So, lately I've been thinking about what Leica might be getting ready for Photokina 2012. The odds are it will be more than one camera, and one of them we know will be an EVIL compatible with M lenses, hence the name baby M. I've come up with some educated guesses/wishful thinking as to what features we might expect other than that. I started from a few basic premises and added a couple of assumptions, and these are interesting as well.
First and foremost is the sensor size. They have already stated it will be "at least APS-C", but just how big will it be? There are only 2 choices really, APS-C or half frame like the M8. I seriously doubt they will do a full frame sensor right from the start, although you never know. That's probably for the M12 :).
Since they already stated it will be backward-compatible with M lenses, I believe they will use a sensor the size of that of the M8. The 1.33 crop factor already discards quite a bit of the image area produced by the extraordinary Leica lenses, reducing the incentive both for lens owners to buy the baby M and for baby M owners to buy full frame M lenses. A 1.5 or 1.6 crop factor would probably defeat the purpose of making the mount M compatible, and this was clearly their conclusion as well in 2006 when the M8 came out. Nothing has changed since then as far the physics of crop factors. The change in FOV is significant as well. It's all fine for telephotos, but the Leica strength lies in standard and wide angle primes which are second to none. It would be wasteful to not capitalize on that strength. The downside to APS-C is that the widest FOV with the widest Leica lens, the 18mm, is only a 27mm equivalent. The 21mm Elmarit would only be a 32mm. If you want to go below 27mm, you have to look to Voigtlander for lenses. Hardly in Leica's own interest.
I do expect that they will introduce a new electronic M mount and a few lenses for it. It's the only practical way to do AF, and a compact entirely MF EVIL camera is a non starter for the masses. This new mount will read the 6-bit codes off M lenses, it will have electronic contacts and it will probably also read off the focus distance of M lenses via a sensor where the M's have the rangefinder roller arm. This is far out of my area of expertise but I believe they will do it because focus distance information might be useful for flash exposures and vignetting/corner color shift compensation. Of course the baby M will have a built in flash! The new electronic M lenses will likely not be backward compatible with rangefinder M's, at least not optically, owing to them being optimized for the half frame APS-H sensor. I think it would be wise to keep them at least mechanically compatible, in view of a future FF EVIL with dedicated lenses. These lenses will probably be slightly lower performance than FF M lenses, and they will probably be a standard zoom, a tele zoom and maybe a macro to start with.
The second premise is that Leica is a small company, with relatively little experience and engineering capability as far as the sensor and associated hardware goes. They will probably team up with an outside supplier to develop the new sensor (Panasonic?). They will probably switch to CMOS, as afaik CCD doesn't work with contrast detection AF. This leads me to believe the baby M will have live view and it will do movies. As a lot of work will have do be done to make the sensor work with the short flange distance of the M lenses, it is quite likely that the new technology will be applied to the M10. Again, history would lead credibility to this idea: Kodak supplied the sensors for both the M8 and the M9, they had the same pixel spacing and probably used very similar microlens technology in both. These facts together lead toward an interesting possibility: the full frame M10 will use a very similar sensor technology and same pixel spacing. The M8 and M9 did, and if this holds true for the baby M and M10, we can hazard some guesses as to what resolution they will have. I consider it unlikely that Leica will introduce a new upmarket camera with 10 megapixels. I personally wouldn't need any more but from a strictly marketing point of view, it would be a disadvantage. A lot of people will look at the $2500-$3500 baby M next to the $1300 24MP NEX 7 and balk, not thinking the problem through. At the same time I doubt Leica will join the megapixel race and I think they have already hinted that they have no intention of doing so. I commend them for it. My best guess will be from 12 to 15 megapixels. Since the ratio for the M8/M9 is 10:19 Megapixels, (FF vs half-frame really) this would mean that the M 10 will likely have from 23 to 28 megapixels. It would be a good size step forward from the M9, and the system would not be diffraction limited until roughly f11, still higher than or close to the optimum aperture of most Leica M lenses. At the same time it will keep a comfortable distance from the S2. Another really interesting question is, since the sensor will be capable of it, will they give live view and movie mode to the M10? These could be game changing differences in the rangefinder world, so I think they will. At least, I hope so.
