The Foveon Club: Life Unfiltered

bvg · 11-16-2013, 10:12 AM

Another "macro"
SD1M+Sigma 17-50/2.8

:/
by vld_bzh, on Flickr

Australia - country of spiders!

scratchpaddy · 11-16-2013, 03:11 PM

Originally posted by pinholecam

I think I find that the files don't respond to well to HDR (Nik HDR efex).
Too 'gritty' after running thru it for my taste.

That's the word that always comes to mind when I try to pull the shadows too hard. I've gone back to shooting ISO 100 whenever possible, since that extra stop of clean (well, sort of clean) shadows is really valuable. I underestimated the highlight headroom before. It's really not that bad. I was just spoiled by the K-5.

I'm assuming you're talking about pseudo-HDR, like with a single exposure? Real HDR is a great way to side-step the issue of noisy shadows, but I've only ever bothered to do that once. It's a 3-shot (+1 0 -1) exposure bracket on Shaw Butte, in North Mountain Park in Phoenix. 6:30 AM, after driving and hiking there.

@barondla , great capture of those falls! You picture doesn't seem to suffer from the challenging lighting conditions.

@ivorie , good use of your resources!

I like the little starbursts the DP2 makes when stopped down. What's with all the gingerbread men? It's not even Thanksgiving yet!

@bvg, that's just the exoskeleton, right? I wouldn't want a live one of those on my sweater!

ivoire · 11-16-2013, 03:22 PM

bvg hope you don't have a lot of those

scratchpaddy very nice sunrise... i'm starting to think you live in the woods! as for the ginger people, the town does some kind of theme every year (money drives their early appearance). last year it was snow people as seen here:

Village People - a set on Flickr

scratchpaddy · 11-16-2013, 03:24 PM

I mentioned selecting color channels in SPP for black and white before. Well, I hit a little speed bump.

I wanted to use only the red channel in some pictures to make the sky darker. Well, this is the structure of the Foveon sensor (courtesy of Wikimedia):

The red channel is way down on the bottom of the silicon wafer. It's a little dark down there, so it winds up being quite a bit noisier than the blue channel. I still like the effect of just using the red, but you have to live with more noise.

This one's with the SD1M at ISO 100, but I had to pull the shadows pretty hard. I used fill +.6 in SPP here, and set the color balance to 100% red.

(See ivoire, I do see the city once in a while.

)

On the other hand, you can eliminate a lot of the noise in B&W photos by only using the blue channel.

**barondla** · 11-16-2013, 05:46 PM

ivoire, cool shots of the g men. You have a knack for city street shots and hand held shootng. I need to work more on that as my Sigma is usually glued to a tripod. Think medium format.

bvg, the spider is kinda scarry. With a DP1Merrill you had to be close. Did you use any kind of closeup filter?

scratchpaddy, interesting info on Foveon sensor architecture. Our blue layer is the quietest- just the opposite of Bayer cameras. Very interesting. Like the view of your building picture.
thanks
barondla

Didn't get a chance to upload files to the website. Sorry. Will try Monday.

ivoire · 11-17-2013, 07:29 AM

scratchpaddy.....The image looks like BnW from the film era and the noise just adds to the effect. I noticed a blog recently where the guy uses a dark red filter to shoot BnW with the DP2M.

barondla.....I got the sigma as a 'wander around' camera so making use of what is in the environment came naturally. Once in a while i remember to bring the gorilla pod in a backpack

bvg · 11-19-2013, 01:21 AM

Originally posted by scratchpaddy

@bvg, that's just the exoskeleton, right? I wouldn't want a live one of those on my sweater!

no it was alive. It has a bit special appearance even among local spiders. Internet says it is considered as harmless for humans. Usually is hides in ambush at white or yellow flowers. Probably it had mixed my t-shirt with flower

.

Originally posted by barondla

bvg, the spider is kinda scarry. With a DP1Merrill you had to be close. Did you use any kind of closeup filter?

I used just my SD1M and lense @50 mm at minimal distance and 100% crop.

ivoire · 11-19-2013, 07:23 AM

Thought I'd try the red vs blue channels in SPP. Very diff effect

[IMG]

[/IMG]

[IMG]

[/IMG]

hoopsontoast · 11-19-2013, 10:55 AM

Another out this evening in the same location:

ivoire · 11-19-2013, 07:32 PM - **1 Like**

Hunted down and shot a bunch of G Men today. Managed to find 18 of the 25 (but won't show them all).

[IMG]

[/IMG]

[IMG]

[/IMG]

and a few oddities

[IMG]

[/IMG]

[IMG]

[/IMG]

bvg · 11-22-2013, 10:16 AM

If somebody didn't know that resource

Sigma Rumors, News & Reviews

hoopsontoast · 11-23-2013, 10:25 AM - **2 Likes**

NickLarsson · 11-23-2013, 10:33 AM

Hi guys, I'm looking for a high-IQ compact camera to complement my Ricoh GR for portraits and landscapes shots when traveling.

