Always max mp?

[raymon]

Hi all

Bear in mind only doing this 6 - 8 weeks if it sounds daft, When using my new 7d I always leave the camara set to max 18mp, is this a correct thing to do or am I missing an improtant point, I also notice I can change the level of RAW i.e M RAW or S RAW apart from storage benefits are there any other considerations I should be aware of. This may be really stupid recently I was downloading some images with DPP and I realised that in some positions the Lap top screen angle changed what I was looking at how can we be sure we have the optimum setting for our shots, when there is so much variations with computer screens.

Ray

[Canon-Fodder!]

Re: Always max mp?

Hi Ray;

1. I've never personally seen any benefit in NOT using the maximum capacity of the camera; so I doubt that I would ever use M RAW or S RAW and/or reduce the Mp count of my images in-camera. My philosophy - you've got 18Mp - use them to the max advantage!

2. Screen colour-calibration is the first stop. Even if it's a new screen; chances are the factory settings are probably too bright! Tools such as Spyder or Pantone Huey will do the job for you. After that, there's little you can do about the variable light being reflected off a laptop screen at different angles! There are hoods you can buy to fit around the screen, and you should always try & process images in lighting conditions where there is no direct harsh light affecting colour-perception on-screen!

HTH...

Cheers...

[EOS_Jim]

Re: Always max mp?

Laptop screens are very hit and miss and all you can do is jusdge it yourself. Calibration is a must if you want consistency in output. As stated above most monitors do not come set to one standard. You can use your eyes to guess the correct settings but it will very rarely if ever be wholly accurate.

I use a Spyder2 Pro to calibrate my screens and it makes a huge difference - even to the laptops! But I usually only edit on my desktop so do those screens regularly although one of my monitors (a cheap one) never calibrates right. Always too bright!

[raymon]

Re: Always max mp?

Thanks for the advice.
The reason I asked about MP was that canon actually reduced the MP capacity over the last few years on G10 / 11/12 I guesed they wouldn't do that without good reason, although I leave my camera on 18mp I was curious about the process on SLR,s are those screen calibators a download or a off the shelf software.

Ray

[EOS_Jim]

Re: Always max mp?

They reduced the Mp to get better IQ at higher ISO I guess.

Less pixels means more light per pixel.

Now that doesn't mean shooting at less Mp on your camera will give you that though.

[Woolley]

Re: Always max mp?

I imagine it's just a storage thing. I don't think I need many images of 18MP quality, so I'm looking at M-RAW for convenience

[colin C]

Re: Always max mp?

Always leave it on maximum .................... you never know in advance which of your shots is going to be so good that you want a big enlargement for the wall.

Colin

[MX5]

Re: Always max mp?

I have to agree ... but read what Canon have to say.

[EOS_Jim]

Re: Always max mp?

The 5DII captures 9.9Mp images in SRAW1 and 5.2Mp images in sRAW2 - I really should make more use of that - particularly dfor those candids that will never be printed large.