Leica S2 Studio Shoot - Nov 20th

[Bob]

I'm quoting Peter there Bob see post above Steve's . My radar went up too. LOL

Oh, sorry, it didn't look like a quote.
-bob

Good radar bud. I agree this really needs to be proven with the S2 , we don't need a history lesson.

 

[ptomsu]

Only vendor I would somehow trust is Leica with their S System, as they obviously have a much tighter control mechanism in place.

But that was not so much there history though Peter let's remember the M8. Now we are somewhat guessing here as well. Who really knows how good or bad Phase/Mamiya or the Hassy factories are and there control mechanisms.

Guy,

agree, while I still believe Leica would have one of the best control processes in place, I of course cannot proof this by any means - just based on what they claim ....

And yes, I had severe issues with all my M glass on the M8, which had all to go to Solms not only for coding, but unfortunately for fine adjustment of focus. And to make it even worse, it was similar for many of my R glass I used on the DMR.

So there is only hope that the new designed S glass has a better control process in place.

Looking forward to your tests ...

 

[carstenw]

Guy,
What is this based on?
My experience is that Leica has one of the least controlled manufacturing environments.
-bob

Well... Leica uses finer tolerances than companies like Canon, and this combined with their aspherical technology gives them the ability to produce the kinds of products they do. Their QC is quite extensive, but problems are not unknown, so perhaps it is more fair to say that the gap between planned tolerances and QC is too large.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Just a FRIENDLY reminder on these Leica S2 forums as of late that folks need to beware of the GetDPI Mantra. Let's keep it friendly folks. I'm not particular happy with what I have been seeing as of late. I know some members are not being involved on purpose and that is not the GetDPI way.

"A place to exchange ideas, techniques, experiences AND images,
where the discussions are fun, respectful and geared toward the goal of
helping each other improve all aspects of our photography."

 

[PeterA]

Peter:

....

That said, I have to mention that I have also tested HC 80mm and 35mm against P1 D 80mm and 28mm ...

Not meaning to imply anything definitive, but in those tests, I also found that the Phase One lenses were sharper after stopping down. So in at least 2 different testing sessions, we found sharper results stopped down when comparing Phase One D lenses to HC. It led me to the thought that the HC lenses are more optimized for larger apertures, while the P1 D lenses more optimized for smaller apertures. This could very well be the case, as anyone who read the excellent Hasselblad HC vs V lens article in the Hasselblad Victor magazine also read about conscious design decisions with regard to optimization of lenses.
......


Steve Hendrix

Steve do you think that the Phamiya superiority to HC glass will be continued in the new central leaf shuttered glass coming from Phamiya? If so may be worth a switch out of Hasselblad into Phase One...

I would have stayed with Phase One as a technical back - if I dint have to fuss with wake up cables - what is it with that anyway? Hasselblad and Sinar and Leaf dont have that issue? Do you think Phase can get that sorted ?

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Peter the P40+ and P65+ do not need wakeup cables anymore. On a tech camera such as your Alpa that cord is no longer needed. Just lens cable release if wanted of course. This makes these backs a much more desirable tech camera back.

As far as glass the LS lenses are made at Schneider which has a long history of building nice glass. Not sure of these in particular since I have not shot them yet but I would expect good performance.

Obviously the new LS lenses coming does open the door wider on the Phase kits since it does bring a bigger range of shutter speeds to the party now and choice between leaf and non leaf glass. The Hassy glass i believe is still limited to the 1/800 shutter speed. That is if any of this means anything to the shooter in some cases it will not.

I believe the chart now on sync speeds is

Hassy 1/800 Leaf shutter only
Leica S2 1/500 Leaf shutter / Focal shutter 1/125th
Phase LS lenses all backs 1/800 but the P40+ and P65 will go to 1/1600 / Focal shutter 1/125th
Sinar I think is 1/1000 leaf shutter ,need confirm on that
Leaf backs same on Mamiya bodies but not sure of 1/6000 with any Leaf back. Yair can confirm yes or no on that

I am pretty sure that is how it stands today

 

[markowich]

guy,
i have used the P65 without wake-up on the alpa but then it empties the batteries sooo fast that i have returned to shooting with wake up.
peter

Peter the P40+ and P65+ do not need wakeup cables anymore. On a tech camera such as your Alpa that cord is no longer needed. Just lens cable release if wanted of course. This makes these backs a much more desirable tech camera back.

As far as glass the LS lenses are made at Schneider which has a long history of building nice glass. Not sure of these in particular since I have not shot them yet but I would expect good performance.

Obviously the new LS lenses coming does open the door wider on the Phase kits since it does bring a bigger range of shutter speeds to the party now and choice between leaf and non leaf glass. The Hassy glass i believe is still limited to the 1/800 shutter speed. That is if any of this means anything to the shooter in some cases it will not.

