chad_hoelzel1

<p>also be aware of everytime a new Canon camera body comes out you'll probably have to send your sigma in to get rechipped to make it compatible. Not always the case but sometime. I agree you don't need all L lenses but canon lenses I've found so far seem to be equally a bit better for the extra money you spend over a Sigma lens. Zooms tend to be best quality for the $$ if you get L quality. For prime lenses it's not always necessary. I also agree with you about the 85L 1.2. You should trade it in for the 85 1.8 so you 'll actually want to walk around and use it. </p>

<p>If you are shooting low light higher ISO then keeping the 40D would be the better option since it controls noise better.</p>

<p>Remember that what you see on your 5D LCD is not RAW but a JPG. So whatever profile you have your camera set to is what you see. When you initially load the picture in DPP no adjustments have been applied. I'd also consider some color calibration hardware and software if you are wanting the best resualts for printing (ie Spyder3). By using camera standard settings you are using the same setting applied to the JPGs when shot with you camera. Picture style settings can affect a RAW if you choose to apply the camera settings to the RAW picture. This then will make the camera LCD picture look the same as what's in lightroom. The same can be done in DPP. <br>

The point of shooting RAW with DPP is that you start with a clean photo that the camera software hasn't changed. You know best how the picture should look and it gives you the chance to then make those appropriate changes. Remember the camera is only so smart when it comes to white ballance, saturation, etc.</p>

<p>I second getting a 70-200 2.8 lens. Not having a pro body you're already going to be challenged with slower focusing. By getting the 4L you'll be slowing the focusing down even more. Get the best lens you can for the money and when the time comes and you can get a pro digital body then at least you won't have to upgrade the lens as well to get the fastest focusing speed possible.</p>

<p>If anything make sure you have a good external flash and a battery pack. Nothing worse then missing a shot because the flash was still charging or the picture didn't turn out because it wasn't fully charged. Plus with a battery pack you don't have to change the batteries as often.</p>

<p>I remember reading a few people here on PN using the Panasonic G1 with a canon FD adaptor. I have a few FD lenses also that I don't want to get rid of. The only thing I remember reading is that the sensor gets dirty easily on the G1</p>

<p>I second primes for the portraits. If your portraits allow you to move around lots I'd go for the prime. I've have the 100-400 IS that doubled as my portait lens in the 100-200mm range and now I've add both the 85mm f1.8 and 100mm f2.8 (which doubles for portaits) I've notice improvement in picture quality compared to the zoom. Granted the 100-400 isn't as sharp as the 70-200 but it comes down to prime vs zoom. The crazy shallow depth of field the primes offers is very useful also.</p>

<p>What lenses do you already have? What do you plan on photographing? The 70-200 is very versitile but also large. The 85mm would be considered a walk around portrait lens.</p>

<p>I second DPP. It's very fast for post processing. With the new added highlights and shadow controlls you only need photoshop for touchups and other corrections mentioned above. White ballance is a breaze since canon knows the characteristics of their sensors they can make software that gets the most out of the RAW file. For free software you can tell they definately got some input from photographers.</p>

<p>I second the CP-E3/4. Both are really good packs. Very fast recycle even at full power. They are pretty much a must for any wedding/portrait shoot. I don't even look at the light on my flash anymore. Just focus and fire picture after picture.</p>

<p>I agree with the suggestion of the 100-400 lens. It is a very versatile lens. You'll probably want the extra reach it provides without needing a teleconverter compared to the 70-200. Unfortunately if you want to photograph a more unique subject you are going to need a pro white lens. I'm not a pro and don't mind walking around with one. </p>

<p>When the baby is small and not moving lots the prime lenses will be perfect. Once it starts crawling then you'll want to get a fast zoom (f2.8). This will help framing. Also as mentioned getting an external flash is a must to provide soft even light. You'll find the built in flash to be to harsh when close and not strong enough when you move back a bit.</p>

<p>you might have a bent pin in your camera. if it's not to bent you can sometimes fix it yourself</p>

 

<p>I use the Arctic Butterfly from VisibleDust. http://www.visibledust.com/index.php<br>

Seems to work with one dry wipe. I first blow out the compartment first of course. You might want to have a look at their new blowers too called Zeeion Blower<strong><br /> </strong> </p>

<p>You can get free video lessions on how to use DPP from the Canon web site. http://www.usa.canon.com/dlc/controller?act=GetArticleAct&articleID=1228&fromTips=1</p>

<p> When you edit your raw files in DPP it will save your editing if you choose "Yes" when you are closing down the program. The original RAW will remain intact but the changes you've saved will apply to TIFFS or JPGs you may choose to save later on for printing, etc. </p>

