In The Picture

Sony RX100 – DSLR image quality in your shirt pocket

The RX100 is a game changer. Sony has done what no one else has could do: produce a point-and-shoot sized camera that delivers good quality images. As David Pogue wrote in the New York Times: ‘No photos this good have ever come from a camera this small.’ This small means about the same size as a Canon S100.

photo courtesy of Imaging Resource

The sensor of the RX100 is a 1" CMOS 20 megapixel device. Don’t ask why it’s called 1” because it isn’t. The sensor is the same size as the CX sensor Nikon uses for its J1/V1 compact system. It about 4 times larger than the typical sensor you get in a digicam, and nearly 3 times larger than the Canon S100 and Olympus XZ-1. The only giveaway is the lens, which has to be bigger than lenses made for smaller sensors.

The Carl Zeiss 28-100mm (35mm equivalent) lens fully retracts into the body, however, and starts with a fast maximum aperture of f/1.8. That goes out to f/5 as you zoom in on things, but still ... The camera shoots RAW, of course, and offers optical image stabilization. Video recording comes with a ton of options. I’m not a video guy, so here’s a link with the details: http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/sony-rx100/sony-rx100VIDEO.HTM

Never mind the size, feel the quality

The RX100 looks and feels like a high quality device. It’s made in Japan, which is pretty rare for consumer goods these days, and in the hand feels like it’s hewn from a solid billet of metal. The way the buttons and dials work supports that impression. The design is modelled on the Canon S95/100, including the ring around the lens that can be user programmed for different functions.

The built-in pop-up flash isn’t especially strong, but it can be pushed backwards to act as a bounce flash. The traditional mode dial has all the usual options and needs a firm finger to move from one setting to another, so you won’t do it by accident. There’s no viewfinder, of course, but the screen is a 3" affair with 1.2mp that works pretty well even in direct sunlight.

Best of all, the camera focuses fast and shoots fast – about on par with an entry-level DSLR. The RX100 will even shoot at 10 frames per second. The speed of operation was really noticeable since I had a Sony HX20 compact travel zoom to compare it with. Night and day, that’s the best way to describe the difference. And IQ is much the same.

I’ve taken plenty of photos before sunrise here with my Nikons, and I can tell you that this is pretty close

So what’s the bad news?

I could say: the price ($650), but you can’t blame Sony for making hay while it has the jump on the rest of the market can you? The lack of a manual is a more serious gripe, there’s not even a CD. There’s no traditional charger either for the new NP-BX1 lithium-ion rechargeable battery, just an AC adaptor and a USB connector (for charging the battery). Sony rates the RX100 at 330 shots, or 80 minutes of video capture.

One problem is the profusion of options and settings, far too many for comfort. Typical Japanese ‘we have the technology’ overkill. I don’t mean options like HDR mode or handheld twilight mode or Panorama – there’s lots of other stuff. And 20 megapixels? Who needs it? There’s an option to cut it down to 10mp when you’re shooting JPGs.

Is IQ really in the DSLR class?

It’s pretty close until you push the bounderies. ISO 1600 is where things start to fall apart, but entry-level DSLRs also tend to show their limitations near this point. Looking at the output, my feeling is that my old Nikon D40x has better dynamic range and colour depth than the RX100. To get a more objective measure, I went to DxO labs and their sensor database. The D40x is old hat, so I chose the D3200 entry level Nikon of today, and the V1.

So here we find that the RX100 is some way behind the D3200, mainly in low-light shooting, but also a little in dynamic range and colour depth. The comparison with Nikon’s V1 shows that Sony has done a better job sqeezing IQ out of that sensor than Nikon, and that’s saying a lot since it’s often the other way around. Mind you, the differences are nowhere near as obvious in real life.

The bottom Line

The RX100 is a winner. If you’re looking for a take-anywhere pocket camera that delivers great images and probably good video, and you don’t need a system with discreet lenses, then look no further. When the price comes down closer to $500, it will be a bargain as well.

Kim

More reading: http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/sony-rx100/sony-rx100A.HTM

More images:

 

Why the Nikon D600 is NOT a logical upgrade for DX shooters

There’s more to the decision than a great camera at a knock-out price

A lot has been said about the D600 raising the IQ bar to new levels, and pushing the price down to 2 grand for a full-frame body. The stuff dreams are made of, that’s what came back from Photokina. DxO tested the D600 sensor and ranked it third behind the 2 D800s, at an overall 94 points. Ahead of the rest of the world, and this world includes medium format Hassies, Phase Ones and the Pentax 645D. http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Cameras/Camera-Sensor-Ratings/List-view

A lot has been written about Nikon making state-of-the art full-frame image quality available to amateur photographers with limited budgets. Thom Hogan asked several Nikon product managers the obvious question, and they all said: ‘We think that the D600 is a natural step up for D7000 users.’ It just goes to show how out of touch product managers can be: they overlook the simple reality that FX is a completely different system from DX – new body, new lenses, new filters, new accessories.

Upgrade? What Upgrade?

If I have to buy a whole new system, it’s just as easy for me to go and buy a Canon or a Sony DSLR. You know, Nikon, most of us are trying to go smaller rather larger, so I’d be more inclined to consider a compact Fujifilm E-X1, winner of the Photokina STAR 2012 Award. Or even more compact cameras made by Sony and Olympus. The Nikon V1? Why didn’t you put a decent size sensor into that camera? And why don’t you give us some prime lenses?

As Thom Hogan points out, among the key reasons for a D600 upgrade for DX users would be

• The need for more pixels (24mp instead of 16mp)
• Better low light performance
• More lens choices, especially in primes

At the same time, a DX user would give up

• Smaller, more portable bodies and lenses
• Greater pixel density on tele lenses for further reach (for sports and wildlife)
• Lots of dollars to make the switch

The last point is key since very few current FX lenses are what I would call affordable. For a set of 3 of these lenses, you’ll easily spend 2-3 grand. Here’s Ken Rockwell’s list of great FX lenses, and the vast majority are on the wrong side of $1000 http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/fx-dream-team.htm .

The 50mm f/1.4 and the 85 f/1.8 AF-S the only new FX lenses you can buy for $500, the rest are much dearer. There are no FX lenses to replace all those value-for-money lenses Nikon has made for the DX system – the 35mm f/1.8, the 18-70 f/3.5-4.5, the 55-200mm f/3.5-5.6 VR or 55-300 f/3.5-5.6 VR. You could add the 18-105 VR at a pinch, and all are in the $200 -$300 range, new or second-hand.

Simple Question: Do I really need FX?

Of course I don’t, and that goes for most amateur shooters. I own a D5100, which has the same sensor inside it as the D7000, but no screw drive motor for old lenses. What it has instead is something Nikon hands out with extreme reluctance: an articulated screen. The body is not much bigger and hardly weighs more than my old D40, and the camera is more than good enough for my needs: landscapes, family and street photography.

So am I going to sell my D5100 and buy a D600 and several lenses? I’ll let you into a secret: I owned a D700 a year or so back, which I bought when Nikon down under was running a special on it for $2100. Strange number that, and it turned out to be a mistake, but the dealer persuaded Nikon to honour the order. I already had the lenses because I owned a Nikon F80S, so it was just the body I needed. Here’s the rub: I sold that D700 two weeks later on eBay.

Why? It was much bigger and heavier than the F80, which was the best handling DSLR I’d ever held in my hands, but most of all it had far more adjustments than I knew what to do with. Working through a 400+ page manual can be a daunting experience. I realised that the D700 was far too much camera for my needs, that’s why I sold it and most of my old lenses with it.

The logical upgrade is to prime lenses

Some of these were classics, like the Tamron 24-135. It was sharp but it was huge too. So was the 70-210 Nikon that felt like it was hewn from a solid billet of metal and weighed half a tonne. Then there was the all-round champ, the legendary super-sharp 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 that doubled as a macro lens. I would have to buy them all back – what a waste of time.

