Stew_Bayarea
Magic Lantern Dual-ISO feature - Canon DLSRs only
My first DSLR lens was (and still using it sometimes) a Canon 500D/T1i. Over the years I had been sort of questioning my choice of a Canon DSLR because since then I've seen pictures taken by Nikon DSLRs and noticed that the Nikon dynamic range seems to surpass Canon.
I could not just switch to a Nikon DSLR because I have already invested in a few Canon-compatible lenses. Since the release of the Canon 7D Mark II in late 2014, I opened myself up to the possibility of getting this new camera (cropped camera, just like the Canon 500D/T1i). Besides, I’ve told myself that I would be getting the 7d mark II as I was impressed with the original Canon 7D picture quality. In the process of deciding whether or not to get the Canon 7d mark II, I happen to stumble upon an article on Magic Lantern (www.magiclantern.fm)…
Magic Lantern is an “enhanced” firmware developed by Canon camera users and can only be used on the Canon DSLRs. Immediately I was impressed with its numerous offerings like built-in Intervalometer, multiple bracketing shots (the native Canon firmware can only do maximum of 3 bracketed shots at a time), rack focusing, among many others. But the one I was immediately attracted to is the DUAL-ISO feature that comes with this enhanced firmware. I’m not good at explaining the technical aspects but suffice to say, this feature allows you to capture a shot in two different ISO values, then Magic Lantern will interlace the two shots into one. The only catch is, DUAL-ISO RAW images need additional software to process but the software is free - see www.magiclantern.fm/forum/?topic=7139.0 for more info on how to take a picture with the Dual ISO feature, as well as how to process the RAW image.
I saw that Magic Lantern is available in most Canon DSLRs (except the newer models) - I found that it is recently available (beta version, not final version yet) on the Canon 70D. I saw the camera on sale at Costco so I got this instead (and it is cheaper than Canon 7D Mark II).
So I just started experimenting with Dual-ISO last weekend, and here is the resulting image where the top part uses Dual-ISO 200/3200, and the bottom part was taken with just the ISO 200. Both were taken with EF-50mm f/1.4 lens @ f/2.2 for five seconds. The difference is striking. And yes, you read that right - the shutter speed is only 0.5 seconds. Dual-ISO is the answer to my prayers for better dynamic range in Canon DSLR shots!
I am encouraging all Canon DSLR uses to check out Magic Lantern - but a word of advice to read very carefully on how to install this feature on Canon DSLR and avoid damaging your Canon camera in the process.
Magic Lantern Dual-ISO feature - Canon DLSRs only
My first DSLR lens was (and still using it sometimes) a Canon 500D/T1i. Over the years I had been sort of questioning my choice of a Canon DSLR because since then I've seen pictures taken by Nikon DSLRs and noticed that the Nikon dynamic range seems to surpass Canon.
I could not just switch to a Nikon DSLR because I have already invested in a few Canon-compatible lenses. Since the release of the Canon 7D Mark II in late 2014, I opened myself up to the possibility of getting this new camera (cropped camera, just like the Canon 500D/T1i). Besides, I’ve told myself that I would be getting the 7d mark II as I was impressed with the original Canon 7D picture quality. In the process of deciding whether or not to get the Canon 7d mark II, I happen to stumble upon an article on Magic Lantern (www.magiclantern.fm)…
Magic Lantern is an “enhanced” firmware developed by Canon camera users and can only be used on the Canon DSLRs. Immediately I was impressed with its numerous offerings like built-in Intervalometer, multiple bracketing shots (the native Canon firmware can only do maximum of 3 bracketed shots at a time), rack focusing, among many others. But the one I was immediately attracted to is the DUAL-ISO feature that comes with this enhanced firmware. I’m not good at explaining the technical aspects but suffice to say, this feature allows you to capture a shot in two different ISO values, then Magic Lantern will interlace the two shots into one. The only catch is, DUAL-ISO RAW images need additional software to process but the software is free - see www.magiclantern.fm/forum/?topic=7139.0 for more info on how to take a picture with the Dual ISO feature, as well as how to process the RAW image.
I saw that Magic Lantern is available in most Canon DSLRs (except the newer models) - I found that it is recently available (beta version, not final version yet) on the Canon 70D. I saw the camera on sale at Costco so I got this instead (and it is cheaper than Canon 7D Mark II).
So I just started experimenting with Dual-ISO last weekend, and here is the resulting image where the top part uses Dual-ISO 200/3200, and the bottom part was taken with just the ISO 200. Both were taken with EF-50mm f/1.4 lens @ f/2.2 for five seconds. The difference is striking. And yes, you read that right - the shutter speed is only 0.5 seconds. Dual-ISO is the answer to my prayers for better dynamic range in Canon DSLR shots!
I am encouraging all Canon DSLR uses to check out Magic Lantern - but a word of advice to read very carefully on how to install this feature on Canon DSLR and avoid damaging your Canon camera in the process.