JohnMWright

If you are using digital and have Photoshop CS2, you can take several exposures and merge them using the HDR feature (high-dynamic range)

Alex, if you ever plan to get a full frame digital or use film, then the Tamron won't work, it only works with APS sized sensors.

I think it will depend on the working distance. Those lenses aren't huge, stick them in a bag and take them all. And take a tripod; depending on the distance, the flash may not have enough range to illuminate the whole scene evenly.

 

As for aperture, I'd guess f/5.6 might be ok since you will be back aways, but can you get into the site early and check using the depth of field preview?

Thank you for the review Lisa, I'm glad you were able to come across the gear you'd asked about and learn what you needed. Thank you for sharing your findings!

William's answer is excellent, I don't have much to add to it.

 

Don't buy another lens unless you have a very specific need/reason to do so. The gear you have now is excellent and will cover most situations. Practice with it, learn what it can do. If you find it limiting in some way, then figure out what else you need.

 

Given the weight of your gear, maybe a good backpack should be the next purchase! ;-)

 

Also, do you have a good solid tripod?

 

BTW, I have a 17-40 and a 70-200. I'm "missing" the range in the middle... but I have yet to really find a need for it. That's just me though.

What is your ultimate goal with it? If you plan to only touch up photos, then Elements 5.0 might be enough for you.

I have the 70-200 f/2.8 IS, and it is a great lens. Very high quality. It is heavy as noted, and expensive, and big. Most of the time I prefer to have it on a tripod, but if you find yourself in locations where you can't use a tripod, having the IS can mean the difference in getting a usable shot vs. getting nothing.

 

But, what do you intend to photograph with it? If you did mostly landscapes (and use the telephoto to pick out details), then I'd say use a tripod and pass on the IS. For the portraits, if you use flash, maybe you don't need IS? If you use ambient light and need to move around often, then go IS.

 

IS won't stop subject motion, but it will help camera shake.

 

For portraits, having at least f/2.8 is important. Most portrait photographers want even faster lenses and that means primes.

 

If you use M mode at all, having a constant aperture while zooming is a big plus. I do use M, so I will never get a variable aperture zoom.

I lean towards the Canon 220ex. I have the 420ex which is a little heavier, and I think having something more compact and a little lighter would be nice for macro. As Puppy said, the AF assist is nice.

 

I also question the longevity/recycle time of 2 AAAs vs 4 AAs. I think I'd pass on that one.

Roel, I don't use DPP, so this is a stab in the dark. I import my RAW files with PS CS2. There is a sharpen feature in the import utility that says it works for the preview only. My thought is, maybe DPP is giving you a sharpened preview but when you convert it hasn't really done the sharpening?

Kristina,

 

I haven't used a plastic bag myself, but I've heard that it can help save your gear by letting the condensation form on the outside of the bag rather than on the camera and lens. I found that having the camera inside the bag is good enough. The bags are padded and therefore somewhat insulated, it takes time for them to warm to room temperature.

Sorry Lisa, I don't have any experience with Markins. What I was trying to say is I think you are going to want a stronger ballhead than the ones you listed, given your gear.

 

Regardless of the location of the tension control, never loosen the ballhead without having a good grip on your camera. If you hold the camera, you cannot have an accidental "gear flop".

I cannot say anything about Markins, but I have the Kirk BH-1 and had, for a day, the BH-3. The specs on the BH-3 suggest it will hold your D200 and 80-200, but I wasn't comfortable with it combined with my Minolta XD-11, winder, and Tokina 100-300 f/4, which is lighter than your combo. I exchanged it for the bigger model. I'm quite happy with the BH-1, and have zero worries about the strength.

 

I've never had a problem with the tension knob. I keep the main knob on the left and never use my right hand to adjust the ballhead... the right hand is always on the camera during adjustments. YMMV.

I have an older model, labeled Bogen 3221. Manfrotto number is 055. It has a good sturdiness for the money. The latest model is the 055MF3, which is lighter and perhaps a little stronger than mine, but it is also more expensive. You will be able to grow with it.

 

The bogen 3001 (not sure of the Manfrotto number) is another good model, lighter than the 055, not quite as sturdy, but also very popular.

 

I find ballheads easiest to use. I suggest looking at some compatible with arca-swiss quick releases. Which model will depend on the lenses you plan to use. Check out acratech, arca-swiss, kirkphoto, and really right stuff.

 

If you are not totally sold on Manfrotto, Gitzo is sturdier but more expensive by far.