I can see one clear market for the Nikon D600: as second body for professional FX shooters, probably to a D800 or D4. It’s a perfect fit for that role since the pro already owns all the right lenses and just wants a back-up body. The D600 provides that without loss of quality, at a very convenient price. The other obvious buyer is the amateur shooter looking to go professional. He wants the bigger sensor and the extra pixels, and can justify the serious lenses.

For the rest of us, the logical upgrade is to better photography, and that means to more fast prime lenses for better DOF control. The only fast prime Nikon has given us is the fabulous 35mm f/1.8. When they popped out a 40mm f/2.8 micro (macro)more recently, we all scratched our heads. We already had a 35 that was faster. And 40mm is pretty useless for macro photography.

 Then Nikon gave FX shooters the lens we really wanted for DX: an 85mm f/1.8 with a $500 price tag. Yes, it will work on my D5100, but the FOV will be more like a 130mm lens. If you want the 85mm DX version, you have to make do with the mediocre 85mm f/3.5. That’s the portrait end of shooting. At the wide end, we have nothing, and you can’t substitute any wide FX primes because they look wide on a DX body. Snookered.

That’s why the more logical upgrade for DX shooters is something like the Fuji X-E1, which comes with a great set of primes and the promise of more to come. You’re going up in photography, and you’re going down in size. Perfect.

Photokina – luxury goods and real cameras

Hasselblad lost, Leica under pressure, Sony flexes its muscles, Nikon steals the show, Fujifilm has a winner

The last thing I saw from the once great Swedish camera maker was one of its medium format cameras in Ferrari livery. Now Hasselblad has put its name on a $1000 Sony NEX, added some Hasselbling (thanks to Mile Chisholm) and added $5000 to the price. Of course, that's pocket money compared to the $35,000 plus Hassy charges pro shooters for its HD-series medium format cameras. That’s all about to change, CEO Larry Hansen told the press at Photokina: in addition to the Sony-based mirrorless compact, the Hasselblad Lunar, there will be a full-frame DSLR and high-end compact camera.

Luca Alessandrini from Hasselblad explained: ‘The Lunar is a celebration of the passion that the company’s founder Victor Hasselblad had for photography. For the first time the market now has a camera embracing traditional Hasselblad state-of-the-art image capture combined with stunning Italian design features. And for the first time ever we are using carbon fiber, titanium, wood, leather and precious metals – including gold. The camera grip itself offers unparalleled ergonomics and has been developed to embrace both compact E-mount and the larger professional A-mount lenses.'

5,000 dollars? For pimping a Sony NEX-7? Would you buy one?

LEICA CUTS PRICES

Meanwhile, Leica announced that all Leica rangefinder-type cameras from now on will be called "M." Not M9 or M10, just "M." The new M uses a 24-MP CMOS sensor made by the Belgian company CMOSIS. It will fall in line with competition by offering live view and focus peaking. The M will use the same EVF as the much cheaper X2. The M will be a little cheaper than the M9 (about $7000).

The M9 will continue at a reduced price - $5.5K – under a new model name: M-E. Mike Johnston of TOP asked: ‘who really wants to spend $5,450 on a camera widely understood to be a status symbol but also wants to broadcast to the world the fact that he's too cheap to spend an additional $1,500 [on the top model]?’ Good question, but Mike forgets that the people Leica buyers will try to impress will only see the famous brand and the red dot. They'll have no idea that it's not the top model.

Leica’s medium format S2 will now be called the ‘S’, after a minor upgrade. It all looks a bit like they’re rearranging the deck chairs, doesn’t it? With Hasselblad, it looks more like capitulation, going with Sony and adding expensive touches of luxury. Earlier this year, we witnessed the disintegration of the once mighty Kodak. This is all a bit painful, but don’t let anyone tell you that these companies are victims of the digital revolution – they are victims of poor management that lacks essential vision.

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/47542/fujifilm-x-e1-compact-system-camera-pictures-and-hands-on

NIKON D600

Meanwhile, Nikon released the D600 for real photographers, working photographers and others who want the best IQ money can buy. The Nikon D600 sits in third place on the DxOMark sensor quality scale, right behind the D800 and D800E. Ahead of the D4 and various D3s. Way ahead of Hasselblads and Leicas. Just look at these DxOMark comparisons:

The D600 is a $2000 Full Frame camera in a D7000 body. Or a D3x in a D7000 body, as Thom Hogan put it. Only a year or 2 ago, the D3x cost as much as a Leica. The D600 sensor is a more sensible 24mp variant of the new D800 36mp FX sensor. On the DxO sensor scale, the D600 sits in third place behind the D800E/D800 pair.

$2100. Canon was quick to announce the 6D, a smaller version of the 5D MK III, for the same price. The difference is that the D600 is already shipping, the Canon will ship by Christmas. Canon enthusiasts rightly complain that the DxO system is hard on their sensors. They argue that the 5D MkIII is pretty close to a D700 in dynamic range and low-light performance, out there in the real world. And they have a point most likely, but DxO is all we have when it comes to independent sensor testing. 

The D600 uses an FX version of the multi-CAM4800 39-point autofocus system. The viewfinder is huge of course, compared to the D7000, and bright and detailed with plenty of info to let you keep shooting without the need to take your eye off the action. Compared to the D800, limitations include a 1/4000 sec maximum shooting speed (vs 1/8000), 1/200 Flash Sync speed (vs 250), and 2 SD cards (vs 2 CF cards).

The D600 has pretty decent build quality, including a metal frame and some dust sealing. The smaller body size and weight is appealing but is soon cancelled out by the fat FX lenses you'll screw on it. You can use DX lenses on this body, but you’ll be using about 2/5ths of the FX sensor. That means 10mp files, still big enough for everyday shooting. If you want lots more detail on the D600, Thom Hogan has all the answers here:

http://www.bythom.com/d600.htm

SONY MUSCLE

If Nikon stole the show with a full-frame DSLR that set a new bar for price / performance, Sony produced the biggest surprise: A compact, mirrorless, full-frame camera with a fixed lens 35mm f/2 Carl Zeiss lens. Those who got their mitts on one of these say that the RX1 oozes quality, from the magnesium alloy body to the controls. The body isn’t that much bigger than the RX100’s, so that fixed lens looks really lumpy on the front.

The $2,800 price doesn’t buy you a system, merely a fixed camera/lens combo. It doesn’t buy you a viewfinder either. You can buy the electronic finder add-on, but you lose your flash shoe. At least it has a built-in flash.

The RX1’s format is so outrageous, it doesn’t have many direct competitors. The price is outrageous too, at $2800. The cheaper Leica X2 comes to mind, which makes do with an APS-C size sensor and a price tag nearly a grand less. Then there’s the cheaper again Fuji X100, which also uses a APS-C size sensor. That’s about it. Maybe its for people who want to hold up outrageous gadgets saying: look what I’ve got! More here:

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/sony-rx1/sony-rx1A.HTM

After years of full frame neglect, Sony also produced the long awaited successor to the much loved a900: The SLT alpha 99. Its body is even more compact than the Nikon D600’s but the price is closer to $3k. In line with recent practice, Sony has tossed out the traditional optical-viewfinder, moving-mirror system and replaced it with its translucent mirror technology. The a99 gets the same 2,359k-dot OLED viewfinder as the NEX-7, and it’s built in. A new autofocus system uses two phase-detection sensors for increased speed and accuracy when trying for locking on to a subject.

The a99 is a serious video camera that shoots 1920 x 1080 at up to 60 frames-per-second. It also provides continuous autofocus while shooting video. Like Nikon’s D800, the a99 can output uncompressed data to an external monitor or recorder. More serious goodies include built-in microphone and headphone sockets, and 32-step input control. Then there’s a customizable silent control dial next to the lens, which lets you adjust various settings without knocking the camera or adding noise to the footage being captured. It’s pretty clear which market Sony is going after with the a99.

