rob answers:

If your lens has a 72 mm filter size then I think it is an expensive lens, do not waste your money on cheap filters that will have negative impact on your picture quality.

rob answers:

There are really only two filters you need:

1) A Skylight or UV filter to protect the front element of your lens.
2) A circular polarizer. Its used to darken a blue sky and to remove/reduce glare/reflections from glass, sand, water, snow and painted metal – but not polished metal. It also enhances colors.

“A cheap filter isn’t good and a good filter isn’t cheap.” So look at ones from Heliopan, Tiffen, B+W, Hoya, Singh-Ray. To avoid any possibility of vignetting (dark corners on your pictures) I suggest buying “thin” or “slim” mount filters. Buy a microfiber lens cleaning cloth when you buy your filters.

rob answers:

Canon and Nikon are both very good. You probably would be happy with a Canon or Nikon SLR type digital camera. Like most people who buy cameras and lenses chances are you won’t be satisfied with your lens, no matter what you get. Eventually you’ll either give up photography or end up owning three or more lenses. (Which is not necessarily a bad thing. Be sure to get a filter that will protect your lens.

rob answers:

The type of lens on your camera makes a huge difference in the quality of the sharpness you get. The “kit lens” that usually comes with the camera, while not total garbage, still leaves much to be desired. A lens that I highly recommend is Canon’s EF 50mm f1.8 lens. It’s the standard lens that I keep on my own Canon and you can get online it for around $100 new, $80-ish used:

http://www.amazon.com/Canon-50mm-1-8-Camera-Lens/dp/B00007E7JU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1258257769&sr=8-2

If you’re used to lenses that zoom, the downside of this 50mm lens is that it has a fixed-focal length, which means that you cannot zoom. However, the images are very sharp and with an aperture that goes to f1.8, it works well in low light and can produce very nice background blur which will give your photos a more sophisticated look. This lens will give you great quality for a great price.

That said, getting a more “pro” look takes a combination of good equipment, good knowledge of the equipment, and good skill, so brushing up on your photography basics will compliment the acquisition of any new toys you plan to get.

And one way to help get your colors to look bolder is to try a bit of post-processing in an editing program.

Don’t give up on the 1000D. I have an earlier model (XTi) that I use with great lenses and I love it!

rob answers:

UV lenses are filter UV lights in day time and has not any other effect. So you can use them indoor or nights as protective filter for your lens without causing any problems. I have 1 for my every lens.

Polarize filters (Circular Polarize) are especially useful at seasides or mountains for pushing contrast at the sky. But for the beginning I will advice you a skylight filter. It will be more useful for you. It made almost same thing but using is easier.

You can find what ever you need from

http://www.bhphoto.com

This store is famaus worldwide and I bought a lot of stuff.

rob answers:

How long have your had your camera? The software on the CD may have been upgraded already.

You need to install the latest driver ( http://www.canoneos.com ) and get the newest version of the Remote Capture program, as well.

P.s. It drains the battery very quickly. An A/C adapter will be useful if you’re going to do this often.

rob answers:

If you have XP Home,
Go to your control panel,
Double Click the Scanners and Cameras folder to open
Connect your camera and turn it on
then Right-click on the Camera Icon
Left Click on Properties
Left Click on the “Events” Tab in the Camera Pop-Up Window
There you can either set a program such as “Microsoft Scanners and Camera Wizard” or put a check in “Prompt for which program to run”. Which will open that options menu you speak of.
There are two other choices there that are pretty well self explanatory.

Make sure you click on “Apply” and “OK”

rob answers:

Go to (control panel, then system, then go to the hardware tab). In the hardware tab you will see a button called device manager. Once in device manager (I would have your camera unplugged from the computer) – then replug the camera in while watching device manager. If it doesn’t auto find the hardware you can go to the (top-little pc monitor looking thing) and highlight it, then go to your “actions” tab and hit “scan for hardware changes”. That forces the PC to look for new devices such as flash drives, printers, cameras etc… 90% of the cameras will not need a driver installed for XP or Vista to use them. If not, it will come up a yellow (!) explanation mark beside the new hardware. That will tell you it needs to go to the camera’s manufacturer website and download the drivers for it. If it does find it while your monitoring that device manager page you will see a new device come up and you can double click over it after expanding the (+) sign and look to see if it found your camera. Also, alot of cameras will show up under mycomputer as a drive letter, sort of like a memory stick from a camera or cell phone.

