Monday, November 4, 2013

Canon EOS M After using it..

I Bought a Canon EOS M couple of months back for my trip to the states. Well I did mention it on my blog when I first bought it and why I choose Canon compare to other brands. Now after using it for the 22 days trip shooting more than 2000 photos there some likes and some dislike about the camera. Let me share the Specs of the camera first as some of my photographers friends heard about the this model but don't really know anything else about it at all. The specs is pretty impressive for the price Canon is asking for the camera but that's it after Canon reducing the pricing.

Imaging
Camera Format APS-C (1.6x Crop Factor)
Pixels 18.0 Megapixel
Sensor Type / Size CMOS, 22.3 x 14.9 mm 1
File Formats Still Images: JPEG, RAW
Movies: MOV
Audio: Linear PCM 2
Bit Depth 14-bit
Dust Reduction System Yes
Noise Reduction Yes
Memory Card Type SD
SDHC
SDXC 3
AV Recording
Video Recording Yes, NTSC/PAL
Resolution 1920 x 1080: 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps
Aspect Ratio 4:3, 16:9
Video Clip Length Up to 44 Minutes 4
Audio Recording Optional External Mic: With Video, Stereo,
Focus Control
Focus Type Auto & Manual
Focus Mode Single-servo AF (S), Continuous-servo AF (C), Manual Focus (M) , Focus Lock AF Area Mode
Autofocus Points 31 5
Viewfinder/Display
Viewfinder Type LCD Display
Display Screen 3" Rear Touchscreen  Live Preview LCD (1,040,000) 6
Screen Coverage Not Specified By Manufacturer 7
Live View Yes
Exposure Control
ISO Sensitivity Auto, 100-6400 (Extended Mode: 12800-25600) 8
Shutter Type: Electronic & Mechanical
Speed: 30 - 1/4000 sec 9
Metering Method Average metering, Center-weighted average metering, Spot metering 10
Exposure Modes Modes: Aperture Priority, Auto, Manual, Programmed Auto, Shutter Priority
Compensation: -3 EV to +3 EV (in 1/3 EV steps) 11
White Balance Modes Auto, Custom, Daylight, Flash, Fluorescent (White), Shade, Tungsten 12
Burst Rate Up to 4.3 fps at 18 MP for up to 15 frames 13
Flash
Flash Modes None
Built-in Flash No
Dedicated Flash System eTTL
External Flash Connection Hot Shoe 14
Performance
In-Camera Image Editing Color Balance, Edit Movie, Filter Effects, Fisheye, Miniature Effect, Monochrome
Start-up Time 1.6 Seconds 15
Shutter Lag 0.05 Seconds 16
Self Timer 10 sec, 2 sec
Connectivity AV Output (out)
HDMI C (Mini)
Mini-USB
USB 2.0
Wi-Fi Capable No
Software Requirements Not Specified By Manufacturer
Power
Battery 1x LP-E12  Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery Pack
AC Power Adapter ACK-E12 (Optional)
Operating/Storage Temperature Operating
32 to 104°F (0 to 40°C)
Humidity: 0 - 85%
Physical
Dimensions (WxHxD) 4.3 x 2.6 x 1.3" / 108.6 x 66.5 x 32.3 mm
Weight 9.24 oz / 262  g body only
Kit Lens
Focal Length 22 mm
Comparable Focal Length: 35 mm
Aperture Maximum: f/2
Angle of View 63°
Minimum Focus Distance .49' (.15 m)
Magnification Not Specified By Manufacturer
Maximum Reproduction Ratio Not Specified By Manufacturer
Groups/Elements 6/7 17
Diaphragm Blades 7
Autofocus Yes
Image Stabilization No
Filter Thread Front: 43 mm
Dimensions (DxL) Approx. 2.40 x 0.93" (60.9 x 23.7 mm)
Weight 3.70 oz (105 g)


Now lets go back to how well the camera works or don't work....hahahahhaa...... I am not a professional photographer so I wont go in depth with my comments.

What I like about the camera is that its a system camera ( that's what everybody calls it when selling it to me) that you can change the lens and the sensor is an APS-C size that's why I bought the camera in the first place. After 2000+ photos, well i like the results the Photos came out pretty nice. Well its a Canon how bad can it be right? Check out my last blog for some sample photos I think the result in terms of color contrast is pretty good. The Auto functions are good, it will sense what photos that you intend to shoot and give good portrait with DOF or good landscape photos without any adjustment need to be done. Anybody can shoot like a pro with the Auto Function.