Fujifilm X-E1

Fujifilm launched the X system early this year, with the X-Pro1 leading the charge. It was an instant success with its unique hybrid optical/electronic viewfinder, solid metal body and old-fashioned dials. Here was a great modern interpretation of the classic rangefinder concept. Fuji makes better lenses than most people realise, mostly fast primes in the Leica fashion, so the whole package was a winner with the Pros.

The price tag was a bit high for us ordinary punters, though. Then Fuji announced the X-E1, just before the Photokina show in Cologne got going, and it will compete directly with the top dogs in the EVIL patch, the Sony Alpha NEX-7 and Olympus OM-D E-M5. The X-E1 misses out on that hybrid viewfinder but gets a 2.36M dot OLED unit instead. The rest of the story is much the same.

The X-E1 keeps the excellent sensor and the traditional controls, despite a reduction in body size. Like the Nikon D800E, the X-E1 sensor doesn’t have a Bayer filter, and the pixel count is ‘just’ 16mp. The X-Trans CMOS sensor uses a novel colour filter array to suppress colour moiré, which means there’s no need for an anti-aliasing filter. As a result, the X-E1 offers superior resolution to other cameras with the same 16MP pixel count.

The X-E1 also gets a new autofocus algorithm and a different sensor drive mode. The result is AF speeds that are competitive with the top dogs Sony and Olympus. There's also a new 3x magnification mode to assist manual focus. This looks like the perfect compact system for people who have 2-3 grand to spend on body and lenses, and a great system to get your hands on what Leica purports to offer – simplicity, compact size and brilliant lenses. Fuji does it all at a brilliant price as well. More details here:

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/fujifilm-x-e1/5

Kim

Sony RX100 sensor beats Nikon V1 in DxO Mark Test

And the Panasonic GX1 in overall score

DxOMark is the image software company in France that provides us with objective tests for the Image Quality of various camera sensors. The results for Sony’s new RX100 are just in (or out), and I ran a quick comparison with a couple of other compact cameras. The Sony’s sensor beats the Nikon’s on all counts, and the bigger Micro 43rds sensor of the Panasonic GX1 on all but low light performance.

http://www.dxomark.com/index.php/Cameras/Compare-Camera-Sensors/Compare-cameras-side-by-side/%28appareil1%29/812|0/%28brand%29/Sony/%28appareil2%29/754|0/%28brand2%29/Panasonic/%28appareil3%29/745|0/%28brand3%29/Nikon

These results may not exactly reflect real-life differences between cameras, but they are a fairly reliable guide to technical Image qualitiy. A good friend has bought one of these RX100s and will lend it to me for a review after he returns from Africa. I look forward to that.

Kim

Best cheap lenses for Nikon DX – Part 2: Tele-zooms

 55-200mm f/3.5 – 5.6, 55-300 f/3.5 – 5.6, Tamron 70-300 f/4 - 5.6 USM

The humble 55-200mm VR - sharpest Nikon tele-zoom under $1,000

I know it’s a big call but I mean it. This lens must’ve made third party lens makers weep when it was introduced 5 years ago at about $250. Yes, it’s that good. It won the TIPA 2007 Award for best entry level lens, it was American Photo Editors Choice 2007 and Best Buy. Ken Rockwell put it on his list of Nikon's dream team lenses, and photoreview.com gave it an editor's choice distinction.

'You can pay more,' KR says, 'but all you're getting will be tougher build quality, more weight, the need for bigger filters, instant manual-focus override, and lose the ability to zoom as short as 55mm.' That about sums it up.

Construction

Nikon actually improved the build quality compared with the earlier version of this lens. This one has a single inner lens tube. The ‘G’ means it has no dedicated aperture ring, and the IF stands for Internal Focusing which means the lens barrel doesn’t stretch or rotate during focusing. The build quality of this lens is better than its plastic looks and light weight suggest – my lens shows few signs of wear despite frequent use over 3 years.

Handling

The lens isn’t big, and it isn’t heavy. It weighs just 335g and the size is 100 x 74mm, and takes 52mm filters. It easily slips into a small camera bag or bum bag or pouch or backpack or a handbag even. That makes it an ideal travel or hiking lens. Because of its modest weight, the lens balances well on the smaller Nikon bodies from the D40 to the D5100.

Two switches on the barrel let you choose AF and VR or not. Vibration reduction on this lens is not VRII (red letters mean I, gold letters II) but it works well enough. This is not a great lens for manual focus work since the focus ring covers too big a range in a short turn. In AF mode, there are no complaints.

Performance

The zoom ring is weighted just right, and the autofocus motor is fast and sure in all but the worst light. It’s fast enough for shooting kids, pets and sports in action in bright to modest light (with help from the VR). The f/4-5.6 limitation is common for zoom lenses even up at the next level. To get down to f/2.8, you’re generally looking at close to $1,000 and the kind of heft that makes hiring a Sherpa a desirable proposition.

I like the way the chick looks at its mother, thinking: she wants me to eat junk food already? Apart from being razor-sharp, this lens can freeze action as well. Please click on the images to see a larger file.

An unexpected bonus is that this lens will also do duty for portraits or shots of flowers and small things - the bokeh is pretty creamy even at f/5.6. So we can add versatility to this lens’s credentials. 

Bottom Line

This is a great walk-about, kick-around, throw it in the backpack medium tele-zoom lens when you don’t want to carry heavy gear. The best part is that you can still pick new copies for around $150 - $175, even though Nikon stopped making this lens a year ago or more.

Reviews

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/55-200mm-vr.htm

http://www.bythom.com/55200lens.htm

http://www.photozone.de/nikon--nikkor-aps-c-lens-tests/246-nikkor-af-s-55-200mm-f4-56g-if-ed-dx-vr-review--test-report

The Tamron is the best 70-300mm tele-zoom $500 can buy.

The write-ups for Tamron’s 60-year anniversary lens range from glowing to incandescant, and that’s how I ended up choosing this one. Nikonians said ‘The Tamron SP 70-300 f4.-5.6 Di VC USD is an extremely impressive optic and, at a going street rate of under US $500, brings a great set of capabilities and image quality, all in a light and well-built package.’ http://blog.nikonians.org/archives/2010/10/tamron_sp70300.html

‘This new telephoto optic from Tamron has proven itself to be very capable indeed,’ says Gary Wolstenholme. 'It is capable of producing images with very good resolution across the image area at all focal lengths and optical aberrations such as colour fringing and distortions are kept well within acceptable thresholds. The Ultrasonic Drive makes the focusing speed more sprightly than can be found on other Tamron lenses and the vibration correction system was effective during testing.' http://www.ephotozine.com/article/Tamron-SP70300mm-f456-Di-VC-USD-14690

Construction

SP is Tamron speak for ‘high performance spec’ but the lens is clearly designed to a price point. It’s a hefty lump which looks and feels well-built despite the plastic on the outside. Tamron’s ribbing is a bit excessive and will be hard to keep clean, but the material is decent and all the moving bits have a quality feel to them. On the inside there are 17 elements in 12 groups, including an LD (Low Dispersion) and an XLD (Extra Low Dispersion) optical element to prevent chromatic aberration (the so-called purple fringing effect).

In the past, Tamron’s in-built AF motors for Nikon bodies tended to be clunky affairs. For this lens, Tamron decided to get serious and fit a new Ultrasonic Silent Drive (USD) mechanism. It’s a coreless ring motor like Nikon’s Silent Wave motor. VC (Vibration Compensation) is another feature of this lens, and Tamron claims that it adds four stops for hand-held shooting, allowing you to shoot at much smaller apertures/slower speeds in poor light, or at lower ISO settings.

 photo courtesy of photozone.de

The size of the lens was a bit of a shock: Fully extended with lens hood on, it’s almost a foot long. Without the hood and zoom extension, it’s just on 6 inches or 14.5 cm. The worst part is that it’s 3 inches/80cm in diameter, which makes it hard to get even my long fingers around. The weight is 765g. To put things in perspective, Nikon’s 70=300mm is just about the same size and weight. The Tamron is a little cheaper and a little faster at f/4. Like The Nikon, this Tamron is an FX lens, which means it’ll work on a D700 or D800 too.