I believe the chart now on sync speeds is

Hassy 1/800 Leaf shutter only
Leica S2 1/500 Leaf shutter / Focal shutter 1/125th
Phase LS lenses all backs 1/800 but the P40+ and P65 will go to 1/1600 / Focal shutter 1/125th
Sinar I think is 1/1000 leaf shutter ,need confirm on that
Leaf backs same on Mamiya bodies but not sure of 1/6000 with any Leaf back. Yair can confirm yes or no on that

I am pretty sure that is how it stands today

 

[Guy Mancuso]

I did not know that Peter . Never used it myself on a tech just knew it could work from the workshops. Good info

 

[vieri]

Peter the P40+ and P65+ do not need wakeup cables anymore. ...

guy,
i have used the P65 without wake-up on the alpa but then it empties the batteries sooo fast that i have returned to shooting with wake up.
peter

Talk about being really happy and back to the ground in less than 5 seconds, the time needed to read Peter's post after Guy's! :ROTFL:

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Well nice to have the option the wake up cable is a pain but extra batteries sounds like a good idea as well. Depending on the shoot you can make a good choice. Buy cable leave in bag when needed for the all dayers.

 

[vieri]

Well nice to have the option the wake up cable is a pain but extra batteries sounds like a good idea as well. Depending on the shoot you can make a good choice. Buy cable leave in bag when needed for the all dayers.

As always, the more options the better. Actually, after having done some tests a couple of weeks ago with the Silvestri & the wake up cable, I found that it takes a very short time to get used to the routine of the double-push (one to wake up, one to trigger the back). The only thing is, being fast enough and take the pic before your back is going back to sleep... it happened a few times at first :ROTFL: thankfully, subjects for these kind of setups aren't going anywhere very quick!

 

[stephengilbert]

Doesn't the Kapture Group One Shot cable work with these backs? One smooth push on the cable release wakes the back and fires the shutter. No worries about missing the wake time window.

I use one on my P25+ and can't imagine going back to the double press.

 

[PeterA]

Thanks for the info Guy and Peter -much appreciated.

Guy the Rollie mount glass from Schneider or Zeiss is PQ or PQS the later giving you sync @ 1/1000th the PQ (only) 1/500th.

Looking forward to seeing the Schneider formulations for the Phamiya - as the Schneiders I use on the Hy6 give a very nice old world lens draw sharp: at focal point and lovely smooth roll off into out of focus.

I must be getting old now - as I prefer using old school manual focus lenses from Zeiss ( picked up a bunch from Marc recently and Schneider ) ...IMHO the HC lenses are outstanding studio glass - and thats what they have been optimised for.

As usual - horses for courses.

 

[Guy Mancuso]

Well Schneider does have a long history of making very nice glass, your fondness of shooting them is no surprise. i also like when i see David K shots besides the bikini's i do like the look of the glass. I know eventually I will get all 3 LS lenses at some point, want the P40+ back first . Some really nice deals going on right now for it too and the 65 . Something you may want to look into for your Alpa. Any way thanks for the info on the sync speeds .Hard to keep track of all the systems out there.

Actually can't sleep trying to figure out how to get money to buy one. That's how good the deals are.

 

[Jack]

Doesn't the Kapture Group One Shot cable work with these backs? One smooth push on the cable release wakes the back and fires the shutter. No worries about missing the wake time window.

I use one on my P25+ and can't imagine going back to the double press.

I clarified this yesterday, and the wake-up cables remain the preferred choice, though are not necessary. The issue is two-fold: First since the back is on all the time without the wake-up cable, it eats batteries. Second, if it's on for more than a minute before the capture, the sensor heats up and generates detrimental noise. So bottom line, is for one or two casual shots with the camera turned off between, no issue. But for regular use on a dedicated tech camera, the KG cables -- one-shot or button -- are still recommended.

 

[vieri]

I clarified this yesterday, and the wake-up cables remain the preferred choice, though are not necessary. The issue is two-fold: First since the back is on all the time without the wake-up cable, it eats batteries. Second, if it's on for more than a minute before the capture, the sensor heats up and generates detrimental noise. So bottom line, is for one or two casual shots with the camera turned off between, no issue. But for regular use on a dedicated tech camera, the KG cables are still recommended.

Thank you very much Jack for the info. To avoid the heating & noise problem it makes a lot of sense to use the double cable, plus if you are on the field battery is too precious a commodity (and these backs do use up a lot of juice!) to let it deplete just to save one clicking finger movement... so, double click cable stays in the bag even when (and if) I will upgrade to the P65+!