nigel whitaker

I am currently awaiting delivery of my second 550EX, to use with my 20D. I had a ST-E2, for about a week, and I returned it for a refund, unused. I think the idea of having the main flash tube on the 550EX as the data pulse, rather than the IR emitter of the ST-E2 gives more flexibility, in that with a Sto-Fen fiffuser on, and the head vertical, the flash unit on a stand can 'see' the master unit from a greater angle than the mainly forward firing ST-E2.

 

In addition, I now have a double flash setup, if I need more power outdoors, one flash on the camera, the other on a bracket, with the sensor 'looking at' the master flash unit's head, to see the pre flash.

 

I may get a third 550EX in time, so I would have 2 off camera flashes, and a master.

 

Incidentally, I thought that the 'flash off' setting didn't work, with the 550 set as master, but you can tell that it does, by taking a flash photo, with the master set to 'flash off'. The resultant pic will be very underexposed, proving that the pre flash is indeed a data only flash, and does not light the scene for the exposure.

I am currently awaiting delivery of my second 550EX, to use with my 20D. I had a ST-E2, for about a week, and I returned it for a refund, unused. I think the idea of having the main flash tube on the 550EX as the data pulse, rather than the IR emitter of the ST-E2 gives more flexibility, in that with a Sto-Fen diffuser on, and the head vertical, the slave flash unit on a stand can 'see' the master unit from a greater angle than the mainly forward firing ST-E2.

 

In addition, I now have a double flash setup, if I need more power outdoors, one flash on the camera, the other on a bracket, with the sensor 'looking at' the master flash unit's head, to see the pre flash.

 

I may get a third 550EX in time, so I would have 2 off camera flashes, and a master.

 

Incidentally, I thought that the 'flash off' setting didn't work, with the 550 set as master, but you can tell that it does, by taking a flash photo, with the master set to 'flash off'. The resultant pic will be very underexposed, proving that the pre flash is indeed a data only flash, and does not light the scene for the exposure.

I have an EOS 20D, with the BG-E2, and the same arguments apply. I like the larger size, I have large hands, and my previous camera was an EOS 1v-HS, very bulky.

 

The extra battery will give you better performance, as it will sustain the maximum AF speed, and frame rate longer, and if using IS lenses, then the advantage is even greater, as the Image Stabiliser, when used with continous AF will use up considerably more power than single shot AF photos with a conventional lens.

I bought one of the Wallace Expo-Discs a long time ago, it must be about 15 years or more. It was a good idea, to use instead of a light meter, but I ended up getting a light meter anyway, and sold the Expo-Disc one ebay a couple of years ago. It seems that the gadget was years ahead of its time, and digital users may benefit more than film users ever did.

 

Oh ,and I think it only cost me about �15 (about $25, 15 years ago)

If the ball on your Manfrotto 168 head is black, then it's made of a hard resin material, earlier ones were chromed steel.

 

I have been recommended not to grease the ball, as it is designed to give a certain friction in use. From my experience with the 168, the lock up is very secure, greased or not. I do lightly grease my ball heads, but then wipe it off, as this leaves a very fine residue, rather than a visible layer. It will attract dust, which will make the action stiffer than a dry ball alone. Consider getting a head cover or a tripod bag to keep things clean.

I suppose it depends on where you will be walking, but.....

 

I sometimes take a Manfrotto 'super clamp' which is a large claw thing, to which is attached an adapter plate and a medium ball head. If you can find either a door/ table/ scaffold pole or railing to clamp it to, it is as solid as you will need, although slightly bulky as a combined unit.

I use the Manfrotto/Bogen 449 carbon fibre monopod with the Manfrotto 234RC tilt head.

 

I have the carbon fibre pod not for it's lightness, or for flash value, but because it is longer than any of the others in the range. It extends to about 7 feet at the lens centre with the 234 head fitted, and this allows me to place the foot on areas that are lower than where my feet are standing (I'm 6'2" by the way, so I need a tall monopod anyway). Another use for the monopod, 'aerial photos'... Set the self timer, use a very wide lens, and hold the camera on it's 7 foot monopod above the crowd to get unbelievable images, needs practice, but worth it.

 

Manfrotto make many good monopods, I used to have the 'compact pro' monopod, but decided it wasn't long enough, even though it was very compact.

