Warbird Information Exchange

I notice that some of you have the Canon 20D. Is that about the best one for the money? Anyone have a Nikon?

I kind of like the idea of the 100-400 IS Canon lens, but it seems kind of slow. Does Nikon have anything equivalent for their camera?

Any opinions are appreciated. I mostly take ground shots or ground to air shots.

I love my 20D and have had no problems with it. It's electronics are smart enough in most airshow/museum situations that I rarely worry about settings and worry more about getting and framing the shot. With the forthcoming 30D the prices on 20D's will probably drop in the coming months.

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Many Nikon users complain about the lack of affordable lens choice and end up buying Sigma lenses. The choice and cost of the Canon lenses was one of the main factors that caused me to opt for Canon when I was setting up. Most of the photographers whose work I admired also used Canon and were very helpful to me when I asked them for advice - this help was invaluable (Thanks Nick & Damien).

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PlaneTalk Forum

While I enjoy my Rebel XT, I find that the reduced size to be a bit of a pain sometimes. IF you or anyone has large hands the XT is NOT for you. If the 30D comes out soon it maybe worth shelling out for that, I assume that the focus will be even better (I think I read that) and that is always a good thing for aviation photography.

I know there are several people here that use Nikon and they get some great photos, but I think most of that are the users and only partly the equipment.

Tim

Check out Steve's Digital Photo page or the Digital Camera Resource Page for reviews

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www.tailhookstudio.com

For an additional $150, the 30D seems attractive with respect to the 20D.

I just got a XT. I spent most of the day shooting with it. I love it. Although Tims comments about big hands does appear to be an issue. However I think I can train myself. I also got a vertical batter grip, so that may help. I haven't tried it yet.

Mike

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Mike R. Henniger
Aviation Enthusiast & Photographer
http://www.AerialVisuals.ca
http://www.facebook.com/AerialVisuals

Do you want to find locations of displayed, stored or active aircraft? Then start with the The Locator.
Do you want to find or contribute to the documented history of an aircraft? If so then start with the Airframes Database.

Mike
The most important lesson so far I've learned is that if you try to take a picture and nothing happens, I've hit the self timer button. I've done this at every airshow, after about the 3rd time I trained myself to deselect it very quickly. That is the only button I have a problem with.

Tim

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www.tailhookstudio.com

Firmly in the Canon camp here. The 100-400 does have a slower aperture (4.5-5.6). Unless your shooting at daybreak, or sunset it works fine. AF is fast . Nikon has a 200-400 f/4 lense with their version of IS that is just amazing from all the reviews I have read. It is also very expensive, over $5,000. The 100-400 is about $1,300-1,400.
If you just want to start out in Canon, find a used 10D. It is a little slow, but it can do a great job. Check out my 2004 Galleries on my website. Every single picture was taken with a 10D.

www.timadamsphotography.com

Also the 30D is out. I have had mine for three weeks now.

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"I love the smell of racing gas in the morning"
www.timadamsphotography.com

Thanks Tim, beautiful photos. I've never used an IS lens before. Is there anything to watch out for?

There are a couple of generations of Canon’s IS. The 100-400 is one of the older lenses, and IS system. It has two modes, and a switch on the side of the lense to turn the IS on and off, and mode 1 or 2. Mode 1 is mainly for taking pics of a stationary object. Mode 2 generally is for panning. Most of the time I leave it in mode 2, but if I want real slow shutter speed to get massive prop blur, I will switch to mode 1. The first generation of IS that the 100-400 has, is not meant to be used on tripods or monopods. IS should be turned off when you use the pods. I have had great luck leaving it on in mode 1 however on a monopod for 1/30, and slower shutter speeds. I only use the pod for engine run ups where I want prop blur, otherwise I just hand hold it.

Now the 70-200 is the newer version of IS. Same two modes, but I leave it in mode 2 all the time. The lense knows if you are taking a pic of a stationary object to be in mode 1, if the object starts to move, and you begin to pan it switches to mode 2 on its own, BUT, only if you had it in mode 2 to begin with.

When taking pics of jets however, I leave the IS off. You are using high shutter speeds with jets so IS is not needed. Also with IS on, when you track a plane, you may not always keep the AF sensor on it as it tracks across the sky. If you lose it and the lense sees only sky and the IS is on, it has no clue what to try to focus on. It will then lock the camera up and give you an error code. The only way to clear the error and start taking pics again, is to turn the camera off, remove the lens, and put it back on, or turn off the camera, remove the batteries quickly, then reinstall them. With IS off, this will rarely happen. You still will get errors occasionally; it is just a fact of life with a DSLR

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"I love the smell of racing gas in the morning"
www.timadamsphotography.com

Yeah make sure the IS is on. I shoot a 20D and the "L" Lense and have a bunch of shots wasted because I didn't turn
it on. The Canon is a great camera. I was shooting a Nikon F4 and had a bag full of lenses that wouldn't work with
the modern camera.

You wouldn't be sorry.

Check out www.photograhy-on-the.net , they have a ton of stuff and all kinds of questions are asked and answered
all the time.

Cheers,

Lynn

Lynn, link no workie!

Edit> http://photography-on-the.net/

Thanks Lynn!!!

I just added the vertical battery grip/battery pack to my XT. It makes a big difference and adds extra area to grip when holding in the horizontal as well.

Mike

_________________
Mike R. Henniger
Aviation Enthusiast & Photographer
http://www.AerialVisuals.ca
http://www.facebook.com/AerialVisuals

Do you want to find locations of displayed, stored or active aircraft? Then start with the The Locator.
Do you want to find or contribute to the documented history of an aircraft? If so then start with the Airframes Database.

Thanks, duh I guess on my part. That place has a wealth of info.
If you have a Canon question or need, that is where you will git-r-done.

Lynn

You might look around for a camera shop that rents camera equipment and rent both the Canon and Nikon. Test drive them both and then rent the one you like for the Chino Show, shoot what you can with your spare time at the show and compare.

When I started to look around, I noticed what the pro's were shooting, Canon.

Lynn