Pictured Above: Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II, Canon EOS 5D + BGE4 (grip), Canon EF 16-35 F/2.8L, Canon EF 24-70 F/2.8L, Canon EF 70-200 F/2.8L IS, Canon EF 50 F/1.2L, Canon EF 1.4x Extender II, Canon 500D (close up lens), Kenko Extension Tubes (12, 20, 36mm), Canon EF 580 EX x 2, Stofen Omnibounce x 2, Gitzo GT2540, RRS BH-40 + LR II, RRS B57L & BGE4-L, RRS L84, B+W 77mm UV Haze 010 MRC x 4, B+W 77mm Kaeseman Circular Polarizer MRC Slim, B+W 72mm UV Haze 010 MRC, Lee .9 GND (3-stop),, Pocket Wizard Plus II x 2, Canon TC-80N3 (timer remote), Sandisk CF (1, 2, 4, 8 GB Extreme 4 & Ultra II) & SD (8 GB Extreme 3) cards, batteries, batteries, cables, umbrellas x 2, light stands x 2, Canon OC-E3 (off camera flash cord), Manfratto monopod, superclamp, lens cleaner, sensor brushes, et al, etc, etc.

Oh man.

I haven’t blogged on this site in a while, but did something today that I figured should go up. I bought a used Canon EOS 1Ds Mark II DSLR. It was quite the story. I decided a while ago I wanted another camera, initially as a backup to the 5D after I gave away my old 20D. I contemplated and waited. This week I started looking around and found a 5D I was about ready to purchase, and then I saw this camera on eBay yesterday from a local studio / stock photographer, got a hold of him and dropped by to check it out. Wow. I had played with them before at Glazers, but the build is truly amazing. He let me shoot around and download the files to his computer to check them out. They were beautiful. The unfortunate part was that the auction was about to end and he had no way to stop it. We decided that I would just try to win the auction and we could go from there. Long story short, I didn’t win. I went back to work and was in meetings the remainder of the afternoon. I checked the auction late afternoon and it had gone for an incredibly low price (lower than what we had discussed… and I was happy with the discussed price). It sucked to see it slip, but ah well and I moved on. This morning, however, I got a call that the deal had fallen through because the buyer was from Canada (and the auction specifically said no out of country bids) — the camera was mine if I wanted it. Really? OK, awesome.

Tonight I own a new-to-me 1Ds Mark II, Canon’s very recently replaced (by a 1Ds Mark III) flagship. There’s a great review of it (linked above) on Dpreview or another from here.

Unfortunate part number 2. Monday I mailed out my 5D + all my lenses (yep, all of them) to Canon Irvine for cleaning and calibration. I have a fantastic new camera body and nothing to attach to it to shoot with. Fortunately Shelby let me shoot around at his place after picking up the camera, then my brother stepped in and was kind enough to let me borrow a couple of lenses (his 24-70 and 70-200 2.8 IS). Definitely smiling. =]

Here are a couple of the first few photos I shot while playing around. After the third are some 100% crops. These files are almost 5000 px in greatest dimension straight out of the camera — that’s huge! File size is about 47.5 MB for an 8-bit TIFF and a whopping 97.5 MB for a 16-bit version. Perhaps it is time to invest in some more storage.. Much more to come. =]

100% Crops:

Ah, the completion of my tripod setup. Tripods are a hard thing to spend money on; they aren’t as sexy as a camera purchase, and don’t necessarily give you more ability or another perspective as a lens purchase might do… they can be, however, almost, if not equally, important for the end result. I have wanted to complete my tripod setup for a long time (eluded to in my prior post about Really Right Stuff). This meant spending money I didn’t necessarily have nor want to spend at the time. Well, I took the final steps: I bought a Gitzo GT2540 tripod to add to my RRS BH-40.

A quick guide for Gitzo tripods I found online when trying to decide between the GT1540 and GT2540. Read their catalog for more information.

