The Online Photographer

Reader Andy F implied yesterday that it is believed that Pentax will announce a B&W-only camera on April 13th. I will truly believe it only when I see it, having waited for a rationally-priced B&W camera from a mainstream maker for a good solid 20 years now. Actually a little bit more.

If it happens, I deserve credit for it...based on the Umbrella Rule, which states that it only rains when you forget your umbrella and won't rain if you remember to take it. Since I've just recently invested heavily in a customized workaround, clearly that is the reason why a much cheaper option would come along immediately thereafter.

The universe is a trickster! I hate irony. Or as David Aiken put it, "The universe tends to maximum perversity."

If it does happen, I might have to lay low for a while. I will be sulking.

Mike

Original contents copyright 2023 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

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Of course there are many things camera "timing" could refer to. I'm talking here about the way your life syncs up with the availability of certain products—a new camera comes along just when you need that very thing, say.

...Or the opposite, which is more often what happens with me.

I remember deciding to "devote" myself (scare quotes definitely needed there, as I am nothing if not fickle where gear is concerned) to the original (2009) Panasonic 20mm pancake lens; the one I had was sweet. More to the point, I liked it, and Mikie hates everything. But I waited and waited for the E-M1 to come out—we knew a "flagship" Olympus was coming, we just didn't know when—and finally I couldn't wait any longer, and skipped to Sony. Shortly thereafter, the E-M1 arrived. Too late. Oh well.

First love
Many years before that, when I was adding to my Contax kit (my first-ever system camera; I went through art school with a Contax), I really wanted a Zeiss 35mm PC shift lens. (Some very professional-looking tabletop pictures here.) I saved up for it, and when I finally decided to buy the thing, the supply suddenly dried up. I looked into it—I was writing for photography magazines by that time—and learned that Yashica ordered batches of lenses from Zeiss, which then made runs of them to order as it suited their schedule. And their whim, apparently. Yashica eventually got so weary of Zeiss being sluggish filling its orders that it started to build the lenses in Japan, reassuring customers that this was done under German "supervision." As if the Germans had to teach the Japanese about quality control! Not. Fanboys of course were very snobby and strident about their preference for "real" German lenses, scorning the "Made in Japan"-labeled ones, but the truth was the opposite—the Japanese facility and all the equipment in it were all-new, so the Japanese-built versions were actually a little better and more consistent than the German-built ones. (This was told to me by a C/Y tech-rep after he had moved to a different company.)

But I digress. Anyway, I was assured that pretty soon the Japanese would order another run of the 35mm PC Shift lens from Zeiss and it would be available again. I waited and waited and waited and waited and waited. Finally I joined a professional studio where all the other photographers used Nikons, and if I wanted to be able to share my equipment and borrow theirs, I had to shoot Nikon too, so I said goodbye to my beloved Contax. Honestly, to this day, I have never had quite the same feeling for any other camera marque that I had for Contax. I recall it as fondly as I recall lost youth.

That was right about the time that the new batch of 35mm PC Distagons hit the small-print ads in the back of Modern Photography, which I'm sure all of you of a certain age will remember. Of course the new ones took a huge jump upward in price—the pricing for the old run having been worked out many years earlier. That allowed me to adopt the frustrated fox's sour-grapes attitude.

And did I ever buy the Nikkor 35mm shift lens? I did not. It's not that I ever stopped wanting one, just that there was always something ahead of it on the want-list.

The unrequited Fuji
I could give more examples, but you get the point, and I'm sure many of you have experienced the same thing or something similar. It's that sometimes the stars don't align, and a different fork in the road is taken.

Well, that's what has happened to me with Fuji. I was turned off by the specs of the then-new X-T4, for purely arbitrary reasons. I just don't care for flippy screens. There's nothing wrong with them; some people prefer them, and some people are agnostic and can go either way. I just happen to have a preference for the aligned kind of screen, that's all. No biggie, and there's nothing sacrosanct about my opinion. Purely personal taste. At the same time, a kind reader gave me his X-H1 when he switched to Leica, and I didn't bond with it for whatever reason.

You know what I would have wanted, instead of the X-T4? Exactly? A slimmed-down X-T[x], closer to the size of the original X-T1; with a brand new, higher-res sensor; a reversion to Fuji's earlier, and perfect (by my lights) viewing screen design; more "photography focused," to snitch the words of DPReview's Richard Butler; and IBIS, which is another feature I've appreciated since I first experienced it in the now-ancient Konica-Minolta 7D.

