It's been an interesting few days.
Let's do them by interestingness to us as photojournalists.
First up: Panasonic GH1 (pic from DPReview). It's what the E-P1 should have been (Fuzzbucket and I fought over who didn't have to do that review) - and even has an optional external EVF that sits in the hotshoe. That lens looks pretty good, too. Needless to say - same sensor as all the other Micro Four Thirds cameras at the moment, and while you can use M lenses on it, it's simply not practical.
Canon 7D (pic from DPReview). It's APS-C on steroids: a shot aimed squarely at the Nikon D300s. Pixel count jumps to 18 (I think too many, especially on a 1.5x sensor, but we'll see...), and it does 8fps without the grip. Interesting note: every button is customizeable. If it delivers what it promises, maybe it's the first sounds of death for the huge pro DSLR brick. The 100/2.8 IS L macro announced with it is pretty interesting too - wonder how it stacks up against the excellent Nikon 105/2.8 VR.
Getting warmer: Leica X1 (picture from Engadget). 12MP, APS-C, fixed lens (!) - a 35/2.8 equivalent - with autofocus. A Lecia RF with autofocus? Get out of here...no, seriously. To me this seems like a warmed over Panasonic GF1, but with a different sensor. Lack of a viewfinder is a turn-off, though. But still - it signals good things ahead. Gooood things. One can only wonder where the Nikon and Canon APS-C compacts are.
And finally, the one that's made all of our panties wet - especially Fuzzbucket. The M9, of course. Given that all Ms look the same anyway, it's not surprising that there aren't many differences: but note the step on the left hand side where the little porthole LCD used to be, and the Leica video teaser last week showed us a) a dedicated ISO button, b) reshuffled menu options, c) a mode dial with 1/4000s top speed, 1/150 sync, but no S idiot position. It also looks like the M8.2 finish, but with a red dot and no 8.2 inscription on the hotshoe.
Specs: 18MP, full frame. It can't be a Canon sensor, because one like that doesn't exist - thank god. More likely to be half a Kodak 35MP 645 sensor - which is a good thing. Supposedly available next week at a price so great you'll have to mortgage some organs...
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The GF1 as a PJ camera? Hmmmmm dunno.
ReplyDeleteLets see how PJ's/street togs traditionally use their cameras: Wide lens (around the 28mm-35mm), high ISO film usually around 400 to give you aperture options, stop down between f/5.6-f/11 to get a large depth of field, prefocus at hyperfocal or a certain zone, and then forget about the camera. Concentrate on composition and timing, make great photos. If you need to change focus, this is the beauty of a rangefinder: you can do it by feel without taking your eye off the VF, after a while you just know what distance the focusing tab corresponds to.
Can you do any of that with the Olympus ep-1? No. I had one for a month from Olympus Australia as part of a test-drive/competition and the camera has no distance scale anywhere, neither on the lens nor the lcd. Can I sort of fake it by setting the focusing ring to infinity and then twisting it back some? No, because that ring has no infinity stop, it just spins perpetually, this is how its designed (Olympus' focus-by-wire system). So, can I prefocuse this camera relatively accurately and intuitively? No. How about I attach a nice Voigt LTM UWA to get the focal length that I want and a distance scale? Yes, but how usable is a wide-to-normal lens with a mximum aperture of f/4.5? Why bother?
Is it the same deal with the GF1? No idea, because the million pages of reviews of the ep-1 and GF1 do not cover any of these minor details, because nobody cares. People want megapixels, 3" lcd's, video, FOXTEL, pac-man and a camera that looks good when you take photos OF the camera (what I call the rangefinderforum syndrom). Occasionally they go out to make nice bokeh shots of the pigeons and flowers in their neighbourhood with their their f1 lens and that's about it. Who cares about PJs? They can carry a DSLR and 10 kilos of lenses, thats what they're paid for.
The X1: lack of VF is a problem. Not sure if an OVF is an option, because the LCD will illuminate your squashed nose and nostril hair and will slowly burn your retina. Unless of course Leica remembers to put a sensor on the camera to switch off the lcd when you bring it to your face but I wouldnt bet too much on it.
The D7... whatever. There's too many DSLRs out there already.
Best :)
Spyro
Totally agree on the first part. Personally, I shoot slightly differently - wide open all the time, rely on DOF scales to prefocus, then do final tweak with the camera to my eye for critical focusing. Most of the time I know where I am by feeling the tab, or turning the ring all the way to the infinity end after each shot. You can't do that with any of the M4/3 cameras because the focusing rings are electronic! And AF is useless too, because it's glacially slow.
ReplyDeleteThere's no point in using M/LTM glass on M4/3: to get a 50/1.4 you have to buy the 24/1.4 Summilux M ASPH and throw away 3/4 of your frame, which seems like a stupid idea. And then you won't be able to critically focus it. FAIL.
GF1 supposedly has the same guts as the G1, which was crap. I'm not impressed by ANY of these small sensor mirrorless compacts - they're glorified point and shoots but totally unpocketable. And the X1 isn't any better: where the hell is the viewfinder? LCDs are hopeless for critical timing because of prefocus lag.
Bring on the M9, I say. Or better yet, half price M8.2s.
Also, by using the 24/1.4 monstrous lens, the ep-1/GF1 loses its only advantage compared to proper RF/DSLR which is size & weight. Its simply not built with that lens in mind... And paying $5k so I can throw 3 quarters of the image away?** Forget it!
ReplyDeleteMy man, we understand each other you and I :)
Cheers
Spyro
** a 4:3/m4:3 sensor is actually 1/4 of the area of a full 35mm sensor.
Agreed - which is why M4/3 is only good if the lenses are good. That upcoming Leica M4/3 macro 45/2.8 looks pretty darn good, actually. Ditto with the Lumix pancake with the GF1.
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