Well having got my camera I was wondering what other bits I'd need.

One of the lads done a beginners course and the following were recommended so I thought I'd ask your opinion on them. Are these blowers and pens any good or could they do more damage than good? Maybe theres other things you might suggest as being useful.

Blower

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Lens Cleaning Pen/Brush

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

Lens Cleaning Pen Kit for Canon 40D 30D 5D on eBay, also, Other Digital Camera Accs, Digital Camera Accessories, Photography (end time 10-May-08 20:33:53 BST)

Remote Control (seen this one for 6.50stg)

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Flash Bounce Diffuser Pixco Pop-Up Flash Diffuser 4 CANON EOS 40D 30D 20D 5D on eBay, also, Flash Units, Digital Camera Accessories, Photography (end time 07-May-08 23:09:20 BST)

I was also thinking about the following;

UV Filter - are these worth while? What kinda one should I be looking for?

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Microfibre Cleaning cloth

7dayshop.com - Online Store

UV filter on at all times to act as protection for the lens.

Polarizing filter for shooting through glass etc. where cutting reflections is wanted.

Well having got my camera I was wondering what other bits I'd need.

One of the lads done a beginners course and the following were recommended so I thought I'd ask your opinion on them. Are these blowers and pens any good or could they do more damage than good? Maybe theres other things you might suggest as being useful.

Blower

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Lens Cleaning Pen/Brush

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

7dayshop.com - Online Store

or

Lens Cleaning Pen Kit for Canon 40D 30D 5D on eBay, also, Other Digital Camera Accs, Digital Camera Accessories, Photography (end time 10-May-08 20:33:53 BST)

Remote Control (seen this one for 6.50stg)

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Flash Bounce Diffuser Pixco Pop-Up Flash Diffuser 4 CANON EOS 40D 30D 20D 5D on eBay, also, Flash Units, Digital Camera Accessories, Photography (end time 07-May-08 23:09:20 BST)

I was also thinking about the following;

UV Filter - are these worth while? What kinda one should I be looking for?

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Microfibre Cleaning cloth

7dayshop.com - Online Store

Hi Gaff

The only blower to go for is the 'Rocket' blower.

The only lens/sensor pens are the ones made by 'LensPen' - all of the others are fakes!!!

The remote looks good value.

You will find the flash diffuser a waste of time as the flash is so low power anyway, you will significantly reduce the flashes range. Save up and get a 580exII if you are serious.

Spend lots on a filter, otherwise you may as well shoot through the bottom of a milk bottle. I use Hoya Pro-1 UV and polarisers.

The cloth is useful. Be aware that lens glass is actually soft, (it wouldn't cut you if broken), so when cleaning be VERY GENTLE.

I hope that all helps:thumbup:

Spend lots on a filter, otherwise you may as well shoot through the bottom of a milk bottle. I use Hoya Pro-1 UV and polarisers.

Do you double up with the filters?

I leave the UV on all the time, but when I want to use the polariser I'm never sure if it's better to swap filters rather than sandwich? Obviously the less glass the better, but then the hassle of swapping and the chance of dust and negating the protection etc etc always confuses me. Is the image degradation that noticeable?

I guess it's more a problem with the fact I have few lenses and swap from inside to outside shooting constantly with what I'm doing. If I had a landscape lens then I'd just leave the polariser on it?

Do you double up with the filters?

I leave the UV on all the time, but when I want to use the polariser I'm never sure if it's better to swap filters rather than sandwich? Obviously the less glass the better, but then the hassle of swapping and the chance of dust and negating the protection etc etc always confuses me. Is the image degradation that noticeable?

I guess it's more a problem with the fact I have few lenses and swap from inside to outside shooting constantly with what I'm doing. If I had a landscape lens then I'd just leave the polariser on it?

I swap them over. I rarely use the polarizer unless for lansdcapes and skies (plenty of time to set up and take). For most other things, losing 2 stops of light is not acceptable for me!!

http://www.gtmedia.com/Gallery/Gallery/content/1dsII_20080726_131342_large.html

My skies never go that blue even with the polariser anyway haha. Should probably practice using fill in flash or getting exposure right in the first place, with sky backgrounds, anyway. It's my nemesis

Cheers,

Scuffs advice is tops as always. Although as a total amateur (me that is) on a budget, I can recommend the 430 EX flash as a reasonably powerful flash. It can only be a slave to a 580, not the other way around, but I don’t think I will ever go that far (if I do I will be off to get a 580). The polarisers really work well when you want to saturate the colours in your pictures Gaff, the reflection thing is a fun thing that seems almost more of a fringe benefit to me (I haven’t many water piccies so far) and I bought a very expensive Hoya UV filter too on the recommendation of the shop where I bought my 17-55mm Canon lens.

