MrSMW

What is the niche part? Genuinely curious! The only thing missing for me personally is a fast compact long zoom like Tamron’s 70-180 f2.8 Otherwise lens-wise, there is just about anything you could wish for, native, adapted, cine… OK body-wise, we’re waiting on a replacement for the S1H and S1R, but they are still highly capable and the S1R produces IMO the nicest files SOOC with their 5k Flat profile. The Leica SL3 hints at what should be coming, though even if I had the cash, I would not spring for one as it’s not a good value proposition to me. And maybe (hopefully) Sigma will also pop something out a la FP series again… The bottom line is there are pros and cons to all systems but it seems that L Mount just has the least cons for me. Canon actually remains the only major brand I have never owned. Ticked the boxes for; Lumix, Nikon, Fuji, Sony and Olympus, but Canon has always evaded me. Or I have evaded it…

The S1H is the best camera ever made. Full stop. Stills or video. OK, maybe for some people, it isn't, but in my experience and for my needs, it has just been the best camera I have ever had and it's going back to being my stills camera. In the hand, it's near perfect. Only the Canon R3 beats it for me for handling/ergos, being taller but lighter, but compared with anything else, hands down the best for me. Shutter button and sound? Sublime. AF speed and accuracy for stills? Very high. AF for video? Not as bad as some think. Rendering for video or stills? Extremely high and better than my S5II's for sure. Battery life? Superb. IBIS? Excellent. 6k 30p open gate at 200mbps. Overheating? Ha, the S1H laughs at the very concept. Value? Stupidly high on the used market. It doesn't have the LUT features of say the latest Lumix and other cameras such as the new Canon's and I doubt that will come in firmware, but that's not an issue for me. I can't believe I was going to retire it...

Well that went tits up... First the fact that 26mp medium raw is not compatible with any current batch editing software which meant shooting everything at 61mp which was not the plan. Then the thing keeps locking up. Or rather not switching on at random times forcing battery out, battery in, which is hardly ideal at key moments. It has happened now 2-3 times on each of the 3 shoots I have used it on. Not good enough. Plus it just is not as good in low light as the Nikon Zf/Z6II or any of my 24mp Lumix cameras. It just isn't. So I'm returning it and selling everything Nikon and Tamron. For what? My trusty fave camera of all time, my S1H which has a ridiculous trade in value of around €700. OK, I need to buy a couple of lenses and I have to compromise on my stills camera set up going back to between 2.5/3kg in my hand, but it also puts €6k+ back into my account. Lesson learned. L Mount is just the best system for me so I need to stop dicking about with any and everything else. Samyang 35-150mm f2/2.8 arriving next week in time for my next shoot and Sigma 28-45mm f1.8 on preorder for my indoor and low light lens. Oh well, I tried. S9 arrives tomorrow and was going to replace one of the S5II's which in turn replaced the S1H which was going to be sold, but it's simply a case of repurpose the S1H back into being a stills camera, a role it has fulfilled before superbly. And will once again. Maybe an S2R or S2H next year, but for the rest of this one, probably not. S5II x2 in a static role for video + S9 run & gun + S1H stills. Done. For now...

Unless you absolutely need full frame 4k 60p, the S5ii is a video powerhouse and bargain.

That’s the only thing for me, - I would quite happily shoot f4 zooms all day long outdoors and do generally shoot f4 for more candid things and f5.6 for forward tracking or long static shots (where the subject might be moving around a little but focus is locked) and while f2.8 is OK in lower light, after dark even that is pushing it a bit for light gathering purposes. Still not decided though whether a cheap f1.8 prime will do it or whether I splurge on that new Sigma 28-45 which would be perfect for indoor/night use…