rob answers:

Remove the battery. Reinsert it after a few seconds – see if this clears it up. Otherwise do a hard reset in the menu.

rob answers:

Well I think you are correct in that the camera is simply not recognizing that particular lens. About all I can say is to very closely inspect the contact ring on the 70 – 200 and take a pencil eraser and rub the entire surface. That can often clean up some residue that may be preventing full contact with the lens contacts and camera pick ups. Other than that, yeah, you are probably going to have to get in touch with Canon service.

You can also try taking the lens to a camera store and try it on any other Canon camera. If it works or does not, at least that would narrow the problem down to either the lens or your camera body.

Steve

rob answers:

Yes, any EOS lens camera combination will work … The only problem is when you attempt to use a Canon lens made before 1985 when Canon changed their whole system, leaving hundreds of thousands of Canon owners with obsolete cameras and lenses.

EOS lenses designed for 35mm cameras will work on any EOS DSLR … Lenses designed for any Rebel cameras (EF-S) will cause vignetting on a EOS 35mm camera

rob answers:

Yes, as long as the lens is an EF mount lens, which it should be coming from a Canon EOS…. Being an older lens, the AF may not work… You may need to focus manually.

rob answers:

No, sorry. I’m assuming that you have a Canon film SLR and want to move up to digital.. Why not go for a Canon DSLR instead then?

rob answers:

No. You need a Canon digital SLR to swap lenses. The S3 IS is a point-and-shoot.

rob answers:

All of your EOS lenses made by Canon will work just fine. Some made by other manufacturers (like Sigma or Tamron) will probably work, but may not (those guys reverse-engineer Canon’s mount electronics, so when Canon changes things sometimes they’re not compatible). The good news is that the lens maker will probably update the lens (they put a new chip and/or rear mount on it) for free.

Keep in mind the “crop factor” — the apparent focal length of your lenses will be different on the DSLR (unless you get the full-frame Canon 5D), because the imaging chip is smaller than 35mm film size. There’s a 1.6X factor, so a 100mm lens on your film DSLR will have the same field of view as a 160mm lens on your film EOS camera…
Good luck.

rob answers:

The 1d mk series and the 5d series has no other name

The 450D is XSi (and kissx2 in japan)
The 500D is T1i

rob answers:

No. 99.9% warranty would not be valid in India. You get warranty in India when product has international warranty.

rob answers:

Mine was made in Japan (Canon Rebel XTi).

rob answers:

Cameras with interchangeable lenses are just going to cost more. A lot more…

If you plan on getting that camera, there are add on lenses you can put on top of the built in lens. That would give you a little bit more versatility but if you want a real solution. You’re going to have to pony up for a dslr.

Ebay link for add on lenses
http://cgi.ebay.com/Tele-Wide-Angle-Lens-Kit-Canon-PowerShot-A1000-A580-IS_W0QQitemZ300335627414QQcmdZViewItemQQimsxZ20090804?IMSfp=TL090804168003r4411

rob answers:

1 Way Photo lied to you. All of the camera models are built to the same specs.

What a camera that is imported by someone other than the official USA Canon company is NOT covered by the US warranty, if fact USA Canon will not even touch the camera if it ever needs repair,under warranty or not. They have to be shipped to an International repair location and import/export issues apply.

Canon Rebel Cameras meant for Asian distribution models are called “Kiss”, those destined for Europe are xxxD’s and the Americas Rebel “X’s”. My guess is that there are other ways USA Canon will know if you send it a “gray market” camera to them for repair.

More on 1 Way Photo

http://www.resellerratings.com/store/1_Way_Photo#reviews

rob answers:

I’ve got both cameras but, given the fact that most of your photography focuses on wildlife and macro photography, the 1.6x crop of the 7D may offer some advantages. The 7D is also $1000 (USD) cheaper than the 5D Mark II which would free up more of your budget for lenses like the MP-E 65mm and off camera lighting.