Which is exactly what the X-T5 is. It's like Fuji was working straight off my personal wish-list.

Silver is the same price as black, which I think is a first

Of course, by then, I had moved along to the Sony A6600 (mine is for sale now, by the way, nearly new, in the box, separate from or along with the wonderfully contrasty Sigma Contemporary 30mm, if you would like that. Email me). And then to the Sigma fp-M. Just went down a different path is all. I never could have imagined that the X-T4 was not a firm and permanent change of direction, or that the X-T5 would pick up where the X-T3 left off. Well, I could have imagined it, actually, it's just that I never would have thought it would happen for real.

It's really only an accident that you haven't been reading all sorts of happy blithering about an X-T5 in these pages since it came out last November. I still love Fuji; still love the lens line; and still think Fuji in general, and specifically the X-T5, is the number one all-'round recommendation for general-purpose enthusiasts, despite its increasingly niche status. A perfectly balanced package of Goldilocks compromises.

It is probably the only time, ever, that a camera company actually did just exactly what I would have wanted it to. Yet I don't own one, and won't. Strange how things work out, that's all I can say.

Mike

Original contents copyright 2023 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

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Bob Johnston: "I just traded in my X-T3 for the T5. I had to sell some lenses too but boy am I happy with the camera. Fuji seem to have fixed all the annoying little quitks. For example, if you enabled the self timer and switched the camera off, you had to enable it again when you switched back on. That's fixed. The bigger battery is a huge plus point. I could go on."

Miguel Tejada-Flores: "Uhhh...Mike, you left out one of the key reasons why I caved, sold my X-T3, and sprang for an X-T5: the brilliant Fuji colour engineers who came up with the new internal JPEG film simulation, which bears the heavy-handed name 'Nostalgic Negative.' That sim, plus the Classic Neg sim introduced in the previous generation of X-Trans sensors, is probably worth the price of admission. Fuji marketing claims that it was inspired by something they are calling The American New Color look of the 1970s, inspired by the work of luminaries like Stephen Shore among others.

"And...guess what? In this case, it's not mere marketing hype but a rather marvelous piece of color engineering by the (mostly nameless) color-obsessed Fuji geniuses who spend years toiling away and come up with (for my money) masterpieces like the aforementioned new JPEG film sims. IBIS is nice too, but compared to the other seismic improvements, I think it's merely icing on the metaphorical photographic cake. Based on my (limited) understanding of—and appreciation of—your photographic tastes and personal work—I think you would love it. Or should I say, you will love it. (Minor note: for those shooting strictly JPEGs, the file size is much smaller than 40 MP, actually much closer to the smaller files of the X-T3 and the X-Pro3.)"

Ben: "When I graduated college in 2000 I was thinking about a Contax SLR system. But I found a nice Leica M3 and a couple of lenses. Got hooked on rangefinders, and even though I've wandered into Nikon and Micro 4/3, I keep coming back to Leica, and despite the exorbitant cost I love every minute of it… "

Ricardo: "Hi Mike. The X-T5 is indeed fantastic. Had one for about three weeks but passed on for an X-E4. I simply must have a smaller. But it’s indeed great. "

Curt Gerston: "I had the X-T3 and, like you didn’t like the direction the X-T4 went (too big, blah to the flippy screen…) so I was happy enough to shoot the X-T3 until it died. Unlike you, though, when the X-T5 came out I was beholden to no other new camera and was able to go get one. It’s perfection. I love it. I don’t shoot video, I don’t need what the X-H2 offers…it’s great. Bravo Fuji."

Richard Tugwell: "I was an early XT-1 user, and upgraded to an XT-3 when the XT-4 came out and seemed unnecessarily bulky. I was quite happy with the XT-1 but wanted to match sensor sizes with my X-Pro2. That was a couple of years ago now and I can't honestly say I'm interested in anything new. I'm more interested these days in spending time with my photo archive. (Most of which emanated from gear whose specs people would laugh about these days.)"

