When set from its focal length of
28-135mm, the close-up capability may not be that apparent as compared to the 200mm
position. These photos below of the Hello Kitty clock as well as the miniature teddy
bear and Chinese wedding porcelain figurines were photographed with the lens set
at its 200mm position and closest focusing distance, without any EF Extension Tubes.
Yes, these shots doesn't really show how close the lens is capable of since I did not use other familiar small objects as comparisons to them in order to see the differences in the actual sizes. But the photo of the Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 Macro USM (above) should be a good example. It was photographed with the EF 28-200mm USM at its 200mm position and closest focusing distance. This should give EOS users an idea of how close-up the zoom lens is capable of shooting, without any Extension Tubes attached. Are there any limitations in using the EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 zoom lens? Yes, there are quite a few although not serious since there are ways to overcome them. The maximum aperture of f/5.6 at the 200mm position means that the flash power of any EZ or EX-series of Canon Speedlites will be utilized at full blast (in TTL or E-TTL mode) if the film used happens to be those or ISO 100 or lower speed, making the recycling slower. Focus tracking seems to be less precise when shooting in low-light conditions but okay if the overall scene is sufficiently bright. Nevertheless, it remains a good buy for those looking for an EF lens covering these range including photojournalists specializing in travel and landscape photography. In fact, Malaysian Press photographers tend to use the EF 28-200mm lens for their daily assignments since the majority of them shoot with ISO 400 and above speed films. Hence, flash recycling time is not a concern. These photos below, during a Pepsi promotion drive, were shot with the EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM lens, three of them with TTL flash metering on ISO 100 film. Yes, I have to wait for flash recycling between the shots but that was a minor issue. This limitation also allowed me to be a bit more creative by switching the 540EZ to 2nd curtain flash synchronization with a slower shutter speed and artistically-blurred image.
Or you can simply switch off the Speedlite and shoot the event via available light, using the slower shutter speeds to create deliberate movements again. Text and photos by Philip Chong. Copyright 2000 by Canon Marketing (M) Sdn Bhd << Back to Main . 1 . 2 . 3 . |
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