Jul, Aug 2008: Canon EOS News and What's New at The-Digital-Picture.com

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Canon has announced instant rebates on two camera+lens combinations.

Get a $150 instant cash rebate when purchasing the Canon EOS 40D and the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM Lens together.

Get a $100 instant cash rebate when purchasing the Canon EOS Rebel XTi / 400D and the Canon EF 70-300mm f/4-5.6 III (non-USM?) Lens together.

Both are nice deals - I especially like the 40D combo deal. This promotion runs from August 31st through October 13th. See the rebate form (1.5 MB PDF) for details.

Saturday, August 30, 2008

Calumet Photo is now taking 50D preorders. Calumet has been offering free shipping on orders over $75, but this offer is changing to $10 off $200 on Sep 3rd. Use the code "TENDISC" to take advantage of this offer.

Friday, August 29, 2008

Preorder the Canon EOS 50D now at RitzCamera.com.

Canon EOS 50D Body - $1,399.00 shipped
Canon EOS 50D with 28-135mm IS Lens - $1,599.00 shipped

Thursday, August 28, 2008

ISO12233 resolution chart sample crops from the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III have been added to the following lens reviews:

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Lens Review
Canon EF 50mm f/2.5 Macro Lens Review
Sigma 50mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro Lens Review

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

The Adorama "Refurbished By Canon" inventory has been significantly updated - 63 items are available. Lots of great lenses, bodies, flashes ... are listed. Expect like-new equipment at nicely reduced prices.

 
It's official, the Canon EOS 50D is coming. The 50D is a significant upgrade to the 40D - read the highlighted Canon USA press release for the details. Links to other Canon division press releases and the Canon EOS 50D web site with more detailed product information can be found in the Canon EOS 50D Digital SLR Camera Review placeholder page.

Also announced was the Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens. Links to several Canon division press releases can be found in the Canon EF-S 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens Review placeholder page. The 11x focal length range, 4-stop IS and very short minimum focusing distance specs look awesome, but I can't help being skeptical of the image quality this lens will produce. Wide focal length range lenses are seldom excellent optically. Even though it has UD and aspherical lens elements, the low $699.00 estimated price and lack of USM are additional reasons for me to question the image quality we should expect from this lens.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Think Tank Photo is having their first-ever sale. And I like their definition of "sale" - 30% off two very nice cases.

"Regularly $279.00, the Airport Acceleration is on sale for only $195.30! This backpack fits all international carry on requirements when the laptop case is removed. It can be decreased in size and weight immediately by removing the laptop case."

"Regularly $169.00, the Airport Ultralight is on sale for only $118.30! This incredibly light but protective backpack works in tandem with rolling hard cases like the Pelican 1510 (one of my favorites) or the Hardigg Storm Case iM2500. You can roll it the airline door, remove the backpack, and then gate check the roller."

Friday, August 22, 2008

Canon China (reportedly) temporarily posted specs for a new DSLR model - the Canon EOS 50D. The page was quickly removed, but copies of the specifications and a summary have been posted by someone quick to grab the pages. Note: IS is in the lens - not the body.

I don't like to post rumors as most are not correct and can actually cause us to make bad purchasing decisions. But this page is said to have been posted on Canon China's web site and appears to be legitimate, so ... I'm making you aware of this one. I expect the next formal Canon announcements to take place later this month. Stay tuned.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

ISO12233 resolution chart sample crops from the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III have been added to the Canon EF 50mm f/1.2 L USM Lens Review.

Here is a link to the Canon 50mm f/1.2 L Lens vs. Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Lens Comparison.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

ISO12233 resolution chart sample crops from the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III have been added to the Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 USM Lens Review.

Here is a link to the Canon 50mm f/1.4 Lens vs. Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Lens Comparison.

Tuesday, August 19, 2008

Canon EF 800mm f/5.6 L IS USM Lens Review

Friday, August 15, 2008

Vignetting test results from the Canon EOS 1Ds Mark III have been added to the following pages:

Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens Review
Canon EF 600mm f/4 L IS USM Lens Review
Canon EF 800mm f/5.6 L IS USM Lens Review

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Sigma 50-150mm f/2.8 II EX DC HSM Lens Review

 
The Canon EOS Rebel XS / 1000D DSLR is now available, but I recommend that you do not buy it. I'm sure it is a great camera, but the Canon EOS Rebel XSi / 450D is an even better camera for practically the same price. I expect the XS / 1000D price to drop in the near future - or they will simply sit on dealer's shelves.

 
Was the Canon lens you wanted OOS? Many have been, but B&H and Adorama both received large batches of Canon lenses into stock yesterday. If not available right now, they likely will be very soon.

Monday, August 11, 2008

Chuck Westfall's August Tech Tips are online at DigitalJournalist.org. Chuck always has some useful information for us.

 
B&H has the imported version of the Canon EF 200mm f/2.0 L IS USM Lens for $5,199.00. Not cheap, but much better than the $6,000 price I paid for mine.

Friday, August 1, 2008

By popular request, ISO 12233 resolution chart sample crops for the Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM Lens are now available. A full review is coming, but I have a few others to complete first.

