Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
If anything isn't clear just shout, Thomas.
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Greetings Everyone! Question for Canon 100x400 users (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter JWellman
- Start date
AndyMc
Well-known member
All sound technical advice that I can't add to but:
Quick way to do it - Click on the layer you want to duplicate, & drag it onto the 'new layer' icon (second from the right) at the bottom of the layers box.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
Good tip, Andy - ta!
Roy C
Occasional bird snapper
This method is especially useful if you create something like an edge mask and load the selection, if you want a duplicate layer of the selection then dragging onto the new layer icon is the only way to do it -( file > duplicate layer does not work in this case).
tjsimonsen
Well-known member
Everything was perfectly clear. I tried it out today and it worked great. Thanks again.
Thomas
JWellman
Member
I'm having so much fun on this lovely snow day! I'm still practicing and putting all I have learned in this topic to good use! (Hopefully anyway) Thanks again everyone!
Too bad the snowflake fell right in front of her breast huh? Other than that I just love this photo.
Taken 1/20/11
Too bad the snowflake fell right in front of her breast huh? Other than that I just love this photo.
Taken 1/20/11
John In Ireland
Well-known member
Jessica,
Believe me . . . . for the length of time you have had your camera and lens your pictures are fine. I agree with Keith. They are not a million miles away. I would certainly be pleased with your results up to now. I promise you this . . . there is no "quick fix". I was, and most times still am, in the same position as you. The one thing I can certainly say is:
Practice, practice, then after that practice some more. I quickly found you can't just set a camera up on some given settings and expect everything to click into place. A lot of these guys on BF know exactly what they are talking about and give good sound advice but the majority of learning curve has to come from you. The light factor in Indiana will probably be different to England anyway, so that alone may be a big factor on how you use your camera settings. By keeping in touch on here you will pick up more and more tips. I own a 100-400L and at first I was a little unsure about it. Now I wouldn't be without it. You have a fabulous lens. Remember some folk have been on photography courses for years. It doesn't come quick, but it's good when it comes good, even if very slowly. I know exactly how you feel after spending all your hard earned money. I promise you will get better, (I've never heard of anyone getting worse) so keep posting a few photographs to prove me right. By the amount of replies you have had you can see how many are willing to advise.
Chin up!
By the way ... welcome to Bird Forum. You will love it here.
Believe me . . . . for the length of time you have had your camera and lens your pictures are fine. I agree with Keith. They are not a million miles away. I would certainly be pleased with your results up to now. I promise you this . . . there is no "quick fix". I was, and most times still am, in the same position as you. The one thing I can certainly say is:
Practice, practice, then after that practice some more. I quickly found you can't just set a camera up on some given settings and expect everything to click into place. A lot of these guys on BF know exactly what they are talking about and give good sound advice but the majority of learning curve has to come from you. The light factor in Indiana will probably be different to England anyway, so that alone may be a big factor on how you use your camera settings. By keeping in touch on here you will pick up more and more tips. I own a 100-400L and at first I was a little unsure about it. Now I wouldn't be without it. You have a fabulous lens. Remember some folk have been on photography courses for years. It doesn't come quick, but it's good when it comes good, even if very slowly. I know exactly how you feel after spending all your hard earned money. I promise you will get better, (I've never heard of anyone getting worse) so keep posting a few photographs to prove me right. By the amount of replies you have had you can see how many are willing to advise.
Chin up!
By the way ... welcome to Bird Forum. You will love it here.
John In Ireland
Well-known member
Attachments
JWellman
Member
Thanks so much John! I wish I had more time to spend on this forum but sadly my time has been limited since I joined. This has been the only area I've even had time to visit! Hopefully things will slow down for me soon so I can do more reading. I find every spare moment I have is usually out with the camera. 
JWellman
Member
I was able to finally practice on something besides birds using the 100x400! I wasn't sure how it was going to go, especially since I'm horrible at people shots and also because there was snow on the ground. They turned out okay but I missed the focus on a lot of them. I tried aiming for their eyes but the kids were constantly moving. It wasn't quite as difficult as the birds, but almost! I wish they were coming back because I would love another go at it!
I've loaded the photos in two different locations. One is my Personal Website and the other is on Facebook. (I think my albums are open to the public ??)
I hope everyone enjoyed snow in their area!
