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Digital SLR / DSLR Camera Question / DSLR Thread 2

here are a few that i like from last time out. sorry they are car related and not moto lol.

lighting conditions were horrible, too much sun.

IMG_6898-2.jpg


IMG_6896-2.jpg


this one is blown out on the right side but i still like it
IMG_6910-2.jpg


IMG_6989web.jpg
 
Nikon announced some new gear. D300S, basically D300 with video and a few modern updates found on newer cameras. D3000, new entry level to replace D60. New 18-200 with updated VR. New 70-200 with better design and new VR.
 
BrassPremier said:
Nikon announced some new gear. D300S, basically D300 with video and a few modern updates found on newer cameras. D3000, new entry level to replace D60. New 18-200 with updated VR. New 70-200 with better design and new VR.
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Over at the FM forums both the nikoneans and canonites are going crazy over this news. Good to see companies are still putting out the R&D monies around these times... :thumbup sometimes i wish i had enough money to have both nikon and canon gear due to the advantages each one provides
 
1sicv8 said:
geez no love.. cmon guys/gals... i need some pointers, criticism, anythng...
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Good shots braddah! The WB seem a little warm to me though but not too bad. :cool
 
Any more than Nick for the charity strobist shoot?

23rd August, $100 for at least an hour per person, lights and studio provided, multiple backdrops, all money is deductible as a donation.

New pics of Emily (VERY NWS) here:

***NWS***
http://www.yahphoto.biz/personal/emily3/g_emily3disclaimer.html
***NWS***

Yes, I'm shameless using her sexiness to sell this :)
 
Oh, and here's a less 'broken record' post:

Is the crap-in-low-light autofocus problem common to ALL Canon SLR's? It seems that my nifty fifty is the worst, but that might also be because I have to resort to that when the lighting is dodgy.

I want to upgrade at some stage (God knows when, after I get a real job), so am wondering if the autofocus issue goes away with a decent body, or decent lens, or both?
 
Joebar4000 said:
Oh, and here's a less 'broken record' post:

Is the crap-in-low-light autofocus problem common to ALL Canon SLR's? It seems that my nifty fifty is the worst, but that might also be because I have to resort to that when the lighting is dodgy.

I want to upgrade at some stage (God knows when, after I get a real job), so am wondering if the autofocus issue goes away with a decent body, or decent lens, or both?
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It's hard to say. I have the same issue with the 50mm 1.8 that you do. (I use an Xti body) I almost pulled it off my camera and threw it against the wall during my last shoot. I asked my buddy about it, and he doesn't have any issues with his old 5D, but my other buddy tells me that he always brings a flashlight with him on night shoots so that he can get his 5DMKII to actually focus in low light. There are times when I am tempted to just use my EX430 as an on-board flash just for the little red light on it that the camera uses to help focus on low light.

So, the answer is that even if you upgrade, there is a better than 50/50 chance that you will still have the same issue.
 
in real low light situations, i turn on my focus assist, which turns on a mini light to light up the subject till it focuses
 
Damn, that was the justification I was going to have for upgrading, mostly, lol!

Well, at least it's not me.

Flashlight idea is a good one - I wonder if infrared would work? That way I could just blast with an infrared without mucking up anything else (I'm almost always using strobes in low-light). I was tempted to try to figure out how to bypass the modelling light adjustment for the side-lit stuff, and just have the modelling light on max, so I could focus the damn thing.

I wish the new cameras still had split prism focussing for those of us with less than stellar eyesight in the dim...
 
File management geekery...

I somehow managed to lose my LR catalog for all of 2008...:wtf

It's re-importing now, and since I have it store all the metadata, edits, and other sorting bs in associated XMP sidecar files, everything's coming right back where it was before, edits, rankings, everything.

Lightroom FTW. :cool

Of course, I'll probably find the old catalog tomorrow or something. :facepalm
 
IMO, you can't really ask much from the nifty fifty. Yes it's a 1.8 but hunting auto focus in low light is a known issue with that lens. In my experience upgrading to the 1.4 help a lot (on an older 300D and my current 30D). I just purchased a 35mm F2 and that thing's focus is slow and hunts. Put on my buddy's 28mm 1.8 and focus was spot on. Did I mention the 35mm F2 is also loud?? LOL! But then I knew what I was getting (all mentioned issues are known). Now all I need to do is try a Sigma 30mm 1.4 and maybe get rid of the 35mm and decide between the 28mm and 30mm.

Getting back to the nifty fifty it is an excellent lens for the money and mine (the third one I owned) served me very well and was on my 30D 80% of the time. But then I tried the 1.4 and well, you know how that goes... :p I hope to never get a chance to try the 1.2. :laughing
 
I hate to be brand preferential, but it does seem that low-light focus is a weakness for the latest round of Canons, and a strength for the Nikons. I've heard the same complaint from a lot of people. That said, the borrowed D40 I'm running right now kinda sucks at focusing in the dark too. :laughing
 
Hmm, I know where there's a 1.4 for $250, looks in good nic. Now to justify buying it...

Nick, didn't you say you took with with no black backdrop?

I've been trying that technique, to no avail, even with the shiny new black-backed softboxes, real close to the subject, turned way down, and the backdrop about 15ft away... :(

Still need to add a full-size black backdrop to my tools. eBay here I come...
 
Joebar4000 said:
I've been trying that technique, to no avail, even with the shiny new black-backed softboxes, real close to the subject, turned way down, and the backdrop about 15ft away... :(
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That's your problem, Ian. You have the lights turned way down. If you want the background to go black, you have to crank up the ratio between the lighted foreground and the unlit background.

1. So, set your exposure to the max sync. (I believe that it's 1/200th of a second for your camera)
2. Try it with your normal light settings.
3. Then try increasing the power on your lights and adjust the f stop as necessary.
4. Don't be afraid to go to f22 if you have to.

The idea is that the more you light your subject, the darker the background will get when you set up the camera for the proper exposure for your subject. This is assuming that you are able to control the light spill to your background.
 
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