This just in: Google Voice!!!  I just set it up and am rolling.  But what is it you ask?  Google Voice lets you take all your numbers and send them to whatever dedicated line(s) your heart desires.  So, you can have your work phone, your home phone, and whatever else all be forwarded to a mobile!  You can also see all of your voice mails online, as well as have a written out version that Google does automatically.  It’s sweet!  And the best part is, now I have a link under the Contact page on this blog for folks to connect with me directly over the phone.  That’s crazy, you say, how does that work?!  Well, if you go to the Contact page just click Call Me, and then enter your name and number, and click the “keep private” box if you want the number hidden, then Google rings your phone number (which you entered), you answer the call, then Google calls my phone and I pick up, and presto! we’re talking.  Just like that!  Too good to be true?!  Try it out!  Go to my contact page now and give me a ring, I’d love to hear from you!  Then go check it out and get your own number.  And if you’d like to see a quick video of what it does, click here.

I recently went to the 5D Mark II for various reasons, and will begin a series of posts reviewing the camera, as well as showing comparisons between what I have been working with: the 5D and the 1Ds MarkII.  This first comparison is on the image noise that each camera produces at different ISO speeds.  This is of particular interest to photographers in the development of the new 5D Mark II, as it goes a total of 3 stops beyond the top ISO of both the other cameras I’ve personally been using, and the noise reduction has been significantly increased making it more possible to shoot in low-light situations (indoor receptions, etc.) without having to use flash while still producing acceptable image quality.  Although it is not completely without noise at the higher ISO range, it is fair to say that I have felt comfortable shooting at ISO 3200 for events where the images will not be printed larger than A3 (13″x19″).  I haven’t tested the prints, but I am making an educated guess based off the below results and what I’ve seen printed from both of the other cameras.  Feel free to comment, make observations, and add details overlooked.

As to the mechanics: no color correction has been added to any of these shots.  They were all captured on a tripod at the exact same location (although the 1Ds is taller and so the angle is from slightly higher than the other two cameras), and each camera was shot in Manual mode on Auto White Balance at an aperture of 6.3, using the Canon EF 85mm 1.2L lens.  Each photo is at 100% so the viewer gets the full feel of the image up close and personal.  The last image at 3200 might suggest to the viewer that the 5D is perhaps the best image.  It should however be taken into account that the 5D Mark II file is nearly twice its size, thus if the 5D image were blown up to the size of the 5D Mark II it would be grainier and noisier.  To view each of the images without the 100% crop I’ve included a gallery at the bottom for viewing each individual image.  The last thing about the images I’ll say is that no noise reduction was used in camera, an only the default amount from Lightroom 2 was applied.  They were captured as raw files and then converted to .jpgs, so there has been no sharpening applied either.

at ISO 100

at ISO 400

at ISO 800

at ISO 1250

at ISO 1600

at ISO 3200