Hello! I'm about to buy a 5DmkII and have questions

Good points windpig!! Even if someone was going out and buying a 1DsIII, isn't that how most people get one in the first place? Seems the OP made up her mind about what she wanted and was asking some advice about lenses and a few accessories for it.

Apropos 5D Mark II accessories to get, because it probably went unnoticed in the camera body nonsense, I'll just repeat a suggestion I gave before for a $40 accessory:

Dee_Ann_2012 wrote in post #13458011
I'm not a big fan of auto-focus at all. I find it extremely annoying most of the time so I want the ability to shut it off and focus manually. I don't put much value in auto-focus.

If you get the 5D Mark II, I suggest you buy and put in the cupboard unopened an accessory called the Eg-S screen. This will allow you to manually focus a fast lens should you buy one in the future. (The reason I suggest buying it now is that Canon discontinued the equivalent part for the previous 5D, at least in the US. They have form.) The f/4 lens you are considering doesn't need it, and it's quite fiddly to fit.

Damn, what's with this learning thing. Any camera that you buy is going to have a learning curve. I can't even figure out how to change the aperture on my wifes 610. I would loath changing to Nikon just because of having to figure out where what I was looking for was, granted, I'd know what it was I was looking for, but just the same, you gotta start somewhere. The OP never stated any expectations that I remember.

Anyway, lots of good input here, as usual.

Well, having spent the last few hours getting my shopping list in order I've found that the big ticket items on B&H vs Amazon are all priced exactly the same, therefore I shifted items from my Amazon list to B&H.

From B&H I'm getting;
5DmkII kit - body and 24-105 lens
430EX II flash
2 extra Canon brand batteries. Going with the real deal, not grey market or knock offs.

From Amazon I'm only getting the CF memory cards and a few filters, 1ea of CP/UV/ND/IR..

By taking the time to wade through everything, all the goodies, I've found that for the most part, I can get almost everything at B&H for the same price as Amazon. But I would rather go with B&H for a number of reasons.

I'm also going to call the order in on the phone rather than do it online. I want to try to sweet talk the sales guy down a little on the price or see if I can sweet talk him into throwing in a free camera bag with my order.

I'm hoping by calling it in they might get to it quicker and get it shipped to me in a more timely manner.

Oh and yes, I am going to check around and see if I can find a photography class around here. It certainly can't hurt and besides, I might meet some cute guys..

windpig wrote in post #13460857
Damn, what's with this learning thing. Any camera that you buy is going to have a learning curve. I can't even figure out how to change the aperture on my wifes 610. I would loath changing to Nikon just because of having to figure out where what I was looking for was, granted, I'd know what it was I was looking for, but just the same, you gotta start somewhere. The OP never stated any expectations that I remember.

Anyway, lots of good input here, as usual.

Agreed, 100%, LOTS of excellent input here! Everyone has been very helpful, even a few that don't feel this is a wise investment for me. They still offered valuable options to consider and lots of excellent general knowledge.

Thank you ALL.....

Dee_Ann_2012 wrote in post #13455453
...I also hope to buy online but from out of state to avoid tax. I know for a fact there are no local camera stores, they have all gone out of business. Digital killed the camera store...

I'd suggest buying online from out of state and not supporting local bricks and mortar camera stores has probably done more damage than digital photography itself.

philwillmedia wrote in post #13461060
I'd suggest buying online from out of state and not supporting local bricks and mortar camera stores has probably done more damage than digital photography itself.

You are absolutely 1000% correct and I completely agree with you all the way.

But in the small town where I live, there are no more camera stores. They all went out of business years ago. The last one closed down about 2004. I drove over there to see about getting my vintage Polaroid SX-70 (version 1) repaired (it won't collapse, stuck in the open position) and I wanted to shop for a 3D 35mm camera. Just for grins, I wanted to look at a Hasselblad, which I have loooooong lusted after. I knew I couldn't afford one at the time but I wanted to hold one and have a momentary, lucid dream, if but for only a few short moments before reality hit me rudely in the face.

So I drive over and the place was empty, there was a sign on the door that read, "Sorry, we've gone out of business after 63 wonderful years. Digital cameras and Walmart put us under. Best wishes and happy shutterbugging, Management."

I remember that sign vividly because it really, really bothered me a lot to see them go under. They were a great store with a great reputation and very nice salespeople.

So yeah.. That really stinks. But now that there are no more B&M camera stores here, I'm buying online/phone from out of state because I want to save on the tax (several hundred dollars), I don't want Rick Perry giving it away to his 1% lapdogs.

