I had just begun looking at the S2 when Nikon announced its D800E. After reading in some other forums, a few S2 users stated that the fundamental differences were viewfinder, expanded color range, simplicity of operation, and lenses. I know that the Nikon isn’t out yet, but I’d like to hear some S2 owners’ thoughts about that product announcement and where the S2 system stands now. Is it still worth the investment? or might it be better to wait until an S3 (if there is going to be an S3)?
I assume since you say you are a Leica Guy and in past posts looking for an MP and noctilux, you might not have any Nikon lenses? And you certainly appreciate Leica lenses? And if you are a Leica Guy you can afford both options?
Next I would ask what you are going to be using the camera for? If sports, go Nikon.
But I detect that your real issue is buying the S2 when you fear an S3 is coming out the moment you buy the S2? If that fear is really an issue, wait one or two years for the S3 to be available, and buy a used S2 then. Of course, you will have missed the pleasure of the S2 for two years. By the way, imagine how Leica is looking at their decision? Do we just pop a slightly newer sensor in now, or wait a year for the next sensor development?
Most of the S2 photographers I know, and I know 1% of the S2 shooters in the USA, will tell you quite a bit of their decision was based on the S lenses. They are developed from the ground up for digital, and I have heard they were designed to be good for two magnitudes of improvement in sensors. When an S3 arrives, I may or may not need an upgrade, but I in either case, I will have my investment in Leica glass that does not need an upgrade.
I suspect that if you want an S2, the Nikon will not satisfy that desire, no matter what the resolution or quality of the Nikon camera. You will still want the S2.
You will rationalize that you will have the Nikon now and wait for the S3, and in the meantime have invested in a system that you really didn’t want to build on in the first place. Unless you already have a number of Nikon lenses, then it is a different equation.
JackSorry to say that, but I get a bit annoyed by those D800-S2 comparisons. Just because they have almost the same pixelnumbers, Nikon and Leica are so different concepts and systems so they just cannot be compared.
When you invest in a professional camera system you should consider the whole package (as flashes, light systems, lenses and other equipement and not to forget the customer service and the realiability of the camera) on the one side and the camera itself on the other side. Take this and reflect it against your personal shooting practice and needs (and abilities, for example to focus), and you will know what you need.
You may also rent a D3X and a S2 to compare, and at the end of the day you know what you want (maybe). The D800 is not that much better than the D3X IMHO
I would say the D800 doesnt change anything about the S2.
The D800 is great for Nikon users who like to print big or crop a lot.
I still expect the S2 to have a bigger viewfinder, the images to show more detail and micro detail, a different behaviour regarding DOF and transition between focus and oof areas, better tonality and “better” (for my taste) colors, better contrast wide open.
And yes, I think one can see it even in screen sized images.And the D800 will still focus much faster than the S2, weight less, shoot faster frame rates, and cost less money.
S2 vs S3… Its not even announced, and when its announced it has to come to the market, and when its available it has to be debugged.
IMO life is to short to dream about future products instead of using real available and debugged products.Leica Guy;1819 wrote: … Is it still worth the investment? or might it be better to wait until an S3 (if there is going to be an S3)?
I agree with Jack, life is too short. You could hold off buying a car until technology allows a 100 mpg and 0 to 60 in 3.1 seconds that seats five with luggage or you can get what you need today. Same with digital technology today, be it cameras, computers or phones. Does the current technology satisfy your imaging needs? To me, the S2 has the best imaging that I have used in a technology package that, I feel, will survive the test of time. Overall, the quality of images coming out of the S2 are only bound by the ability of the photographer. Will there be a successor to the S2? Most likely, but will it image better?
For example, I still have my Nikon D1X that I will not sell because the image quality that I get out of that sensor is special to me. It gives me the closest look to Kodachrome than any other sensor. Technologically it is a dinosaur and weighs about as much as one too, but my concern is the images that I get with it.
The Nikon D800E has me intrigued enough to buy one and try it against my S2. I suspect that the larger sensor logic will prevail and the images off of the S2 or any MF vendor will top the Nikon. But in the end will any MF solution capture 4 fps and have long IS lenses? It will have it’s place in the food chain.
-Al
To be honest, if it is a debate in your mind, then just get the Nikon.
Either you get what the S2 is about, know how it fits your needs, and what it can or cannot do, or you don’t. Upwards of $40,000. for a basic S2 kit is a major commitment to be making if you “aren’t sure”.
I waited over a year after first testing the S2 … waited for more lenses, waited until bugs were worked out, waited until other early adopters with talent showed the camera’s worth … then went all in with no second thoughts or second guessing my decision. (Granted, it was easy for me to wait, I also use a Hasselblad H4D/60).
I did so with full knowledge that 35mm DSLRs would reach the S2’s 37 meg count or exceed it. That was meaningless to me then, and it still is. The S2 is in a class of its own … larger sensor, bigger viewfinder, and the lenses take it beyond anything out there.
Heck, there are strong rumors of an impending 45 meg Canon 5DX … what will you do with your obsolete D800 system then?
-Marc
Judging by the few D800 samples on the net, the sensor is quite lens-limited. There might be 36megapixies or so but, from what I see so far, the lenses are not able to resolve to it’s full potential.
And, as someone else pointed out, different animals…
Of course, if there were an adaptor to mount S2 lenses on the D800 ;););)
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