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

HI guys!

I'm trying to get some info together.

I'm buying a brand new 5D mkII next week. I've never had a true DSLR before so I could really, really use some advice.

Of course I'm sold on the camera body, duh. So that was easy!

But the other goodies are what I need help on.

I saw an extended battery pack that plugs into the camera very much the way a battery pack plugs into a cordless drill, this thing is quite large and goes outside of the camera body, underneath of it making the overall package much larger. But you gain substantial battery time with this thing which is something I very much want.

So I would be grateful on advice on which one to get that would give me the most bang for my bucks.

I also want a nice flash to go on top. One that sits high enough to flash over long lenses and sun shades, etc.. I have a Canon S3 IS now and the non-removable flip up flash is too close to the camera so you can't have any lens attachments on the camera if you use flash or it will cast a very nasty shadow on things.

Lens.. Oh boy.. This is a tough one for me.

I want three lenses.

For starters, I want a good, everyday, general purpose lens for nothing special, no particular task other than common stuff. Like, taking pictures of my dog, birds, squirrels, etc.. Basics...

I also want a good macro lens. I love taking photos of little bitty things, extreme close-ups of things, etc.. I suppose I need a macro light ring too.

A good telephoto lens. I can't imagine, at this time, needing to shoot anything further than say 100 meters away. Anything beyond that, probably not gonna happen for me. So 100 meters is about as much as I would need it to reach out to..

I have a very large, very sturdy tripod already that my dad bought for me at an auction, it came from a television studio so it's a professional grade tripod. I'm good to go on that. I have a dinky little piece of junk tripod too that I bought at a garage sale for $10 for when I just want to grab some quick shots of say, my dog.

I'm a picture taking fool. I take LOTS of pictures. When we went on vacation a few months ago, I took over 4,000 photos during a three week trip.

So I need some sort of large memory that's also high speed enough to take rapid fire pictures and to record 1080p video on.

I was thinking about buying one of those eye-fi memory things so that as I take pictures they just move to my PC automatically. I want to set it up so it goes straight to my PC and does not upload to the web first such as they intend for it to do. I've read you can hack the eye-fi to do that. But the question is, will it work in the 5D mkII in the first place and if it will work, will it preform well enough?

Another thing I am wondering. I have hacked my S3 IS with that CHDK stuff and I like it. Can the 5D mkII be hacked as well?

Well, that's a LOT of questions so I'll give it a rest for the moment. I hope someone can advise me on these things because this is a LOT of money for an extremely nice camera so I want to make sure I buy good stuff, the right stuff but also at the right price.

Thanks much guys!

some quick thoughts.
Wait on the battery grip until you've had the camera for a while. This isn't a point and shoot you're buying and the battery will get you through a few days shooting.
A professional cinema tripod is huge and heavy (IIRC), you may want to looking into something a bit lighter.
I would start with a good all around lens like the 24-105L or the 24-70L.
I'm not so sure eye-fi will work with that body. Eye fi is essentially a radio transmitter and you'll be putting it in a metal body. Not only that, but last I checked eye-fi was only available as an SD card, meaning you'll need a CF adapter.
You don't "hack" a 5dm2, there are groups that make firmware for it to enhance it's functionality, but I recommend spending some time getting used to the camera first.
I would recommend you buy the camera with a 24-105L and a 580ex2. That should be enough to get you started and you'll get an idea of what you need as your style evolves. DSLRs open up a lot of variables as you can do things that can't be done with point and shoot cameras.

Dee_Ann_2012 wrote in post #13454068
I saw an extended battery pack that plugs into the camera very much the way a battery pack plugs into a cordless drill, this thing is quite large and goes outside of the camera body, underneath of it making the overall package much larger. But you gain substantial battery time with this thing which is something I very much want.

This is called a battery grip. Honestly, dSLR batteries generally last a long time, so I might start by just getting a spare battery to carry along. Are you really going to shoot more than 1500 images in a row very often?

