Things Digital. Mostly Photographic

Both of Canon’s big guns, the EOS-1D Mark III and the EOS-1Ds Mark III allow for lens by lens (up to 20 individual lenses – which seems reasonable) customized autofocus settings. While potentially useful for all lenses, it is particularly important for faster (f/2.8 and better) glass.

Canon outlines an iterative “point the camera and lens at a flat surface, click, check, adjust if necessary, click, check etc.” procedure. It should work. I never bothered because it seemed tedious and my lens kit is mostly the f/4 “light and good for travel” L-series. My fastest lens is the manual focus TS-E 45mm f/2.8.

Thanks to folks that understand optics far better than I, there is a second, less subjective and arguably less tedious way to calibrate your glass. This method relies on Moire patterns that result from viewing a specially constructed optical target using Liveview.

The step by step instructions are on Northlight-Images, a very nicely done site dedicated to all things Canon DSLR.

Another discussion and a similar target can be found here..

I don’t post comments. I read and respond to the ones that deserve a response but I don’t post them.

That said, Gilber Buve has lots of positive things to say about the ATP GPS Photofinder and I had none.

Here is Mr. Buve’s comment.

I used it for 3 months and I felt it’s a very useful tool for Geotagging application. I have the SONY GPS-CS1, it’s the first geotagging device on the market, but it’s too stupid. Why ?

1. ATP PhotoFinder has a LCD screen:
It just provides a function to adjust and check your camera’s clock. Nobody won’t always watch the small sceen. Why ? Because it’s not a navigation device to provide a map. I think nobody will always watch the small screen because it doesn’t have any function besides show the UTC time. To adjust the camera’s clock is ensure the photo’s record time and date can match PhotoFinder’s GPS data. Like SONY’s GPS-CS1, because it has no LCD screen to adjust my camera, so I often took a lot of photos but several can’t be tagged successfully. Why ? Because the time record can’t match and sync.. ATP PhotoFinder has a LCD screen, it’s a benefit for users.

2. Signal lost:
As we know the GPS has 3 modes: Cold start/Warm start/Hot start.
From my experience, any GPS device is easy to lose signals because the signal is easy to interfere by environment, especially tall building, cloudy day or even rainy day.
But if the GPS device can receive the 1st signal and stable, anytime it can be a hot start mode as long as you don’t power off it.
What is the hot start mode? When you lost the signal, it can acquire the signal within 1 second depends on the GPS module chipset. I think SirF III can reach the standard and I ensure PhotoFinder can do.

3. Built-in SD/MMC/MS card reader:
It’s also a benefit. I believe other similar products on the market, when they do the tagging function, PC is necessary. But they need to install a lot of softwares and steps to tag one photo. If I took 300pcs photos, how long I spend to repeat the step ? Find the location and tag to my photos.
But PhotoFinder provides a OTG ” On the Go ” function, I can insert my SD or Memory Stick into the PhotoFinder directly, select the correct Time Zone then it will tag all my photos automatically. It’s like a magic box and I don’t need a PC to do it. And any brand of camera can use it. It’s the biggest benefit.

Geotagging is a new field and I believe more and more people will join it and find the joys.

That’s my experience, for everyone’s reference. It’s not a navigation device, PhotoFinder is a Geotagging tool, a magic box to tag all you photos.

And the camera formats, ATP already provided a PC side revised software, you can download it from photofinder.atpinc.com/manual.html I tested it and the PC software can solve a lot of format compatibility issues before.

Good luck !!

The whois information provided by WordPress has Mr. Buve traces back to the Asia Pacific Network Information Centre. He may find his Photofinder to be all that and then some or, and this is my take, he is representing a client. The Photofinder is made in Taiwan.

Follows is my reply to Mr. Buve’s comment.

As I said in the post, it is an adequate GPS but it fails to do the one thing that sets it apart from other devices… it would not append GPS info to any jpeg made by any of the 4 different Canon cameras that I own. I have two Garmin GPS devices… I can dump tracks on to my computer and tag jpegs there. If the ATP Photofinder cannot append info in the field directly on SD cards than it is just a small GPS unit and I have one that is small enough (and has many everyday advantages over the ATP unit.)

We can disagree on the tiny LCD read out. You are right that it is used infrequently, I am right that it is to small to use at all. And the contrast is so awful that the tiny letters are only part of the problem. It is extremely hard to read and that is a problem.

The hard to read problem extends to the LED status lights. They are simply too dim to be of use in average daylight. On a device that is fussy about orientation it is a requirement that the user be able to confirm that the device has satellites. I expect a device like this to both work and to inform me when it is working.

And the thing simply eats batteries. Why not AA rather than AAA for power?

