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S Is For Show Us Your S2 Shots
- Thread starter KurtKamka
- Start date
Very nice photos and interesting (and for me relevant) write-up.
Did you also consider using the Zeiss Apo-Tessar 350/4 (for Contax 645) on the Leica S - Contax 645 adapter (introduced last year)? That combo would have preserved autofocus and automatic aperture control and the 350/4 is a superb lens in my recollection (used it for a short while on the C645 with a Sinar Evo 75 back). It is a very heavy lens though, does not travel well at all (almost 4 kg).
I am going to Uganda in July, taking the 180 as my longest FL for the S2 and will crop if needed. Last time I went I had the 120 as my longest lens and ok, it was short, but I still got a lot of good shots by cropping and I avoided most of the stabilisation problems that you describe in your write-up. Or I just shot the animals that were closer and enjoyed watching the more distant ones through my binos. Alternatively, I tried to take "landscape shots with animals in them" which was often more satisfying, as I avoided the "encyclopaedia" detailed shots of individual animals, which became boring after a while. Coincidentally, I use exactly the same tripod that you have for the S2; so far have found it stable enough, but haven't tried the longer FLs on it. Taking it with me, we'll see if it can cope (I also use the more stable wooden Berlebach Report tripod but it is a full kg heavier, so likely to stay at home, as our trip will include a 5-6-day trek in the mountains).
Did you also consider using the Zeiss Apo-Tessar 350/4 (for Contax 645) on the Leica S - Contax 645 adapter (introduced last year)? That combo would have preserved autofocus and automatic aperture control and the 350/4 is a superb lens in my recollection (used it for a short while on the C645 with a Sinar Evo 75 back). It is a very heavy lens though, does not travel well at all (almost 4 kg).
I am going to Uganda in July, taking the 180 as my longest FL for the S2 and will crop if needed. Last time I went I had the 120 as my longest lens and ok, it was short, but I still got a lot of good shots by cropping and I avoided most of the stabilisation problems that you describe in your write-up. Or I just shot the animals that were closer and enjoyed watching the more distant ones through my binos. Alternatively, I tried to take "landscape shots with animals in them" which was often more satisfying, as I avoided the "encyclopaedia" detailed shots of individual animals, which became boring after a while. Coincidentally, I use exactly the same tripod that you have for the S2; so far have found it stable enough, but haven't tried the longer FLs on it. Taking it with me, we'll see if it can cope (I also use the more stable wooden Berlebach Report tripod but it is a full kg heavier, so likely to stay at home, as our trip will include a 5-6-day trek in the mountains).
Hi Peter,
exceptional images. Sometimes I wonder if the big sized and expensive and slow (compared to smaller sensor systems) S system makes really sense for me ... and then I look at images and tell myself that there is quite a difference in the look and quality of images.
Very realistic and 3d - great images you took and worth the effort IMO.
Petster
Member
Thanks. I thought about the Zeiss in the first place but it is much harder to get and more expensive. As this was a test I wanted to keep an eye on the investment.
But the main problem is still the same, to keep the combo sturdy, whether you have AF or not.I guess your approach makes sense, especially as you are afaik not allowed to take a monopod to the Gorillas, right?
Correct, not allowed to take a monopod to the gorillas; they might think it's a spear. The 120 actually worked quite well there; the 180 may have been even better in terms of magnification, but of course a bit more difficult to handhold in the dark forest. We are still deciding between doing a Ruwenzori trek + gorillas in July (I've seen the gorillas but my travel companions have not) or a Mt. Elgon trek + Kidepo Valley. The latter would be a steppe, similar to what you shot in Namibia. I guess one option is to take a smaller mirror less camera as a back-up plus a longer lens, to supplement the S2.
Some black & whites that will look very black & very white after all those beautiful colors
Shot with 24mm Super-Elmar, just an A-ma-zing lens,
By the way, I'm still surprised by how easily the S2 can handle high contrast scenes.
No HDR in the photos here above and still deep blacks and highlights in the sky are in range.
My Sony A7r is more in trouble in such conditions !
Shot with 24mm Super-Elmar, just an A-ma-zing lens,
By the way, I'm still surprised by how easily the S2 can handle high contrast scenes.
No HDR in the photos here above and still deep blacks and highlights in the sky are in range.
My Sony A7r is more in trouble in such conditions !
jlindstrom
Member
Petster: outstanding photos, truly outstanding! The colors are beyond belief.