Handling

The fat diameter of the lens makes handling it a challenge, and it pays to make sure you get a good grip on it. The lens doesn’t look or feel comfortable on the little D5100, and I suspect it won’t be that much better on a D90/D7000. The lens hood is an exaggerated affair, so much so that turning it back over the lens obscures both the zoom and focus rings. Regardless of the body you screw it onto, you’ll look like an amateur paparazzi.

The lens diameter is 62mm so filters and hoods and caps are not too hard on the pocket. The zoom ring and focus rings have firm actions and there’s no lens creep at any angle. There is a distance scale for manual focusing but no aperture ring. Just like Nikon G lenses.

Performance

The lens works well, with no obvious flaws. Zooming in and out is even across the long zoom range, the amount of rotation needed is just right and the firmness of the zoom ring is constant. The new USD mechanism pretty well does what it says on the box and provides fast, silent and accurate focusing. Very fast, actually. Like most systems, the AF is less accurate in poor light.

There are a couple of switches on the lens, one for AF or MF, and you have to throw the switch before you can focus manually. The other switch turns VC on and off. Why do you want it off? The VC mechanism (not just Tamron’s) can compromise ultimate image quality so you’d want to turn it off when you’re shooting from a tripod or at over 1/500 – both situations where you don’t need it. You do see VC at work sometimes in this lens – the image seems to shake in the viewfinder – but it works well.

Image Quality

I tested this lens by taking lots of shots walking about, often early or late in the day, and the ratio of sharp shots isn’t as high as I expected. The AF struggles in these conditions and you’ll find the limitations of the VC as well, especially when you combine high speeds and long distances with less than optimal light. The Tamron is no worse than other lenses though.

When you help things along and use a prop or a steady shooting position, tack sharp photos are easier to produce. And the lens can freeze action nicely as the shot above shows. The best thing is that the fall-off in sharpness you inevitably see at the long end of tele-lenses is not a real issue with this lens.

I'm not dreaming of becoming a wedding photographer - it just so happens that I live near the rotunda at Balmoral, which is a popular spot for weddings. It's also a tough spot for cameras, with its extremes of light and shade on a sunny day. That's why I like using it for testing lenses.  

Please click on the images for larger versions.

The colours look a bit like the vibrancy was enhanced by editing but it wasn't - this is exactly what the light and the scene on that very sunny afternoon produced. Colour reproduction is accurate with this lens except in the bright early morning sun, where objects can take on a strange golden glow at times.

There are no obvious problems with flaring in bright light though (highlight blow-outs), or distortion (lines that aren’t straight), vignetting (light fall-off near corners and edges) or chromatic aberration (fringing or halo effects). The lens’s bokeh is pretty decent, even if it makes no claims for macro ability of any kind.

The real world

I really like this lens for its performance, IQ and value, but it’s not a practical size for my purposes. And you look like a dork flashing this huge thing wherever you go. Great for wedding shooters, maybe wildlife shooters and sports shooters too. Just not for casual walkabout shooters like me.

 

AF-S Nikkor 55-300mm F/4.5-5.6 G ED - right on the money

I sold the Tamron and settled for this lens in the end. It came on the market at $400, which didn’t make it great value, but it soon came down to $300 on the street. That made me take notice since no other 55 or 70-300mm tele-zoom with VR sells for anywhere near $300. And no other 55/70-300mm tele-zoom with VR is this compact.

  Build quality is pretty decent, only the lens diameter is a stupid 58mm. Size is a modest 76.5 x 123mm and weight is just over 500g. Inside there are 17 elements in 11 groups, including 2 ED glass elements and one HRI element. The 9 blades produce lovely bokeh, it turns out. The hood has a new clip-on arrangement, which feels pretty cheap but works OK.

Compared with the Tamron, the autofocus is slower and the images are a tad less sharp and the colours less punchy. The size is right, though, and the weight: this is a lens that won't make you look like a show-off, and that won't weigh you down. And because it doesn't cost that much, you can even take it to the beach without worrying.

The only serious drawback is the AF which is slow for shooting sports, kids and fast action. Leisurely, in fact. Also, focusing isn't internal, so the length of the lens changes and the filter thread rotates when focusing. There is no full-time manual focus override either, so there are a few trade-offs for the smaller size and price. The VR works well, on the other hand, and sharpness is good up to 240mm. Beyond that it drops off a little.

Not bad in an emergency

A pro wouldn’t buy a lens like this, a cheap plastic $300 item that isn’t quite in the rank of the serious tools they like to flash at newly-weds. I just hope the pro here got photos that are as lovely as these taken from a distance. It helps to have a pretty bride, and very pretty bridesmaids, and I thank them for posing so nicely.

I wasn’t expecting too much of this lens after reading the mixed reviews that are out on this new Nikon instrument. It’s as though the majority of the usual sites decided it was a yawn long before it was time to call it a night. You know, another obvious cheap plastic lens from Nikon, so what? They churn them out like other companies produce plastic toys, and yes it’s made in China – heaven forbid.

Just hold the phone a moment. This lens may be plastic but it’s about as sharp as it gets and the colours are true.

Nikon has a history of making cheap lenses with superb optics, the 55-200 this lens replaces is proof of that. I’ve set up an image gallery for the 55-300 with a few larger photos - look in the right hand-column under pages and you'll see the 55-300 page there. Please click on the images in the gallery, and those in this review, to see larger files.
http://www.letsgodigital.org/en/26834/nikon-55-300mm-review/

The goods

This lens is designed for cropped sensor DX cameras. Here’s the short list:

• 123mm in length, and 76.5mm in diameter
• Weight is 580g
• Filter size is 58mm
• 1 HRI (High Refractive Index) Lens Element
• 2 Extra-low Dispersion (ED) Elements
• Super Integrated Coating (SIC)
• Nikon Silent Wave Motor (SWM)
• VR II image stabilization, which Nikon claims allows ‘handheld shooting at up to 4 shutter speeds slower than would otherwise be possible.’
• Tripod Detection Mode
• Minimum focus distance to 4.6 feet
• Rounded 9-Blade Diaphragm

Construction

Build quality is better than expected. This is quite a solid lens, much heavier than the one it replaces and about 3 cm longer. It even has a metal mount. The matt plastic finish doesn’t look or feel tacky, and the focus and zoom rings move with gentle resistance. Unlike many recent consumer lenses, the focus ring is up front and the zoom ring behind it. You really can't complain about the build quality at the price point of this lens.

Handling

The size of this lens is just on the right side of practical for travelling/walking about. Its bigger brother, the 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G VR, is definitely on the wrong side. 20 extra mm in length, 5 more in diameter and 200 grams more heft make for an unwieldy instrument. This lens is easier to pick up and carry, and it fits into normal size slots in bags. Still, it would be perhaps be more at home on a D90/7000 than the D3000 it’s pictured on here.

Two pretty flimsy switches control AF/MF and VR. There are no normal and active VR settings. You can’t use the focus ring when the switch is set to AF, which won’t worry most weekend shooters but an override option would be nice. The extension lens barrel and focus ring move during autofocus since this is not an IF lens. Otherwise, the lens handles well and its weight and size make it easy to keep it steady on a reasonable-size body.

Performance

The first thing you notice is how smooth and silent the AF is. Its operation is carpet-slipper soft. The next thing you notice is how slow it is. I suspect it feels slower than it is because of that soft action, and the good news is that it works at the same speed in poor light. It’s fine in most circumstances but, if you’re a mad sports action shooter, you might need to look at a different lens.

The second reason why action shooters might look elsewhere is that the fastest aperture is f/4.5. Yes, lens speed is no longer so crucial with current DSLRs offering dizzy ISO settings, but you get better quality photos at lower ISOs. No problems shooting the kids’ soccer game on a bright summer Saturday, though. Except for the slow AF.

