I’ve been looking for a small, portable printer that I can use at a photobooth or to print up pictures at an event. I decided to try out a Canon SELPHY CP800, and it came in the mail yesterday. For the first time, I’m actually really pleased with the results when printing pictures on my own.

Some initial thoughts, and then more details after the jump. It’s cheap ($80, $0.27/print). Image quality is good. It’s small and portable. Only thing I don’t like is that you have to rip some perforated edges off the end of the paper. Keep reading…

One of the most useful accessories you can get for your digital SLR camera is a battery grip. A battery grip performs a couple functions.

First, it allows you to put two batteries in the camera at the same time, effectively doubling the length of time between changing batteries. By doing this, I’ve never had to worry about changing batteries in the middle of an event or game.

Second, it gives you a second shutter release button. If you’re taking a picture in a portrait orientation (vertical), it can be really awkward to curl your hand around the lens and press the regular shutter release button. There’s a second shutter release button on the corner of the battery grip, so that when you rotate the camera to take a vertically oriented picture the button will be in the regular location.

The question, then, is what battery grip do you want to get. You could invest in an expensive, OEM option, or you could buy a cheap, third party option. Here are some thoughts on three options for the Canon t1i. Similar options are available for the Canon t2i and Canon t3i, and probably for entry level Nikon cameras as well.

Keep reading…

Shortly after I bought my Canon t1i, I also bought a Canon 200DG Camera Bag.

I had a smaller, off-brand camera bag, and it just didn’t hold up. The Canon 200DG wasn’t quite as durable as I’d hoped, but it is certainly sizeable. Here’s a quick run-down of my experience with the Canon 200DG bag.

Keep reading…

It seems intuitive enough. More megapixels is better, right?

But, as with most things electronic, the magic number just seems to keep on growing… 2, 5, 8, 11, 15, 18, 21?!? How many megapixels do you really need?

Approximate Resolution of Various Output Types

One way to think about this question is to estimate how many pixels (and therefore the number of megapixels) it takes to effectively render a few different common output formats.

Facebook. Let’s say you want to share a picture over the Internet. If you’re on Facebook, the largest possible image size is 720 pixel x 720 pixels. That’s 518,400 pixels… or a whopping 0.5 megapixels.

Other Web Sharing. Let’s say you just want to share some pictures over the web and look at them on your computer. While the upper limit on the resolution will vary, it will be limited by the size/resolution of your monitor. My 19″ flat panel and video card on my desktop support a resolution of 1440 x 900 pixels. That’s a total of 1,296,000 pixels, or 1.3 megapixels. Hmm… now we’re getting closer to modern times.

Basic 4×6 Print. Ok, let’s up the ante and contemplate a print product. Typical print resolution is 300 ppi (pixels per inch).  That means that a 4 inch by 6 inch picture will require approximatley 1200 pixels by 1800 pixels. That’s 2,160,000 pixels, or a shade over 2 megapixels.

Large 8×10 Print. Want something bigger? How about a nice 8×10 print that can fit in a matted 11×14 frame. At 300 ppi, that requires 2400 x 3000 pixels. That’s 7.2 megapixels. Now we’ve actually entered the realm of modern cameras. But, still, most consumer level digital point and shoot cameras deliver at least 7 or 8 megapixels.

Uber-Large Poster Print (24 x 30 inches). And now for something obscene. Let’s make a really big poster print. At Costco, I can print an image at 24×30 inches for $8.99. That would require 7200 x 9000 pixels or 64,800,000 pixels. So, a full 300 ppi image would take, umm, 65 megapixels. Oops. They actually look pretty good at ~12-15 megapixels as long as you don’t hold your nose an inch from the picture.

