The Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM for Canon Mount is the best 50mm for a photographer on a budget.
The 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM came out in 2008 by Sigma. Huge step for a company other then Canon and Nikon to put some serious competition on the market. In my opinion this lens blows the Nikon 50mm and Canon 50mm F1.4 out of the water. This is a prime lens, equivalent to 50mm on a full frame sensor camera and 80mm on a crop sensor 1.6. If your looking for a sharp walk around or portrait lens this is the go to lens. The build quality for a 400 dollar lens is very solid. The autofocus is quite fast but a little loud. The noise does not bother me. Compared to the Canon 50mm F1.4 this lens makes it look that look cheap. The fast wide aperture of this lens makes it very appealing to any bokeh enthusiasts. It has a very clean look to the bokeh balls, show in this photo below.
The focus ring on the lens is very smooth for doing manual focus shooting photos or video. The HSM, Hyper Sonic Motor, which compares to Canons Ultra Sonic Motor, makes the autofocus in the lens very fast and reliable. The outer body of the lens is some type of hard plastic that has a metal feel to it.
In the video below there is a quick video I made in Mt. Pleasant Michigan using a Canon EOS Rebel T3i, Sigma 50mm F1.4 EX DG HSM, and a Manfrotto 500AH Fluid Video Head.
Manfrotto MVH500AH Tripod Head with 190XPROB Aluminum Legs
First off, this head is amazing for the price. It is the entry level and cheapest fluid video head they make and it holds its own against the MVH502 in my opinion. This head has Manfrottos Bridging Technology and is definitely the most affordable in that line of heads. The head uses actual ball bearings and fluid cartridges to give you a very smooth pan and tilt. The new quick plate release system clips in from the side and is tightened down to make it easier to take out your DSLR or when working with video rigs. I was worried about the plate slipping out the front or back if not tightened all the way but there are guards that prevent this from happening. The head also features a counterbalance mechanism which is a spring inside the head that helps balance your DSLR or rig when it awkward positions. This is a super nice feature when working with larger lens or un-proportional rigs. The positioning of the drag knob is in the back so you do not have to reach around to the front like the MVH502. But the MVH500 does not have drag settings like the MVH502. But the knob to tighten the amount of drag you would like works very well.
This head comes in a standard flat base head which can be put on basically any Manfrotto tripod legs, I went the cheaper route and put it on the 190XPROB legs and it works great. You could also get any legs with a 3/8th thread.
The legs are a sleek 3 section design. This is an aluminum tripod and feels very sturdy with the MVH500AH head on it. I even put my battery pack on my DSLR with my Sigma 70-200mm lens and it carried the load wonderfully. The top column that hold the head is able to be put in a horizontal position allowing the tripod to reach extremely low positions. The leg angle design is a huge bonus for versatility with ranges of angles at25,46,66, 88 degrees. This gives you such a wide range positions to set your tripod in. The top column extends and the highest working postion is 57 inches and can carry a load of 11lbs. This will handle most large DSLR rigs.
Camera Used: Canon EOS Rebel T3i 18 MP Digital SLR Camera
If you are looking for a fisheye this is a very well made lens. Since this is a cheaper fisheye, I was worried about the quality. When I first opened this lens I was surprised, the main body is made of metal and the rubberized focus ring works very smooth like a higher end lens. The plastic aperture ring still works decently, feels a little cheaper and not as sturdy but for a 300 dollar lens is very nice.
The Samyung 8mm Fisheye lens gives you a 180 degree classic fisheye view with dramatic exaggerated perspective. It has a multi-layer aspherical lens and multi-layer coating and can produce sharp images and video with little to none lens flares or ghosting. The lens has a build on hood, which makes the use of screw on filters not possible.
The hood on the lens make it impossible to mount filters but with it being a fisheye lens most people do not use filters anyway. Keep in mind that this lens is completely manual. Since most people using this lens use it for video is not a problem. The manual aperture actually makes adjusting the lighting very easy and fast when shooting video. This is a great lens for shooting action sports like snowboarding or skateboarding. It would also be practical if you were making a short film and needed a fisheye but did not want to spend L lens prices on a fisheye.
Here are some examples of the image quality (no editing).
Looking for the best LCD Screen Viewer for you DSLR?
The HoodMan HoodLoupe Professional LCD Screen Loupe for 3 inch displays.
The purpose Hoodman Hoodloupe is to give you the ability to see your LCD screen at its full potential. It lets you closely inspect the screen in bright sunlight outdoors and to hide the screen from ambient light. With this cover you will not get distracted by other sources of light and you will be able to adjust your exposure, ISO, and shutter for the maximum performance without having to guess because you are having trouble viewing the screen. The hoodloupe lets you quickly focus on the screen by spinning the eyepiece for the best image. It gives a 4:3 ratio of the 3 inch screen like most standard hoods.
Is this piece of DSLR equipment right for me, you ask? Well if you shoot outdoor sporting events or any other events that take place in bright sunlight without the cover of shade you should consider this hood. No more trying to cover the LCD screen with one hand and adjust settings with the other while trying to balance the camera on your knee cause you only have 2 hands (hopefully). If you are getting into DSLR video with your camera and want to add stability and professionalism to your camera there are a lot of accessories for this hood. Just buying the Hoodman Hoodloupe gives you the eye piece but it does not attach to your camera. You will need to press your eye against it or hold it onto the screen. Which can be a pain but it does have a neck strap so you can hang it around your neck.
