Canon DSLR Video Reviews and Advice Blog for 5D2,7D,550D,600D and 60D

Is Capri Models a Scam? Pacha Studios Reviews and Feedback

2013-05-13T13:36:00.002+01:00

Whatever the reason you can get your Capri Models deposit refunded as long as it is less than seven days since you made the booking. Your deposit refund may be with Pacha studios in London depending on the name they use but you are still entitled to get a refund of the deposit that you pay to Capri models. so is Capri models a scam - decide for yourself!

Is Capri Models a Scam

If you need to call them to get your deposit refunded the phone number for Capri Models is 0203 587 7133 and the telephone number for Pacha Studios is 0203 587 7133 if you need to call with a complaint about Capri Models.

Feedback on Capri Models / Pasha Studios

Comments by people who have been ripped off by Capri Models into buying portfolios that they do not need. Capri Models got Google to remove the blog containing these comments because they don't want anyone to read the true feedback from unhappy customers.

View the actual feedback comments on Capri Models/Pasha Studios here

I sent them a photo yesterday. My mum got a phone call from someone called Carol saying I can go along for a free photo shoot to see if I have what it takes. they wanted a £50 refund. WHY IT'S A SCAM: ~They will only refund the deposit if you buy photos ~They accept EVERYONE for a shoot ~They charge £50 per photo ~They said I could only go this Saturday or next Saturday as there were limited spaces. AUTHENITC AGENCIES ALLOW YOU TO PICK ANY DATE. PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT BE UPSET. Im 15, and I felt so happy. My mum researched this and its a scam. IT IS A SCAM PLEASE DONT GO
Do not bother! !!!! I have been on the phone all day to trading standards and action fraud squad. . Who are now investigating these fake people! !! I can't get my 50 pound back and have had to cancel my card! I've emailed them asking nicely for my money back but funnily enough no reply! There quick to reply when they want your money!! I guess I got flattered by the lady called naz tellingme how beautiful I was. Do not be fooled. I will let you know how I get on with the fraud squad. Doesn't look like I will see my 50 pound tho

Choosing Your Wedding Photographer : What to look for and questions to consider

2013-05-06T22:01:00.000+01:00

How to choose your Kent Wedding Photographer?

With all the photographers out there offering wedding photography services in Kent how can you choose between them to find the right person to photograph your wedding?

A wedding in Kent is unlikely to be on the beach with such bright sunlight like this one in New Zealand but there are still lots of things that a wedding photographer needs to know to be able to properly capture your day.

Choosing Your Wedding Photographer

Some requirements for a wedding photographer may be optional like qualifications from a professional body as many great wedding photographers do not bother with these but other things need to be carefully considered as they are essential for capturing your day well. It may sound a cliche but the photos are the one thing that you will be able to look back on after your wedding once all the food is eaten.

Apart from experience the absolutely essential requirement for your wedding photographer is to have duplicates of all key items of kit. They will need 2 cameras, 2 sets of lenses and 2 flashguns as a minimum. Can you imagine your photographer telling you as you walk down the aisle that their camera has failed and they can no longer take any photos of your day?

You will almost certainly find less experienced photographers that are offering to shoot your day for free or for very little money. Some of these may be students or people just starting out. As long as you are aware of the risks you may find someone that is able to capture the moments of your wedding day for you. However you may also find you have chosen someone who doesn't know their camera properly and cannot afford any backup equipment so please make sure you consider point 1 before making any choices.

Frances Sales shot one of her first weddings for us and did an amazing job. Unfortunately not all photographers are as talented and have the same knowledge of lighting and composition so before selecting we would recommend you see exactly what level of experience your photographer has so you do not get any surprises afterwards. Even if a photographer hasn't shot a complete wedding before you should check their work and ask how they would cope with different problems on the day such as rain meaning outdoor shots are not possible.

What to look for whe Choosing Your Wedding Photographer

Check how and when your wedding images will be delivered to you. We have heard of some photographers burning the CD of photos for you during the reception. Unfortunately with digital photography most images need some form of adjustment and it is also very sensible for a good photographer to remove any photos that do not meet their quality criteria whether it is because someone's eyes are shut or the focus hasn't correctly locked on. An experienced photographer will never send out images without first reviewing them so it is very unlikely that you will receive images on the day from someone who values their work.

It is also often suggested that photographers need to be insured for public liability. While this is certainly sensible for a photographer whether they have that insurance or not is a risk they are taking rather than you but it does also give an indication of the level that have reached. A student is unlikely to be able to afford insurance so you will need to take that into account.

