Digital BW, The Print

Hi Ross,

Jerry has already responsed with some good advice, but I'll add my 2 cents...FWIW...

The Canon 28-135 IS lens is a great walk-around lens - not as sharp as many others in the Canon lineup - but, the IS will benefit you greatly in handheld situations. That said, I have used this lens tripod mounted and have been very happy with the results. Remember to turn IS off when on a tripod...this lens does not currently have the next generation IS system. Overall, though, IMO it's a great lens as a starter lens for the Canon D30/D60; if you like zooms, of course.

On the longer end, the Canon 70-200/2.8L IS zoom or the 70-200/4L are both fantastic lenses. The decision here comes down to whether you need/want the IS and how much weight you are willing to carry. I have the f/4 version and can assure you that it is a fine lens. My decision here was based on weight. I tend to carry my photo gear great distances from the car so, to my mind, every ounce needs to be considered.

The 28-70/2.8L is also a great lens, but, again, weight becomes an issue here. Also, I have heard rumors that Canon might be announcing an IS version of this lens so I would wait, at least until after Photokina, before making any purchasing decision on this one.

For primes, as others have stated you probably would be hard-pressed to beat the 50/1.4 or the 100 Macro. I have the 20/2.8 prime which, I believe, has a Photodo rating around 3.5. 4.0 is considered by many to be the cutoff point for absolutely critical work, but I have been very happy with the images produced by my 20mm. And, it is/was MUCH less expensive than the 16-35/2.8L! Of course, I'm not much of an extreme wide-angle guy, therefore did not want to invest in the wide zoom. Keep in mind that a 20mm lens on the D30/D60 is equivalent to 32mm. The 35mm length is very comfortable for me, with the 24mm (full frame) about a wide as I feel comfortable shooting...though I've seen some fantastic 20mm shots...maybe I just need to "see" better with my wider lenses. ;-)

If I remember correctly, one of your posts asked about doing B&W with the D60. My opinions are based on the D30 at full file size and interpolated...the D60 might produce slightly better results... I have made many attempts at trying to get acceptable B&W prints from my D30 image files from 5x7 to 11x17. To date, I have not been able to produce a final result that meets my standards. However, to be fair, I have been a LF B&W shooter for 30+ years both in the wet darkroom and, most recently (2 years) in the light room, so maybe my standards are set too high! ;-) I have read of others getting acceptable 5x7 B&W prints from D30 files (300DPI), but have not seen one of these "acceptable prints" with my own eyes.

Hope this helps in your lens purchasing decisions.

Best regards,
Alan

-----Original Message-----
From:	bearlick_2000 [SMTP:rmullins@...]
Sent:	Friday, September 06, 2002 5:26 PM
To:	DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com
Subject:	[Digital BW] Digital sharpness vs film- Canon D60

Hello from a lurker on this list. I am currently 
printing with the old piezo inks using a 1160 and 
primarily EAM and Photo Rag papers.  I have been 
unhappy with the extent of the warming of this ink 
over time and so am about to switch to Piezotone 
Selenium. All of my B&W imaging to date has been 
from 35mm negatives and silver print scans and I 
am very happy with the quality of the files and 
quality of the Piezo prints from my 1160, 
especially as to the sharpness and resolution of 
the images. Most of my output has come from my 
beloved Leica M2. For negative scanning I use the 
Polaroid SS35, a 2700 dpi film scanner.

Last year, in order to get into digital imaging, I 
acquired a Nikon 990 that has been marginally 
satisfactory for color prints up to 8x10 but have 
not had the quality that I would like for larger 
formats or for B&W conversion. B&W is my first 
love. Since I have been bitten by the digital bug I 
decided to bite the bullet and go for one of the 
new 6MP prosumer cameras that have come to 
market lately. I put my name on a waiting list for 
the Canon D60 back in June and just received my 
camera body last week. Now to the meat of my 
inquiry. As I am new to the Canon family I would 
like some advice on what are appropriate lenses 
that will provide the best quality results. As much 
as I would like to get all Canon L lenses, I am 
afraid that is not a reality for my strained budget. 
Does anyone have any recommendations for 
lenses other that the L series that would provide 
excellent results.

Jerry Olson seems to be quite happy with the 
sharpness of his prints from his recently acquired 
D60. The resolution/sharpness debate that has 
ensued has been interesting. The math seems to 
come down to the fact that the lack of resolution/
detail that can reside in a 6MP file cannot possibly 
match that of film. I certainly accept that and 
recognize that I will probably not get quite the 
level of detail that I may desire. For Jerry my 
question is- what lenses is he using on his D60 
body and what would he be willing to recommend 
for someone that is looking for the best  possible 
results. 

Anyone have any opinions on the newer Sigmas or 
Tokinas. I need ultra wide zoom and because of 
price am possibly considering the Canon EF 20-35 
d3.4-4.5 or if ok, the faster Sigma AF 2.8 20-4- Ex 
DG DF. I also would like a 28-70 where I am 
considering a used Canon EF 28-70 2.8  L or ? . 
Finally I would like to get the Canon 100-400 f4-
5.6 L IS. Any other suggestions would be 
appreciated. 

I hope that my lense questions are not too far off 
topic for this list.  It is because of Jerry's pleasure 
with the sharpness of his D60 output that 
prompts me to bend the list topic a bit here. 
Every time Jerry talks about how happy he is with 
the sharpness/detail of his up to 13x19 output 
from his D60 I am asking myself what lenses he 
might be using. If anyone is offended by my inquiry 
let me extend my apologys in advance.

In conclusion, I just want to say that this list is the 
most fabulous one that I subscribe to. I get the 
digest version and look forward to receiving them 
each day. You guys are all awesome!

Ross Mullins




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