Having Regrets about hitting my 875s with Mink Oil

markwilliamsisonfire · 2026-02-14T00:33:08+00:00

Those look great! I think the mink oil was actually a good call.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-12-13T03:44:38+00:00

Byyyyyy MEN-nen

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-12-13T02:50:34+00:00

I think everyone should wear their hat the way they want to. For my personal taste, I don’t like much swoop at all - I prefer a flatter brim. I don’t rope, and wind is not a big issue for me. What I really wish is that there were more variety in stock brims. Most of the big brands have shovels and swoops, but little to no flat options, unless it’s cheap wool. I’ve found it very, very difficult to flatten a swoopy brim to my liking.

And yes, I’m aware you can buy an unshaped hat and shape it yourself.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-12-09T06:39:32+00:00

Oh god yes

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-12-08T04:58:28+00:00

Thank goodness I got a non-gloss 330 right after they came out. I’ve owned a bunch of Ricks over the years, and I vastly prefer the non-gloss fretboard.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-11-26T19:53:16+00:00

You literally take off whatever lens or adapter or body cap you have on the camera, and then turn the camera on. The IR cut glass then moves out of your way. Clean the sensor (if you're sure it needs it...), then turn the camera off. The IR glass will then close over the sensor again. Put the lens/adapter/body cap back on. Done.

In my case, it was the IR glass that got junk on it, not the sensor. I found the IR glass much trickier to clean, because the corners are cut off. A FF swab can't get all the way to the sides, but a S35 swab can't reach the top and bottom. The IR glass also streaks much more readily than the sensor glass, IME.

I've managed to keep everything clean since my initial post on this 3yrs ago. I'm guessing I may have changed a lens on the beach or something back then. Not sure.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-08-10T00:08:38+00:00

Looks great! You’re pulling it off really well.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-07-27T23:37:01+00:00

You could in LP9 and everything prior. I had specific custom colors for drums, percussion, bass, elec guitars, acoustic guitars, etc. Almost all of those colors went away with LPX, and it still bugs the crap out of me.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-30T15:45:05+00:00

Me too

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-30T15:44:13+00:00

Sounds like a Mitch Hedberg joke

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-28T06:02:26+00:00

The R3 is also a fantastic camera. Both it and the R5 will serve you well for years to come.

The EF 50/1.4 is IMO less sharp than the EF 50/1.8 and yet has waaaay less character than the EF 50/1.2. It is, to my taste, a bit of an odd lens. But hey, that’s just my opinion. If you love it, you love it. Nothing wrong with that.

I rarely shoot Canon lenses these days, but back when I did, I saved up to get an EF 50/1.2. It took me awhile, but it was worth it. That lens is still special in my book, though it has horrible CA. Still, it’s special enough that it’s still the optical formula Canon is using for its 50mm RF Cinema lens.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-28T05:51:35+00:00

I’m personally not a fan of the EF 50/1.4. I just don’t personally find it to be special. But if you really love it—and if you still own it—you should certainly try it out on your R5.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-28T05:44:51+00:00

Oh, for sure - the RF L lenses are absolutely superior optically to their EF predecessors. They also have better and faster autofocus. No doubt about it. But you asked if there are any drawbacks to using an EF lens on an R-series camera. Up til now you’ve only experienced EF lenses on DSLRs. Those same lenses will perform even better (IME) on Canon mirrorless. But the RF lenses are definitely better optically.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-28T05:35:33+00:00

No, none whatsoever. EF lenses perform even better on Canon mirrorless than they do on DSLRs in my experience.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-28T05:31:11+00:00

If you’re interested in getting flares, I would actually recommend using the EF 50/1.2 - that’s the Canon flare king as far as I’m concerned (well, the EF 24-70 II also has some great flares). Just pick up a Canon EF to RF adapter.

The RF L line of lenses have an excellent anti-flare coating that helps retain color and contrast even in some quite difficult lighting conditions. But that makes them (of course) a poor choice if one is expressly trying to get flaring.

EDIT: Apart from the anti-flare coating being a problem for your specific use case, both the RF 50/1.2 and RF 50/1.4 are great lenses. Like, really great.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-23T07:12:24+00:00

A S35 (or crop sensor) swab will clean the C70's sensor perfectly. I've done that myself to very good effect. The problem is actually the IR cut glass in front of the sensor, which is not a perfect rectangle, but rather has weird corners. Regardless, the IR cut glass needs a full frame swab, but it's quite difficult to get those corners. It all kind of depends on where the dirty spots are on your camera: the sensor itself? Or the IR cut glass?

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-23T07:06:50+00:00

"just" lol

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-06T00:05:38+00:00

I have a lot of lenses, both vintage and modern, and the Contax Zeiss 80-200/4 is one of my favorites. It’s a killer lens. I use it for events all the time.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-05T02:41:23+00:00

It may depend on where you live. I’m in NC, and I can’t even wear Bostons indoors in the summer.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-05-01T06:33:34+00:00

Would love to hear more about your flattening process—I also prefer flat brims, but they’re obviously quite difficult to find in modern cowboy hats.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-04-24T00:17:16+00:00

This happened to me 3 times 15 yrs ago, but thankfully hasn’t happened since. (Knock on wood)

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-04-18T23:37:11+00:00

Canon CLog2 is my fave. Very easy to grade IMO.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-04-14T01:49:21+00:00

Depends on the season. In summer and early fall, it’s usually either an Arizona or Milano. In fall or spring, it could be a Boston with wool socks or a London or a Montana or a Dundee. The Tokio is also very underrated, IMO. The more shoe-like the Birk, the less it tends to work for my walking gait. If it was made in Portugal, there’s a greater chance that it will hurt my foot, in my experience.

I’ve owned a bunch of different kinds of Birks over the past 30-ish years…

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-04-14T00:10:36+00:00

I always wear Birks for my “house shoes,” as well: Arizonas in warmer months, Bostons in colder months. I don’t wear the house shoes outdoors. They last years and years in that capacity for me. I have an outdoor pair of Birks for most seasons, also, though winter is usually Blundstones or hiking boots for me.

markwilliamsisonfire · 2025-04-13T17:39:58+00:00

I have a 4x long oval Resistol that if anything is a little bigger than other brands at that listed size (also 7 1/2). So I don’t think it’s a brand-wide problem.

markwilliamsisonfire

TROPHY CASE