It’s also worth mentioning that cameras in general are bad “investments.” Because replacements come out every 12-36 months and the cameras have become more consumer electronics/computers than they were in the past, they depreciate very quickly. The original 5D for example, sold for almost $3,000. Today, that camera sells for as little as $1,000. The original 1Ds provides and even more stark comparison when you consider that it sells today for $1,000-$1,300 but, it originally retailed for nearly $8,000. Lenses on the other hand, are much better investments.

Lenses can last a lifetime for many people and a lens may remain on the market for a decade or more. It is also important to keep in mind that the lens is typically more important than the camera itself with respect to image quality and for these reasons, they tend to retain more of their value for a longer period of time. For example, an EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM lens of similar age to the original1Ds may still sell for $1,500 if it’s in good condition. Not a cheap lens but, just before that same lens was discontinued a year or so ago, new copies were selling for $1,800-$1,900. So, here we have a lens that is almost ten years old and it is possible for that lens to have retained over 75% of it’s original value during that time. No DSLR will every be able to do this but, lenses often can and do. Some lenses even manage to go up in value like the old EF 50mm f/1.0L. The bottom line is that as investments go, high quality lenses are a much better investment than the camera itself. The rule is buy the cheapest camera you need while investing in your lenses.

rob answers:

A brilliant camera at a brilliant price, you will need to run a very recent powerful computer to edit the video and get the latest Adobe DNG converter if you shoot RAW, but there is little else to fault.

Try it in the hand first as its neither compact or light.

rob answers:

I don’t agree with PS, I have a D300s and I have a friend who has a 7D, we did a shootout at all ISOs and compared pic for pic. The noise was close but a slight edge went to the 7D. The image quality easily went to the 7D. The 18MP is what really sold me when I saw a blow up from his camera shot at ISO 1600. From that point on, 12MP is no longer enough for me. The 300s images were very contrasty which caused a great loss of detail in the shadow area and the colors were exagerated and unreal. I now have my D300s on craigslist and fully prepared to get a 7D.

rob answers:

Don’t be afraid to jump in at this level. Both cameras have a “P” setting that is pretty much automatic. You can use it when you are just not comfortable making the decisions for exposure on your own and even when you just don’t feel like messing with that stuff.

The thing about these cameras is that they are very comparable. It will come down to which one feels best in your hands. Since you have a little “shutter time,” you may be developing a sense of what you like. Try each one in a camera shop and see which one had the controls in a good position for your hands. Someone said that Canon is more user friendly, but I happen to prefer the Nikon approach. It was a very easy transition from film cameras to Nikon DSLRs. Maybe Canon is just as easy, but Nikon seems to put things where I expect to find them.

Check out this side-by-side comparison: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos7d/page22.asp

Note the comments at the bottom of the page. Pixels DO matter when you want to crop or make a big enlargement, but overall, the image quality is quite useful in either camera.

Comparison of RAW images: http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/canoneos7d/page25.asp

Nikon defaults to a slightly sofer image than Canon, but you can easily change the standard sharpening in either camera if this is a concern to you.

My answer? I’m a Nikon user and a Nikon fan, but once you get to this level of camera, either one is an excellent choice. Buy the one that more of your friends own so you will be able to ask for their help and borrow their lenses.

rob answers:

The D7000 is a fine camera. To date, it is the only one that can use the very high speed SDHC/UHS-1 cards at their rated speed – which might be good if you do a lot of HD video. I suspect Canon will eventually catch up with their next series of models… Or maybe not.

The Canon D7 still uses a 1.6x crop sensor – smaller than the D7000′s 1.5x sensor. While the Canon sensor is about 7% smaller, ask yourself why the Canon doesn’t have their up-scale larger 1.29x sensor for it’s premium price?

rob answers:

Hey,

What is your price limit? I’d get EF-S 60mm Macro, 100mm 2.8 Macro, 50mm f/1.4..there aren’t THAT many macro lenses.

Here’s a post called ‘Buying a Lens for Canon – http://www.the-dslr-photographer.com/2009/11/buying-lens.html

Good luck! The site has many more tutorials and tips!

rob answers:

There are really two ways to go.

1) use fast prime lenses so you can control depth of field
2) buy a couple of zoom lenses that cover the field of view you need for most of your scripts.