Another question is, will they add in-body image stabilization to the baby M? It would make sense. It's the only way to add stabilization to legacy M lenses, and the technology is proven to be effective. This would not stop them from adding optical stabilization in-lens to the baby M telephoto lenses I mentioned above. At the same time, as Leica makes only fairly fast primes, and even very fast wide angles, they would not have that much to gain from including it. On this one is hard to guess what they're up to, but I would like to see it included.
So to review, here's what I think Photokina 2012 will bring:
- a baby M with an APS-H sensor, electronic M mount backward compatible with M lenses,
- EVF
- new electronic M lenses for the crop sensor,
- OIS in some of the new lenses,
- live view and movie mode,
- built in flash,
- in body image stabilization, at least for the 6-bit M lenses.
- 12-15 Megapixels
- hopefully the same battery as the M9, for those pro's who want a baby M as a backup/video body.
- an M10 with 23-28 Megapixels with a sensor based on the same technology, and hopefully, if Leica is listening, A HIGHER MAGNIFICATION VIEWFINDER, PLEASE!!!!!
Photokina 2012 can't come fast enough.....
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Saturday, October 29, 2011
Zeiss ZM C Sonnar update
Having settled down into the "zone" with the Sonnar, I ran into a flaw in my plan to get around the focus shift issue: when photographing my kids, who don't normally sit still except when they're sleeping, it can be difficult to first focus correctly and then shift the ring by just a frame width. By then, the're long gone! Another problem is with focusing on lower contrast subjects, especially faces (the usual target when photographing the kids :) Lower light also compounds the problem. I ended up with quite a few misfocused shots, and there were plenty of opportunities that I missed completely because I was busy messing around with the RF patch. A better solution was needed. My search for a 50mm Summilux ASPH has been unsuccessful so far so it looks like I have to get in line with everybody else and wait the 2,3 or 4 months that Leica needs to make one.
In the meantime, digging around, I found out that Zeiss can adjust the lens to optimise the focus shift for shooting wide open. So I contacted them, made the arrangements and sent it in. Ten days later it was back from Oberkochen and focus is now perfect at f1.5 and f2. At smaller apertures, the DOF compensates and the subject is always in focus, even though the DOF zone is shifted slightly behind the subject. I rarely shoot it at more than f2 though, and since the adjustment I've gotten more and more beautiful shots, and i'm liking the lens even more. I would go so far as to say it's my favourite lens of all I've ever tried. I'm curious if that will change when the Summilux gets here.
I should also add that, to their credit, Zeiss performed the adjustment free of charge as the lens is within their 2 year warranty.
In the meantime, digging around, I found out that Zeiss can adjust the lens to optimise the focus shift for shooting wide open. So I contacted them, made the arrangements and sent it in. Ten days later it was back from Oberkochen and focus is now perfect at f1.5 and f2. At smaller apertures, the DOF compensates and the subject is always in focus, even though the DOF zone is shifted slightly behind the subject. I rarely shoot it at more than f2 though, and since the adjustment I've gotten more and more beautiful shots, and i'm liking the lens even more. I would go so far as to say it's my favourite lens of all I've ever tried. I'm curious if that will change when the Summilux gets here.
Here's the 100% crop from f1.5
and the same crop from f2.8:
I should also add that, to their credit, Zeiss performed the adjustment free of charge as the lens is within their 2 year warranty.
Monday, August 1, 2011
More amazing Leica: exposure compensation made simple!
I just found out about this and it's so exciting I had to post about it. Old-time Leica shooters may laugh at me, but I'm just discovering it and I want to share it with other Leica newbies:
Want +1 stop exposure compensation? Press the shutter to the second detent on your M8, that locks the exposure, then dial 2 clicks to the right on the aperture ring (3 clicks if you use Zeiss lenses like me). 2 clicks left for underexposure. Forget the SET button!
Amazingly, deliciously simple!
Want +1 stop exposure compensation? Press the shutter to the second detent on your M8, that locks the exposure, then dial 2 clicks to the right on the aperture ring (3 clicks if you use Zeiss lenses like me). 2 clicks left for underexposure. Forget the SET button!
Amazingly, deliciously simple!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Tips for DIY 6 bit lens coding
You will find plenty of articles about Leica's 6 bit lens coding system, what it does and how to DIY, I only have the following to add:
There is no need for buying or laboriously printing and cutting templates. All you need is a thin marker, some black nail polish and a toothpick. One more thing: late production Zeiss and afaik Voigtlander lenses have a groove cut in the lens mount which is in the right place and just deep enough to protect the paint from rubbing off. If your lenses are older, you might have to send them to a place that can machine the 6 dots.
