20D...a few questions?

[Streetshooter]

ok, with a 20D...a few things bother me....

1.the stupid power switch.....it never fails....I get ready for that great moment and somehow, the switch has managed to move to the center position..of course I can't get the aperture to work......my fault I know...but other than glueing it in place, any suggestions......?

2. When I take a light reading, and then check over the top of the camera to see my subject....the meter turns off rather quick......sometimes I may want to recompose at a moments notice and just double check the meter before exposure....I have to reactivate it again....sucks......anyway to leave the meter on for a longer period of time?

Ok...usually these things don't bother me cause I don't use the meter very often....at most I'll walk the streets, press the shutter release to activate the meter and look at the top of the camera to set the exposure...but sometimes...ya know...I want a camera that works the way I need it to....

thanks in advance....don

and yes...I need some cheese with this wine.......

[robertwgross]

2. When I take a light reading, and then check over the top of the camera to see my subject....the meter turns off rather quick......sometimes I may want to recompose at a moments notice and just double check the meter before exposure....I have to reactivate it again....sucks......anyway to leave the meter on for a longer period of time?


If I want to keep my 20D's meter active, then I have trained my right index finger to keep half-pressing the shutter button about once per second.

---Bob Gross---

[Streetshooter]

Thanks Bob......but I do that already....there's gotta be a better way.....don

[nation]

1. never had this problem holding my right hand on the bulged grip and my left hand under the lens nor have i had this problem when just carrying the camera. do you use your left eye for the viewfinder such that your nose hits the on/off knob. even then the knob on my camera is stiff enough that it only moves when forced not when accidentally touched.

2. as bob said use half presses. also consider doing the metering through the view finder rather than looking to the top of the camera. the only time i use the top meter is when the camera is mounted on a tripod and i'm satisfied with my composition.

[robertwgross]

2. as bob said use half presses. also consider doing the metering through the view finder rather than looking to the top of the camera. the only time i use the top meter is when the camera is mounted on a tripod and i'm satisfied with my composition.

I think the original poster is looking over the top of his camera at the subject, and not looking at the top meter. That's OK.

---Bob Gross---

[Streetshooter]

Well, I'm actually doing both...looking over the top of the camera for framing...(not necessary with my Leica) and checking the meter on the top...that's what it's there for...but the meter inside on both my 20D's goes off rather fast.......I use my right eye for the viewfinder...and both eyes open by the way.....don

[robertwgross]

...looking over the top of the camera for framing...

Why?

The only way that I can tell what is framed up correctly is to look through the viewfinder.

---Bob Gross---

[Streetshooter]

Bob....for me, reading the image content happens outside the frame and then when all comes together in perfect harmony, I release the shutter....looking thru the viewfinder....if you keep your eye glues to the finder...you can't see what's happening outside the frame......it's an old habit from the streets with a Leica....Bresson worked the same way as do all Leica shooters.....ahhhh, the beauty of a rangefinder....don

[tim]

I look thru the viewfinder with my right eye, and I look around with my left. It takes a bit of practice but means you can react to potential good shots very quickly.

[René Damkot]

1. Set the front dial to adjust aperture ;)
2. Why check the metering? Don't really get that unless you use AE lock, which forgets the setting when the meter turns off. Use manual, or keep the AE lock button pressed. ('*' or shutterbutton, depending on CF4)

[Jon]

1. Set the front dial to adjust aperture ;)
2. Why check the metering? Don't really get that unless you use AE lock, which forgets the setting when the meter turns off. Use manual, or keep the AE lock button pressed. ('*' or shutterbutton, depending on CF4)
1) Swapping the functions of the Main Dial and QC Dial isn't an option in the 20D, if that's what you're referring to.
2) From his sig, and comments he's made elsewhere, he does street candids. Even (or especially) in manual, he'd like to be reasonably sure, before he puts the camera up to his eye, that he's got an appropriate exposure set under potentially variable lighting conditions.

[robertwgross]

I look thru the viewfinder with my right eye, and I look around with my left. It takes a bit of practice but means you can react to potential good shots very quickly.

Tim, that is not the way it appears in your avatar.

---Bob Gross---

[Streetshooter]

Jin & Tim are both right....I never use the camera on anything else other than manual....and at the precise moment of exposure...both eyes are open......on the street, lighting in a scene changes almost instantly.....normally it's not a problem for me...but if a camera has options...I want to know about them.....the best thing is to glance at a scene.....point the camera approximately at it...then read your exposure....frame in your mind...raise the camera and your home free......I am strictly an intuitive photographer......and I am that way with my entire process from capture to presentation.....the 20D is a wonderful camera...with the 24 1.4L...it's simply heaven...but I did state in my original post that yes....I need some cheese with this wine.....don