cancel
Showing results for 
Show  only  | Search instead for 
Did you mean: 

Need help to decide on which camera to buy!!!!!

Joleystar
Contributor

Hi everyone,  

 

This is my frst time on the forum. This will be a multi-question post. 

( 1 ) I want to know if anyone has purchased the 5D Mark III  and the new 5D S model.  If you have, what is your opinion between the two?

( 2 ) How old is the Mark III and will they bring out a new Mark III or higher model in the near future or is the 5D S the replacement for the Mark III ???  

( 3 ) I am not very tech savy when it comes to technical specs for cameras. I did a feature comparison between the two models and while there may be many new and different features between both, the major upgrades that I see on the 5D S are the almost double (50 Megapixels) and two seperate DIGIC 6 image processor.  Is there a dramatic difference in image quality and processing speed with those two upgrades on the 5D S compared to the Mark III???  

 

- Thank You in advance for taking the time to reply. 

27 REPLIES 27


@Joleystar wrote:

Hello again! 

 

I'm sorry for having everyone shooting in the dark with all of your helpful advice.  My everyday use for me with my camera is just to capture random things in my daily life.  I shoot almost 80 - 90% still photos of random things.  Hopefully someone can picture what I am talking about.  In that mix of shooting I love shooting candid photos.  I love to see pictures in motion and would love to have something that can help me get better quality candid photos.  Something very big on my wish list in a new camera, is video capabilities.  

 

 


I'm wondering what you mean by "candid photos".....And since you're interested in video, have you considered a camcorder???    For video, a camcorder is much more easier to setup and use.  DSLR's  are way more complicated to operate and setup the video functions, at least in the more advanced gear, like the 70D and 7D mark ll   In fact, a very large number of the people coming here for help are asking for help with the video function of the DSLR.  Though our DSLR's do handle video quite well, at present they are still designed primarily for still pictures, with the option for video.   If you go with a DSLR with the intent to also use the video features, you will have a much more steeper learning curve with your new camera.  And on top of it all, you want to experiment with HDR, it may be too overwhleming to try to deal with all that at the same time.  You will need to buy and learn post editing programs.   The choice is yours but I kinda agree with Biggs in his last reply.   Sounds to me you're trying to take on too much all at once. 

Joleystar
Contributor

One other thing. 

 

I was looking through Canon's site and they don't have a way to seperate lenses that are weather proof.. So if any of you happen to know which lenses are weather proof from each catagory of lenses. I would appreciate a list of those lenses.  I know there are few different catagories of lenses so I'll take what I can get.  Mostly looking at Ultra wide zoom, standard zoom, telephoto zoom, wide angle. Basically anything under $1500 bucks cause I have not learn how to grow money yet... LOL

 

Also I really want to know what kind of lens is used to create that effect where the whole picture looks like a scene on a miniature model train set.  That is such an awesome trick.


@Joleystar wrote:

One other thing. 

 

I was looking through Canon's site and they don't have a way to seperate lenses that are weather proof.. So if any of you happen to know which lenses are weather proof from each catagory of lenses. I would appreciate a list of those lenses.  I know there are few different catagories of lenses so I'll take what I can get.  Mostly looking at Ultra wide zoom, standard zoom, telephoto zoom, wide angle. Basically anything under $1500 bucks cause I have not learn how to grow money yet... LOL

 

Also I really want to know what kind of lens is used to create that effect where the whole picture looks like a scene on a miniature model train set.  That is such an awesome trick.


If you want weatherproof , weathersealed lens you'll have to look into Canon's L (Pro) line.  They're the top of the line Professional series lenses.  You say you want to work within a $1,500.00 range and that will be a problem with L (Pro) lens.  Their prices start right under $1,000.00, and go north from there, some .....way, way north.  There's a couple L lens that can be had for under $1,000.00.   So you're looking basically at only one lens.  Look for lens that end with an "L" at the end of the aperture number.  Here's a list of Canon L lens, take a look.  All of these are Canon Pro lens only:

 

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Lens+Series_Canon+%22L%22&ci=274&N=4288584247+4291570227+...

