Pascal Photography Studio

Living with a Canon EOS 7D – Part 3 – In the field, Wildlife Photography.

Finally, I was able to take my Canon EOS 7D into the field, I mean by that into the bush, how did it fair though?

Let me be honest up front, so there are no misunderstanding, after 6 months of using the camera I am still learning how to get it right. I may know how to, technically and theoretically, take a photograph but this machine is still partially a mystery to me. A mystery mostly because yours truly is off the “auto mode” and into some serious photography. Besides “auto mode” does not give me what I want, just what I expect and that is not good enough.

A tip for you, when you go into the bush choose you lens carefully, chances are you will not be able to change it as it will make you loose the moment. So, what lens are suitable in the bush for wildlife? You can look at this previous article I wrote, Choosing a lens to suit wildlife photography and Living with a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens in the wild, but it gets more complicated than this. Consider light, are you going out in the day or twilight? In full day light a 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 will do fine, in twilight you would be better off with a 70-200mm f/2.8 as the reach would be limited anyways. Fine so the next question is what about flash or high ISO to compensate? Flash, forget about it, it’s unlikely to help because of the distance we are talking about. As for high ISO, in the case of the Canon EOS 7D up to 12800 which I never used, it does help and the noise control of the Canon EOS 7D makes it all worth it. At ISO 6400, you have noise but less then my Canon EOS 400D at ISO 1600, besides there are wonderful tools to reduce grain/noise, check out Adobe Lightroom 3 Beta 2 for example.

So what have I learned about taking photos of wildlife with the Canon EOS 7D ?

1. Set it to aperture priority, AV Mode. Then again I only shoot in this mode, it gives you control over the depth of field.
2. Set the ISO to Auto, surprise surprise, yes and leave it that way, it will avoid profane language when you set it to 6400 and forget that you did, I found that the camera it very good at choosing the right ISO setting.
3. Set the focus to AF Point Expansion, it will give you a little more control over the focus point then Single Point AF, just in case the subject moves.
4. Set it to spot or centre weighted average metering, I find it gives me a better result overall
5. Set to AI focus, again for flexibility (double tap the trigger and it acts as AI Servo) although AI Servo would work too but it may start hunting.
6. Set it to High or Low Speed Continuous, though for fast moving subjects High Speed Continuous shooting is advisable.
7. Have a high capacity CF card 8GB and above, trust me.

Oddly enough, I never shoot wildlife in RAW, simply because in RAW I can only shoot 6 frames (less then a second) in High Speed Continuous shooting  before the camera slows down, in JPG this rises to a cool 70 (10 seconds).

Please note that none of the photos below have been modified except for the resizing required for the web.

Here is a sequence of Impala chasing Impala shot with the Canon EOS 7D in relative low light (twilight) with the settings above, set at f/4.5 using the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens, the camera chose ISO 1600.

This photo of Rhinoceroses was shot after sundown with a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USM at f/2.8 at 1/4 sec and ISO 6400, it was on a tripod. You will notice noise but remember it was dark to the point where I could only see shadows.

In daylight the Canon EOS 7D paired with the Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens give this result.

in brief, The Camera is very good and well suited for wildlife photography, if paired with the right lens.

Living with the Canon EOS 7D – Part 2

It’s been a while since I have received the Canon EOS 7D, ad to tell you the truth I am rather happy and even sometimes very impressed with it, the ISO noise reduction is amazing but I’ll leave that for another day.

But as all things good and 95% of this camera is pure goodness itself but I encountered certain limitations that are from the unexpected to the absurd, all related to the use of flashes. I have to be honest too, the following is advanced stuff and I mean advanced, but not all of it.

First up, to me not advanced but rather required, is “rear curtain sync” using the built-in infrared remote remote on the camera, mind you we tried the same with a Canon Speedlite 580EX set as a commander too with the same results, well he is the news flash (sorry for the pun), it is not possible! Read the manual it will tell you so, absurd you say? I agree completely. Obviously, whether you use a  Canon Speedlite 430EX or 580EX on the camera’s shoe, it will work 100%. I could not find a Canon Commander to test this with, so I cannot tell about that but I suspect the same issue will arise.

The second one is what is known as Multi or Strobe, this function allows the photographer to have multiple flash exposure on one exposure, the Canon EOS 7D does this with ease using it’s pop-up flash, unfortunately it is far from powerful enough. So I put it in remote to trigger the 3 Canon Speedlite 430EX and… The option in no longer available. Ok so maybe I ask a little too much, it is advanced stuff. I fit a Canon Speedlite 430EX to the camera shoe and the option is still not available. So the pop-up flash can do it but not the semi-professional flash… Confusion sets in… So, thanks to the guys at Cameratek, we put a Canon Speedlite 580EX on the camera shoe… Multi is now available! And it works, but here is the kicker, you are going to love this! Put the Canon Speedlite 580EX in Multi mode and make it a master, guess what! The Canon Speedlite 430EX receive the Multi order and execute it. So the Canon Speedlite 430EX is capable of it but it looks like the Canon EOS 7D’s infrared commander is not a “full” commander.

