Thread: So sad, broke my favourite toy

So what you are saying is "That it didn't pass the drop test"

Look on the bright side, you can now go get a new toy

I bought my D80 here www.camerasdirect.com.au

They delivered in 3 days and they're cheap!

Now you'll REALLY be sad if you drop it!

I LOVE my D80!

P

Sad to here of your loss. Looks like it took some great photos for you. Your first is always the best remembered I guess. Give yourself a while to get over it, then get a catalogue.

Hubby will be slightly suspiciousI have spent the last few weeks looking through all the cameras on the net (going to get a dslr this time). The buying of a new camera is down the list a fair way unfortunately, but it gives me time to make up my mind. I have actually been looking at a Pentax K10.

I now think I may have to get some armour for it when I get it.

My camera seems to be working this afternoon, but you can really hear the lense coming in and out, so I think its days are numbered unfortunately. I was planning to keep it for quick shots. I will miss the sound recording feature when I move on to the dslr.

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v482/flynnsart/

Thats my photobucket site, only put one photo there recently, so needs some updating.

Donna

Yes, a bit sus. Dropped accidentally-on-purpose.
Or maybe your evil subconscious.

Looked at you Photobucket. Nice pics. Spiders are my favorite.

Ted's Camera Stores Australia

have great deals at present Canon 400D $999

Why bigger isn't always better



Big glass for the biggest budgets.

Canon's EF 1200mm f/5.6L USM lens on display at a Canon event. Photograph by Joe Armao.
As we said last week, we're going to make this blog much more regular from now on: at least weekly. It'll be as diverse as possible too. We plan to write up interesting assignments our photographers have undertaken and show you their pictures, give you a virtual hands-on of some of our new gear as we get it in, and look at topical issues that might be affecting photographers all around the world. And remember, the easy link to find us is smh.com.au/photos.
Importantly, it's going to be a totally two-way forum too. So if you see a picture in the paper and want to know how it was accomplished or have any other queries for us, then post a message in here and we'll get the photographer to tell you all about it.
Anyway, this one is for the gear freaks. If you're a keen photographer (and you are, or you wouldn't be reading this), you've probably envied some of the sports guys at the football or the cricket and the impressive size of their 400mm and 600mm lenses. Well, you haven't seen anything until you've seen this baby. We'll now give you a glimpse of the biggest AF lens Canon has ever released.
A technological masterpiece it may be, but the Canon 1200mm 5.6 USM L Series lens is probably useful for about 1 per cent of assignments (like this one). But on those rare occasions when it is necessary it will absolutely save the day.
The lens was released in 1993. It takes two people to operate and costs somewhere in the vicinity of $186,000, and there are only about a dozen of them worldwide. Sports Illustrated magazine owns two, National Geographic has one and the billionaire founder of Oakley, James Jannard, bought another for himself. The rest of us ask Canon to lend us one on special occasions.
A few years ago, a buyer put down a hefty deposit with Canon Australia (they're built-to-order with an 18-month wait time) but got cold feet before paying the balance. So now there's a 1200mm lens at Canon's North Ryde offices that can be loaned to customers with enough insurance to cover it.
The Sydney Morning Herald's Canberra photographer Andrew Taylor used it to good effect during an extended stake-out of Canberra's Government House (from this position 500 metres away), in the days before the resignation of then Governor-General, Dr Peter Hollingworth, in 2003.
A while back, Brendan Esposito (another Herald colleague) and I took it down to Sydney Airport to get familiar with it, and photographed passenger jets during landing and take-off. With a 1.4x converter attached, this lens could get us tight on the cockpit, easily showing the pilots' faces (1,2,3) from more than half a kilometre away.
The lens is a weighty beast: it's 16½kg heavy, and with its case, almost twice that. Its bulk means you can't manoeuvre it easily, which is why you'll want that second person's help.
You'll also need a custom-built, heavy tripod, and ideally a second one attached to the camera body. The optics are not spectacular - and you're more than likely collecting a lot of heat haze over the distances you're dealing with - so expect to lose clarity and contrast. But it's a lens made for the hardest of news jobs - the only time I would recommend using it.
If you can get the job done with a 600mm and a 2x converter, then do. This lens is a nightmare to employ, but there are several Herald page one pictures that would not have been possible without it.

Posted by Wade Laube
February 7, 2008 1:00 PM

Maybe with something like that I could keep my camera safely inside

Donna

Hi

Originally Posted by wheelinround

If you can get the job done with a 600mm and a 2x converter, then do.

Yes, I used to use a 600mm mirror lens with a 2x converter. That was much more convenient, shorter and lighter but limited to F8 or (effectively) F16 with the 2x converter.

Great images but would not be as clear as Canons quality glass

That's sad to hear but . . .

whatever one you get, wear the safety strap please . . .! So many people I see do not. Now I will try to look in on your photobucket.

I used to have an 1100mm f16 mirror lens. Bought it for a song, and sold it for a lot more, but I still have no idea why I did that - will never have another one like it! It was a Russian lens, and the body of it looked like it had been made from the barrel of a tank. Had filters too, but instead of being the rear mounting ones common for mirror lenses, these were monsters that screwed to the front of the lens!

Optics were pretty suss, but with a 2x teleconverter, it was a 2200mm lens! (f32 mind!!)

Check your insurance policy - my Canon, Pentax and Blad are covered in mine

woodcutta