EF lens adapter for XL1: What about opposite?

[John Locke]

Is it possible to use the XL1 16x and 3x lenses on Canon still cameras?

Just wondering.

[Jeff Donald]

No, the image circle they project is too small. The circle projected by the XL lenses is about 9mm in diameter if memory serves me correct. The circle required for 35mm film is 40mm in diameter. The XL lenses would only show a small circle (with the image) on a black background.

[John Locke]

Interesting to know. Thanks, Jeff.

[Adrian Douglas]

Plus, the video optics are no where near the quality of still lenses, it would be a big step backwards. You'd also be forgoing distance markings and AF.

If your thinking of the 3x as a wide angle for your 10D it would also be difficult to hand hold due to the bulk of the lens. The 16-35 you ordered is by far the better, all be it expensive, way to go.

[John Locke]

Just thought adding a couple more lenses to the still photo arsenal would be a bonus. Ah well...

[Jeff Donald]

John, you could try Adrian's fish-eye lens and use a debarrelizer plugin for Photoshop. It will give you a very wide field of view compared to the 16-35mm lens.

[John Locke]

Adrian...you have the 14mm? Or 15mm?

The 300mm 2.8 is what I'm drooling over now. I'd get it before the fisheye...but a fisheye would come in handy for something I have in mind. Dang.

[Jeff Donald]

You can turn the fish-eye into an extreme wide angle, with very little distortion, by using Photoshop plugins. Even the 14mm loses it's extreme angle of view on the 10D. It becomes the equivalent of a 22mm lens after the focal length multiplier is applied.

[John Locke]

That's been the thing that made me hold off so long before investing in a new digital SLR...waiting for a 1:1 ratio...AT an affordable price.

Got tired of waiting, though. So, I'll just have fun with the 10D until then.

Adrian...thought you might like to know...I compared prices on several lenses--checking the new "USA" model prices at BHphotovideo.com and comparing them with the used prices of the same models at Map camera. B&H beats them out by about 15% consistently...and that's comparing new and used models!

[Adrian Douglas]

Tex, my fisheye is Canon's 15/2.8 and sells for around 70 000 locally. It's a great little lens with good optics and fairly fast AF.

The plug-in Jeff is talking about is Panotools and is available as a free DL for Windows Mac(OSX ?) and Linux. It does a good job but is not the most intuitive app around.

B&H has some great prices but is it still cheaper by the time you get it here/customs etc?

[John Locke]

That 15mm sounds pretty good. On the 10D it would be the equivalent of a 24mm.

Shipping is usually around $50 to $100, depending on what you get and how fast you want it. Customs tax is only around 10%. If you're buying something $500 or less, it doesn't usually save much. But for more expensive items, you can wind up saving hundreds.

The one thing I have to keep an eye out for are certain items that Bic occasionally bumps up to 20% credit on points. I saw today that purchasing the 70-200 lens would earn you around 42,000 points...meaning 42,000 Yen you can use toward another purchase. When you get that many points, it winds up being about equal to buying it at B&H...or a tad cheaper.

[Adrian Douglas]

Yeah the points certainly do help, I picked up a ball head last month using just points.

[John Locke]

Jeff was saying he likes ball heads...what is it you guys like about them? I've never used one, but they always seemed to me that they'd be lacking the precise control of traditional heads.

[Adrian Douglas]

The one I bought is a Kenko FP-100 Pro anad is a great head for the price. I used it yesterday shooting a temple near home and it makes positioning my camera a breeze. It features a single locking lever that locks/unlocks both the ball and the base and allows the head to be rotated 360 degrees. I used it with my 1nRS, 70-200, and 540EZ mounted to it and it held them all as steady as a rock. No messing with different controls, no creep, just unlock position the camera how you want, horizontal or vertical, and lock it again all in a matter of seconds. THe only things it's missing is a spirit level and degree markings on the base but for the price it's great value and a great performer.

There are better heads on the market but this one does what I need and I got it using just points.

[Jeff Donald]

I use the Arca Swiss B1G, it's a standard in the business. But not because of the company. Arca Swiss doesn't even have a web site. But they make the best ball head in the business. They last a lifetime. Most people that don't like ball heads never learned the right way to use them. There is a good article at Really Right Stuffs web site about using ballheads. While you're there check out their right angle brackets for the 10D. They are indispensable in the field for the type of work I do.

I also use a leveler for my Gitzo and ball head. See the article here on levelers. All of this mounts atop my Gitzo carbon fiber tripod, the model G1348. A 4 section affair that sets up to eye level for me (important at my age and height) and collapses a little smaller for aid in travel. The extra 4th section can also be a big help in setting the tripod up on uneven ground. Shots I would have missed, I've gotten because of the 4th section and the versatility it adds to the setup.