But do not mistake this for a rant, these are true limitations of the flashes, I still love my Canon Speedlite 430EX as well as my Canon EOS 7D and find very little wrong with it.

Now here is a word to Canon, DO NOT DO HALF A JOB!!! Nikon’s have no issues with this to my knowledge, so next firmware update include it in! Both please!

Living with an iPhone 3GS

So what is the hype with this iPhone thing anyways?
I mean it just another mobile phone, right?
Yes it is and the iPhone 3GS does a wonderful job at being just that a phone but, unlike most of my previous Smartphone, it has an edge…
You see it’s a computer in your hand with an operating system that works, unlike my previous Microsoft Mobile phones it does not freeze and 99% of the application that I want work, no fidgeting, no wasted time, it just works.
And yes not all the application are free but the care and quality is generally better than it’s Windows Mobile platform counterpart, so far.

And to prove my point, this was all written on an iPhone 3GS in under 15 minutes!

More on the iPhone’s use in photography soon.

Does the camera really makes a difference in the real world? Part 1 – Intro

I am going to talk about a scary subject in a few forthcoming posts, one that frightens me terribly…

Imagine for a moment, maybe in horror because that’s what is happening to me right now, that you taking this prise winning photograph and your beloved Canon EOS 5D, yes Charl I was thinking of you, or Canon EOS 7D’s shutter locks up or something happens that renders your professional camera completely useless. It gives me the shivers, just thinking about it. There is nothing in the world that you can do about it. What now?

But wait, there is a Canon EOS 1000D in your bag! Your partner uses it from time to time to help out at a wedding or other event where you need to be at 2 places at the same time. You are saved!!! But are you, really?

I am not really exactly talking from experience here, but I have had my share of catastrophes that came uncomfortably close to this scenario. The worst was our trip to the Kalahari where my prized Canon EOS 300D and Sigma 170-500 were destroyed just before entering the park for 5 days. I had no backup cameras, I could not afford one at the time. To tell the truth going to any game reserve without a camera would be the equivalent of being blind for me. I was lucky enough to have found a Canon EOS 400D in Upington and I still had a kit 55-200 lens with me which I promptly used for the rest of the trip.

Today, I feel a bit like the Mythbusters, I am going to simulate that very improbable catastrophe using 2 very different cameras both 1.6 cropped. One is considered as the ultimate Canon entry level, Canon EOS 1000D, the other camera is the one that may have change the way Nikon fans, whether they admit it or not, look at Canon cameras, the Canon EOS 7D. Do not mistaken this for a comparative review, it’s not. It’s about living with an uncontrollable event and how to handle it and make the best of it.

Firstly, these are 2 completely different cameras with 2 completely different characters, never mind specifications, check Digital Photography Review for the reviews of each. The Canon EOS 7D is a pro level SLR, the rig is with a battery grip and 2 batteries in it and a Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 USM L weighs a massive 2.5KG, than again you can feel the the magnesium alloy body quality as you grip the camera, it feels and holds right… On the other hand the Canon EOS 1000D is an entry level that with one battery and the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 USM L weighs a respectable 1.6KG but because it it smaller physical size it is going to be harder to handle.

Next, the real life test, for that I will use the same lenses and flashes with both cameras, either the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 USM L or the Canon EF 70-200 f/2.8 USM L and do the same photos with the same settings with both and see how hard it can get without having to spend more money.

Till next time when I take the challenges of a studio photography environment.

By the way, should you have a couple of challenges for me please feel free to add them to the comments and I’ll try to do some, given time.

Editor’s note: The Canon EOS 1000D was returned to the workshop due to an error 99, so this may be longer to test then expected.

Living with the Canon EOS 7D

Firstly, this is NOT a review, if you are looking for a review please go to dpreview.com they dissect the camera to the nth level and then put it back together or Digital Photography School. By the way, DPReview’s rating is “Highly Recommended” with an average of 9.16/10 as compared to Nikon’s D300s (which I have a lot of respect for) with an average of 9.16/10, how odd is that? Anyways, this is about living with it and I have the camera for nearly a month.

First thing you have to understand about the Canon EOS 7D, it is a professional graded “still” camera!!! I will come to the video in a latter post, 1 thing at a time. So what do I mean by that? Well, coming from the very good and light Canon EOS 400D, its like coming off a bicycle with training wheels and driving a racing bike, I know I said this before and I will probably say it again.

