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7D Mark II – What’s Really Going To Make A Difference For Your Photography?

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A few days ago I posted my initial thoughts on this interesting new camera and I continue to experiment with it as much as I can right now. It’s both simple to use and paradoxically, incredibly complex. How is this possible? As I mentioned in the earlier post, I felt right at home with the camera as soon as I picked it up. It feels like my 5D Mark III and all of the major buttons and functions work in the same way. If you’ve shot with a 5D Mark III, you can have this thing up and shooting in …

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Canon 7D Mark II – Initial Thoughts

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I picked up my new Canon 7D Mark II from the first shipment that came into Canada so I wanted to share a quick video with you guys, and also some very initial thoughts about this interesting camera. The second version of the 7D has been a very long time coming and the original continued to sell well right up until the end. I owned a 7D at one point, but I was never happy with both the level of noise and also the structure of the grain that it produced. Something about it really rubbed me up the wrong …

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Reader Question: Will I Be Buying A 7D MkII ??

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Hey guys, I’ve just got back from the kayaking trip I posted a teaser photo about a few weeks ago. In time I will share more about that trip but if you are following me on Instagram then you’ll be pretty up-to-date already! While I was away I got several questions from readers who were asking if I’ll be buying a 7D MKII when they arrive next month. The short answer to this question is yes, but that doesn’t mean I’ll keep it! I used to own to original 7D when it first came out and I used it professionally …

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Canon 7D MkII Vs 70D

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The Canon EOS 7D MkII was launched in September 2014, a full 5 years after the original version. With little competition in the “semi-pro” APS-C camera market, Canon decided to release a major firmware update for the 7D in August 2012 that effectively extended the camera’s life to the MkII announcement in 2014 by adding key features and increasing the buffer capabilities. On the other hand, the XXD line of cameras has stuck to the regular release cycle and we’ve seen the 60D and the 70D launch within the 7D’s lifetime. In this article I want to delve into the …

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My Short-Lived Experiment With File Transporter & Why I’m Switching To Google Drive

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I’m not quite sure what to call this product….. Transporter? File Transporter? Drobo Transporter? Their website is www.filetransporter.com, as is their twitter account, but they refer to themselves as Transporter, though they are now owned by Drobo. B&H does list the item as Drobo Transporter though. Confusing. The Transporter is a device for creating your own cloud storage so that you can be free from the monthly payments of services like Dropbox and Google Drive. I’ve watched the development of the Transporter with great interest. The company that makes it, Connected Data, was founded by Geoff Barrall who used to …

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Flash Manufacturers, You’re Doing It All Wrong – Profoto B1

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A few weeks ago lighting specialists Profoto put out a teaser on their website that something big was coming, something new. Could it be…..? Was a major flash manufacturer finally going to deliver what I’ve been waiting for…….? In a word; no. Profoto announced the B1 Air 500. Essentially a D1 with a li-ion battery in it and TTL capabilities. It certainly seems to have caught people’s attention judging by all the e-mails I’ve gotten about it. First I have to talk about the TTL which they proudly put at centre stage. What photographer who spends $2000 on a flash …

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Think Tank My 2nd Brain Review

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The guys at Think Tank Photo recently sent me one of their latest My 2nd Brain laptop bags to test and review. This new lineup of cases is designed specifically with Apple products in mind, and sized for the 11″ Macbook Air and 13″ + 15″ Macbook Pros. There’s also an additional Tablet version which is designed specifically for the iPad and all of the larger ones also feature a plush lined iPad pocket. The idea behind these bags was to design something that has the perfect space for all the things you need when you travel with your laptop. …

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Canon 200-400 Review

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Over on Shutter Muse I have posted an in-depth review of the Canon 200-400 f4 L IS. Is this the worlds best wildlife photography lens as many predicted? Find out what $12,000 can get you here……

Backup Routine Revisited

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I’ve just had another drive failure here in the office and this always causes me to stop and think about my backup routine. I haven’t lost any data in the incident but I like reviewing things every now and again and reminding you guys how important this stuff is. The drive that failed was my primary boot drive for my 27″ iMac. In fact it was a $600 SSD which in theory should last much longer than a regular spinning disk drive. In reality it lasted less than a year before catastrophic instantaneous failure. Never trust a drive. SSD or …

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Canon Looks to Revolutionize Video AF

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Have you ever wondered how your camera’s AF system work ? What the difference is between phase detection and contrast detection ? I’ve explained all of this in my latest guest post on ProVideo Coalition, as well as an introduction to Canon’s latest method which is called Dual Pixel CMOS AF. A method which looks set to shake up the possibilities with video AF on DSLRs. I’d love you to head on over and take a look at the article HERE.

Canon 70D Vs 7D

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This is going to be a question that gets asked over and over again so let’s dig into it! In July 2013 Canon launched the EOS 70D, slated for shipping in September 2013. Nearly four years previous to this, the 7D was launched as Canon’s premium, pro-sumer APS-C DSLR. The Launch price of the 7D was far far higher than that of the 70D but as time has gone on, the price has fallen and they are all but the same price now as the 70D when it hits store shelves. The question “which one to buy” is going to …

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