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Trout Guy · Feb 12, 2005, 11:47 AM

Magnificent shot!!

Hahaha, your gull shot came in between our posts....both shots are magnificent!!

TG

peripatetic · Feb 12, 2005, 11:56 AM

Thanks TG...

And a landscape before the sun went away.

Those clouds behind the building were coming in fast but we still had the sun on the lake for a couple of minutes. No photoshop except a bit of sharpening.

20D, EF 70-300mm DO IS USM, @70mm, 1/640s, f14, ISO400.

Well, I had to wait for 2 weeks before the weather gave me a half-decent break, but after those 3 shots I'm officially happy with the DO. :-)

Oculus Sinister · Feb 12, 2005, 12:49 PM

Nice shots, I like the first one. I presently have the much maligned 75-300 IS USM( which they always unfairly compare to L lenses) and am also quite happy with it. Stopped down to f8 and upat 300mm I think the pictures are really sharp.

I notice a dust spot on the clouds on your 3rd picture:-)

peripatetic · Feb 12, 2005, 12:56 PM

Oculus Sinister wrote:

Quote:

I notice a dust spot on the clouds on your 3rd picture:-)

Thanks for that - shall fix in PS before printing. I will check the lens - it might have been a drop as the rain started, but otherwise I shall have to read the "How to clean your CCD" threads; I knew I'd need to sooner or later..

Nancy Gabby · Feb 12, 2005, 2:09 PM

Peri (hope u don't mind the nickname), those shots are amazing! Did you sharpen them or anything other than the resize? B/c those pictures don't look soft to me, at all. Also, can you increase the sharpness in the camera (not that you need to with these shots as an ex.)?

peripatetic · Feb 12, 2005, 2:23 PM

Thanks Nancy,

The top 2 were about cropped to about 2/3 frame for composition (pesky birds won't stay still), the bottom one is full frame. (buildings tend to move about rather less) :-)

All were shot RAW and sharpened in PS, but that's just part of the DSLR trade-off. The point about sharpening is that it depends on what your output is as to how much you need to do! You should sharpen differently for an 800x500 web graphic to a 13"x19" print. That's where the DSLR comes into its own and the P&S falls rather flat.

With the 20D you can shoot in JPG and turn up the sharpening and contrast to give a P&S feel, and I may do that occasionally, but if you're going to do it all the time you might as well get a top-of-the-range prosumer P&S.

With the 20D the resolution is there in the image but you have to adjust line acutance by using a one-pass USM (fairly crude) or sharpening plug-ins (more sophisticated but costs a bit). I've been experimenting with Photokit Sharpener and think it's worth the $100 cost. Also you will need Noise Ninja or NeatImage for low ISO shots and that costs around $80. Plus obviously you will need Photoshop Elements (at least & included in the 20D box) or preferably Photoshop CS. So do include at least $200 in your budget for software.

HeidiandHans · Feb 12, 2005, 5:01 PM

Peripatetic

Liked the bird shots, I'm new to slr and 20d, I have the 75-300 is usm and I took some notes on your camera settings for me to try out on bird shots. Was you panning using ai servo, and why did you switch from f9 to f10 on the two different birds. Also what does BTW mean. Did you use Manual settings and select the numbers, or TV or AV?????? I'm full of questions right now so I might as well ask this as well:!: I was thinking about adding the 2x-TC I believe I'll lose auto focus, but I will be able to manual focus still Right? At 600 I should be able to get them right in there nest. And do you know if there is any quality difference between the 1.5x and the 2x. 2X should work very well with my 50mm f2.5 and my 85mm 1.8

peripatetic · Feb 12, 2005, 7:01 PM

Heidi and Hans,

I'm no expert but I'll do my best to answer :-)

The shots were on P mode, so I let the camera choose the f-stop and aperture. I chose ISO400 because there's practically no noise at that setting and I wanted to see what this lens could do without resorting to the IS, so I didn't want to go down to ISO100.

For the gull I didn't change to AI servo, I did set the AF point to the centre point only and then just tracked by hand, keeping it centre-frame and letting the AF do its thing. It was fairly tricky actually because they move rather quickly and swirl around a lot. Anyway I managed to get one really nice one out of about 6 or 7 that I shot, which is a fairly reasonable ratio.

BTW = by the way

I'm sure the 2xTC will work well with your primes, but I've never used one myself. I suspect you'll only be able to use the zoom with it in very good light and won't be able to use AF.

I can't use a TC with the DO lens, I presume this is because the optics are just too different - they'd have to make a DO TC, but I won't hold my breath for that.

Good luck with your shots.