 
Tamron has released their Summer 2008 Rebate Program. Actually, the rebate form indicates that these rebates were effective July 1st - a month before the prior rebates were scheduled to end.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

The Canon EOS Rebel XSi w/18-55mm IS Lens Kit is now priced under $770.00.

Amazon.com - $769.97
Adorama - $789.95
B&H Photo - $794.95
17th Street - $792.00
J&R - $799.88 shipped
Wolf Camera (same as RitzCamera.com) - $799.99 shipped (starting 8/2)

The body-only XSi version is also at a nice price - $700.00 - $725.00.

 
Tamron has announced the Tamron 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC Macro Lens.

Actually, the full name is "Tamron AF 18-270mm f/3.5-6.3 Di II VC LD Aspherical (IF) MACRO" - a lens desperate for a nickname. The focal length range looks awesome, but I can't help being skeptical of the image quality across the huge 15x range - hopefully my skepticism will be unwarranted. Small size, vibration reduction and a short minimum focus distance make this an especially attractive lens.

Monday, July 28, 2008

Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM II Macro Lens Review

 
The SanDisk rebates (3.3 MB PDF) just got better. The rebate form has been updated with better (significantly better in some cases) rebate amounts.

Here are the revised Adorama deals from Friday:

SanDisk 4GB Extreme III SDHC Memory Card - $14.95 shipped after $20 MIR
SanDisk 8GB Extreme III CompactFlash Card - $34.95 plus shipping after $40 MIR

The SanDisk 16GB Extreme III CompactFlash Card is $95.95 plus shipping after $90 MIR at B&H

Sunday, July 27, 2008

The Adorama "Refurbished By Canon" inventory has been once again updated - 49 items are available. The Canon EF 400mm f/2.8 L IS USM Lens is one of the hard-to-find refurbished lenses currently in stock. Lots of other great lenses and bodies are available. Expect like-new equipment at nicely reduced prices.

Friday, July 25, 2008

Adorama has a pair of nice SanDisk Extreme III Memory Card deals:

SanDisk 4GB Extreme III SDHC Memory Card - $24.95 shipped after $10 MIR
SanDisk 8GB Extreme III CompactFlash Card - $49.95 plus shipping after $25 MIR

Monday, July 21, 2008

Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 Di Macro Lens Review

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

ISO 12233 resolution chart sample crops from a second Tamron 70-200mm f/2.8 Di Macro Lens have been added to the site. Samples from the original lens showing a right-side-softness issue remain on the site as sample lens "2". The new lens (sample "1") is the default sample lens - the link sets both lenses up for comparison. The new lens delivers a much more uniform sharpness across the frame.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Do you have or use an HP printer? If so, please sign up for HP's "My Print Rewards". Sign-up is free and fast - You get exclusive savings on HP supplies and each sign-up generates support for the site. Sounds like a win-win situation to me. Thanks in advance!

 
Have you checked the price on the Canon EOS 5D recently? After the instant rebate, the 5D body is only $1,799.95 and the kit with the also-excellent Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens is an even better deal at $2,599.95.

5D Body-only at J&R
5D + 24-105mm Lens at J&R
5D Body-only at Amazon.com
5D + 24-105mm Lens at Amazon.com ($2,607.10)
5D + 24-105mm Lens at Adorama

Also, J&R has the Canon 40D for only $899.95 shipped.

Friday, July 11, 2008

It is time to make your final decision. The current Canon Summer 2008 Rebate Promotion ends in 1 week. It is unlikely that we will see better Canon deals until the next rebates are offered - typically in the fall.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Sigma 18-125mm f/3.8-5.6 DC OS HSM Lens Review

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

RitzCamera.com has the EOS Rebel XS DSLR with 18-55mm IS Lens and Canon 430EX II Speedlite Flash available for preorder.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Canon USA announces the EOS Rebel XS / 1000D Digital SLR and the Speedlite 430EX II.

 
FullSizePosters.com is offering new customers a 24" x 36" print for $4.29 (normally $19.99) plus shipping which was $8.62 for me (thanks Chris). See the details for this promotion on their site (link).

Monday, July 7, 2008

Catching up ... Things were a bit quiet here last week. That was not completely planned. I was traveling but expected to have dial-up Internet access. Unfortunately, a storm took out the phone service at the rental house. So, I have some catching up to do.

 
Canon Announces Plans to Build a New Manufacturing Facility

 
Chuck Westfall's July Tech Tips are online at DigitalJournalist.org.

 
Newegg has the Transcend 8GB 300x CompactFlash Card on sale for $89.99 after $10.00 promo code "HARDOCP63010". Shipping is $5.99. Search Newegg for the model number (TS8GCF300). This one expires today (thanks Chris).

 
Our UK friends can take advantage of a Canon £50 Cashback Offer on the Canon EOS 450D DSLR (thanks Richard).

 
SanDisk has announced their Summer 2008 Rebate Program (1.4 MB PDF). Great performing, high quality memory cards are once again a great deal. Try B&H or Adorama for good deals.