Spring Finally! (28/1.8 revisited)

[drisley]

As the title states, spring has finally sprung, and it's time for some bbq. ;)
I visited some friends anxiously awaiting some sizzling steaks, and the chance to really use the new EF 28/1.8 USM.
I've posted here that I loved the build, AF, contrast, colour and bokeh of this lens, but I had reservations about the sharpness. Well, I can honesltly say I am now officially VERY pleased. This is exactly the lens I was hoping for.
Anyway, here are some sample pictures from my visit.

28.0mm, f/2.5, 0.0003 s (1/3200), iso100
http://images2.fotop.net/albums/sharpnsmart/04172005/IMG_7705.jpg

28.0mm, f/2.8, 0.0004 s (1/2500), iso100
http://images2.fotop.net/albums/sharpnsmart/04172005/IMG_7723.jpg

28.0mm, f/2.8, 0.0025 s (1/400), iso100
http://images2.fotop.net/albums/sharpnsmart/04172005/IMG_7729.jpg


And, I am a big fan of "The Ring" and I just saw the sequel. Perhaps the reason for this conversion?
http://images2.fotop.net/albums/sharpnsmart/04172005/IMG_7728.jpg

[cfcRebel]

Cute boy! Nice pictures.

After i saw The Ring (Japanese version), I dare not see The Ring II. Man, the Japanese version is 1000X scarier than the US version. :confused:

[drewmk2]

Number 3 and number 4! Love them. The others the shadows are a bit harsh. Nice catch.

[drisley]

Thanks guys :)
Yes, he is a cute and photogenic kid. And he like having his picture taken.
Yes, drewmk2, very harsh sunlight that day. Not a cloud in the sky. I used 420EX fill flash, but it was no match for the sun.
PS. I saw The Ring2, and it was nowhere near as good as the original. I didnt expect it to be either since the original was so... original. Still havent seen the Japanese versions.

[skade]

What a great looking kid to photograph! Great shots! As for "The Ring", the first one freaked me out for weeks, there aint no way im watching the second lol .

[2goldens]

Great shots of the boy. I have had that problem where the sun was stronger than my flash. But the only thing you can do is keep shooting.

[drisley]

Thanks skade. Yes he is photogenic, I agree.
2goldens, I could have increased the flash, as I had it at -1 FEC. However, I find if you turn it up too high for a fill, it flaten things out too much, and givesthe fill area a cool bluish tint.

BTW, in that last picture, I was taking a picture of the guy cleaning his grill...
THE GIRL IN THE FOREGROUND WAS NOT THERE! SHE JUST APPEARED ON THE PICTURE!
:shock: :twisted:

[MrChevy]

I like the 1st one and the last one a lot. In the 1st one he has that broom wore down to the cords :)

Nice job on the B&W pp in the last one. Even though she wasn't supposed to be there she fits just fine. Well done.

[drisley]

Thanks MrChevy.
The b&w was very extreme, but I was just fooling around. You know how fun PP can be.
One thing that bothers me though. It's the same thing that always bothers me about pictures of people wearing glasses... the aliasing that occurs on the glasses frames due to resizing and final sharpening. I find it very distracting. Oh well, not much that can be done :)
Btw, I just looked at your pictures taken at the Buchart Gardens. Very nice! Is that in Victoria?

[MrChevy]

Yes, I know how fun PP can be http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif

Yeah, glasses are.... glasses, not much can be done, like you say http://www.photography-on-the.net/forum/images/smilies/icon_sad.gif

Yes, up in Victoria, beautiful place to visit. Thank you for taking a look.

On your www advertisment for SNS you say:
Why?

After looking around at many of the sharpening actions on the web, I decided to make my one to use in my own workflow.

Change the one to own and drop the own would make more sense David :)

ie ...make my own to use in my workflow.

[drisley]

On your www advertisment for SNS you say:
Why?
After looking around at many of the sharpening actions on the web, I decided to make my one to use in my own workflow.
Change the one to own and drop the own would make more sense David :)

ie ...make my own to use in my workflow.

Thanks for the heads up. I must have been half asleep when I wrote that.
Btw, where did you find a link to that? I thought I removed that from my sig a long time ago...

[Olegis]

Hi drisley, long time no see.
Excellent pictures, I can't decide which one I like the most - the kid is extremely cute and the B&W is very "moody".

Congradulations on that lens - seems like a very nice piece of equipment. I myself was thinking about the "standard" 50mm coverage fast lens for my 10D - the new Sigma 35mm f/1.4 looks very promising.

[Dante King]

Drisley, looks like a GREAT lens! You boy is a keeper for sure! Nice work.

