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New member needs help

lurechunker
Enthusiast

I am new to the forum and asking for help. Our granddaughter plays basketball and I would like to photograph her. I kayak and would like to photograph birds. Is the EOS 760D the camera for me? Other? What lens or lenses? How can I protect my equipment form damage from saltwater? Thank you.

2 ACCEPTED SOLUTIONS


@lurechunker wrote:
My 80D with 18-55 from Canon store will arrive tomorrow. I think I made a mistake by not getting the 28-135. Should I leave the 18-55 in the box and send it back? I'd like to start with an "all-round" lens and one long enough for back yard birds.

Do you mean 18-135, instead of 28-135?  The 18-135 lenses are pretty good.  BUT, they will likely cast a shadow when you try to use the flash.  I know that older 18-135mm lenses cast a major shadow on a T5, so I would expect a shadow on an 80D.  The 18-55mm lens has a 35mm equivalent of 29-88mm, which is pretty close to 24-70mm that is very popular for use with full frame camera bodies.

 

The  STM version of the 18-55mm is a really good lens.  I would hang on to it.  I can guarantee you that whatever plans you have for using the camera, you will find new scenarios to use it.  I would keep the 18-55mm, and pass on buying a 18-135, so that you can budget more money towards your birding lens.  If you can afford to do all of the above, then by all means, buy all of the lenses you want.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

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@lurechunker wrote:

What about buying a used or refurbished lens from B&H?


I am not sure if I have seen any Canon refurbished gear at B&H, not in the last few years for sure.  If you want to buy Canon refurbished gear, then I would only recommend the Canon refurbished store.  They will give you a one year warranty, not just a  "guarantee" of some kind.  

 

I think B&H has a fairly good and objective rating system for their used gear.  I think much of it is a bit pricey, though.  Many times they will offer used gear that is rated "good" that has an asking price that is more than what is being offered in the Canon Refurbished Store.  

 

Check what the B&H guarantee and return policy might be for used gear.  I've bought a used tripod head and a "hi-hat" tripod from B&H, and I think I had a 15 day return window, and a 30 day guarantee.

 

Good judgement needs to exercised when buying used gear.  You must consider the source.  You must consider the return policy, for which B&H has a good reputation.  You must consider the cost/benefit of expensive gear without a warranty.  You must consider can the used gear be repaired, if needed in the near future.  

 

With used camera gear, there is always a risk of mold and mildew contamination.  Canon's refurbished gear has that new gear smell to it, so I think the contamination risk is small to non-existent with Canon.

 

[EDIT]. If what you want is out of stock at the Canon Refurbished Store, be patient.  Most of the items will be back in stock in a month, or two, or three.  The "L" series lenses can sell out very quickly.  

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

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314 REPLIES 314

"...anyone can walk into a professional kitchen and be a gourmet chef."

 

Maybe not but anyone can walk into a professional kitchen a cook a hot dog.  That is all that is required to own a 'professional' kitchen or professional camera.  The 7D Mk II has the green square!  It is included for a reason.  Just because you can not get the most out of a professional camera doesn't indicate some one else will not.  Maybe they won't or can't on day one but later?

 

"That's the best solution for an experienced user, but not for someone new to DSLRs."   Hmmm, false assumption?

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

"...anyone can walk into a professional kitchen and be a gourmet chef."

 

Maybe not but anyone can walk into a professional kitchen a cook a hot dog.  That is all that is required to own a 'professional' kitchen or professional camera.  The 7D Mk II has the green square!  It is included for a reason.  Just because you can not get the most out of a professional camera doesn't indicate some one else will not.  Maybe they won't or can't on day one but later?

 

"That's the best solution for an experienced user, but not for someone new to DSLRs."   Hmmm, false assumption?


Suppose you're a newbie and you buy a 7D Mark II. It works great for you. but by the time you learn to take full advantage of it, the Mark III is out - or even the really good APS-C mirrorless that Canon seems to be inching towards. Maybe you'll wish you'd bought an entry-level camera and saved your money for an upgrade, now that you're good enough to take advantage of it.

 

I'm not lobbying for that course of action. I'm just saying that there are two sides to the argument.

Bob
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA

" I'm just saying that there are two sides to the argument."

 

There is and it seems like mine is the most unpopular!  Why?  I don't know.  It is just one of several solutions and really not deserving of all this banter.  Is it?

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

"...anyone can walk into a professional kitchen and be a gourmet chef."

 

Maybe not but anyone can walk into a professional kitchen a cook a hot dog.  That is all that is required to own a 'professional' kitchen or professional camera.  The 7D Mk II has the green square!  It is included for a reason.  Just because you can not get the most out of a professional camera doesn't indicate some one else will not.  Maybe they won't or can't on day one but later?

