dSLR Dad

Canon USA also announced today that the new EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-55.6 IS zoom lens and EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS zoom lenses are now available.

The following is an excerpt from the Canon USA Press Release: (more…)

Canon announced their new EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS lens back on August 20, 2007 along with new EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens (Amazon, B&H Photo). It is not yet shipping, but Klaus Schroiff over at PhotoZone.de has already picked up a sample for review.<

Technically the Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS is a tiny lens with a great performance potential. The resolution is very good across the range. Chromatic aberrations are basically a non-issue. The level of distortions remain moderate. The most obvious flaw is, unsurprisingly, vignetting at large apertures. The build quality is fine for a lens in this class and it is one step up from the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS that we’ve seen here recently. Regarding the target market you may surely forgive the plastic mount. The AF (micro-) motor is pretty fast and silent. So’s everything cool here ? Well, the AF accuracy didn’t really convince in the field – specifically at the wide-end of the zoom range – but to be fair this is much better on an EOS 40D (e.g.) with its improved AF capabilities. I had some trouble with the image stabilizer in the field but according to early reader feedback this impression seems to be an exception to the rule. If so the EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS has certainly the potential to be another hot seller.

You can read the full review here.

40D Body only Price of $1,149

Happy Holidays everyone. Nikon ramps up production on the D300, and then all of a sudden, Canon lowers the price on the 40D. Right now, you can get the Canon EOS 40D for $1,149 at B&H Photo. That’s $150 off (more…)

Is it better than the Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens through the same range?

PhotoZone puts Canon’s latest entry level EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS lens (Amazon and B&H Photo) through the test, and the results are impressive for a kit lens:

The Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS is the next generation budget “kit” lens for Canon EOS APS-C DSLRs. It is a long awaited and, frankly, urgently needed successor for the rather mediocre EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 II which was not able to convince anymore ever since the release of EOS 20D. However, Canon did not only improve the optical design – they also added an image stabilizer, changed the finish and introduced circular aperture blades for a better bokeh (out-of-focus blur). (more…)

Nikon’s been getting a lot of the press recently, but Canon has new cameras too. The new 40D was announced the same time, but has been shipping since early fall. With that, I present you dSLR Dad’s with all the information you need to justify spending more money. (more…)

Ok, there are two ways for a dSLR Dad to look at it, but either way, this is a great deal. Amazon has the Canon EOS 5D with EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens for $2606! That’s even $250 less than B&H Photo!

So let’s break this down. The Canon EOS 5D dSLR body currently costs $2155. However, the Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens costs $990. So this means that this 12 MegaPixel, Full-Frame dSLR package has a value of $538! That makes this (more…)

(Updated 12/10) As a follow up to yesterday’s post about the Canon IPF5000 17″ Printer for under $800, I have found another great deal for you dSLR Dad’s.

Amazon has the Canon EOS 30D dSLR (Body Only) for $799. That is $100 less than B&H Photo also has it for $799 (a common theme I’ve noticed this Holiday season). Now true, the Canon EOS 40D is a full model change from the 30D, but it’s still $400 more. For those of you dSLR Dad’s who were considering a Canon Digital Rebel XTi for Christmas, this would be a great step up in performance, durability, and resale value for just $250. You can buy it at either the dSLR Dad Amazon Storefront (post comments to let me know what you think of it) or at the regular Amazon site. As always, these links help to support this site. And I would like to thank all of you dSLR Dads who have done so this Holiday season. You have made it possible (more…)

Amazon has the Canon EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS SLR Lens available now for order. This has Canon’s latest optical Image Stabilizer (IS) technology which provides up to 4-stop compensation for image blur caused by camera shake and slow shutter speeds. (more…)

Sigma has updated their APO 70-200mm F2.8 EX DG Macro HSM Lens. They improved the optical performance and minimum focusing distance to 100cm/39.4in and a maximum magnification of 1:3.5. Two SLD and three ELD glass elements are now used to provide excellent correction for all types of aberrations.

B&H Photo currently has the Canon mount in stock here. For those of you interested, they are available for pre-order in Nikon and Canon mounts over at the dSLR Dad Amazon Store. Of course, they will also be made available in a Sigma SLR mount. (more…)

Sigma has updated their 50-150mm EX DC HSM f/2.8 Large aperture telephoto zoom lens designed exclusively for digital SLR cameras. The new lens design ensures higher image quality at a minimum focusing distance of 100cm/39.4 in.

For those of you interested, they are available for pre-order in Nikon and Canon mounts over at the dSLR Dad Amazon Store. Of course, they will also be made available in a Sigma mount.

(more…)