So I grabbed my camera and I was about to leave, open the door and see a nice amazon box at my doorstep. (I even opened the door for my gf about 5 minutes before and it was not there). My first day out using my camera, and my lens comes too! Still learning and still playing with the camera. I have a lot to figure out.

But my question is, do you think a flash is needed? Most of the pictures i've taken, I have tried not to use a flash. But this deal seemed pretty good.

canon 550ex speedlite - $175

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/pho/990001009.html

cuboy,

I just got my first speedlight (sb600 not relevant for your use) for xmas this year so I haven't had a chance to use it much, but the difference is night and day

it is NOTHING like on camera flash

it basically fills everything in with beautiful smooth light (when not pointed directly at the person)

I LOVE IT!

Yup, bouncing light from an external flash off the ceiling or walls creates a nice soft light.

so it's either the fastpack 200 or the 250. Still deciding.

I'm thinking the 250, since I can toss a small blanket / magazines / maps in the laptop compartment when i'm out and about hiking or what not and when i'm traveling I can use it to put a laptop.

or the 200 to just minimize extra bulkiness. There's an extra 1.3" depth between the 200 and 250.

Good idea with the 250, i have to roll up my magazines to fit in the top compartment in the 200. But like you said, depends on how much bulk you want! Maybe go try both bags and see which feels better.

were those beach shots handheld?

I do not have a tripod yet, nor do I know how to shoot pictures. Out of about the 1000 i've taken already. I kept about 150 and these 6 were some of my favorites. I've been shooting in full manual mode and playing around with the settings to learn and grasp a better understanding of what it does. Probably why i've shot 1000 pictures in about 4 maybe 5 total hours.

The first picture was the 4th picture I shot with the camera. I didn't know what I was doing, but my dog turned out great. used full auto

The 2nd and 3rd picture of my cousin was about the 3rd time I used my camera. I was shotting on full manual. forgot what settings. still learning

the top beach shot was at full zoon on my tamron. 75mm.

and the last picture, the camera was sitting on the arm rest of a balcony i think the shutter was opened at 0"4 whatever that means

4" = 4 seconds

the reason I asked is because those two beach shots are beautiful

if the silhouettes were sharp they'd be amazing

you did your best though

was it windy?

nevermind. I looked at my camera again, I thought it went to 1/2 shutterspeed. but it ends at 1/4 and goes to 0"3

makes more sense now.

thanks for the complements! Yeah I really like the shots, I wish the first one was more sharp. I just need a steader hand or cough up more money and get the 24-70L which has IS

Here is another one I took

try to get that same pic when you get your tripod and its not windy and you'll be very happy

"canon 550ex speedlite - $175"

Wow, a 550ex for $175? That's a great deal. If you haven't already ordered it, I'd say order it now! Where is that deal from?

Those baby pics are darling, btw.

Personally, and I know a lot of people will disagree with me, there is very little use in shooting in full manual mode.

I would just go in Av mode and go wild. Then, as you gain a better grip of the camera and it's abilities, you can start to work more in manual when the need arises. For 90% of situations, I feel like it's advanced modes will be more than sufficient.

I agree if you're just taking snapshots

thats about Average price..the 550ex is kinda old. If it was the 580EX then it would be a killer deal

would a 50mm f/1.4 prime qualify as a macro? or would I have to get extensions

is it 1:1 or not

probably not, but can I focus closer on subjects with that lens than the tamron I have?

I dont know what are the minimum focus distances?

if you are unsure, look up your lens at bhphoto.com and check the "specifications" tab

no its not a macro by any means...its just a standard prime

thanks for the tip! I was looking on amazon and didn't find my answer there.

I guess I was mistaken the 50mm prime is not a macro lens. - Magnification 1:6.66

I mistakened it for Canon Normal EF 50mm f/2.5 Compact Macro - Magnification 1:2 (1:1 with lifesize converter EF)

hmmm used canon 100mm macro lens for 360 ish

or canon speedlight 430exii flash. ($260)

or prime 50mm f/1.8 ($80) and a used sigma 105mm f/2.8 macro ($250)


This tamron f/2.8 just isn't cutting it in some low light situations, I wonder if a 50mm f1.8 prime would give me a better result so I can get a prime lens and the used macro.

that can only be answered on what you like to shoot...a prime and a macro lens are 2 totally different shooting styles. The flash would be a great help but I would do the 50 1.8 and sigma 105...optically you will see no difference in IQ vs the canon..the canon just has a faster AF and does not extend when focus.

I wanted to have the possibility to have a nice macro lens in the future, as well as enhance my indoor low light shots.

therefore, I am also leaning on getting a nifty-fifty lens and a used sigma lens to increase my options. I would love to own the canon macro lens for the faster AF and the fact it doesn't extend when focus. However, i'm still exploring the world of photography so i'm still debating which route to take.

Focus speed is not important at all in macro shooting..Most of the time you dont use it anyway..95% of my macro shooting is done with MF..I dont even use the AF for it

so i just got the sigma macro 105mm lens. what a beauty it is. However, not a large fan of the lens extension when focusing. All good, lens is basically in perfect condition.

does anyone know if the sig 150 extends w/ focus?

well, I still have not purchased the nifty50 lens. However, over the weekend, I was able to play with a 50mm f/1.4 at a wedding reception.

a very nice lens, and decent fast in low light. I even set it to 1.8 to see how well it would be.

looks like I will be going to the flash route instead.

well I picked up the 430ex and it's pretty awesome.

what mode / settings do you normally use when using a flash?

I was using AV mode then switched to Manual, but nothing really came out right.. Well not necessarily nothing, I had a some good pictures but also a ton of blur and distortion around the subjects up to a point where i just put it on full auto or portrait mode.

when you shoot in av mode..the flash in ETTL mode will just fire enough flash to act as a fill light.
When shooting in M mode and using the flash in ETTL the flash will fire as much power needed to expose teh scene to the proper exposure of what it thinks is proper.

so my bag now consist of

Canon XSi
Canon 50mm f/1.8
Tamron 28-75 f/2.8
Sigma 105mm f/2.8 macro
canon 430exii

What should I do next. I want a little more wide and some extra zoom

get an UWA tokina 12-24mm f/4 and save up a very long time for a canon 70-200

or

sell my tamron and get a tokina 16-50 f/2.8 or tamrom 17-50 f/2.8 + tokina 50-135 f/2.8? I've been checking out this thread regarding the tokina 50-135 and it looks like a great lens

http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showth...F2.8&page=7

sig 70-200 2.8 and sig 10-20 3.5

hmm for the price of the sigma, i think I would rather get the tokina 11-16 f/2.8