The included booklet, the PDF and the information on the Web site all have different and often conflicting information on what the device does and how it does it. One source specifically mentions Canon (the largest maker of digital cameras on the planet), while another says “that the Photofinder works with most JPEGs.” Finally, the included pamphlet specifically named cameras by manufacturer and model and Canon was not included. So, which is it?

No mention is made of the Zulu offset available on the unit. I reset cameras to Zulu only to find out that I could adjust for local time. Not that it mattered. Either way the unit could not and would not append Lat and Lon on my jpegs

Go over to B&H and read similar criticism. It is a good idea with very poor execution.

This will be brief.

The ATP Electronics GPS Photofinder doesn’t work. Mine is in a box on it’s way back to the folks at B&H.

And I’m out 3 hours and round trip shipping…

To be precise, and why not, it is a tiny battery sucking GPS with a sub-microscopic display. Not only is the display small, tiny just begins to convey it’s lack of size, it cannot be read by humans when viewed while the sun is up (which is when I do most of my photography…) The three LED confirmation system that augments the really tiny and unreadable-in-sunlight LCD display is just dim enough that you have to hold the device up to your face to see confirm that the thing is working. Holding the unit will, in almost every case, cause the PhotoFinder to lose satellites.

Along the worthless display and the dim blinking LED’s, comes the third strike, it doesn’t actually do the one thing that made it worth considering. Sure it logs Latitude and Longitude but that’s not so hard. In the end this device is a one trick pony. It is supposed to append GPS info directly onto JPEGs stored on SD cards in the field.

And it doesn’t.

While Ken Rockwell has been tinkering with his “The Camera Doesn’t Matter” (see my previous post here) retort to “that Canadian”, aka Michael Reichmann, for a week or two. He still hasn’t succeeded in actually making any real case – or much sense.

I’m guessing he won’t – tinkering with the edges of a flawed thesis, will, in the end, just waste time. That said, it is his time and he can waste it however he wishes.

Sean Reid, writing in the Luminous Landscape, uses relevant historic references (as opposed to the Wright Brothers and Lance Armstrong) and deftly avoids slandering an entire country, to put photography, photographers and the tools we use into proper perspective.

And, damn it, as Reid himself proudly proclaims:

Sean Reid, an American, has been a commercial and fine art photographer for over twenty-three years.

Rockwell should read it. Once finished, he should concentrate on doing what he does best – re-writting Nikon press releases. Play to your strengths, avoid your weaknesses.

Michael Reichmann disagrees with Ken Rockwell and does so in a public place.

When someone disagrees with (apparently) one of your core beliefs you can:

1) Ignore them.
2) Make a reasoned argument that solidifies your point(s).
3) Say something disparaging about their Mother
or (and you don’t see this one nearly enough)
4) Launch an ad hominem attack against an entire country and include an irrelevant history lesson.

Oddly enough, or maybe not, Rockwell choose number 4. I wouldn’t dare to paraphrase this jingoistic nonsense so here is the meat of it in his own words:

Maybe I’m American-centric. American’s don’t understand words like “no,” “I can’t” or “impossible.” In the 1700s everyone knew a motley band of rabble rousers couldn’t defeat the world’s most powerful empire, but we did and created the United States of America in 1776. Everyone knew heavier-than-air flight was a proven scientific impossibility, but in 1903 the Wright Brothers flew anyway. No possible way could men ever get to the moon, but back in 1969 we sent men up there just because we could, and although we continued to send men up there on an almost weekly basis until we got bored of it in the 1970s, no other nation has ever been able to get there to this day almost 40 years later. Tell a Texan (an especially tough breed of American) that he’s got cancer and only 6 weeks to live, and he’ll cut off one of his own nuts just to keep things fair and go off to win le Tour de France — seven times in a row. Do you think it was his bicycle?

So I guess when you try to tell an American that he can’t make good pictures with a crappy camera, that won’t stop him, but Geeze, it would be a very sad world if only Americans had the gumption to make decent photos with crappy cameras. I honestly doubt that.

I sure know I’ve also seen far more really crappy photos made with great equipment, in fact, I’ve made thousands of the crappy ones myself with great gear!

Reichman is a little too found of his toys and can seem a little chummy with those that make them. Rockwell is a mediocre writer who has trouble actually crafting an argument. That said, this round goes to the Canadian for, if nothing else, attempting a reasoned argument.

And for not once mentioning Lance Armstrong…

March 14, 2008 Postscript: As of this evening, Ken Rockwell has excised much of the vitriol quoted above. But, with apologies to the Wright Brothers and Lance Armstrong (who I am certain rode a series of very tricked out bikes on the Tour) not to mention all Canadians, the text deserves to linger. So it does.

April 12: Rockwell has archived the sanitized version of this post. I’ve corrected the link. Scroll to March 13 to read the re-written version.