[erure]

No matter how hard it gets, photography always makes me happy

[Azndinky]

hey guys, recently got my first dslr (d90 - recommendations in this thread were really helpful btw!)

I've been playing with the camera and experimenting with settings to see how it impacts the photos, anyway just wondering if you guys have recommended websites to checkout for beginner/intermediate photography tutorials/tips?

congrats on D90 that camera should keep you happy for a very long time

some site I've bookmark over the years

http://www.geofflawrence.com/ great tuts for everyone beginner to exp.
www.photosig.com you can learn a lot from looking at other pictures and critiques

[Born: 1985]

^ Thanks for the website references! I'm getting bored of flickr.

[imhitomi]

I went to the zoo today, but rain made picture-taking a bit difficult. =_____= I did get this pretty though:

[jusebox]

Hey guys I've had an canon eos xti for a while now but I haven't really made any use of it I think the lens kit that came with it sucks. Any recommendations for good lenses??? Thanks!

[omegach]

try the 85mm f/1.2

i heard it's ballin

[imhitomi]

Hey guys I've had an canon eos xti for a while now but I haven't really made any use of it I think the lens kit that came with it sucks. Any recommendations for good lenses??? Thanks!

I kinda love the lens it comes with. You can do a lot with it but you just have to get used to it. Think of it as training wheels.

And continued zoo spam.

[osux]

I got a question. I am thinking about upgrading my body, should I go with the 5D mkII, 1ds, 1dsmkii, or mkiii?

[erure]

I got a question. I am thinking about upgrading my body, should I go with the 5D mkII, 1ds, 1dsmkii, or mkiii?

Unless you need a flagship body, I'd go for the 5D Mark II. Then 1Ds Mark II.

[[HyuNi]]

I spent weeks deliberating on a wide angle/walkaround lens to purchase for my 40D.

Here's the lenses I decided getting (in order):
EF 28-135mm (keep the lens kit I had)
EF 24-105L
EF 24-70L
EF-S 17-55 IS
Tamron 17-50

I decided to sell my 28-135mm to upgrade my lens because the aperture restricted me in low light and I also wanted something wider.
I went onto the 24-105L, mainly because of the focal range, constant aperture, and (I'm not going to lie) the lovely red ring. Decided against it because it's only 4mm wider than the kit lens, F/4.0 wasn't a drastical improvement, and a lot more $$$.
24-70L came next. I'm currently still borrowing this from my friend and I love it! It built tough, takes great photos even in low light, and focal range was good. I was set on getting it, but it didn't make sense for me to spend that much, still not wide enough, heavy, and did I mention it would leave a big hole in my wallet?
Next in line was the 17-55. Apparently amazing lens for crop bodies. Sample pictures looked incredibly sharp, it was wide enough, good focal range, constant F/2.8, and IS. Too bad it costs as much as the L series lens without the build quality nor the hood & pouch. Yucks.

So I decided to get a used Tamron 17-50mm as my general walk-around lens. Sample pics are wonderful and the price is the best part. Shame that it's not as quiet as USM AF and no IS, but for 1/3 of the cost, I would say it's definately worth it. Plus, reviews say it focuses extremely fast and acurately. (I don't understand why the AF noise is such a big issue)


Saving money and getting a great quality walk around lens will help fund my 70-200 purchase in the future!

[awdark]

The 3.5-5.6 aperture is too restrictive for you?
Hrm that doesn't sound good... I have been on the hunt for a good deal on the 28-135 which makes me further question that goal.

Anyways, AF noise isn't good when you're trying to get animals or get candid shots. I have the 50 1.8 and my bunny is afraid of the noise from the motor... it doesn't help that he is dark gray so the focus tends to search ruining the possibility of getting a nice shot.
And people also notice the ERR ERRRRRk sounds, it adds to the whole production of dslr picture taking where its like woooo. >.<

[dot1q]

^ I personally don't like any zooms which don't have constant aperture. Let alone it being a 5.6 at one end. I could be wrong but from my recollection, it also only stays at 3.5 for a very short range.

[[HyuNi]]

^
Brocade, yes you are right. once it hits the ~30mm range, the aperture is no longer as wide.