 

You can also look here:

 

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/ef_lens_lineup

 

Far as the special effects you're talking about, I'm not aware of any special lens persay that they use for that.  I think it's a mixture of special filters and effects in camera, and/or Post Ed Software like Photoshop, Lightroom, PSE, etc.  Stuff like HDR and other special effects created with software.  You use regular lens to do that.  Check this:

 

http://www.digitaltrends.com/photography/what-is-hdr-beginners-guide-to-high-dynamic-range-photograp...

 

Hope this helps.

 

BTW....About any special effects you can ask the other guys who responded here, they all can answer any questions you have about HDR and anything else.  In fact "E Biggs", the 1st guy who replied to you here, has some HDR pics he posted here on site in another thread "DSLR 101".  You can take a look and see if that's what you're referring to.  I wish I knew a way to put a link here to take you to it.  But it's in this same catagory we're in now  "EOS DSLR". 

Joleystar,

Two things.

One, all the "L" lenses have some weather sealing but not all have the same amount of sealing.  For instance the EF 50mm f1.2L is not weather sealed at all unless it has a protector filter added to the front.  On your SL1 all the L lenses are going to be big and heavy.  The balance is going to be off somewhat.  Even a Rebel T6i will suffer from this to a degree.

 

Two, you need a post editor.  It actually sounds like you need to learn PPing right now.  Maybe forgoing the camera and lens purchase until you do.  I think Photoshop Elements would be a good fit.

 

 

Tip.  If you want to shoot candids, the best lens for you is a 70-200mm f2.8.  It will give you a great advantage, distance.  You will be able to shoot without people being aware you are there.

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

Joleystar
Contributor

Thank You again everyone for all of your helpful advise.  

 

After careful consideration I have decided to purchase the 6D body.  I will use the extra money that I save from NOT buying the 5D mark III to buy better lenses.  

 

I feel the 6D offers a little of everything that I need for the time being.  It's not the cheapest but not too expensive either.  For a while it was a toss up between the 7D and 6D, but I have set on the 6D.  I feel that if video or fast shooting was more important then I might have gone with 7D.  The 6D defenitely fits the bill for me, especially for low light capabilities.   

 

Thank You all again for being very insightful and committed to helping other photo enthusiast.  You guys might just have saved me a lot of money and frustration.  I will be back with questions on lenses when I'm ready for that.  

 

Take care. 


@Joleystar wrote:

Thank You again everyone for all of your helpful advise.  

 

After careful consideration I have decided to purchase the 6D body.  I will use the extra money that I save from NOT buying the 5D mark III to buy better lenses.  

 

I feel the 6D offers a little of everything that I need for the time being.  It's not the cheapest but not too expensive either.  For a while it was a toss up between the 7D and 6D, but I have set on the 6D.  I feel that if video or fast shooting was more important then I might have gone with 7D.  The 6D defenitely fits the bill for me, especially for low light capabilities.   

 

Thank You all again for being very insightful and committed to helping other photo enthusiast.  You guys might just have saved me a lot of money and frustration.  I will be back with questions on lenses when I'm ready for that.  

 

Take care. 


An argument in support of your decision is that if you conclude sometime down the road that you really do need the 5D3 (or its successor), the 6D will serve admirably as a backup camera. And you'll already have been acquiring only full-frame lenses.

Bob
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA

Joleystar
Contributor

Hey Jazzman ...

 

I think I found the lens I was talking about.  The special effect I was talking about was making a photo look miniature.  With my powerful Google searching skills, I found that the lens required is a Tilt Shift Lens.  Also it appears that the same effect can be done with some editing software.  I looked at Canon's tilt shift lens and oh boy... I'm sweating bullets just looking at the price.  Maybe someday. 