Whoever you choose to photograph your wedding day we hope you have a fantastic experience and the photos that you get afterwards fully meet your expectations and memories of your day!

Canon 5D Mark3 Firmware Offers Video Improvements

2013-05-01T13:28:00.000+01:00

Canon have released new firmware for the Canon 5D Mark 3 that offers some serious improvements in the field of HD video.

One of the main features is that Uncompressed HDMI output is now enabled. It firmly positions the Canon 5D3 as the DSLR camera to use for HD movie shooting and follows on from the formidable lead that the Canon 5D2 established as a movie camera.

http://software.canon-europe.com/

Rochester Sweeps Festival Photography

2013-05-01T10:43:00.000+01:00

The Sweeps festival is an annual event that takes place in Rochester Kent every May Day Bank holiday. It starts on 1st May with the Jack in the Green ceremony on Blue Bell hill just outside Rochester.

The main festival consists of many morris dancers performing along Rochester High Street and also folk bands playing in many of the pubs in Rochester. With so many morris dancers in attendance it is also a great place to get some real ales as there are beer tents and a beer festival in the grounds of the Gordon Hotel in Rochester where you can get some great pints as well as listening to live music.

Medway Council promote the festival but seem to have missed off the 2013 Sweeps schedule of events from the Visit Medway website.

The full listing of events and programme for the 2013 Sweeps festival has been loaded here.

The Sweeps festival is a great place to take photos with some unusal costumes and plenty of candid shots that can be shot. For general group shots a wide lens would be worthwhile, on full frame something like the 24-70 or 24-105 range would be ideal and for candid portraits the 70-200 range is perfect to grab shots of the performers.

Margaret Thatcher Death Announced - 1979 Newspaper Election Headlines

2013-04-08T14:46:00.000+01:00

With the sad news today that Lady Thatcher has passed away aged 87 from a stroke I thought it might be of interest to republish some scans that were taken of newspapers from Margaret Thatcher's election in 1979 and subsequent victory in 1983.

You can view further newspaper headlines here from the Thatcher Era when the "Iron Lady" was in power

New Canon DSLR 100D and 700D Announced

2013-03-21T13:48:00.001Z

Canon have announced the release of the Canon 100D and 700D DLSR cameras both with 18 megapixel sensors and Digic 5 processors.

New Canon 100D DSLR Announced

The Canon 100D has been billed as the lightest DSLR available and tips the scales at only 407g. This compares to the Canon 600D which weighs 590g (in comparison the Canon 6D which tips the scales at 780g, the Canon 5D is a heavyweight at 920g) View a comparison of the Canon 6D vs 600D here

Unlike other DSLR cameras with video the 100D features phase detection for the video autofocus.

New Canon 700D DSLR Announced

Canon 6D L on screen and Unable to Change Aperture Setting in Manual Mode - L shows in Display

2013-03-09T17:58:00.005Z

With the Canon 6D if you see L on the rear panel display screen and find that you are unable to change the Aperture setting in manual mode then don't panic! If you are able to adjust the aperture in Av and the aperture can change in P mode then the lens is almost certainly ok and the issue is a camera setting.

If you put the camera into M, manual mode and when you try to change the aperture the letter L shows in display then the LOCK button on the rear of the camera has become engaged and is preventing you from changing the aperture in Manual mode.

Flick the lock switch off and you will be able to change aperture as normal.

Canon 6D GPS Battery Drain Problems

2013-03-04T23:27:00.001Z

Having had the Canon 6D for just over 2 months now I have been very happy with the camera and have now sold my Canon 5D Mark 2 as the Canon 6D is a more than competent replacement. The one aspect of the Canon 6D that is a problem is the GPS with firmware 1.1.2.

One of the reasons I bought the Canon 6D was to use the feature of being able to GPS tag my images. This works brilliantly on the 6D apart from one small problem, the GPS does not turn off when the camera is switched off so will run down the battery in a day or two.

Canon 6D GPS Battery Drain Problems

Canon UK have replicated the problem and acknowledged that it is an issue. It has been reported to Canon HQ so I am hopefully that a firmware update will be forthcoming to resolve the GPS battery drain problems and allow use of the camera as intended.

Egypt Balloon Flight over Luxor

2013-02-26T09:27:00.002Z

Balloons flying over Luxor in Egypt

Hearing the news this morning about the balloon crash in Luxor brought back the memories of our balloon flight over Luxor a couple of years ago. Our hearts go out to those involved in the accident as they are likely to be families like us enjoying their holiday and appreciating the incredible sights and history of Luxor.

