Canada Goose on Dike Road, Horicon National Wildlife Refuge, Mayville, Wis. | Canon 7D and 400mm f/4 DO IS lens | Exposed 1/320 sec. @ f/4, ISO 1250

On a Sunday outing to Horicon National Wildlife Refuge, I ran into some of my first real frustrations with the Canon 7D.  While I’ve used it with the 400mm DO lens in the past, I was having tremendous difficulty getting photographs that I thought were in crisp focus.  Now, in all fairness, I’ve never thought that the images from the 7D were as crisp as they could be, even if they were still in sharp focus.  That is that the image acutance, or the contrast between individual pixels, is just not as high as other semi-pro or professional camera bodies, such like the 5D Mark II or 1D Mark III.  I believe this to be a function of Canon’s misguided decision to cram 18 megapixels into an APS-C sensor.  I would have been happy with 10-12 megapixels for a camera like this.  But I digress.

LensAlign Pro

The problem I encountered was not a question of not enough acutance–which would be corrected by sharpening in Lightroom or Photoshop–but many of the photographs were simply not in focus.  Before sending the camera to Canon for a fix, I compared its performance to my 5D Mark II as well as another 7D body from my dad.  The difference?  Night and day.

Tweaking the camera’s autofocus microadjustment panel seems to be the obvious answer.  Today, in an attempt to correct the problem, I tinkered with the 7D’s microadjustment with the 400mm lens and it would seem that the solution likely lies in that menu, but I am ill-equipped to calibrate the lens focus.  Enter LensRentals.com and the Lens Align.  While the professional LensAlign is $180, it’s available from LensRentals for an entire week for only $15.  It should get here Wednesday, and I will have an article reviewing this product and explaining its use after I get my 7D back in order.

Tags: birds, EOS 7D, equipment, problems, wildlife
Posted in Updates | 3 Comments »

Panasonic Lumix GH1

Of video and dSLR’s

One of the curious things that I noticed over the last year and a half at the University of Missouri–at least among the photojournalism students–was a rabid fascination with video from the Canon 5D Mark II.  I was one of the first ones in the program to actually buy one (August Kryger beat me by about a week and a half) in December 2009.

Other cameras sprang up that could do video, but people in the program seemed to wear blinders and were obsessed exclusively with 5D II video even though they did not even own a Canon camera or lens.

I say that this is frustrating because I know from first-hand experience that the 5D and the 7D are both very frustrating to use as video cameras, even though the resulting video looks great.  But for every second of good footage I’ve recorded, I’ve lost at least a minute of good material because of all of the physical limitations of using a dSLR for video: framing is a bit of a pain, autofocus is slow, setting up the exposure is also slow, daylight makes it hard to see the rear screen, and you can’t hand-hold it to save your life.  Despite these flaws, I believe that Canon and Nikon have been overly effective at making people believe that they are the only game in town.  Perhaps Olympus is a distant third.  This culture of ignorance of anything that is not Nikon or Canon appears to persist among those who should know better.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: equipment, video
Posted in Announcements | No Comments »

Canon 1D Mark II N body and accessories for sale - two chargers, two batteries, original (un-used) strap, and AC power adapter

At the end of April I announced that I intended to sell my Canon 1D Mark IIN camera body that has served me well since the summer of 2007.  As of this morning, the camera and accessories can be purchased through my eBay listing; I am asking for $1,300.00 US Dollars (or best offer).  If you are interested, please view the listing on eBay.

Tags: EOS 1D Mark II N, equipment, for sale
Posted in Announcements | No Comments »

Flying over Memphis | Panasonic G1 and Olympus 9-18mm f/4-5.6 ED lens; exposed 1/640 sec. @ f/8, ISO 100.

Oh, to have a wide-angle lens for the G1!  Thanks to Olympus and to David Rees, the department chair of the photojournalism sequence at the University of Missouri School of Journalism, I have a 9-18mm f/4-5.6 ED lens for my Micro Four-Thirds format for testing.

