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Phase One IQ260, IQ280, and Achromatic - 11 Things to Know

dougpeterson

Workshop Member


Phase One IQ260, IQ280, and Achromatic - 11 Things to Know

1. Holy Dynamic Range Batman - Increased to 13 stops
2. Long Exposure has Returned with the Phase One IQ260
3. Achromatic Has Come to the IQ2 Series
4. Wireless Viewing, No Computer Needed
5. Remote Operation of the Camera
6. Remote Review and Color Tagging
7. Wireless Works With Any iOS Device
8. GPS Auto Geotagging
9. Wireless Works to TV
10. Sample Files Will be Available Soon
11. You Can See One In Person Starting in a Week
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
More data


Editor Note:
Each of the three new systems announced today features high-speed wireless connectivity and 13 full f-stops of dynamic range
More product images are available at: Phase One product images
Press Release Follows:


Phase One Announces IQ2 Series Digital Camera Backs Pushes Image Quality Beyond Megapixels

COPENHAGEN, March 4, 2013 — Phase One, the world’s leader in open-platform, medium format camera systems and solutions, today announced the Phase One IQ2 series: three new full-frame 645 format digital camera backs with high-speed wireless connectivity and 13 f-stops of dynamic range, plus new options to meet specific photographic goals. Building on the IQ digital back platform, the first choice of many of the world’s leading photographers, the technical advances in the Phase One IQ280, IQ260 and IQ260 Achromatic go beyond delivering ultra-high megapixel resolution to introduce greater mobility and workflow flexibility for professional photographers.

“Instead of trying to make our wireless connection a replacement for a wired file transfer, as others have done, our solution focuses on helping get the right image capture -- whether that means perfecting composition or focus, or simply easing the challenges of capturing a hard-to-reach image from a remote location,” said Jan H. Christiansen, marketing director, Phase One.

All IQ2 camera backs feature full-frame 645 format sensors designed collaboratively by Phase One and Teledyne Dalsa to deliver the world’s best image quality. In addition, Phase One IQ2 camera backs deliver a full 13 f-stops of dynamic range, which combined with meticulous calibration and careful hardware and software optimization ensures that the image quality is matched by no other camera.

-- The 80 megapixel IQ280 puts Wi-Fi in a new perspective, enabling remote image capture and viewing of huge 80 megapixel images on an iPad running Phase One’s Capture Pilot App. It represents the pinnacle of image quality. With an ISO as low as 35, no other camera or digital back can get better silk-like images.

-- The 60 megapixel IQ260 offers unparalleled capture versatility, with exposure ranges from 1/10000s to one hour with virtually noise-free images. The 60 megapixel sensor at the heart of the IQ260 is a unique 645 format full-frame device found only in this digital back. It offers the widest exposure range opportunities on the market coupled with phenomenal image quality. And both the IQ280 and IQ260 capture raw images at 16-bit color depth per channel, enabling reproduction of scenes with ultra-smooth transitions.

-- The Phase One IQ260 Achromatic is a dedicated image capture device designed to deliver the highest-quality pure black and white images. It fully shares the IQ2 series’ “unplugged” assets. At the core of this system is a 60-megapixel sensor with no color filter array mounted, which means that no interpolation is necessary. Each and every pixel of the sensor is focused purely on capturing the finest details of an image. This digital back comes with no mounted IR cut-off filter, and the IQ260 Achromatic is capable of capturing image in three light spectrums: infrared, visible and ultraviolet -- permitting photographers to experiment with a wide range of their choice of filters to create unique images for artistic and scientific purposes.

Capture Made Easy
All IQ2 backs include built-in accelerometers, whose input helps align images perfectly at the moment of capture. An intuitive virtual horizon offers a precise visual indication of an image’s roll and pitch; that data is automatically stored with the images and can be automatically corrected in Capture One software after import.

Rugged Build
IQ2 digital backs combine functional design with rugged build quality. Built of 100 percent aircraft grade aluminum, all electronic connectors and ports are protected with automatic retracting hatches or rubber covers to ensure that they work continuously even in the toughest shooting environments.

Capture One 7 Software
Capture One 7 is built on the world's best raw processing engine and is included with all IQ2 backs, providing highly responsive precision tools to capture, organize, view, edit, share and print images for an efficient workflow and superior image quality results.

Availability and Pricing
The Phase One IQ2 series camera backs are expected to be available in June 2013; they may be ordered now through Phase One professional photography partners worldwide: Phase One partner locator For a complete list of all the new Phase One IQ digital back features, including supported camera bodies, please see IQ2 series digital backs

Prices start at 29990 EUR / 39990 USD. Attractive upgrade offers are available for all existing Phase One photographers. For a demo of these new products, please sign up here: Test drive a Phase One camera system - sign up today

About Phase One
Phase One is the world’s leader in open-platform, high-end camera systems and solutions. Phase One cameras, digital backs and lenses are designed to deliver superior quality image capture and investment value. Phase One’s Capture One and Media Pro software help streamline capture and post-production processes for both medium format and DSLR cameras. Phase One products are known for their quality, flexibility and speed enabling pro photographers shooting in a wide range of formats to achieve their creative visions without compromise.

Phase One is an employee-owned company based in Copenhagen with offices in New York, London, Tokyo, Cologne, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, and Tel Aviv.

