Camera Buff

[vharrison]

I know we have some excellent photo people on this board. I wonder what you think of the Canon eos 50 D and the lens that comes with it?

[Skwerl]

Waaaay too many buttons for me! :lol: I like my little Canon SD750 pocket digital but this is on a completely different level. I hope you enjoy it!
http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews_canon_eos_50d.php

[Blinky]

Roger's the Canon guy but the 50D is from the same line as the 20D which I know is a really solid DSLR geared for the serious amateur market.
The bottom line though is the glass. It's more important to have good lenses than a feature rich camera body. It's worth knowing that when you buy a lens for the 50D that, compared to a 35mm film camera, a given focal length will have a 1.6X increase in (apparent) magnification. It's because of the size of the imager which is smaller than a frame of 35mm film.

[MasterBlaster]

Got that, Virginia? :P

[fishhuntcutwood]

He's exactly right though. Alot of people go crazy with features on the body, and skimp on the glass, when it should be just the opposite of that. And he is also correct about the imaging compared to a conventional 35mm. There's different sensors througout the DSLR market with different aspect ratios. I consider myself an advanced ametuer in cameras, and Roger is the man to talk to. If he doesn't come along and see this, PM him Gigi and get his take on it. He'll be able to give you more info than you ever wanted.

[Che]

This is a feature I would like:


he Canon EOS 50D's EFS 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS kit lens offers image stabilisation, which allows you to take sharp photos at slower shutter speeds than other digital cameras. To test this, I took 2 handheld shots of the same subject with the same settings. The first shot was taken withImage Stabilisation turned off, the second with it turned on. Here is a 100% crop of the image to show the results. As you can see, with Image Stabilisation turned on, the images are much sharper than with anti-shake turned off. This feature really does seem to make a difference and could mean capturing a successful, sharp shot or missing the opportunity altogether.

[vharrison]

Got that, Virginia? :P

Right? None of it. :whine:

[stehansen]

I bought a Kodak Z1285 yesterday.

[Che]

Gigi, is the camera for yourself? If so, make sure you test ride it personally. I've held a few of the 'professional' digitals that could be the best camera's in the world but it wouldn't matter to me as they are so heavy/bulkly for my small feminine (hahaahahahahahaaaa) hands that I would have a hard time using them. You know, kinda like a Glock is....great gun, unless you have to use it.

[Dave Shepard]

Che, good point. I was looking at a D40 last year, but too small. Now I want a D300, too much money. Can't win.:roll:

[darkstar]

Little de rail here .
Why is Glock hard to use Che ?

[Skwerl]

Jerry, I think it's because of the grip. Most Glocks have a 'double stack' clip in the grip making it very wide, almost square. Difficult to get a comfortable grip if you have smaller than average hands.

[rbtree]

The 50D is an excellent camera! Better built and better camera than the XT series. lighter, and cheaper than the 1D pro cameras like mine.

Here's a bunch of links:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=139&modelid=17499

This reviewer http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/digital/canon_eos_50D.html notes that there's a kit which offers the good 28-135 IS lenses and camera for $1599. That lens would be a better fit if you only had one lens. And $200 extra is a $200 savings. He also notes that Canon might offer a kit with the 18-200, which is a really wide range zoom. sometimes the image quality drops with such a wide zoom range. Review here: http://www.dpreview.com/lensreviews/canon_18-200_3p5-5p6_is_c16/


Another great review:
http://kenrockwell.com/canon/50d.htm

And a full review here:
http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos50d/

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ProductCatIndexAct&fcategoryid=140 a good lens to complement the 18-55IS would be the 70-300 f/4-5/6 IS (IS=image stabilization and is needed more on long lenses to allow for sharp low light photos. The non IS 70-300 will be cheaper. Would need a tripod for long shots....and with the 1.6 crop factor of the 50D sensor that lens becomes 113-480 mm, which means you can home in on that fisherman way off in the distance :/:

[vharrison]

Thanks RB!

[darkstar]

Sheewww ,so much to learn...
Those look tasty.