I think I may be overdramatizing the restrictive aspect.
I take photos of my students on Sunday school and it's in the basement with no ambient lighting.
The walls are painted BRIGHT yellow, so everyone comes out a bit underexposed or not sharp because the aperture doesn't get any wider and shutter speed is too slow.
Plus, I've been spoiled using my friend's 24-70L. (If I knew that I would become a lens snob, I wouldn't have borrowed it in the first place...) haha
I shot with that lens the following week and I was free to take crisp pictures, even with them running around and causing havoc.

What do you consider to be a good deal? My 28-135mm is about 2+ months old and comes with everything in the white kit box, with the Canon hood and third party pinch lens cap. I'd be willing to sell it a tad bit cheaper than on POTN for a fellow soompier.

Regarding noise, does it really make that much extra noise? My main purpose was to take landscape and nature photos, so wide angle and sharpness is the main issue, but I've noticed myself taking candids of people which I promised myself I wouldn't do... haha (If I was going to do that, I should just do it with my P&S instead)

[awdark]

I don't know, never used a lens with USM... all my lenses use the micro motor so its noisy to me. Almost sounds like zooming with my point and shoot camera except faster.

I have been stalking the ones where the lens is about $235ish the absolute lowest I saw was $215 but they were looking for cash in real life I guess.

[dot1q]

^ The noise is only an issue at high ISO and even then I think its more the body you're using than the lense itself.

Ideal? I would say its the 24-70L for full frame. I only myself got this lense recently when I upgraded my body. It's truly an amazing lense and I don't think anyone would beg to differ. I say for full frame because on a crop, its not wide enough for a lot use cases. For a crop, its definitely the 17-55 (which I still have). You get the wide end, it performs like an L, and it has IS. The downside? The build quality is so so and its EF-S mount. If you never ever intend to go full frame, to me the 17-55 is a must for crop bodies if you can afford it. Even if you decide to go ff, you can always sell it as well. However, from my personal experiences, its hard to sell this lense for as much markup as most lenses because end of the day it isn't a L (but costs L) and its EF-S. But YMMV. Some people with crops still opt for the 24-70L but its too narrow for my tastes.

Not that I really spent any effort to try to sell my 28-135 but I should. Thing just collects dust since the day I bought my 40D which was around 1.5 years ago. I used it maybe 1 week. It's practically new.

I personally like to shoot with two bodies when I go on my "photo shooting day trips" as I want to cover all ranges and detest changing lenses outdoor. If I'm shooting primarily on the long end with my 70-200, I mount it on my 5dii and mount the 17-55 on my 40d. The 24's are not wide enough on the 40d. If I'm shooting primarily on the wide end, I mount the 24-70L or 24-105L on my mdii and mount the 70-200 on my 40d. The crop factor on the 70-200 also helps great with long zooms. It's a good combination for my needs. I was originally going to sell my 17-55 but I found it very useful for the purpose I mentioned.

[erure]

^
Brocade, yes you are right. once it hits the ~30mm range, the aperture is no longer as wide.

I think I may be overdramatizing the restrictive aspect.
I take photos of my students on Sunday school and it's in the basement with no ambient lighting.
The walls are painted BRIGHT yellow, so everyone comes out a bit underexposed or not sharp because the aperture doesn't get any wider and shutter speed is too slow.
Plus, I've been spoiled using my friend's 24-70L. (If I knew that I would become a lens snob, I wouldn't have borrowed it in the first place...) haha
I shot with that lens the following week and I was free to take crisp pictures, even with them running around and causing havoc.

What do you consider to be a good deal? My 28-135mm is about 2+ months old and comes with everything in the white kit box, with the Canon hood and third party pinch lens cap. I'd be willing to sell it a tad bit cheaper than on POTN for a fellow soompier.

Regarding noise, does it really make that much extra noise? My main purpose was to take landscape and nature photos, so wide angle and sharpness is the main issue, but I've noticed myself taking candids of people which I promised myself I wouldn't do... haha (If I was going to do that, I should just do it with my P&S instead)

Have you considered a prime lens? If you're shooting indoors, then foot zooming should be good enough, right?

[osux]

Unless you need a flagship body, I'd go for the 5D Mark II. Then 1Ds Mark II.

Isn't the 5D mkII better then the 1Ds MII?

[[HyuNi]]

I don't know, never used a lens with USM... all my lenses use the micro motor so its noisy to me. Almost sounds like zooming with my point and shoot camera except faster.

I have been stalking the ones where the lens is about $235ish the absolute lowest I saw was $215 but they were looking for cash in real life I guess.

