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The new S has a lot of hardware changes (e.g., new sensor board, new AF module) as well as changes in control (joystick) and menus so I don't know how much firmware love us S2 guys will be seeing. I believe still room to improve the S2 via a firmware update. Maybe the guys at Leica will have some time for S2 firmware now that the new S has been introduced.
Sadly, the 30-90mm zoom price is about where I expected, but held out hope for a lower price. There are definitely trade-offs in the design of this lens. While I would have preferred a constant aperture, keeping the lens a reasonable size is more important to me. I plan to use the lens primarily for landscape so the slow aperture won't be an issue since I typically shoot stopped down to f8 – f11 to gain some depth of field. The make or break for me on this lens will be the IQ, fall off, and out of focus rendering.
The drama is simple. A mistake will cost you several thousand dollars. The S2 sensor is designed with the cover glass glued onto the sensor. You can't just replace the cover glass, you have to replace the entire sensor if the cover glass gets scratched. Also, please note that is pretty easy to scratch the coating on the cover glass.
I had about 10 years experience wet cleaning the sensors of my cameras and had the same attitude towards it as you have just expressed – “hey, what's the big deal – just clean the sensor already.” I had no reservations about cleaning the sensor on my S2. I wasn't concerned in the least. I wasn't wasn't nervous about it. In fact, I was confident in my ability to wet clean the sensor. That is until I scratched the cover glass and had to spend a bunch of money to get it fixed.
That is not to say that I will never wet clean my S2 sensor again. It is just a forewarning to others to ensure they know the consequences of a mistake.
I can assure you that Lightroom 4 fully supports the S2. In fact, LR4 is included when you buy a S2. Leica and Adobe seem to have an excellent relationship. In fact, this link shows that the latest release candidate for LR4 includes profiles for S lens that haven't even been released yet.
Visible Dust makes sensor swabs sized for the S2 and they have good products for wet cleaning. However, wet cleaning should be a last resort. First try a blower, then light brush (Visible Dust makes good brushes as well). If it is oil on your sensor as you suspect, a wet clean will be necessary. However, it takes a brave person to do it yourself. I had a lot of experience cleaning my own sensors over the years and never had a problem until I tried to wet clean my S2. Big mistake that could only be fixed by getting a new sensor.
I don't think it would have happened using the Visible Dust sensor swab due to their design (that is what I had always used before). I didn't have a local source for Visible Dust and ended up with another brand that was poorly designed. I had reservations about using it but went ahead anyway. That was a several thousand dollar mistake.
She is a cutie. Good job Jack.
Georg,
Take a look at the Schneider filters that David sells. They are exceptional. Graduated neutral density filters are available and solid neutral density filters are also available. I bought the one that has IR correction. Unfortunately, I have been so busy at work I haven't had a chance to compare it to my Lee Big Stopper. The Big Stopper has a pretty serious color shift to it. I expect the Schneider IRND to be much better.
That is pretty cool. I had a little difficulty getting the cube to rotate exactly how I wanted, but it's probably just me. Do you mind sharing how this was done?
I also visited your blog and had the pleasure of seeing more of your photos.
I love the dreamy look the shallow depth of field gives these images. Well done.
I don't know what to say. David had a Leica R 400mm converted to S mount and it is a wonderful combo in good light (he let me demo it so I speak from first hand knowledge). The key here is good light (meaning very bright light). I desperately want a long telephoto for use with my S2, but the reality is that its use is limited by the need for high shutter speeds to achieve critical sharpness and the lowish usable ISO capabilities of the S2. The combo is great in good light, but that is tough to come by in the field. I had difficulty using the 180mm in the field recently due to low light and slow shutter speeds. Using a tripod doesn't entirely solve the problem because even slow moving animals will cause motion blur at 1/30th to 1/60th of a second.
I fear a cmos based DSLR and a fast super telephoto lens with image stabilization is a better tool for the job. I hate to admit that because I sold such a combo not too long ago.
fotografz;2597 wrote: Mark, the point wasn't to make a comparison in the literal sense of the word. I was shooting a job, not testing systems.
Marc,
I understand you were not testing systems. Nevertheless, with similar images from two different camera/lens combos I couldn't help but try to understand what I was seeing. My post was just me thinking out loud. I am not sure of the technical reasons why I prefer one image over another and I am making an effort to look closer at images to figure out what it is I like about them (other than composition, subject, and exposure).
The additional images you posted are well done and very creative.
Beautiful lady and photographs. My first reaction was that I preferred background rendering of the Hasselblad HC210mm over the Leica S120mm and in general preferred the Hasselblad photo. However, upon closer inspection of the web sized images, I think the difference has more to do with the lighting than the lens rendering.
The Hasselblad photo has nice hair light (looks like natural light streaming in) and the front fill brightens the eyes and gives them a pleasing catchlight. Also, it appears the fill light allowed for a shorter exposure and darker background – although that could be a result of changing natural light. Anyway, the thing I first found most pleasing about the Hasselblad background rendering was the abscence of distracting circles/aberrations – the S120mm seemed to have more of them. Then it occurred to me that the difference between the photos is the background in the S120mm photo has more bright spots in it and show up as circles. The Hasselblad shot has circles also, but they are not bright so the major difference between the two renderings is the background lighting. The H4D/60 and HC210 combo appears to have a more shallow depth of field than the S2 and 120mm combo which may also account for some of the difference.
There is something about the S2 photo that I really like, but the Hasselblad photo is also very very good. I wonder if the comparison would very different if the lighting had been constant.
I would love to go, but work schedule won't permit it. I will be doing go to make it to Photo Plus in NYC this year.
I agree with Jack and David, I really like the bike shot. For some reason I don't know why, I also like the tilted shot with the shopping cart laying on its side. I didn't mean that comment in a derogatory manner, it's just very different than the normal types of photographs I like. So really, its a compliment.