[drisley]

Thanks for the comments, Dante. (The boy is not mine though :))
Oleigis, yes, long time no see.
I too was looking at the Sigma. I couldnt wait any longer for a "standard" length lens, otherwise that may have been my choice too, depending on reviews.
The main reason I picked the 28/1.8 over the 28/2.8 or the 35/2 was because of the build, and most importantly the USM. I plan on using this lens a lot, so I wanted something well built, and the apparent noise of the 35/2 turned me off. This 28/1.8 is SOO silent. I was letting a friend try out my camera, and I was telling her to press the * button to focus, but I figured she wasnt listening to my instructions because I couldnt hear the lens at all. Of course my 85 and 135 lenses use USM too, but this lens' USM seems even quiter (probably because it's so small).
Anyway, this is a tough focal length to learn, which is why I wanted it. This 50mm equivalent focal length doesnt have the flash of the telephotos, or the spectacular characteristics of the wide angles, so you have to pay more attention to content and layout. I hope that this "limitation" will help me practice to become a better photog at all focal lengths.

[thomasrhee]

I have both on DVD and while most reviews and people who've seen both say that "Ringu" is scarier and creepier, I find the US version scarier.

If you liked The Ring and Ringu, you should also check out Juwon, which is another creepy Japanese horror flick.

Cute boy! Nice pictures.

After i saw The Ring (Japanese version), I dare not see The Ring II. Man, the Japanese version is 1000X scarier than the US version. :confused:

[drisley]

The japanese are putting out some really great horror flicks.
Even the Grudge was bases on a japanese movie/novel.

[jfrancho]

Drisley, nice shots. Do you have any examples taken in low light with this lens? I'm looking to add to the stable of fast lenses for live music photography. I have a 50 1.8 MK I, 50 1.4 USM, and was looking for something a little on the wider side. My Tamron goes down to 28 and 2.8, but not quite fast enough. I'm not looking for super sharp, just properly exposed.

[Ballen Photo]

Nice captures Dris. Looks like that's gonna make an AWESOME walk around lens.
I bet it'll probably work real well for low light shots too. :D
-Bruce

[3oh6]

hey dris, good to see you getting into your groove with the 28mm. you now have the three amigos as well...welcome to the club. the shots are great, i like the feel you have given them with your fill, looks good.
I loved the build, AF, contrast, colour and bokeh of this lens, but I had reservations about the sharpness.as soon as i picked up the lens i knew i liked it. same build quaility as the 85 f/1.8 as well as the 50 f/1.4. this 'USM' group of primes are really quight solid for their price. to jfrancho if you need any low light 28mm shots i can point you in the direction for my indoor volley/basketball shots. ISO1600 1/500 f/1.8 wide open, the only way to shoot ;) i can dig up some 100% cropped versions too should you want, that is if drisley isn't feeling too lazy, its his thread i'll let him show off his new lens...enjoy guy ;)

[drisley]

3oh6, I too loved the feel of this lens. It's exactly like the 85/1.8 lens.
I think all the rumours on the net about the 28/1.8 not being sharp may have gotten to me. It wasn't until I got out to try it in real settings that I was completely impressed. I'm so used to having the ability to shoot at below F2.8 that this lens was really the only way to go.

Ballen, thanks for the compliment, but this focal range really makes you work to capture something "special". I'm using this lesson (http://194.100.88.243/petteri/pont/Photography_lessons/j_Lesson_9/a_The_Faithful_50.html)to inspire me to use this effective 50mm lens.
JFrancho, there are lots of very nice low light pictures you can see here (http://www.pbase.com/cameras/canon/ef_28_18u).
And here is one taken at F1.8 in a very dim basement with a small amount of bounced fill flash.

28.0mm, f/1.8, 0.013 s (1/80), iso1600
http://images2.fotop.net/albums/sharpnsmart/04172005/IMG_7836.jpg

[jfrancho]

SOLD.
Thanks.

[drisley]

SOLD.
Thanks.
Haha, send me some commission ;)
You should have a look at this gallery (http://www.pbase.com/vincentbenoit/black__white). The photographer is using the 28/1.8, 50/1.4, 85/1.8 and 135/2L for the shots.

Btw, the only real weakness I can see is some strange chromatic abberation at very high contrast areas. I THINK C/A is what you would call it. It's a red/green fringing as shown on the numbers here (http://www.mts.net/~lftbrain/20d/IMG_7422.jpg). However, this only shows up near wide open when I look for it in shots like that. In REAL world situations, like the pictures I took this weekend, it doesn't show up at all, which is what counts.
As far as purple fringing goes, like tree branches against the sky, I took some sample pictures the other day, and the lens performed very admirably.

I guess a lens has to have the L monicker before you can completely eliminate these little foibles all together. For instance, the 85/1.8 is known to show alot of purple fringing when used below F2.5 (under severe circumstances).

[RbrtPtikLeoSeny]

I love the shots! Very cute kid!

[jfrancho]

Thanks for the links, drisley. If you take a look at my music stuff, you'd see that most of my images are composed entirely of "chromatic abberations." Just kidding. I agree, these little quirks can be corrected, or are just plain invisible, and not worth missing because the lens isn't made of "unobtainium." I think I've decided on the 28 over the 85 for the next lens. Again, great pictures. I've been taking some similar shots of my son lately, using my "not so thrifty, but nonetheless nifty 50." The clarity and crispness offered by the fast primes, when stopped down just a bit, is amazing.