In other words, pretty much every conceivable normal output format (from web images to an 8×10 print) requires less than 8 megapixels. If you’re a professional photographer creating movie posters, large print ads, or the like, you could probably benefit from a higher resolution. And there are some reasons why you’d like to have a little extra resolution to spare. But, while more is better, that doesn’t mean it’s necessary…

Food for Thought

In 2004, Canon’s flagship camera was the EOS 1D Mark II. That camera, near the top of the line of professional Canon dSLR, offered 8.2 megapixels. It’s successor, the EOS 1D Mark II N also topped out at 8.2 megapixels, and the flagship line didn’t increase until the EOS-1D Mark III was introduced in 2007 with 10 megapixels.

Up until a few years ago, 8-10 megapixels was enough for professional photographers the world round. So, although today’s flagship camera offers 16 megapixels and the more recent 5D MK II offers 21 megapixels, these aren’t exactly necessary. It’s nice, but it’s something of a luxury, and often times it’s entirely unnecessary.

Does that mean you should turn away a high megapixel camera? No, not really… but you can find some few-years-old digital bodies in good used condition for a decent price. If there’s no other reason for you to choose the newer body, you can save yourself hundreds of dollars by buying a slightly less-than-modern camera that offers less-but-enough megapixels.

What happened to Opteka’s wireless flash trigger system? I don’t know why I went to Amazon the other day looking for them, but I couldn’t find them. When I eventually found a link to them on Amazon, they’re listed as “Currently unavailable,” and they don’t know when they’ll be back.

Hmm… guess it’s time to move on. They were a great introduction to wireless flash, and they always worked pretty reliably for me when I remembered to put fresh batteries in the receivers. But, I may need a fourth one soon and one of the receivers is getting pretty beat up, so I think it’s time to invest in a new system and keep the Opteka’s on the shelf as an emergency backup.

So am I upgrading to Pocket Wizards? Umm, no. Wish I could say so, but that $5-600 just isn’t in the budget these days. What is in the budget is a set of Cactus V4′s, with one transmitter and three receivers. I haven’t found them on Amazon, but they’re available through the Midwest Photo Exchange. It’s currently $46 for the initial set and $25 for extra receivers. Not bad; still under $100 for a 3-flash set.

One thing I really like is the form factor of the receiver. It looks like it’ll take up less space and hold the flash better on top of a light stand with an umbrella adapter.

My birthday is coming up in February, so I expect to either get them as a gift or I’m going to buy them myself. When I do, I’ll write up a review. In the meantime, let’s hope these Opteka triggers hold out a little longer.

One of the problems with photography is that you always want more gear. Some things are must-haves (a good telephoto zoom, a good normal zoom, maybe a good prime lens), while others are toys that would be nice to play around with every once in a while.

Or, maybe you’re looking to expand your hobby into a profession. You might need some better equipment (or extra backup equipment), and you don’t have enough cash on hand to purchase the stuff. What to do…? Keep reading…

There are a couple different classifications for camera lenses, and one way you can classify them is as either prime lenses or zoom lenses. The lens to the left (Canon 24-70mm f/2.8L Lens) is a lovely and expensive example of a zoom lens.

So what exactly is a zoom lens?

Keep reading…

There are a couple different classifications for camera lenses, and one way you can classify them is as either prime lenses or zoom lenses. The lens to the left (Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 Lens) is an example of a prime lens.

So what is a prime lens?

Keep reading…

I’ve seen a lot of different questions about the Canon 85mm f/1.8 lens. It seems like a popular choice, but it’s a bit of an investment… and people often wonder if it’s really useful for their purposes. So is an 85mm lens useful for wrestling?

Keep reading…

Photography is an expensive hobby. After you plunk down hundreds of bucks for a nice dSLR body, you start collecting lenses, speedlights, lighting accessories, and all sorts of things. That’s why Christmas is such a great holiday… you can stock up on nice, shiny gifts!

So, if there’s a photography hobbyist or enthusiast in your family, here’s the run down on four lenses that he or she just might like to add to that camera bag. They’ve all been in my bag at one time or another, and they all served me well for some purpose. Keep reading…