I wasn't sure how it was going to go, especially since I'm horrible at people shots and also because there was snow on the ground. They turned out okay but I missed the focus on a lot of them. I tried aiming for their eyes but the kids were constantly moving. It wasn't quite as difficult as the birds, but almost! I wish they were coming back because I would love another go at it!I've loaded the photos in two different locations. One is my Personal Website and the other is on Facebook. (I think my albums are open to the public ??)
I hope everyone enjoyed snow in their area!
Nick Leech
Well-known member
Hi folks - this is my first post!
I am new to DSLRs, having been a 35mm film SLR user many years ago (Pentax ME Super). Having recently taken early retirement I have decided to get into DSLR photography. As a keen birder, I am especially interested in bird photography.
I have a Canon 60D and mainly use a Canon 100-400mm zoom for bird photographs at present (until I can afford something bigger!). I just bought the zoom lens second-hand from Ebay. Although the lens is in mint condition, I have been somewhat disappointed with results obtained so far. I have seen in internet forums some suggestion that the quality of CANON 100-400 zooms has been rather variable. Some users claim it performs as well at 400mm as the Canon 400mm f5.6 prime. On the other hand, others have found the performance of the zoom at 400mm to be noticeably inferior to the prime. I have seen a website showing measurements on 3 copies of this zoom lens demonstrating this variability is real. One guy claims to have bought 5 copies of this lens before finding a good one! My copy of this lens was made in 2007 - if that info helps.
Do you think it possible that I have got a duff copy of the lens? Is it worth selling it and buying a new copy? Would it be better to pay more and buy a brand new one? There are a lot of used ones for sale on Ebay - is this indicative of the fact that there are a lot of sub-standard copies in circulation? Or does it just reflect that it is a popular lens?
On the other hand I am only too aware that the problem might lie with my poor technique rather than the lens!
Any advice welcome.
Thanks,
Nick
Lancashire
England
I am new to DSLRs, having been a 35mm film SLR user many years ago (Pentax ME Super). Having recently taken early retirement I have decided to get into DSLR photography. As a keen birder, I am especially interested in bird photography.
I have a Canon 60D and mainly use a Canon 100-400mm zoom for bird photographs at present (until I can afford something bigger!). I just bought the zoom lens second-hand from Ebay. Although the lens is in mint condition, I have been somewhat disappointed with results obtained so far. I have seen in internet forums some suggestion that the quality of CANON 100-400 zooms has been rather variable. Some users claim it performs as well at 400mm as the Canon 400mm f5.6 prime. On the other hand, others have found the performance of the zoom at 400mm to be noticeably inferior to the prime. I have seen a website showing measurements on 3 copies of this zoom lens demonstrating this variability is real. One guy claims to have bought 5 copies of this lens before finding a good one! My copy of this lens was made in 2007 - if that info helps.
Do you think it possible that I have got a duff copy of the lens? Is it worth selling it and buying a new copy? Would it be better to pay more and buy a brand new one? There are a lot of used ones for sale on Ebay - is this indicative of the fact that there are a lot of sub-standard copies in circulation? Or does it just reflect that it is a popular lens?
On the other hand I am only too aware that the problem might lie with my poor technique rather than the lens!
Any advice welcome.
Thanks,
Nick
Lancashire
England
John In Ireland
Well-known member
Read all of this thread. Stick with it for a while. Any lens you get has a big big learning curve. Don't go throwing money away just yet. The lens is fine.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
Hi Nick,
welcome on board.
I'd take some of those stories with a large pinch of salt if I were you - that whole "trying five before a good 'un rocked up" tale sounds very dubious to me, if only because human nature is such that I don't believe anyone would be prepared to invest that much time and effort into finding a good anything.
If it is true, it strikes me as likely that by the time he'd received his fifth, he'd simply had time to get used to the lens!
More direct experience is that in my neck of the woods I know a quite a few (maybe a dozen?) photographers who use the lens (for some reason it seems to be a particularly popular lens on my patch) and nobody - not one owner - has anything but praise for theirs: nobody has had a single IQ complaint.
Of course it's possible for the odd "Friday Afternoon" lens to creep through Quality Control, but this variability thing - if it was ever true to any significant extent - seems to have gone away with newer lenses: mine's a 2006 lens and it's great, and I honestly believe that the likelihood of a bad 'un these days is very remote.