Sroyon: "Re 'It's like Fuji was working straight off my personal wish-list,' as you put it, was the feeling I got about the Fuji X-E4 when it was released in early 2021. And yet I resisted the temptation, because I have a serviceable Nikon D5200 (ten years old, but still works). Then in September 2022, some Japanese stores marked the X-E4 as discontinued. It was also out of stock in all the physical and online stores here in Singapore. I had a sinking feeling that I had left it too late. Luckily, I was able to purchase one of the few remaining bodies from an online store in Hong Kong—and at the normal price. I'm so glad I did, because the camera is even better (for me) than what I had imagined. And this week, FujiRumors reported that it's also marked discontinued at B&H Photo and various other stores. As someone who is resistant (perhaps irrationally so) to buying gear, the lesson for me is that perfect cameras—perfect for me, that is—materialize very rarely. When they do, budget permitting, it's best not to dilly-dally."

Gary Nylander: "Mike, I hope you find the camera or lens that you want. I kinda stumbled upon one of my favorite lenses that I like to use, the Nikkor 35mm PC. A few years ago I was not aware of either of these 35mm PC shift lenses. Coincidentally, the article you linked on Casual Photophile by Yuan Oliver Jin was the very article that inspired me to buy the Nikkor 35mm PC about three years ago after reading about it. Then I bought a second lens from a famous photography blogger so I could have a backup. I didn't buy the lens for its architectural characteristics but so I could compose differently in my mind and then take two separate (or sometimes 3) pictures and stitch them together to create unique compositions. I really enjoy using the lens, it's very clever in design. I only wish that there was a 50mm and an 85mm lens like this."

mynameiseli: "The reason I never had a Canon T70 and FD lenses is because by the time I had saved up the dough (private in the Army at the time), the Base Post Exchange had dropped them. For the new-fangled EOS 650. With the EF 50mm and EF 35–70mm. I was not an avid photographer; I didn't have the resources to be. I still have it, and the lenses. So, when Canon introduced the new-fangled R series, and they ran a good sale on the R near Christmas 2019, I bought it. And I went ahead and bit on the R so that I could say that I have the 'first' EOS and the 'first' EOS R. My photographs look so much better now.  :-) "

It looks to me like Canon is revamping its lineup. I'm just not sure how, exactly.

I'm not an expert on all things Canon. I shot Canon only once, in prehistoric days when dinosaurs roamed the Earth and heroes were mighty and did great deeds, etc. The camera was called an EOS RT, and it was one of the slickest picturetaking devices ever created at that time, although mine had a propensity to stop working at inconvenient times. (The workaround was to take the battery out and re-insert it.) It had a pellicle mirror, which "the market" hates but which I loved. (The market repeatedly and decisively rejects pellicle-mirror cameras, despite various cameramakers' infatuation with them. I could tell you stories.) The pellicle mirror (a.k.a. beam splitter) permitted an extremely short shutter lag time, better than a rangefinder M Leica, which had been the king in that department at that time.

Anyway, not a Canon expert. And there are no easy go-to Canon experts out there, like Rob Galbraith used to be and like Thom Hogan is to Nikon now. So take this post with a pinch of sodium chloride.

You're aware that Canon recently introduced two new budget cameras, the R8 and R50. The R8 (right) is thought to be a replacement for the original budget R camera, the RP, although Canon says the RP will continue in the lineup, presumably because of the large price-point difference. The other one is the R50 (top), which has an APS-C sensor and takes all RF lenses but is made to match RF-S (crop sensor) lenses specifically. It is being discussed like the whole issue is whether it replaces the M50—as the name would seem to suggest.

If, like me, you're catching up here, the M Canons were Canon's grudging nod to mirrorless when it was kinda hoping mirrorless would go away. The M's were mainly paltry little amateur cameras, walled off in a little ghetto by virtue of having a separate lensmount, called EF-M, although they also accepted EF and EF-S lenses with an adapter, the latter denoting lenses dedicated to the cropped sensor. (Confused? Don't worry; everyone was.) The M line began in 2012. But then Canon eventually made the more purposeful and fuller-featured M50 (2018) and M50II (2020), which people liked and which sold inconveniently well.

Too many lensmounts do not a prosperous camera company make, so it makes sense to transition the EF-M mirrorless cameras to the newer RF (full frame) and RF-S (cropped sensor) R lensmount. That's what Internet thinks the R50 is: an updated M50 II in RF-S mount. The big question being asked out on the wilds of the Web is whether the R50 replaces the M50 II. My opinion about that: duh.

My question, one which Internet is not asking, is whether the R50 is actually the advance guard for the eventual replacement of the Rebels.