Or of course you can mix and match lenses as needed.

What will determine the lens aperture is the lighting, since the shutter speed will be dictated by the frame rate you are shooting the video, 24 fps or 30 fps.

Zoom suggestions.

EF-S 10-22 mm Canon or 11-16 mm Tokina
EF-S 18-200 mm Canon.

Prime
EF 14 mm (wide angle lens)
EF 35 mm (normal lens)
EF 50 mm (medium telephoto lens)
EF 100 mm macro (telephoto and macro lens)

As you can see, you will be building a camera system, one lens at a time.

It is rare that anyone just buys exactly what they think they need all at once.

* the costs can steal food from your kids
* it is rare that someone just getting into shooting video or stills knows which lenses they will actually need until they have a few years experience using their camera(s)

rob answers:

There is no “60D lens”. The 60D is a DSLR that uses interchangeable lenses and the issue you are having can be the effect of the lens.

For example, on a 75-300mm F/3.5-5.6 lens…zoomed out at 75mm the maximum aperture is f/3.5, but zoomed in at 300mm, the maximum aperture is only f/5.6…a difference of 1-1/3 stops, over twice as much light.

If that is the problem, you need to get a lens that has a fixed aperture like 70-200 f/2.8…that way the aperture remains the same throughout the focal length.

rob answers:

Only for video, 600D is a better buy because they both use the same sensor and an articulating screen, so the 600D is just cheaper.

60D has 5.3 vs 3.7fps, slightly faster AF and bigger viewfinder and top LCD screen. For photo both will be good, don’t listen to those who say if video is good, then photo is bad – or vice versa.

Here’s a DSLR Buying Guide – http://www.the-dslr-photographer.com/2009/11/which-dslr-to-buy/

rob answers:

Hey,

For low light and prime, I’d get Canon EF 50mm f/1.4. I also recommend Canon EF-S 17-55, 24-70 (bit more), 10-22.

But to help you more, here’s a site with the best tutorial for buying a lens

Here’s a post called ‘Buying a Lens for Canon (7 subgroups) – http://www.the-dslr-photographer.com/2009/11/buying-lens.html

The site has many more tutorials, tips, reviews and guides!

rob answers:

Did you download the disk that came with your camera onto your computer? That should do the trick.

rob answers:

Can you use a card reader instead and copy/paste from the card to your pictures file.

rob answers:

Connect the USB then turn the camera on then push the print/connect button on the camera (looks like a printer).

If that doesnt work try using ZoomBrowsers interface.

If that doesnt work try this
Click the start symbol>computer
If your camera is listed there (will probly look like a hard drive) then your computer sees it but hasnt assigned a program to communicate with it. If you dont see it there hit F5 (refresh). If it still doesnt come up then you should contact Canon directly.

A much easier way of doing this is to just get a card reader and use ZoomBrowser to access your card. Make sure that the card reader can access CF cards and not just the more popular SD cards.

rob answers:

They have a toll free phone number or try your local Canon dealer for help.

rob answers:

The problem is the Canon software that comes with the present cameras is set up for 98 system 2, Windows 200 and XP not Vista. Go to www.canoneos.com and click on the photo of the XT follow the prompts on the right and you will find the Vista drivers in the updates. I just for off the phone with the folks for Canon with the same problem for an XTi.

Happy shooting.

rob answers:

There are two or three things you can do, and combining them is probably the best way.

First don’t be afraid to use your camera, provided you don’t physically abuse it you aren’t going to break it!

Buy a couple of books. There is usually a “Magic Lantern” guide to most cameras, though the quality does vary a little. There are also a number of books on general Digital Photography, you’ll find a good selection on Amazon, look to see how other users have rated them. It’s much easier to digest this info from books than from websites.

Take a beginners course in photography.

