Canon

Canon Cameras

Canon 7D: The New Auto-ISO

With the new firmware for the Canon 7D, Canon has changed the Auto-ISO settings. It's now possible to control the top of the Auto-ISO range. Not only Canon has changed how set the range of the Auto-ISO, it looks like Canon has also changed the algorithm for setting the ISO in Auto mode. The Auto-ISO can range from ISO 100 to ISO 6400.

For all the people that “poo poo” the concept of the Auto-ISO, I will ask the question:

How often have you used to camera to find out that it was set at ISO 1600 or higher on a bright and sunny day because the previous time, you were doing some low light…?

Time to Get the New Canon 6D?

By now, you must have read all the previews of the Canon 6D. Please note that almost all of the people previewing and/or expressing their opinion (including me) about the Canon 6D, have not seen it, have not touched it and even less have taken any “real” photos with it.

The vast majority of the people imply that a full frame camera is better than a crop camera. It's wrong, they are different. The full frame has advantages and the APS-C crop camera has its own set of advantages. Usually, if you are a tele person then the APS-C camera will be a better match with your vision. If you are a wide angle person then a full frame camera will be a better match with your vision. See my analysis: http://www.foto-biz.com/Canon/Full-frame-vs-crop-cameras.

Canon E-TTL II flash settings

Flash can be very complicated or fairly simple depending on how you set it up. Some people are masters, like Joe McNally of the Hot Shoe Diaries' fame and Syl Arena of the Speedlighter's Handbook fame. Some people are more on the child-like side, like me. There are two main problems:

  1. People want one easy solution that fits all.
  2. The camera/flash combinations are so sophisticated that they are using auto on the camera and auto on the flash.

The Ritual Before Going to Make Photos

Here's how I prepare before going to make photographs. I've done this with Canon and Pentax and I don't see why this can't apply to Nikon, Sony, or Olympus. There are a whole bunch of steps that I do only once or twice a year, some of these steps I do them every time, religiously.

First of all, I prepare my bag the evening before. I do it over a desk and the bed because I need a lot of space.

  1. Empty the big camera bag and make sure that everything is back into its place. The camera bag is not a storage place, I have a old chest and half of a closet for that.

Full Frame vs Crop Cameras

2012 and the big action, this year, is in the full frame cameras. Nikon released the D800 and the D4, Canon has released their 5Dmk3 and the 1Dx, Sony is poised to release the Alpha 99. The talk of the town is that Nikon will be coming out with a full frame the D600 at around $1,500 US and Canon will have to follow suit.

Obviously, full frame cameras must be better. If not, why is all the buzz and all the press promoting all these cameras that start around $3,000 and top at $6,500? People say:

Bigger pixels, less noise…

Some of it can be true, but it's not always the case.

The Camera Check, The Evening Before

When people go to church and pray, usually they are have a ritual. It involves getting dressed, gather the… It's a ritual. Me, I have a similar ritual before going to create photos. I usually do it the evening before, so my bag is ready and I just have to pick it up. Since it's a ritual, I always do it in the same way. Now it's almost automatic and it usually takes me about 10 to 15 minutes unless something special is involved like recalibrating the lenses.

  • Check the battery levels of the cameras. If it's below 50%, I usually replace the battery.

The New Canon 40mm f/2.8

The new Canon 40mm f/2.8, aka the hockey puck, aka the shorty 40, is a small FULL FRAME pancake lens. Some people use it on a full frame camera, I use mine on the Canon 7D where the 40mm becomes the equivalent to a 64mm lens. This blog post is not about the optical curves, you can find technical on various websites: http://www.google.com/search?&output=search&q=canon+40mm+f/2.8. This is about photography, about photographs and about people.

First off all, it's a cheap lens. I paid $219.99 which is $9 less than the Canadian list price. It's available at just under $200 in the US.

Overpriced Items That I Can't Live Without

  1. Black Rapid RS Camera Strap: I paid over $170 for mine! Ouch! I bought the first one, the RS1, in Canada when the hook and the base were “crappy.” Then I bought the “proper” fastener for the base, then the “proper” hook, then finally I bought a Nodal Ninja plate that has a lip to distribute the tension from the tripod mount to the body of the camera. Now it's fantastic, I can even hang 10 pounds, the camera, the Sigma 120-400, the monopod + the head and carrying the whole “she-bang” is easy.

Another Take on the 7D with Firmware V2 and MFA

On the various Canon Forums, some people are complaining about the Micro-Focus-Adjustment (MFA) and the new firmware v2.0. Many people have reported that their MFA has changed from +something to 0. How could that be?

  1. The camera has a database of most Canon lenses in each dSLR camera. The data is mostly used for illumination correction to make sure that the illumination is the same across the whole photo.
  2. The Canon 7D is old enough that Canon has accumulated enough data over the last 2½ years to know most of the MFA for most of the Canon lenses. This data is included in the new firmware. That's one of the reasons that you should redo your MFA for all of your lenses.
  3. The MFA changes all the time! The Micro-Focus-Adjustment is to compensate for the physical variations of the lens/camera combination against the theoretical manufacturing. The problem is that both the camera and the lenses contract and expand depending on the temperature variations. I mentioned it before at: Micro Focus Adjustment Revisited

Canon 7D: C.Fn III -5 - AF Micro Adjustment

Canon 7D: C.Fn III -5 - AF Micro Adjustment

Canon 7D: The New Firmware v2

By now, everybody knows that Canon has released the new firmware v2 for the Canon 7D. It's available on the US website and on the Canadian website where I downloaded it from. It should be available from the other Canon websites too.

  • THERE IS NO GOING BACK TO THE PREVIOUS VERSION. It's a one way upgrade. I have tried it (on one camera) and so far no major problem. To be safe wait for a week or two to see if any big problem shows up.
  • USE A FULLY CHARGED BATTERY. It took 3½ minutes to upgrade the firmware. I suspect that the speed will vary depending on the speed of the card. Not enough “juice” and the camera will become an expensive brick.
  • DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING during the firmware upgrade. If you touch any “wrong” button during the firmware upgrade, the camera could become an expensive brick.
  • When the upgrade is finished and you have entered the new date and time, remove the battery for a few seconds for the new firmware to be loaded on the next start.
Syndicate content