"Rebel" is one of Canon's most well-known names. It's been around since Andre Agassi had hair, no diss. And Canon didn't slap it on the R50. The EF-S Rebels—I count three of them as current products on the Canon USA page, the Rebel 8Ti (2020, $750), the even smaller and lighter Rebel SL3 (also $750), and the older Rebel 7 (early 2018, currently a price leader at $429 with kit lens)—probably still pull well for Canon, which can't afford to give away sure sales in a down market. And it doesn't matter that much if the Rebels are SLRs and still use the EF-S mount, because the casual and beginner photographers the Rebels are aimed at generally use just one, or at most two, kit lenses. And Canon can't afford to telegraph that the EF mount is losing support, because it still sells numerous FF DSLRs and has a large number of entrenched users.

Still and all, it makes sense that Canon should transition as much as possible to the RF mount eventually, and it makes sense that it would start with the lower-end models where the stakes are not so high. Anyway, my partially educated guess is that the R50 is not just the M50 II replacement; it's actually the Fort Sumter cannon of the new Rebels*.

Well, this is all just my take. As I say, not an expert. And I don't have any insider contacts at Canon since old friend Chuck Westfall died. (If you don't know the name, Chuck was the camera company tech rep par excellence, a paragon of the type, and famous far and wide in the hobby, to the point of being lampooned by a gadfly known as "Fake Chuck Westfall." Chuck was not amused at the spoof, by the way.)

So I'm not exactly sure how Canon is revamping its lineup. But then, maybe Canon isn't entirely sure yet either.

Mike

*You see what I did there.

Original contents copyright 2023 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

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Re "standard mainstream" in regard to enthusiast cameras, here's how Canon Japan classifies its own cameras, translated from Japanese per its domestic market website:

'Professional': EOS-1DX Mark III
'High Amateur': EOS R3, EOS R5, EOS R6 Mark II, EOS R6, EOS R, EOS 5D Mark IV
'Middle Class': EOS R7, EOS R10, EOS RP, EOS 6D Mark II, EOS 90D
'Entry': EOS Kiss M2 (M50 Mark II), EOS M200, EOS Kiss X10i (Rebel T8i), EOS Kiss X10 (Rebel SL3), EOS Kiss X90 (Rebel T7)

Mike
(Hat tip to Oren Grad)

Original contents copyright 2023 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

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Stéphane Bosman: "Isn't that simply too many models? Five entry-level cameras! Twelve models for people who are between consumer and pro! Really?"

Leica Q2 and Q2 Monochrome

As if to emphasize one of the comments I made about videos the other day, I've just spent half the morning trying to find a segment in a video I just watched recently and cannot find to show you. It's a spot in a woodworking video where the presenter talks about tools. The point he makes is that you shouldn't feel bad about dropping money for good tools if you want to, even if you're at an early stage of your involvement and feel like you haven't quite earned the right to own them yet. Good tools are helpful to beginners and make learning easier.

It echoes something I heard long ago about custom-fitted golf clubs. A salesman in a huge junk-filled pro shop in Chicagoland explained to me that even though they never buy them, beginning golfers are actually the people who could benefit the most from a high-quality set of fitted clubs. He said he was a scratch golfer—zero handicap—and had been playing golf all his life, and had played in semi-pro tournaments and tried Q-School. He had played with many club sets over the years and could easily adjust to anything within a few hours. Beginners who are learning their swing for the first time are the ones who would benefit from a set of clubs that they didn't have to adjust to. But he added with a sigh that no one ever took this advice, that beginners never buy good clubs. The idea that they aren't yet good enough for good clubs was too ingrained. He was quite an Eeyorish, melancholy fellow, with a fatalistic attitude. And he wasn't actually trying to sell me anything—he had already qualified me and satisfied himself that I had no money and wasn't going to buy anything.

I've heard the same thing about acoustic guitars—that good ones are much easier to play. Presumably Molly Tuttle or a virtuoso like Marcin can play on anything, but a beginner would be best advised to buy a good instrument from the start because it's better to learn on. I don't know personally if this is true.; it's just something I heard.