My skies never go that blue even with the polariser anyway haha. Should probably practice using fill in flash or getting exposure right in the first place, with sky backgrounds, anyway. It's my nemesis

Cheers,

It really depends at what angle you are to the sunlight for the polarizer to have maximum effect. Have a look at some of my new zealand, australia and scotland ones and you'll see how effective the blue can come out. Not saying the rest of the picture is great but the blues are nice.

I'll give away all my secrets in one post - wait until later in the day or early morning for the best light. It's hard to get blue sky when sun right above you.... I think it's called the magic hour or something like that... then it really doesn't matter what camera you have.

Flickr: Colin Burns' Photostream

My skies never go that blue even with the polariser anyway haha. Should probably practice using fill in flash or getting exposure right in the first place, with sky backgrounds, anyway. It's my nemesis

Cheers,

Mort

As mentioned by others, a polarizer works best at 90 degrees from the sun, the effect being varied as you turn the filter.

The exposure and quality of light are the most important. The example I showed above was taken when the sun was partially obscured by thin cloud, just like an enormous soft box in a studio. This kept the contrast low and highlights and shadows very much closer to the range that the camera sensor could record. I used a hand held incident light meter to get an accurate light reading and set this on the camera, taking account of the 1.8 stops of light loss that my filter was introducing.

With landscapes (and car shots), you will rarely get a good result when the sun is out and strong, such as mid day. Again as touched on before, the golden hour is the hour after the sun rises and the hour before the sun sets. The light is warmer and more diffuse (turn off auto white balance). All cameras will produce different results. I know the dynamic range of my cameras and can alter the exposure from my incident light meter to favour the highlights or shadows.

I'll get my anorak then

Hey Scuff,

Cheers for the advice, I'm only getting to really look at these items now.

Hi Gaff

The only blower to go for is the 'Rocket' blower.

The only lens/sensor pens are the ones made by 'LensPen' - all of the others are fakes!!!

Interesting clips on the Lenspen site, I always assumed that one end was vacuum, like the vacuum pens used for lifting small devices (and thats how the dust was lifted).

I came across these on ebay, eBay Store: Search results for Cameta Camera New York Authorized Dealer of all major brands.

They seem to do both Rocket Blower & Lenspen in a pack with some other bits. In particular I was looking at Giottos Rocket-Air Blower Large +Lens & LCD Monitor Pen - eBay (item 140255993464 end time Aug-16-08 18:22:10 PDT)

or

Giottos Rocket-Air Blower Large +Lens & LCD Monitor Pen - eBay (item 140256656371 end time Aug-18-08 17:38:03 PDT)

I assume the bigger the Rocket Blower the better, as there is a smaller version. Also the Digi-Klear LCD Monitor pen is also in it (its only an extra $7).

Maybe theres somewhere else you might have come across to buy from.

Hi Gaff

You will find the flash diffuser a waste of time as the flash is so low power anyway, you will significantly reduce the flashes range. Save up and get a 580exII if you are serious.

I'm serious to a certain extent, I'm not a pro and have a budget (not getting paid for them so hard to justify big expense )

For close up pictures of people would the diffuser not be a good idea until I get a better flash?

Spend lots on a filter, otherwise you may as well shoot through the bottom of a milk bottle. I use Hoya Pro-1 UV and polarisers.

How much should I be spending on these, with the lenses I got? No point in getting top quaility Filters when my lenses would be the weakest link.

Stupid question but how do I know what size one to get, would I need one for each lens or will one fit both lens I have? (7dayshop.com - Online Store)

On the topic of cleaning lenses, while on holiday I noticed a couple of spits of rain got on lens. Gave it a rub of a lens cloth my cousin had for his radar screen on the boat (probably not the best idea but I'd nothing else). Anyway now notice what can be best decribed as dots on the lens. Please tell me I haven't ****ed it up

Again sorry for stupid questions, I'm a newbe to this and have a lot to learn

Hey Scuff,

Cheers for the advice, I'm only getting to really look at these items now.

Interesting clips on the Lenspen site, I always assumed that one end was vacuum, like the vacuum pens used for lifting small devices (and thats how the dust was lifted).

I came across these on ebay, eBay Store: Search results for Cameta Camera New York Authorized Dealer of all major brands.