 

Regarding heads, I don't actually like ball heads for my monopods, as I generally use the pod with a 70-200 f2.8 lens, and this kit becomes difficult to manage on an unlocked ball head. Instead, I use the 234RC head with the tilt action fore and aft, so that I can leave the lock free, and tilt the long lens up or down at will, the lens being mounted on it's own tripod mount), If I need a portrait oriented shot, I unclamp the lens ring and rotate the lens, not the monopod head.

I have recently bought a 17-40f4L, and am using it on a 1n HS (with the 100% viewfinder). I use a Hoya UV (normal thickness) on the front, and cannot detect any vignetting at the edges with the full viewfinder, so your 20D which only looks at the centre of the lens image circle will be more than OK.

Canon 70-200f2.8 L IS, or for less money, the Sigma 70-200f2.8 EX HSM, this compares very well against the optics of the non IS canon 70-200 f2.8 in magazine tests. I've had one of the Sigma lenses for a few years, and love it lots, I got it to replace a Canon 70-300 IS zoom as the 70-300, although IS, was to slow on the aperture for use indoors for sports. I have a 1.4 TC which gives me a 280mm f4 long lens, but the 1.6 conversion factor of the D20 would give a 320mm f2.8 at the long end, and focus very well in dim lighting, sounds good!

I remember a while ago (2 years I think), I was really looking hard for a used D30, and I found one in a shop in Norwich UK, 1200 GBP (about $2000 I guess at the time), I was not going to pay that much, so walked away. I am now seeing new 20D bodies (on ebay, and in certain shops in the UK) for around 1000 GBP, now that's progress.

I have owned the EOS5, which has fast drive and quiet shutter, I know the EOS 3 has faster focus, and a bigger 'focus patch' in the viewfinder. I now use an EOS1n HS, I never use 6fps, the focussing software is 'older' than the EOS5/A2, and it is heavy. It may focus better in low light thatn the EOS5, but it probably only scores over the EOS3 on durability.

 

If you want the fastest focussing body that is reasonably priced, I'd recommend the EOS3 with a booster pack to give an extra grip.

 

I'd love to be able to afford an EOS 1v HS, but I could sooner afford a 20D, so I'll keep my 1n HS for wide angle use on film with my new 17-40 f4L lens.

The Cmment about the A2E.... I used to have a couple of EOS 5s, the eye control focus version of the A2E in the UK market, and they are a great camera, very quiet, very fast drive, quick focus, but not as quick as the EOS3, and it has a PC terminal for flash. I now use an EOS1n HS, and it's 'better' than the EOS 5 in some aspects, but probably not as good as the EOS 3 for things like aircraft photos (the 5 focus points in the viewfinder can miss the object, then waste time focus hunting while the plane approaches at 500mph!). I do like the EOS1n HS though, and for everyday use, it will prove pretty indestructable, and the 100% viewfinder is a confidence boost (if you can see it, it will be on the film. I am currently thinking of a Digital SLR, but I can't afford a 1Ds with full frame sensor, so I'll probably keep my 1n for wide angle stuff, with my new 17-40mm L and get a 20D for long lens stuff (where my 70-200 f2.8 becomes 112mm-320mm f2.8 !

 

I have never used the elan 7 (not sure what it's called here in the UK), but things that I definitely would look for for my next camera after using the 1n are :mirror lockup, rear control dial (an absolute must- the 300D doesn't have one), focus pattern and speed that suits what I do (for most slow things like landscapes and portraits, the 5 or 7 point AF will be adequate), vertical grip built in, or as an accessory, I use it a lot like this.

Depending on what you're into, the 200mm f2.8 is a lovely lens, great focussing and pleny of light coming in the front, makes a lovely portrait lens or for action sports.

I had 2 EOS5s, and used them pretty much worldwide, without any problems at all. I got them used, and the command dial never even looked likely to fail. I don't know whether the dial problem is limited to certain batches or any other factor, but it seems the primary complaint on this site regarding the EOS5.

 

It will take studio flash, I seem to remember the camera has a PC socket built in.

 

I really can't hink of a negative point on these cameras considering the price these days, they were in production for quite some time, so the design can be judged a commercial success, regardless of any niggles with the dial, and I seem to remember that Canon had a modification that could be performed at service centres in any case.

 

Good luck, I think you'll be pleased with a 5.