Stuck in the tarpit
I'm half convinced that the same is true of cameras. I've been working with students, amateurs and newcomers in many capacities for more decades now than I care to mention, and I've observed pretty consistently over many years that newcomers insist on buying cheap starter cameras because they're convinced that that's what's appropriate for their level. But then they immediately get distracted with cameras and shopping, which of course has nothing at all to do with learning how to photograph. This preoccupation with gear can last for a number of months only if they're lucky—most often they get mired in it for years, and, in fact, quite often the distraction proves terminal. They get into gearheadism and never get back out of it. Instead of getting into pictures, learning how pictures work and learning how to shoot, they devote themselves to learn about specs and tech and the industry and all the endless minutiae of techniques they don't even know they need and never quite get around to concentrating on actual photography.

The Leica Q2 is a perfect antidote to all that. It's got a fixed 28mm lens, same as the basic focal length on many smartphones so it will be familiar, and since you can't interchange the lenses you never have to worry about getting more lenses. And it's very simple and straightforward to use, unlike many good cameras. (Check out this T-shirt I ran across the other day.) And it's a Leica, which for better or worse is the only Veblen Good in the camera universe, and has the reputation of being the best of the best. One of the best reasons to own a Leica and a Leica lens is that you never have to wonder about and worry about whether a Leica would be better than what you've got.

If you were to get this for Christmas, you could then dive right away into learning how to arrange and organize pictures, learning how to translate the three-dimensional visual world into two dimensions, learning how to find and interact with subjects, learning which pictures people respond to, learning what your own visual concerns are, learning how to process and edit...in short, learning how to photograph. You won't need to worry about whether your equipment is good enough.

I'm not saying it's necessary to buy a great camera right from the start and be done with it. But it's a more valid and viable option than most people give it credit for.

And you might not even be able to afford another camera for a long time, which would probably be a good thing.  :-)

Mike
Flickr page / New Yorker author page

*A list of a dozen beautiful gifty things in the spirit of the season.

Original contents copyright 2022 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

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David Drake: "Your argument of beginners having good tools couldn’t be any more ‘sound’ when it comes to acoustic guitars (or any stringed instrument for that matter). I would like to add to previous comments, that the most important reason for this is that a cheap guitar will not stay in tune! I learned this for myself after buying a super cheap used guitar at a church sale to see if it might be something I would like to pursue. I didn’t know how to tune it properly so a guitarist friend helped. It stayed in tune for about five minutes. My friend told me to get rid of it immediately."

ASW (partial comment): "Regarding the purchase of quality tools, there is another option in the introductory/trial phase and that is renting. At the beginning of the pandemic, my wife decided to fulfill her long-term desire to learn to play the cello. She started by renting a decent cello for six or nine months to make sure that she actually enjoyed the lessons and practice involved, after which she found an independent luthier in our region from whom she bought a decent quality used cello. Let's call it a Nikon D700-level cello; pretty good, not the newest or flashiest, but better in some ways than the cello she had been renting. We found the process quite interesting as he was an older (70s?) fellow who seemed to enjoy talking about his work and the dozens of instruments under repair in his shop. We ended up spending over an hour with him and he asked lots of questions about her experience and goals with the cello and used that information to help her select from his stock. She recently returned for a tune-up, new strings, and a better quality bow."

Kristine Hinrichs: "The truth of the matter is that most photographers could have purchased at least one (likely two) Leicas for what we’ve spent over the years 'upgrading' from this camera/lens or that to the newest model."

John Krumm: "The 'buy quality' approach is definitely true with flutes, in my experience. I started playing the flute in summer school before fourth grade. My parents bought me what they could afford, a used middle-grade brand, not great. My instructor could make it sing. But I could never hit the lowest and highest notes. One day (later in middle school) I tried out my classmate's new, expensive German flute. All of a sudden, I had way more range. And that was part of how we were assigned our chair positions in the band; we had to play the chromatic scale, at speed, from the lowest to highest note. I never did get the nice flute, and I quit playing after ninth grade. That's one thing I appreciated about Olympus DSLRs when I started photography. They put many of their best features even in the lower models."

brian: "My wife, legally blind, is a fiber artist and quilter. She was 'to-and-fro-ing' about a new sewing machine, as she had trouble sewing straight lines: not important for the art, but quilt show judges do not make allowances. Anyway I got a great machine for her and she, excuse the pun, has never looked back. She is now winning quilt show awards."

Mike replies: That makes me want to root for your wife. Good for her! I see great quilts made by the Amish and Mennonites around here. I always stop to admire them.

