dSLR thread

ddrueding

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I really do want that lens; it would have done great for the bike race last weekend as well. I also have some aerial photography (helicopter) coming up, and I think it would work well for that, too.
 

LunarMist

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Gilbo

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Anyone used a Sony NEX-7?


Thinking about selling my 5D MkII and all my Canon stuff, and carrying a pair of smaller more comfortable cameras around.

Usually I'm taking photos in one of two ways:

1) Documentary style with family or friends - in which case I shoot with a Canon 35mm or 100mm, switching back and forth.

2) Hiking landscapes and touristy things - using a 28-300mm or 14-24mm

According to DxO Mark, the Sony NEX-7 only gives up 1 stop of ISO performance relative to the 5D Mark II throughout most of its range, and matches it at the highest ISOs like ISO 12,800. I can get largely equivalent lenses for the NEX 7 and I can get phase detect autofocus for the rare times I shoot sports with an adapter.

What do people think about these new-fangled mirrorless cameras? (I used a Panasonic G3 and thought it sucked, unfortunately... No offense if anyone owns one. I probably didn't give it enough of a chance.)
 

LunarMist

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No, but I played with the similar SONY DSLR. The display is quite good and I suppose people get use to it, but the brightness range is odd and it still has the feel of looking through a camcorder.

The main issues I have are with the NEX form factor and lack of lenses. It is somewhat smaller than the small DSLRs and the lenses should be smaller too, but with an 18-200 it is not exactly tiny.
 

Will Rickards

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Looks like I'll be able to get a Nikon D7000 this summer. I think they are releasing the D7100 this year though. Anybody know when or have any information on it.
 

LunarMist

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Looks like I'll be able to get a Nikon D7000 this summer. I think they are releasing the D7100 this year though. Anybody know when or have any information on it.

No, but I'm not sure how much it would be improved.

Finally got the D7000 back after two months of parts delay. The AF seems to be within range, but every lens needs testing and most need some ± compensation. I hope it will finally see some real use next month.

There is still no word on the D400 and the D300s has been discontinued.
 

Stereodude

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No comments about the 5D Mk3? You all are slipping...

It looks like a well equipped camera. I'm not sure I want to dig $3500 deep (body only) into my pockets for one though.
 

LunarMist

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Some people are extremely disappointed, but most are just moderately disappointed. I would buy one, but currently have no use for a new, not quite pro build grade, camera with only 1MP more than my fleet of 1Ds IIIs. Canon as a company is slipping significantly and fired the CEO recently.
 

Stereodude

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Some people are extremely disappointed, but most are just moderately disappointed. I would buy one, but currently have no use for a new, not quite pro build grade, camera with only 1MP more than my fleet of 1Ds IIIs. Canon as a company is slipping significantly and fired the CEO recently.
I'm not sure where the disappointment is coming from unless you were expecting a megapixel monster like the D800. IMHO, there's more to life than megapixels. Besides, anyone paying any attention to the rumors would have known roughly what was coming..

Compared to the 5D MkII It's got pro level AF, improved noise performance, improved video performance (no line skipping), improved weather / dust sealing, a faster frame rate, in camera chromatic aberration correction for JPEGs, and other improvements. The ISO6400 JPEG samples I've seen are fantastic.
 

LunarMist

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From what I gather online it is not really that the camera is bad, but that it is only an incremental upgrade and people expect more in 2012. Most consumers will complain and buy whatever product is out there is anyway unles it is really awful. The jpeg examples look heavily processed to me. I don't know if there are any RAW files around yet to check, but I doubt that IQ will be better than the 1D-X. Of course people moving up from older/cheaper cameras will see an improvement from what they had.

My problem is that Canon has, at least for now, abandoned the high-end pro body, the 1Ds series. Nikon has apparently done the same with the the D3x, that is fading away. Bodies like the D800 or 5D III are lacking in critical areas, as you would expect at the lower price points. There is no way I would be an early adopter on either, so I won't get to testing them until later in the year.
 