First use the thin marker to mark the lens mount on the M8 (or 9) at the 2 ends of the 6 bit sensor. Then mount the lens and mark two dots in the same place on the lens mount. Next, mark a point exactly in the middle of the first 2 dots. "Exactly" is a relative term, but with a bit of care it will be plenty close enough. The 2 sections now remaining can contain 3 dots each. Here's what I mean:
None of the black or blue permanent markers I used worked because they still allowed enough IR to bounce off into the sensor, so the lens type was not detected. Thus, the black nail polish. There is no need to paint white dots, the bare metal will do nicely. Next, practice painting some other metal surface with the toothpick, as the brush included with the nail polish will be too thick. The results can be seen below, the Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm coded as a Summilux 50 pre ASPH, and the Zeiss 28mm Biogon coded as an Elmarit 28mm ASPH. It's not as neat as the original gear, but it's fully reversible, quick and durable.
Enjoy!
There is no need for buying or laboriously printing and cutting templates. All you need is a thin marker, some black nail polish and a toothpick. One more thing: late production Zeiss and afaik Voigtlander lenses have a groove cut in the lens mount which is in the right place and just deep enough to protect the paint from rubbing off. If your lenses are older, you might have to send them to a place that can machine the 6 dots.
First use the thin marker to mark the lens mount on the M8 (or 9) at the 2 ends of the 6 bit sensor. Then mount the lens and mark two dots in the same place on the lens mount. Next, mark a point exactly in the middle of the first 2 dots. "Exactly" is a relative term, but with a bit of care it will be plenty close enough. The 2 sections now remaining can contain 3 dots each. Here's what I mean:
None of the black or blue permanent markers I used worked because they still allowed enough IR to bounce off into the sensor, so the lens type was not detected. Thus, the black nail polish. There is no need to paint white dots, the bare metal will do nicely. Next, practice painting some other metal surface with the toothpick, as the brush included with the nail polish will be too thick. The results can be seen below, the Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm coded as a Summilux 50 pre ASPH, and the Zeiss 28mm Biogon coded as an Elmarit 28mm ASPH. It's not as neat as the original gear, but it's fully reversible, quick and durable.
Enjoy!
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm f1.5 Focus issues
Sonnar
So, the first lens I tried on my new (to me) M8 is the Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm f1.5. It is an absolutely wonderful lens and there are plenty of blogs and sites on the web that will attest to that, so I won't dwell on it's qualities. I have only heard of one site that mentions the one significant issue this lens has: focus shift. This means that at wide apertures the plane of best focus is in front of the target indicated by the rangefinder patch.
I have done some tests using a template from Bob Atkins and I came up with some conclusions. I have shot dozens of frames doing focus bracketing every centimeter but for the sake of brevity here are the final results for the tests at 1 meter distance:
First at f 1.5, the first picture is focused on the center (un-numbered) vertical line, second one is focused on the line 5 cm behind it.
Since the depth of field at this aperture and distance is only 3 cm, if you focus exactly on your target, it will be entirely outside the lens' depth of field!
The situation at f2 is not much better. The first picture is focused on the center (un-numbered) vertical line, the second one is focused on the line 4 cm behind it. At f2 the DOF is 4 cm, so your subject will still be out of focus.
At f2.8 and up the focus accuracy improves dramatically to the point where you can focus normally using the rangefinder patch. I won't show any samples for that.
I've also done the same tests at 4m and the results are similar. In the pictures below taken at f1.5 and f2 the focus point was the small bolt circled in red. Again you can see it is outside the DOF.
So, what is one to do? You could come up with an index card of distances to back-focus at every aperture and distance and use that for every shot, but that would sap the living joy out of using this otherwise excellent lens. You could avoid shooting below f2.8, which would be an unspeakable waste.
Fortunately I happen to really like the way this lens renders at f2, so I kept thinking there must be a better way, and I believe it is this: I noticed that the amount of back-focus required was approximately such that the double image in the RF patch is superimposed offset by about the same amount as the width of the 50mm frame line.
One way to do this is: focus on your subject then turn the ring slightly toward infinity until the patch defocuses by on frame line. As you get better, or with moving subjects, you can just focus offset directly.