Keith: "Similarly applies to the shooting sports, where it's widely recognized that a firearm that properly fits the shooter's proportions and has a smooth, crisp trigger will be much easier for a beginning shooter. An experienced one knows how to adapt and compensate. "Regarding camera choice, that factored into my decision to go with the Olympus E-M1 series and a trio of pro-grade lenses. I was content to make the best prints I could make up to 22" size, and knew I couldn't blame failure on said equipment. Several years later and no regrets on my choice, so I don't have to second guess my gear and can move on to the important things like composition, lighting, and camera straps.  :-)"

Nikon Z7II

By 2020, the camera market had fallen to approximately 7.4% of what it was in 2011. That's a tremendous decline. Much of it is accounted for by the rise of decent cameras included in smartphones, which wiped out the market for high-volume digital point-and-shoots. In 2021, 93.8% or so of the remaining interchangeable-lens camera (ILC) market was divided between just five companies: in order, these are Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fuji and Panasonic—and the top three of those account for a whopping 83.7%. All the other brands, for example Ricoh, Hasselblad, OM System, Leica, Sigma, and many smaller and specialty brands, share only the remaining 6.2% of the market between them. In the top five, Canon, Sony, and Fuji have generally been increasing in market share in recent years, whereas Nikon and Panasonic's fortunes have been falling. It's worth pointing out that although Canon had more than twice the market share of its next-largest rival, Sony, Sony, with its formidable head start, was actually preeminent in 2021 in the all-important full-frame mirrorless subcategory.

Nikon, which was the premier professional brand from the 1960s to the 1990s, is no longer even one of "the Big Two." Although it retains outsized mindshare, especially among those of us of a certain age, it was overtaken by Sony in the late teens, and in 2021 fell sharply against its rival, to 13.7% versus Sony's 22.1%.

These numbers don't tell the whole story, though. Although very late to the field of full-frame mirrorless (FFM), Nikon got to start with a clean slate when it introduced the Z System in 2018—mostly full-frame with a few DX (APS-C) models, all mirrorless—with basic design specs that allowed its lens designers great freedom. As with Canon in 1991 when it introduced the EOS line, this initially caused some, er, adjustment among its existing clientele. Understandably—Nikon had stuck with the F-mount, with certain amendments, since the 1950s! However, the lineup has proliferated vigorously since then, and there doesn't appear to be a dog in the bunch. Nikons are much liked by our readership of experienced photographers and veteran amateurs. In particular, many feel that Nikon's engineers bested Sony in intangibles such as hand-feel, ergonomics, and control placements. And there's never been anything wrong with Nikkor lenses.

We tend to like and recommend "sweet spot" models as opposed to extremes (most portable, highest spec, etc.)**, and the sweet spot in the Z System you might say is shared by the 6 and 7 duo. The first half of the duo is the simpler and more basic but still very high-quality Z6 and Z6II. We recommend the former, which is on sale for $600 off this holiday season at B&H Photo with the standard very good zoom lens. It was cheaper to start with than the Z6II, which offers only a few incremental improvements that won't be reflected in the user experience for most. It's a relative bargain and is a very solid choice. Here's the link to a similar kit but with the more recent mark II version of the body. Meanwhile, the higher level Z7II is the latest version of the better-spec'd mid-line model with all the bells and whistles, for those with fatter wallets and/or more affection for special features and specific capabilities.

These cameras are below the Z9 in the Nikon line. However, note that both these cameras are far more capable, and capable of more beautiful results, than perhaps 99% of the digital cameras ever made. As appealing as it may be to chase "the best," it's worth it only if you have a specific need for something the highest model can do; just owning the extreme is a temporary feather in your cap in a constantly moving market, and nobody will be able to tell from your pictures that you parted with the premium. But by all means suit yourself: the Z9 is currently $5,496.95 at B&H.

Mike

*A list of a dozen beautiful gifty things in the spirit of the season.

**And pros, at whom the top models are targeted, seldom need advice from bloggers and YouTubers anyway.

Original contents copyright 2022 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below or on the title of this post.)

Featured Comments from:

Thomas Rink (partial comment): "To sum it up: The Z7II is a small but well-made and powerful camera. Ergonomics are great—it is almost impossible to change a setting by accident. Battery life is not a problem either, as I was able to shoot for three hours at about 0°C, and still had 50% charge remaining. In my opinion, this is definitely a fun camera!"