Egypt Balloon Flight over Luxor

Buying a Digital Rev New Used Camera

2013-02-09T18:35:00.000Z

If you are considering buying from Digital Rev in Hong Kong you might be interested in this.

I've seen a report by a photographer that bought their Canon 5D3 from Digital Rev. Six months later they tried a tool called Stolen Camera Finder to check for images with their serial number online.

Some rather interesting information came up showing images taken by Digital Rev. Nothing remarkable about that until you see the camera being featured on their YouTube channel being used in the streets of Hong Kong.

And then sold on as a New Canon 5D Mark 3.

So is your new camera actually a Used Camera? Over to Rob to tell his story/....

http://www.prettyinwhite.com/digital-rev-hey-thats-my-camera/

Playing Canon 6D Video on Computer

2013-02-07T13:40:00.002Z

Playing Canon 6D Video on Computer

My video from Canon 6D won't play on my PC /How to Play Canon 6D Video on Computer/Smooth Playback from Canon 6D?

A common question about the MOV video files that are produced from the Canon 6D cameras is how to play them smoothly on a PC as they can be very choppy/jerky when played as the MOV format. The files are in the H264 compression format and to play Canon 6D video smoothly you need a very high end PC with fast graphics card and plenty of RAM. My PC has Quad core processor, 8Gb RAM and ATI Sapphire HD 4850 512Mb graphics and generally will play smoothly as long as other processes are not running

Even if you have a very high spec PC the playback can still be jerky and not smooth. The best way that I have found to play Canon 6D video smoothly is to use some software called Cineform Neoscene. This will convert the MOV files which are highly compressed into a more usable AVI format that your PC can play easily.

You can get a free trial of the Neoscene software from the Cineform website and to purchase is around £70. This may seem a lot of money but remember that with this software you can then edit the video on your PC using Windows Movie Maker without having to purchase any further software and also without buying a new high spec PC.

Canon 6D GPS Poor Battery Life - Canon 6D Battery Runs Down When GPS Switched On

2013-01-11T12:00:00.002Z

While the Canon 6D battery life may be great for taking photos, I've found that leaving the Canon 6D internal GPS on while the camera is switched off runs the battery dead within a few days. With GPS switched off while the camera is off the battery remains charged.

Unfortunately the only menu option on the 6D is to turn the internal GPS on or off, there is no choice to switch GPS off when the camera is switched off which would still allow GPS data to be added to photos taken. The option that you would expect to switch the GPS off when the camera is turned off is the "Use GPS to track camera". With this option off there seems no point in the GPS being permanently turned on.

You can tell if the GPS is switched on by looking at the top LCD plate of the Canon 6D when the camera is turned off. If the GPS is still active the screen will be showing GPS in the bottom corner. With GPS off this disapears.

Hopefully Canon will be able to resolve this with a firmware update so that you can retain GPS live only when the camera is on rather than GPS remaining live when the camera is off.

Canon 6D High ISO Test Review - Noise Performance Compared

2013-01-02T23:00:00.004Z

Review of Canon 6D High ISO Performance - Comparison of ISO Noise

As the newest full frame DSLR camera in the Canon lineup the ISO noise performance of the Canon 6D should match or beat any of the previous Canon DSLR cameras. On paper it doesn't disappoint with a standard range of 100 to 25600 that can be extended to 102400. In comparison the Canon 5D that I am replacing has an ISO range of 100 to 1600 and can be extended to ISO 3200. That means the Canon 6D has a whole 5 (yes FIVE) stops more ISO choice than the Canon 5D Mark 1 and two more stops than the Canon 5D Mark 2 that went up to 25600 in extended settings.

Canon 6D High ISO Test Review - Noise Performance Compared

These shots were taken to show the capability of the Canon 6D in low light and high ISO. I've deliberately only started the series at ISO 1600, below that noise is not an issue which is quite an incredible situation we have arrived at.

The images below are of the same scene but shot at an incredible ISO 51200 and 102400 - interestingly the EXIF shown on the image is 65535 which is the maximum setting! Amazing to think that with film the maximum general ISO would be 3200 and even that was very grainy.

Canon Digital Solutions Software Installer Fails - Universal Installer Error

2013-01-02T21:50:00.000Z

I've found that trying to install the latest Canon Digital Solutions software fails on certain PCs and there seems to be no easy way to resolve it. This has happened using Canon software on Windows Vista 64 bit with the error Universal Installer Windows has stopped working.

Canon Digital Solutions software error - Universal Installer Windows has stopped working

The solution that I have found to successfully run the software which includes my favourite image browser, Digital Photo Professional, is to install on another PC. Copy the folders from under C:\Program Files x86\Canon to a memory stick and replace them on your target machine.