Phase One and Capture One are registered trademarks of Phase One A/S. All other brand or product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

For more information, please visit Phase One at http://www.phaseone.com; or you can contact the team directly on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/PhaseOneWW and on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Phase...---------------------------------------------
 

gazwas

Active member
Doug, on the IQ260 what is the trade off in the long exposure mode - DR, noise, resolution?

The base ISO goes to 160 so is this some sort of sensor+, resolution reduction mode?

The IQ260 sounds like the ideal digital back and have no idea why anyone would want the IQ280 unless of some catch we have yet to discover.
 

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
Doug, on the IQ260 what is the trade off in the long exposure mode - DR, noise, resolution?

The base ISO goes to 140 so is this some sort of sensor+, resolution reduction mode?

The IQ260 sounds like the ideal digital back and have no idea why anyone would want the IQ280 unless of some catch we have yet to discover.
Base ISO increases to 140 (I did make a typo on the other forum for a moment and misstated that base ISO at 160). No change in resolution. You get a 60mp clean long exposure.

There will be a slight reduction in dynamic range, but I think from the samples I've seen it's fair to characterize that reduction as going from crazy-high to very-high. This is due to the way long exposure has been implemented at the sensor/pixel-layout level.

This is not a IQ160 sensor with long exposure "tacked on" - it is a new sensor design built from the ground up to have this long-exposure mode. Considerable development and science was involved.

I'll be posting a technical article on the how-they-did-it of long exposure once I can complete my technical interviews with the R+D team and I've received/taken some raw files. Might be a few days; I have a feeling anyone I reach today in R+D may be a bit inebriated :).
 

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
Can the Acromatic do the same long exposures as the 260?
No. Only the Phase One IQ260 has the long exposure mode.

Though notably without any CFA filter or IR-cut filter you do get a significantly higher effective base ISO (the marked ISO sensitivities remain the same as the color model, but you'll get more exposure out of them depending on what lens filters you use - if any).
 
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Stefan Steib

Active member
So finally a replacement for the P45+. That was overdue.

One crazy idea: does the Capture one Software allow the usage of Filter wheels ? I still have one from my Leaf DCB II Live that would probably make a nice couple with the 260 Achromatic.........:)

Regards
Stefan
 

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
One crazy idea: does the Capture one Software allow the usage of Filter wheels ? I still have one from my Leaf DCB II Live that would probably make a nice couple with the 260 Achromatic.........:)
It would make a nice couple with it. But you'd have to hand crank it, and use photoshop to composite them.
 

MGrayson

Subscriber and Workshop Member
I'm reasonably certain I didn't get an IQ140 just for the upgrade to the next 60MP back. Reasonably....

So when do we see how the SK 35 XL works with the IQ260? Is it too early to start a thread? I always loved the SK 43 XL on the IQ160 anyway...

;)

Matt
 

Dave Gallagher

Active member
Guys,

I just landed at 5:45AM from Dubai and was in the office an hour and a half later so, needless to say, I am a little fuzzy. Here is a little of the inside info from our meetings there in Dubai that you can't get from the specs.

Yes, they would have loved to have have have an 80mp sensor that excelled at an hour exposures. Unfortunately, the signal to noise ratio in the smaller pixel wells was working against them.

It is early today and even Phase One has their own tech info online that is not consistent. I strongly believe that the Achromatic has the same long exposure capabilities as the IQ260. We were led to believe this in Dubai, and the downloadable tech sheets also state this. We will get that sorted out today.

I have many clients that have been waiting for these long exposures that have never moved up from P45+. This is the back they those individuals have been waiting for. And as long as you have an iPhone that is wirelessly connected to your back while you are shooting, then the GPS metadata will be stored in your files. This is the second feature that many have been waiting for that I am excited to have available.

Please know that there are upgrades and crossgrades available for both these units. Pricing for the new units is on our website but simply, the new backs come in at the same price as their predecessors. This means that there have been price drops on the current backs as well, but they are not consistent across the board. Talk to your Phase One dealer to discuss these possibilities.

Dave Gallagher (e-mail Me)
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President, Capture Integration
Phase One Partner of the Year
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National: 877.217.9870 | Cell: 404.522.7662
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dougpeterson

Workshop Member
It is early today and even Phase One has their own tech info online that is not consistent. I strongly believe that the Achromatic has the same long exposure capabilities as the IQ260. We were led to believe this in Dubai, and the downloadable tech sheets also state this. We will get that sorted out today.
Don't you love launch day confusions?

I'm pretty sure the Achromatic lacks the "Long Exposure Mode" of the IQ260 and is limited to 2 min. The downloadable datasheets and online datasheets do not agree... I guess we both go double check and report back :).

Edit: I've received confirmation that the Achromatic will be limited to 2 minutes. The downloadable datasheet was in error and has now been corrected. For those looking for long exposure in an IQ chassis the Phase One IQ260 is the only game in town.
 
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dougpeterson

Workshop Member
I'm reasonably certain I didn't get an IQ140 just for the upgrade to the next 60MP back. Reasonably....

So when do we see how the SK 35 XL works with the IQ260? Is it too early to start a thread? I always loved the SK 43 XL on the IQ160 anyway...
IQ260 will behave essentially identically to an IQ160 regarding color cast, usable movements for any given lens, etc.

In other words it will make a lovely mate to the 43XL.
 
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