Thought provoking article on what our DSLR's don't have

raksphoto wrote in post #17650755
My understanding is that the 30 minute limit is an artificial barrier set to ensure that DSLRs which happen to shoot video are not actually classifiable as video cameras in the European Union, where due to tax laws, video cameras are taxed at a premium rate.

The EU taxes video cameras at a higher rate than still cameras? I'd love to hear the horsesh1t rationale for that.

welshwizard1971 wrote in post #17649121
One that bugs me, a lot, an electronic depth of field gauge that automatically changes according to the lens, focus distance and aperture variations, why doesn't that exist????

If you install Magic Lantern on your camera, it has lots of focus information available for display on the rear LCD.

It can display Focus Distance, DOF Near, DOF Far, and Hyperfocal Distance. The values change with any changes to aperture, focus distance or focal length.

Here is a video I made that shows how the values change as you change focus distance or focal length.
http://www.youtube.com​/watch?v=TfflWOrVgDU

msowsun wrote in post #17650807
If you install Magic Lantern on your camera, it has lots of focus information available for display on the rear LCD.

It can display Focus Distance, DOF Near, DOF Far, and Hyperfocal Distance. The values change with any changes to aperture, focus distance or focal length.

Here is a video I made that shows how the values change as you change focus distance or focal length.
http://www.youtube.com​/watch?v=TfflWOrVgDU

Mike,
In view of my test observations about the poor quality of distance information which is reported by the lens and reported within the EXIF of the photo (as mentioned in this post)...

https://photography-on-the.net …showthread.php?​p=16743446

My test methodology is mentioned here, for those wondering how I got such poor results:

https://photography-on-the.net …showthread.php?​p=16747053

...Can you perform several focus distance changes in the range from about 5' to 50' to see how the reported DOF results are affected?

I am going away this weekend but will try to do some tests if I have some free time.

That's the stuff!! Glad to see at least photography product developer out there is also a photographer!

Some of the authors terminology is nonsensical, and if he understood the terms better maybe he would not even be asking the questions.

BigAl007 wrote in post #17648745
Magic lantern has cover most of his wish list of functions, including auto restart on hitting the 4GB limit, at least for most Canon DSLRs. As far as the import duty limit at 30 minutes, if you need to regularly shoot high quality video for that long, get a proper video camera that is optimised for that use.

Alan

I don't shoot video that often, but when I do, I might want to do more that 18 minutes (the limit for my 70D.) I see no need to spend a vast amount of money on a digital video camera and lenses that duplicate what I already have for my 60D and 70D. Providing auto-restart would be a trivial matter for Canon, if they choose to do so. I am looking forward to Magic Lantern for my 70D (supposedly under development) if and when I have another opportunity to shoot long-duration videos.

I guess I can install Magic Lantern on my older 60D and use that camera for video. I just lose autofocus during video.

RodneyCyr wrote in post #17651781
I don't shoot video that often, but when I do, I might want to do more that 18 minutes (the limit for my 70D.) I see no need to spend a vast amount of money on a digital video camera and lenses that duplicate what I already have for my 60D and 70D. Providing auto-restart would be a trivial matter for Canon, if they choose to do so. I am looking forward to Magic Lantern for my 70D (supposedly under development) if and when I have another opportunity to shoot long-duration videos.

I guess I can install Magic Lantern on my older 60D and use that camera for video. I just lose autofocus during video.

I thought that I saw ML for the 70D available about a month or two ago. I thought it was only the 7DII and 5DS/R for recent releases that didn't currently have an ML build. Only having a 50D, I did not pay overmuch attention to it though. I'm actually using it mostly for stills, it has one feature that I have really been wanting to see, EV lock in Manual exposure mode. This means that I can change shutter speed (or aperture) and the camera will change the other, or the ISO to keep the exposure constant. The other really great thing is Dual ISO, not quite as good as the potentially full dual sensor readout that Canon have on the C 300 (?) and which is hoped for on a 5DIV or new 1 Series body, but the alternating double lines is still very good most of the time. Although it dose lose you some vertical resolution, which can be awkward if you have strong diagonals in the image. The fact that I can now also do high quality video on my 50D, albeit without audio is a nice bonus too.