As long as the software is already installed on the destination machine you can then run the Canon solutions software using the files that installed on the old PC.

NOTE: This worked for me but there is no guarantee that it will work for everyone. I would recommend that you back up any files that you replace so you can reverse the process if it doesn't work!"

Canon Digital Photo Professional Error - Universal Installer Windows Stopped Working

2012-12-31T17:01:00.003Z

When installing Canon solutions, Digital Photo Professional CD 27.1 an error occurs and the message "Universal Installer Windows Stopped Working" is shown. The installer then crashes and the program is not loaded.

Canon Digital Photo Professional Error - Universal Installer Windows Stopped Working

This only seems to affect v27.1 of the Canon DPP software so the current solution has been to revert back to an older version. At the moment Canon have no information about this error and any ways to resolve it.

DPP Viewer Module stopped working

Update - I have found a solution to allow you to run Digital Photo Professional and fix the error for Universal Installer stopped working when installing Canon Digital Solutions 27.1 CD

Canon 6D Review: Comparison with 5D & 600D Hands On

2012-12-31T10:46:00.001Z

My Canon 6D finally arrived today after a few days in transit across the world. When I opened the packaging I was worried that no camera had been included as the box was so light but on inspection the Canon 6D was sitting securely in there just a very light camera!

Having put the new LP-E6 battery on charge I fired up the camera using the battery from my Canon 5D Mark 2 to check out the features. Before doing so I decided it would be interesting to weigh the Canon 6D and compare weight and dimensions with the Canon 5D that it would be replacing and the smaller Canon 600D that I have as a family camera.

The Canon 6D tips the scales at 780g, the Canon 5D is a heavyweight at 920g and the diminutive Canon 600D barely registers at 590g

Canon 6D Review - it tips the scales at 780g

Canon 5D compared to 6D - the 5D weighs in at 920g

Canon 600D weighs in at 591g

On first use a few very useful features come to view, the top mode dial now has a lock feature so that it doesn't move when shooting or when in your bag. Nothing more frustrating to be set in manual mode only for the camera to switch halfway through a shoot.

I'll be doing a far more thorough review later but the other feature that shows how far things have moved on since the Canon 5D was released in 2005, is the ability to set Auto ISO and minimum shutter speeds. I know this was available on the Canon 5D Mark 2 but it was a very basic implementation and the Canon 6D makes it much more usable.

I've not even got into looking at the high ISO, GPS or WiFi so there are plenty more features to test out!

Why is SLRHut So Cheap with Low Prices Advertised? Is SLR Hut a rip off?

2012-12-21T09:25:00.003Z

Many people have asked why is SLRHut so cheap with such low prices advertised on their website? The answer is two fold - firstly the prices advertised are not the prices you finally pay as they hard sell additional warranties, batteries or other accessories at rip off prices. Secondly the prices SLR Hut advertise on their website do not include any UK taxes such as VAT or customs duty. SLR Hut are based in the USA so any goods you buy have to come via UK customs checks before they get to you.

It appears from feedback from customers that SLR Hut illegally under declare the price of goods to evade VAT and customs duty but if you are caught then you will be liable for the full cost of the VAT and duty you have avoided. As one example an SLR camera was bought by a UK customer, dispatched by SLR Hut from the USA and declared as a value of $18 to avoid VAT and taxes.

The customer was also sold an expensive warranty and battery grip which are far cheaper in the UK. Any warranty may involve sending the camera back to the USA for repairs which is likely to be an expensive process taking much longer than using a UK repairer.

You can read reviews of SLR Hut and information about their non existent UK branch here

Different Christmas Gift Ideas Kent - Photo Shoot Gift Vouchers in Maidstone

2012-12-09T17:20:00.000Z

If you are looking for a different or unusual Christmas gift idea then a photo shoot gift voucher might be the perfect option. The voucher is valid for 12 months and can be used for any of our shoot packages.

You can buy online and the voucher will be posted to you with full details of how to book a shoot.
Vouchers are available for collection up to Christmas Eve.

More details of photo shoot gift vouchers here

M20 Lorry Fire Photos - Video of Lorry Fire

2012-11-30T17:16:00.002Z

A lorry carrying plastic caught fire on the M20 motorway on 29 November 2012. This photo shows the fire from the opposite carriageway as the passenger was driving past.

M20 Lorry Fire Photos Video

I photographed a very similar fire on the M2 back in 2009 and captured the whole event unfolding from the lorry catching fire to the fire brigade arriving and putting out the flames. The video has been my most viewed on YouTube with well over 1 million views.