This works quite well at f1.5, for f2 use a little less than one frame line width. Most importantly, this rule of thumb works quite well at both close (1m) and medium (3-5)m distances. I haven't noticed any issues at distances beyond that.
Here are the four shots of the wire fence focused exactly that way, at f1.5 and f2, focused on the bolt in the pictures in red and focused offset by one frameline width without the red circle:
Really though, the best way to fix this might be to use the Summilux 50mm ASPH, and it may come to that in the future, but for now I like this lens enough to give it a second chance.
In case you were wondering, my M8's previous owner (since new) assured me that the rangefinder was untouched from the factory and the focus was spot-on on his Noctilux, so I have no reason to believe it's an issue with the camera's rangefinder accuracy and not the lens.
So, the first lens I tried on my new (to me) M8 is the Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm f1.5. It is an absolutely wonderful lens and there are plenty of blogs and sites on the web that will attest to that, so I won't dwell on it's qualities. I have only heard of one site that mentions the one significant issue this lens has: focus shift. This means that at wide apertures the plane of best focus is in front of the target indicated by the rangefinder patch.
I have done some tests using a template from Bob Atkins and I came up with some conclusions. I have shot dozens of frames doing focus bracketing every centimeter but for the sake of brevity here are the final results for the tests at 1 meter distance:
First at f 1.5, the first picture is focused on the center (un-numbered) vertical line, second one is focused on the line 5 cm behind it.
Since the depth of field at this aperture and distance is only 3 cm, if you focus exactly on your target, it will be entirely outside the lens' depth of field!
The situation at f2 is not much better. The first picture is focused on the center (un-numbered) vertical line, the second one is focused on the line 4 cm behind it. At f2 the DOF is 4 cm, so your subject will still be out of focus.
At f2.8 and up the focus accuracy improves dramatically to the point where you can focus normally using the rangefinder patch. I won't show any samples for that.
I've also done the same tests at 4m and the results are similar. In the pictures below taken at f1.5 and f2 the focus point was the small bolt circled in red. Again you can see it is outside the DOF.
So, what is one to do? You could come up with an index card of distances to back-focus at every aperture and distance and use that for every shot, but that would sap the living joy out of using this otherwise excellent lens. You could avoid shooting below f2.8, which would be an unspeakable waste.
Fortunately I happen to really like the way this lens renders at f2, so I kept thinking there must be a better way, and I believe it is this: I noticed that the amount of back-focus required was approximately such that the double image in the RF patch is superimposed offset by about the same amount as the width of the 50mm frame line.
One way to do this is: focus on your subject then turn the ring slightly toward infinity until the patch defocuses by on frame line. As you get better, or with moving subjects, you can just focus offset directly.
This works quite well at f1.5, for f2 use a little less than one frame line width. Most importantly, this rule of thumb works quite well at both close (1m) and medium (3-5)m distances. I haven't noticed any issues at distances beyond that.
Here are the four shots of the wire fence focused exactly that way, at f1.5 and f2, focused on the bolt in the pictures in red and focused offset by one frameline width without the red circle:
F1.5
F2
....and F2.8 for comparison, focused on bolt:
Really though, the best way to fix this might be to use the Summilux 50mm ASPH, and it may come to that in the future, but for now I like this lens enough to give it a second chance.
In case you were wondering, my M8's previous owner (since new) assured me that the rangefinder was untouched from the factory and the focus was spot-on on his Noctilux, so I have no reason to believe it's an issue with the camera's rangefinder accuracy and not the lens.
Monday, July 18, 2011
A new crossroads to navigate!
I have been an amateur photographer pretty much as long as I've been able to afford it, meaning since I was about 8 or so. Oh how long ago that was, and how far we've come! It started with the cheapest possible russian Smena camera, and of course B&W developed at home. However, the point of this blog is not to bore you to tears, so I'll get to it.
What sparked the creation of this blog was a recent struggle to find the most enjoyable way to take pictures of the things and people that matter to me, and this search has brought me to a crossroads. I am a DSLR user who is somewhat unhappy with the DSLR way of doing things. Why am I unhappy? Mostly the size of the camera required to get a high IQ. It is next to impossible to get a small DSLR with a fast 50mm lens. In my case (Canon fan) I would have to get a full frame body (5D or the like) to be able to use the Canon 50mm f1.4. Those bodies are huge and heavy, meaning they will most likely sit in a drawer all the time. This is pretty much the fate of my present 400D with its ponderous 15-85 zoom.