They seem to do both Rocket Blower & Lenspen in a pack with some other bits. In particular I was looking at Giottos Rocket-Air Blower Large +Lens & LCD Monitor Pen - eBay (item 140255993464 end time Aug-16-08 18:22:10 PDT)

or

Giottos Rocket-Air Blower Large +Lens & LCD Monitor Pen - eBay (item 140256656371 end time Aug-18-08 17:38:03 PDT)

I assume the bigger the Rocket Blower the better, as there is a smaller version. Also the Digi-Klear LCD Monitor pen is also in it (its only an extra $7).

Maybe theres somewhere else you might have come across to buy from.

I'm serious to a certain extent, I'm not a pro and have a budget (not getting paid for them so hard to justify big expense )

For close up pictures of people would the diffuser not be a good idea until I get a better flash?

How much should I be spending on these, with the lenses I got? No point in getting top quaility Filters when my lenses would be the weakest link.

Stupid question but how do I know what size one to get, would I need one for each lens or will one fit both lens I have? (7dayshop.com - Online Store)

On the topic of cleaning lenses, while on holiday I noticed a couple of spits of rain got on lens. Gave it a rub of a lens cloth my cousin had for his radar screen on the boat (probably not the best idea but I'd nothing else). Anyway now notice what can be best decribed as dots on the lens. Please tell me I haven't ****ed it up

Again sorry for stupid questions, I'm a newbe to this and have a lot to learn

Wow, lots of questions. I am happy to give my views, but bear in mind others may have other valid ideas......

I am the same as you and like to keep my lenses clean. A small amount of crap is not going to destroy the quality of your images (I can shoot with the lens up to a fence, and the fence will not show)!!!

I would suggest that you only clean the glass very gently with stuff that is designed for lenses - not monitors or TV's etc. The glass on lenses is very soft and can easily be scratched.

The idea of using high quality filters is that you reduce the risk of degrading the image any further, whatever the quality of the lens.

As for cost, get the filter diameter of you lens (normaly etched on the end of the lens) and nip over to warehouse express or similar and buy a good make. eg Hoya. Try to resist the 'jessops' filter. My hoya Pro1 UV's are 50 quid each and the Pro1 Polarisers are 140 squid:eek:

If the dots look silvery or coloured, it may well be that they lens coating has lifted on those spots. Or it may just be dried spit!!!. Blow off the lens with your blower first, then huff on the lens carefully and immediately clean the lens from the centre outwards in a circular motion. Do this gently with not too much pressure. It may take several goes. Bear in ming spit is corrosive:eek:

I have a UV filter for each of my lenses, apart from the 300mm and 500mm. They stay on there all of the time, except if I swap over to a polariser for some shots. Others prefer not to have a filter on all of the time, which is fine. Canon do state that the 'L' series lenses are not fully weather resistant without a filter on the front, and I an often out in the weather.

Don't get to hooked uip on the lens or lcd pens, a good microfibre lens cloth will do it all, and can usually be washed.

The flash diffuser... mmmmm. Just stick your handkerchief over the end. Rarely does anyone get good results by using direct flash. Flash lighting is a whole new subject and very involved. See the difference you get with your hanky, if it is what you want then maybe go out and buy the diffuser. Just do not expect too much from your built in flash.

Anyway, just my views, I hope they give you food for thought.

Hi Graham. I discovered that my 40D has a high DR setting that manages to show more detail in high lights, although I am not sure if there is a trade off in the shadow noise. I managed to grab a couple of shots with it on and off whilst looking at some tennis players and it seemed to make a positive difference, slight mind you, but it was there.

Hi Graham. I discovered that my 40D has a high DR setting that manages to show more detail in high lights, although I am not sure if there is a trade off in the shadow noise. I managed to grab a couple of shots with it on and off whilst looking at some tennis players and it seemed to make a positive difference, slight mind you, but it was there.

That'll be HTP - highlight tone priority.

I am not sure if it makes that much difference when shooting in RAW, but general comments state that it will retain more detail in highlights, such as a wedding dress. It may well be very useful when shooting your tennis players. Post a couple of HTP on and off images if you can, I would like to see them.

Hey Scuff,

Thanks again for your help and suggestions. I did a bit of checking around lastnight and found these

NEW Hoya 67mm PRO1 Digital UV+Circular-PL CPL 2 Filter Set+Cleaning Cloth+Filter Holder+LensPen

and

NEW Hoya 58mm PRO1 Digital UV+Circular-PL CPL 2 Filter Set+Cleaning Cloth+Filter Holder+LensPen

also purchased that Rocket Blower.

I'm in Eire so not too easy to drop into that warehouse place you mentioned . I was going to buy Hoya basic ones on 7dayshop.com but then came across the Pro ones on hvstar. The prices seem pretty good (All in $177) so I can't wait to get them now.

Thanks again

That'll be HTP - highlight tone priority.