Image Quality

Photos are pretty sharp most of the time, so clearly the VR is highly effective and AF is accurate. That means more keepers. Overall, IQ is good for the money: colours are pretty accurate, but skin tones aren’t perfect – a bit orangey on the wedding shots where the sun caught the faces – but this lens is not alone with that problem. Colours are superb in the shade, and the lens is good for flowers and portraits where it delivers a decent bokeh.

Snow Leopard at Taronga Zoo

Summary

If you can get this lens for a decent price as part of a camera kit, or when the price comes down to below $400 once the initial sales drop off, this is a pretty good option. The things I liked most were its good optics, effective VR and its size and weight, both on the right side of unwieldy. The slow AF is a grumble but only if you shoot a lot of fast-moving action, but there are no consumer 55-300s with VR that aren't compromised in some way.

Test Image Gallery

Under Pages in the margin on the right - Nikon 55-300mm VR. Click on the images for a larger version.

Reviews

http://www.photoreview.com.au/Nikon/reviews/cameraaccessories/afs-dx-nikkor-55300mm-f4556-g-ed-vr-lens.aspx

http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/55-300mm.htm

http://www.ephotozine.com/article/Nikon-AFS-DX-Nikkor-55300mm-f4556G-ED-VR-14570

User reviews

http://lens-reviews.com/Lenses/Nikon/Nikon-55-300mm-f4.5-5.6-G-ED-VR.html

 

A magic moment, before sunrise

Once in a while, you get very lucky.
Just click on the image to see a larger file

Peace be with you

Kim

CSC, MILC and EVIL cameras - Part 2: APS-C based

Closing the gap to DSLRs?

As I said in part 1 of this series, CSC cameras should logically fill the gap between the better digicams (up to $350) and entry-level DSLRs at $700. That kind of money will buy you a very competent Nikon D3200 kit with an advanced 24mp sensor, and that serves as a useful benchmark in this survey. In part 2, we’ll look at CSC cameras that use similar size sensors to the Nikon D3200.

Canon 

A very late entry into the EVIL section of this market is the just announced EOS M system.  It looks like Canon crammed the T4i's technology into a compact system camera. 'From the new Hybrid AF system to the stepper-motor-driven STM lenses,' Imaging Resource reports, 'the menus to the touchscreen and most of the special capture modes, Canon T4i owners will feel right at home with the new EOS M.'

The EOS M uses the standard 18-megapixel APS-C size sensor that graces most of Canon's consumer SLRs, and a 3" touchscreen that reduces the need for physical controls on the Olympus-PEN size body. There is a mode dial on the back, and a hotshoe on top for the new Speedlite 90EX and older Canon Speedlites. The initial offering includes the 22mm prime and an 18-55mm zoom lens.As you'd expect, there's also an adaptor for Canon's existing lenses.

What's missing is any kind of provision for a viewfinder. Another issue for many will be the EOS M's Hybrid Autofocus system, again borrowed from the T4i. Imaging Resource calls the T4i's Live View mode autofocus 'terribly slow. Both the T4i and EOS M have a new sensor with phase-detect sites embedded near the center, as well as contrast-detection autofocus. But the Live View autofocus speed is very slow on the T4i with the 40mm STM lens, averaging more than 1.2 seconds to autofocus in single-point mode, and more than 1.7 seconds in multi-point AF mode. That's just unworkable in a modern mirrorless camera.'

The final problem is that the EOS M comes out of the blocks carrying a hefty $800 price tag with a new 22mm prime lens. To me, the whole effort looks a bit like Canon got into the CSC market reluctantly and very late, took some pretty obvious shortcuts and said: 'Let see how many people really want to buy this kind of thing.'

More details here:

http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/canon-eos-m/canon-eos-mA.HTM

http://www.dpreview.com/news/2012/07/23/Canon-announces-EOS-M-mirrorless-system-camera-hands-on-preview

 

Sony

Sony set a cracking pace once it got serious about the CSC market, shooting out new models like a biscuit factory. An interesting aside: once the Japanese copied American and European technology; these days the Japanese have become the innovators. Not just in the camera market - think of hybrid cars and bullet trains. In the last decade, Japan had more new technology patents approved than any other country.

Sony brought back the pellicle mirror in its DSLRs, and perfected it. In the CSC space, Sony has developed the smallest camera bodies with the highest computing power. They’ve rightly been called micro-computers with lens mounts, and herein lie two problems: navigation becomes complex with all the options on offer, and handling is a real issue.

The latter is true of all CSC cameras, but it’s worse with the bigger sensor brigade because the lenses are so big, relatively speaking. Even an 18-55mm lens is a front-heavy lump on a Sony NEX, and the 18-200 is a ridiculous misfit. The bigger body and shape of the Nikon D3200 DSLR makes for much better handling and easier shooting. However small these CSC bodies are, by the time you add anything but a pancake lens, you have anything but a compact system. As always, a picture beats 1,000 words:

Today, Sony lists 3 models on its website, but the top dog Nex-7 is well over $1000 so we can ignore it here. The NEX-F3 is the new entry level camera, while the NEX-5N is one peg up but just $100 more. The NEX-F3 looks good on paper with the same 16mp sensor, an added a flip screen and a built-in flash. What’s more, the F3 has a bigger, more ergonomic body – perhaps Sony has recognised that Twiggy and Big Bertha are not a perfect match.

Samsung

Once the Japanese were the best copiers, often improving on the originals in the process; now it’s the Koreans. Samsung is dogged in its determination to compete with Sony and Apple, the two big guns in consumer tech. Samsung appears to make its own sensors – 20mp for this range – and lenses. Right now, Samsung’s US website lists 3 models in the NX mirrorless range:

NX20

NX200

NX11

In addition, Samsung has released an NX 210 and NX 1000. The numbers are inverse, i.e. the bigger numbers are for smaller cameras – the NX11 and NX20 are DSLR-shaped compacts, the rest have small bodies like the Sonys above. The NX1000 is the entry level model at $700 with a 20-50mm kit lens, the rest are closer to $1,000 and of less interest to us in this survey.

Samsung calls the NX1000 ‘approachable’ and says it ‘combines the imaging power of a professional camera with the portability of a point-and-shoot. Then there’s an ‘eye-catching design and compact form-factor suitable for a small bag and a night out on the town.’ The kit weighs just 360g. Features include a bright 3.0-inch AMOLED screen, 1080p HD video, Smart Auto 2.0 technology and Smart Link Hot Key for sharing photos via Wi-Fi. Samsung knows the consumer market well.

More here : http://www.engadget.com/2012/04/19/samsung-nx20-nx210-nx1000

Pentax K-01

Now part of Ricoh, Pentax was a late entry into the CSC market. It’s a curious entry with a big body and in-your face styling, very different from the rest of the CSCs. The reason for the thick body is the reliance on its existing lenses, which meant Pentax had to maintain the same back-focus distance for compatibility. The other CSC makers created new lens mounts and new lenses to allow for a shorter back-focus distance, and slimmer bodies. The K-01 looks like Pentax simply removed the mirror mechanism.

The K-01 is not just thick, it also weighs in at a hefty 560g (more than our benchmark Nikon 3200 DSLR). Reviewers say the camera sacrifices function to form, complaining about the awkward-to-hold body and the controls and the poor handling. There’s no viewfinder either, not even as an option. The sensor is the same 16mp affair that graces the Pentax K-5, so the body/lens combo should deliver in spades. As always with Pentax, body-based image stabilization is part of the design.

What is curious is that Pentax has designed the world’s flattest pancake lens for this camera, perhaps to make up for the body’s bulk. Obviously, the existing lenses are quite bulky but existing Pentax accessories also work here, flashes for example. Maybe this is a CSC for Pentax users? But if there’s no ‘compact’ advantage here, what’s the point ?

