[snegron1]

@snegron1 - Thanks, I enjoyed reading about your journey



With respect, that's exactly what Canon hoped you would think Your 6D MkII would still be working just as well today if you'd kept it... and if it had died at some point, then you could have bought the R-series camera and adapter at that point. There are professional photographers - plenty of them - still using Canon DSLRs... not even the most recent generation of them. Their cameras are no more obselete than your 6D MkII was...



Out of curiosity, what was it that didn't thrill you about the image quality? Other than dynamic range at the lower ISO settings, the sensor seems pretty capable...

Thanks BigMackCam,

In adition to higher visible noise at lower ISO settings (especially in RAW), many of the details were too soft no matter how I set it in terms of noise reduction or sharpening. It wasn't the lenses as I was shooting several Canon L series lenses. Selecting the AF points was not neary as easy or intuitive as on my 7dmk2.

[BigMackCam]

In adition to higher visible noise at lower ISO settings (especially in RAW),

I assume you must have been doing quite a lot of aggressive shadow recovery and/or bumping of exposure? Looking at online comparisons of raw files at various ISO settings, the 6D MkII shows pretty similar noise performance to other full frame cameras of its era... indeed, it even makes a decent fist of it compared to the R6, considering the latter is so much newer - but it's true that the dynamic range is below average, and you'd definitely see more noise - especially in darker tones - when pushing EV...

many of the details were too soft no matter how I set it in terms of noise reduction or sharpening. It wasn't the lenses as I was shooting several Canon L series lenses. Selecting the AF points was not neary as easy or intuitive as on my 7dmk2.

Did you perform and verify AF micro-adjustment for each of your lenses? That would potentially make a big difference. This is one area where mirrorless cameras are easier to work with... their PDAF sensors are built into the imaging sensor, so they're always perfectly aligned. Since a DSLR's PDAF sensors are mounted separately and manufacturing tolerances come into play, some amount of AF fine adjustment is usually necessary...

Any fool can take a snapshot; photography is a matter of mind, not equipment.

[reh321]

At any generation, there is very little difference between cameras other than controls, but some people will spend their money on one camera after another, always thinking that this new one will fix all their problems. It is their money, so they can spend it as they wish as long as they can get food, ….

[niels hansen]

The factories are more interested in the shareholders than rhe environment and consumers

[reh321]

Any fool can take a snapshot; photography is a matter of mind, not equipment.

How many threads have we seen of photographing the moon, photographing an eclipse, photographing stars, etc - all things which NASA can do better?
A 'snapshot' of a family gathering is at least a unique photo.

How many threads have we seen of photographing the moon, photographing an eclipse, photographing stars, etc - all things which NASA can do better?
A 'snapshot' of a family gathering is at least a unique photo.

Good point. All those snapshots of the moon, eclipse, family outings, whatever, simply document reality, good for conversation and reminiscing. Not much creativity required, but then snapshots are not about "art".

I recommend pictures by @Kerrowdown as an example of what I mean by "photography" (as opposed to "snapshots", though some street work probably falls into the latter category).
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[beholder3]

Good point. All those snapshots of the moon, eclipse, family outings, whatever, simply document reality, good for conversation and reminiscing. Not much creativity required, but then snapshots are not about "art".

Well, you can add 100% of photo genres which need high automation in autofocus to your list of snapshots.

Sports, BIF it is all at the lowest end of artistic photography.

Look at wedding shooters. Snapshots where you look.

But still everyone is free to like what they want.

Neither selfies nor "wildlife" shots are "better" than the other.

[reh321]

Good point. All those snapshots of the moon, eclipse, family outings, whatever, simply document reality, good for conversation and reminiscing. Not much creativity required, but then snapshots are not about "art".

I recommend pictures by @Kerrowdown as an example of what I mean by "photography" (as opposed to "snapshots", though some street work probably falls into the latter category).
Search Results - PentaxForums.com

We talk of “photography” as being something good and a “snapshot” as being something bad.
Yes, I sometimes shoot before I have time to think, but that is not bad;
sometimes I think afterwards as I decide what to keep, what shows what I want to show.
Many of them are recording the present before tomorrow comes and everything changes.

[BigMackCam]

We talk of “photography” as being something good and a “snapshot” as being something bad.
Yes, I sometimes shoot before I have time to think, but that is not bad;
sometimes I think afterwards as I decide what to keep, what shows what I want to show.
Many of them are recording the present before tomorrow comes and everything changes.

Amen to that.

Photography isn't just that shot we researched for months, checked the weather for weeks, waited for days, travelled and set up for hours, watched the light and checked the wind every minute, then took at just the right second when everything was perfect. It's also that "in the moment" snapshot we couldn't plan for or weren't expecting - a point in time and place we wanted to record right then and there, for reasons known or unknown. At the very least, we get a lasting memory... but take enough of them, and one will have something artistic going on - perhaps intended, perhaps not - that elevates it above the sentimental keepsake. In that sense, it's not much different from the one-in-twenty continuous-shooting birds-in-flight - or sports - or street shot "keepers" that worked out how you really hoped they might - isn't it? Unless someone bursts my bubble and tells me a real photographer gets every one of those right on the first capture... Either way, it's all photography

We all can have these snapshot moments - some more than others, perhaps, but even if it takes a thousand shots, one great photo is still a great photo

We talk of “photography” as being something good and a “snapshot” as being something bad.
Yes, I sometimes shoot before I have time to think, but that is not bad;
sometimes I think afterwards as I decide what to keep, what shows what I want to show.
Many of them are recording the present before tomorrow comes and everything changes.

I've never understood the phenomenon you refer to, though I understand that it exists. It's like saying that city water is good and seawater is bad. I don't see how a difference in purpose or condition can justify value judgments of "good" and "evil". But then I tend to follow Neitsche in such things.

[Ken Lee]

I suppose most people in this discussion are using the Merriam-Webster definition of snapshot "a casual photograph made typically by an amateur with a small handheld camera" in their comments?

And assuming this is the definition, a professional taking a quick handheld photo might have very different results or connotation than the amateur doing the same thing.

And also, a professional who keeps trying to create art but has results that look like a "snapshot" might be regarded differently than an amateur taking a "snapshot".

Regardless, both have their place and both have value, in my opinion. As always, your mileage may vary.

[Lev]

please help me determine in which category of people I can be placed if I still want to get the new D-FA 21mm lens after all?

[JohnMc]

please help me determine in which category of people I can be placed if I still want to get the new D-FA 21mm lens after all?

You'll readily be placed in the group found wanting, at least until you decide, for whatever reason(s), you are no longer wanting. The paradox is that it's both Limited, and unlimited.

[Rondec]

Snapshots aren't a bad thing. For one thing, they are a good way of having keepsakes/mementos of times spent with family and friends. The best souvenirs I have trips taken are the scrapbooks that were made after the fact with snapshots.

More than that, we all get better through practice. Some of it is simply emulating photographers whose work we appreciate and some is learning to visualize photos before we take them and get settings for exposure and auto focus right. Maybe, just like with the whole 10,000 hours thing, we could say that there are 100,000 snapshots on the way to becoming competent photographer.

Most of us will never make great art and that's OK. The whole point is simply that we are satisfied with images we capture and maybe getting better along the way.