This lens is the only alternative to Panasonic’s 7-14mm f/4 wide-angle zoom, which is, unfortunately, ridiculously expensive.  Not that the Olympus zoom is inexpensive.  I’ll have more thoughts as the summer progresses.

Tags: equipment, Lumix G1, Olympus 9-18mm, Reviews
Posted in Updates | 1 Comment »

"Food for thought" | Olympus PEN EP-2 and Olympus 17mm f/2.8 lens; exposed 1/30 sec. @ f/3.2, ISO 800. Double-exposure made in-camera.

Continued experimentation with the Olympus EP-2

It’s been a long time since I’ve played with multiple-exposures.  Sure, they’re easy enough to create by merging a couple of layers atop one another in Photoshop, but the unexpected and random nature of running a roll of film through a camera body twice was simply lost.  Well, it still is, unless you’re actually running a roll of film through a camera.

There are a lot of gimmicks in the Olympus PEN EP-2, chief among them is an entire dial mode for “art filters,” a library of goofy effects that can be processed in camera for those who don’t know how to produce identical effects in Photoshop.  Strangely, the only non-goofy, but still decidedly an “art” effect, is multiple exposures.  However, instead of being bundled with those art filters, it’s buried in the menu.  Go figure!  That said, when this little camera works, it does appear to work well.

More thoughts forthcoming.

Tags: equipment, Olympus EP-2
Posted in Updates | No Comments »

Canon 1D Mark II N body and accessories for sale - two chargers, two batteries, original (un-used) strap, and AC power adapter

I have decided it is finally time to say goodbye to a good friend, my Canon 1D Mark II N camera body.  I purchased this camera new in the summer of 2007; it was one of the last on the shelves of Adorama as the 1D Mark III had just been released.  This camera has been with me to a number of places across the country, as well as to Kenya and the Galapagos Islands.

In total, there have been 82,436 shutter actuations according to 1D Count; the shutter is rated over 200,000 exposures.  In January, I sent the body to Canon for a “clean and check” and they replaced the hot shoe, adjusted its shutter speed, exposure, and focusing systems, and otherwise brought the camera back up to factory settings.  Since then, I’ve photographed one basketball game, and then put the camera away, waiting for the right time to sell it.  I believe that time to be now.

Cosmetically, the camera does show signs of wear (see photos below), including a few scratches on the top of the body, along the prism.  There’s also some worn paint near the top shutter button, and a small scratch on the bottom of the body, on the back-right corner.

I am selling the camera body, original box, original charger, original AC adapter, original strap (never used–I used my own strap), and an original Canon NiMH battery.  I am also including a Camera Devices-brand NiMH battery (which is actually of higher-capacity than the OEM battery), and a Camera Devices-brand wall charger.  This is the charger I actually used the most with this camera, as it was much smaller than the bulky Canon-branded charger.

I am asking $1,400.00 US Dollars for the kit, and that includes FedEx Ground shipping within the United States.

I would prefer to keep the sale limited to North America–I’m sorry, but I had a bad experience selling overseas when I sold my Canon 5D.  Please e-mail me or leave a comment (I will not publish it to keep your privacy) if you are interested in the camera.

A cashier’s check would be preferable, although I will also accept personal checks.  I will wait until the check clears before shipping the camera.  Alternatively, if you are willing to pay the extra 3% that they charge, I will accept PayPal money transfers provided that the address on your PayPal account matches the shipping address you ask me to deliver to.

If the camera doesn’t sell within the next two weeks, I will list it on eBay.  I’ll post a link to the auction should I do that.

Thanks for looking and feel free to e-mail me with any questions you might have!