1540 is Series 1, up to 135mm under any conditions, 200mm with caution.
2540 is Series 2, up to 200mm under any conditions.

If you shoot in low light, shoot high-dynamic-range (HDR), shoot panoramas, or want to produce critically sharp images then you need a tripod. Inexpensive tripods support the camera, but the short answer is that the more stable your camera is the better and sharper your image will be. More expensive tripods simply control vibration better, while usually being made from more exotic [read: lighter] materials (e.g. carbon fiber). There are a LOT of ways to compromise, and if you want ideas I would be happy to offer advice. I could go into more detail, but will spare you for now.

Here’s a photo of the before, and after. What I gained: a lighter, much more compact setup with the ability to support more weight and better minimize vibration. What I lost: $$$. Eh, I’m satisfied. ;-]

Sandy at right with the 20D+BG-E2 grip.
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Memories. I purchased my Canon EOS 20D DSLR almost exactly three years ago (22-Oct-04, precisely). It was a different time, I was making drives down to Portland often and found a Shutterbug there that had stock before B&H and most other companies did — just after the announcement. The 20D, for me, leapt above the Nikon D70, the competition at the time, in most aspects: resolution (8MP vs 6MP), speed (5fps vs 3fps), high ISO performance (CMOS vs CCD), and many other qualities. Coming from an old Minolta Dimage 7 I wasn’t tied to any lens system and was free to make a choice; i.e. whereas these days ’switching’ isn’t something I can take as lightly. That decision was hands down an easy choice. Read my original post after the purchase.

The 20D was the best prosumer camera body on the market for the duration of its product-life, and it really didn’t face competition until the Canon EOS Rebel XT (350D) and Canon EOS 5D were announced (and those realistically were for different market segments). These days, Canon & Nikon seem to be at each other’s throats (1,2). Even the Canon EOS 30D didn’t have much on the original — the noticeable updates were a slightly bigger LCD (2.5-in vs 1.8-in), spot-metering, and “picture styles.” Nice, but I think many 20D shooters happily smiled at the 30D and continued shooting without an upgrade.

Yes, the 20D was quite a camera. I shot a modest [approximate] 20,000 images with it. Many do far more, but this was quite a bit for my first real DSLR. The 20D along with a new Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS is going to my brother Mike, whom will hopefully use it for many more happy days of shooting. Cheers my friend, you were great to me.

Another weekend, another wedding! This weekend I am heading down to Ashland, OR to photograph my cousin’s wedding. It should be a lot of fun and is at the very photogenic Buckhorn Springs.

As an aside… I have been lusting after the Canon EF 85mm f/1.2L II lens for some time now, and decided rather than spending that $1700+ I should rent it (attached, above) and see what all the hype is about. Probably a poor choice, the lens is awesome and now I want one. =] It is the wedding / portrait photographers lens (other than the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS), and there are many reasons for this prestige (read a review of the lens here). It, along with the Canon EF 35mm f/1.4L and Canon EF 14mm f/2.8L II would complete my prime / zoom round-out. Small steps. ;-]

I have wanted a new tripod setup for a long time: my ideal setup would include some nice Gitzo legs (i.e. GT1540), and a Really Right Stuff (RRS) ballhead & L-bracket… they are about the highest quality products you can get, and are priced at that level. While I haven’t quite been there yet with the finances for the whole package, I did make a step towards the end result. I recently acquired an RRS BGE4-L bracket for the Canon 5D + grip and an RRS BH-40 ballhead. What a difference! My old setup was a Manfratto 3030 3-way pan/tilt head. While relatively inexpensive and versatile, it wasn’t the most compact package nor did it lock into place as tightly as I would have liked.

RRS gear is SOLID, light weight, and built to last — the new setup is far more compact and rigid than the old. Pretty happy about the upgrade, hopefully some legs will be in the not-so-distant future!