My observation with RAW vs JPG on my Canon 20d is that even without all the minute adjustments in RAW, I easily produce a sharper image with RAW. My wife has an Olympus C740, and I think the JPGs it produces are far better than what Canon does in camera. The RAW image can produce a much better image than her Olympus. So I only use the JPGs from the Canon for a quick look at the results. Granted, I have not played with JPG settings in the camera that much, it could be possible to get something better.

 

I haven't compared prints but just based on the screen images, I'd say I can get bigger prints starting from the RAW files.

I have the sideline shooter, it is very nice, compact, and well made. But unless the lenses are very small, you won't be able to hold 3 lenses + a flash in it.

In manual mode, even with the flash firing, if the shutter speed is long enough you will see some blurring. Also, when the shutter is open for a long time, you get the ambient room light which likely isn't the same temperature as the flash. The f-stop isn't the issue in this case.

Hehe, I agree, it isn't all that cold. But it's all relative. I remember seeing Bahamians wearing long sleeves in the winter, while I was in shorts sweating... and after experiencing 15 F the other day, 55 F today seems quite hot. ;-)

If you run into battery problems you can keep a 2nd set of batteries inside your coat (near your skin to keep them warm) and swap the batteries as needed.

 

Some Nikons have optional battery packs with a cord that allow you to keep the batteries inside your coat at all times, not sure about the 6006 though.

 

Also, make sure you have a camera bag with you, and put the camera away, zipped close, before you go back indoors. Leave the camera inside the bag to warm up slowly. This will prevent condensation. Some will say further to put the camera inside a plastic ziplock and squeeze out the air.

 

And most important of all, keep yourself warm. Layers, thermal underwear, good boots, warm socks, gloves, hat, neck gaiter, good jacket/parka. There are gloves with fingers missing that allow dexterity with the camera, and some that have removable fingers, and some that are just thin.

I've had good luck with Superior Camera Repair and Exchange in Woodland Hills, CA. I don't have the address handy but white pages online should find it.

Carole, you said "almost every time". I found that as my batteries weakened on my 420ex flash, the flash would not recycle as fast as I expected. Therefore, if I tripped the shutter too soon, the flash did not fire and I got a blurred ambient light photo (off tripod). If you have standard lightbulbs in your house, the light would be yellowish. Could that be it?

 

Another thought is 2nd curtain sync?

 

But please do tell us the settings on the camera, and perhaps post a sample or two.

For the record, I bought the Hama insulating shoe mount. It works very well.

Thank you. I'll probably opt for the short column when I can find it.

I'm planning to get the Gitzo 3530 tripod. I think the standard center column

is too long for my use. Gitzo makes a short column, but can anyone who already

has one of the 6x mountaineer tripods tell me if it looks possible to shorten

the column myself, and still be able to use the hook? I know I'll be able to

use the "ground level set" feature but sometimes having a little bit of center

column is handy.

I found the same thing. They did loosen over time, but the 70-200 hood was a lot tougher than the 17-40 hood. Just work 'em, it should get better. Don't add any chemicals!

The Celtic designation is a lower-end lens. Call it "budget". They were not known to be very sharp compared the the rest of the lineup.

 

Most of the older prime MCs have non-rotating front elements, as do most of the newer MDs. There was a span of time between these in which they designated the lenses MD-Rokkor I believe, and these had rotating front elements, which I hate in a prime. I'm not aware of any significant improvement in optical quality from MC to MD.

 

I had a 28mm f/2.5 MC and a 58mm f/1.4 MC, both were excellent. I also have a 24mm f/2.8 MD and a 50mm f/1.7 MD. The 24mm is almost as sharp as the 28mm (still excellent), but the 50mm is outstanding. The optical quality of these lenses is superb. The build quality is great too.

 

For an excellent Minolta zoom, I can also personally recommend the 50-135 f/3.5 MD and 100-100 f/5.6 MD. The 100-300 is hard to focus but very sharp. All of the zooms I know of have rotating front elements (but I can tolerate it in a zoom for some reason). I've read that the 24-50mm f/4 is pretty good, but I stuck with primes for wide angle.

 

Ken Rockwell has some information on his website about a few Minolta lenses too.

 

My advice is dump the 45mm and the 135, keep the other two. Unless you find you want something wider than the 28, in which case get the 24 or perhaps a 20mm MD. If you don't need the reach out to 300mm, I'd then go for a 70-210 f/4 MD. Depending on the type of photography you like, you might be fine with the 3 lenses, wide, normal and tele zoom.

 

I had two non-Minolta lenses that I liked quite a bit. A Vivitar 100mm macro f/2.8 (1:1), and a Tokina 100-300 f/4. The macro was tack sharp, and the Tokina was just as sharp as the Minolta, and had a tripod collar.