Tags: EOS 1D Mark II N, equipment, for sale
Posted in Announcements | 1 Comment »

The Idea:

A couple of weeks back, I was thinking about some of my experiences from earlier in the semester, such as photographing the True/False Film Festival, where I tried cramming a couple of spare lenses in my small messenger bag in lieu of my normal shoulder bag (which, frankly, screams “camera bag!”).  There are times when a traditional camera bag is fine–going to an assignment where I’m expected to come and photograph, for instance.  But what about those times when I just want to walk around on the street and carry an SLR and a couple of lenses, but not be “noticed” as a photographer.  Then, I stumbled upon Timbuk2′s own Web site where they explained how to use Domke inserts to transform one of their messenger bags into a viable and discrete camera bag.

Anyone reading this may wonder why not one of the new Think Tank “retrospective” bags, or even their “urban disguise” series, and the reason is that I wanted flexibility.  I want the option of pulling the inserts out of this bag, and using it as a normal messenger bag.

The Bag

Last weekend, a local store in Columbia, Mo. had a 25% off sale on Timbuk2 messenger bags, and I chose a medium-sized Commute 2.0 to transform into a camera bag.  Unlike some other bags, it has a laptop pocket on the outside of the bag, and can be unzipped to lie flat, such as on the conveyor of an x-ray machine at the airport–I won’t have to remove my laptop for TSA any more!  Also, the bag has the ability to be slipped over the handle of a rolling suitcase (as photographed below).  This can be a tremendous advantage in an airport.

So, using the Commute 2.0 as the starting point, I purchased two Domke 720-210 “Standard Single Compartment” inserts, and a Domke 720-2JM “Adjustable” insert.

What can it fit?

Timbuk2 Commute 2.0 Camera Bag sitting on top of a rolling suitcase (the messenger bag has a slot to slip through the rolling bag

While I certainly wouldn’t load this bag like this for anything but travel–and even then, I’ve filled it to the gills, so there’s not even room for a book to read on the plane!–I was curious just how much I could carry if I wanted to cram it absolutely full.

So, what’s in the bag?

1. Canon 5D Mark II body with a 24-70mm f/2.8L lens mounted

2. Canon 7D body (no lens)

3. Canon 16-35mm f/2.8L II lens

4. Canon 70-200mm f/4L IS lens

5. Olympus LS-10 audio recorder

6. Two Western Digital Passport hard drives

7. Delkin Devices ExpressCard 34 CF memory card reader

7. Moleskine reporter’s notepad

8. ThinkTank Pixel Pocket Rocket memory card wallet

9. laptop & power cord

Tags: camera bags, equipment
Posted in Updates | 2 Comments »

Mito - imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. | Olympus PEN EP-2 and 17mm f/2.8 lens; exposed 1/60 sec. @ f/2.8, ISO 800.

Over the next few days I’ll be using the Olympus PEN EP-2 in more “real world” situations than I have been able to of late, but you do learn a fair amount about how a camera works by carrying it around and photographing the things and the people around you.

One thing that I had already observed, but the EP-2 reinforces it, is that while I wish the 17mm f/2.8 pancake lens had a larger aperture, it is a sharp little lens, with well-controlled (minimal) chromatic aberration.  I’ve been known to borrow this lens and use it on my Lumix G1.  (Panasonic makes a 20mm f/1.7 pancake, but they want $400 US at the time of this post, which I feel is cost-prohibitive at this time.)

Jessica Cherry in our Picture Story and the Photographic Essay class | Olympus PEN EP-2 and 17mm f/2.8 lens; exposed 1/30 sec. @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

So far, the highest ISO I’ve used is 800, which is about as high as I ever put my Lumix G1.  That said, a number of people have been asking about its high ISO performance, and I will endeavor to find out in the coming days.  The camera can allegedly be set up to ISO 6400, but I am skeptical about the quality that could be yielded at such a speed.  Another reason for not going higher is that the camera has built-in image stabilization.  This means that I often have no worries going down to 1/30 sec. for a photograph of a person (as seen above and below), or even longer shutter speeds for pictorial and landscape settings.

Left to right: Mito, Calin, and Val | Olympus PEN EP-2 and 17mm f/2.8 lens; exposed 1/30 sec. @ f/2.8, ISO 400.

Tags: equipment, Olympus EP-2
Posted in Updates | No Comments »