Canon EOS 70D officially announced!

ACESFULL82 wrote in post #16257485
OHHH, does anybody know why there is no 100 ISO in manual mode??? I became custom to shooting with my ISO at 100 on my 7D.

Aces, I have M set to ISO-100 right now. It can ABSOLUTELY shoot in M at ISO-100. Check your custom settings or minimum ISO settings in MENU.

Ranger187 wrote in post #16256269
While I was outside doing what you said, I realized how bad this crap generic tripod is.

You could see the camera jitter (it was on a wooden deck, not concrete) if I moved slightly. So that's one issue I need to address.

The next was that I *somewhat* noticed better focus on MF, zoomed in x10 and adjusted versus AF on 2 lenses.

3 lenses, 3 pictures.

http://www.flickr.com …10932061/with/9​638857982/

They don't look to bad, I suspect you just need to add a bit of sharpening and contrast (put a bit of an S in your tone curve). I'm no expert at post processing though...it might be worth posting a few pictures in the Post Processing forum and asking the guys there for some advice.

Leaves are probably not the best subject for a lens sharpness test for a couple of reasons...firstly they move about and secondly it's difficult to work out where you've focussed. Having said that, there are plenty of leaves in focus in in the pictures where you can easily pick out the serrated edges. On the 40mm shot it looks like it's in focus just beyond the 1st fence....look at the metal object jusst over the fence on the right ans the needle type leaves at the bottom left.

I just had a look at your bridge shot, I sharpened it a little and increased the contrast and although it's taken at F22 I can still pick out the sign on the bridge points to Halifax...Looks sharp enough!

A quick way to test your lens is to pop a stake into the lawn, get down low and focus on the stake and take a pic making sure to get the grass in the picture.

Have a look at the resulting picture, it should be obvious to see where the focus plane is as the grass will stand out easily.

One of the great things about the 70D is the MFA feature. It's pretty easy to adjust your lenses and it can make a huge difference...have a look on POTN for the dot-tune method of adjustment. In good light get a flat target...maybe a box with bold writing, set your tripod up (ideally at 50*the focal length but you can get away with closer for the long lens) and follow the instructions. It won't matter hugely that your tripod isn't that steady.

I've popped your slightly tweaked photos in a set in Flickr...

http://www.flickr.com …i/sets/72157635​325143998/

Good luck

Ranger187 wrote in post #16257482
I think things are starting to make more sense....

For the most part I should be shooting in a low iso (100-400) for most things.

Except: High speed shooting (1600 ish), and astronomy pics.....

Am I correct for the most part?

It entirely depends on the scene. If there isn't enough available light then you'll need either a higher ISO, wider aperture, or slower shutter speed. A lot of the time the later two settings are going to have a much more negative effect on the shot (too shallow a DOF, blurred motion) than the higher ISO will (noise). It's definitely something you need to get out and practice with, which is why I strongly suggest you don't be turned away by the semi-auto modes and especially auto ISO.

With my M (which has a worse sensor than your 70D) I have no problem shooting up to ISO 3200 if the scene requires it.

EverydayGetaway wrote in post #16257506
It entirely depends on the scene. If there isn't enough available light then you'll need either a higher ISO, wider aperture, or slower shutter speed. A lot of the time the later two settings are going to have a much more negative effect on the shot (too shallow a DOF, blurred motion) than the higher ISO will (noise). It's definitely something you need to get out and practice with, which is why I strongly suggest you don't be turned away by the semi-auto modes and especially auto ISO.

With my M (which has a worse sensor than your 70D) I have no problem shooting up to ISO 3200 if the scene requires it.

I LOVE shooting in M mode most of the time. But I change the settings so much that I leave the images on the camera so I can simply compare shot A with shot B. That's how I learned on the PRO-1.

mccamli wrote in post #16257496
I just had a look at your bridge shot, I sharpened it a little and increased the contrast and although it's taken at F22 I can still pick out the sign on the bridge points to Halifax...Looks sharp enough!

I've popped your slightly tweaked photos in a set in Flickr...

http://www.flickr.com …i/sets/72157635​325143998/

Good luck

Wow, just your simple tweak from a JPG shows that I have a lot to learn. While I've said this many times, it's not the camera that sucks... It's me. Bahaha! Which is great to me. It means I'm not limited by my camera anymore..... I'm limited by my experience. Thanks for the info.