Well I do and I don't... 2 of my 4 cameras have battery grips on them and my S1H used to! What I mean is I would prefer a built in grip a la Z9 and R3 rather than screw on ones because I will either use a camera with or without, but never change the set up, if you know what I mean? My pair of S5ii's have a battery grip welded on as both live on tripods for longer form stuff and I'd rather not risk a battery needing to be changed, but the battery grips allow hot swapping so as long as I have spare batteries, until the cards run out! Also, if I am going to be using anything as large as, or larger than a 24-105, I definitely want a grip or I find it's just an unwieldy set up having big heavy lenses on gripless bodies. One of last year's set ups was just crazy though and the was S1H + grip + Leica 24-90 and it was pushing 3kg. I don't run anything now over 1.5kg if I can help it and only have one combo that goes slightly over. I'm trying to shrink everything as much as I can re. anything I have to physically carry or have attached to my person and my current set up is the most capable vs compact, yet. I would have made an exception with one Canon combo though and that would have been the R3 with the 24-105mm f2.8 and only 2 factors put me off... Cost and 24mp. I would have swallowed the first if that body had been or had an option for 45mp because it would then have negated the need for me to have anything but one single 'one & done' lens.

I would have just liked the spec of the R5 in the R3 body and would have switched to Canon as they have 2 lenses that would really work for me and that body is by far the best I have ever handled. I hate add on battery grips but also ‘need’ more than 24 mega pixies…

Plus actually has a grip! I am sure that I will be more than happy with my S9 in it’s intended role when it arrives, but if choosing a system from scratch, I’d probably go Sony and have the ZV-E1 as my lightweight & portable run & gun to unit. I am not the biggest Sony fan in the world, though have used them for video previously and shoot stills now with an A7, but out of all the full frame brands, they easily have the most compact options, bodies and glass, so if that is of importance or a priority…

Could be the glass but might have been the VND which he also changed? I had the 20, 35, 65 and 90 f2’s and never experienced any issues with any of them. Even sharper and with more character than the Lumix f/1.8’s, nicely tactile and with aperture rings. Loved them, nicest primes I ever used. I would go back to them over the Lumix primes in a heartbeat except for one factor and that it is was my insistance on trying to wrestle primes to work for my needs when I needed zooms. If I could, for sure I’d run the 20 + 65 combo indoors and the 35 + 90 out. But sadly I cannot!

I know, they are French, they do it deliberately, but not to put French subtitles on English language movies intended for English speaking audiences because it's highly distracting. They don't put English subtitles on French language movies... Now I don't mind subtitles on TV and watch a lot of foreign language stuff on Netflix such as stuff from Scandinavian countries, Poland, Germany and France because it's unwatchable otherwise, and dubbing, yeah, just no!

And they work brilliantly because this was my approach for the first half of this year, - adapted E Mount glass on Nikon bodies...except there is one potential flaw and that is the lack of in camera lens correction. Sony bodies correct for it, Nikon bodies do not. It has not been a major issue with stills though sometimes, even with lens profiles in Lightroom and some manual adjustment, it has been impossible to truly straighten certain things and a bit of hard cropping is the only option. With video though, it would be a bigger concern. AF and image quality though, superb and it's my opinion, Nikon image quality is nicer than Sony image quality with your typical hybrid camera. And ultimately, it means that Nikon Z users have access to more glass than Sony E Mount users. But I have switched to Sony for stills because ultimately, I did not want the niggles of lens distortion and the AF is as good as it gets and those 2 factors counted for me on the basis that the image quality difference is negligible. Actually, regarding the latter, the image quality of the 61mp Sony files is better than that of the 24mp Zf files, but the Zf is better in low light. Without question.

I'd be more interested in a 35mm. The only real weak(er) links in my current armoury of lenses is I don't have anything faster than f/2.8 zooms which is fine for 95% of what I do, but after dark, I probably could do with something faster. On that note, they are big(ger) and heavy, but still under my self-imposed 'a lens cannot weigh more than 1kg' limit, I am most interested in a pair of Sigma 28-45mm f/1.8's because they are available in L Mount for my video needs and E Mount for my stills needs. But I have run out of funds for this year, so aaaaaargh 🤪

I am somewhat nostalgic for that but the reality for me is that the experience these days is a bit shit. Living in France and being a native English speaker, I want to see movies in their original language, ie, English and they do show them, usually one night a week in VO, - version originale…but insist on putting French subtitles which makes viewing painful. The places are usually pretty empty and one time we were the only people there. I think that was Napoleon, the last we went to see. You can purchase a few over-priced, very limited choice snacks, but we bring our own. The picture quality always seems trash and that combined with the subtitles, just kills it for me. It may be different outside of rural France but for the time being at least, I’m not going no matter what the release is and these days, it comes out on rental very soon after.