It's possible however, that yours has been bumped, and that (say) a lens element is out of alignment: if so, it's eminently (professionally) fixable by any of the Canon repair specialists in the UK, and - if that ends up looking like the problem - we can point you in the right direction. A full lens service from these guys (which would certainly identify and fettle any lens alignment issues or other problems) will cost about £150, and the lens will come back "better than new".
But before we think about that, we need some pictures, Nick - let's have a look at some example pictures showing the "problem".
You'll need to provide the Exif information associated with the images, an idea of how you were shooting (handheld? Tripod? Hanging upside down from a cliff?) and something abut how you've processed the images.
I'll repeat, it's far more likely than not, that your lens is fine, and I don't believe for a second that there a large numbers of sub-standard lenses out there.
welcome on board.
I'd take some of those stories with a large pinch of salt if I were you - that whole "trying five before a good 'un rocked up" tale sounds very dubious to me, if only because human nature is such that I don't believe anyone would be prepared to invest that much time and effort into finding a good anything.
If it is true, it strikes me as likely that by the time he'd received his fifth, he'd simply had time to get used to the lens!
More direct experience is that in my neck of the woods I know a quite a few (maybe a dozen?) photographers who use the lens (for some reason it seems to be a particularly popular lens on my patch) and nobody - not one owner - has anything but praise for theirs: nobody has had a single IQ complaint.
Of course it's possible for the odd "Friday Afternoon" lens to creep through Quality Control, but this variability thing - if it was ever true to any significant extent - seems to have gone away with newer lenses: mine's a 2006 lens and it's great, and I honestly believe that the likelihood of a bad 'un these days is very remote.
It's possible however, that yours has been bumped, and that (say) a lens element is out of alignment: if so, it's eminently (professionally) fixable by any of the Canon repair specialists in the UK, and - if that ends up looking like the problem - we can point you in the right direction. A full lens service from these guys (which would certainly identify and fettle any lens alignment issues or other problems) will cost about £150, and the lens will come back "better than new".
But before we think about that, we need some pictures, Nick - let's have a look at some example pictures showing the "problem".
You'll need to provide the Exif information associated with the images, an idea of how you were shooting (handheld? Tripod? Hanging upside down from a cliff?) and something abut how you've processed the images.
I'll repeat, it's far more likely than not, that your lens is fine, and I don't believe for a second that there a large numbers of sub-standard lenses out there.
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tdodd
Just call me Tim
Important reading for those experiencing the "my lens is soft" phenomenon....
http://www.lensrentals.com/news/2008.12.22/this-lens-is-soft-and-other-myths
jimthomson
Well-known member
Tim
That was an interesting read.
That was an interesting read.
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
Yep, and the article also underlines why this belief that to get the very best results from your cameras and lenses you have to send them both in to be calibrated to each other, is snake-oil.
Both lens and body calibration procedures involve calibrating against a "reference" body or lens which are at zero tolerance: they don't calibrate your camera and lens against each other, they bring them both back to zero tolerance against the reference kit.
They can do that perfectly well without your camera and your lens ever being in the repair building at the same time. All that sending them in together does is let the engineers know that they both need to be done.
And:
"Calibrated together" means "calibrated at the same time", not "calibrated to each other".
By calibrating them all to zero against reference, they'll all be perfect, regardless of which body/lens combo is then used.
Both lens and body calibration procedures involve calibrating against a "reference" body or lens which are at zero tolerance: they don't calibrate your camera and lens against each other, they bring them both back to zero tolerance against the reference kit.
They can do that perfectly well without your camera and your lens ever being in the repair building at the same time. All that sending them in together does is let the engineers know that they both need to be done.
And:
"Calibrated together" means "calibrated at the same time", not "calibrated to each other".
By calibrating them all to zero against reference, they'll all be perfect, regardless of which body/lens combo is then used.
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Nick Leech
Well-known member
Thanks very much guys for useful feedback.
I will stick with it and gain more experience of the lens - trying different settings/methods etc and try and get more used to it. I am sure you are right that there is no major problem with the lens itself and it is mainly down to the learning curve.
If in a few months time things are getting no better I'll post some photos on here and seek further advice.
Thanks again!!
I will stick with it and gain more experience of the lens - trying different settings/methods etc and try and get more used to it. I am sure you are right that there is no major problem with the lens itself and it is mainly down to the learning curve.
If in a few months time things are getting no better I'll post some photos on here and seek further advice.
Thanks again!!
Keith Reeder
Watch the birdie...
You know where we are, Nick.
Good luck.
Good luck.