So the DP2M with its longer focal length and recent price drop caught my attention.

I already have the K-01 + 40XS which could play that role but I find it a bit heavy sometimes and I was wondering how much I could gain in resolution with the foveon sensor, especially for landscape work.
So how would you compare both cameras IQ-wise ? Is the difference THAT big ?

Also, have some of you tried Irident Developer to work with Sigma RAW files ?

Thanks!

pinholecam · 11-23-2013, 05:12 PM

Originally posted by NickLarsson

Hi guys, I'm looking for a high-IQ compact camera to complement my Ricoh GR for portraits and landscapes shots when traveling.

So the DP2M with its longer focal length and recent price drop caught my attention.

I already have the K-01 + 40XS which could play that role but I find it a bit heavy sometimes and I was wondering how much I could gain in resolution with the foveon sensor, especially for landscape work.
So how would you compare both cameras IQ-wise ? Is the difference THAT big ?

Also, have some of you tried Irident Developer to work with Sigma RAW files ?

Thanks!

There are some full sized samples in this thread for reference.

The DPxm cameras are not fast and ISO is best kept at 100-200, so you need to consider these factors. (there are other quirks, as mentioned in this thread)
IQ is incredible.
I need a 2 or 3 shot pano, resized back to 16mp and properly sharpened to come to the same 'look' in sharpness.
Sigma claims the X3 foveon is close to a 40+ mp sensor, and even if the claim is too high, its certainly close to 30+mp.

Between K01 and DP2m, its hard to make a choice, since weight is close enough imo and the K01 is faster and more versatile.
You'd only gain the IQ ffor landscapes and I'm not sure you'd need the 'too high IQ' for portraits.

**barondla** · 11-23-2013, 05:30 PM

I have the K-01(yellow) with 40XS and Sigma DP1Merrill. Difference in resolution? Not even on the same planet. The Sigma beats ANY aps-c camera by a wide margin. The Sigma even gives FF headaches. I can beat the D600 pretty easily ( friend hates when that happens). Many say only medium format beats the Foveon.

Scrathpaddy has full size files up for everyone to download. The address is about a page back in this thread. Guaranted you will be amazed with the shots on the screen.

To be fair the K-01 kills the Sigma at any ISO over 400. The K-01also has much greater dynamic range and is a more all around, better polished camera. Pentax is a jack of all trades and the Sigma is a specialist.
hope this helps
barondla

11-16-2013, 05:46 PM	#380
barondla Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: midwest, United States Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,714	ivoire, cool shots of the g men. You have a knack for city street shots and hand held shootng. I need to work more on that as my Sigma is usually glued to a tripod. Think medium format. bvg, the spider is kinda scarry. With a DP1Merrill you had to be close. Did you use any kind of closeup filter? scratchpaddy, interesting info on Foveon sensor architecture. Our blue layer is the quietest- just the opposite of Bayer cameras. Very interesting. Like the view of your building picture. thanks barondla Didn't get a chance to upload files to the website. Sorry. Will try Monday. Last edited by barondla; 11-17-2013 at 09:57 AM.

11-19-2013, 07:32 PM - 1 Like	#385
ivoire Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,381	Hunted down and shot a bunch of G Men today. Managed to find 18 of the 25 (but won't show them all). [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] and a few oddities [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG] Last edited by ivoire; 11-19-2013 at 07:53 PM.

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11-16-2013, 10:12 AM	#376
bvg Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Queensland, Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 340	Another "macro" SD1M+Sigma 17-50/2.8 :/ by vld_bzh, on Flickr Australia - country of spiders!

11-16-2013, 03:11 PM	#377
scratchpaddy Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Phoenix Posts: 3,361 Original Poster	Originally posted by pinholecam I think I find that the files don't respond to well to HDR (Nik HDR efex). Too 'gritty' after running thru it for my taste. That's the word that always comes to mind when I try to pull the shadows too hard. I've gone back to shooting ISO 100 whenever possible, since that extra stop of clean (well, sort of clean) shadows is really valuable. I underestimated the highlight headroom before. It's really not that bad. I was just spoiled by the K-5. I'm assuming you're talking about pseudo-HDR, like with a single exposure? Real HDR is a great way to side-step the issue of noisy shadows, but I've only ever bothered to do that once. It's a 3-shot (+1 0 -1) exposure bracket on Shaw Butte, in North Mountain Park in Phoenix. 6:30 AM, after driving and hiking there. @barondla , great capture of those falls! You picture doesn't seem to suffer from the challenging lighting conditions. @ivorie , good use of your resources! I like the little starbursts the DP2 makes when stopped down. What's with all the gingerbread men? It's not even Thanksgiving yet! @bvg, that's just the exoskeleton, right? I wouldn't want a live one of those on my sweater!

