bill_mussett1

Another program to consider is Showit Web. They have a demo version you can download.

The digital recorders The Mercury uses are a little pricey for me; Radio Shack has a digital

recorder with a USB connection for about $100.; haven't tried it so can't comment on the

sound quality. Another news website with audio slideshows is the BBC. Scroll to the

bottom and on the left side look for Slideshows and Interviews.

I've yet to find a canned slideshow program that allows complete freedom of design,

though ShowIt comes pretty close. I have Keynote and hadn't considered using that;

QuickTime was a disappointment. Another option is a video program like Final Cut

Express.

http://www.showitfast.com/

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/default.stm

There have been several recent posts in one of the PNet Wedding forums asking the same

question, unfortunately I don't remember which forum so try doing a search.

A good link that will give you a visual idea of depth-of-field for various

camera/lens/aperture settings is at: http://www.dofmaster.com/dofjs.html

I've been trying-out Capture One 4 beta on a Mac and like it very much; especially the

interface. There are some things I like better in Canons DPP, such as individually fine tuning

R-G-B tone curves. The beta still has a few bugs and doesn't have a manual or Help function.

I don't use Lightroom or Aperture so I can't make any comparisons with either.

The Pantone Huey monitors ambient light and is under $100. I haven't used it, but it's a

feature that makes sense if your workspace does not have consistent lighting.

I've seen the same problem using software other than DPP on RAW photos taken on the AWB

setting. DPP will nail the color correctly, especially in consistant light. The answer is that

Canon software knows how to best interpret Canon files. Try using DPP and see what you get.

The lighting in your examples covers such a wide range of color temps it may be best to

experiment with one light source.

I've been using DPP with my 30D and have found it to work well for most corrections.

Recently I started using Phase One's Capture One 4 beta, which for the time being is a free

download, and it does go a few steps further than DPP; wider color temperature, very

sensitive curves & levels, and suprizingly, even sharper images than DPP in the edit

window.

That said, I'm only a few months into higher-end digital (beyond a digital P&S) and I would

suggest starting with DPP to get to know what effects various corrections have on your

photos before diving into more complex programs. And forget JPEG, shoot RAW.

Another suggestion would be to read the Wedding & Social forums on PNet. Wedding

shooters seem to routinely come up against all different conditions, many requiring digital

correction, and there are many knowlegable posters there.

Your photos are good. I am not a wedding photograper, but based upon other posts I've read

here I wonder if you want to state (on your pricing page) unlimited photos followed by xxx

amount on a CD; brides may want all your photos - including the ones that you may not want

shown for whatever reason. Unlimited coverage on your top package to me is too open a

statement and your idea of unlimited coverage may be very different from the brides. Lastly,

will you be doing any post-processing, and is that included in your pricing. Another PNet

poster makes a point of providing several post-processed, professionally printed prints to

use as a standard for prints the B&G will have made.

If a manual didn't come with the set-up, get one. When you mention the rails set-up it

sounds similiar to the Kaidan panorama tripod heads. If it is like Kaidan, the rail is so you can

move the lens back and forth over over the center of the tripod using the method Colin

described to find the nodal point of the lens. It's trial & error. I used a 28mm lens when I did

panos; shoot vertically; wider is generally better as long as there is no distortion. Good luck,

they're fun.

I have a 30D and Canon's 10-22mm lens and have also noticed when using AF with only the

center AF point activated that infinity will be beyond the vertical focus mark. According to the

Canon manual this happens due to variations in temperature:

"To compensate for shifting of the infinity focus point that results from changes in

temperature. The infinity position at normal temperature is the point at which the vertical line

of the L mark is aligned with the distance indicator on the distance scale."

I don't know why AF would focus to the left of the vertical mark for a far away subject. It

might be worthwhile to do a focus test on the lens. Try: focustestchart.com.

I used a Kadian head on my tripod to take panoramas; I assume panoramas are what you

want to do. You'll need to be able to slide the camera and lens forward and back over the

center of the tripod using the method Colin outlined to find the nodal point. As you rotate

the camera/lens taking the photos you must stay centered on the nodal point.