 

"That's the best solution for an experienced user, but not for someone new to DSLRs."   Hmmm, false assumption?


Ernie, i love your enthusiasm.  Don't ever let it go.  Okay?

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

TCampbell
Elite
Elite

Action photography such as basketball, and if by "birds" you really mean "birds in flight" then the 80D or 7D II would be better options.

 

The 7D II is a semi-pro category camera optimized for action photography but I should caution you that it's a somewhat "technical" camera.  If you opt for that choice (and it would be *the* ideal choice) you would need to take the time to go through the manual and really learn to use it before you would start to get the benefits of it.

 

The 80D is a mid-level advanced / pro-sumer category camera (not entry level, but also not pro nor semi-pro).  It's not quite as technical of an instrument as the 7D II.

 

But that's just the camera and the sort of photography you're asking about also relies heavily on lens selection.

 

The difficulty with basketball is that it's typical indoor and in poor lighting (and you generally cannot use flash).  This means you want a lens that can gather a lot of light.  In other words, imagine if the diameter of the lens is physically larger so that more light can pass thorugh the lens when you take a shot (meaning you don't have to leave the shutter open as long and can take faster "action" shots.)    

 

The indicator that you look for is the focal ratio.  This is simply the focal length of the lens, divide by it's wides possible diameter of clear aperture.  So if you had a lens that has a 100mm long focal length but it's aperture opens up to a 25mm wide aperture then that lens is an "f/4" lens because 100 ÷ 25 = 4.    Now imagine that instead of having a 25mm diameter opening in the lens, that the lens was so large that it had a 50mm diameter opening... that would be an f/2 lens because 100 ÷ 50 = 2 (we call that an f/2 lens).  So you can see how the larger diameter opening causes the focal ratio value to be smaller.  When you're trying to gather light in a hurry... the lower the focal ratio value... the better.

 

One other piece of info... when the diameter of a circle increases by 1.4x then the area of that circle is doubled.  (technically the real value is the square root of 2 ... an irrational number 1.41421... but we simply round that to 1.4 in photography because anything past the the 1.4 isn't enough of a difference to substantially change your exposure in any noticeable way.

 

So f/2.8 literally collects DOUBLE the light of an f/4 lens.  An f/4 lens collects double the light of an f/5.6 lens.  That means an f/2.8 lens collects QUADRUPLE the light of an f/5.6 lens and that makes a very noticeable difference.

 

The EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM is probably the preferred lens for the indoor shooting because the f/2.8 focal ratio is low and it can provide that focal ratio at any zoom length.

 

A typical inexpensive zoom such as a 70-300mm is a "variable focal ratio" f/4-5.6 which means it can provide f/4 only at the 70mm end, and as you zoom in the focal ratio increases and by the time you reach 200mm it is already at f/5.6.  So while the focal length range may be nice, the ability to collect light isn't so nice (and if you don't have the light you have to use slower exposures or crank up the ISO and you end up with "noisy" shots and/or shots with a lot of motion-blur.

 

That covers the indoor action sports.  For outdoors things get a little easier.  It isn't that the birds in flight require fast shutter speeds... you're outdoors.   There's a LOT more light.  Using an f/5.6 focal ratio really isn't a problem.

 

Birders tend to prefer lenses that can zoom up to about 600mm.  Both Sigma and Tamron make a 150-600mm zoom lens that makes birders very happy (Sigma actually makes two... one costs noticeably more but is slightly higher performing.)  These are f/5-6.3 variable focal ratio lenses.  So while the focal ratio doesn't sound as nice, it's no longer the factor we're worried about becuase we usually have an abundance of light when shooting outdoors.    Canon does not make a lens that directly matches to these... their closest is the Canon EF 100-400mm f/4-5.6L IS II USM.  On a Canon EOS 7D Mk II camera, that lens can be paired with a Canon EF 1.4x Extender which brings it up to 140-560mm (so it's pretty close.) 

 

Both the 80D and the 7D Mk II are "weather sealed" camera bodies... meaning Canon put o-rings on all dials and they put gaskets on buttons and body seams.  The 7D has a little bit better weather-sealing treatment than the 80D.   Weather sealing means the camera is designed to keep out dust or water if that water is things like rain or splashes.  These cameras are NOT water-proof (they must NOT be submerged underwater.)    Also, while these cameras happen to be weather sealed, most lenses are NOT weather-sealed.  Canon makes several of their "L" series lenses that have weather sealing.  The EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM is weather sealed.  Also Canon's 100-400mm f/4-5.6L IS II USM is weather sealed.  You can generally tell if the lens is weather sealed because it will have a silicone gasket that creates a seal when the lens is attached to the camera body (most lenses don't have that.)  

