Got my new G6.

[kraterz]

It finally arrived, after a hesitant OK from the wife. After playing around with some low end P&S cameras, they just didn't cut it. I missed the controls found on an SLR, so the 300D/350D was always on my mind, however my aim was to get a small(er) camera without having to carry around lenses, flash(es) etc. If I had to do that I may as well lug all my film gear along (and leave my kid at home ! ! ).

Still haven't used it much.. I've been reading and re-reading the manual yesterday and today. Been browsing this site for quite some years too. There's plenty of good info around.

Guess I'm going to start playing around with raw format after getting used to the camera. Canon shipped zoom browser, but the good folks here talk highly about breeze browser, among other things. Should be trying that out today.

Anything else I should look out for? Thanks folks.

[Raj]

Congratulations :-)

[infeeneetee]

welcome to the G6 world ... ;) ehehhe

[kraterz]

Is that a sinister way of telling me "ok, now the spending starts"? :shock:

[michael.luczkow]

only if you wander into the EOS forum ;-)

[Superbaldguy]

You can be in the poorhouse with the G6 as easy as a DSLR - external flashes, lens converters, extra battery packs and CF cards, etc. I've invested almost $2000 CDN in my G6 outfit.

[Raj]

You can be in the poorhouse with the G6 as easy as a DSLR - external flashes, lens converters, extra battery packs and CF cards, etc. I've invested almost $2000 CDN in my G6 outfit.
Now thats impressive :rolleyes:

[kraterz]

Well, I chose the G6 because I can use my 550EX'es with it. The only other addition will probably be a lensmate, if and when I want to use a polarizer.

Got to play with breeze browser and raw files a little, still experimenting with the bajillion options and functions on the camera. Oh man, I feel like a fossil. After reading the manual and playing with the G6 for a while, I longingly look at my trusty old OM-2n which has only three controls, aperture, shutter speed and focus. That took me all of 1.5 minutes to master, 20 years ago. Looks like the G6 is going to take 1.5 weeks / months / years to master.

[KC Jewel]

Well, I chose the G6 because I can use my 550EX'es with it. The only other addition will probably be a lensmate, if and when I want to use a polarizer.

Got to play with breeze browser and raw files a little, still experimenting with the bajillion options and functions on the camera. Oh man, I feel like a fossil. After reading the manual and playing with the G6 for a while, I longingly look at my trusty old OM-2n which has only three controls, aperture, shutter speed and focus. That took me all of 1.5 minutes to master, 20 years ago. Looks like the G6 is going to take 1.5 weeks / months / years to master.

Yeah, but look at how much fun you are going to have mastering it! Throw a 1gig card in it and go nutty. John

[tealblue]

Again!! welcome to the Geeeeeeeeeee666666666666 world.Canon did a great job with this one and you should be able to use it for a long time.I still have my G-2-3 and just hate to part with any thing from the G group.TealBlue

[Ballen Photo]

CONGRATS on your new "G" camera! :D
-Bruce

[michael.luczkow]

You can be in the poorhouse with the G6 as easy as a DSLR - external flashes, lens converters, extra battery packs and CF cards, etc. I've invested almost $2000 CDN in my G6 outfit.

but that's an extreme situation. how expensive is the "extreme" SLR cost compared to the "extreme" G6 cost ;-). The lenses I look at are between 500-2500 dollars each :-( although I wish they were as cheap as the G series accessories...

plus factor in I also have a G5 with lots of stuff too...

[rgravel]

...The only other addition will probably be a lensmate, if and when I want to use a polarizer...

I purchased a Lensmate for my G5, a UV filter and a circular polarizer.

The polarizer makes stunning blue skies, and it cuts glare around pools and through windows . Plus, the Lensmate is always there as a shield to protect your lens.

Don't hesitate :)

[kraterz]

I purchased a Lensmate for my G5, a UV filter and a circular polarizer.

The polarizer makes stunning blue skies, and it cuts glare around pools and through windows . Plus, the Lensmate is always there as a shield to protect your lens.

Don't hesitate :)
Yeah, protection is the reason I was looking at a lensmate. I usually use a polarizer for landscapes, depending on my film type (I shoot a film SLR), and if it's something like velvia or EBX, I tone it down a lot or remove the polarizer altogether. I've seen a friend get his G3 lens all messed up by his little daughter with sticky juice coated fingers. I'd rather have that happening to my filter.. and my kid is just as active.

[kreego]

I longingly look at my trusty old OM-2n which has only three controls, aperture, shutter speed and focus. That took me all of 1.5 minutes to master, 20 years ago. Looks like the G6 is going to take 1.5 weeks / months / years to master.

kraterz, the longer I work with my G5, the less I mess with the "gazillion options". I started like you, with an A-1. Same deal. So get a quick reading in Av, switch to manual, and do your thing. Keep your finger on the shutter release after the picture is taken, to check exposure, and adjust shutter speed accordingly. Very fast, very accurate! Use manual focus as much as possible (it appears that the G6 does better in this department). With a flash, (I speak of my G5), you can dial in the power in very small increments in M mode, so you can really control what's going on.

Cheers,

K

[bosamar]

Have fun. I know I am.

[kraterz]

It's been a few days now, I seem to be getting the hang of it. My first series of pics were blurred due to slow shutter speeds, but I'm playing around with the different modes and settings. Hooked up a couple of my 550EX'es and played with master-slave flash setup for portraits. It seems to work well, but I guess it's going to take some time to fine tune my skills with this kind of setup.

One quick question : I've been looking around this forum and others on information about sharpening. Now here's something which is a little confusing. You can change the "photo effect" and choose a custom photo effect with sharpening at -1 (or was it just '-'?). You can also choose "low sharpening" in the main "photo effects" menu. My aim is to produce the cleanest possible image with the least sharpening artefacts which can later be edited and sharpened using software.

You folks here are pretty experienced, having used the G6 for eons now. What are your comments on the above methods to reduce or eliminate in camera sharpening? I shoot JPEGs now, btw. Do the above settings make a difference if I shoot raw?

[Raj]

Image processsing configurations wont apply on RAW. As I am slowly learning, it is probably best to shoot RAW & then do all processing later on PC using some editor. Not sure about difference between low sharpening & -1 sharpening in custom params, custom params provide you a great flexibility over image processing other than just lowering the sharpening level I guess.

[kraterz]

Thanks for that info. I guess I will just have to play with the settings and see which works best for me. However there are many instances where one would like to shoot jpegs. It is much faster to save to CF, and file sizes are smaller.