Stereodude

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From what I gather online it is not really that the camera is bad, but that it is only an incremental upgrade and people expect more in 2012.
The 5D MkII didn't have much need for a revolutionary upgrade IMHO, so the incremental upgrades don't seem unexpected (at least to me). I do wish they had held the $2700 price point of the 5D MkII though given the slide of the dollar to the yen that's likely an impossible goal.
 

Handruin

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I don't see $1000 worth of improvements in the 5DMKIII over the 5DMKII. The biggest thing I've noticed in my 5DMKII that needs improvement is the auto focus. Hopefully the proclaimed pro auto focus is better. Having less noise is also a plus.
 

Stereodude

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Some people have been making some noise about wanting to buy my 7D...this would be a worthy upgrade.
It all depends what you're after. If you're shooting a lot of video in low light situations and want the shallowest possible DoF it's an upgrade. If you want more megapixels, it's an upgrade. If you don't mind losing some reach on your telephoto lenses so you can get wider, it's an upgrade. If you need better low light performance it should be an upgrade.

The pixel density on the 7D is on par with a 46MP full frame camera, so the photosites on the 5D Mk III are significantly bigger than a 7D. In addition Canon says the 5D MkIII has a new microlens array in front of the sensor with no gaps. There are other sensor improvements also. It all translates to better noise performance from the sensor.
 

LunarMist

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Thanks for giving a well thought out & well reasoned post to him explaining why. :tdown:

To me an upgrade is a like for like or like for similar, so it would have to be at least an upgrade for a 5D or perhaps older 1Ds series.
 

ddrueding

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To me an upgrade is a like for like or like for similar, so it would have to be at least an upgrade for a 5D or perhaps older 1Ds series.

I only have one body, so like for like is DSLR to DSLR. More MP, better DOF control, lower noise, better AF, better viewfinder. The only thing worse is the continuous shooting speed.
 

Handruin

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I subscribe to DSLR Film Noob who has an opinion on the 5D Mark III, but keep in mind his area of interest is for video, not photos. None the less this guy seems to be talented in his area and does a good job covering devices. I've probably watched a hundred of his videos by now.
 

LunarMist

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So far it seems to be OK. I cancelled by wait list for the 5D III and also the preorder for the D800E. I cannot do much hoisting the camera bag or hiking any distance for a while due to injury. So until 2013 I'm holding out for more MP along with a decent FPS. I realize it is unlikely that any DSLRs other than cheapies will be introduced at PK. :(
 

Mercutio

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This made me laugh. I've seen people doing this at comic conventions and stuff.

fGxbW.jpg
 

LunarMist

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Presumably he captured the best/needed shots or is shooting something of lower quality for a quick e-mail.
 

Handruin

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How can you determine the sensor orientation from the tiny photo? Do you recognize the phone?

Typically a mobile phone held vertically like that is in portrait mode. Video recording has better formatting (as does the resolution) when it's held horizontally.
 

Sol

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On my way through the airport last week for a work trip I dropped in to the duty free electronics shop to get a US power adaptor and ended up buying a D800 with a 28-70 lens. I haven't actually had a chance to use it yet since I've been really busy with work and annoyingly I can't find an L-Plate for it because all the people waiting on D800 pre-orders have bought them all to fondle while they wait for their shipping notifications, but it was a good find and I did manage to pay slightly under RRP for it. (Probably could have gotten more of a discount but I didn't really have time before my flight and I'm not much of a bargain-er)
 

LunarMist

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Nikon has an 800 and now Canon has a bunch of new DO lens patents. Of course all these new lenses cost an arm and a leg. I remember when the 500/4 IS was 5K.
 

LunarMist

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Yes, the new firmware adds some significant improvments. I thought that was out a while ago, but have not checked as I never plan to us the 7D again. On the downside, it may be that same old camera is not updated from another year. :( Apparently Canon has not found a better sensor supplier yet.
 

LunarMist

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No, but I've been shooting Nikon for over 35 years. I'm not so happy that the last our bodies have AF issues.
 

LunarMist

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Sorry. The Android is becoming worse. It should read "last four (Nikon) bodies."
 
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