‘In retaining support for existing K-mount lenses,’ Imaging Resource sums up, ‘Pentax has presented a camera that still has most of the size of an SLR, but loses its most important advantages over mirrorless cameras: the fast phase-detect autofocus, and the optical viewfinder. In their place, the Pentax K-01 has slow and too-often unreliable contrast detection autofocus, and offers no viewfinder at all--not even an external accessory.’ http://www.imaging-resource.com/PRODS/pentax-k01/pentax-k01A.HTM

Here’s the problem illustrated – photo courtesy of Imaging Resource

Ricoh GXR

This is a different system where the body is merely a base for lens units and supplies the function buttons and LCD. The lens units include the sensors: APS-C size sensors for lenses in the normal range, and digicam sized sensors for tele lenses. The lens units are expensive propositions at around $500-600 each, but you can get a basic kit for about $600 (with a 28-300mm equivalent lens), and the 28mm f/2.5 kit for $900.

A few months ago, Ricoh at last released a 24-85mm lens unit which matches the focal and aperture range of standard kit lenses for DSLRs. Image quality is said to be excellent with the APS-C sensor and nine rounded aperture blades in the lens. The problem once again is price – the lens unit and GXR body together add up to nearly a grand. 

The recent release of an M-Mount adaptor has opened the GXR system to a range of highly regarded old lenses from Leica, Minolta, Voigtlander and Zeiss. They’re all manual-focus lenses, of course, for which Ricoh provides some electronic trickery to make the task of focusing easier. The new M-mount effectively turns the GXR into a cheap Leica.

http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2012/06/ricoh-and-fuji-m-mount-adapters-watch-out-leica.html

The GXR is a bold concept, and Ricoh is to be congratulated for putting it into production. However, I suspect it will mostly appeal to those who love fresh and different technology, and to pro shooters as a small back-up system.

Photo courtesy of PC Magazine

Fujifilm X-Pro1

I’ll list the X-Pro1 system here because it is APS-C based but, like the fixed lens X100, it is priced on the wrong side of $1,000. It's designed for Pr shooters as the name suggests.

Summing up

I’m convinced that our benchmark Nikon D3200 is the equal of any sub $1,000 CSC camera when it comes to image quality, and it makes for better balance and handling with lenses attached. A real viewfinder is included, and so is a flash, which saves money and delivers convenience. Another alternative is the Nikon D5100, which is currently cheaper than the newer D3200 and offers an articulated screen and more shooting options such as HDR and interval timer. Image quality is as good or better. Here’s a good comparison:

http://www.portraitsf.com/blog/nikon-d3200-vs-d5100/ 

While some of the CSC systems are more compact than even a small DSLR, none is so small that it’ll fit comfortably into a shirt or trouser pocket. The smallest Oly or Panny with a pancake lens attached might in a pinch, but more likely you’ll have 2 or three lenses which means you’ll be taking a small bag to carry the camera gear in. The Nikon D3200 fits into a pretty small bag as well, so in the end there’s not that much in it.

Some comparison tests that shed more light on the CSC subject

http://www.techradar.com/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/best-budget-compact-system-camera-6-tested-1059392/page:10#articleContent

http://www.techradar.com/news/photography-video-capture/cameras/best-compact-system-camera-2012-20-reviewed-and-rated-960832#articleContent

This link will take you to Part 1 of this series

http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2012/06/csc-milc-and-evil-cameras-a-dense-jungle.html

Kim

 

CSC, MILC, and EVIL cameras – a dense jungle - Part 1

Are consumers spoilt for choice or terminally confused?

Order out of chaos

The Compact Systems Camera market isn’t an easy one to keep up with. The last couple of years have seen every major camera maker get into this market, often with quite different interpretations of the new format. The makers can’t even agree on a category name for these cameras so we’re left with a whole bunch of acronyms to digest:

ILC – Interchangeable Lens Cameras

MILC – Mirrorless Interchangeable Lens Cameras

EVIL – Electronic Viewfinder Interchangeable Lens

MSC – Mirrorless System Camera

CSC – Compact Systems Cameras

Where these cameras are remarkably similar is in their prices, which range from $500 to $800. Logically, CSC cameras should fill the gap between the better digicams ($350?) and entry-level DSLRs at $700, which will buy you a competent Nikon D3200 kit with an advanced 24mp sensor. With a couple of exceptions, that’s not what’s happening.

Trying to keep up with the Jones’s here is near impossible, with Olympus, Panasonic, Sony and Samsung changing their models more often than most of change our clothes, but let’s try to wrest some order from this chaos. This post is an attempt to provide a map through this jungle, at least for a snapshot in time.

Compacts without the ‘I’

These are compact cameras with bigger sensors than digicams, but without interchangeable lenses, and they are:

Canon G1X

Sony RX100

Fujifilm X10

These three have little in common other than roughly fitting into the typical entry-level serious camera price range of $500 - $800. They also have similar zoom capacities in the range of 3.5-4x, but their sensors couldn’t be more different: The Fuji’s is a 2/3” sensor about twice the size as a standard digicam sensor, the Sony RX100 has a 1” sensor about twice the X10’s size (and the same size as the CX sensor Nikon uses in the J1/V1 system).

The Canon G1X has an odd sensor size (18.7 x 14mm) that is just a little bigger than the M43 standard. Why Canon didn’t leave its options open by using an M43 sized sensor is an interesting question. Here’s a diagram that might help peg these sensors in their relative slots (the G1X sensor isn’t there yet, and the Sony RX100 is the same size as Nikon CX.

It’s no surprise that the Canon G1X provides the best image quality here but the reviewers have picked on some serious handling and functional issues. In addition, the G1X is by far the most expensive option at around $800, and the biggest. One gets the distinct impression that Canon threw something into this ring because it was expected to, but it doesn't really want to be here.

Fujifilm on the other hand is pushing the envelope, and Sony is constantly innovating. The Fuji X10 sits in between the other two in size, while the Sony RX100 is the only truly pocketable camera here, not just in this group but right across the CSC spectrum. That’s a first, and that’s the Sony’s real advantage: a decent size sensor in a pocket camera. The only downside is a launch price on the wrong side of $600, but that will come down.

Nikon 1 system – out on its own

The other makers of CSC cameras have either opted for M43 sensors or the bigger APS-C type. Nikon has used a 1” sensor small enough to fit into really compact cameras with small lenses, as shown by Sony’s RX100. However, Nikon has failed to make good use of the small sensor. It's a more serious effort than Canon's, but it's not as convincing as it should be.

As a result, the 1 system cameras and lenses are no smaller than those of the M43 competitors, so it begs the question: why did Nikon not join Panasonic and Olympus in the M43 coalition? Nikon makes great lenses, and that would’ve expanded its market for them. Beats me.

The 1 system bodies aren’t exactly shaped for perfect handling, and even the more serious V1 lacks any kind of handgrip. That said, the 1 system has been praised for

• Image quality that compares well with basic M43 cameras
• Good, print-ready JPEGs with in-camera correction of fringing, CA and vignetting
• Adaptive 'Hybrid' AF system offering fast & accurate phase-detection tracking AF
• Superfast continuous shooting rates up to 60 fps (RAW + JPEG)

DPReview found that the 1 System performs well in good light conditions, but does less well in poor indoor light where the contrast-detection AF and Auto ISO systems struggle to cope. The biggest thing the 1 system has going for it is the adaptive hybrid AF systems. ‘If you want to shoot moving subjects in good light with a small(ish) camera,’ DPReview says, ‘then the J1 and V1 really are the only game in town, at least as far as mirrorless models are concerned.’

Another advantage for the 1 system is an adaptor that lets Nikon DSLR users bolt on their existing lenses. If neither of these features are important to you, then you’ll probably look at other CSC cameras and see better value, better handling and more lens choices. 