Regards the specific blurriness/softness: Make sure any anti-shake mechanism on the lens is turned on. Make sure you hold the camera firmly, and try to steady your body, knees slightly bent, feet apart and in a wide V. If you can steady yourself against a solid object (wall, tree, lamp post etc). If your images are blurred, use a faster shutter speed. If your images are soft (the Depth of Field is too shallow) then use a smaller aperture. This all assumes the ISO is set to Auto. Blur and softness are in photo terms different, in time you’ll get used to the jargon – it’s one of those cases where the jargon is necessary to explain the subtleties.

rob answers:

You can check at your local library or book store and browse at some before you borrow or buy one. There are numerous web sites that offer tips on photography. I am fond of the following link. It deals with night photography. I actually practiced and took pictures using the suggestions offered and they turned out great. I have a Canon XS and experiment alot with the settings while taking pictures. After taking a picture that I viewed in the LCD and liked, I would save the settings. Experimentation is part of the fun of photography.

Http://www.slrphotographyguide.com/camera/settings/night-slr-settings.shtml

rob answers:

The only way to learn is to put the camera on manual and start controlling your exposures. Soon you will know when to use a tripod and when you can hand hold it.

Shooting using the aperture priority mode is fine if you need to assure the fastest possible shutter speed or want to control your depth of field

rob answers:

I bought my used rebel 300d for $275 and I love it. It looks and feels brand new so no regrets there. I suggest you buy it the same place I did:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007YEOA6?ie=UTF8&tag=dailyelect-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0007YEOA6

If you do buy it, get this extension kit as well:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003Y60DZO?ie=UTF8&tag=dailyelect-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B003Y60DZO

Hope this helped!

rob answers:

The putative author of the earliest sources of the Pentateuch in which God is called Elohim.

rob answers:

Any Canon EF lens will work on any Canon EOS body.

Canon EF-s lenses (such as the 18-55, 17-85, 10-22mm, the 60mm macro) will only mount on cropped sensor cameras such as the rebels, 50d series and 7d.

rob answers:

NOTE: The XTi is discontinued and has been replaced by the XSi.

All camera manufacturers use a proprietary lens mount so just buy Canon lenses for your Canon camera. Tamron, Sigma and Tokina also make lenses for your camera.

Buy the camera with the standard 18-55mm lens. You’ll need to spend time READING & STUDYING the Owner’s Manual for your new camera. Then, spend 3 to 6 months actually learning to use the camera and lens before even thinking about another lens. During this learning time you will begin discovering what type of photography you do the most and the capabilities/limitations of the 18-55mm lens.

Buy and read this book: “David Busch’s Quick Snap Guide to Using Digital SLR Lenses” http://www.dbusch.com Since he has written a Guide for your camera you should buy it also. It will help make the Owner’s Manual clearer and more easily understood.

I strongly urge ignoring any lens purchase suggestions at this time. Since you have no idea (yet) of the type of photography you like doing how can anyone else know what lens or lenses you need?

Taking a couple of photography classes would really help. If classes aren’t possible then you’ll have to self-educate. Its more difficult but doable.

Here are some books worth having:

“Understanding Exposure” & “Understanding Shutter Speed”, both by Bryan Peterson.

“Digital SLR Handbook” by John Freeman.

“The Art of Digital Photography” by Joseph Meehan.

I believe anyone seriously interested in photography should have their own personal library of photography books. Consider them as an investment.

A subscription to a photography magazine would be helpful. My personal favorite is SHUTTERBUG ( http://www.shutterbug.com ) but you should read the ones at your library and decide for yourself which one you like.

I bought my first real camera – a Minolta SRT-100 – in July of 1971. It came with a 50mm f1.7 lens. If memory serves, it was at least a year before I bought another lens.

rob answers:

If your budget is $300, I’d advocate the starter lens.

For around $450, Canon makes a great 28-135mm Image Stabilizing lens that is a good choice for general, all-around photography. It’s got enough zoom (particularly with the XTi) to get in closer on sports, and it’s wide enough to do vacation photos and get the Christmas tree.

Http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=149&modelid=7337

rob answers:

Far away … Does that mean shooting wildlife or field sports?

You may find that a lens in the 70-300mm range will do what you want. Don’t be tempted to buy a non-Canon lens. You will be better off with a good used Canon than a new third-party lens.

Flash wise?

There are a couple of Canon dedicated flash units that will reach out to about 60 feet.