Ranger187 wrote in post #16257489
Aces, I have M set to ISO-100 right now. It can ABSOLUTELY shoot in M at ISO-100. Check your custom settings or minimum ISO settings in MENU.

BAM!! On 100 now, for the life of me i couldnt get it on 100 ISO earlier. Thanks bud!

Ranger187 wrote in post #16257513
Wow, just your simple tweak from a JPG shows that I have a lot to learn. While I've said this many times, it's not the camera that sucks... It's me. Bahaha! Which is great to me. It means I'm not limited by my camera anymore..... I'm limited by my experience. Thanks for the info.

It's a great reason to shoot RAW...As software and your post processing skill improve you can get some great shots just by re-visiting your old photos!

Oh, I do shoot in RAW. I just completely have no clue how to post process. I know simple things like changing the exposure, white balance.. Not the sharpening and tweaking that mccamli did that made my photos look WAY more crisp and pop.

And those images he edited, I didn't convert the RAW's yet. I just uploaded the JPG as I shoot in RAW+JPG. I have a huge RAW folder that is going to be a nightmare to go through once I have a clue.....

Ranger187 wrote in post #16257513
I LOVE shooting in M mode most of the time. But I change the settings so much that I leave the images on the camera so I can simply compare shot A with shot B. That's how I learned on the PRO-1.

Wow, just your simple tweak from a JPG shows that I have a lot to learn. While I've said this many times, it's not the camera that sucks... It's me. Bahaha! Which is great to me. It means I'm not limited by my camera anymore..... I'm limited by my experience. Thanks for the info.

I'm not saying you shouldn't shoot in "M", I'm just saying you shouldn't write off the semi-auto modes either, they have their uses. My cameras both live in either M or Av depending on what I'm shooting.

Ranger187 wrote in post #16257554
Oh, I do shoot in RAW. I just completely have no clue how to post process. I know simple things like changing the exposure, white balance.. Not the sharpening and tweaking that mccamli did that made my photos look WAY more crisp and pop.

And those images he edited, I didn't convert the RAW's yet. I just uploaded the JPG as I shoot in RAW+JPG. I have a huge RAW folder that is going to be a nightmare to go through once I have a clue.....

Do yourself a favor and get Lightroom It's really easy to use and it's very powerful. I watched a couple of half hour tutorials on youtube when I got it and the rest I learned just by playing around (not that I'm an expert at PP, but I know enough to produce photos I'm happy with).

I have LR5, and PS6 and Capture One/Phase One.

I'm an IT person. So the programs I can get from work in seconds. It's knowing how to use them. ADHD + reading doesn't work for me. It takes me like 5 passes reading something to comprehend it. But if I'm shown visually. I grab it instantly.

I'll have to look at YouTube then.....

I'm already stressing over the settings/mode I'll use for the fireworks tonight.

Reading F11 and ISO 100-400. Just don't know how well a 5 second exposure will look. I might have to use A+ mode or something...

dufflover wrote in post #16257353
All the video AF tests are looking good. Anyone know if it translates to photo shooting in a similar fashion? For example, AI Servo with Live View?

The CameraLabs review, linked to a few posts above, says it's pretty useless for anything moving at more than a crawl.

Ranger, what lens are you to use to capture the fireworks? That should go into the equation too.

I have 3 options.

18-55mm
40mm F2.8
55-250mm

https://photography-on-the.net …p?p=16256825&po​stcount=71 <---- That's where I'll be shooting from.

OH!!!!!! And I'm almost positive my lense/camera is off a hair. Out of sheer boredom I was walking around the house AF on items. I noticed I would turn the focus ring a HAIR to the right and it was INSTANTLY crisper.... So I'll have to adjust it tomorrow during the day.

I've never shot fireworks so hope to learn via your experience. Can you take a 10-12 foot step ladder...thinking any height might be an advantage....then again will it be a crowded vantage point?
My instinct says take the fastest/widest lens....I'll be attempting aurora shots in a 3 weeks and for some reason think fireworks and auroras have something in common.

There is supposed to be hundreds of people here where I'll be and over 100,000 total in the area.. Meh... If any other lens needs MFA, then I'll be pissed because that means the camera as a whole is near the tolerance limit I'm assuming. And that would lead to all my night shots being blurry..

Since your thinking through this now ~a good thing~ can you get there well ahead of time and at least focus on some object that distance away in the light.....Hey, saw you've got the 55-250mm, its long exposure anyway so maybe zoom in-that'd be different.