If you are looking for more stability for cinematography, Hoodman makes a cinema strap which is the cheap way to keep the hood stuck onto your screen. This is nice if your looking for a cheap option but when you would like to take the hood off, its not as fast as the Hoodman Crane. The Hoodman Crane is the more expensive but more stable way to mount the hood on your DSLR. The crane mounts in your hot shoe on your DSLR and has a spring loaded latch that you can move the crane up and down. This gives it more stability for video and allows you to quickly flip up the hood to show your friends the shots on your LCD screen. The crane does have a cold shoe on it but sadly it uses up the hot shoe on your camera. This means you will not be able to power a flash from the cold shoe on the mount. But most likely you will not be using a LCD hood if you need a flash anyway.
Personally I have the Hoodman Hoodloupe now and love it, I use it all the time when I am filming outdoor activities. Since shooting video on a DSLR you only use your live view for settings, it makes it a million times easier to accomplish this. If you shoot video I would recommend spending just getting the HoodCrane if you can spend the extra bucks. It makes it so much faster and easier to operate the hood than the straps. Enjoy. Post your experiences with the hood in the comments below or alternatives hoods to look into.
Review for the ProMaster Vertical Battery Grip for Canon Rebel T2i, T3i, and T4i.
Looking for the next accessory to buy for your DSLR? Well lets look at a pretty essential piece of equipment for your photography and especially video. A battery grip on your camera provides extra battery life to your camera. It holds 2 batteries in the pack and provides double the length of battery life for DSLR. This comes in handy if your shooting a lot of continues video or out on a long photography shoot. This is also nice if you have your camera on some type of mount, you won't have to take your camera off the mount or rig to change batteries. These battery packs also give the impression of professionalism and make your camera larger.
Another great feature about this battery pack is it has an alternate shutter release on the side of the battery pack. So when you move your camera to a vertical position for vertical images you will not have to tilt your hand and put your arm in an awkward position. This gives you more stability in a shoot.
Great feature to this specific battery pack is it gives you a battery tray for AA batteries. It takes 6 of them and is a huge lifesaver if you are out on a shoot and can't charge your LP-E8 batteries.
Some cons to think about if you actually need a battery pack are that they do make your DSLR larger and this can cause problems in your camera bag or heavier when walking around (even though you could take it off). Also if you do not have an extra battery for your canon, your might want to this about getting that first.
Do I need the Canon or will the ProMaster work just as well you ask? Personally I have tried both. The Canon Battery Grip retails for about $220 and the ProMaster for $100. You can even get it on Amazon for $79.99. Personally I notice little to no difference between the two. They both do exactly the same thing and have the same features. The material feels a little more solid on the canon but its definitely not worth 100 dollars for the Canon name. Even though I am a Canon lover, I have found that the ProMaster is a way better deal.
Comment your experiences with the battery pack or your thoughts on the product.
Find yourself thinking you understand Shutter Speed but then you try to explain it and don't really understand?
Hopefully this post shines some light on what shutter speed is and actually does. Unless your shutter speed is too high then no light will be shining on it. Sorry shutter speed joke so lets begin.
Shutter Speed is a type of shade/curtain that is on the inside of you camera. Your camera tells it when to open and close with the shutter release button (the button you click to take pictures). So what is the shutter speed then? The shutter speed is the chunk of time your shutter stays open and takes in the light through the lens. For example 1/1000 of a second is a fast shutter speed. This higher shutter speed is used to capture and stop motion dead in its tracks. Turning up the shutter speed also shortens the time the shutter is open which allows less light to get in, darkening your image. You will have to compensate for this by adjusting ISO and Aperture. 1/30 or 1/8 and so on, are slower shutter speeds. This means the shutter stays open for a longer amount of time letting more light in through the lens to the cameras sensor. With more light coming in, its obvious that your image will be much brighter. This you will have to also compensate for with other settings on the camera. With very slow shutter speeds, like keeping your shutter open for seconds at a time, you will need to invent in a natural density (ND) filter for your lens. These filters are basically tinted glass that reduce the amount of light getting in through your lens by anywhere from 2-8 stops (Or even more!).
Since you are controlling the amount your lens is taking in with the shutter speed you will need to find a balance between your cameras Aperture and ISO. With a slow shutter speed means you should put you ISO a lower number to compensate. This is also nice becomes with a lower shutter speed comes less noise in your image. Noise is the graininess of your picture. Also with longer shutter speed you can set your aperture higher to reduce the amount of light but this will increase your depth of field putting more things farther in distance in focus.
Other things shutter speed does is effect the quality of your image. Since lower shutter speed leaves the shutter open for longer periods of time, this can blur your image with motion. An object moving with longer shutter speeds will appear blurred. This can also be a problem if your shutter is low because your hand can move when taking the picture or even pressing the shutter release. A simple fix to this would be to use a tripod or some kind of mounting system when using longer/slower shutter speeds. Even a remote control or a 2 second timer so there is no chance of the camera moving when the camera activates the shutter for your image. The chance of your hand clicking motion effecting the image is using around 1/30 second or slower.
Once you really understand your shutter speed, you will be able to start doing some really cool effects with motion. For example, a long exposure picture with water, you can set a low shutter speed and make water having a misty/ghost effect while the other scenery not moving will be clear and nice. With faster shutter speeds you'll be able to make motion freeze in ways the human eye cannot. Most DSLR's shutter speed goes up to 1/8000 of a second. With the proper lighting you'll be able to stop water droplets in mid air or splashing. Even as simple as stopping the motion of a football player while he's being tackled and a snowboarder flying through the air. Examples of shutter speed are shown in the pictures below. The captions have the shutter speed the image was taken at with additional settings.
If your looking for a great entry level DSLR check out the Canon EOS Rebel T3i.
Shutter Speed of 1/2000 second. ISO 1600 and f/3.5
Shutter Speed of 1/4 second. ISO 100 and f/5.6 Flash was used.