M2 Lorry Fire - Car transporter fire shuts motorway as firefighters tackle blaze

M2 Lorry Fire - Car transporter fire shuts motorway as firefighters tackle blaze

Anniversary Photo Shoots - Celebration Studio Photo Sessions

2012-11-12T13:56:00.001Z

We had a fantastic studio shoot yesterday for a 50th Wedding Anniversary. The whole of a family came along for a photo shoot but also brought plenty of bubbly and nibbles to make it a real celebration event.

For this shoot we arranged the timing so that the family were able to get setup before the happy couple arrived and to give plenty of time for taking photos as well as them being able to relax and chat between group shots.

The whole shoot was a massive success and is definitely something we will be offering in future!

How to Edit Canon 650D Video on Your Windows PC

2012-10-15T13:32:00.002+01:00

How to Edit Canon 650D Video on Your Windows PC

I've been asked a few times about the workflow that I use for editing the video footage from the Canon 650D DSLR camera. Since I discovered the Neoscene Cineform software a couple of months ago the workflow has been very simple! All my work is carried out on my PC running Windows Vista64, the workflow on a Mac may be simpler still.

Firstly all video is copied from the Compact Flash card onto a dedicated 1Tb video storage drive (internal SATA drive). The original video from the Canon 650D (and also the Canon 7D and 500D) is stored as Quicktime MOV using H.264 codec but this is almost impossible to edit natively on a PC so needs to be converted to AVI format.

Launch Neoscene and convert all 650D video clips from MOV to AVI. For simple projects the only editing tool I use is ..... Microsoft Movie Maker!! Its very straightforward and quick for small projects but the limitations show for more complex editing tasks.

Once the video is edited I normally save using the 720p HD template for uploading to the web or the normal 1080p for keeping on the PC. If the 720p option isn't used then the aspect ratio of the video tends to be wrong which compresses the image to 4:3 rather than 16:9

Amazing! Lorry Fire Video Over A Million Views on YouTube

2012-09-27T20:48:00.002+01:00

Amazing! The lorry fire video that I shot on the Canon 5D2 shortly after its release has now had over a million views YouTube in just over 3 years. It really shows the power of DSLR video as without the Canon 5D2 I would just have had stills - powerful images put not with the impact of the video

M2 Lorry Fire - Car transporter fire shuts motorway as firefighters tackle blaze

M2 Lorry Fire - Car transporter fire shuts motorway as firefighters tackle blaze

National Air Ambulance Week 2012

2012-09-25T22:03:00.004+01:00

This week is Air Ambulance week, an excellent cause and one that we are very happy to support. This was a donation that we made to Kent Air Ambulance from video sales and any donations to such a worthwhile cause would be fantastic.

Air Ambulance Week 2012

The Hop Farm Wedding Fair

2012-09-20T21:22:00.002+01:00

Plan your dream wedding at The Hop Farm Wedding Fair

The Hop Farm is delighted to be hosting the ‘Wedding Fair‘, offering couples who are planning their wedding the perfect opportunity to see what‘s available locally and to compare services and products without spending weeks searching for that something special.

Perfectly timed for those love struck couples that announced their engagement during the Summer, The Hop Farm Wedding Fair on Sunday 7th October has a host of local and national wedding suppliers.

The Wedding Fair will bring together some of the best wedding suppliers in the South East and will be showcased within the beautiful function rooms of The Hop Farm.

Exhibitors will range from flowers and cars to jewellery, stationery and photography, entertainment and DJ's.

The event has everything you need to plan the wedding of your dreams.

Entry to the Wedding Fair is just £3.25 for adults and seniors and £2.20 for child tickets. Couples will be charged £5.35 for entry.

Click HERE to book tickets.

For more information visit www.thehopfarmvenue.co.uk

Are SLRHut Cheap Camera Prices a Customs Fraud?

2012-09-18T21:42:00.000+01:00

SLRHut are an online retailer based in the USA but using a UK website address and UK phone number to appear to be UK based. There are lots of discrepancies with their facts and despite them claiming that there is no scam and all the information about SLRHut is lies they have yet to state what information is not true.

It appears from a recent post on Trustpilot that the reason that SLRHut are able to sell cameras & elecvtrical gear so cheap is that they are not paying UK VAT or customs duty.

A review states "One more thing was that the package was labelled on the outside as camera accessories and a value of £17, not sure how legal this is with regards to customs. "

This is for a £1200 camera in the UK which would equate to £200+ of UK taxes that have been avoided by declaring the value as £17. Declaring the value of imported goods to be artificially low to avoid paying tax would be considered fraud by the HMRC tax authorities.