Obviously you don't live in France where it's so shite, I've stopped going. It is no longer 1976. 52" 4K screen with surround sound and the kitchen next door is the way to go. Plus a pause button so you don't have to go in an empty popcorn carton. But seriously, last few movies I went to see, they looked MUCH better at home. Though as above, this may be a 'living in rural France' thing...

All these things comes back to the same thing…which is a different thing for each individual. I’m not necessarily looking for ‘the best’ but rather what works best for me within certain parameters, the principle one being cost. Not just cost vs return, but actual cost. If the financial side was not part of the equation, like most, not only would I be using different stuff, I’d probably have a different career! It all comes down to need vs compromises we’re willing to make in the end with the wrapper being money.

Yes and no I think. Can it get better? Probably yes, but at what level and how does it relate to how it’s displayed? So yes, good enough in 99% of cases 99% of the time as they say. I moved to a Sony A7RV for stills and does it produce better images than the Nikon Zf or Z6ii or the S5ii, my most recent stills cameras? Yes, but only very slightly. Where is it noticeable? In editing. On my website or social media? God no, no one would. So why bother? Professional pride and craft. I KNOW and for me, that is reason enough. Plus, as they say, it’s in the details which alone, are rarely if ever noticed, but if you can improve everything by 1% every year, it all adds up and keeps forward momentum as a whole. A tiny bit more DR, a tiny bit more detail, a tiny bit more more pleasant bokeh, a tiny bit more stabilization etc etc etc, - it all adds up and makes a subtle but actual difference.

We’re getting closer…

Are the overheating times on this thing an issue? I don’t know and I’m not really the market for it anyway…but then I thought that initially about the S9 and have one on preorder… Do Sony care or not care about this? Don’t know the answer to that either other than the cine-line cameras have cooling don’t they? The S9 will be the first FF camera I have had without it and we’ll see how it goes but I ‘think’ it’s not going to be a problem for my use case which is typically 150+ 10 second clips over a 12 hour period. For any kind of video work with Sony, I don’t think I’d look at anything less than an FX30 today. Had the ZV1 previously and had overheating issues as I did with the RX100V but not the RX100ii.

Which is similar in stills photography when folks ‘state’ that film is better than digital. Hmmm, I come back from a typical wedding weekend with around 3500-5000 shots to cull and I am far from the spray & pray approach. Let’s call it 3600 on the low end which is 100 rolls of film. 100 rolls is at least €25 each for purchase and processing, so €2.5k compared with €0 for digital. Ah, but the tools are cheaper! Ah, but you can charge more for film photography! Grow up and enter the real world of business 🤪 So stills or video, I am someone who does not need the latest and greatest just because it is the latest and greatest and that is the purchase decision and I might choose a vintage lens for a certain aesthetic, but a simple reality is that the more modern the tool, the more likely it is to make our (business) lives easier. Whether that be autofocus, stabilisation, DR, or even just things like start up speed. Not every new tool is the best tool, but for business users especially, better tools do make for better work. All other factors being equal. So yes, I’ll take 12 stops of DR over 10 which I’d have taken over 8, every day of the week thanks, just as I appreciate the latest firmware on the S5ii that finally allowed me to ditch the gimbal forever. Some progress actually is good!

Valid point and put me off all Sony cameras until the A7RV. Anything under 2.1 is not great IMO and reckon even that of the S9/S5ii is a bit cheap as someone who works off the rear LCD stills and video. S1H was/is MUCH better. Another point against the new Sony and another point to the Lumix. Plus because I bought one, I have to favour it 😜

I don’t know about ‘always’ because 5 years vs 50 years vs 5000 years… But for the foreseeable future as in our lifespans, changes because there is always change, but probably not to the extent that some think. I believe this to be the case because although ‘progress’ continues to accelerate, there is only so much we can take, ie, it cannot simply increase exponentially. And then there is retro/analogue or whatever we wish to call it, but even that gets updated because to some, ‘retro’ is stuff from just a few years back which others of us, might think of as not far off being current. So AI I think will continue to play a part and increasingly so, but at the same time, I don’t think the sky is falling in. Well not completely. Or at least for some time yet… Please not if there is a god, until I’m done. Thanks. If you exist and are listening/read comments on this forum. And if you truly are omnipotent, you surely do? Or have someone do? Because you must because just reading that volume of shit on YouTube comments must take up a heck of an amount of time. Appreciate it.