Go to Canon USA’s website and see what is available. Then ask the question again with specific lens and flash models we can compare for you.

rob answers:

For as long as it’s the EF series lenses which you won’t have any problems.

rob answers:

This blog post outlines repair procedures for a stuck lens cover. A Powershot A400 is used as an example::

http://camerarepair.blogspot.com/2007/11/repair-of-stuck-lens-covers.html

rob answers:

I know this is pretty obvious, but have you checked the batteries? My husband had a camera that used not only regular AA batteries, but used flat watch type batteries also. I am wondering if your camera is the same. Other than that, the only thing that I can think of is that the lens cover has gotten bent in some way and can’t open properly.

rob answers:

Typically, if it’s still under warranty, you’ll have to exercise your warranty option.

An e18 error is one where the lens mechanism cannot extend or retract. It’s a common problem. Fixing it is complicated, and depending on what exactly is seizing the mechanism, may actually require replacement parts, and not just a cleaning.

If you are in warranty, it’s best left to to a trained technician. If you are out of warranty, there will be a cost to using a canon certified technician. If you are mechanically inclined, there is a fix procedure photodocumented, however there is no guarantee that once you open everything up that you won’t find the root cause to be a permanently ruined gear mechanism.

Just so you know…I had an e18 error on an A-series camera that disappeared by itself…whatever was jamming it cleared itself, and now there are no problems. Go figure. You can try some of the measures described in the e18error.com website, like blowing compressed air in the camera.

rob answers:

You can purchase from here cheap camera lenses

rob answers:

Contact canon, if you try fixing it your self you may damage it too much to be repaired. Canon are pretty good and will often fix the problem right away

rob answers:

You don’t need to worry about lenses, any lens that functions on the 350D will work properly on the 7D. The only thing you should be careful about is that low quality lenses that don’t show their flaws on a 350D may show up on the 7D’s higher resolution sensor.

The main differences you experience with a camera such as the 7D is the speed, efficiency and accuracy in which you can operate it. The secondary control wheel at the back allows for a much easier manipulation of settings. Your viewfinder will be considerably better too, since it’s a high quality pentaprism, rather than a pentamirror. The 7D also has a much more advanced autofocus system, it’s smarter, faster and more accurate, allowing you to track fast moving objects. In the time from the 350D to now there have been many developments to allow for higher megapixel counts without sacrificing noise, and you will find that the 7D can beat the 350D’s noise performance.

Then the 7D also has 2x D!GiC IV processors which will hurry up it’s 18MP output. Plus it’s the first Canon SLR to have built in flash commander. So all in all it is Canon’s biggest box of techology and at the price it’s pretty damned amazing.

rob answers:

BillyB is completely wrong. Your camera will accept any lens with a Canon ef or ef-s mount, although I’m pretty sure you already know that.

Zeiss lenses are very nice, but keep in mind that they are completely manual in operation. Unless you know a lot about setting proper focus for different distances and apertures you would be better off spending your money on a nice Canon lens.

rob answers:

They dont indicate anything, its just the cnames that Canon chose. The 400D was the lower range SLR, which was replaced by the 450D and now the 500D. The 40D was a better camera that has been replaced by the 50D. The 5D is an excellent camera, but the 1D Mk II is the cream of the crop.

rob answers:

I think it one by one. And there are soft where come with canon that allow u to do that…call something capture.

rob answers:

Http://consumer.usa.canon.com/ir/controller?act=DownloadIndexAct

rob answers:

We have a digital Rebel and we were able to use all of the lenses from our 35mm camera with it.

rob answers:

Depending on how serious you are into photography and what type of photography you are doing. I would personally recommend a second hand or refurbished digital SLR for starters. I bought mine second hand and paid only 1/4th of the original price.I own Canon EOS 10D,you can see some of my photography on my website.

Then for the lens, the only problem with second hand is to be very very careful. You’ll need to check and make sure that the glass has no marks and there is no dust inside, otherwise buy a new lens. Oh as you said you have a canon film slr, if it has autofocus lenses, you can use them with the digital slr so buy a body only and use existing lenses.

Also note that, because the digital slr doesn’t have sensor same size as 35mm, so whichever lens you use, you have to multiply it by 1.6 so for example 17mm lens will be converted to approx 27mm on digital slr.

Hope this helps.