I also want a nice flash to go on top. One that sits high enough to flash over long lenses and sun shades, etc.. I have a Canon S3 IS now and the non-removable flip up flash is too close to the camera so you can't have any lens attachments on the camera if you use flash or it will cast a very nasty shadow on things.

Canon 430EX II would be a nice fit.

You should buy the 5D2 as a kit including the EF 24-105 1:4 L IS USM lens. The lens is exactly what you are looking for, a very good lens and comes at a discount when kitted with the 5D2.

EF 100 1:2.8 Macro. You will need to use flash and/or tripod for macro, but just getting a synch cord to use with the 430EX II would work. Macro flash rigs are expensive.

Your distance thing doesn't mean much. If I want to take a picture of a Boeing 747 that is 100 meters away, I'll be wanting a wide angle lens. If I want to shoot a human that is 100 meters away, well......an 800mm telephoto would not be too long really.

Look at the many choices in 70-200, 70-300 and perhaps even the 100-400 for options.

Dee_Ann_2012 wrote in post #13454068
HI guys!

I'm trying to get some info together.

I'm buying a brand new 5D mkII next week. I've never had a true DSLR before so I could really, really use some advice.

Of course I'm sold on the camera body, duh. So that was easy!

But the other goodies are what I need help on.

I saw an extended battery pack that plugs into the camera very much the way a battery pack plugs into a cordless drill, this thing is quite large and goes outside of the camera body, underneath of it making the overall package much larger. But you gain substantial battery time with this thing which is something I very much want

So I would be grateful on advice on which one to get that would give me the most bang for my bucks.

I also want a nice flash to go on top. One that sits high enough to flash over long lenses and sun shades, etc.. I have a Canon S3 IS now and the non-removable flip up flash is too close to the camera so you can't have any lens attachments on the camera if you use flash or it will cast a very nasty shadow on things.

Lens.. Oh boy.. This is a tough one for me.

I want three lenses.

For starters, I want a good, everyday, general purpose lens for nothing special, no particular task other than common stuff. Like, taking pictures of my dog, birds, squirrels, etc.. Basics...

I also want a good macro lens. I love taking photos of little bitty things, extreme close-ups of things, etc.. I suppose I need a macro light ring too.

A good telephoto lens. I can't imagine, at this time, needing to shoot anything further than say 100 meters away. Anything beyond that, probably not gonna happen for me. So 100 meters is about as much as I would need it to reach out to..

I have a very large, very sturdy tripod already that my dad bought for me at an auction, it came from a television studio so it's a professional grade tripod. I'm good to go on that. I have a dinky little piece of junk tripod too that I bought at a garage sale for $10 for when I just want to grab some quick shots of say, my dog.

I'm a picture taking fool. I take LOTS of pictures. When we went on vacation a few months ago, I took over 4,000 photos during a three week trip.

So I need some sort of large memory that's also high speed enough to take rapid fire pictures and to record 1080p video on.

I was thinking about buying one of those eye-fi memory things so that as I take pictures they just move to my PC automatically. I want to set it up so it goes straight to my PC and does not upload to the web first such as they intend for it to do. I've read you can hack the eye-fi to do that. But the question is, will it work in the 5D mkII in the first place and if it will work, will it preform well enough?

Another thing I am wondering. I have hacked my S3 IS with that CHDK stuff and I like it. Can the 5D mkII be hacked as well?

Well, that's a LOT of questions so I'll give it a rest for the moment. I hope someone can advise me on these things because this is a LOT of money for an extremely nice camera so I want to make sure I buy good stuff, the right stuff but also at the right price.

Thanks much guys!

I'd hold off on the battery pack.

Good macro lenses are the two Canon 100mm, either the L or non-L. I've got them both, no IQ difference between them but the L feels better and IS is nice.

I put my pictures on an IPad, it works for storage and review on something better than the screen on the camera.

Come on Dee_Ann - admit you're winding us all up and you're really a troll from the dark side...