 

If you have weather-sealed gear and it gets wet, make sure you still towel dry the gear before removing the lens, etc.  You don't want any drips entering the camera when you remove the lens.

 

I would get a waterproof "dry bag".  LowePro (a major brand in camera bags) makes a "DryZone" series of bags that are all waterproof.  If you decide to roll the kayak and the camera is in the bag, it'll be fine.

 

 

Tim Campbell
5D III, 5D IV, 60Da

"Birders tend to prefer lenses that can zoom up to about 600mm.  Both Sigma and Tamron make a 150-600mm zoom lens that makes birders very happy (Sigma actually makes two... one costs noticeably more but is slightly higher performing.)"

 

Normally I would agree with this but the OP mentioned "salt water'.  If the BIF are the ones that habitat that area, the big zooms are going to be a hand full.  Difficult to protect.  The 400 f5.6L prime is a way better choice in that case.

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!

TCampbell
Elite
Elite

If you're going to use a UV filter, use a good quality filter.  

 

While a casual look would be difficult to tell the difference between a poor filter vs. a good filter, I took a shot to illustrate the difference in a way that makes it a bit easier to notice the difference.

 

A high quality filter will have good anti-reflective coatings -- almost completely eliminating reflections.  Reflections are bad for 2 reasons...

 

First, the only way it can be possible for you to see a reflection is if some percentage of light striking the surface of the filter is reflected back.  That means not all the light is actually going through the filter.  

 

But the second reason is that light that does make it through the filter on the first pass can reflect off the front of your lens and back onto the filter a second time.  If the filter doesn't have good antireflective coatings, then some of that light will bounce back again and you'll get "ghosting" in your image (caused by reflections.)  And these can be very annoying.

 

To show this, I took a piece of black poster-board (card stock from the local craft store) and cut it into this strip.

 

I placed two filters on the card stock.  On the desk (out of frame) there is a lamp providing the light.  I lined up the filters so that the light source is between the two filters.

 

Notice, however, that when you look through the filter on the right, the card stock is nearly as black under that filter as it is in the area where there isn't any filter at all.  It almost looks as though I've placed a ring on the card stock that doesn't have ay glass in it (there is glass in it - but that's a filter with high quality anti-reflective coatings.)

 

Meanwhile the filter on the left is noticeably lighter.  The card stock looks a bit washed out through this filter.  We are getting an overall reflection which is causing a bit of a loss in contrast through that filter.  

 

IMG_0002.jpg

 

I can tell you (because I own both filters) that if I hold the filter and tilt them in my hand to treat them "like a mirror" that the reflection in the B+W brand filter on the right is there... it's just weak.  It doesn't create a very strong reflection.  Meanwhile the filter on the left does create a much stronger reflection (it either lacks anti-reflective coatings entirely... or they're just not very good anti-reflective coatings.)

 

If you're gong to put glass in front of your "glass" (particularly if you invest in expensive high-quality lenses) then you'll want to match that with a high quality filter.

 

I own filters for every lens in my kit.  But most of the time I don't use them (my lenses are 'naked').  But "just in case" I want to shoot in an area where where the environment isn't as friendly to the lens, I have the filters with me.

 

I also typically have a Circular Polarizing (CPL) filter as well as a 3-stop Neutral Density filter (ND 0.9).

 

I've gravitated toward B+W brand filters because of their repuation for very high quality and my ability to notice that it does actually make a difference.  I do not happen to own Hoya Pro1 series filters, but they're also generally regarded as good quality filters (only the "Pro1" series - Hoya makes other filter series but they're not as good.)

 

Tim Campbell
5D III, 5D IV, 60Da

jrhoffman75
Legend
Legend
In DPP choose Convert and Save under file menu. Select HPEG file type and you can choise image size. You can download a manual for DPP from Canon site. There are also tutorials at Canon Digital Learning Center website.
John Hoffman
Conway, NH

1D X Mark III, Many lenses, Pixma PRO-100, Pixma TR8620a, LR Classic


@jrhoffman75 wrote:
In DPP choose Convert and Save under file menu. Select HPEG file type and you can choise image size. You can download a manual for DPP from Canon site. There are also tutorials at Canon Digital Learning Center website.

Never used that selection before.  Learn something every day.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

Thanks for the help. I now have an 80D with an EF-S 18-55 IS, several cards, a card viewer, a Ruggard Outrigger 45 and a MyFoto Globetrotter in carbon fiber, The next purchase will be a 100-400 ll USM and filters for both lenses. Starting to think about a printer and appropriate paper. What should I get? 

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