P.S. : To start a photography as a student, none of the compact digital or bridge cameras will help, u’ll need digital slr (depending on how serious you are as i said). Otherwise yes there are some digital bridge cameras which provides you with almost all features of an SLR but too slow and quality is not same. A canon bridge camera for example is Canon PowerShot G series or Canon PowerShot S2IS.

rob answers:

Hello,

Pretty much all the canon lenses are compatible. I have a rebel 2000 (film), a digital rebel and a 30D and I always switch lenses back and forth. That is one of the major selling points that canon had when it first introduced digital SLR’s was that you could use all your old lenses.

Donna

rob answers:

I know and I have experience, but that will not help you pick the right one for YOU.

Here is what you will have to do to know which camera system is best for you

Go into a camera store and see which of the cameras fits your hands the best.

See which cameras menu is the easiest for you to use to make changes in ISO, camera resolution, white balance, mode switching and make EV changes.

Finally, take a SD card with you and test each camera at their highest and lowest ISO as well as when using the white balance that matches the light in the store as well as with it in the “auto white balance” mode.

Once you get home and are able to see the results on your large computer monitor, you will know which camera is better for YOU, not us

Take your time before you decide. Once you choose one, you will be married to it for decades and the cost of changing to the other system will cost you nearly as much as a divorce

rob answers:

If your film camera is early 80′s or before then no. These cameras used FD or FL lenses that push into place and are locked by a rotating ring. These do not fit a digital SLR without an adaptor which, to be honest, is a total expensive waste of time.

If your film camera is an auto-focus EOS then these used EF lenses which will fit and work on any Canon digital SLR.

The above only applies to Canon manufactured lenses.
If you have older Sigma lenses for your EOS film camera they will not work on a digital SLR. The electronics are incompatible so they will give “Error 99 (?) lens error” if you try to use them at anything other than full aperture. Some can be rechipped but most cannot. I found this out the hard way when I bought a cheap 2nd hand Sigma lens for my EOS450D.
Based on this experience, other older non Canon manufactured lenses may also physically mount onto a Canon digital SLR but may not be electronically compatible.

rob answers:

Anyone with a Nikon will tell you that Nikon is the best and anyone with a Canon will tell you that Canon is the best. I have a Canon and I won’t tell you its the best because I’ve never spent much time with a Nikon, but I love my Canon. I like the buttons and the settings on it and after getting used to it, I think they’re easy to use and adjust all the settings. When I’ve used a friend’s Nikon I found it harder to adjust everything, but that’s probably because I wasn’t used to it yet. I would say to go to a store and look at each camera and hold it in your hands, play with it, and take a few shots to see what you like. One thing I do love about the Canon over the Nikon, is that they have a faster burst rate (for the price range your looking at) For example my Canon 40D will take 6.5 frames per second. I don’t know how fast the d60 is, but I know its not that fast. My one piece of advice no matter what brand you get is to buy used. You can get a mint condition used camera in the box that looks like its brand new, for a whole lot cheaper than buying a new one off the shelf. You get a lot more bang for your buck this way and will have more money for lenses. Look on eBay.

rob answers:

Your Rebel XS is fully compatible with all EF and EF-S lenses.

Canon have three very good Macro lenses available.

They are…
EF 180mm f/3.5L USM Macro…it’s heavy and expensive (this lens has the best bokeh of the three)
EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro…this is an excellent macro lens (this has the next best bokeh of the three)
EF-S 60mm f/2.8 USM Macro…this is also a very good macro lens. Can’t be used on full frame cameras.

My pick is the EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro, because it allows more working distance and is also fully compatible with full frame cameras (if you ever decide to go full frame). It gets ‘rave’ reviews and costs under US$600.

Check out the reviews for the 100mm and 60mm…

rob answers:

It will work on any of the current Canon DSLRs and the oldest models going back to the EOS D30. It should also work on 35mm EOS bodies. What it probably not work with however, are the very old 35mm T-series and even older manual bodies like the AE-1 of the late 1970s.

rob answers:

More expensive models of Canon SLR cameras have metal moving parts as opposed to cheaper models that use plastic parts. The more expensive the better.

The same is true of lenses – the more expensive the better the quality of the glass.

