Category: Equipment

The first part of this series just confirmed what we already new: Live view focus is more accurate than phase detection AF.
This part is going to (sort of) look at something I’ve wondered about and some related old-wives tales. And unlike the first article, at the end of this we’ll have learned something today.

We should see the new Canon mirrorless next Monday

A lot of people are finding it hard and/or impossible to see which AF point is selected when shooting in dark conditions, like a wedding reception. There are also people telling me they’re having trouble tracking birds in flight with the 1D X and the black AF points.

Martin Bailey, a Tokyo based photographer has posted a pretty extensive review of the Canon EOS-1D X. You can read or listen to his podcast as he talks about his initial impressions of Canon’s new flagship.

Advance warning: this article is as much about individual soul searching as it is about gear lust. Many of you will probably disagree with what I have to say, or find the truths a little uncomfortable; you of course don’t have to listen to me, but you might well find doing so unburdens you and allows you to develop even more as a photographer. Why am I saying this? Because I went through the process myself, and have to make a conscious effort to stop myself from falling into the gear trap. (It’s actually a lot worse when you’re a pro because you can justify buying anything as ‘work related’ and a tax-deductible expense.)

I recently rented a D4, Wimberly head, and 600VR from you, and the day
before yesterday, I had a little bit of an accident. I was photographing a
coyote here in Yellowstone and I followed it into the woods about 300yds
away from the road. As I am taking pictures of the coyote, I heard twigs
breaking behind me, and as I turned around I saw it was a grizzly bear. I
picked up the tripod with the D4 and 600 on it and slowly started to back
away. The bear got closer and closer as I tried to back up. When the bear
got to within 20 yds. of me, I bumped into a brush pile that I could not
lift the tripod over, so I had no choice but to leave the gear and continue
away from the bear.
And here’s what happened next…

We got our first “new” 5D III cameras today, the ones with the light leak fixed