Archive for the 'Gear Reviews' Category

5 Little Things Every DSLR Photographer Needs You To Buy Them For The Holidays

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So for the last few weeks I have been toying around with the idea of doing a holiday gift suggestion post, but until now I couldn’t get motivated to do it. Why? Who knows, maybe because most of these so-called “gift guides” are nothing more than paid advertisements and big wastes of time. So you might ask, what motivated me to finally get off my ass and do it? This…

Well, to be more specific, the first page. Now, I do love PopPhoto, and usually get a lot out of what I read there, but when this one popped into my feed reader and I clicked through, I almost didn’t make it past the first page. I mean, a 3D space navigator mouse thingie? an $80 card reader? a USB thumb drive? and a few other things that if I received I would smack someone. But seriously, what photographer wants this crap. There is a LensPen, good, at least one ray of light. Luckily, I was able to suppress the urge to break things long enough to get to the second page, and there we are, some good stuff, and the PopPhoto gift guide was saved, and actually has some really cool stuff, some of which I will mention here. If you plan on checking it out, I suggest starting on page 2 :)

So now you are probably wondering, what do the crazies at CameraPorn think you should get for that special photographer you love? Well, everything I’m going to list are things you should get for yourself, and if you have a few bucks left over, buy your friends something. I’ll keep it short, sweet and cheap. List after the jump.

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How do you protect your camera’s LCD?

30D with EG-2 Battery Grip

If you are like me, and your camera comes with you nearly everywhere, and isn’t always in a soft cushy case, doing what you can to protect it is important. Though today’s DSLRs tend to be relatively rugged when it comes to build quality, with magnesium or aluminum alloy bodies coated with rubber, especially from the pro-sumer level up, The LCDs are the largest chink in the armor. LCDs are notoriously prone to scratches and dings, but can be protected very simply and inexpensively.

There are several options available for LCD protection, some cumbersome, some ridiculous and one that is ideal. Read about it after the jump…

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Quick Look: Noct-Nikkor 58mm f/1.2 Manual

Nikkor 58mm f/1.2 Manual

If you’ve never played with any old-school manual focus lenses, specifically Nikons, you are missing out. Lenses like this are magic and they sure don’t make ‘em like they used to. This thing is small, unexpectedly heavy and ROCK SOLID. The focus ring is as smooth as butter, and the shots… well here a few quick samples.

Coke at f/1.2 Scott
Josh Afdizzy

Quick Look: AF Fisheye Nikkor 10.5mm f/2.8

NikkorFisheye
Photo credit NikonUSA.com

If you’ve seen my flickr recently, you’ve probably seen some ultra-wide shots I’ve taken recently with a friends Sigma 10-22mm. I really enjoyed using it, so I was pumped to have this lens in the Nikon kit. Fisheyes are fun, and this one is especially nice being a prime with a maximum aperture of f/2.8. Here are a couple samples:

Walkway Fisheye Fence Santa Monica Oceanfront
fisheye dan DSC_0156.jpg

Nikon Gear CameraPorn? Hell Must Have Frozen Over…

Serious CameraPorn

No, your eyes aren’t playing tricks on you. What you see above is Nikon gear and a LOT of it, courtesy of a friend (thanks Scott!) who had the whole kit basically sitting in a closet collecting dust. Yes, I know, sacreligious to let this much gear to sit idle, so your friends at CameraPorn have come to the rescue! Kit breakdown after the jump…

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Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L – So Good Your Other Lenses are Already Jealous

  • Sexiness Ratings:
  • Value to your kit
  • :(5 of 5 stars)
  • Image quality
  • :(5 of 5 stars)
  • Build quality
  • :(5 of 5 stars)
  • Jealousy Factor
  • :(5 of 5 stars)
  • Bang for your buck
  • :(3 of 5 stars)
  • Overall Sexiness
  • :(5 of 5 stars)

24-70 f/2.8 L

 

After a long hiatus, here I am back with some hot review action for your pleasure. My first (but I assure you not my last) Canon “L” lens review is about the Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L. Ryan wrote earlier about his first “L” lens, and I must say that my experience emotionally mirrored his a great deal when this arrived from B&H. It was the first “L” I owned, and it is to date my favorite lens that I have used.

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The Ultimate Guide - Part 3: Getting Equipped - The Average Joe’s Dream Kit

Part 3 - Getting Equipped

After much delay, and lots of threats on my life from friends who really wanted to read about the Average Joe Kit, we are back with the third part of our "Ultimate Guide" series. If you haven’t yet, make sure to check out Part 1 and Part 2 before continuing.