You could do the task with a digital camera thethered to a laptop, I have recently bought a Canon Powershot Pro1, and the bundled software allows just this facility. In fact, if the JPEG resolution were reduced, a 1GB card could hold up to 8000 images, and the camera has an interval feature built in, but I feel economically, a high quality webcam would better suit your needs.

 

If sited to run unattended for such a long time period, security could be a factor, as someone may inadvertantly move it, or worse.

thanks for all the feedback folks,

 

It's not an end of the world issue for me at the moment, as the Pro1 does have a reasonably adequate built in flash, but the fact that there is the standard EOS hotshoe on top makes it annoying when the camera won't work with a fairly large proportion of the existing speedlite range.

 

As I said earlier, I don't use flash so much that it will make a big difference anyway, not with a 'compact' camera such as the Pro1 which has a built in unit on top, but if anyone has experience of using the 540EZ with EOS1D or 10D, I'd appreciate some enlightenment as to whether it will give any kind of TTL metering or whether I need to look elsewhere for a flash (I'm selling my EOS1nHS soon anyway, making way for a DSLR, but it would be nice if I didn't have to buy yet another expensive flash!)

I have recently bought a Canon Powershot Pro1, and when I tried to

use my Speedlite 540EZ on it, I could not get a good result,

although the flash was talking to the camera to the extent of moving

the power zoom head in response to the lens focal length, whenever I

took a picture, the speedlite gave a full power, unmetered flash

(not good).

 

I have read that EZ speedlites aren't compatible with EOS digital

bodies (they aren't actually listed in brochures from the EOS3

onwards), but I would have thought Canon would have built in a

little more backward compatibiliy, and at least ensured that basic

TTL (don't care whether A or E TTL) was available. I am planning to

get an EOS 1D eventually, and it looks like I will have to get

another speedlite to go with it, although given the price, and the

amount of use I actually put the flash to, I might just not bother,

but it's disappointing all the same.

Hi Fred,

 

I've had one of these cameras for about a month now, and my impressions are generally positive, it's a good camera, but not perfect.

 

I got it from that well known auction site..... saved a load of money against the shop price here in the UK (wouldn't have bought it at full price- 850 UK pounds). I also bought a 1GB CF card (you need a big card with this type of camera), and 2 spare batteries, as I find it does not give much of a warning when the battery is about to expire.

 

First annoyance with the camera, the focussing- it won't track moving objects. There is a 'continuous' focus setting in the menus, but this seems to only track moving objects before you half press the shutter release, which locks the focus and exposure. It may be slightly quicker than starting from sratch and focussing, but it offers no advantage that I can find, and would seem to use more battery power as it is focussing even when you're not pointing the camera at anything important.

 

Secong gripe, battery life. It's not that the batteries are not lasting that long, but the warning (half battery symbol, and red warning in viewfinder) comes a bit too close to the 'change battery' warning for my liking (nowhere near the progressive, accurate bar graphs on mobile phones etc). Canon quote 400+ images per battery charge, but I feel this to be a little optomistic.

 

It does record scenes very well when the object isn't moving, and the exposure accuracy is very good (multi-pattern), as is the auto white balance.

 

Generally, handling is very good, and the L lens seems very capable of recording enough detail to satisfy most. When used at maximum resolution JPEG setting, several exposures can be taken and the buffer utilised to enable reasonably fast recovery for the next exposure, but RAW image recording takes much longer, so I would only use this if I knew it was a worthwhile image. A 1GB CF card will store around 230 Max size JPEGS, and around 8000 at the smallest size, with many variations between. Movie recording is also possible, but although the quality is good, the maximum movie length seems to be 3 minutes, regardless of card size, a minor annoyance!

 

Final gripe, and for me it is a big one that I feel Canon should have got right before release, the download cable is USB1.1, and this means that a full 1GB card takes over 20 minutes to download, against 5 minutes in a USB2 card reader, very shortsighted by Canon.

 

The sensor seems to be the same as that used in most other 8MP cameras at the moment, and does suffer somewhat with noise at most levels, increasing with ISO. There is a program called 'Noise Ninja' that very effectively deals with noise, and has probably been reviewed on this site somewhere, I'd recommend this to any Digicam or scanner owner, it is worth more than the fairly low cost of the software. See www.picturecode.com for more details.

 

Final verdict? Recommended Yes, but only as I can't yet afford the Canon 1D. The Pro1 does do many things well, but is not a replacement for a DSLR in several areas. If you can find one discounted in a large way, then go for it, and don't forget the batteries!