JohnB57 wrote in post #13454811
Come on Dee_Ann - admit you're winding us all up and you're really a troll from the dark side...

No, I'm 100% for real. I love photography and I want an awesomesauce camera. I've been lusting for a 5D mkII since they came out. I've seen the price come down and now it's within my range.

My financial situation recently changed when my mom passed away.
I would rather have my mom back though..

I've lost three loved ones in the last 2 years and now I really want start taking world class photos of the family I have left.

Photos are memories and if you don't take them NOW, you may not get another chance.

And it's a hobby I have always loved anyway. Now I want to get serious about it.
No, I am not a professional and never could be, not in a million years. I don't want to be a professional. I just want to take excellent pictures because it's what I love doing.

I want to do HDR but I don't like how some people lay it on too heavy. It looks gaudy. I prefer HDR-lite. Enhance the image enough to give it a little more weight but just a little. I also love taking 3D photos. I often make anaglyphs using a tripod and shifting the camera over. I took a few anaglyphs of my best friend just a month before she passed away. I'm so glad I took those.

When I was little I loved going to the library and looking at the stereoscopic photo collections. I would sit for hours on end looking at these moments in time that were frozen, like a time machine.

I own a 35mm 3D film camera but you can't get the film anymore and it took special processing and the company went under.

I also collect antique cameras (I don't use them, I just collect them) because I think they are cool to display. I also like antique movie equipment, cameras and projectors.

I've had a lifetime of crappy cameras and I've had it with them all.
The Canon S3 IS is a decent step up from the Walmart pocket toys but I've had it a few years and it's time to graduate to the big leagues now.

I've got money and I want a 5D mkII. I'm buying one. That is certain. I just don't know yet which accessories to buy because I've never had hands on with a camera this nice.
That's why I came here, to ask advice. I went to google and searched for "Canon forum" and this site was the first thing that came up. I looked and saw a sub-forum for the 5D mkII so I decided to join and ask for advice.

I am a real human being, I am not a troll. When I get my 5D I'll take a picture of me holding it to prove that I'm for real. Would that help?

Please just be aware that I am a neophyte and I'll be asking a lot of stupid questions.

Thanks guys..

Don't worry Dee Ann, JohnB57 was doubtless just joking.

I suggest buying the 5D2 and not getting too many accessories to start until you become familar. However, there is one accessory you can buy together with the 5D2 and save yourself a lot of money.

Again....make sure you buy the 5D2 as part of the kit with the 24-105L lens. This lens is excellent, and it is really a very good match to the 5D2.

I got my 24-105L kitted with my original 5D back in 2007 and I continue to love and use this lens today. For sure, get that.

Beyond the camera and the 24-105L, be sure to also go ahead and get a flash up front, either the 430 EX2 or the 580EX2. And if you like macro, you could go ahead and get the EF 100/2.8 macro.

I might hold off on the rest for a month or two until you are familiar with the camera. Buy in haste, repent at leisure.

As advised, I will hold off on the big battery pack. I guess what I'll do is buy a few extra of the standard batteries. Having just one is not an option. Two is better but three is the ticket. I had an old Nikon that had it's own weird battery pack. Over time it developed a memory and it wouldn't last long and died quickly. Having another battery was a must. The 2nd battery was not much better so I bought a 3rd and I could get by like that.

I'm going to start tracking down a flash this evening, taking the advice you guys offered.
I guess for a lens, I'll start with one lens, just a general purpose lens. I do need to be able to do close ups, macros and like take pictures of stuff in my yard (flowers, etc), people, indoors/outdoors, etc..
I don't have to start right off with a bag full of big lenses but over time I do want to get them.
Telephoto is not a priority. Macro, I like to take lots of macros of bugs, flowers, etc. I usually take 50-100 photos a day out in my garden and back yard. I'm hoping the general purpose lens will work for this. But if it takes two separate lenses, that's cool.

I also want to do tilt-shift. I saw a little gadget a few weeks ago called a lensbaby. I would like to get one of those some day as well.