<p>I have had the 17-40L for a few years and really like the quality. I use it on a 40D also.</p>

<p>I'd look on ebay for a used CP-E3. As mentioned on your other post I have a BVS power pack that isn't high voltage. What I failed to mention is that it recycles really slowly. The only advantage to one of the packs you were looking at is that you won't have to change the batteries quite as often as just 4 AA's in the flash. I you need fast recycle time then you have to shell out the $$ and get a CP-E3 or CP-E4. </p>

<p>All the above battery packs seem to be somewhat fashioned after the Canon CP-E# series battery packs in that they plug into the HV (high voltage) plug of your camera. I own both the CP-E3 and CP-E4 (current model). The question you have to ask yourself when buying one of these knock off type battery packs is that are you willing to take a chance that it fries your expensive flash? Not to say that Canon's battery pack can't malfunction but they designed the flash and have a name to uphold. I'm not saying I haven't dabbled with a nock off brand because I have a BVS battery pack that runs off of 4 D cells which is connected to the camera's battery compartment with corded dumby batteries. It's just a chance you take.</p>

<p>Yeah I bring all that. You never know when something will fail or what situation your shooting in. Last wedding and this one I didn't see the venue ahead of time due to their distance. For example the B&G want the formals out and around the farm where the groom grew up. If it rains I might need to move the formals into a barn or into the reception hall. That would require some more light to look good and brighter lenses. I just can't tell what is going to happen ahead of time so lots of gear in this situation is good.</p>

<p>I had an EOS 3. Was a very dependable camera. It is the next model down from their flagship 1v (last film model). Might just be a bad battery.</p>

<p>Hal I disagree about comparing myself to laywers, doctors, etc. I'm going to wear what looks appropriat but most importantly I'm going to wear what keeps me comfortable enough to move, etc. so I can take the pictures I was paid for. My main reason for the post wasn't what clothes to wear but if I should use the Lowepro belt and lens cases because I had no where to put my gear.<br>

On a side note my gear is: 20D, 40D, 1VHS (few roles of film for wide angle), 2X 550EX, 580 II, CP-E3/CP-E4 (battery packs), 17-40 F4L, 28-70 F2.8, 50mm F1.8, 85mm F1.8, 100mm F2.8, 100-400 f4.5-5.6 IS and dripods. I feel reasonably comfident with my latest upgrades to get the job done.</p>

<p>I was wondering if there is anyone that has honestly gone through and learned how to use DPP and decided to switch over to Lightroom 2 instead for batch processing? (I shoot in RAW format)</p>

<p>Features I use in DPP for my wedding photo batch processing:<br>

*Check mark 1-3 photo rating (1>keep 2>needs lots of work 3>discard)<br>

*Main image adjustment (contrast, brightness, white balance, color tone, sharpness, saturation, highlight, and shadow)<br>

*Lens aberration correction<br>

*Noise reduction<br>

*Batch adjust (recipe copy and paste)<br>

*Cropping (Trimming in DPP)<br>

*Batch rename and Save to 8bit Tiff and JPG</p>

<p>I went to the Adobe web site but it doesn't really help when it comes to real world batch processing info. I of course do my major editing in CS2.<br>

Is there any features that are useful that DPP doesn't have? Any particular tasks that just run that much smoother and faster that would make it worth getting Lightroom 2?</p>

<p>Thanks for your help</p>

<p>Another thing you could try is rent the gear and do some portraits before you buy it. I feel that you don't need the highest end camera body but the lenses are where you need to make some careful decisions. When it comes down to it, even if you don't have all the gear you might want or see others using, if you know how to use what you have you will still get great pictures. Each wedding is a learning process. Just start with lots of formal portraits (family and friends) and shooting second at a wedding first.</p>

<p>Looks like on one extreme I'm getting flamed for not wearing a tux or suit and for not using just one camera body and one lens (so I don't need to wear any other cases). On the other hand a lot of people are suggesting to go with what I have been doing ... dressing comfortable, yet clean and wearing the gear I need on me. As mentioned I don't have the privalege of using the end of a bench for my gear. The church is so small the children are being left at the reception hall. Also the formal pictures are in and around a farm so I'll probably be getting dirty getting that perfect shot. Lastly I'll probably be on my feet close to 10 hours.<br>

Thanks again for everyone's input</p>

<p>Thanks so much for the feedback. I'm sort of a little nervous about this wedding because I've never been to the church (due to distance issue) so have only had things described for me. I'm just trying to do as much homework as possible before I get there. My wife is shooting the bride getting ready and I'll take a few quick shots of the groom getting ready. That'll still give me a chance to have a look at the church before everything starts.</p>