My only option to buy local would be to buy from Best Buy which is a corporation that I am not a fan of and pay several hundred dollars more on the base price PLUS several hundred dollars sales tax. Buying from Best Buy would add a good $500 to my purchase and the money would just be sent out of state to the corporate and the corporate bank.
I am also no fan of banks which are inherently evil and greedy.

I would love to support a local Mom and Pop store. If one existed, I certainly would.
I am very much pro small business.

That is why I keep all of my money in an old sock under my mattress.

DeeAnn, you rock. I'm super excited for you to get your camera.

madberry wrote in post #13461201
That is why I keep all of my money in an old sock under my mattress.

Me? Small, hometown, local only credit union.

LemonScent wrote in post #13461216
DeeAnn, you rock. I'm super excited for you to get your camera.

Thank you Lisa! It's good to know I'm not the only girl in town...

Dee Ann,
My initial input wasn't so much about the camera, but about all the additional items you were considering. So be it, and I hope you have a BLAST! (We all know you will.)

A couple things to consider, and most are free:

Introduce yourself here in the social forum and find out if there's another person living in your hood that might be willing to show you the ropes and maybe assist you in setting up the camera's operations, which can be customized. I know you have your dad which is cool, but someone who knows these dagblasted things can be a real source of help. Just avoid the blind leading the blind.

Next, instructional videos. There are many of them to assist you. B&H has'm so too canon. You'll need to do some searching but there's a lot out there.

Books. Yup, there are books out there about your model of camera. Buy 2 different ones. Make sure the author tells you "why" you should do things as well as "how." I have found that author's take different tacks in explaining things, or possibly are weak in providing certain details and that's why the 2 books.

Lastly, do searches here. Every stumbling block you encounter has been addressed here already. If not, then ask.

Good luck and we expect you to post images here real soon. One last thing...open a Flickr account to help manage your photos. Apologies for my typing this was all done on a phone.

melcat wrote in post #13460374
This is true, but then diffraction becomes a problem. At high magnification the depth of field problem can be solved by focus stacking. But I don't think such high magnifications are being asked for here.

Focus stacking isn't the easiest thing in the world. It also requires a tripod because the only thing that should change is the focus, everything else should stay the same.

Blah blah blah. You and many others seem to be forgetting the camera the OP has right now and what she does with that. Any dslr gives you access to high-end lenses and many other things. The problem with all that is that the photographer wants to buy and actually use those. Not everybody wants to climb up the ladder to reach the professional level. Most simply want to take nice pics with equipment that allows for that. For most it's a hobby, not a profession! That's why I'm not really sure about the macro lens advises here.

If you need a viewfinder to see facial expressions you are doing things rather silly. It means you are using 1 eye which is not a great idea. Use both eyes so you can see things like the facial expression of that one person, other people as well as other things (traffic, dogs running around, etc.). That way you see other things coming which is more safe and a much better idea because you can anticipate better. Also stops blurryness in your eye because you are looking way too long through that viewfinder. To recap: you anticipate better, it is more safe and more comfortable. This works with ANY camera, not just a full frame dslr! The only reason why full frame is easier is in calculations, you don't have to account for the crop factor which can make certain calculations easier.

There are many people who already have found such lens. Things like this is quite personal too.

From what I've seen is that all of the dslr's have this diopter adjustment and in all cases it is a very poor solution because it is very limited: only allows for -2 or +2. Luckily there are eyepiece additions from Canon that allow you to go beyond that.
In my case I have to go beyond -2. The solution I found was to keep my glasses where they are (plus side: I don't have to fuzz around with them) and buy the EP-EX15II so I can see the entire viewfinder. Yes, this extender makes everything in the viewfinder a little bit smaller but I don't feel like this is causing problems in terms of focussing.

If you have a chance to visit a store and actually hold the camera please do so! The 5D is quite big and heavy, some people really dislike this and therefore go with a smaller lighter camera like the 60D. The 5D is the only full frame camera Canon currently has (the much bigger and more expensive 1D X will be the next one). You can test the camera plus lens at the spot so you know that it works and everything is ok. Taking your dad with you would be a good idea. And do learn from dad, because skill is the most important part of the entire adventure (and probably also the most fun part too)

ylw wrote in post #13461861
The only reason why full frame is easier is in calculations, you don't have to account for the crop factor which can make certain calculations easier.

Which calculations would these be?

ylw wrote in post #13461861
Blah blah blah.

(For those ignoring ylw, that's not my interpolation - it's a direct quote.)

It's been a long day. I have popped in here now and again since 7am (midnight now) in between designing some software and it just seems to get worse. The OP has made it very clear from the start what camera she wants. She asked about lenses and accessories, not bodies. She has her father there who is experienced. She's probably placed her order.