How long? Probably a few hundred thousand shutter actuations (photos).

rob answers:

A wide angle macro? I do not believe there is such a thing. If there were, you would need to get about an centimeter away from the subject to focus at true 1:1 macro. This would of course greatly increase the potential of hitting your front element on your subject! Macro lenses are generally telephoto lenses as that allows you to be at least a few inches away from your subject.

Tamron does make an 18-250 and 18-270 macro, but they are not really even close to a true 1:1 macro, and you would need to use the telephoto end in order to get very close at all…in other words they can hardly be considered a real macro.

rob answers:

I jus bought my 60D last week. I have a D5000 as well. I would say video 60D definately is better. Affordability for canon lenses is also a plus. But still sunrise/sunset colors lost out to the Nikon. Nikon seems to have better noise control as well. However, flowers and people portrait shot ,canon outshines the nikon very clearly. Both model swivel lcd is really handy to use. So i think depends on your style, see what you like to take. Also check on the pass pictures you have taken and note the focal length, then you will know which kit suits you best. No point buying a 70-200mm kit when most of your style is taking within range of 24-55mm shots.

rob answers:

The 1D has no video feature.

You are asking a question that is really unanswerable.

I don’t know of too many videographers who use a dSLR as their mainstay for shooting video and if they did, they would just use the one camera they thought was the best, probably the 5D, Mark II.

The Canon 7D was supposed to be the dSLR that matched the 5D, Mark II in video performance but using a APS-C sensor. No one I have talked to have used both, so there is no way to compare them

Have you looked for articles in video magazines?

Really if your true focus is on shooting video, then you really need to look at a real video camera like the ones in this link

http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ModelList?storeId=11201&catalogId=13051&catGroupId=34401&surfModel=AG-HPX370

Panasonic is not to only maker of Full HD video cameras with 3-CCD sensors, but this is the site that lists the professional remote cameras all together. Look to at Sony and JVC. There are a lot of them along the sidelines at professional sporting events

Whichever camera you choose, you will want the option of shooting at 24, 25, 30, 50 and 60 fps

24 fps is of course the cine speed and 30 and 60 fps are the frame speeds used in the States or other countries who use NTSC format video (60 Hz), 25 and 50 fps are used by all the countries whose video is PAL (50 Hz)

rob answers:

What photographer in the right mind would say, “…90% uses Auto anyway” ??????

You want the simple answer?

Both cameras have great “auto” modes, which get it right about 80% of the time. This is why I say neither…because the photos that seem to REALLY count, seem to always be that other 20% of the time. So yeah…there’s good and bad about Auto.

rob answers:

I would recommend D7000. Why? Many people preferred D300s over 7D. D300s and D90 share the same sensor. D7000 has even a better sensor so I guess that there is no competition. The only 2 areas where 7D will be superior are video and fps. That’s it.

rob answers:

Jim A is an idiot. Both are great brands, with great products coming out from both.

If the rumors about the D7000 are true, it seems like a winner, probably even better than the 60D. Of course, Canon also has their 7D, but we’ll just wait until Nikon releases their replacement of the current D300s and see how that goes

rob answers:

Here’s another http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/Canon7D/

rob answers:

I have a 5DM2 and a T1i and I use neither for video. I have a Sony HDR-SR12 for that. It has a 120gb hard drive, can take 10meg stills and even has a flash. Different horses for different courses. It has a touch flip screen and can easily be held in one hand, try doing that with a DSLR. If video is your priority you’re doing yourself a disservice by not buying a dedicated video camera which is going to cost you a lot less than the DSLR setups you mention.

rob answers:

Oh, god, i also want to edit my avchd files from canon, i just convert it to avi or wmv and edit it use windows movie maker, of course , the converter also can edit canon files like

Clip/trim/split:
Crop:
Set output parameter:
Join/merge:
Apply effect:
Snapshot and Rotate:
http://www.iorgsoft.com/article/avchd/canon-hf200-mts-converter/

rob answers:

They would be indistinguishable.

rob answers:

If you are looking to autofocus while shooting video, only the D7000 can do that.

If you are looking to make movies and short clips, I suggest you buy an actual video camera. They are better at recording video than any DSLR camera. With $1500 you can definitely buy a really nice camera, such as this:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/749190-REG/Canon_4923B002_VIXIA_HF_G10_Flash.html