I am getting ready to step up and go back to an SLR camera but Digital this time. I have shot a ton of shot with my Olympus C4000 but its time to move to better quality... I am looking at getting the new Canon 30D or 5D and was wondering if any of the photo takes on this board have used it.. I am going this route since I have a few lens from my film SLR that will work and it will save me about a $800 by not buying them again. What SLR's are you folks using.. Kirk, Spike, OGNC etc....
At work, I use a Nikon D50... that sucker is fast! Wouldn't do you much good if you already have Canon-style lenses, but I've been real pleased with it as a camera. And battery life is excellent (800-1000 non-flash photos on a charge!). Comparing picture quality with the Canons, I would say they are the same quality (with differing advantages/disadvantages on each). I Spec'ed theis one for work because I didn't like the way the Canon felt in my hand (just a preference issue, ymmv), and the case on the main body seemed a little loose/creaky in a couple of the display models I looked at... but if I already had some Canon lenses, those issues wouldn't be bad enough to keep me away from the Canon. Olympus has a new-ish DSLR camera in the same $ range that I was really impressed with as well. I tested one of them out at a trade show.
The New Nikon D80 is the shizznit. It's a D200 in a D70 (or D50) case. It rocks, but it's not for you cannon folk...
seems to be alot of Nikon guys here.. if it wasn't for the fact I had the other lenses I would think about a Nikon. some friends have one and its nice. Slide, the 'feel in your hand' test is really and it is sometthing I have not done yet. wanted to get folks thoughts on it. while on the west coast for business next week, I was going to stop by my old camera shop and test drive them..
I'm in the same boat you are. I have been using an Olympus 5060 for about 3 years now. Its been goog enough for reperduction in magazine articals. But I'm going to move up to a 30D as soon as I get the money. I'm also using a Canon EOS Elan7. so iIhave the lenses. I know Nikon's are excellent systems but the Canon's will do anything you want from a SLR. Go for it.
If you were on a budgit, The Pentax istDl with the kit 18-55mm can be bought for under $400. It has done a great job for me.
I've been using a D70 since they came out and very pleased with every aspect, but I've always been a Nikon guy. It's kinda like the old Ford vs. Chevy thing...
Boones, Here are two very comprehensive reviews of the cameras you are interested in. http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos5d/ http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos30d/ As Slide said, try each one to see how it fits your hand and shooting style. You will see in the reviews that these two cameras are significantly different from one another. The 5D is a full frame camera and the 30D has a 1.6 crop factor. What this means is that a 50mm lens on the 5D acts like a 50mm lens on your film SLR, but the same lens acts like an 80mm lens on the 30D. You can use an EF lens on both cameras if that is what you already have. Good luck, Ed
Along those same lines, do the Nikon lenses that were in use 18-20 years back fit the new digitals? Sure would be nice to buy a digital body only. Especially since my HP C-618 pocket camera gave up the ghost. Kinda ticked me off, the darned thing shot excellent pics even if it was small. I'd have the C-618 repaired, it appears to be a mechanical link problem, but Hewlett-Packard won't do it. Making that the last HP device I buy....
I had a Canon Rebel(300d) and loved it. Now have a Canon 10d and love it as well, it is not a 30d but like an older brother. I would love to have a 5d but that is alot of cash. A pro photographer that I know has Fuji and Nikon stuff. He told he prefers Fuji but Canon's digital stuff is far more advanced than any of the others. http://www.fredmiranda.com/reviews/showcat.php?cat=15 http://www.pbase.com/cameras/canon
Nikon D50 over here... and that's after being a Canon guy for most of my life, and we have a ton of Canon's at work, but mostly I tend to use my little point and shoot Sony since it's more portable... But check and make sure those Canon lenses you have will work, Nikon is pretty easy they haven't changer their lens mount, Canon has... Verify that they'll work, which you should be able to do at a local store.. The dividing line in the industry seems to be Canon for sports and action and the Nikon for more art oriented. The wife sees this a lot at the pro lab she works at...