11-16-2013, 03:22 PM	#378
ivoire Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,381	bvg hope you don't have a lot of those scratchpaddy very nice sunrise... i'm starting to think you live in the woods! as for the ginger people, the town does some kind of theme every year (money drives their early appearance). last year it was snow people as seen here: Village People - a set on Flickr

11-16-2013, 03:24 PM	#379
scratchpaddy Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Phoenix Posts: 3,361 Original Poster	I mentioned selecting color channels in SPP for black and white before. Well, I hit a little speed bump. I wanted to use only the red channel in some pictures to make the sky darker. Well, this is the structure of the Foveon sensor (courtesy of Wikimedia): The red channel is way down on the bottom of the silicon wafer. It's a little dark down there, so it winds up being quite a bit noisier than the blue channel. I still like the effect of just using the red, but you have to live with more noise. This one's with the SD1M at ISO 100, but I had to pull the shadows pretty hard. I used fill +.6 in SPP here, and set the color balance to 100% red. (See ivoire, I do see the city once in a while. ) On the other hand, you can eliminate a lot of the noise in B&W photos by only using the blue channel.

11-17-2013, 07:29 AM	#381
ivoire Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,381	scratchpaddy.....The image looks like BnW from the film era and the noise just adds to the effect. I noticed a blog recently where the guy uses a dark red filter to shoot BnW with the DP2M. barondla.....I got the sigma as a 'wander around' camera so making use of what is in the environment came naturally. Once in a while i remember to bring the gorilla pod in a backpack

11-19-2013, 01:21 AM	#382
bvg Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Queensland, Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 340	Originally posted by scratchpaddy @bvg, that's just the exoskeleton, right? I wouldn't want a live one of those on my sweater! no it was alive. It has a bit special appearance even among local spiders. Internet says it is considered as harmless for humans. Usually is hides in ambush at white or yellow flowers. Probably it had mixed my t-shirt with flower . Originally posted by barondla bvg, the spider is kinda scarry. With a DP1Merrill you had to be close. Did you use any kind of closeup filter? I used just my SD1M and lense @50 mm at minimal distance and 100% crop.

11-19-2013, 07:23 AM	#383
ivoire Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,381	Thought I'd try the red vs blue channels in SPP. Very diff effect [IMG] [/IMG] [IMG] [/IMG]

11-19-2013, 10:55 AM	#384
hoopsontoast Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Oxfordshire Posts: 861	Another out this evening in the same location:

11-22-2013, 10:16 AM	#386
bvg Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Location: Queensland, Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 340	If somebody didn't know that resource Sigma Rumors, News & Reviews

11-23-2013, 10:25 AM - 2 Likes	#387
hoopsontoast Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Oxfordshire Posts: 861

11-23-2013, 10:33 AM	#388
NickLarsson Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Paris, France Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 1,390	Hi guys, I'm looking for a high-IQ compact camera to complement my Ricoh GR for portraits and landscapes shots when traveling. So the DP2M with its longer focal length and recent price drop caught my attention. I already have the K-01 + 40XS which could play that role but I find it a bit heavy sometimes and I was wondering how much I could gain in resolution with the foveon sensor, especially for landscape work. So how would you compare both cameras IQ-wise ? Is the difference THAT big ? Also, have some of you tried Irident Developer to work with Sigma RAW files ? Thanks!

11-23-2013, 05:12 PM	#389
pinholecam Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: North Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,706	Originally posted by NickLarsson Hi guys, I'm looking for a high-IQ compact camera to complement my Ricoh GR for portraits and landscapes shots when traveling. So the DP2M with its longer focal length and recent price drop caught my attention. I already have the K-01 + 40XS which could play that role but I find it a bit heavy sometimes and I was wondering how much I could gain in resolution with the foveon sensor, especially for landscape work. So how would you compare both cameras IQ-wise ? Is the difference THAT big ? Also, have some of you tried Irident Developer to work with Sigma RAW files ? Thanks! There are some full sized samples in this thread for reference. The DPxm cameras are not fast and ISO is best kept at 100-200, so you need to consider these factors. (there are other quirks, as mentioned in this thread) IQ is incredible. I need a 2 or 3 shot pano, resized back to 16mp and properly sharpened to come to the same 'look' in sharpness. Sigma claims the X3 foveon is close to a 40+ mp sensor, and even if the claim is too high, its certainly close to 30+mp. Between K01 and DP2m, its hard to make a choice, since weight is close enough imo and the K01 is faster and more versatile. You'd only gain the IQ ffor landscapes and I'm not sure you'd need the 'too high IQ' for portraits.

11-23-2013, 05:30 PM	#390
barondla Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: midwest, United States Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,714	I have the K-01(yellow) with 40XS and Sigma DP1Merrill. Difference in resolution? Not even on the same planet. The Sigma beats ANY aps-c camera by a wide margin. The Sigma even gives FF headaches. I can beat the D600 pretty easily ( friend hates when that happens). Many say only medium format beats the Foveon. Scrathpaddy has full size files up for everyone to download. The address is about a page back in this thread. Guaranted you will be amazed with the shots on the screen. To be fair the K-01 kills the Sigma at any ISO over 400. The K-01also has much greater dynamic range and is a more all around, better polished camera. Pentax is a jack of all trades and the Sigma is a specialist. hope this helps barondla