Anybody want to pick apart my wish list?

I don't anticipate being able to get anything that I don't already have any time in the foreseeable future, but I'd really like to have a good list anyway.

This is what I have and what's on my wish list right now. If anybody has things I shouldn't get or should get in addition to or instead of any of this, whether it's small stuff or major stuff, I'd love knowing about it. I want to be able to do macro/close-up, intimate landscape, wildlife, avian, flora and photo art, so everything represented on NPN except grand landscapes.

What I have:

Canon EOS REBEL T2i
EF-S55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS Lens
Canon-Remote Switch for Canon EOS SLR Cameras-RS-60E3 (on the way)
Photoshop Elements 9
Topaz Labs Bundle
Fractalius
Cheap Canon Tripod
Manfrotto 680B Monopod (4-SCTN)
Manfrotto 234RC Monopod Head Quick Release


What's on my wish list right now:

Canon EOS 7D
Canon EF 70-200mm f/4 L IS USM Lens
Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM Lens
Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM Super Telephoto Lens
Photoshop CS5
Nik Color Efex Pro 3.0
Good Tripod


Thank you for any help!

Well, I'd place the 400/5.6 and a good tripod (and head) ahead of any other wanted items here. And the full photoshop. Then the macro, and then something to cover wide angle stuff (no clue which lens in the Canon shop but something that gives at least 18mm on a cropped sensor).

I wouldn't send any money on any effects software.

I wouldn't upgrade the camera body before getting good glass to cover all your needs, and only when you are up against the limits of the camera (not fast enough writing raw files to memory, noise issues that limit use of higher ISO settings, too hard to implement frequently used settings).

Looks like a pretty good list to me, Barbara.
Maybe put the tripod at the top of the list and the 7D a little further down. Your rebel is no slouch. Put your money in good glass.

I was also going to mention that you'd have to include a head to accompany the "better" tripod. And of course, make sure in both cases that they're sturdy enough to handle your heaviest potential lens+body combo.

Also, if and when you do get the 7D, you'll have to get a different remote/intervalometer for it. I'm not sure the RS-60E3 will work with it.

Max

#1 item bar none is a very good sturdy tripod and head. Period. You'll be pleased and thank yourself over and over again. Don't skimp. Wait till you can afford the one you want. Well....that's my $0.02 worth. Glad I got it off my chest.

I'm not familiar with PSE9, but I would study the differences btween it and CS5 carefully to make sure you really need CS5. Elements is a powerful program to my understanding, and I'm not sure you would benefit from moving up to CS5 at this point. I would put my money on getting the best tripod and best head I could afford. After that, get good glass, then if needed, get the 7D or other body.

Hey Barbara,

Did I miss something - I don't see the part there where you're switching to Nikon. Are you going to do it AFTER you've invested all this money? That seems odd...

Cheers...

Brad

PS: TOTALLY kidding...just couldn't pass up this chance . I have absolutely NOTHING against Canon gear (or that from any other manufacturer)

Dreaming is aways free!

1. A good tripod and head is essential. You can get a good sturdy aluminum one for less than $100 used. You don't need an ultra-light carbon one for hundreds of dollars. You could sell the monopod on Ebay or here and get the tripod now, if you wanted.
2. good glass long before a better camera body - your present camera is fine.

You have to decide whether you want to go primarily with macro or with bird stuff - that will determine the lens you get first.

I don't think you need CS5. Have you mastered PS9 yet? The basics are all most people need, until the skills improve. Even CS5 will not rescue a not-great image!

Concentrate on skills and technique rather than stuff!

Sandy

Concentrate on skills and technique rather than stuff!

Sandy

I heartily agree with this! Barbara, you have a nice kit already (with the exception of a good tripod and head). Take the stuff you already have and wring as much from it as you can, while taking small steps in your learning.

Years ago, I saw this quote in the Whole Earth Catalog; "Distinguish between what you need, and what you wish you needed."

--P

Hey, it's a wish list :-)

I'm an admitted (non-recovering) software junkie. I finally got CS5 (a huge step for me, since I'm relatively poor), and ... I'm glad I did! Could I have gotten by with Elements? maybe - but all the "instruction" I wanted was about CS5. And I'm having a grand time with it. I'm also having a grand time some of Nik Software's offerings - more than with Topaz, I must say.

