dSLR Dad

Popular Photography Magazine as published their review of the Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 Image Stabilized (IS) Zoom Lens:

In the past two years, the 11X IS superzoom has become the ideal general-purpose lens — certainly for shooters whose cameras don’t have on-board shake reduction. This Canon fits the mold. Very light and compact, it’s a gracious and adaptable traveling companion. Impressively sharp, it’s also an obvious choice for handheld low-light pictures, including event and theater work. Its real fortes, however, are close-up macro subjects, distant wildlife, and almost everything in between. Sports? Go for it!

You can read the entire review at PopPhoto.com.  You can also find more reviews at the dSLR Dad Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens Resource Page.  Of particular note, for those of you who may be interested in this lens, there is a $50 instant rebate on this lens through January 17, 2009.

Popularity: 1% [?]

I’ve already compared both Best Buy and Circuit City’s Black Friday deals with B&H Photo Video.  So you already know about their various  Canon, Nikon, and Sony camera specials.  B&H Photo, however has some other deals that a dSLR Dad may be interested in:

• Canon EOS 40D SLR Digital Camera with Canon 28-135mm Lens for $1,006.95.
• Epson Stylus Photo R280 Inkjet Printer for $29.95.  This is a great value on an Epson printer that uses their long-lasting Claria Hi-Definition Inks.  Heck, a full set of ink would cost you $56.  Add some of the excellent Epson Ultra Premium Luster, Exhibition Fiber, or Ilford Galerie Gold Fibre Silk papers and you will produce some fantastic prints.
• Sony Alpha DSLR-A700 Digital Camera Body for $999.99
• Olympus E-520 dSLR Camera with 14-42mm Lens and E510 Gadget Bag for $497.95.
• Free shipping on all Nikon Cameras.
• Up to $125 instant savings on various Canon Lenses and Flashes.
• Four Day Black Friday Special on 4GB and 8GB Sandisk Extreme III Class 6 SDHC Flash Memory.  These are the previous 15MB/s Extreme III cards, but they are still very fast and a great value.
• Samsung SyncMaster 245T 24-inch Widescreen LCD Computer Display for $619.95.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Well, I guess you could say better late than never.  Canon has finally filled one of the largest holes in their consumer lens lineup.  The Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 Image Stabilized (IS) Zoom Lens offers dSLR Dads an option for an everyday, ‘walk-around’ vacation lens.  What is somewhat perplexing, is that this is built upon Canon’s entry-level EF-S lens platform.  This means that Canon will be speaking highly of ‘value’ when it describing the features of this lens.  Value, in this case, both for the consumer and Canon’s business case.  The highlights of this lens include: (more…)

Popularity: 7% [?]

The AF-S NIKKOR 50mm f/1.4G prime lens brings a Silent Wave Motor to Nikon’s standard prime lenses.  With an ultra-fast f/1.4 aperture, this lens will allow you to photograph in extremely low light.  The other benefit of a big aperture is it’s very small depth-of-field when wide open.  This gives you those nice out-of-focus backgrounds, helping your subject really stand out.  To get a better sense of this, This Week In Photography has an excellent video which gives a visual presentation of how changing your aperture affects your photos.   Other notable features include:

• AF-S Silent Wave Motor enables autofocus for Nikon D40, D40x, and D60 dSLR Dads.
• Rounded 9-blade aperture diaphragm should help out-of-focus elements blur more natural and not seem blotchy.
• Nikon Super Integrated Coating (SIC) enhances light transmission efficiency and offers superior color consistency and reduced flare. Nikon’s value alternative to ED glass in a standard lens.
• Full-frame design will work with FX and DX formats.
• Minimum focus distance of 1.5 feet.
• At 2.9 by 2.1 inches (Diameter x Length) and 9 ounces, it’s a bit bigger than the 50mm f/1.4D AF Nikkor Lens. However, it is much more compact and lighter than Sigma’s own 50mm F1.4 EX DC HSM Lens.

With an estimated selling price of $440 it is more expensive than the 50mm f/1.4D, but lower than Sigma’s excellent 50mm F1.4 EX DC HSM Lens. But then again, the Sigma and f/1.4D are available now, whereas Nikon’s 50mm f/1.4G doesn’t ship until this December.

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Popularity: 8% [?]

This lens’ focal length goes to Eleven

They were first to market a high power zoom lens with the AF18-200mm at Photokina 2004.  Then, that focal length was too small to stand out, so they introduced the AF18-250mm. Now, Tamron has decided to take the zoom lens market all the way up to Eleven.  Introducing the Tamron AF18-270mm F/3.5-6.3 Di II VC LD Aspherical (IF) MACRO Zoom Lens.  This lens offers a focal range as long as it’s name, which is really saying something.  Available in both Canon EOS and Nikon AF-D mounts, the Tamron AF18-270mm delivers a 35mm equivalent focal length of 28-419mm on an APS-C sized image sensor.  This lens also incorporates the same Vibration Compensation (VC) mechanism Introduced for the first time on the Tamron AF 28-300mm f/3.5-6.3 XR Di VC LD IF Macro Lens.  The price and launch timing of the AF18-270mm will be announced at a later date. (more…)

Popularity: 6% [?]

