Digital Medium Format Thread

I wonder if a Hitchcock zoom icm is possible? It’s a combination of dolly/slide towards the subject at the same time zooming out, the idea to keep the subject framing the same during the move.
 
TimHughes said:
I wonder if a Hitchcock zoom icm is possible? It’s a combination of dolly/slide towards the subject at the same time zooming out, the idea to keep the subject framing the same during the move.
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Ah that's the thing I was talking about back in post 509. Didn't quite know how to describe it.
 
gman said:
Ah that's the thing I was talking about back in post 509. Didn't quite know how to describe it.
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Ah right, yes. Let’s give it a try :) I think this will be very difficult to do handheld. I think it will need careful setup with a slider and something like a follow focus to control the zoom, with the start and end points all set.
 
Topsy said:
Given the apparent distance between the subject and the content on the edges I can't see how you can say that. The content at the edges is all water or clouds so how do you judge the sharpness?
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Clue, tree branches and near most land mass that goes across the entire frame.

On an inferior lens, such as the Fuji 32-64 that sample images were taken from it would be smeary on the left and right most tree.

Except they're aren't. The centre trees are just as defined as the outer ones.

As you were.
 
Topsy said:
Given the apparent distance between the subject and the content on the edges I can't see how you can say that. The content at the edges is all water or clouds so how do you judge the sharpness?

Said edges, meant corners.
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TimHughes said:
Haha I better get out and take some test shots …
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I'd love to be able to take the exact same shots at the same time, never going to happen though......
 
@TimHughes

Thoughts....

F5.6 files

2321 - slight softening top left - look at the railing...ever so slight. Bottom left and right, slight softening but nothing I'd be personally overly bothered with.
2322 - rule out bottom but looking impressive up the edges of the building right into the corners. Edges mid frame are excellent. Truly.

F8 files. 2323 - paving slabs...centre bottom slab...awesome. Slabs towards the corners, hmm...not good. Stopping down to F13 or so could save it - maybe.... Moving up the middle of the frame - above the window line I do see some softening away from the centre but not enough to declare it awful or unworkable. Top left and right corners though are not especially good at all. Top middle is really excellent. For your average landscaper who will tend to have sky up here...who cares. That wouldn't bug me out. On the one from @LongLensPhotography this softening was in the far left and right mid frame. Yours is isolated to top corners. Look at the railing and green/red ball things top right...
Did you focus 2324 differently as cannot see any issue anywhere whatsoever anywhere in that frame. Weird why the prior one exhibits this and the other is perfect. This stands out as generally excellent.
2325 - I'll ignore the bottom to rule out focus but no issues here.
2326 - ever ever so slight softening top right corner - nothing to be bothered with. I'd not be fussed with that. Mid frame edges look really good.
2327 - ignoring bottom to rule out DoF but top left...slight fall off in sharpness. Not terrible. Top right this frame looks pretty good.
2328 - a little like 2327 but with the buiding shifted down in the frame it's less of an issue.
2329 - this is a useful image. Look at where the building starts and look at the definition of the grasses against it in the left side, then the middle. Look at the windows on the left side buidling, then move towards the left edge. It does soften...a bit. Right side holding up a little better.

In short - thanks for the images and these have greatly improved my opinion on the lens and camera. Couldn't spy the hot pixels on your shots at all and the issues I mention are minor, and I take back a lot of the comments I made. But I think given this decent copy, the bad copy LLP sent me, and the various samples in the thread there is some sort of sample variation going on. Gut feeling; it performs about the same as my old 24-70 or 16-35 zoom. Not unusable at all but the 23mm copy I saw was remarkable tbh and at £2k plus, I want remarkable so I think I would go buy the shorter primes and hope the longer zooms are good.
 
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SFTPhotography said:
@TimHughes

Thoughts....

F5.6 files

2321 - slight softening top left - look at the railing...ever so slight. Bottom left and right, slight softening but nothing I'd be personally overly bothered with.
2322 - rule out bottom but looking impressive up the edges of the building right into the corners. Edges mid frame are excellent. Truly.

F8 files. 2323 - paving slabs...centre bottom slab...awesome. Slabs towards the corners, hmm...not good. Stopping down to F13 or so could save it - maybe.... Moving up the middle of the frame - above the window line I do see some softening away from the centre but not enough to declare it awful or unworkable. Top left and right corners though are not especially good at all. Top middle is really excellent. For your average landscaper who will tend to have sky up here...who cares. That wouldn't bug me out. On the one from @LongLensPhotography this softening was in the far left and right mid frame. Yours is isolated to top corners. Look at the railing and green/red ball things top right...
Did you focus 2324 differently as cannot see any issue anywhere whatsoever anywhere in that frame. Weird why the prior one exhibits this and the other is perfect. This stands out as generally excellent.
2325 - I'll ignore the bottom to rule out focus but no issues here.
2326 - ever ever so slight softening top right corner - nothing to be bothered with. I'd not be fussed with that. Mid frame edges look really good.
2327 - ignoring bottom to rule out DoF but top left...slight fall off in sharpness. Not terrible. Top right this frame looks pretty good.
2328 - a little like 2327 but with the buiding shifted down in the frame it's less of an issue.
2329 - this is a useful image. Look at where the building starts and look at the definition of the grasses against it in the left side, then the middle. Look at the windows on the left side buidling, then move towards the left edge. It does soften...a bit. Right side holding up a little better.

