Do we really need all those extras? I hope not because I'm not ready to upgrade my body

every 2 years just so I could keep up with the rest of you.

When I'm not holding my 30d, i shoot with a 30+ year old Nikon F2 mechanical camera, full

manual. The F2 is a good reminder that not even the latest technical advancement can

replace a good eye and a good grasp of the fundamentals (not that I have either). And

everytime I switch back to DSLR, it always feels like I just upgraded my kit!