I am not a wedding photographer, but have enjoyed, learned from and sometimes even

challenged by the many replies to the posts here and the other Wedding sub-forms. For

example, I've favored existing light and likely would never have seriously considered

learning the use of flash if I hadn't seen examples here of what can be achieved with

knowledge and practice.

I would hate to lose the contributions of the many pro's who share here regularly. My only

suggestion regarding the repetitive posts Marc mentions is that they be answered by the

forum moderator, directing the OP to search the subject and/or post link(s) to previously

answered similiar posts.

Catherine, I use Safari on a Mac. Good idea to try it the most popular browsers.

Good Luck! Bill

Some very nice photos, especially in your Places section. I was unable to return to your

Homepage though after viewing other sections. A weddings-only section would be good if

that is your target market. I also don't think it's necessary to have the EXIF data shown for

each photo; other photographers may be interested, but not prospective clients. Check the

grammar and spacing on your home page and personally I would delete the entire first

paragraph.

I strongly second Nadines suggestion to search the Wedding Forums; especially the Technical

sub-forum.

I did not have a problem installing DPP 3.0.2 and I've been installing all the security updates

on my Mac running 10.4.10. A suggestion would be to try re-installing DPP from the disk, do

a re-start, then try to update to 3.0.2.

Image Quality. Not a stupid question. Sometimes people get carried-away with using

abbreviations. You're not alone in having a difficult time de-coding some of them!

I'm sure what you're trying to do, but Canon does have several additional Picture Styles you

can download from this address:

http://web.canon.jp/imaging/picturestyle/index.html

They're meant to be used in Digital Photo Pro. and there are also "how-to" instructions for

both Mac and Windows. This site was originally posted on the EOS Forum on P.Net.

I agree with Saurabh that the 24-70 is a heavy walk-around lens on my 30D; but it is a fine

lens and I bought it with the expectation of upgrading to FF some day. I do miss the wide

end, I used a 24mm exclusively on my SLR for years, and plan to get the 10-22 to fill that

void.

It's already been said several times above, but I'll add my vote for the 24-70L. I miss the wide

end on my 30D, which is all I used for film, but it's still a great lens.

Canon's pre-download instructions for the 30D firmware update state to first format a 512mb to 2GB

card. I have a 4GB card, and only a 4GB card. Will using a higher capacity card somehow cause problems in

updating the firmware?

I recently purchased a 30D and struggled with nearly the same decision on what lens to

purchase. Finally settled on the EF 24-70 and have no regrets. While most of my photos are

outdoors, its been a great lens for indoor also, whether daylight or incandescent.

Andrea: I also have a Sekonic L-508 which I use with my Hassy for both

B&W and slides. A couple of ideas for you: You mentioned you took a spot

reading from your friends face, try to find something that is near 18% gray to

take your reading; that's what all meters are programmed to assume you are

taking a reading of. You will need to correct that reading if you are using a

filter other than a UV filter. The L-508 allows you to set a second ISO (ISO 2).

You could set ISO 2 to the filter-corrected ISO. Then take your reading, press

ISO 2 and you'll know your filter-corrected exposure. Try taking an incident

reading with the L-508, correct it if you're using a filter and see how those

exposures compare to the spot readings. Make sure your L-508 batteries

are fresh. Hope some of this helps!

Ken:

I've used both the FE80 and FE110 for landscapes and also wanted a wider

angle. I bought a 903SWC and have been very pleased with the results from

the 903. I really don't even consider using the 110 for landscapes now and

only occasionally use the 80. As for low light landscapes I haven't tried any

but would like to.

The 203FE does not have a spot meter, it's a 20% coverage

meter. I also considered the 205FCC but the price difference

was too much for me so I purchased a 203FE and a Sekonic

L-508 light meter which has a 1% to 4% zoom spot meter and an

incident meter. But what really sold me on this meter is it's low

light reading limit is approximately 34 minutes, almost the same

maximum exposure time as the 203FE electronic shutter. (No, I

haven't taken a 34 minute exposure, but the versatility is one

reason I bought the 203FE).