Alan

What is my major malfunction? I didn't see anything in that list I'd even use, let alone need. I'd be much happier if Canon skeletonized the 6D, and sold me a 6D-G (Geezer) with none of the frills for $699. I need a meter. I need Manual, Tv, & Av. Most of the other fluff never gets used, anyway.

GeoKras1989 wrote in post #17652639
What is my major malfunction? I didn't see anything in that list I'd even use, let alone need. I'd be much happier if Canon skeletonized the 6D, and sold me a 6D-G (Geezer) with none of the frills for $699. I need a meter. I need Manual, Tv, & Av. Most of the other fluff never gets used, anyway.

I have a pristine Kodak Retina III "large C" with 35mm, 50mm, 135mm and 200mm lenses. One owner, given to me in 1958 and overhauled by a retired Kodak tech about three years back. You can have that for $699. Nomfrills but I will throw in some fluff...filters, polarizers, etc.

John from PA wrote in post #17652686
I have a pristine Kodak Retina III "large C" with 35mm, 50mm, 135mm and 200mm lenses. One owner, given to me in 1958 and overhauled by a retired Kodak tech about three years back. You can have that for $699. Nomfrills but I will throw in some fluff...filters, polarizers, etc.

Does it have a USB connection so I can import directly to LR?

Ok, I admit that digital is a lot easier to deal with than film. I was mainly referring to video, LV, in-camera processing, WIFI, GPS and that kind of stuff. Besides, I already have a functioning Elan 7 that can use all my existing glass.

Thanks for the laugh, though.

GeoKras1989 wrote in post #17652708
Does it have a USB connection so I can import directly to LR?

Ok, I admit that digital is a lot easier to deal with than film. I was mainly referring to video, LV, in-camera processing, WIFI, GPS and that kind of stuff. Besides, I already have a functioning Elan 7 that can use all my existing glass.

Thanks for the laugh, though.

Yeah, the tales of your Elan occasionally inspire me to call up my grandmother and ask her to send the old AE-1 that's kicking around the house (no idea whose it was originally). I always come back, though, to "sure it's nifty, but then I'd have to get a film scanner, buy film, and go through extra steps... to get worse results than my 5D3".

LonelyBoy wrote in post #17655425
Yeah, the tales of your Elan occasionally inspire me to call up my grandmother and ask her to send the old AE-1 that's kicking around the house (no idea whose it was originally). I always come back, though, to "sure it's nifty, but then I'd have to get a film scanner, buy film, and go through extra steps... to get worse results than my 5D3".

I'm guessing your grandmother must be about my age. I remember the first time I held an AE-1. It was like a dream. September of '77, it was. And the AE-1 was as far out of reach for me then as the 1Dx is now.

No need for a scanner. Why complicate things by editing? Shoot, ship, wait 10 days or so. Enjoy your prints.

I don't get your point about 'worse results'. Does your ability to make a decent photograph change if you pick up a film camera? I use P&S film, P&S digital, apsc and FF digital, and I am quite capable of getting poor results with all of them.

My first camera was an SLR called a Praktica. Got it in 1978. An all-manual camera with a 50mm lens and I had a BLAST with it. Lit me up. My first digital camera was a 3MP Canon A75. Got it in 2004. Had all the basic exposure modes and I had a BLAST with it. Lit me up.

GeoKras1989 wrote in post #17655525
No need for a scanner. Why complicate things by editing? Shoot, ship, wait 10 days or so. Enjoy your prints.

Why complicate things with prints? I have found you can get the images "burned" to a CD with quite nice results. I learned that the hard way when I found my digital had died, one week before a trip to Jackson Hole/Yellowstone. Best I could do was to resurrect an Elan IIe and as always it operated perfectly. Film was developed in Jackson by a high end camera shop. One sample image attached. Would you believe I had to wait a day because the machine was very busy! (It was the 4th of July as well).