Just what he said don't know, he just said they more more advanced. Don't know if that is his opinion or fact.
bought a Canon EOS 650 (film) about 15 years ago. took many thousands of pictures with it, the only problem I ever had was when I drooled or dripped sweat in the shutter when I had the back open and was loading the film. didn't know I did it until I got my pics back....boogered up about 60 pics out of 300 I took at Paso. I went digital in '05.. bought the digital rebel XT. 8 megapixels. if I were smart I'd have just bought the body, but I waited until the last minute and ran down to "Best Buy" the day before Paso and bought it there without shopping around. all my old lenses fit, and I have nothing but good things to say about it. I bet I've taken 3000 pictures with it and no troubles. one thing I found when I went digital, my old 18 - 35 MM lens is now like a 30 - 55. something to do with how digitals work VS film. can't get those fish eye views I used to get. kinda sucks when you paid $500.00 for a lens
I've been Canon since film days (AE-1). Started with the D30 digital, upgraded that to the 20D and haven't switched to anything newer. Concerning old lens, they may not work out. The Canon sensor is 1.6 times smaller than a 35mm film negative, so you have to factor in the conversion. I shoot with a wide-angle fast lens 100% of the time. The lens cost as much as the camera almost. Plus the new lens are coated better for digital. I'm very pleased with the battery life on the 20D. Half the computer modes on the Canon are worthless. They are for the point and shoot crowd. Why they put these on an expensive camera is just a mystery. Besides the lens, I almost always use a fill flash (580ex) or a circular polarizer filter. The later gets rid of reflections in paint (if it works aesthetically), while the flash works well in shadowy shots (cars under tree's etc).
Here's his current equipment list: Gear: All Canon 1 5D 1 20d 1 eos 3 3 A2's 3 550ex flashes 1 remote sensor sender thingy 2 off shoe flash cords Pocket Wizards 3 tripods 1 28-70mm 2.8 1 100mm 2.8 macro 1 20mm. 2.8 1 15mm. fisheye 2.8 1 5 way reflector
As long as this subject came up I was wondering what kind of camera models are the guys using that take the car pictures that end up in the magazines? I would really like to know that.
cameras don't take good pictures, people do. a person could spend a couple grand on their camera and another few thousand on gear and still take shitty pictures.
saving money for either a Canon 30D or a Nikon D80. Have alot of really nice Canon lenses from my father he said I could use and that's making me lean towards the Canon.
The NSRA guy used a Kodak a couple years ago, don't know if he upgraded, but his was a full 35mm sensor size digital. Pictures didn't look any better than mine. Rod runs are terrible for good photography. Just try to capture the spirit of the event, and that means getting a lot of people in the shots. I used to wait for people to get out of the way before I shoot, now I wait for people to come into the shot, with many doing human interest type things. Like the guy staring at the engine when he finally see's the really cool motor mounts, turns to his buddy and says: "look at that!" -- SNAP!
Rod runs are terrible for good photography. Just try to capture the spirit of the event, and that means getting a lot of people in the shots. I wait. I even wait 'til the people in the background are gone on many occasions. then I go home an photoshop any chairs or other crap out of the picture. once at a goodguys event my buddy walked right in front of me while I was taking a picture. so I said "hey Dan, get out of my picture". so Dan moved, as did eveyone else. so we decided to use this technique for the rest of the day. he's stand by the car, I'd ask him to get out of the picture and then so would everyone else. worked pretty good what I especially like at shows is the people who see you getting ready for a shot and walk in front of you anyway, but they stoop down a bit while doing so like that somehow makes a difference
When I was a kid (10 or so) they used to bus us places in the summer to get us out of our parents hair for a day. Often it was to the zoo, museum, or historical place. We always took this camera that had no film and took pictures of people all day. We even would tell them to get closer, closer, closer! until they were all scrunched up looking stupid. Man we would be rolling on the floor after they left. I guess you could say we were retarded in a cute way. Anyway, maybe that's why I like people in a shot now
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