There are a lot of things I would like to do and eventually, I will. I can't jump off and buy everything I want all at once, I need to start with the basics and add to it over time. I can afford the stuff but I can't spend that much money in one shot.

I guess I can't use the eye-fi. Bummer..

I also read that the 5D doesn't geo-tag so you end up having to buy a GPS thing to go on the hot-shoe then patch up the photos with software. Of course it will be windows only.
I don't use windows. I have a Linux pc and a Mac running OS X Lion.

I don't have photoshop, don't know how to use it and can't really afford it but I do have Gimp. I'm not very good with it but I can use it to adjust brightness/contrast and color.

I have two apps for Linux that will make HDR photos and also anaglyphs. Oh, and another app that makes panoramas. My S3 IS has a mode for "stitching" photos but you have to use a PC to put them together.

So I'm going to start googling the lenses you guys have recommended and see what I can learn about them. I want to make my purchases next week because I'm really anxious to get started but I don't want to make a rash, uninformed decision/purchase. So I'm going to be looking to you guys for advice.

Thank you!

Dee_Ann_2012 wrote in post #13455257
I guess for a lens, I'll start with one lens, just a general purpose lens. I do need to be able to do close ups, macros and like take pictures of stuff in my yard (flowers, etc), people, indoors/outdoors, etc..

Go ahead and get the EF 100/2.8 Macro lens along with the 24-105. You know you want to shoot macro, and the 100mm macro is excellent. Go for this one.

I think the lensbaby is an overpriced piece of junk. It's a real pain in the butt to use.

My last suggestion - instead of the expensive Photoshop, look at the more affordable (and better for a lot of things) Lightroom. I use Lightroom couples with the affordable Photoshop Elements. LR covers 95% of what I do, and Elements gets the remainder.

Hi Dee Ann,

First of all, welcome to the forum .

As to your questions, as others mentioned, best to wait a bit before you buy a batterygrip, if that is only meant to extend the battery life of the camera. Most people who do buy it, do get it for additional grip when using larger or heavier lenses, or because it provides additional buttons in portrait mode - it has the same set of controls on the batterygrip you also have on the body, and when you turn it anti-clockwise to shoot in portrait mode, those controls will be in the same spot as the ones on camera in normal or landscape mode. It makes handholding that way a bit easier, but it also makes the camera quite a bit bigger and heavier.

As to lenses: a walkaround lens as you mention is indeed the 24-105 F/4L IS, and it is considered a great lens by many. Best to buy this as a kit with the body, as that will likely make it a bit cheaper.

For macro, since you are beginning, I'd like to add my vote to the 100 F/2.8L IS Macro, just like others suggest, if it is within your budget. It will double nicely as a portrait lens too, as 100 mm on FF is the standard FL for portraiture from a traditional POV. The IS will help with camera shake (as it will on the 24-105L too, of course). If you consider this lens to be too expensive, you coudl also check teh 100 F/2.8 USM Macro, which is about half the price of the L version. Main differences are slightly lesser build, no IS, and from an image POV the bokeh is less good, it is a bit more blocky (this refers to the OOF areas).

As to a telelens, for starters I would suggest a 70-200 F/4L IS, which is the greatest short telezoom there is from an IQ POV combined with weight, cost and IS. There also is a non-IS version, which is about equally good, and costs about half of the IS version. There also are versions with an F/2.8 aperture, but as you are only beginning with a dslr, I'd suggest you go for the lenses which are a little easier to handle, because the F/4s are lighter and smaller. If you think these two are too expensive, I 'd suggest the 70-300 F/4-F/5.6 IS, non-L, which is a very good lens too, has a little more reach, but is not as well built, extends when zooming, and doesn't have a constant aperture over its zoom range.

