|
|
|
|
Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
|
| Check out the latest parts and accessories from Truck Hownd | |
| DrSpeed
Writer/Photographer
Premium Member
Blogs: 22 (View)
Vehicle: Ford F-550, Gixxer 750,
Joined: Jun 2005
Member # 103
From: Bellingham WA
Visit Gallery
|
| Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
 Posted
- November 30 2007 : 3:52p
| You da man, Denny!
Thanks, I will pass this information along. | | DrSpeed
Writer/Photographer
Premium Member
Blogs: 22 (View)
Vehicle: Ford F-550, Gixxer 750,
Joined: Jun 2005
Member # 103
From: Bellingham WA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- November 30 2007 : 5:30p
| | no problemo dood. | | Greez Lightning
Photographer
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2001 Ford Lightning
Joined: May 2005
Member # 7
From: Santa Clarit CA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 3 2007 : 9:22a
| | Yup hes right. Faster lens. | | Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 3 2007 : 11:57a
| I passed along all of this information as well as some advice from Mike and /dev/null.
Thank you to all. | | MichaelS
Writer/Photographer
Premium Member
Blogs: 27 (View)
Vehicle: 2006 F150 Supercrew FX4
Joined: May 2005
Member # 6
From: Long Island, NY
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 9 2007 : 3:32p
| That's the Canon lens I have been eyeballing.
For those that don't know
http://www.islesblogger.com/wpg2
I borrowed a lens from the guy who sits next to me (wasn't the lens I was looking at - and I had crazy blur issues (hand held). I have been saving for that lens for a while. | | MrSVTGal
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2000 Ford Expedition
Joined: May 2005
Member # 5
From: South OC CA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 9 2007 : 10:17p
| Hmmm, budget is a serious issue, obviously.
The EOS Digital Rebel (and Rebel XT, which is 8MP) top out at 1600 ISO for the faux film speed setting. Indoor telephoto photography is going to be difficult EVEN with a f2.8 lens. (Been there, do it often).
The problem is that that lens in the picture above is at least $1500, which is a good chunk of change more than the lens she is considering ($450?).
I think that with the sort of budget that I'm guessing, a 2nd tier lens, with the lowest possible f-stop capability, is the best bet. Has she looked at the standard Canon aftermarket brands, like Tokina, Sigma, and Tamron? If she can get ANYTHING that can do f3.5 at full zoom, or better (lower, the next stop being 2.8), then she has a good chance at meeting her goal of having a good zoom for indoor sports photography.
And, I'd recommend that she set her camera in aperture priority mode, with the aperture forced to 2.8 (or whatever the lowest setting the lens can do is), and the camera will figure out shutter speed.
A good rule of thumb on shutter speed for hand held photography is that 1 over whatever your focal length is should be OK if you have a steady hand. Slower than that will probably be blurry. If your lens has IS (Image Stabilization) it'll help a lot at full zoom. So, for a 200mm zoom on a film camera, the slowest shutter speed you should be doing is about 1/200 (actually, you have 1/250th available, and the next slower speed is 1/120, which is too slow).
On the Digital Rebel and other consumer DSLRs, you have a reduced sensor size, which multiplies the effective focal length by 1.6x. So, for a 200mm lens, the actual effective length for a Digital Rebel is 320mm, so 1/320 is your slowest recommended shutter speed, for handheld use.
The other thing you can do is underexpose slightly, on purpose (1 stop at the most). That way the shutter speed will be a little faster and you can use photoshop or something to postprocess to fix the dark picture. You'll have slightly less overall contrast, but you'll have a sharper shot, which is worth the tradeoff for shots that you can't stage in a studio or something!
MrSVTGal | | Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 10 2007 : 2:40p
| Thanks, Eric.
Hope you don't mind, but I just copied your entire post and emailed to Carrie. I'm sure she will appreciate the helpful tips and advice. | | MrSVTGal
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2000 Ford Expedition
Joined: May 2005
Member # 5
From: South OC CA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 11 2007 : 12:08a
| No problem - glad I could be of some help.
My daughter does ice skating competitions, and the combination of an ice skater zooming around the ice at the far end of the rink with pretty poor lighting in general makes it hard to get good shots.
That 'standard' f/3.5-5.6 type zoom lens just won't cut it for indoor stuff.
Good luck!
MrSVTGal | | Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 11 2007 : 9:21a
| | She has one of the Canon IS zoom lenses reserved from a rental place to try out. I'm sure they will eventually bite the bullet and buy one. | | MrSVTGal
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2000 Ford Expedition
Joined: May 2005
Member # 5
From: South OC CA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 12 2007 : 12:53p
| Right - IS is just the Canon term that indicates that the lens has Image Stabilization.