In short - thanks for the images and these have greatly improved my opinion on the lens and camera. Couldn't spy the hot pixels on your shots at all and the issues I mention are minor, and I take back a lot of the comments I made. But I think given this decent copy, the bad copy LLP sent me, and the various samples in the thread there is some sort of sample variation going on. Gut feeling; it performs about the same as my old 24-70 or 16-35 zoom. Not unusable at all but the 23mm copy I saw was remarkable tbh and at £2k plus, I want remarkable so I think I would go buy the shorter primes and hope the longer zooms are good.
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Steve, thank you for the thorough review.
 
SFTPhotography said:
Aside @TimHughes what spec PC are you running to handle these files.

Mine is fine but with 2x EPYC 7282 (32c 64t in total) and 128gb RAM and RTX4000 I'd hope so.

I cannot imagine your average 16gb ram, 2gb GPU 4 core machine will like these files at all.
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Wow that's quite a beast! I'm using a 6 core 2018 mac mini with 64gb RAM, RX Vega 56 EGPU, and 2TB SSD working drive. No problems working with the files.
 
TimHughes said:
Wow that's quite a beast! I'm using a 6 core 2018 mac mini with 64gb RAM, RX Vega 56 EGPU, and 2TB SSD working drive. No problems working with the files.
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Cool - it's fine with the 100mp files but the 50mp ones, say moving around at 100% view then toggling layers off (curves being the prime example) I'd say I can see a slight decrease in performance. I'd maybe stick in an RTX5000 or another 128gb RAM if moving up to 100mp or 150mp Phase One/Hasselblad which is the ulimate long term goal.
 
SFTPhotography said:
@TimHughes
In short - thanks for the images and these have greatly improved my opinion on the lens and camera. Couldn't spy the hot pixels on your shots at all and the issues I mention are minor, and I take back a lot of the comments I made.
Click to expand...

How gracious of you, maybe I don't feel like sutch a crappy amateur with all the gear and no idea now.........................
 
Just spent a week working in Slovakia (now on self isolation!) - not much chance to get out with a camera worked five 10-11hr days and one 8hr day - the Sunday!

Still managed to come back with a number of pictures - some of which will be built into a zine - so won't get posted until after publication!


OFZ Ferroalloy Plant, Slovakia 1 by David Yeoman, on Flickr
GFX + GF30mm


OFZ Ferroalloy Plant, Slovakia 2 by David Yeoman, on Flickr
GFX + GF45mm
 
Processing really stands out @Mr Perceptive on these two.

I need to upload some newer work. Life with Zedward has been busy over the last couple of weeks.

One thing that bugs me, and concerns me a little about the GF line is the absence of modern stabilised long zooms. Pentax don't offer anything with image stabilisation beyond 90mm (I don't believe you need it on shorter lenses). Pentax offer a 150-300 and I nearly went for it but heard very mixed reviews regarding it's performance. There's a 300 prime but that leaves the 160-200 and 200-300 FL range uncovered and these are longer fields of view I use.

I know you shouldn't but I do use IS on a tripod with long lenses - if you compare 100% shots with it on or off, more often or not, the on image is crisper. Ok Fuji offer the 100-200 but nothing longer than that other than a 250 prime, with the 200-250 Fl range uncovered and nothing longer. For me this seems a miss for those looking to shoot wildlife, aviation, tele landscapes, all sorts.

So today I have taken delivery of a 5ds Canon and a 100-400 is coming to satisfy my 50mp needs in the longer reach.
 
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Relics of the cold war in the region of Slovakia that I was in were not obvious, even the austere appartment blocks have been given colourful paint, old plinths now support new statues, the 'great' leaders and influencers having been banished. But was very surprised to find a 1960s Soviet built PTS - tracked amphibious vehicle. It was lurking behind a mound of earth, not far from a small commercial vehicle breakers yard.


Soviet PTS by David Yeoman, on Flickr
GFX + GF30mm
 
Sorry to but in but may I ask is anyone using digital Medium format for macro or high magnification ?
primarily insects and the like ?
 
Damo1 said:
Sorry to but in but may I ask is anyone using digital Medium format for macro or high magnification ?
primarily insects and the like ?
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I use my Z a fair bit for macro, usually a 120mm lens with an extension tube, I've shot small objects for a work publication and insects / fungi etcIMGP1647c.jpg
 
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