Jon L

For my info, what's impoved with the new software?

I wish that were true. Good condition 85 F/1.2L II goes for aound $1500 range whereas 70-200 F/2.8 IS II more like $2100-2200 used on eBay. Even bigger obstacle for me personally is the 2.25 lb (85mm) vs. 3.28 lb (70-200) and the size differential. I sure wish Canon would make 11-105mm F/1.2L IS at 2 lb and at $500

I need to re-evaluate if I indeed "need" this lens at this price. It is indeed a bit too long for my usual shooting style on my 1.6x body, but it's perfect on my full frame film camera. Thus, I may need to look at Canon's 50 F/1.2L (which many say isn't nearly as stellar as 85 F/1.2L) or just get a used 5D mkii I must say the 85 F/1.2 images indeed have that special something, I think the combination of incredible sharpness and profoundly dreamy bokeh, that makes me want to keep it, or something like it... BTW. For daylight landscape, would Canon 70-200mm F/4L set at 80mm say F6-8 be actually better than 85 F/1.2L set at same settings??

And it's as HEAVY as it looks, not to mention the weird AF slowness, slower than Canon's own 85mm F/1.8.

My Canon 85mm F/1.2L arrived. Just testing Bokeh (at F/2.2 though).

Jeez, Blizzard! It's going to be 73 degrees here in SoCal tomorrow. Took a few photo's tonight at warm dusk.

I wholly agree. I like the T2i for IQ and video quality, but there are 2 reasons I may look at another body: 1. I love portraiture and always wanted the Canon 85L II, and now that I bought one, it's too long on my 1.6x body in locations I usually shoot. This is true for my Canon 85mm F1.8 right now, so I would prefer either full-frame or 1.3x for this reason alone, and I'm not as enthusiastic about the Canon 50mm F1.2L option. 2. I got a good deal on my T2i, which is new enough to sell well right now. I may wait until 5D mkiii is released and pick up a used 5D mkii. BTW. Have people been impressed with Sigma's Foveon sensor cameras? Some film buffs seem to swear by them, and they do have the new SD1 camera now.

Krap, I hadn't even thought about that. It would be no problem for my film camera EOS-1V HS with the power grip, but my poor little T2i ! Also, do I have to go the 5D Mkii to get a substantial improvement in IQ over T2i? I've read 7D is similar to T2i in IQ. The 85L is going to be a little too long on my 1.6x T2i. I really want the 35mm F1.4L as well...

OH, SNAP! I couldn't help myself and won the Canon 85mm F1.2L on eBay. There goes my Stax C32 prototype fund

Hmm. You mean the Canon 70-200 mL F/4 L has better colors than 70-200 F/2.8 IS ??! You realize the above shots were shot with 2.8 IS.

Those are some sharp shots! Is that hand-held and at long focal length (near 200mm)? Post-processing to up the colors? (colors look nice!) This makes me wonder if I can get away with the cheap Canon 70-200 mL F/4 L non-IS for daytime shots like these...

Did you notice any color saturation difference bet. Canon 85 and Sigma? Haven't tried Sigma 85 but having compared Sigma 50 F1.4 with Canon L zooms, I really liked the colors of Canon L better.

It looks like the Target scan was done at 256 dpi with file size 1500 x 1000 pixels. What is a "good scan" and particular scanners (not pro-expensive)? For E6, pro labs will develop and scan for you, but if you only have the slides, can one scan the slides on your home scanner? (need some sort of holder/apparatus?)

"This, I think depends on what you're looking for in your photos and what you define as "better". Kinda like audio in a way, depending on where your priorities are you may prefer CDs or LPs, it's the same idea with film & digital cameras." I guess I always knew that. After all, most of the "Wow" film photo's I've seen have been medium or large-format film; I tried 35mm film to see if it will be "good enough," but I have a feeling that one needs to go all out, along with the expenses involved. Anyway, it was rather weird for me to shoot film, where the ISO is actually set by the film (unless pushing or pulling), without having instantaneous view like digital, and not knowing until the film is developed. I actually didn't get any prints developed, and the Target guy said he can develop prints from either the film negatives or digital files and that they both "look the same" to him... Any recommendations for where to get good prints (from negatives?)?

OK. So I just got back my first film roll of film in more than 10 years, developed and scanned by Target. Several things struck me. Perhaps I shouldn't have used that nice Fuji Reala 100 film as my first roll, since most sunset/dusk shots came out hopelessly blurry and muted. My digital camera takes these scenes no problem, albeit at high ISO. ISO 100 film just doesn't do dusk; I hope to try ISO 400 film next for these sunset/dusk conditions. Scenes in daylight came out pretty well, though the scans don't seem to have advantage over shots taken with digital camera. In not-so-perfect lighting, digital seems to yield sharper, cleaner images. Thirdly, I really miss having the large 3" LCD screen with histogram right there. I also miss the instantaneous preview of the photo I just took. I guess this is why digital is winning big time. Lastly, I wonder if I need to go with slide films, sent out for developing, etc, in order to gain edge over digital. Or is that the limitation of 35mm, and does film really need to be medium-format in right lighting to significantly outshine digital? Or does none of it matter unless large prints are involved?

Canon S95 snapshots from eating and drinking last night, Downtown L.A. Seven Grand Bar Bottega Louie Restaurant/Bar

Canon EOS-1V HS, EOS-3, and T2i (aka "Mine is Bigger Than Yours") Beautiful cameras!

Does the D40 have the LCD magnified view button like Canon T2i? When I had the manual Zeiss 35 mm F/2 lens, the Canon viewfinder was practically useless for precise manual focus, and I HAD to use the magnified LCD view to get precise focus, which was a real pain, balancing that heavy Zeiss with one hand, while pressing buttons on the back to use the magnified view, then finally holding still to press the shutter. One of the reasons I didn't keep the Zeiss, especially after I found out how much $$$ good focusing screens cost.

Yes, yes, before I break down and buy a Sony NEX for my planned trips next year.

Wow, you carry a 7D with a big lens to the mall? BTW, at what aperture are those shots with blurred train tails? How's the Sigma stopped down to F7-8?

EOS-3 with power grip is here, but my films haven't arrived yet!

And someone just offered me a Elan 7N for $30. Kind of tempting as a light, travel body. Is 7N much smaller/lighter than 1v/3 (without power grip)? I've gotten good deals on the 1V HS and EOS-3, as they together cost me less than my T2i As far as 1v HS vs. 3, I had read people compare them and basically say there's no advantage as far as image quality, 1v has better build/seal, and 3 has advantage of the whole eye focus thing, and faster frame per second IF used without power grip.

Those photo's look great. Did you scan them yourself or went to? At any rate, I must have lost my mind because I just won a Canon EOS-1V HS on eBay. I did it because the parts I needed for EOS-3 were so expensive elsewhere, especially the Ni-MH battery charger and the battery itself, not to mention the stock grip I wanted for travel/portable use. I found an EOS-1V HS where the charger, extra batteries, stock grip, etc were included. Truth be told, I will likely sell off the EOS-1V HS with power grip, since this seems to be more popular and able to fetch more $$ on eBay than EOS-3. I just hope I don't get attached to it and decided to keep both... BTW, the seller is going to include some Fuji Provia 100F rolls, which would be nice. I also ordered some Fuji Superia 400 and Fuji Reala 100.

Good lord, that Sigma 85 mm with the hood extension is on the *large* side..