There are a few areas that is a big let down, well even Canon cant be perfect right. First of all the Flash! most system camera have built in flash but not this baby. The package I bought does come with an external flash that's quite compact and I thought i can live with that. Think again! I was wrong  its quite troublesome to carry around an external flash. The camera is easy to carry around without the flash but once you put in the flash its a bit bulky and not so nice to carry around. The second most irritating problem with the camera is the battery life, You will have only about slightly more than 200 shoots every full charges. 200 a lot? trust me its not enough! I was on tour and everyday we leave the hotel at about 7am and back only at 9pm earliest. Most days during my trip the camera is already dead by 7pm Darn!. Remember the battery its only 875 mAH, not sure how to judge? well let me tell you most smart phones battery nowadays are mostly 2000 mAH! get it now? The final draw back about the camera is the the focus speed. Canon did update the firmware to make it faster, so when I bought mine the update was release not long and instantly updated it. It felt good when you are just testing the camera but when you are using it for real it just a bit too slow for my liking. You might just miss some good photos moments because of the focusing speed.

Well that's about it, even with some flaws the camera did a decent job for me and I like it. So if any of you guys thinking of getting one, I think its not a bad choice. Cheers!!!






Canon EOS-M Mirrorless Digital Camera with EF-M 22mm f/2 STM Lens - Black

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

22 Days US east coast and west coast Trip Photos


Its been a quite some time since I went for holiday overseas and have been thinking of going for a trip but not really sure where i want to go. Since my sister is getting married in the states might as well attend the wedding and have a holiday there. Took sometime to plan for the trip and ended up staying with my sister for 7days and touring the USA for 15days heheheheh.... was fun but tiring.

Week 1 - Chicago
Chicago The Windy City. The name says it all, its windy all the time. Among all the places I visited, i really like Chicago. Nothing much in Chicago but its really a good place to stay. The people are quite friendly and food are reasonable price.

Chicago Train station

Chicago Theater Downtown Chicago, where Transformer was film
The Bean Chicago main attraction


The Great lake - Lake Michigan

Limo for the Wedding

Garden Wedding at the Great lake - Lake Michigan

Chicago Town View from the Lake

Oldest Surviving Building in Chicago Water tower

Chicago Famous Pizza


Week 2 - East Coast (New york, DC, Niagara Falls, Boston)
East Cost trip was nice as well, the tour we join was not too bad. I enjoy the trip to Niagara falls even though it was a long way there but the scene was awesome. New york city was so so... too crowded for my liking.
Flushing - One of the few China Town in New York

New York - Manhattan

The Empire State Building Main Entrance

The Information of Empire State building on the way up to the top

New York - Manhattan View from the Empire State Building

The Famous Wall St.

New York - Manhattan Cruise View

Brooklyn Brigde

The Famous Lady Liberty

The Space Shuttle Enterprise

New York - Manhattan Night town

DC - The Korean Memorial Wall.

The Lincoln Memorial Building

The Lincoln Memorial Statue

The Famous Waterfall - Niagara Falls

Niagara Falls looking over to Canada
 Week 2 - West Coast ( Las Vegas, LA, San Francisco )
West Coast trip was a disaster because of the the tour (will blog about the tours companies on my next blog). Did not really enjoy the west coast as much as the east coast. The only thing I really enjoy was Disneyland and Universal Studio which we when by ourself after the tours end.

Grand Canyon South Rim

Hoover Dam Nevada

Las Vegas - Treasure Island

M&M Chocolate Factory

Santa Barbara Beach

Solvang Denmark Village

Golden Gate Bridge San Francisco

Alcatraz

Yosemite National Park Granite Wall Formation

Day time in Disneyland
Disney Night Parade

Universal Studios

Delorean in Universal Studio

Universal Studio Show cars

Cars you see in Movies :)

Star Walk Hollywood

I hope everybody like the photo i posted. I will write more about the trip on my later blogs. As i mention earlier i will comment on the tour companies I join and also a blog how to visit USA from getting your visa to details of food/hotel price.

Do leave a comment on what you think or maybe what else you all want to know.

Cheers!!!