dSLR Dad

I just received my Joby Gorillapod Focus in the mail today.  All I can say is that I think I have found my new travel tripod.  Most of you have probably already seen Gorillapods in the stores, the Focus is a whole different animal:

1. All of the socket joints are made out of anodized aluminum. They are made out of aluminum because:
2. This little unit can hold up to maximum of Eleven pounds (7kg)!
3. It is large for a Gorillapod at 11.4 by 3.6-inches (289 x 92mm), but the Focus is still extremely compact for my intended use as a travel tripod. The weight is still a respectable 1.1-pounds (500g).
4. Like any Gorillapod, it’s legs can bend to and contort into any position. Since each little socket has a rubber ring around it, you can even wrap it around a fencepost. Again, it will still hold 11-pounds!
5. Since it has some decent size to it, those dSLR Dads whole can also shoot video can use this as a steadycam rig.  Just angle out two feet in front of you and hold on the third like a hand grip.
6. You can mount to both a standard 1/4-inch and 3/8-inch mount, via the included adapter screw. That means that you can even attach your nice Kirk or Really Right Stuff Ballhead to it, which is what I plan to do. Heck I may just wrap this around the top of my regular tripod if I need to.
7. The street price is $99.95.

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You won’t get it in time for Christmas, but you will the day after.  B&H Photo is offering Free Express Shipping on select Canon dSLR cameras.  Some Deals include:

• Canon EOS Rebel XS dSLR Camera Kit (Black) with 18-55mm IS Lens
  • Special Price- $ 475.95 + Free Express Shipping!!
• Canon EOS 40D dSLR Camera with Canon 28-135mm Lens
  • Special Price- $ 999.95 – $ 50.00 = $949.95 + Free Express Shipping!!
• Canon EOS 50D dSLR Camera Body
  • Special Price – $1,169.95 – $ 100 = $$1,069.95 + Free Express Shipping!!

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.

I’ve already compared both Best Buy and Circuit City’s Black Friday deals with Amazon.com.  So you already know about their Canon dSLR, Lenses, and Speedlite savings as well as $75 to $600 off all Nikon dSLR Cameras. Amazon, however has some other deals that a dSLR Dad may be interested in:

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This year’s Black Friday ads are beginning to pop-up around the internets.  The only question that remains for any dSLR Dad:

Will I be able to find a good deal standing in line when it’s dark and freezing cold outside, or should I just order online?

Circuit City is offering Sony DSLR-A350, Nikon D60, and Canon EOS Rebel XS dSLR camera combinations (two each) for sale.  The Olympus E-420 and Canon EOS 40D dSLR Cameras are also discounted.  For comparison, I have included both Amazon.com and B&H Photo Video prices at the time of this publication:

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This year’s Black Friday ads are beginning to pop-up around the internets.  The only question that remains for any dSLR Dad:

Will I be able to find a good deal standing in line when it’s dark and freezing cold outside, or should I just order online?

Best Buy is offering two different Nikon D40 and Canon EOS Rebel XSi dSLR camera combinations for sale.  For comparison, I have included both Amazon.com and B&H Photo Video prices at the time of this publication: (more…)

It is a good time to be a dSLR Dad, especially if you actually have some cash this holiday season.  Amazon.com has the 10.2 Megapixel Nikon D200 dSLR Camera Body available for only $799.98!  For those dSLR Dad’s who were looking at either the Nikon D90 or an older D80, the D200 offers you a lot of value:

• 10.2 Megapixel DX-Format CCD (3,872 x 2,592 pixels).
• 11-area Multi-CAM Autofocus system (convertible to a 7-wide area AF system).
• Fast 5 frames-per-second continuous shooting (22 NEF RAW-file bursts).
• 1005-pixel 3D RGB Color Matrix Metering II system
• dSLR Dad durable Magnesium alloy chassis.
• 2.5 inch LCD.
• Screw motor drive works with all Nikon F-mount lenses.
• i-TTL Creative Lighting System build-in to command Nikon Speedlights wirelessly.

The Nikon D200 dSLR Camera is available now at Amazon.com. If you are not sure what lens to pick up, may I suggest Nikon’s new AF-S DX Nikkor 18-105mm F/3.5-5.6G ED Vibration-Reduction (VR) Zoom Lens or the ever popular and versatile AF-S DX 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 G ED-IF VR Zoom-Nikkor Lens.

Well, the good part about an economic downturn is you start to see some good values.  Canon is offering up another instant rebate program.  You can save up to $125 on select Canon Lenses with their latest new Canon Instant Savings Rebate.  Even their just released Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens is being offered for $50 off!

The best part about ‘Instant’, no mail-in rebates to forget about mailing in.  The following lenses are offered with an instant rebate: (more…)

You can now buy the 10.2-megapixel Nikon D80 for just $699 at Amazon.com!  At that price,  it still offers many features that make it a better choice for a dSLR Dad compared to the Nikon D60.  Features such as:

• 11-area Autofocus system with wide-area center segment and auto-area AF functions.  This AF system features a center cross-type sensor and excellent low light detection (inherited from the Nikon D200).
• A lens mount with the built-in focus drive motor.  Allowing you to use more than just AF-S lenses.
• Built-in Speedlight with Nikon i-TTL flash metering and two-group wireless commander mode that works with the with the  Nikon SB-900, SB-800, and SB-600 Speedlight Flashes.
• Auto exposure bracketing of 2 to 3 frames.
• A viewfinder that offers a 0.94x magnification (versus the D60’s 0.80x)
• Slightly larger body for those dSLR Dads with bigger hands.
• An available MB-D80 Vertical Battery Grip accessory for those who enjoy using such options.

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This is a really great deal for you dSLR Dads who are just starting our or, like me, looking to upgrade your many year-old setup. Canon is offering multiple rebates to those who purchase both an EOS dSLR and the Canon Pixma Pro9500 Printer. The Pro9500 is Canon’s desktop 13 inch wide-format inkjet which uses the Lucia Pigment-based ink set. It will print a maximum size sheet of 13 by 23 inches up to 1.2mm (47 mil) thick. It produces some really excellent color and black-and-white prints. You can check out Vincent Oliver’s review over at photo-i here. I do suggest bypassing the Canon fine art papers and instead pick up some Ilford Galerie Gold Fibre Silk Fine-Art Inkjet Paper (available at Amazon and B&H Photo).

To get the deal, you need to purchase both the Canon Pixma Pro9500 printer (available at Amazon and B&H Photo) and one of the following EOS dSLRs at the same time by April 19, 2008:

• Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III (Amazon, B&H Photo)
• Canon EOS 1D Mark III (Amazon, B&H Photo)
• Canon EOS 5D (Amazon, B&H Photo)
• Canon EOS 5D with EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens (Amazon, B&H Photo)
• Canon EOS 40D (Amazon, B&H Photo)
• EOS 40D with EF 28-135mm IS USM Lens (Amazon, B&H Photo)

To make it easier, I have set up a separate Amazon page and well as a B&H Photo Wishlist.