HeidiandHans · Feb 13, 2005, 10:43 AM

Peripatetic

Thanks for the reply

xitr99 · Feb 14, 2005, 5:05 AM

Some really nice shots there peripatetic

My shop still hasn't gotten the lens yet ( confirmed 17th). I think I have made up my mind now. It will take a serious chunk out of my budget, but I see it as an investment. When considering the f/4L lens and the 1.4x TC the price gap isn't that big, and I get the IS on top as well. So better range, IS, smaller size and more discreet apperance will be the deciding factors I think. Thanks for the help :-)

Feb 12, 2005, 11:56 AM	#12
peripatetic Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 3,599	Thanks TG... And a landscape before the sun went away. Those clouds behind the building were coming in fast but we still had the sun on the lake for a couple of minutes. No photoshop except a bit of sharpening. 20D, EF 70-300mm DO IS USM, @70mm, 1/640s, f14, ISO400. Well, I had to wait for 2 weeks before the weather gave me a half-decent break, but after those 3 shots I'm officially happy with the DO. :-) Attached Images

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Feb 12, 2005, 11:47 AM	#11
Trout Guy Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 132	Magnificent shot!! Hahaha, your gull shot came in between our posts....both shots are magnificent!! TG

Feb 12, 2005, 12:49 PM	#13
Oculus Sinister Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 86	Nice shots, I like the first one. I presently have the much maligned 75-300 IS USM( which they always unfairly compare to L lenses) and am also quite happy with it. Stopped down to f8 and upat 300mm I think the pictures are really sharp. I notice a dust spot on the clouds on your 3rd picture:-)

Feb 12, 2005, 2:09 PM	#15
Nancy Gabby Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 662	Peri (hope u don't mind the nickname), those shots are amazing! Did you sharpen them or anything other than the resize? B/c those pictures don't look soft to me, at all. Also, can you increase the sharpness in the camera (not that you need to with these shots as an ex.)?

Feb 12, 2005, 2:23 PM	#16
peripatetic Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 3,599	Thanks Nancy, The top 2 were about cropped to about 2/3 frame for composition (pesky birds won't stay still), the bottom one is full frame. (buildings tend to move about rather less) :-) All were shot RAW and sharpened in PS, but that's just part of the DSLR trade-off. The point about sharpening is that it depends on what your output is as to how much you need to do! You should sharpen differently for an 800x500 web graphic to a 13"x19" print. That's where the DSLR comes into its own and the P&S falls rather flat. With the 20D you can shoot in JPG and turn up the sharpening and contrast to give a P&S feel, and I may do that occasionally, but if you're going to do it all the time you might as well get a top-of-the-range prosumer P&S. With the 20D the resolution is there in the image but you have to adjust line acutance by using a one-pass USM (fairly crude) or sharpening plug-ins (more sophisticated but costs a bit). I've been experimenting with Photokit Sharpener and think it's worth the $100 cost. Also you will need Noise Ninja or NeatImage for low ISO shots and that costs around $80. Plus obviously you will need Photoshop Elements (at least & included in the 20D box) or preferably Photoshop CS. So do include at least $200 in your budget for software.

Feb 12, 2005, 5:01 PM	#17
HeidiandHans Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 57	Peripatetic Liked the bird shots, I'm new to slr and 20d, I have the 75-300 is usm and I took some notes on your camera settings for me to try out on bird shots. Was you panning using ai servo, and why did you switch from f9 to f10 on the two different birds. Also what does BTW mean. Did you use Manual settings and select the numbers, or TV or AV?????? I'm full of questions right now so I might as well ask this as well:!: I was thinking about adding the 2x-TC I believe I'll lose auto focus, but I will be able to manual focus still Right? At 600 I should be able to get them right in there nest. And do you know if there is any quality difference between the 1.5x and the 2x. 2X should work very well with my 50mm f2.5 and my 85mm 1.8

Feb 12, 2005, 7:01 PM	#18
peripatetic Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2004 Posts: 3,599	Heidi and Hans, I'm no expert but I'll do my best to answer :-) The shots were on P mode, so I let the camera choose the f-stop and aperture. I chose ISO400 because there's practically no noise at that setting and I wanted to see what this lens could do without resorting to the IS, so I didn't want to go down to ISO100. For the gull I didn't change to AI servo, I did set the AF point to the centre point only and then just tracked by hand, keeping it centre-frame and letting the AF do its thing. It was fairly tricky actually because they move rather quickly and swirl around a lot. Anyway I managed to get one really nice one out of about 6 or 7 that I shot, which is a fairly reasonable ratio. BTW = by the way I'm sure the 2xTC will work well with your primes, but I've never used one myself. I suspect you'll only be able to use the zoom with it in very good light and won't be able to use AF. I can't use a TC with the DO lens, I presume this is because the optics are just too different - they'd have to make a DO TC, but I won't hold my breath for that. Good luck with your shots.

Feb 13, 2005, 10:43 AM	#19
HeidiandHans Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 57	Peripatetic Thanks for the reply

Feb 14, 2005, 5:05 AM	#20
xitr99 Junior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 5	Some really nice shots there peripatetic My shop still hasn't gotten the lens yet ( confirmed 17th). I think I have made up my mind now. It will take a serious chunk out of my budget, but I see it as an investment. When considering the f/4L lens and the 1.4x TC the price gap isn't that big, and I get the IS on top as well. So better range, IS, smaller size and more discreet apperance will be the deciding factors I think. Thanks for the help :-)