I have solved my Scan Dual 3 'unknown error' problem.... I got a better USB 2 card.

 

Yes, it was as simple as that, I thought I would never be able to get my scanner to work on my new PC, but the more I read, the more I knew what I should do. Minolta's website recommends Belkin or Adaptec USB 2 PCI cards as having been testd for this product, and from posts on this forum, I get the impression that anything (motherboards or PCI cards) with the VIA chipset could be problematic, and guess what chip my USB 2 card had... Yep, VIA !

 

In looking for a better USB 2 card, I formed the opinion that cards with an NEC chip were likely to be a better proposition, and the Belkin card has a NEC chip. I got a Belkin 2 port USB 2 PCI card, and my scanner works again, deep joy !

Christopher, can I ask which part of the Minolta US website you got the 1.1 driver from? I can only find the 1.0.0 version (which appears to be the one on my CD anyway) on the Scan Dual 3 support page.

 

I am getting the 'unknown error' part way through a maximum res scan and the scan aborts. I might try a 'better' USB2 card, as I am using a cheap generic one at the moment.

 

As a footnote, I found that using the SD3 on my other computer (laptop with USB2 PCMCIA card), the scanner was quite picky and sometimes gave the unknown error prompt, but I could generally scan ok if I isolated the data cable from any others, including mains cables, to reduce EM interference. Just got a new tower PC, and it won't scan reliably at all now!

To be honest, I think that the likelihood of damaging the rear element is small, especially if you were to put the lenses in a bag, front element downward, and with enough 'free space' above the lens to prent anything hard touching the rear element. Most bags have linings that don't particularly scratch glass, so if there is nothing hard to touch the element, oyu should be ok.

 

As a side note, the use of lens hoods helps here also, as the keep the front element further away from harm (with or without front lens cap), and I often rest a lens on the front edges of the lens hood, placed front element down on a table or wall, when changing lenses.

 

The only lenses I know of that use rear filters are mirror lenses, and the latest ultra wides that cannot use front mounted filters.

Well, after the introduction of the 'null serie' or model 0, I predict that the next step (backward) will be a $2000 Leica badged disposable camera (made by kodak), loaded with tri-x pan, naturally.

 

The fact that it only lasts for one roll of film matters not, as it will be a 'collector's model', and thus will probably expose no more than 5 frames in it's lifetime (some of those by accident, due to the loss of feeling through the white cotton gloves supplied with the camera).

I think that the reason some folks don't want to part with a D30 for peants is that they paid so much for it, so recently. Canon seem to be introducing each subsequent consumer digital SLR at a considerable price cut compared with the item it replaces. This is great for buyers, but not always for sellers, as in real terms, a D30 is not worth anywhere near the new cost of the 300D, but some shops, when they get them in as used stock, seem to be prepared to double the price, and put them on the shelves.

 

In fairness, I would buy a D30 as an addition to my EOS1n HS, as it would save me a lot of time and money in certain areas, but not until the price came down to around £300 UK. Otherwise, I'll just wait for the 10D to come down.

Terence,

 

I have an EOS 1n HS and use the Sigma 24-70 EX, and I think what you may be finding is a lack of contrast which is what the camera is looking for (remember the original EOS 1 is quite an old design by today's focussing standards). Prior to my 1n, I had EOS 5, and I think that the focussing on the 5 is possibly a little better than my 1n (and the EOS3 and 1v better still).

 

Things like watches and bottles with printed labels have edges and more contrast for the camera to focus on than many 'average room' items. You may find that the poor focus detection in low light is more noticeable at the wide end of the lens range?

 

I plan to upgrade my 1n some day, maybe to the 1v, mainly for the better focussing response, as I find some things (like aircraft against a bright sky) cause problems if they are not initially large enough in the frame for the camera to pick up on (and the focus hunts back and forth), by the time they are close enough (not long at 400mph), the camera too often misses the action.

 

You may find that attaching a speedlite helps as it has a focus assist pattern projector (there may be a way to turn the flash output off, and just use the IR beam projector).

I find that some 'traditional' cameras can also be confusing, there's always some small lever or button, that is overlooked, until someone else points out that it's a useful feature, like mirror lock up for example. At least Canon print icons next to most of the buttons (I know some aren't immediately decipherable, but at least they are standard across the brand).