The 28-135 is quiet compared to my EF-S 18-55 II. The only noise I really notice is a slight shift sound when AFing and the IS on the 28-135 giving a soft whir when it's on. (btw, anyone know if the tamron 17-50 louder than the 18-55? If it's about the same sound, I can definitely live with it)

I think we can possibly work out a deal. I don't have the lens on me right now (my friend and I swapped lens), but I should have it by next week. I'll post pictures of it and if you're interested, I think I could spare a few bucks to help out a fellow photo soompier
My Tamron 17-50 purchase is pending right now, so when it goes through, I'll let you know for sure that it's available.

^ The noise is only an issue at high ISO and even then I think its more the body you're using than the lense itself.

Ideal? I would say its the 24-70L for full frame. I only myself got this lense recently when I upgraded my body. It's truly an amazing lense and I don't think anyone would beg to differ. I say for full frame because on a crop, its not wide enough for a lot use cases. For a crop, its definitely the 17-55 (which I still have). You get the wide end, it performs like an L, and it has IS. The downside? The build quality is so so and its EF-S mount. If you never ever intend to go full frame, to me the 17-55 is a must for crop bodies if you can afford it. Even if you decide to go ff, you can always sell it as well. However, from my personal experiences, its hard to sell this lense for as much markup as most lenses because end of the day it isn't a L (but costs L) and its EF-S. But YMMV. Some people with crops still opt for the 24-70L but its too narrow for my tastes.

Not that I really spent any effort to try to sell my 28-135 but I should. Thing just collects dust since the day I bought my 40D which was around 1.5 years ago. I used it maybe 1 week. It's practically new.

I personally like to shoot with two bodies when I go on my "photo shooting day trips" as I want to cover all ranges and detest changing lenses outdoor. If I'm shooting primarily on the long end with my 70-200, I mount it on my 5dii and mount the 17-55 on my 40d. The 24's are not wide enough on the 40d. If I'm shooting primarily on the wide end, I mount the 24-70L or 24-105L on my mdii and mount the 70-200 on my 40d. The crop factor on the 70-200 also helps great with long zooms. It's a good combination for my needs. I was originally going to sell my 17-55 but I found it very useful for the purpose I mentioned.

baller!

I was thinking about purchasing a used 17-55 for $750 that included a hood and a filter, which is a bargain... but couldn't justify the $ spent. Those EF-S lens just don't have the same keeper rate as EF lenses do they? It's unfortunate because the photos it produces are better than a lot of L's on crop bodies!
Photography is only a hobby of mine right now, and it's already eaten up a good amount of my cash, so spending anything over $500 right now doesn't make sense to me unless I find a way to make some side cash.
I bought a Wild & Scenery of Illinois book from Borders to give me some ideas on how and what to shoot when I have a dedicated full day.
Unfortunately, even if I get good enough to be published, I don't think I could make enough money to fund my hobby; that book was discounted to $3.99. haha (Awesome book. Definitely worth the $4 IMO)


BroF, what do you generally shoot on your shooting day trips?

Have you considered a prime lens? If you're shooting indoors, then foot zooming should be good enough, right?

Yeah, primes were actually my first options...
Then I got a second lens and learned about the 'joy' of lens swapping out in the open.
I think I'm clumsy enough to drop one sooner or later and paranoid about dust clinging to the sensor.
I spent countless days debating on getting the nifty fifty or the 1.4, then the 1.4 vs 85mm 1.8, then if I should get any at all. Honestly, it's a hard decision because each prime has advantages and disadvantages... If there was 50mm 1.4 with the ring USM and build quality of the 85mm, I'd probably reconsider. (btw there's rumors that a 1.4 mkII will go into market in late March) I actually was REALLY close to getting the 85mm, but I realized on my 40D, the crop factor would make it 135mm.
I'm still thinking about getting a used nifty for it's f/1.8 and narrow DoF abilities. I'm going to see how well the tamron performs and make my decision then

[omegach]

50mm makes for a decent portrait lens on a crop body..

[awdark]

50mm makes for a decent portrait lens on a crop body..

But definitely not something you want to always have on the camera! When I first got my camera, it came with a 50 f1.8 and it was difficult to work with. Probably explains why the camera had so few shots taken on it (bought it used)
Its also fun to use it for those fun experiments like... custom bokeh and randomness