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikonv1j1/19

M43/Micro Four Thirds cameras - Panasonic

Panasonic and Olympus are the driving (and I mean DRIVING) forces behind this group, which uses a common sensor size and common lens mount. That’s right: all M43 lenses will work on all M43 cameras, with full functionality. The M43 standard is the only ‘open’ standard for camera sensors/ lens mounts, a step in the right direction that offers a limited version of the plug-and-play freedom we’ve long enjoyed with our PCs.

The M43 sensor sits between Nikon’s CX/Sony’s 1” (RX100) sensors and Canon’s/Nikon’s APS-C (DSLR) sensors in size. To illustrate the sizes more clearly, this diagram might help:

Now the fun starts: Keeping up with Panasonic and Olympus has been a fulltime job. Panasonic currently lists no fewer than 7 models on its US website (plus variants).

Lumix DMC-GX1

Lumix DMC-GF2

Lumix DMC-GF3

Lumix DMC-GF5

Lumix DMC-G2

Lumix DMC-G3

Lumix DMC-GH2

We can leave the GH2 out of our calculations here since it’s a $1,000 camera. The G2 and G3 share the mini-DSLR body style, and are in our price range. They offer an articulated screen and built-in EVF, unlike the rest of the range that Panasonic has been continuously updating. If you want a simple to use camera with good IQ and good handling at a good price, and you like the mini-DSLR body style, check out the G3.

The GF5 is the current follow-up on the GF1, a rangefinder-styled camera loved by serious shooters who compared it to the M9 Leica two years ago. They were dismayed by the GF2 that followed since it was clearly aimed at the consumer market, and so are the GF3 and the new GF5.

These small bodies, now often bundled with Panasonic’s retractable X Vario PZ 14-42mm F3.5-5.6 ASPH OIS power zoom lens, are clearly designed to please those who want to upgrade from digicams to something better but not much bigger. Because it has been replace by the GF5, the GF3 is being offered at crazy prices out there. DWI in Hong Kong has a GF3/14-42mm combo on offer for less than A$400 at the moment: http://www.dwidigitalcameras.com.au/store/product.asp?idProduct=3823

A few months ago, the new GX1 finally gave the long-lost GF1 fans something to upgrade to (see image above comparing the GX1 with Nikon’s V1). The GX1's 16mp sensor is the same as the G3’s, and the image processing firmware produces ‘the most impressive high ISO JPEG performance we have seen in any Micro Four Thirds offering from Panasonic or Olympus,’ according to DPReview. The reviewers add that the gap between M43 IQ and APS-C IQ has narrowed, but a gap remains.

M43 - Olympus

Olympus has continued making new cameras in the shadow of a huge corporate scandal, and has put all its eggs into the M43 basket. The US website lists

E-P3 – top of this line

E-PL3 – also known as the PEN Light

E-PL1 – over 2 years old now

E-PM1 – also known the PEN Mini

E-PL2 (showing ‘out of stock’, probably forever since it’s an older model)

There’s also the new and widely praised E-M5 OMD, which is over $1,000 so we can ignore it here. The EP-3 is the serious enthusiast model, with the E-PL3 offering a smaller package with touch screen controls, and the E-PM1 Mini being the obvious carrot for digicam users looking for an easy way to a better camera.

The smaller two of this trio are very stylish cameras, make no mistake, and come in flashy colours that would make them work well as fashion accessories. The feature list of all three cameras is exhaustive and includes full HD AVCHD video, lots of art filters and creative effects. More important to serious shooters will be the in-body stabilisation, which works with any lens you choose for these cameras.

Operation is now very responsive, autofocus is fast and accurate (in good light), but the sensor and imaging firmware have been neglected badly as the E-M5 OMD shows – its IQ is in another class, even with the same size M43 sensor. The other longstanding Olympus issue is tedious navigation through too many menu layers. And flash and EVF are not included, and the hot shoe will only take one or other. On the positive side, pricing for the E-PM1 PEN Mini starts at $500.

That’s it for today - we look at the APS-C based CSC cameras in part 2 of this survey http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2012/07/csc-milc-and-evil-cameras-part-2-aps-c-based.html

Kim

Superb image quality with old Nikon DX40 & 18-135

It proves a point I've argued for a while now: the IQ of the files coming out of digital cameras has been close to perfect for 5 years now. All the extra pixels and ISO sensitivity and all the other features haven't made a whole lot of difference to the IQ.

Please click on the images to see a larger file. The second one is a full size crop of an image straight out of the camera, untouched - just look at the detail here. The D40X is a 5-year old 10 megapixel DSLR, and the 18-135mm lens is one of Nikon's cheapest kit lenses (also 5-6 years old) - check the creamy bokeh! The whole outfit cost me less than $500 18months ago, and has been my kick-around travel outfit ever since (if it breaks or gets lost in the forest, it's not that big a deal). I have a D5100 for special occasions. 

IS IT LOVE OR IS IT LICE?

BE KIND TO EACH OTHER

KIM

Ricoh and Fuji M-Mount Adapters open new eyes

Old Leica lenses meet new Japanese bodies

From time to time, I’ve taken pot shots at Leica for the ludicrous amount of money they ask for their M9 body. I’ve never said a bad word about their lenses though, which tend to compare well with other makers’ pro lenses in quality and price. Leica almost by accident became the first company to produce a digital ‘rangefinder’ camera, or a Compact System Camera (CSC) of the type now produced by virtually all the Japanese makers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mirrorless_interchangeable-lens_camera

The Leica M mount was introduced with the Leica M3 in 1954 with the Leica M3, and has been the standard mount on Leica rangefinders including the digital M9. This lens mount was also used by other makers such as Minolta, Konica Voigtländer/Cosina and by Zeiss Ikon. Some of these lenses are legendary, all of them are manual focus which is no deterrent for serious photographers.

Ricoh GXR A12

It didn’t take long for one of the new CSC makers to produce an M-mount, which instantly transforms a proprietary body into cheap Leica alternative. Ricoh was the first to seize the day with its GXR A12 M-mount lens unit. The GXR is a radical break from everything else out there, with its unique concept of combining lenses with sensors and optimizing the package. The flaw is that the two are inseparable - sensors improve all the time, but good lenses will always be good lenses. So when Ricoh upgrades its sensors to newer technology and you want to upgrade too, you have to throw out the lens as well.

When Ricoh announced an M-mount adaptor for the GXR, it opened up the concept since the A12 is a sensor/lens mount unit rather than a sensor/lens unit. With the A12 fitted, the GXR becomes a more conventional camera that can take all those beaut old lenses from Leica, Minolta, Voigtlander and Zeiss.

Photo courtesy of Luminous Landscape

Of course, the GXR is not a rangefinder camera, and there’s no built-in optical viewfinder / rangefinder that compares with the set-up on an M series Leica. There is a live view LCD and an optional electronic viewfinder, and generic optical viewfinders can also be mounted on the accessory shoe. And there’s a focus-peaking option, in two forms: one puts a shimmer effect around the edges of the subject with the sharpest focus, the other turns the screen into a B&W etched outline.

Luminous Landscape sums it up this way: ‘The Ricoh GXR-M is a very appealing camera for anyone who owns Leica M mount lenses, or who would like to. At 1/7th the price of an M9, and with its very good build quality and wide ranging features, it's a relative bargain. A Live View LCD and an optional EVF give the GXR-M capabilities that many users, even those that may currently own an M9, will find very attractive.’

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/ricoh_gxr_a12_field_report.shtml

Fujifilm joins Ricoh

Fuji has just announced its M-Mount Adapter with a 27.8mm distance between the lens mount and the sensor, and three levels of distortion correction. New firmware provides access to an advanced M-Mount Adapter Settings menu with pre-registered lens profiles and corrections. The software includes presets for 21mm, 24mm, 28mm and 35mm Leica lenses, and two additional slots for adding your own settings. Fujifilm’s M-Mount Adapter is expected to ship by the end of June and sell for about $200.

