Buffer speed?

[psilo]

I have been shooting in raw for a month or two now and like it immensely but have found that when photographing action or flight shots the processing speed on my 350d is very slow. I realise that raw files are going to take more processing time but is there anything I can do to increase this speed? recently I was photographing a pair of courting juvenile grebes and after the intial 4 shot burst it would only take one photo every 2-3 seconds.
At present I am only using normal speed kingston and sandisk cf cards> do you really need the faster write ones to shoot effectively in raw? or is it just a case that my cameras processing speed is not that great in raw and to get faster processing speed i need to upgrade to say the 30d?

[deshojo]

I presume the 30D processes files faster than the 350D beacuse it has a larger buffer, but I have found the speed of the CF card makes a BIG difference to how quickly the buffer empties, and it's a much cheaper option to start with than a new camera.

I recently purchased two very cheap 2GB cards from 7dayshop.com (£17.99 each!).
The speed was unspecified and unfortunately they are really too slow to use for wildlife work, though fine for landscapes etc. where "machine gunning" is not needed.

To test them I just held the shutter down until the buffer filled (on my 5D), then timed it until the red light went out. With these it took 45 seconds, whereas with my Sandisk Ultra II and Lexar 80X cards it took about 22 seconds.
I'm sure the latest high speed cards (eg. Sandisk Extreme IV) would probably be twice as quick again, and I may well invest in one as missing shots due to a full buffer is very frustrating.

It's certainly worth trying first, as even if it doesn't make enough difference and you end up getting a 30D, you'll appreciate it then. But I think you'll find the faster card will suffice.

[psilo]

Good point deshojo. I do have some kingston extreme 512cf cards and a 50x pro card. Will test them alongside the slower cheaper ones to see what the difference really is .thanks.

[gmax]

But I think you'll find the faster card will suffice.

I agree, with a fast card on my 350D I did not notice any decrease in performance (when shooting JPG there's NO delay time at all!); beware though that some latest fast cards cannot be exploited to their maximum speed with a 350D (their speed will be useful when downloading to you PC though).
This is why I've just bought another Sandisk Extreme III 2Gb (should be a 133x I think), which I've been told is already beyond the max. speed of my camera: therefore I wouldn't recommend to use the newer Extreme IV with this camera
Regards,
Max

[graham catley]

I have 2GB 40x i-Pro and 2GB 100x i-Pro CF cards and while the 100x is only relatively slow compared to my 2GB Sandisk Extreme III card the 40x are REALLY slow--it is of course something you only notice when a vagrant Yellow-nosed Albatross flies past and you only get 6 RAWs before it buffers out and you realise you should have left the fastest card in the camera!--not that I have seen many albatrosses!---on the financial side I would think that you might get all you need from an Extreme III which have come down enormously in price since the Extreme IV's came out, with the 350D on which the internal buffer will also be limiting your shooting capacity---7DAYSHOP also sell Sandisk cards now at a good price, Extreme III 2GB presently £44.99 from 7day