[LRflex] Re: New Year and new camera
- From: David Young <dsy@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Fri, 09 Jan 2009 09:10:17 -0800
At 27/12/2008, you wrote:
Happy Holidays and Happy New Year to all!
I have been reading a lot of posts regarding digital alternatives on
this list, and since I don't want to hold my breath any longer for a
dR10 or what have you, I am considering the adaptive road. This is
where the new camera comes in. Now I don't have much experience in
the digital domain since its inception. I had a Minolta 7 and now a
Canon A570is (hardly hard core digital equipment).
The thing is I cannot seem to get away from Leica glass whether it's
M or R. I do also use my Contax or Nikon AF system once in a while
(depending on event or use). But it's the glass that has kept me
with Leica this long with film. Now, I have read people on this
list use Olympus/Panasonic 4/3 system or the Canon system. All the
photos look great, but I would probably be able to live with a 1.6x
factor compared to a 2.0x factor. I only, for a moment, thought
about the M8, but I seem to like the SLR more so than the
rangefinder (though it depends on the event or use again).
I would think some of you would have tried the available routes to
get to where you're at now, so I just want to draw on a little bit
on your experiences. My starter route is the Canon XSi. I don't
think the screen is user exchangeable as with the more pro like
models. Was this a deal breaker for your decision to settle on the
system/rig you now use? Is it difficult to focus without a split
screen? The Catz Eye screen seems to be recommended by most folks.
David, you seem to be set on your Olympus E3 system and Doug has
been using a DMR for his wildlife photos. It seems the stop down
metering caused you to either go dedicated digital with another
system or to succumb to a digital R body. I take it there's no in
between for you?
Sorry for the long post after lurking all this time.
Take care all,
Gary E
Good Morning, Gary, et al.
Sorry to be so long in chiming in to this conversation, but we
have been a way, for a holiday, family "rebellion", skiing in the
Canadian Rockies. Got back last night and now wading my way through
hundreds of emails.
My thoughts on your dilemma?
1) The R8 or R9 with DMR is, I'm sure, the nicest combination. Until
it failed, and Leica was unable to replace it (a long story), it was
the best image cutter I'd ever used. I don't think Doug will argue that point.
2) Prior to owning the DMR, I'd owned a Canon 20D. Afterwards, it was
the 30D. Although the Leica glass performed, as always, I was never
happy with the images captured by the Canons. They never seemed to
have the fine detail which I got out of the DMR. They suffered the
mentioned exposure problem, with stop down metering and did not
balance well, in my hand, though I admit, the lighter bodies were nice!
3) I was in a store, about to buy a couple of AF lenses for the 30D,
when I tried the E3, and within 30 minutes, walked out with it, 2
lenses and a 2.4 converter, instead. I couldn't be happier.
First of all, the Leica lenses and E3 play well together. Stop down
metering works as you'd expect.
Secondly, the in-body stabilization works very well, and makes my
older, Leica lenses IS lenses!
Third, the finder is the closest thing to the R8's finder I've seen
... brighter and crisper than the 20D & 30D finders. Very easy and
very accurate for manual focusing... something which cannot be said
for the 20 & 30D Canons.
Fourth, the body seems, for me, to be "right", and balances well with
the Telyt 400/6.8. (With the IS, it can be hand held, in a pinch,
and work very well! - see: http://www.furnfeather.net/Temps/Whitetail.htm)
Fifth: Some people complain about the myriad of buttons on the E3,
and when I first saw it, I agreed. But I must admit, I find them
well enough laid out that it is very rare to accidentally change a
setting (a common problem with the R8) and yet the access to the most
used features is much faster than through Canon's menu system.
Lastly, the investment is substantially lower. My E3, with two
lenses (both very good, I might add) and the 1.4x converter cost
about half what I paid for the R8+DMR.
So much for the advantages. Now the drawbacks.
You mention that you might be able to handle a 1.6 crop factor, but
not the 2.0 crop factor. That's up to you. If you shoot a lot of
w/a, then the 2x factor is a problem. Your 21mm SA becomes a 42
(almost "normal") lens. I solved this problem first with Canon's
10~22 mm lens (a very nice optic) and later with the Olympus 12~60
zoom, which equates to the FOV of a 24mm lens ... wide enough for me.
OTOH, if you shoot long, as I do, the 2x factor is a huge
advantage. When I shot with the DMR, I regularly used the 2x
converter with the 400 Telyt, when shooting small birds. This meant,
a max f-stop of 13.6, wide open! With the 2x advantage, I can shoot
with nearly the same FOV, without the converter, and at f6.8. Not an
insubstantial difference, in low light! In a pinch, I add the OLY
1.4 converter, behind the Telyt, and the combination works better
than the much older, non-APO, Leica converter & Telyt.
Noise, at low ISOs is indistinguishable between the DMR/Canon/Oly e3
bodies. But, at ISOs higher than 640, noise is a bit higher than
with the Canons, but equal to, or slightly better, than the DMR -
depending on the exact ISO. As I come from the film era, where
higher ISOs meant "grain", I can live with the noise, which is, at
every ISO, less than the grain of equivalent films. Besides, heavy
noise suppression also blurs the fine detail ... for me, a problem
with the Canons. More importantly, because I can shoot at an
effectively wider aperture, I can use a lower ISO!
My conclusions?
As I am not a rich man and given the meteoric drop in value of all
digital products (compared to their film equivalents), it is unlikely
that I will ever invest in a new, Leica, digital product again. (I
say this, not having seen the 9.2 Diesel.) But, if a 14mp, Oly E4
were to appear on the market, tomorrow, I'd buy one so fast, it would
make your head spin!
Oh, yes... one last point. Last February, I dropped my 80~200/4
Vario on the ice, and sent it for repair. It was returned late,
last October. In August, I suffered a stone chip in the middle of
the front element of my 12~60mm Oly zoom. I sent it to Oly-Toronto,
and it was back in my hands, 8 days later, including shipping, both
ways. Turnaround, at Oly, was <48 hours! In addition, the repair
was more extensive than that required on the Vario, yet the cost was lower!
Your mileage may vary, but I hope this helps.
A belated Happy New Year, to all on this list. May 2009 bring you
the best of light!
Cheers!
---
David Young,
Logan Lake, CANADA
Limited Edition Prints at: www.furnfeather.net
Personal Web-site at: www.main.furnfeather.net
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