swartzfeger
New member
Hi gang, long time lurker and I've been looking at Sigma's Foveon for a quite awhile. After debating whether I go Merrill or Quattro, I decided on the DP2Q. I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy one or more additional Sigmas, so I figure I can always buy a Merrill for my next choice.
Having quite a few artists in my family + an artist girlfriend, I enjoy taking shots of paintings with my Nikon D750. One print that I did came out rather well... the rest have been merely satisfactory. Since I just received the Quattro, I decided to go back and reshoot many of these paintings with the DP2Q.
I know that this is by no means even a remotely scientific comparison. I'd need identical lenses, which just isn't possible with the fixed Quattro. I did this simply out of curiosity... what can each camera deliver with my typical approach? All of these examples are unsharpened, virtually unadjusted RAWs (with the exception of minor white balancing). AWB on both cameras, tripod, f/5.6. Nikon lens was 50 f/1.4G.
The first shot is a self-portrait painted by David Anderson (my grandmother's cousin), a prominent painter in Florida from the 1970s through the 90s. Here are thumbnails (Nikon left, Sigma right):
First immediate reaction -- the Sigma nails the color.
Here's the D750 at 200%:
And the DP2Q:
I've got a bunch more examples, but I'll end with this piece by my girlfriend (this time, Sigma on the left, Nikon on the right):
As before, the Sigma nails the color -- much richer, ruddy browns. At 200%, the D750 didn't lag as badly resolution-wise... I'm guessing because the feline piece employed a razor/scratching technique along with fine strokes, vs. the less defined oils of the self portrait. But there were differences at the corners:
I didn't correct for CA, etc, and notice the fringing along the black in the D750 example.
Bottom line -- really not a fair comparison, and not apples to apples, but I **LOVE** my Quattro. It's insanely detailed, and even at 2.8 it's sharp across the board.
I went into my Quattro purchase fully knowing the downsides (charms?). SPP, no viewfinder, slow write times, abysmal battery life. Those actually haven't bothered me as much as I expected, and the file quality speaks for itself. I'm thrilled. What I thought was a touch of hyperbole on behalf of Sigma fans isn't exaggeration at all. I can't get enough of these images. Have experimented many times resizing images and have been simply stunned on how well my files have maintained sharpness and integrity at unbelievable sizes.
I'm completely sold. Will probably hold off on buying a Merrill until I see if Sigma has any 'announcements' at the February trade show in Japan.
LOVE MY QUATTRO!
Having quite a few artists in my family + an artist girlfriend, I enjoy taking shots of paintings with my Nikon D750. One print that I did came out rather well... the rest have been merely satisfactory. Since I just received the Quattro, I decided to go back and reshoot many of these paintings with the DP2Q.
I know that this is by no means even a remotely scientific comparison. I'd need identical lenses, which just isn't possible with the fixed Quattro. I did this simply out of curiosity... what can each camera deliver with my typical approach? All of these examples are unsharpened, virtually unadjusted RAWs (with the exception of minor white balancing). AWB on both cameras, tripod, f/5.6. Nikon lens was 50 f/1.4G.
The first shot is a self-portrait painted by David Anderson (my grandmother's cousin), a prominent painter in Florida from the 1970s through the 90s. Here are thumbnails (Nikon left, Sigma right):
First immediate reaction -- the Sigma nails the color.
Here's the D750 at 200%:
And the DP2Q:
I've got a bunch more examples, but I'll end with this piece by my girlfriend (this time, Sigma on the left, Nikon on the right):
As before, the Sigma nails the color -- much richer, ruddy browns. At 200%, the D750 didn't lag as badly resolution-wise... I'm guessing because the feline piece employed a razor/scratching technique along with fine strokes, vs. the less defined oils of the self portrait. But there were differences at the corners:
I didn't correct for CA, etc, and notice the fringing along the black in the D750 example.
Bottom line -- really not a fair comparison, and not apples to apples, but I **LOVE** my Quattro. It's insanely detailed, and even at 2.8 it's sharp across the board.
I went into my Quattro purchase fully knowing the downsides (charms?). SPP, no viewfinder, slow write times, abysmal battery life. Those actually haven't bothered me as much as I expected, and the file quality speaks for itself. I'm thrilled. What I thought was a touch of hyperbole on behalf of Sigma fans isn't exaggeration at all. I can't get enough of these images. Have experimented many times resizing images and have been simply stunned on how well my files have maintained sharpness and integrity at unbelievable sizes.
I'm completely sold. Will probably hold off on buying a Merrill until I see if Sigma has any 'announcements' at the February trade show in Japan.
LOVE MY QUATTRO!