With what I've spent on software, I probably could have gotten a nice lens - it's still is very hard for me to part with more $ than I paid for my car all in one whack for one piece of equipment

Mind you, the advice you've already gotten is also from people who are far better photographers than I am

So this really is my two cents - not my million dollars, or anything like that. Maybe more like true confession

I have 3 macros. 55, 105, and 200. The one I use for flowers is the 55, the one for insects, frogs etc. is the 200mm. I hardly ever use the 105. The thing I want is a variable neutral density filter. Also, do you have a polarizer?

I have never been disappointed with the results of top quality glass. And they hold value if you think you made a wrong selection. I just sold one lens for $150 more than I paid for it 5 yrs ago. But, don't forget the physical side and ease of handling that will influence your comfort and use of a lens, camera and tripod. Try out various items before you purchase...even if you stand in the camera shop for an hour ...and imagine carrying ...dragging the item to where you like to shoot. A tough question to answer when coming up w/a buying strategy for software is knowing your learning style...if software like CS5 goes underutilized because you hate to learn from a textbook or video...you might be better off w/an easy to apply version...for HDR...layers...stitching ...for b/w...etc. Try some NIK or other software with its free 15 day download. The advise already given is spot on.

Another vote for a good tripod/ballhead as a top priority.

Here's something to thinks about on the telephoto/macro end. The 300mm f4 is a very versatile lens. It's very sharp on it's own. Add a 1.4x and the image quality is still very good, reach is increased and auto focus still works. This lens has a short minimum focus distance and when used with extension tubes it makes a fine long macro lens for bugs and other skittish creatures. Check out Ronnie Gaubert's work (http://www.pbase.com/ronnie_14187) for examples of the macro images possible with this combination. So instead of a 400mm AND a macro lens, this is a nice alternative.

Thanks very much for all the comments and things to think about.

As far as learning and developing skills and technique, of course I do still have a lot of that to do, but, for instance, it'll be really hard to develop those skills and techniques for avian without a longer lens. Getting close enough for a 250-mm lens is very difficult most places and most times. But I hope I never stop developing better skills and techniques even if we win the lottery and I get everything I want and more.

Thank you again!

" It'll be really hard to develop those skills and techniques for avian without a longer lens."

Really, not true!

Your present zoom is fine for developing good skills and technique. Go to the zoo and local animal parks and sanctuaries. Spend MANY days with seagulls. They always come close and are a good larger target that do not fly too fast. Practice panning, zooming, and hand-holding. They are also good for developing exposure knowledge - white against a light sky, white against a dark sky, changing sun conditions, birds on light sand. Get a gray card. Learning exposure and tonality is critical - once you have that down , ANY lens will be much easier to work with.
Get a copy of Art Morris's "Pocket Field Guide to evaluative metering" and start memorizing!
(www.birdsasArt.com)

Most of all - have FUN!

Sandy

Barbara - for over a year after buying my first DSLR I had only a 55-200mm lens. . . took some really nice images of birds, including small stuff like sparrows and chickadees (found at a local wildlife refuge where they are regularly fed). It also worked well on doing macro type stuff - flight shots were taken of ducks and gulls and wading birds that were nice a big.

I don't have a huge budget for photography so I push my equipment to the max until I need to upgrade it. When I had squeezed everything I could out of my D60 and 55-200mm I upgraded to a D300s and a 300 f4 + 1.7X TC. I'm getting to the limits of that equipment and hope to buy a big boy lens in the future - but the financial obstacle is no easy hurdle. My portolfio speaks for itself. . . there is a lot of stuff that is really great (other people's words, not mine) and there is some stuff that is OK (my words AND other peoples words). But for having been serious about photography for only about 2 years I think I've done pretty well.

Spend your $$$ on glass. As for the macro lens, the great advantage to having a 105 f/2.8 is you can add a 1.7X TC to make it a 180 f/4 so it's like having 2 macro lenses in one!

I'm not sure why you think you should get the 70-200. . . it's a nice lens for sure, but I don't know what you are planning to photograph with it that you can't photograph with other lenses. I have an 18-200mm that covers that wide range and works beautifully.

As for the tripod - some say it's a must but I disagree. I STILL don't have one (though at times I wish I did). Don't spend money on a cheapo tripod because you will have to replace it sooner than later for a variety of reasons. . . save your money and wait it out. If your biggest lens is a 400 f/5.6 you don't need a tripod. Mia, Ron Dudley and Ron Bielfeld are some of the top bird photographers on this site and they rarely if ever use a tripod.

When I asked the same questions here years ago, I was told to invest my money in the big glass, because good glass was overwhelming more important than the newest camera features.