So, for example, you could pick up a garden variety 75-300mm zoom (f6 probably), for about $250. Or, you could pick up the IS version of the same lens for maybe $450-500. (Numbers and specs made up, but you get the idea).
What IS gets you is that the len elements detect movement (usually just in the horizontal direction), and the lens actively swivels during the exposure in order to counteract any handheld camera shake. This is a great feature, and results in sharper handheld pictures.
But what IS DOES NOT get you is good indoor sports photography capability. Sure, your pictures will be sharper if they are not moving, due to the IS feature. But, if the subject is moving, in an indoor setting, the only thing you can do is use a faster shutter speed if you want a sharp picture. So, you need cameras with faster ISO settings (many point and shoots top out at 400, and the Digital Rebel goes to 1600). The EOS 30D and some others can do 3200, but with a lot of speckle/noise in the pictures. 1600 is a reasonable maximum to expect from a DSLR.
So, once you're using the camera in it's fastest ISO setting, the only thing you can do is open up the lens (use the smallest number aperture, which lets the most light into the lens, so the picture can be taken in a shorter duration). The maximum f-stop (lowest number) of the lens is what comes into play at that point.
For most readily available zoom lenses, the at maximum zoom, the lens can only do f5.6 or 6.
For super deluxe lenses, like the Canon L series, you can buy lenses that can do f2.8 (such as the 70-200 IS L lens shown in the picture above). But, the cost is very high (about $1600 for that lens with IS, or $900 without IS, and that one has IS that does horizontal and vertical).
So, I think it's reasonable to look for an IS lens - it'll help in almost all situations where the subject you're photographing is not moving.
But when the subject is moving, and the light is bad (indoor sports photography is a classic example), the only thing you can do is go to a 'faster lens', which can let more light in. Tell her to make sure to compare the f-stop settings at full zoom.
Here's a link to the IS version of the 'regular' zoom lens, with f5.6 at 300mm zoom:
http://www.adorama.com/CA70300ISNR.html?searchinfo=Canon%20EF%20lens&item_no=11
(It's a refurb, and priced at $490)
Equivalent lens, without 'IS', same f5.6 @ 300mm:
http://www.adorama.com/CA75300AFR.html?searchinfo=75-300&item_no=36
(Also a refurb, at $130)
Meanwhile, Tokina made a very nice 80-200mm f2.8 lens in their ATX series that should be available in the required EOS 'EF' mounting style. However, you're only going to find it used, I think. But, the cost might only be $600 or so, which is fantastic for f2.8 @ 200mm. A drawback to non-Canon lenses is that they may focus more slowly than Canon lenses (especially the L lenses, which are very quick).
I'm rambling. Let us know what she finds. If indoor shots of stuff in motion weren't super high on the requirements list, I'd say that the $490 model up above is a good solution.
I'd also say that buying a used Canon lens isn't that big of a deal. They're built like tanks. And, they are almost infinitely fixable by Canon Service, at a flat fee. It doesn't matter if you're taking the lens in because it's just dirty, and you want it disassembled and cleaned, or if you're taking it in because you dropped it and it isn't functioning - same fee. Canon Factory Service is in Irvine, CA, and in Chicago. It's a mail in service unless you're local to one of those locations.
MrSVTGal
| | MrSVTGal
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2000 Ford Expedition
Joined: May 2005
Member # 5
From: South OC CA
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 12 2007 : 1:06p
| I couldn't get this off my mind... so...
Here's a well known aftermarket brand example:
http://www.adorama.com/SG70200MEOS.html
70-200mm f/2.8, and it's only $889.
MrSVTGal | | Mark05KR
Supercharged Member
Premium Member
Blogs: 0 (Add)
Vehicle: 2005 King Ranch F-150
Joined: Oct 2005
Member # 374
From: New Ipswich New Hampshire
Visit Gallery
|
Posted
- December 12 2007 : 2:00p
| Thanks for the info. Carrie is thrilled to get all of this free education. Keep it coming. 
That first lens is listed as f/4-5.6. Does the higher f-stop always refer to the higher zoom? In another words that lens can go to f4 at 70mm but only to f5.6 at 300mm. Is that typically how lens specifications are listed?
| | devnull
Mod Wrangler
Premium Member
Blogs: 4 (View)
Vehicle: 2009 Hyundai 1-Ton
Joined: May 2005
Member # 20
From: PartsUnknown
Visit Gallery
|
| | |
|
|
|
|
Need some camera/lens help