The next logical step (or so I thought) was to get a small, fast prime. Of course, the Canon 50mm was excluded from he start because it's effectively an 80mm almost-telephoto. The 35mm is a better choice, focal length wise, but have you seen the size of that thing?
The root of the problem is the 400D's 1.6 crop factor, which means I have to use lenses that are not optimized for it, since Canon does not bother to make a 35mm f1.4 EF-S.
After a while, and not having come up with any better ideas, I decided to try a Voigtlander 40mm f2 Ultron, an overall excellent lens. However, another problem came up: since it is manual focus only, and most of the EOS line isn't designed with MF in mind, I end up with quite a few shots that are misfocused, or missed completely because I couldn't focus quickly enough.
Another ideea popped up, and I got myself a Fuji X100. A thoroughly outstanding camera, especially with the updated f/w. Still, the same problem crept up: slow focus. Enough times the camera would run through the focus range, only to stop at some seemingly random position, leaving the lens unfocused. Argggh! MF on the X100 is an exercise in futility as well.
So, what do do? More research was put in and an idea formed. Drumroll please:
Rangefinders! More specifically, the Leica M8!
The road to that conclusion was pretty long and I won't bore you with the details, but the next few posts on this blog will have to do with my experience comparing the 3 or 4 options on the table:
DSLR AF zoom
DSLR MF prime
X100
Leica M8
I've got an M8 coming, as well as 2 new lenses, the Zeiss 28mm Biogon and 50mm C Sonnar. I am particularly curious about comparing the M8/Biogon combo with the X100. At least spec wise they appear similar, 35mm effective FOV, 10 vs 12MP, both highly rated IQ. I will write new posts as I get more time with the Leica so stay tuned for that!
For those curious, I also plan to do some comparisons with the Voigtlander 40mm on the 400D and on my EOS Rebel film camera using Fuji Velvia! That should be interesting!
What sparked the creation of this blog was a recent struggle to find the most enjoyable way to take pictures of the things and people that matter to me, and this search has brought me to a crossroads. I am a DSLR user who is somewhat unhappy with the DSLR way of doing things. Why am I unhappy? Mostly the size of the camera required to get a high IQ. It is next to impossible to get a small DSLR with a fast 50mm lens. In my case (Canon fan) I would have to get a full frame body (5D or the like) to be able to use the Canon 50mm f1.4. Those bodies are huge and heavy, meaning they will most likely sit in a drawer all the time. This is pretty much the fate of my present 400D with its ponderous 15-85 zoom.
The next logical step (or so I thought) was to get a small, fast prime. Of course, the Canon 50mm was excluded from he start because it's effectively an 80mm almost-telephoto. The 35mm is a better choice, focal length wise, but have you seen the size of that thing?
The root of the problem is the 400D's 1.6 crop factor, which means I have to use lenses that are not optimized for it, since Canon does not bother to make a 35mm f1.4 EF-S.
After a while, and not having come up with any better ideas, I decided to try a Voigtlander 40mm f2 Ultron, an overall excellent lens. However, another problem came up: since it is manual focus only, and most of the EOS line isn't designed with MF in mind, I end up with quite a few shots that are misfocused, or missed completely because I couldn't focus quickly enough.
Another ideea popped up, and I got myself a Fuji X100. A thoroughly outstanding camera, especially with the updated f/w. Still, the same problem crept up: slow focus. Enough times the camera would run through the focus range, only to stop at some seemingly random position, leaving the lens unfocused. Argggh! MF on the X100 is an exercise in futility as well.
So, what do do? More research was put in and an idea formed. Drumroll please:
Rangefinders! More specifically, the Leica M8!
The road to that conclusion was pretty long and I won't bore you with the details, but the next few posts on this blog will have to do with my experience comparing the 3 or 4 options on the table:
DSLR AF zoom
DSLR MF prime
X100
Leica M8
I've got an M8 coming, as well as 2 new lenses, the Zeiss 28mm Biogon and 50mm C Sonnar. I am particularly curious about comparing the M8/Biogon combo with the X100. At least spec wise they appear similar, 35mm effective FOV, 10 vs 12MP, both highly rated IQ. I will write new posts as I get more time with the Leica so stay tuned for that!
For those curious, I also plan to do some comparisons with the Voigtlander 40mm on the 400D and on my EOS Rebel film camera using Fuji Velvia! That should be interesting!
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