Dumb CF question

[Olaf]

What's the difference between a plain CF 1 GB card and a Ultra II 1GB card?

 

[ndelaware]

"Write speed". The Ultra II can accept data faster then a plain CF card.

 

[Olaf]

"Write speed". The Ultra II can accept data faster then a plain CF card.

OK. Another dumb question. Does that mean that I could take pictures faster?

 

[ndelaware]

Yes, as long as your camera can write fast enough. But if your camera cannot write faster than the "standard card" write speed it won't make any difference.

 

[Olaf]

A Canon Rebel XT? Would that make much of difference? If so, why would anyone buy a basic CF card? Price?

 

[donaldduck1967]

I dont know about the Canon but as for the price, I keep picking up 1gb cards regular speed for $20.00.

 

[Olaf]

Do you have both? Have you noticed a difference?

 

[donaldduck1967]

Do you have both? Have you noticed a difference?

I don't have both. I only have regular speed. I can't see spending the extra money for higher write speeds. I dont shoot for a living so it doesn't matter to me.

 

[boBQuincy]

Here is a database of cameras and CF card speeds:
http://robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=6007-7699

As you can see, there is a big difference in CF cards with the Rebel XT. If you take photos rapid fire, you may see the buffer fill up and the camera will not take any more photos until the buffer writes data to the card.

I have had this happen a few times, once at AK when the tigers were chasing each other and I took a lot of photos very quickly. If you are not worried about this, save $$$ and get the low speed cards.
I use RAW and prefer the high speed cards.

 

[rtphokie]

Do you have both? Have you noticed a difference?

Yes and Yes.

The biggest difference is in Burst Mode. I can get another couple of frames before the camera stops due to the buffer filling up.

It's especially important if you shoot in raw mode.

 

[jann1033]

i have both and since i don't shoot in raw i have never had the problem...
so if you plan on shooting in raw a lot it might matter to you, i've never seen any difference in jpg .

not sure how many pics they are talking about but in continuous, i think the most i have taken are maybe 5 or 6 at once but haven't had a problem with that in jpg

i also have a converter so i can use sd cards in my rebel and that seems about the same as the cf, maybe a little faster...the cards i use with that are 1 130 card( san disk something or other) and 2 60 cards( microcenter own brand) and can't say i see a ton of difference with those either, at least not to the point where i missed a shot i wanted due to the speed of the card

i don't use flash much but that is the only time i remember having to wait for the camera and that doesn't have to do with the card, that was due to the flash

steve'sdigicams had this to say about prospeed cards ( and it leaves op and me out in the cold " To get the most out of a cards like these your camera needs to have an optimized CF interface. Digital SLRs such as Canon's EOS 1D Mark IIN, 1Ds Mark IIN, 5D, 30D and 20D, Nikon's D2X, D2H, D1X, D200, D70 are all well suited for these high performance memory cards."