Camera Labs

I've been hanging out in the Canon forums for a few weeks now, but have never posted in this section. And since I just recently completely overhauled my gear and went to the next level with my photography, I thought it would be a good time to introduce myself to everyone on the site.

I live in central Kentucky, USA, and am in my first year of college. Maybe someday I'll get lucky and make a bit of money in the dime-a-dozen world of photogs, but I'm having lots of fun as an advanced amateur/enthusiast. Apart from photography I play the organ for a living, and that is what I'm studying in college right now. Anyway, I recently came from Sony to Canon, for various reasons, mainly because I didn't enjoy their ergonomics and I feel the upper level bodies are inferior. I regret the decision even less now that Sony announced their intention to manufacturer solely "EVIL" cameras.
But I didn't make just a mere brand switch, I changed the whole class of everything I own.

My favorite subject to shoot is aviation, mostly actual airshows. But I shoot pretty much anything to document my life. In the stores I fell in love with the ergonomics of the xxD bodies from Canon, and went with the EOS 50D because of a good deal refurbished. And it works like a charm. Since I have a Sony Handycam HD camcorder, I don't really miss the video mode of the newer 60D/7D at all. And it's just as good if not better photographic camera than the 60D. It's comfortable, feature-rich, and most importantly operates very quickly and easily. Much more easy to use than the entry level ones which require too much menu hunting. I chose my lenses with the knowledge I didn't have when buying my first DSLR, that being that they're much more important than the body is in terms of final image quality. Because I shoot on a crop frame DSLR, I chose the extremely versatile and surprisingly well performing EF-S 15-85mm. It seems to have everything the 24-105L does except build quality. And for telephoto and in particular airshows, I bought the Tamron 70-300mm VC USD. Since it's a third-party lens, it is a steal. Very sharp and the new focus motor is great. I'd love more reach but it can't be beat for $450. So that's a brief synopsis of my style and gear, the 50D is long in the tooth but I may go more in depth with my other gear over in the user review section.

I've really enjoyed my time here on the forums so far. Look forward to many more great discussions, and above all, taking more great pictures!


Mark

Welcome to the forum Mark

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

like the intro .

Not sure that I would agree with Sony bodies inferior, in fact I don`t believe anyone makes a dud camera. I would go and suggest that they make some of the best sensors in the business.

My reason for moving away from Sony was simply down to the fact that Sony lenses are more expensive and harder to get than Canon lenses. Even though they do not require build in stabilisation in their lenses, they want more money for them.

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Canon Powershot S95, Canon 7D, 15-85, Canon 85 1.8 USM, Sigma 30 1.4, 50mm 1.8, Canon 100 2.8L IS Macro, Canon 70-300L IS USM+Kenko 1.4 Pro 300DGX, Canon 430EX II and RS 4 Classic

Thanks for the welcome, everyone.

Perhaps I was a bit harsh with Sony. It was mainly an issue of physical styling and features. I agree the sensors are still very good. Lens selection was another reason I chose Canon.

On a separate note, I thought I'd offer my two main photo sharing websites, if anyone would be interested in having a look:

http://www.airshowmedia.net/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/62678892@N08/

@Mark D, apparently your very young and quit excited about your new hobby.
As you mature you will discover that only a bad craftsman blames his tools for his personal failures ... that's you.
When you speak of inferiority, you should look in the mirror, as doing some quick research on Camera IQ, today's Alpha 580 outscores a 50D 80 to 63 putting your Camera's performance in today's amateur ranking.
We'll see if you know how to take photos with it as it's still a great piece of equipment.

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