Wide angle for digital

[T. Adams]

Ok, I did it. I have been the owner of a 10D for 5 whole days now. I will be shooting some drag racing this weekend, so I'll hopefully be able to post some to get some feedback.

Now the question. What is everybody using for their walk around lense in the pits for static stuff? Even you Nikon guys can chime in to since the Nikon crop factor is 1.5, and the Canon is 1.6. Right now I am selling my 28-70 f/2.8L, and 20-35 consumer zoom on Ebay. I should net around $1200 for both of these. The way I see it I have only 2 choices of premium glass. The first is the 17-40mm f4L (27.2-64 on the 10D) for $650, or second choice 24-70 f/2.8L (38.4-112 on the 10D) for $1,180. I don't have any EXIF data to look at from all the film I shot, and I can't really remember the range I usually used the 28-70 at. I already e-mailed one expert Tyson on what he uses, now I'm looking to gather other opinions. Sigma and other non OEM lense makers are not an option, but I'm interested in what zoom ranges everybody's pit lense falls in. I'm also not interested in primes, I won't give up the versatility of the zoom.
Thanks,
Tim

[rpzo]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Hey Tim,

Congrats on making the big leap to the digital world. I've had my 10D for a couple of months now and have already shot the equivelent of about 40 rolls of film. Of course, I find myself being a bit more reckless with the shots than I would be if I were paying by the frame.

I'm interested in what zoom ranges everybody's pit lense falls in. I'm also not interested in primes, I won't give up the versatility of the zoom.

Up until last year the majority of my static and pit shots were with my 50mm prime. I always felt that the sharpness in the Zuiko 1.8 was far superior to anything that I could get out of a zoom. True, it wasn't as versatile as a zoom but it was worth the inconvenience. Last year I picked up a Zuiko 70-210 that I used on a small percentage of the static shots but did notice a slight drop in sharpness.

I would also carry a 28mm in the camera bag but don't really like to use it on aircraft all that much. I don't really care for the way a wide angle will distort the lines of an airplane when you shoot up close. I like to capture the curves just the way they are.

As for this year with the new camera it's not likely that I will change from the 28-70 that I currently have. The ~45-110mm focal length equivelent fits right in the range that I am comfortable with for the pit area. Plus, I can't afford any more glass. I'll also still keep my OM-1 with the 50mm prime in the bag too! It never hurts to have a backup.

Rick

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Well after selling both lenses on Ebay, I'm going to get the 17-40 and spend the rest on a battery grip, another CF card, and an upgrade to Photoshop CS.

As for Ebay, you have to love the resale value of "L" glass. I sold the 28-70mm for the exact same price I paid for it in Dec. 2002.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Hey Tim, I can't really speak to the Canon lens situation, since I did not make the swap (broke down and got the D2H instead of waiting and wishing for the 1dmkII) but CONGRATULATIONS on your foray into the world of digital!!

Wayne

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Well I went out yesterday in just horrible dark and cold conditions to shoot some drag racing. I shot at ISO 100, which in hindsite was probably a mistake. I should have went to 400, but I'm so used to using just 100 speed film. I had the camera in Tv mode at 1/125th shutter for most shots to get some blur in the background, but even with the heavy overcast I was getting the blinking blown out highlights warning a lot of the time. Since I did not want to raise the shutter speed I dialed in exsposure compensation of 1, and sometimes 2 stops, but that made the rest of the photo too dark. Any suggestions?? I shot in jpeg because I only have 1 CF card now, and no digital wallet. This will change soon, and I can see now that I will mainly shoot RAW to be able to do more tweaking.

I'll post some pics tonight hopefully of before and after PS tweaking. I did not get many keepers. One thing driving me nuts is that I was forced to use PS elements. I just bought a new Dell refirb and my old "evaluation" copy of PS6 would not install on the Dell. The problem with Elements is not all the menus options are in the same place or are missing compared to the full version. I'm getting the full CS version ASAP, when the next paycheck comes Friday.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Any suggestions?? .

Hummn... Tim, I don't know the camera but Tyson sure does. Hopefully, he'll chime in here with some advice for ya.

What's "TV Mode?"

Wayne

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Tv mode just means if you want to always shoot at a constant shutter speed like 1/125th as I was using, the camera will always shoot at that speed, and the meter will adjust the aperture based on the light. Regardless of the light though it will always shoot at the shutter speed that you have selected.

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Well here are 3 samples. As you can tell the sky and light was horrible. As dark as it was though I would still often get the blinking blown out highlights in the sky area.
The first photo proves that yes indeed you can use too much nitrous.
The 2nd is a nostalgia Top Fueler. While Merlins, and 3350's sound cool, I am kind of partial to a blown Hemi on nitro.
The 3rd is a Nostalgia Super Stock. I'm not old enough to remember these monsters, but I think a family of 4 could live in the trunk!

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Well here are 3 samples. As you can tell the sky and light was horrible. As dark as it was though I would still often get the blinking blown out highlights in the sky area.
The first photo proves that yes indeed you can use too much nitrous.
The 2nd is a nostalgia Top Fueler. While Merlins, and 3350's sound cool, I am kind of partial to a blown Hemi on nitro.
The 3rd is a Nostalgia Super Stock. I'm not old enough to remember these monsters, but I think a family of 4 could live in the trunk!

Tim, I'm not sure on the Canon's or now, on my new 2H, but with the D1, you were better off underexposing, then taking it lighter in whatever your favorite proggy is.. The blinking highlights are just gonna be there when the sky is WAY above the light on the subject...

I'm trying to learn to read the histogram, which, after looking at Richard Vander Muellen's work with his D2H, seems to be a pretty handy tool.. Still, I don' think you can get away from overexposing the sky when you essentially have a "backlit" situation.. to heck with the sky and get the subject exposed properly I guess...

I played with the three images a bit and probably overlightened them... My monitor runs dark (on purpose) so I have to somewhat guess when I fiddle with images, or, I'll go blind sooner because of TOO DARN BRIGHT monitor settings.. (Big 'ol 19" SyncMaster is a bit hard on the eyes when properly setup)

Wayne

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

The Hemi, and the Pontiac I just sharpened. The Trans-Am nitrous pop I boosted the levels pretty high, it was real dark. I did not want to go too high, because I could see noise, grain, or whatever you want to call it coming into play.

[AAFO_WSagar]

Re: Wide angle for digital

Tv mode just means if you want to always shoot at a constant shutter speed like 1/125th as I was using, the camera will always shoot at that speed, and the meter will adjust the aperture based on the light. Regardless of the light though it will always shoot at the shutter speed that you have selected.

That'd then be like "shutter priority" on the Nikon bodies.. or.. I think it's listed as .5 on the dial..

or maybe, with my old eyes... that's .s

Wayne

[T. Adams]

Re: Wide angle for digital

I know under exposed is better in digital. Actually because of the poor light the apertures were very open. The nitrous pop shot was very dark and according to the EXIF data the aperture was 6.6. I can't look at any others to compare since I'm at work now, I'll have to take a look at some of the better exsposed shots to see where I was at.

As a side note, damn I wish I could get the MkII, first reports are glowing to say the least. Art Morris the well known bird photographer, said it will revolutionize sports and wildlife photography, and set the standard for digital cameras until the next generation of Canon digitals is released.
OUCH NIKON!!