First thing you will notice when you pick up the Canon EOS 7D is it’s weight at 918g with the battery in is not light add a battery grip with 2 batteries, a CF card grip and  a 24-70mm f/2.8 L lens and here comes 2,378 kg, not light at all I can tell you.

Second thing you will notice is it’s size, it is massively larger than the Canon EOS 400D, but what a grip, with 2,5kg in your hand you better have a good grip and you do.

Thirdly you will feel the magnesium alloy quality of this professional camera, it fells so good.

And then you switch it on and at first glance life just became more complicated, the buttons and the menu (until you figure out the Quick and Custom menus) looks devastatingly confusing. I read the manual cover to cover 3 times so far, about to do it again but not cover to cover this time. I can now drive the racing bike around a track but I am still far for being able to race…

There are little things I have noticed using the camera, if RAW is used at high ISO you might be disappointed with the amount of noise, oddly enough I did not find this problem with the use of JPGs, most probably due to the high amount of post processing. Taking movement of anything whilst is high burst mode (up to 8 frames a second)  is wonderful but watch how quick you fill your memory card. Lastly, it is deadly silent in comparison to other DLR’s I have used or tested.

So would I recommend it as an upgrade from a 400D/450D/500D? Not unless you are going into photography seriously, the price does not warrant it. If you are doing casual photography and want the ability to do the odd video clip, I would advise either the Canon 500D or the cheaper but versatile Canon PowerShot SX20 IS (I will do a “living with the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS a little later). If you, like me, are either in action, sport or wildlife photography the Canon EOS 50D will do fine if you do no care about video. But if you are serious and have the finance for it the Canon EOS 7D paired with a versatile L lens, I recommend the Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8 L USM to start with bringing you to an equivalent of 39-112mm of this 1,6 cropped sensor,  is the way to go.

I will write more about this in the weeks to come as I will soon have the opportunity to try a Canon EOS 5D Mk1 and maybe others in the field. I am also taking some courses in the next few months of subject maters I had not really thought off previously. But first impressions are that It was a very good investment.

Living with a Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 IS L lens in the wild.

Whether I like it or not, I have made a conscious educated choice the day I decided to by my 100-400mm zoom, I have made my bed and I have to live with it. But how well am I living with it?

After 11 days and some 3500 photos done with my 2 lenses, the other being a Canon 24-70mm f/2.4 L, I thought I’d report on the experience.

First if you are going to use a zoom lens for wildlife a few setting are going to be required, either put your camera on sport or set it to centre auto focus, ISO 400/800, it’s highest f-stop (4.5 to 5.6 in this case) and in continuous shooting, this is important as most wildlife will not wait for you to setup your camera or to have the perfect frame. Most wildlife photographers end up cropping their photos to re-frame anyways. I admit that though I knew about all this the day I got to the park I was so excited I forgot to do the settings… It cost me a lot of bad and unusable photos.

Next, what of the Image Stabilizer? I tried both with and without to be perfectly honest as long as you are getting a speed above 1/250 of a second leave it on, just remember that IS does not compensate for the subjects movement, it only compensates for camera shake. So, if your are like me and forget to change your settings, movement blur of the subject will be your punishment, see leopard’s paws and legs bellow? 

The IS was on, the camera told me the the photo could be taken but at ISO100, 1/100 of a second, f/4.5 I got motion blur, so the IS was a problem in this case as it allowed me to take a photograph that did not represent what I wanted. I subsequently raised the ISO to 400 and the results were quiet different. This in flight Ground Hornbill was taken with far less light the IS was on with the settings at ISO400, 1/640 of a second, f/9.0 and has very little unwanted movement blur.

So if you follow some simple principals it is possible to catch wildlife action without too much grief.

What really amazed me about the lens was the image quality and focusing speed, my Sigma never game me those qualities. The drawback, the 1.3kg added to the extended body, it can get tiring at times but a bean bag or window mount solves that problem.

Finally, the big question is whether I can live with the lens or if I wasted my money, I can assure you that I did not waste a cent, though I had to get accustomed to the lens’ character I am very impressed with the results. look at he hippo head bellow and I could never had shot this photograph of a crocodile suddenly turning away from a hippo at a rather high speed and at a distance without it, the quality of the photographs speaks for itself. My only regret… I would love to have the Canon EF 400mm f2.8 L II IS USM but the price is rather prohibitive though f/2.8 would be handy.

Focal 400mm, ISO 100, 1/400, f/7.1

Focal 400mm, ISO 100, 1/400, f/7.1