The X-Pro1 is a serious camera, and the lenses Fujifilm makes for it are of very high quality, but clearly their maker is gunning for a share of the Leica market here. Here’s a review http://www.dpreview.com/previews/fujifilmxpro1

Here’s an extract from the M-mount press release:

The M-Mount Adapter is comprised of three parts: an aluminum mount for the body, a stainless steel mount for the lens, and an aluminum central tube. This construction enables an accurately-maintained distance of 27.8mm from the lens mount to sensor, which is crucial for delivering high quality and high resolution images.

The camera side of the M-Mount Adapter features an array of electronic connections that automatically pass information to the FUJIFILM X-Pro1 body based on pre-registered lens profiles. With firmware version 1.10 or later, this information is transmitted by pressing the Function button on the side of the adapter, which allows users to access the M-Mount Adapter Settings menu on the rear LCD.

While attached, the M-Mount Adapter still allows users to enjoy the benefits of the FUJIFILM X-Pro1's extraordinary Hybrid Multi Viewfinder. The Electronic Viewfinder (EVF) and LCD monitor both offer a 100% field of view, and the Optical Viewfinder (OVF) displays a bright frame corresponding to the focal length in use.

The FUJIFILM M-Mount Adapter provides ultimate control by allowing users to create and fine tune lens profiles through the X-Pro1's Mount Adapter Settings menu. This menu allows X-Pro1 users to profile up to six lenses. There are four pre-sets for 21mm, 24mm, 28mm and 35mm lenses, plus two optional settings for additional optics.

http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/accessories/lens/mount/fujifilm_m_mount_adapter/compatibility_chart/index.html

Leica will have to lift its game perhaps, with two serious camera makers offering quality alternatives. Then again, Leica is less about the game than the fame. Either way, for those of us on more modest budgets than typical Leica shooters, it means we now have access to a comparable but affordable experience. Some of those old Minolta lenses are outstanding, and pretty cheap on eBay.

I should add that M-mount adpators are available for other camera bodies such as Olympus, Panasonic and Sony, but they're made by third parties. That means you don't get firmware support, and the shooting combo will be a completely manual affair. More details here:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/leica_m9_second_body_alterantives.shtml

http://www.cameraquest.com/adaptnew.htm

 

Kim

 

VIVID Lights up Sydney by Night

It’s that time of the year. Winter, short days, long cold nights and special effects at Circular Quay. The walkways around the Quay were thick with people, a mix of parents with kids and tourists. The dark is  popular time with small kids, and fancy lights have an almost hypnotic effect on them. It was good to see so many people here, and lots of kids of all ages. (Just click on any of the images to see a full-size file)

Major alterations to the architecture of the iconic Opera House, thankfully only a light projection

Looking the other way toward the Hyatt and the bridge

The fire eater who's always performing down here was here tonight as well.

Where does this chandelier come from? No idea.

Looking back toward the city. Very colourful. VIVID.

Allow me a modest boast, please: all these shots were taken handheld with my old Nikon D40x and the old 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 kit lens which isn't fast. I forgot to take my monopod as well, so all shots were handheld at between 1/5th and 1/20th second. The success ratio was a surprising 25%.

Kim

Leica M Monochrom and x2 – the luxury collection

Leica milks its brand for all it's worth

I’ve long thought of Leica as the Penfolds Grange of the camera business: a brand with a cachet far exceeding its value, and a company hell-bent on squeezing every last dollar out of it. People with too much money tend to buy Leica cameras for much the same reason they buy Penfolds Grange or $10K watches. A Leica won’t make you a better photographer as I explained here http://briard.typepad.com/get_the_picture/2009/12/why-a-leica-wont-improve-your-photography.html

Today I read this at Imaging Resource: ‘Leica’s fame was built on the work and celebrity of Henri Cartier-Bresson. However, I cannot imagine it would please HCB to see the "luxe" direction Leica is taking. Bresson believed in the power of photography. Before his death, he created a photographic center in Paris to encourage and exhibit the work of photographers, mostly Leica photographers. If he were alive today, I have to believe he would urge Leica to invest a little more in the future of cameras as "working tools" rather than in the future of cameras as "investments." Author Steve Melzer is a long time Leica loyalist – more here http://www.imaging-resource.com/news/2012/05/16/the-leica-m-monochrom-is-leica-pricing-out-its-loyal-customers-with-an-8000

The standard Leica M9 costs a breathtaking $7000 for the body alone. That’s not exclusive enough for some playboys, so Leica has once again released a Hermès edition which will sell for between $25 and $50,000. Hermès is a Parisian fashion house specialising in wearable accessories with eye-watering price tags. The good news is that you get a lens or three with these special Leicas, and a few other fashion accessories.

The highlight of the Hermes M9 is the calf skin leather supplied by Hermes for the silver version of the Leica M9-P camera. This ultra-fine leather is also used for the shoulder strap included in the Hermes Leica set. In addition to a dedicated serial number, each camera is also given a limited-edition number. The base Hermes package includes a book and a bag and an anodised 50mm f/1.4 ASPH lens for $25,000. The more limited edition (100 sets instead of 300) is boxed with three silver-anodised lenses - the 28mm f/2 ASPH and 50mm f/0.95 and 90mm f/2 ASPH - priced at a trifling $50,000.

Leica M Monochrom

Now comes the interesting part: Steve Melzer’s comments weren’t aimed at the Hermes Leica but the new M9 Monochrom which captures only black and white images and has a sensor optimised for that genre. That little touch adds $1,000 to the camera’s price. What’s the market for such a tool? As Steve points out, the photographers who shoot serious black-and-white photos for exhibition prints still tend to use black-and-white film and medium or large format cameras. So this is just another blatant attempt to cash in on the fame of its most famous user: Henri Cartier-Bresson.

Full-size (35mb) Monochrom sample images are available for download here: http://www.photographyblog.com/previews/leica_m_monochrom_photos/

Theres’ a hands-on report here:

http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/45676/leica-m9-hermes-pictures-and-hands-on

The poor man’s Leica

Yes, there is one, kind of: A couple of years ago, Leica produced a new entry-level camera in the x1. It looked like a Leica – much like the baby A160 looks like a Mercedes) and sold for a modest (by Leica standards) $2,000 including a prime lens that was fixed. The x1 used an APS-C size 12mp sensor, not a full frame sensor like the M series, but the image quality was widely praised.

Leica has just introduced the x2, which adds a little bulk and weight apart from a 16mp sensor and a faster AF system. Not much else is new, except that 2 grand buys a lot of good kit these days – and there’s a lot more competition in this area now. The Fuji X100 is as well made and as capable at half  the price. Here’s a hands-on for the Leica x2 http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/45688/leica-x2-pictures-and-hands-on-preview

Worse news for Leica is the Fuji Pro x1 (confused yet?), which is just as capable as the M9 at a quarter the price. And don’t underestimate the quality of Fuji’s lenses. That won’t matter to those who buy Leicas for the cachet and don’t care about the cash. Those of us who're looking for value may baulk at $2,000 for a basic camera, and opt for a Nikon D5100 instead. This is a shot taken casually with a D5000 and the 55-300mm lens, a sub $1000 combo.

If you really have to have a camera with that famous red dot on it, and you don't have a lot of dollars to spend, there’s a more reasonbly-priced Leica for you: the V-Lux 40 for about $700.

You wouldn’t expect a company with Leica's cachet to rebadge another company’s product, let alone a Panasonic product, but that’s what the V-Lux 40 is: a Panasonic Lumix TZ30. The saving grace is that the Panny uses a Leica lens. You pay another $300 for the red dot, mind you, and all Leica throws in is a copy of Photoshop Elements 10, Premiere Elements and a 2-year warranty.

In summing up, I agree with Steve Melzer at Imaging Resource: Leica ought to invest a little more in the future of cameras as working tools instead of playing the fashion and luxury goods markets. If you’re looking for the best photo tools at sensible prices, look elsewhere. Then again, maybe I'm missing something - maybe a Leica attracts classier birds than a Nikon. Maybe Lorelei drapes herself over a rock near you if you have a Leica in your hands ...

Kim