//Juha
//Juha
Peterv,
Here you can download a raw file of the 24mm @ f5,6.
A boring shot but my usual wide angle test scene.
The 24 Super-Elmar is amazing, better to my eyes than a Schneider Digitar 35mm on a Cambo with a Phase One P40+ back for instance (on sharpness & color homogeneity).
https://www.transferbigfiles.com/749b8844-1927-4072-8670-38647ed0fe56/uUIFwBEoQpQyC0pDGqqevA2
Here you can download a raw file of the 24mm @ f5,6.
A boring shot but my usual wide angle test scene.
The 24 Super-Elmar is amazing, better to my eyes than a Schneider Digitar 35mm on a Cambo with a Phase One P40+ back for instance (on sharpness & color homogeneity).
https://www.transferbigfiles.com/749b8844-1927-4072-8670-38647ed0fe56/uUIFwBEoQpQyC0pDGqqevA2
Spectacular images Bob!Went to the Vintage Flying Museum in FW this morning and brought back a few pictures....all ISO 800 on a monopod...very low light in the hanger.
Leica S Typ 006 70 2.5 CS
Thanks,
Bob
My late father was a B-29 tail gunner in the Pacific theater toward the end of WWII. So, these images are quite meaningful to me.
Being a gunner in a B-29 was a bit safer than previous bombers due to some automation and better accommodations for the gunner … and it could also fly higher than others could.
Probably the most well known B-29 Superfortress was the Enola Gay. The B-29 was said to be the "war ender" because it was the only US bomber capable of carrying the A Bomb.
Due to movies and such, many people, (including me) think the Enola Gay flew that mission alone, but there were actually three B-29s … one of them prophetically named … "Necessary Evil."
Another gruesome factoid of history is that Nagasaki wasn't the primary target of the second nuclear strike, Kokura was. The B-29 "Bockscar" made three passes at Kokura but it was far too obscured by smoke from fires from the bombing of Yawata by 221 B-29s the day before, so they diverted to the secondary target.
Just history folks, nothing else meant or implied.
- Marc
Those guys came back with a much different view of life and the world than is prevalent today...our world would be much changed had they not sacrificed as they did.
This plane is going on tour in May to the West Coast...
Should you want the RAW files for these let me know.
Regards,
Bob
If you have not read this book it is very enlightening...
The Special Prisoner: Jim Lehrer: 9781586480424: Amazon.com: Books
Debts that we owe and are still struggling to repay ... life sacrifice and honor are not words that resonate with most in this Post-Modern world.
It was a good morning...and I was encouraged to see all the men who were maintaining the planes in their spare time.
Bob
The Special Prisoner: Jim Lehrer: 9781586480424: Amazon.com: Books
Debts that we owe and are still struggling to repay ... life sacrifice and honor are not words that resonate with most in this Post-Modern world.
It was a good morning...and I was encouraged to see all the men who were maintaining the planes in their spare time.
Bob
Yeah, he never talked much about it.
As a kid, I recall rummaging through a big chest in the attic, and found a couple of Bomber caps; one tan and one black, which I assume were for daylight and nighttime. That is when I was told by my Uncle that Dad was a tail gunner in a B-29.
Down in the bottom of the chest was a Purple Heart medal. He never said a thing.
After the War he became a Detroit Firefighter, provided for six kids, and was a fireman until he retired due to on the job injuries.
Some acts are hard to follow.
- Marc
Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers makes the case for the ultimate success of an individual being dependent upon our families' culture sacrifice and history...their sacrifices underpin our subconscious worldview and our ability to adapt to the social/moral constructs and financial/work stresses that we must endure and overcome.
Their acts and wisdom find fulfillment in our lives and that of our progeny and their environment. No better way to honor our family and culture than to incorporate the lessons they taught us into our own wisdom that can be passed on.
Invariably the stresses in history have had a profound effect in forming character and refining our moral behavior...when our culture allows and supports this it prospers. Recent attempts to deny any cognitive relationship to the past in our culture will be very detrimental in the future.
My father was on Saipan ... my step-father was on a Sub-tender in the Atlantic...Hawaii after Pearl Harbor...leapfrogged across the Pacific and ended up in Japan in the postwar occupation forces. Neither said much of anything about it...
But the lessons we learned from them are the foundation of our drive industry and success.
You are correct ... very hard acts to follow.
Regards,
Bob