The flash I would recommend is a 580 EXII, basically because you can never have enough light, and the 580EX is the most powerful one in the Canon assortment. As was suggested: get an extension cable for it, and you can use it for macro too. If you decide that you'd like to rather use a macro ring flash after all at a later point, you can always get it when and if you need it. Personally, I find that one or two normal flashes do equally well, and if you have two it will allow for a nice studio type setup as well, for the portraits you indicated you'd like to take. Start with one, however. There will be quite a learning curve anyway, I would think .

Modern Li-on batteries as used in the 5D Mk II do not develop memory problems, they just start to degrade after about 1000 (full) reloads.

There are plenty of GPS units which will work with Mac, no problem, and so does the Canon software that comes with the camera. I don't know about any Linux versions however.

HTH, kind regards, Wim

You guys are great! Thank you for the advice, this gives me a very good starting point for my research.

I had originally thought that I would do better to "buy this here and that there", I figured I would shop for the lowest prices on each separate item and get them from where ever.

But you guys strongly suggest buying it as a kit. I'm cool with that.

That said, and I don't know if this would go against the forum rules or not, but is it ok for me to ask if there is perhaps any dealer or dealers you can recommend that I could buy this "kit" from that would:
1. Give me the best price.
2. Is well known and reputable.

I know I could probably find the stuff on ebay cheapest but I think that would be unwise on a purchase this large. 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 guess what I'm looking at getting would be the "kit" which would be the body, 24-105L lens, and one battery/charger. I would want to add the macro lens and two spare batteries. I think that would give me a very strong start on my hobby and then over time I can add goodies to it like a tilt-shift device, bigger battery grip, telephoto lens, and a GPS.

I'm excited! I can't wait! I want it shipped "Fed-Ex Yesterday Service".

So I hope that I can get it all lined up and make my order Monday or Tuesday. If I'm lucky I might have my new toy before the weekend! OMG I hope it snows this year! I want to take snow photos but it never snows here..

Thanks so much guys!

Oh, and here's a bonehead question.

Why does this state of the art camera use Fred Flintstone CF memory? Isn't that stuff totally yesteryear?

I buy all of my stuff from either Adorama or B&H camera. They typically have the lowest prices and are completely trustworthy. The 5D2 kit (with the 24-105L) will include the charger and a battery complete from Canon. You shoud just buy one additional battery and the EF 100/2.8 macro separate, plus the flash.

CF is not out of date. CF media have the fastest read/write speeds of all compact media.

You don't have to use a GPS unit that attaches to the camera. You can just keep one in your pocket that logs your position, and let software match the timestamps from that with those on the photos. I've never tried it, and I don't know the details, but it's possible.

Since you have Lion, you can buy Photoshop Elements from the app store. Lightroom may be more suitable - I don't have it and won't comment.

You will find that you don't need a tripod as much as a lot of older photographers will try to tell you. I do a lot of garden photography, and rarely use one, and my macro lens doesn't have image stabilisation, which the 100mm f/2.8 L you are considering does. It's just too awkward to place a tripod to get the right composition and distance. And, a lot of the time, to get the correct colours for a flower you want to use flash to blast away the green reflected off foliage.

What you will want a tripod for is for video and when shooting formal portraits (so you can talk to your sitter without being hidden by the camera) and the big one your father got you sounds just the ticket.

I don't have the lens but the 24-105 being recommended has a very good reputation. Since you know just what you want and have the money, I would go ahead and get the macro lens as well, straight away. There is a "tripod ring" for that lens without which macro shots from a tripod will be a total pain, but, as mentioned, I don't think you should bother with a tripod for that.

I don't think wanting to make portraits of people is an argument for getting the 100mm f/2.8. The 24-105 is actually better for that, for most photographers.

I do have the 70-200mm f/4 IS, and this lens is no good close up. It's also far too short for birds and animals. I bought it because I like to take pictures of buildings when travelling to other cities. This doesn't sound like you. I don't think you should buy a long lens yet, if ever.

Oh, and I didn't make it clear that I think you should buy the 580 EX II flash straight off. You need it a lot of the time for both gardens and people.