Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 II DC OS HSM Review

 

This is a lens that will probably not appeal to professionals, and I guess a lot of people thinks a lens like the [shoplink 5037]Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 II DC OS HSM[/shoplink] is not good enough for their last generation DSRL bodies (not true indeed, and we all know that it’s the photographer who makes the picture, not the gear). Nevertheless, this is a perfect travel lens. Light weighted (490g/17.3oz), with an 11.1x zoom range (18-200mm, on an APC-S sensor equivalent to 28-320mm), image stabilization, decent build quality, and fair performance. It has an HSM motor driving the zoom. Consider that this lens has a street price of $399 and you have the perfect travel lens. More after the break.

 

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CCD technology explained (video)

 

Have you ever wondered how those CCD sensors work? What’s behind the science that captures light and outputs all these nice pics you are shooting? We all know that having a larger sensor is usually a pretty good thing, but how exactly is a sensor working? Well, there is one thing you can take for granted: there’s a lot of sophisticated work to do. And Bill Hammack (The Engineer Guy) is here to help us understand. Enjoy the video!

[via engadget]

 

Tamron SP 24-70mm f/2.8 DI VC USD Review

Update: the following shops have the Tamron SP 24-70mm f/2.8 VC USD in stock and ready to ship (world-wide availability check at the end of the post):

ephotozine just reviewed the eagerly awaited [shoplink 5013]Tamron SP 24-70mm f/2.8 VC USD[/shoplink] lens. It’s an interesting lens: it covers a popular zoom range and has a constant 2.8 aperture. It weights 825g (29.1 ox) and has an 82mm filter mount. Closest focusing distance is 0.38m (15.0 in). Having a price tag of $1,299 it’s cheaper than Canon’s equivalent [shoplink 232]EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM[/shoplink], which sells at $1,599 and does not have image stabilization (called vibration compensation in the Tamron galaxy). Build quality is rather good: High quality plastics have been used for much of the lens barrel’s construction and the wide rubberised zoom ring is well enough damped to prevent lens creep. Generally speaking, the performance of this lens is very good. Some excerpts from the review:

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How tough is an EOS 7D? (very tough!)

Ok, DO NOT replicate these “tests” using your camera. You could regret it. :-) Over at Digitalrev they decided to see how durable an [shoplink 337]EOS 7D[/shoplink] is, and to check this they decided to throw the camera downstairs, to let a truck hit it, to freeze it, not to speak of the microwave oven and the flames and the fire that were used. Want to know how strong and durable your 7D is? Then this is the video for you. It’s unbreakable. Have fun! And don’t take it too serious. :-)

Check the latest EOS 7D pics uploaded to Flick clicking here. EOS 7D price check: [shopcountry 337].

More Low-Light comparisons: Hacked EOS 5D3 vs FS100 vs hacked GH2

Another one of those “non-scientific” tests I like so much! :-) (no kidding). This time over at EOSHD they compared the [shoplink 2431]EOS 5D Mark III[/shoplink] ($3,500) with removed OLPF vs [shoplink 4953]Sony’s FS100[/shoplink] ($5,000) vs [shoplink 4952]Panasonic’s GH2[/shoplink] ($700-800, also hacked). The test is made in an extreme (low) lights setting:

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EOS 5D Mark III vs Nikon D800 Live-View Usability

Ok, it appears that the D800 has more problems than most people would like it to have. After what we already reported (and here too), it looks as if there was another little big problem. The live view of the [shoplink 4853]Nikon D800[/shoplink] seems to be rather disappointing if compared to the one featured on the [shoplink 2431]EOS 5D Mark III[/shoplink] – at least for night shots. Photographer Ron Martinsen writes about what he calls a D800 live view zoom bug:

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