It's the best single piece of advice I've gotten on NPN.

You are really getting some great advise here Barbara. I am also learning a lot from these comments. But I like to put in my 2 cents as well.

I agree that you should stick with Photoshop Elements 9 for now. It is very powerful and can do a lot for your images (I still use it for layer masking, etc.) I have gone to a Nik software for my RAW processing however and just love it. Check out Vivenza, I think that is the one to use for Cannon.

I agree that a tripod may not be necessary for avain shooting but it is absolutely essential for macro. I took the Mike Moats class a few weeks ago and that was evident.

BTW, classes like the Moats class and others are wonderful ways to continue learning and improving which I also think is the most important part (and the part I'm focusing on most right now).

As far as equipment, I agree that good glass is most important and the only question I have is the choice of the 70-200mm f/4. I've read on dpreview that the Cannon 70-200 f/2.8 is the best lens made, bar none. When you are ready to move up I would think you'd want to look at that.

I have had a great deal of luck trying out equipment from www.borrowlenses.com (there are many other sites that do the same thing). I have also bought some lenses that I did not like in the long run and gotten nearly all my money back out of them on ebay. This stuff holds its value so you should not be afraid to invest a little if you have it.

I'd say that the most important thing is to have fun, but from your posts it looks like you are having all the fun you can take as it is. Keep up the interesting questions. I always enjoy them.

I might be the odd one to say this but with a mindset such as:

it'll be really hard to develop those skills and techniques for avian without a longer lens. Getting close enough for a 250-mm lens is very difficult most places and most times.

Your entire wish list and more will do nothing to make you a better photographer. It will only make you a mediocre one at best but with new equipment, and may very well hamper your growth and true creativity. If you truly want to learn and grow don't fall for the equipment hoax. Stop looking at advertisements!

Here's a challenge for you Barbara, in the next 7 days take a minimum of 500 shots and then on the eighth day look at them and explain how newer equipment or different equipment would have made them more creative, inspirational, unique, compelling, original, emotional, etc... If you can not create work that first and foremost inspires you with what you have now, how will different hardware do that for you?

I'm not sure if this quote if from David duChemin originally but it is where I originally read it. "Gear is Good, Vision is Better".

If you are interested in macro I would invest in as good a tripod/head as you can afford to go along with that 100 f2.8. Also, consider Helicon for greater control over DOF.

Barbara, that looks like a great wish list. I keep a running list myself. It doesn't hurt to wish!

I have the 70-200mm f/4 lens and love it! It's incredibly sharp and lightweight for a telephoto zoom. But I find that I use it much less than my longer lens (300mm f/4 + 1.4TC for birding) and much less than my landscape lenses (16-35mm and 24-105mm). So while I think it's a great lens, I'd move it down the list a bit for the type of photography you seem to be doing.

I'm interested in the comments here & there about 300mm prime lenses (in Barbara's case, vs. a 200mm). If you were a Nikonian, though, and already used the 70-300mm as a "walk-around" lens (!), I wonder which Nikon lens that included 400mm or up would be a reasonable investment? I do a lot of birds, and largely handheld. I'm always inching back a little bit from 300mm so I'm not at the extreme range of the lens. I also don't mean to digress from Barbara's subject, so maybe I should just be quiet and post this in a new thread!

Also need to agree with Barbara that, while equipment won't make photos more creative and whatnot, as in "better", it is indeed a lot EASIER to get those wee little songbirds with a longer lens! Like Luke, I used a 55-200 for a very long time. I still need quite a bit of patience with a 300mm lens, but the extra reach has been (IMHO) worth every penny. I got a few really nice images of birds in flight with the 55-200, so I know it's possible - and I also missed quite a few that were either barely or mostly out of reach.

Barbara, how about another 2 cents?
There is no beating good glass, whether tripoded or handheld, and good glass is the only investment you will ever make as far as camera gear. Cameras and peripherals only decline in value. Lenses hold their own and often increase in value. I like the 70-200 because in Florida's swamps we often need zoom capability-lots of close quarters. And for birds, a 400 f/5.6 is always better in terms of resolution than anything with a tc on it.
I am also in favor of Cs5 for its abilities, but don't forget that it likes to run on 64 bit with lots of ram and a fast processor, and if you don't have that kind of setup it'll just become another expense.
The comments in this thread about practice, practice, practice, are good ones.

Barbara, how about a set of extension tubes for your macro work?
You could get those now for use with your zoom & they are relatively cheap.