A bit of a blunder to say the least, but more so trying to convince us a manual focus only f8 lens was something that has been demanded. Maybe on Planet Thargon 9, but not on this one. L Mount has some really great primes but is really lacking in compact full frame fast zooms, mainly at the longer end. The case for this thing though is are you invested in the Sony ecosystem or the Lumix one, or starting from scratch? If L Mount, of course you would not much care but otherwise, you might very well give it a go. Plus also, if we're being 'fair', the S9 is full frame and this Sony isn't, so if you stick the Sigma APSC 18-50mm f2.8 on it (the S9), it puts things back in favour of the S9 for me. That Sigma lens also works on the Sony. Decent release I'd say. I'm waiting for my S9 however 😉

I’m from the future and know so.

Real world, I agree and that there probably isn't much in it. I can see a difference though between the Zf/Z6III and the A7RV. I am talking stills here as I said above. I use Lumix for video so this is purely stills. And good news (for anyone that is interested!) and that is the A7RV passed and is now my 'Z6III'. DR-wise, compared with the Nikon's, there is a noticeable increase. We're not talking massive margins because there aren't any, but noticeable. Image quality-wise, barely anything, but it's there. I had ZERO issue with what the Nikon's were providing in this regard and again, as above, I was looking to get the minimum capability spec-wise of the Zf but in a more ergo friendly body. Colour science? I'd give that to the Nikon's. SOOC they are just 'better' than the Sony. In post, the Sony files look great, but just need more work and even then, ultimately, I'd say are about 95% of the Nikon files 'colour quality-wise'. AF is a step up over the Nikon's. The Z6II easily but also the Zf and that was to be expected. My keeper rate went up by quite a bit and any misses were pretty much me getting to grips with how the Sony AF system works. Low-light is a win for the Nikon's, the Zf particularly. I expected this and may need to get one more lens with a faster aperture for lower light stuff as f/2.8 is fine with those 24mp Nikons but less so with the 61mp Sony. Ergos, the Zf is not great and the Z6II marginally better than the A7RV with base plate, but all factors considered, the A7RV with the base plate is about as 'perfect' as I am going to get for my needs balancing; weight, size, ergos. Finally, it uses my 3x Tamron lenses natively which is a good thing. Performance of them adapted on the Nikon's was pretty good, but a few lens correction issues were a bit of a nuisance. Conclusion, would I swap it for a Z6III? No...but it would not bother me if it was forced on me as the differences would be marginal, real world and that is probably the most important aspect in all these things, ie, not the on paper specs, or anyone's tests, or any other factor other than how does the thing work for you. The only issue I'd have with the Z6III is my 3x lenses not being native and that is the single biggest factor and were they, would swing it for me back to the Nikon. But as has always been my issue my preferred glass never seems to quite match my preferred bodies!! 🤪

Well the Sony A7RV gets to stay. For now at least... It was always going to be a close cal between it and the new Z6III but I think I made the right choice. Had a pretty poor first shoot experience with it the other week when it got dropped and the Tamron 28-75 was sheared off it's mount and then shooting medium raw which 'everyone' recommends turned out to be shit. All medium raw did, other than saving some storage space and make the files slightly slower to process, was remove colour & detail and caused an utter trash low light result. Don't believe everything you read on the internets... OK, 61mp uncompressed raw is overkill for about 90% of my work but there isn't another combination of body & lenses, this compact & light, with this kind of performance. DR is higher than anything I have previously used and that is a big thumbs up. Low light capability on my most recent shoot was a concern after the previous week as these higher MP cameras are not renowned for being low-light monsters, but actually, it passed muster on the basis of using DXO PureRaw which I always use anyway. I would however like a faster lens than f/2.8 for lower light stuff and though it's a brute, that new Sigma 28-45mm f/1.8 is looking mighty tempting for this purpose... Please please please Sigma, make a sibling to it such as say a 45-90mm f/1.8 and I'm set for the rest of my career. No S9 yet, - that won't be here until towards the end of the month, but the Lumix set up are not any kind of concern as they just do the business.