More questions on the D30....

[camera1001]

I'm a film SLR user so would appreciate any input on the D30. Thanks!

1. When comments and reviews say the D30 has slow AF, exactly how slow are we talking about compared to film SLR (eg EOS 30 + 28-135mm lens)? You mean it tends to hunt for say 1 sec before focus is achieved?

2. When viewed thru the viewfinder, is the view similar to film SLRs (again EOS 30 as an eg) or is it a digital image of the subject that I'm looking at?

3. Since the image is digital, does it make a lot of difference whether you're using a "consumer" or L lens? It does in films, eg, we'll notice less resolution or sharpness, especially in large enlargements.

4. Is there a shutter time lag? Read from dpreview that the D60 is a bit faster.

Appreciate your views and advice very much. Been shooting with films (lots used and wasted!) and still hesitant if I should plunge into digital.

 

[tomshen]

Hi, I am a newbie here but would like to share some thoughts with u.

1. Slow AF mostly happens in low light. It's generally okay at daylight. If you shoot indoor sports or low constrast objects, the d30/d60 are more difficult to focus than EOS30. I am using both EOS30 and d60, and I can tell u eos30 is much faster to focus in low light condition and it doesn't use AF assisstant beam to improve AF, which could be quite distractive to your subject.

2. Digital SLR is also SLR so you can see a full size image (normally 95%-100%) recorded on its digital film, ie the CMOS/CCD sensor.

3. Yes, good lenses produce better quality given the same camera body. Some reported an increasing need to use better lenses to cope with high pixel DSLR, like d60.

4. shutter lag? I didn't notice on D60 so far. Even when shooting in RAW at continous mode, d60 performs well. After the first 8 shots, you will be able to shoot again (single shot) after 1 or 2 seconds. This made me excited coz sometimes the best shot comes out from a series of continous actoins.

In general I feel investing on a digital SLR is worthwhile: it makes me learn VERY fast. At the same time dont throw away ur film camera coz u still can use it to do slides photography, the effect of which is unbeatable!

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by camera1001

1. When comments and reviews say the D30 has slow AF, exactly how slow are we talking about compared to film SLR (eg EOS 30 + 28-135mm lens)? You mean it tends to hunt for say 1 sec before focus is achieved?

1 sec is too long. the D30 is not THAT bad!

You will not run into focus problems, as long as you remember the golden rule (which i think a lot of pple in dpreview do not know) - always look for contrasty subjects. This could be edges, lines, watever that is the same distance as your intended subject, or on your subject. Don't attempt to focus on smooth surfaces or pure white or black surfaces (in fact, MOST film cameras will have problems with that).

Also, set focus to centre focus point for most of your shooting. the centre one has the most sensitivity. (with vertical and horizontal cross type sensors, watever.)

i have been using the D30 in low light performances, and there are some VERY bad conditions. Yes it may not snap to focus as fast as film bodies, but if u dun shoot moving subjects often, it is definitely NOT a problem.

Focus of the D30 is said to be more accurate than that of a 1V (this coming from Andy Rouse, famed Canon wildlife shooter in a review of the D30 in Outdoor Photography). Speed is another matter though.

How slow is it? Well hard to quantify in words, since speed is a relative thing. In good light, it's almost as fast as any other film SLR. In low light, it has more problems. But remember the golden rules above, use fast lenses (f2.8 or lower) and u will do fine.

2. When viewed thru the viewfinder, is the view similar to film SLRs (again EOS 30 as an eg) or is it a digital image of the subject that I'm looking at?

Yes, it's a true optical viewfinder, not some EVF type viewfinder. Wat u see is reflected off the same mirror in film SLR bodies.

There's also no option to compose and shoot using LCD.

3. Since the image is digital, does it make a lot of difference whether you're using a "consumer" or L lens? It does in films, eg, we'll notice less resolution or sharpness, especially in large enlargements.

Using digital, u can truly see how good or how bad your lens is, cos u'll be staring at him at 100% in photoshop, roughly equivalent to staring at a very large print upclose. Yes, lens quality is even more important for digital SLRs.

With poor lenses, first thing you discover is lack of contrast in the photos. Second thing you discover, images are soft and muddy. Everything flaw is more obvious.

4. Is there a shutter time lag? Read from dpreview that the D60 is a bit faster.

D60 is faster, but only slightly. Every camera has a shutter lag time. The 1V and 1D has a shutter lag delay of 55 millisecond. D30 has of course a longer shutter lag, but no worse than any film body.

Appreciate your views and advice very much. Been shooting with films (lots used and wasted!) and still hesitant if I should plunge into digital.

it's the perfect learning tool. Trust me.