OT- cameras

[Dragontears]

what kind of things are you looking up? Are you needing spec info and how to use some of the manual settings or are you looking into new lenses, accessories and want to know what accessories do what, etc?

[Tigergenesis]

I guess maybe a good 'extended' more in depth version of the manual. It did a good job of explaining 'how' to do certain things, but not necessarily why or when to do them. I saw a book called something like the "Canon Digital XT Field Guide" that seemed (at a very quick/short glance) to do just that. When I took my class the other night I forgot to ask the instructor about recommendations. However, I did overhear him talking a bit about books and I didn't catch the book he recommended for my camera. I guess it wouldn't necessarily have to be specific to my camera (would be nice), but a good reference book with tips, techniques, discussion on buying accessories, etc would be nice.

[Marie]

Did you go to the Canon website and check out the Digital Rebel lessons? I found it helpful. Then again, I'm a moron when it comes to this camera thing, so anything is helpful.

http://www.usa.canon.com/content/rebelxt_tutorial/rebelxtlessons.htm

[Tigergenesis]

Thanks Marie - I bookmarked the page. It does help. I'm still in the market for a good reference book to have on hand if anyone has any recommendations.

Another question about taking pics at night or in low light....what if a tripod is not practical or possible? Do the external flashes help much (provided the subject is within the flash range)? Do any of you have them? Do the IS lenses help a lot with blur, camera shake, etc?

[Geoff Gates]

Another question about taking pics at night or in low light....what if a tripod is not practical or possible? Do the external flashes help much (provided the subject is within the flash range)? Do any of you have them? Do the IS lenses help a lot with blur, camera shake, etc?

if a tripod is impractical try using a beanbag (or a bag filled with sand, rice etc), or a chair, log etc.

External flashes are excellent (I have the Speedlite EX420. I think the EX580 is the most powerful in the canon range. I used the EX420 when taking the pic of the owl).

Note, many wildlife images in full daylight are taken with what is known as 'fill-flash' this is to lighten up any shadow areas and increase detail.

Yes, IS lenses can allow you to take images at least 2 - 3 stops slower than with a non IS lens when handholding. If you are using a support they wont make any difference.

[Tigergenesis]

Another question about taking pics at night or in low light....what if a tripod is not practical or possible? Do the external flashes help much (provided the subject is within the flash range)? Do any of you have them? Do the IS lenses help a lot with blur, camera shake, etc?

if a tripod is impractical try using a beanbag (or a bag filled with sand, rice etc), or a chair, log etc.

External flashes are excellent (I have the Speedlite EX420. I think the EX580 is the most powerful in the canon range. I used the EX420 when taking the pic of the owl).

Note, many wildlife images in full daylight are taken with what is known as 'fill-flash' this is to lighten up any shadow areas and increase detail.

Yes, IS lenses can allow you to take images at least 2 - 3 stops slower than with a non IS lens when handholding. If you are using a support they wont make any difference.

Thanks Geoff! Some places do not allow tripods and sometimes I just don't want to have to carry one around with me all day. So I was hoping that in those cases perhaps the external flash and/or IS lense would help out. There are also those times when a tripod is not possible/practical and flash photography is not allowed (some indoor nocturnal zoo exhibits) so I was wondering if the IS lense alone would work.

[Dragontears]

I have the Canon Speedlite 550EX and the 420EX. The 550 is great for most of what we use. It has a fast recycle time so it can take multiple shots in a row with flash. (we also have a battery pack that attaches to the flash that allows us to take up to 17 shots in a row with flash) However, the 550 has a metering issue that when used in ETTL mode and we can't figure out how to fix (we've talked to many other people and they can't seem to fix it either). The 420 doesn't have the metering issue but isn't as powerful of a flash and doesn't have the speed that the 550 does. The 420 is really cheap though so that might be a consideration too.

We also sometimes hook the 420 up to the 550 and use it as a slave with the 550 as a master. This helps decrease shadow on some things and helps add in light to dark macro shots.

[Tigergenesis]

Thank you both! Are the flashes you guys mentioned older models? I ask because on Canon's site I only see the 220EX, 430EX and 580EX II. Obviously considering price I was looking at the 220EX

[Dragontears]

580 replaced 550 and 430 replaced 420...I'm not sure of the differences.
We got our 420 off of craigslist for $60 not too long ago, when people upgrade their accessories they often sell their old models for really cheap. You might want to check it out.

[Tigergenesis]

580 replaced 550 and 430 replaced 420...I'm not sure of the differences.
We got our 420 off of craigslist for $60 not too long ago, when people upgrade their accessories they often sell their old models for really cheap. You might want to check it out.

Thanks for the tip!

[Geoff Gates]

Another question about taking pics at night or in low light....what if a tripod is not practical or possible? Do the external flashes help much (provided the subject is within the flash range)? Do any of you have them? Do the IS lenses help a lot with blur, camera shake, etc?

if a tripod is impractical try using a beanbag (or a bag filled with sand, rice etc), or a chair, log etc.

External flashes are excellent (I have the Speedlite EX420. I think the EX580 is the most powerful in the canon range. I used the EX420 when taking the pic of the owl).

Note, many wildlife images in full daylight are taken with what is known as 'fill-flash' this is to lighten up any shadow areas and increase detail.

Yes, IS lenses can allow you to take images at least 2 - 3 stops slower than with a non IS lens when handholding. If you are using a support they wont make any difference.

Thanks Geoff! Some places do not allow tripods and sometimes I just don't want to have to carry one around with me all day. So I was hoping that in those cases perhaps the external flash and/or IS lense would help out. There are also those times when a tripod is not possible/practical and flash photography is not allowed (some indoor nocturnal zoo exhibits) so I was wondering if the IS lense alone would work.

Yep, an IS lens would definitely help in those situations.

Another thought is to get a monopod. They're not as difficult to carry around as a tripod but still help in removing camera shake. I use my monopod more often than my tripod.

As for an external flash, to obtain fast shutter speeds you will need to set the flash unit to 'High speed sync' otherwise you will probably be limited to taking images at 1/90th or 1/60th of a second whereas with high speed sync you will be able to take shots at more like 1/250th of a second.

[Geoff Gates]

Thank you both! Are the flashes you guys mentioned older models? I ask because on Canon's site I only see the 220EX, 430EX and 580EX II. Obviously considering price I was looking at the 220EX

Yeah, I've had the 420EX for 5 years.