Stuart Richardson
Active member
I am also a 54LV owner, and while I have not had it very long, I find that it works quite well. I agree that Sinar's mount adapter system is nice to have, but it is not the kind of thing you can really change on location or quickly and easily. It is a fairly delicate operation, given that there is nothing covering the giant, extraordinarily expensive sensor as you fiddle around it with a screwdriver. Again, the adapters for Sinar cameras are not all that expensive (600 or so for the Hy6 one), but for other makes it is inexplicably double. The V mount lists at 1800 USD, but is "on sale" currently at Calumet for a mere 1500. This is for what is essentially a piece of milled aluminum (very precisely milled, I will give them that) with three screw holes in it. For the same price, you could get a Canon 50D with a lens. Anyway, rant over.
I have found the Sinar back to be quite reliable and once you get used to the interface, it is not difficult to operate. It is not entirely intuitive, but once you learn it, it operates well. The internal storage and battery are nice. The screen...well...probably would have been better left off. It is useful for demonstrating the histogram and for the backs interface. Beyond that it does more harm than good. It is comically bad. Best not to look at your shots on it, or you will think you missed the shot, when in fact you have done just fine.
In terms of working with the files, I don't really use Sinar's software for much. I just open it to convert the files to DNG, and then take them to lightroom. Capture One is another option. The Live View aspect allows you a good focus aid, but it works quite poorly in contrasty light (for example, photographing someone next to a window) or in low light. In the contrasty situations, it will blow out entirely and take the rest of the image with it, and in low light it gets very noisy. This is not like the live view you are used to on 35mm cameras. It is most useful in a studio setup where you have a lot of modeling lights and you have a normal contrast range. If you are mainly shooting untethered, this will not be an issue for you.
In the field, I have found the 54LV to be excellent -- it has pretty good battery life, and in the cold weather I have shot in, it did not skip a beat. The files have a great deal of flexibility in processing and great resolution. I will leave the rest to Graham, as he has a lot broader experience with it than I do.
I have found the Sinar back to be quite reliable and once you get used to the interface, it is not difficult to operate. It is not entirely intuitive, but once you learn it, it operates well. The internal storage and battery are nice. The screen...well...probably would have been better left off. It is useful for demonstrating the histogram and for the backs interface. Beyond that it does more harm than good. It is comically bad. Best not to look at your shots on it, or you will think you missed the shot, when in fact you have done just fine.
In terms of working with the files, I don't really use Sinar's software for much. I just open it to convert the files to DNG, and then take them to lightroom. Capture One is another option. The Live View aspect allows you a good focus aid, but it works quite poorly in contrasty light (for example, photographing someone next to a window) or in low light. In the contrasty situations, it will blow out entirely and take the rest of the image with it, and in low light it gets very noisy. This is not like the live view you are used to on 35mm cameras. It is most useful in a studio setup where you have a lot of modeling lights and you have a normal contrast range. If you are mainly shooting untethered, this will not be an issue for you.
In the field, I have found the 54LV to be excellent -- it has pretty good battery life, and in the cold weather I have shot in, it did not skip a beat. The files have a great deal of flexibility in processing and great resolution. I will leave the rest to Graham, as he has a lot broader experience with it than I do.