Photozone has released another in-depth lens test. This time, they are focusing closely on Sony’s Macro Alpha Lens, the 100mm f/2.8 Macro (available now at Amazon and B&H Photo).

The Sony 100mm f/2.8 macro is able to produce very sharp results combined with a negligible amount of distortions, vignetting and lateral CAs. However, longitudinal (axial) chromatic aberrations can be quite a problem in out-focus areas (f/2.8-f/5.6) resulting in a magenta to greenish tint in some situations - this is not unusual but unfortunate nonetheless. The build quality of the lens is fine although it doesn’t win any crown when looking towards the competition a la Micro-Nikkor 105mm f/2.8G ED-IF AF-S VR or the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro. Same goes for the AF speed which does still rely on the slotted drive screw rather than Sony’s faster SSM (ultrasonic AF drive). The biggest problem of the Sony 100mm f/2.8 macro is probably its price tag - at around 600US$ it is substantially more expensive than the third-party alternatives without offering much if anything on top.

Regarding the third party alternatives referenced above. For around $200 less, a Sony dSLR Dad looking for value should check out the Sigma 105mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro Lens. You can read the entire review over at Photozone here.

Popularity: 13% [?]

I’ve begrudgingly kept my Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Lens, mainly because the actual lens assembly pops-out of the housing from time-to-time so I can’t sell it. At $80 it is a great value, but it’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer (until f/2.8). I was looking at the Canon 50mm f/1.4 USM Lens (available at Amazon and B&H Photo), but it seems somewhat soft at the corners, even on a digital body. It also doesn’t have the same high quality feel as Canon’s excellent EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Lens (which I loved, available at Amazon and B&H Photo).

Well, leave it to Sigma to announce a quality, large aperture alternative, the new 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM standard lens. It will be offered in Sigma, Canon, Nikon, Pentax^*, Sony^* lens mounts. The * means if your Pentax or Sony camera body does not support HSM, auto focus will not be available. With any luck, this 50mm f/1.4 will be match the quality of their fantastic Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM Lens. Hopefully, Sigma will release this at a street price under $300.

Excerpts from the Sigma Press Release (2008-3-18):

• Standard lens with large maximum aperture of F1.4.
• It creates sharp images with high contrast and ensures superior peripheral brightness.
• Incorporates molded glass aspherical lens, perfectly correcting coma aberration and creating superior image quality.
• Super multi-layer lens coating reduces flare and ghosting.
• Hyper Sonic Motor HSM ensuring silent, high-speed AF. (more…)
  

  Popularity: 19% [?]

  Tags: Camera Lens, Canon lens, Nikon lens, Pentax Lens, Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM Lens, sigma lens, Sony lens

Something for you Sony dSLR Dads. Photozone.de has added a review of the Sony SAL-50F14 50mm f/1.4 Lens (available at Amazon and B&H Photo):

The Sony 50mm f/1.4 Lens is a typical representative of the standard lenses that were designed back in the 70s to 80s. The max. aperture (f/1.4) should be generally avoided due to weak contrast, poor borders and a significant amount of longitudinal chromatic aberrations (LoCA). The image quality is already vastly improved at f/2 including a technically better (smoother) bokeh. The truly excellent peak performance is reached around f/4. As to be expected neither distortions nor vignetting are real issues but lateral CAs could be lower for a fix-focal length lens.
The build quality is pretty decent and the conventional screw-driven AF is very fast although somewhat dated regarding Sony’s SSM (supersonic motor) ambitions. At around 320€/US$ the lens is priced at the upper end compared to the other major brands - maybe some food for thought over at Sony.

You can read the entire Sony SAL-5014 50mm f/1.4 Lens Test Report here .

Popularity: 12% [?]

Photozone has reviewed the Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF HSM Zoom Lens for Nikon (available at Amazon and B&H Photo).

The Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG is one of the most impressive Sigma lenses tested to date. It is capable to deliver a near-flawless performance with great resolution figures, low vignetting, low distortions, low CAs and a very decent bokeh (albeit slightly underdeveloped regarding the moderate max. aperture unless your main subject is fairly close). It works reasonably well with the Sigma AF 1.4x DG EX converter but there’s no free lunch here for obvious reasons. The Sigma is quite a monster of a lens but the combination of speed and focal length range simply takes its toll regarding size and weight requirements. The build quality is exceptionally high and combined with the snappy AF it was a joy to use the lens in the field.

I have used this lens on my Canon 20D before and it really is fantastic. It is an excellent value alternative to Sigma’s ‘Big-Ma’, the Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX APO DG IF HSM Zoom Lens . Optically it’s extraordinary, but I disagree on his size complaint. At 3.2 pounds and 8.8 inches, the Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG is only slightly larger than a Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8. However, the 82mm filter size is quite large (and $$$$) for a full frame camera, but I just use a 77mm step down ring on my digital SLR.

You can find Photozone’s full Sigma 100-300mm f/4 EX DG IF HSM APO Zoom Lens for Nikon Review / Test Report here.