@Joleystar wrote:

Hey Jazzman ...

 

I think I found the lens I was talking about.  The special effect I was talking about was making a photo look miniature.  With my powerful Google searching skills, I found that the lens required is a Tilt Shift Lens.  Also it appears that the same effect can be done with some editing software.  I looked at Canon's tilt shift lens and oh boy... I'm sweating bullets just looking at the price.  Maybe someday. 


Good you found the info you were looking for, glad the guys could help.  The 6D is a good choice, and one I myself have decided should be my 1st excusion into FF, when I decide to take the plunge.  I'll wait till it's discontinued, and then I can get a great price on it.  Usually, the price comes way down on a body after a new body replaces it, or it's discontinued.  That's how I got a heck of a deal on my 60D brand new.    I don't need a top of the line, cutting edge body, I'm not a Pro, just a peep who enjoys Photography.   And the wait will give me the time I need to hone my skills so I will be ready for it when that happens.  I also check the Canon Store on deals for refurbished lens....that's how I got my EF 24-105 f/4 L USM at almost 1/2 price, and a very good deal on my EF 50mm f/1.4 USM.   I'm not a fan of used lens but I trust Canon, and their refubs get a full 1 yr warranty....same as new lens.  I would'nt buy used from very many other places.  I'll leave a link to Canon refub gear, if you'd like to see: 

 

 http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/cameras/refurbished-eos-digital-slr-cameras#facet:&product...:&

 

http://shop.usa.canon.com/shop/en/catalog/refurbished-lenses

 

You sure seem like a determined lady and know what and where you want to go.  Good luck on your adventure and come back whenever you need help in the future.

 

BTW....Don't let the regular prices discourage you.   They give extra discounts here from time to time, like a "sale price".  I check every week or so, and catch better deals when more discounts are given....on a given lens, when they get overstock.  The extra discounts are only temporary for a few weeks, then the price returns to the regular price.  Usually, "most" of these lens get extra discounts around Thanksgiving--Xmas, and right before the new gear comes out every year.  It's Canon's seasonal sales.


@Joleystar wrote:

Hey Jazzman ...

 

I think I found the lens I was talking about.  The special effect I was talking about was making a photo look miniature.  With my powerful Google searching skills, I found that the lens required is a Tilt Shift Lens.  Also it appears that the same effect can be done with some editing software.  I looked at Canon's tilt shift lens and oh boy... I'm sweating bullets just looking at the price.  Maybe someday. 


The "miniature" effect is most easily accomplished with the 45mm and 90mm TS-E lenses, which happen to be the less expensive of the four currently offered. These two are still the "old design", where the two movements cannot be easily reoriented with each other (requires lens disassembly to do so). The 17mm and 24mm II are newer models and higher priced, likely because they are more complex both optically, with exotic elements, and mechanically, in order to have the additional orientation/rotation feature.

 

The reason that the 17mm and 24mm are less able to create the miniature effect is simply due to depth of field. The wider lenses just naturally render deeper DoF, while the miniature effect relies especially upon shallow DoF. So, if that's your main purpose for the lens(es), I'd recommend looking at the 45mm and 90mm.

 

If interested in TS-E lenses, be sure to look on the used/refurbished market. The TS-E lenses seem to change hands frequently, perhaps because they're fairly specialized and folks buy them for a project, then sell them on when it's completed.

 

There also are several lens rental companies, that might be a good alternative for short term uses.

 

EDIT: Incidentally, the TS-E lenses are not particularly sealed, by any means. In fact, to do what they do, in order to offer shift and tilt movements they are likely less sealed than most lenses. They also are all manual focus only. The 17mm, 24mm Mark II and 24mm Mark I are "L-series", while the 45mm and 90mm are not. Yet, they all have similar "built like a tank" construction.