[jamie]

it's a crap camera but if you send it to me i'll make sure someone can love a hunk of junk:P i'll send you my camera over ina swap, it's smaller and more suited to smaller hands (my wee canon EOS 350d


look here
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/


Jamie

[Swe#kipp]

The 40D is on sale in most places and is a good buy "still" :)
+ 40D less noise in the pictures,
cheaper (more money left for good lenses)
+ 50D better display you can detail study the pictures direct after shooting it, micro af adjustment a nice thing to have if your lense back/front focus a bit, a bit better weather protection !

I got the 40D and like it alot wicked fast serial shooting and autofocus it is a camera to grow with for sure and the 50D is an upgrade so it can't be bad :D

Good luck with your camera buy and have fun using it !!!

[vharrison]

Well, a friend that gives photography lessons came over last night and gave us some tips on the new camera. Wow, we have a lot to learn. She gave us some homework, and we will meet again after the holidays. I have always wanted to know more about being a good photographer and looking forward to learning.

[woodworkingboy]

Sounds good for you guys, V. Stick with it until the camera feels comfortable in your hands, not confusing on how to use it. That's when it becomes quicker and a lot of fun. You'll learn quick if you start to use it frequently.

[jamie]

don't turn the dial to the auto and 'creative' positions either,

Jamie

[jamie]

My dad asked me what i wanted for christmas so i told him i was saving up for a new camera lens. He asked which one so he decided to buy it for me. my wee EOS 350D (XTi, i think) is now sporting an EF 70 - 200 f4 L USM. I knew they were good but i never realised how much more vibrant the colours were, how much sharper they were and how much more consistant they were. funny how these things are more noticeable first hand. I now want to sell my other 3 lenses to get another L lens

heres my new baby:|:

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/treejamie/DSC00275.jpg

Jamie

[Mr. Sir]

Nice! Are you sure you're not trying to overcompensate for something. :lol:

Just kidding, Jamie. ;) That's a beauty. Now post some pics! :D

[jamie]

I have an old sigma 70 - 300, its longer, this ones wider:D I've been told width is more important ;)

Jamie

[Swe#kipp]

nice lense you got, i've been looking at that one myself !!
now show some test pics plz :)

[Mr. Sir]

Mine's longer than yours. :P

[jamie]

very quickly,

all at ISO 400, 1/8 f8, all handheld with flash (430ex) on auto
1, a close up with my 3 kenko extension tubes
2, my new baby at 200mm (sorry for the ghosting more down to a slightly longer shutter speed)
3 my old sigma 70 - 300 f4-5.6 APO macro Super

subject my flatmates brake lever.

http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/treejamie/1.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/treejamie/2.jpg
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c199/treejamie/3.jpg

in the past i was always moderatly disapointed with the sigma, now it just hurts that i spent £180 on it all those years ago then £70 getting it stripped and cleaned last year.
Jamie

[Mr. Sir]

Sweet!!! Very nice indeed. 8)

[jamie]

I'm super impressed by the difference in colour it produces over the old sigma, i suppose thats the difference that £300 makes. now i want a 5D (or a 5DmkII) to really show it off.

i'd quite like a tripod colar for it but the canon version coming in at almost £90 i found some 'made for canon' ones on fleabay for £15 from hong kong......i like to stay branded but its almost £75 extra for a collar

edit: even the lens hood clicks on in an almost sexy way...i'm off to bed, i'm working tomorrow:cry:

Jamie

[Mr. Sir]

I'd go with the cheaper collar. After all, its not like it will affect the picture quality. As long as it works, you're golden.

[rbtree]

Very nice lens, Jamie.......every bit as sharp as my 70-200 f/2.8 IS......and, look around for a 1.4x and 2x for it. You'll get AF (with the center spot), and, with any luck, with the 2x as well.

My 2.8 with both convertors stacked (f/8) will actually AF to some degree, if the subject has some good lines for it to lock on.

The next lenses to consider are the 17-40 or 24-105, both f/4 and L...... i use my 17/40 more than my 24-70, I think.

or a 12-20 or whatever is available for your small sensor....but the image quality may suffer a bit......