An earlier Photozone review on the Canon EOS model is here.

Popularity: 16% [?]

If the 120-300mm f/2.8 EX was called the “Big-ma”, is this the “Tank-ma”

It’s big. Over Twenty-Eight inches long by nine inches in diameter big! It’s the only lens that could make an attached Canon EOS 1D Mark III or Nikon D3 look small.

It’s heavy. Thirty-four and a half pounds heavy! Let’s put that in perspective. It’s heavier than Three of Canon’s EF 800mm f/5.6L IS USM Super Telephoto Lenses.

It’s long at 200-500mm (500-1000mm with the included 2X f5.6 “attachment”) and it keeps a monster f/2.8 aperture all the way to 500mm. But I wouldn’t call it fast. How fast can an f/2.8 lens be when it has to turn glass that’s nine inches in diameter? Oh wait, that’s right, it has it’s own battery to power the zooming and AutoFocus operations.

It has an it’s own built-in LCD panel to display focusing distances and focal lengths. Why? Because it’s so huge you can’t see around it to tell how far away that Grizzly bear really is. But with a minimum focus distance of up to 196.9 inches, I guess you’ll know when to play dead.

It’s painted military green and comes with it’s own dedicated hard case for travel. Good luck getting that past the TSA on your next flight to Washington, D.C..

Price? Do you really have to ask?  At under $25,000, you could always choose a Honda Civic as your new rolling camera case.

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Popularity: 100% [?]

Sony has announced two full frame lenses at PMA2008 this year. The headliner is the SAL2470Z Vario Sonnar T* 24-70mm f/2.8 ZA, co-developed with Carl Zeiss. This gives a fast, high quality zoom lens to Sony Alpha and Minolta dSLR Dads. It should to be fantastic optically. It has to be, because when the Full-Frame Alpha 24-Megapixel Flagship comes out this year, it will turn small optical flaws into gross inadequacies.

The SAL70300G 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6 G was also announced. Both models feature Sony’s Super Sonic wave Motor (SSM) technology. (more…)

Popularity: 21% [?]

Nikon has unveiled a few new lenses for PMA 2008. Their final introduction is the new PC-E NIKKOR 24mm f/3.5D ED, PC (Perspective Control) lens.This lens employs a tilt/shift mechanism that allows you to manipulate image perspective,distortion, and focus in camera. This lens is perfect for the Landscape and Architecture dSLR Dad.

PC-E NIKKOR 24mm f/3.5D ED Major Features

• Wide shifting and tilting range (shift: ±11.5 mm; tilt: ±8.5°)
• ±90° lens revolving capability for versatile tilt/shift effects
• Maximum reproduction ratio of 1/2.7 (at 0.21 m/0.7 ft.)
• Three ED (Extra-low Dispersion) glass elements for superior sharpness and color correction by effectively minimizing chromatic aberration
• Three aspherical lens elements minimize various types of lens aberration
• Nano Crystal Coat virtually eliminates internal lens element reflections, effectively reducing ghosting and flare
• High-performance Nikon Super Integrated Coating delivers superior color reproduction while substantially reducing ghosting and flare
• Rounded 9-blade diaphragm for more natural appearance of out-of-focus image elements
• Lens aperture can be preset by using aperture ring and aperture stop-down button
• With the Nikon D3 and D300, auto aperture control with electromagnetic diaphragm is possible

(more…)

Popularity: 18% [?]

Nikon has unveiled a few new lenses for PMA 2008. The second is their new AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR lens. This is a great focal length for any dSLR Dad. Of particular note is the 16mm wide angle, which makes for a very nice 24mm full frame equivalent. The inclusion of Vibration Reduction II image stabilization claims a 4 stop benefit in slower shutter speeds. The rounded 7-blade aperture should also help to blur out-of-focus background elements. All-in-all, this looks like a very solid offering from Nikon.

AF-S DX NIKKOR 16-85mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR Major Features (more…)

Popularity: 17% [?]

Nikon has unveiled a few new lenses for PMA 2008. The first is their new 60mm AF-S Micro(Macro or close-up for all of you non-Nikon dSLR Dads) lens. This is an interesting market reponse to Canon’s excellent EF-S 60mm f/2.8 Macro USM dSLR-only Lens, since it can be used on both full frame and APS-C sized dSLR cameras.

The following is an unedited press release: (more…)

Popularity: 17% [?]

This is for all of you wide angle dSLR Dads. Photozone has just reviewed Nikon’s brand new full frame, 14-24mm f/2.8G ED AF-S Nikkor Wide Angle Zoom Lens (available at Amazon, and B&H Photo). And it seems like Photozone (which is a great site by the way) liked it:

The Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8G ED N is a phenomenal lens. It is the sharpest ultra-wide angle lens tested to date. The resolution figures are simply stunning and unprecedented (more…)

Popularity: 29% [?]

Tags: 14-24mm f/2.8G ED AF-S, AF-S lens, full frame, lens test, nikkor, Nikkor lens, nikon, Nikon lens, review, SLR lens, super wide angle, wide angle