 

To understand why three of the TS-E are L-series and two are not, you need to know how Canon defines an L-seris lens. They've established three criteria a lens must meet to be considered an L-series: 

 

1. The lens must be leading edge design, high quality materials and premium build (all of which are somewhat subjective).

2. If must be compatible with all EOS cameras past, present & future (hence no EF-S lens will ever be an L, no matter how good it is).

3. The optical formula must include "exotic" glass (ED, UD, apo, fluorite, etc.).  

 

There are a lot of premium quality, top performing Canon lenses that simply don't meet all three of these criteria, so aren't graced with a "red stripe" and L-series status. Some of them are virtually indistinguishable from L-series. Good examples are the TS-E lenses... the 45mm and 90mm simply don't need or have exotic glass to produce top image quality. In fact, the 45mm and 90mm TS-E probably have better overall image quality than the TS-E 24/3.5L "Mark I". The same is true of the non-L/non-IS 100/2.8 USM Macro, which is otherwise virtually identical build quality as the 180/3.5L USM Macro. In fact, the 100mm just doesn't need fancy glass to produce great image quality, and actually might be better performing than the 180mm in certain respects (it's faster autofocusing, though neither is really a speed demon, as is true of pretty much all macro lenses).

 

Personally, I don't care if a lens is an "L" or not, so long as it does the job  well that I need it to do. As a result, about half my lens kit are L's, while the rest aren't. I think it rather silly to "only buy L", which I've seen recommended at times. There are some really excellent lenses that aren't L's! Of course there are a lot of great L-series, too.

 

I wonder at times if Canon may someday change their definition of L-series or might regret that they've made it so rigid. After all, the criteria were established long before there was digital imaging, APS-C sensors or EF-S lenses.

 

Finally, while L-series often have some additional attention to sealing to provide a bit better weather and dust resistance... None of the lenses - L or not - and certainly none of the DSLRs are fully weatherproof, waterproof or dustproof! I'd highly recommend taking reasonable care with any of them!

 

***********


Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif., USA
"Walk softly and carry a big lens."
GEAR: 5DII, 7D(x2), 50D(x3), some other cameras, various lenses & accessories
FLICKR & EXPOSUREMANAGER 

And of course if you don't think you'll use a lens enough to justify the purchase price... rent it!

 

There are a couple of vendors who specialize in renting gear. 

 

You can rent either the 45mm or 90mm Canon tilt-shift for about $50 for 4 days (LensRentals is $52 for 4 days.  BorrowLenses is $47 for 3 days.  Borrowlenses doesn't seem to list the 90mm... just the 45 (well... and the 17 and 24 but you'd really want the 45 or 90 for the miniature effect.  I own the 24mm and I've done it, but it's a stronger effect with the longer focal lengths.))

 

Just be warned...

 

(a) tilt-shift lenses are completely manual.  There's no such thing as an auto-focusing tilt-shift lens because the focus is so very particular the camera couldn't possibly know what you want.  Make sure you properly adjust the diopter in your camera viewfinder to your eye so that you can trust the image in the viewfinder when manually focusing the lens.

 

(b) the "tilt' aspect of a tlt-shift lens has a significant learning curve.  The lenses works based on the Scheimpflug Principle (see:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scheimpflug_principle)  I will say it's fairly easy to create the out-of-focus miniature effect... certainly MUCH easier than using the lens for it's intended purpose which is to alter the plate of focus to put something completely IN focus rather than deliberately out of focus.    If I want to capture an image of a beautiful dining table set for a meal and I want the entire table in tack-sharp focus from front to back... a tilt-shift lens can do that.  But learning precisely how to tilt the lens so that the plane of focus follows the plane of the table takes a bit of learning and some practice.

 

There's also a "shift" aspec to the lens, but that's easier to use -- not nearly as difficult as learning to master the "tilt" aspect.  The "shift" aspect of the lens alters perspective lines in an image.  In architecture, for example, you can use it to correct the perspective that causes tall buildings to appear to be "leaning" back.

 

 

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