And so we begin Part 3: The Average Joe Dream kit. This kit was put together as a well-rounded mid-range option, some may call it pro-sumer as the camera and lenses are more feature rich and of higher quality than entry-level consumer bodies and lenses. Like all three of the kits we are recommending, it contains the following items:

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The Ultimate Guide - Part 2: Getting Equipped - The Po’ Man’s Dream Kit

Part 2 - Getting Equipped

Finally, I’m back with part 2 of our “Ultimate Guide” where I will begin to break down three different kit suggestions spanning three different affordability levels. Originally, I planned on presenting all three kit options in one post, but due to the ongoing harassment :) from readers to get Part 2 posted as well as the surprising amount of time it takes to put these posts together, I decided to go ahead with the post to include only the first of the three kits, focusing on a low price range option to start. To make sure everyone has a good fix of CameraPorn, I’ll include a list of the items to be included in the next two posts. Parts 2 and 3 will focus on a mid-range and high-range priced photo kits. If you havent read “Part 1: Getting Prepared” we suggest taking a look before continuing.

Before I begin, I will again reiterate that no one, not even the gear-obsessed wackos that run this site would expect the average DSLR newbie to buy everything we suggest for a kit all at once. What I’m suggesting are well rounded kit options that contain items that cover the needs of most hobbyist photographers. In reality, all you need to get started is a camera, a memory card and one lens. You will also notice, all the cameras and lenses are from Canon. There are off-brand lenses such as Sigma and Tamron that offer quality and sometimes lower-cost alternatives to what I will be mentioning below, but what can I say, I’m a brand-whore. No, but seriously, aside from off-brand lenses Canon is not your only option. Nikon offers perfectly suitable alternatives to the DSLRs and lenses below at similar price points, but personally I love and use Canon gear, so thats what I’ll be suggesting.

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The Ultimate Guide To Starting Your Own DSLR Obsession - Part 1: Getting Prepared

Start Your obsession

After multiple suggestions from friends and readers in combination with the fact that today a friend joined us in our DSLR obsession with his own shiny new 30D and corresponding accessories, I was inspired to share my thoughts on the most effective ways to get started on your own fanatic DSLR journey. Being that my goal is to make the the “ultimate” guide, this post will be part one in a series of three. I’ll start out in part one by discussing what it takes to get started as an educated DSLR consumer, including shopping and research resources. In part two, I will discuss different equipment options broken down into three categories, corresponding to small, medium and large budgets. Part three will focus primarily on getting the shot, mentioning basic tried and true techniques as well as an outline of the best sites and blogs I frequently use for learning and reference.

Before jumping into it, I’d like to preface the whole deal with the statement that these are merely suggestions, and come from my own experiences becoming a DSLR-aholic. As much as I wish I was, (Canon, where you at?) I’m not being paid, endorsed, yadda yadda yadda for any of this. The choices I’ve made are the choices I feel I would or should have made if I was properly educated prior to jumping into photography. I’d also like to say that it is no coincidence it’s all Canon based. I happen to be a “Canon guy” only because its where I started based on suggestions from friends and it is the realm in which I can most effectively make suggestions. At this point I’ve used both Nikons and Canons, and though I definitely have no ill thoughts toward Nikon, my preference is generally with Canon products. Why? I think we should leave that one for a whole other post. All that said, lets get to the cameraporn… Continue reading ‘The Ultimate Guide To Starting Your Own DSLR Obsession - Part 1: Getting Prepared’

Canon 28mm 1.8 EF - Like the ex you just keep going back to

  • Sexiness Ratings:
  • Value to your kit
  • :(4 of 5 stars)
  • Build quality
  • :(3 of 5 stars)
  • Image Quality
  • :(4 of 5 stars)
  • Jealousy Factor
  • :(3 of 5 stars)
  • Bang for your buck
  • :(4 of 5 stars)
  • Overall Sexiness
  • :(3 of 5 stars)

Canon 28mm f/1.8 - cameraporn.net

 

This was the first lens I got when I started getting into the world of SLR photography. Like rygood, I am shooting with a Canon 30D. It’s a fantastic camera to learn on, but one of the things you always have to be mindful of is the 1.6 multiplier on the 30D you have to apply to focal lengths to get the equivalent to a full frame camera. Since my good friend Peter pointed out that a 35mm focal length is roughly what the human eye sees, making it a great length to start shooting with since it’s nice and familiar, this 28mm lens gets me pretty close that that 35mm effective length after applying the multiplier. Rock!

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