I am not sure if it makes that much difference when shooting in RAW, but general comments state that it will retain more detail in highlights, such as a wedding dress. It may well be very useful when shooting your tennis players. Post a couple of HTP on and off images if you can, I would like to see them.

I don’t think I have any shot that could be used as a comparison as I was pretty ruthless after Wimbledon and have junked everything I didn’t like. So I have shots from all over the 2 variable weather weeks. I will see if I can find an ‘honest’ comparison shot. I am going up to the north East soon and I might have a go at some white ducks up near Warkworth if I can find the time. I did have plans to take some comparison shots at Durham last week, during the 20/20 cricket match…………..but it was called off!!

Interestingly I met a chap today who’s only job is to transmit the pictures the snappers take at Football matches. Apparently they take so many at big matches, they have to hire someone to Sub-edit and then transmit the pictures to the Picture

Editors at the papers.

Hi. I got a 450D this week [first [d]SLR for me], and have been reading some past threads on here - do I *need* a UV filter?

Hi. I got a 450D this week [first [d]SLR for me], and have been reading some past threads on here - do I *need* a UV filter?

Congrats on the new camera....

Two Camps of thought.....

Against: reduces quality of the images

For: protection for the lens.

My view FWIW. I use a high quality one on every lens. I prefer the protection argument. High quality filters do not noticeably reduce quality. Plus my kit is only classed as weather sealed with a filter on the end of the lens.

Thanks. Been reading up about them for months, since May IIRC, so it's nice to finally have one. Changed between a D60, a 400D and a K200D more times than it's rained this summer, but the Canon felt good - and the lens range was a real plus.

[a range, which I've started reading up upon a little more, which is going to hurt my credit card somewhat...]

Thanks for that. I guess if I get a Hoya Pro1 UV as you've mentioned, I can transfer it between lenses? I have the 'kit' 18-55 IS lens, but mainly got the DSLR as my compact lack capability when zoomed. I'd like get to grips with my camera over the next few months, get comfortable with it enough to stick it on manual, then look at a zoom lens.

Probably best get a cloth mentioned on here, too. Not sure whether blowers/pens are needed just yet, as I only have the one lens so won't be changing for a while. :p

I've seen lots of lenses with caps/hoods on them. Would they have any benefit on my lens, if indeed there is one on offer?

Just a thought, but the lens you describe (18-55mm) sounds like the Kit lens. I would say that when you eventually upgrade your lens, you may well find that your new lens won’t accept the new filter from your Canon lens. I am guessing it’s a 58mm fitting and most of the bigger and better lenses use bigger filter sizes. So on grounds of economics only, I would say make sure you get a great deal on your filter. The Hoyas are supposed to be great, I have one and to be honest I really can’t see that it degrades my pictures with the extra glass. And as Scuff more or less says, it’s easier to replace a filter than get a lens repaired or replaced.

Oh and Ken Rockwell (Scuff might find this funny) says the 18-55mm kit lens (non IS) is better than the F2.8 17-55,,IS lens………I wish he had told me that before I bought it:rofl:.

oh not ken rockwell again

oh not ken rockwell again

He gets everywhere.

"Maffu check out the links I put up above for filters, from what I gather very good prices. As the Lady says, theres various sizes, its marked on the end of lens.

Cheers guys, will do.

And yes, it's the lens that comes with the camera bundle. Having seen what you can do with a 50mm F1.8, I'm a bit miffed I didn't just get the body and try for a 2.8 18-55, but hey ho.

Edited 12 September, 200817 yr by Maffu

Congrats on the new camera....

Two Camps of thought.....

Against: reduces quality of the images

For: protection for the lens.

My view FWIW. I use a high quality one on every lens. I prefer the protection argument. High quality filters do not noticeably reduce quality. Plus my kit is only classed as weather sealed with a filter on the end of the lens.

I'd endorse the protection issue -while in Spain last year I dropped my Lowepro camera bag in a car park and a rock managed to get through the bag padding and broke the filter on one of my lenses, but left the lense untouched. When I opened the bag I thought there were going to be tears before bedtime, but it just needed a careful clean.

Phil

As well as physical shocks, I think it's good to have a filter if ever your shooting in wet conditions. I'd much rather have splashes of water on a filter than on the end glass in a lens, particularly if it's an expensive one. Sure, water spots should just come off with a gentle wipe, but I'd rather wipe a £40 filter than an £800 lens

When I bought my 85/1.4, it came with a Hoya UV(n) filter thrown in. Whilst it may not be the bestest of the bestest Hoya filters out there (looking up on their website shows a whole range of filters), it's never been off the lens