New ballhead:

The old setup with the 3030 head:

The new setup (notice Ver & Hor framing while still centered over the legs):

Front view:

Heading out to the Gorge this weekend to shoot my friend Marcus Eaton and also Dave Matthews. Marcus has a side-stage and plays from 4-7pm each day; Dave plays from 7-10pm. Awesome for Marcus, and should be a great time. Not knowing how close I will be able to get I rented a Canon 300mm f/2.8L IS lens from Glazers… should make for a very fun weekend!

Here’s a couple of fun around-the-house photos. Check out the shallow dof at that focal length. =]

Another follow-up on the new Canon & Nikon announcements… one online user posted a comment I full-heartedly agree with: “I love photography more than I love any camera system.” Competition is good for everyone. Still can’t help but smile at this graphic from Flickr (beware: camera geek humor).

Wow, what a week in camera news!!! I was impressed on Monday when Canon announced the new Canon 1Ds Mark III and the Canon 40D… well today (tonight — another sleepless night for me) Nikon volleyed with the new full-frame 12.1 MP / 9 fps Nikon D3 and 12.3 MP / 6 fps Nikon D300. A lot of people argue and debate the qualities, pureness, and overall superiority of Canon vs Nikon; my take is that they both offer incredible feature sets and you can’t really go wrong. The cool thing for consumers is that Canon and Nikon are most definitely in a battle, and competition between them brings more and more new technologies out to market. Very nice! Here’s a quick feature list of Nikon’s latest offerings:

Nikon D3, available Nov. at $5000 USD::
- 12.1 MP full-frame sensor (CMOS)
- 9 fps (11 fps w/o AF tracking)
- ISO 200-6400 (expandable to 25600! or down to 100)
- New 51-point AF system (15 cross-type sensors)
- 3.0-inch (922K pixel!) LCD + Live-View, HDMI out
- 14-bit A/D conversion, dual CF compartments, virtual horizon, and more!

Nikon D300, available Nov. at $1800 USD:
- 12.3 MP DX sensor (1.5x FOV crop, CMOS)
- 6 fps (8 fps w/ optional battery pack)
- ISO 200-3200 (100 & 6400 w/ boost)
- New 51 point AF system (15 cross-type sensors)
- 3.0-inch (922K pixel!) LCD + Live-View, HDMI out
- Integrated self-cleaning sensor system, 14-bit A/D conversion, and more!

Read more about the Nikon D3 and Nikon D300 at DPreview. Oh yeah, they announced some pretty cool lenses too. Be sure to check them out.

Canon today announced numerous new products including the long-anticipated Canon EOS 40D DSLR and the almighty-flagship Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III DSLR. Wow!!! Read more about the EOS 40D and EOS 1Ds Mark III at DPreview.

Canon 40D, available Sept. 20 at $1299 USD:
- 10.1 MP APS-C Sensor (CMOS)
- 6.5 fps continuous shooting (up to 75 JPEGs)
- New / improved AF with 9 cross-type sensors
- DIGIC III Processing
- 3.0-inch LCD + Live-View
- Integrated EOS Cleaning System

Canon 1Ds Mark III, available Nov. / Dec. at $7999 USD:
- 21.1 MP Full Frame Sensor (CMOS)
- 5 fps continuous shooting (@ 1/500 or faster for up to 45 JPEG / 15 RAW)
- New / improved AF with 19 cross-type sensors + 26 focus assist points
- Dual DIGIC III Processing
- 3.0-inch LCD + Live-View
- Integrated EOS Cleaning System
- 14-bit color, sRAW, Highlight Tone Priority, and more!

The other exciting announcement was a second-generation of the Canon EF 14 MM f/2.8 USM lens. This replaces the v1 lens, which never received highly favorable reviews.

Well, the budget has been blown for the next while… but it appears that the 40D will be available on September 20 and the 1Ds Mark III in November — order soon, as they are likely to be in short supply for some time!