Warren Hinder: "I am fortunate to have both a Z7II and a Z9. Apart from the physical size differences, the ergonomics and functionality of the Z9 is near perfect. For landscape photography the Z7II is excellent, light, and well matched to the ƒ/4 Z lens range. For any action work, birding, etc., there is no comparison between the Z9 and Z7II. I never thought I would go back to a camera of this weight and size, but the Z9 is such a joy to photograph with. It reminds me every day why I have been a Nikon user for nearly 50 years."

Rob Campbell writes: "Film only makes sense if it returns to pre-digital price levels."

Actually, in the case of the 2022 M6, it did.

The new Leica M6 costs $5,295. That's virtually the same as it was in 1992, which was pre-digital for almost all of us.

I found this at Photo.net, posted by "JDMvW." He reports that it's from Popular Photography in July of 1992:

And I ran that through the U.S. Inflation Calculator maintained by CoinNews, and got this:

Q.E.D.

I'm not trying to help you rationalize a purchase, mind you. Film still costs a lot, in money, time, and effort, and it's a PITA, and there are tons of other options for those who want to shoot "miniature format," as it was sometimes called way back in the 1930s and '40s. I mean 135, a.k.a. 35mm. (What's in a name? We now call it "full frame.") And make no mistake, the Leica M6 was extravagantly expensive in 1992. That was the year I bought mine. I paid $2,000 for a used one, saving ~$500, along with another $1k for a 35mm Summicron, which was roughly 3–4X what you'd pay for the equivalent Canon or Nikon lens then. But you can't deny that the 2022 M6 costs the same as it did in 1992, adjusted for inflation. I love to complain about Leica prices, and don't worry, I'll continue to be all sour-grapey. But ya gotta give credit where credit is due.

A fortune hanging from a strap
I had a couple of problems with my M6 that were related to price. First, I felt exposed carrying around $3k on a strap on my shoulder. It was too much for me to lose, and I was often conscious of it. It felt a little like holding someone else's infant. Second, I couldn't justify keeping the M6 after I switched to Olympus and bought an OM-4T, a camera that suited me much better and that I did better work with. It was too much money to keep tied up in a camera I wasn't using, at that time. I was "forced" to sell it. I subsequently owned two other M6's, including actor Jack Lemmon's. I sold Jack's M6 to Art Elkon, who passed away a few years ago. Don't know what happened to the camera.

But I did shoot with the M6 for a solid year, in '91–92, and did a lot of shooting, carrying it with me every day ("I put my camera on in the morning and take it off in the evening, like my shirt" —David Vestal) and it's an experience I'm very glad I have under my belt. Remember "The Leica as Teacher"? One of my more popular essays here.

Now if someone would just create an updated and upgraded new version of the OM-2N—and sell it for the same price as one cost in 1984, adjusted for inflation—then you'd really have something!*

That is all,

Mike

*If you ask me, one bargain 35mm film camera to check out these days if you want to shoot FFF (full frame film, guffaw) is the little-known and even less appreciated Olympus OM-2S. It had the simplicity of the OM-2 and OM-2N, but with weather sealing, and much of the guts, including the same shutter, of the fancier OM-4T, the flagship at the time. (Using the flash drained the battery, which explains some of the market's aversion—so then, just don't use it with the flash.) The OM-4T is also a great camera, but its fancy metering features, though deeply beloved of gearheads (including Yr. Hmbl. Ed.) when it was current, were actually of pretty limited usefulness practically speaking. Today, OM-4T prices are higher, as they are for all "apex" models, no matter how old. It still costs more to buy a Leica IIIg than a Leica IIIf! People want the latest model even when the latest model is 65 years old. Makes no sense to me. It's that MMB complex I mentioned the other day.

So get an OM-2S and then spring for a thorough CLA (clean lube adjust) by a reputable repair-person—John Hermanson might be at the top of that heap for old OM film cameras. It will give you a lot of what you can get from a brand-spanking new 2022 M6, minus the status of the latter among the limited coterie of the cognoscenti of course.

Book o' the Week

Leica M: Advanced Photo School by Günter Osterloh, Second Edition. My favorite of all the Leica gear books. UPDATE: When I posted this "Book of the Week" two days ago, Amazon said it had ten copies left at a reasonable price. Well, look at the price now! Guess I'd better go find a new book of the week. Timing is everything.  :-)

The book link above is a portal to any purchase at Amazon. You're very kind use our links, as they help support the site.

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Lothar Adler: "I am always surprised that the Zeiss Ikon ZI rangefinder camera is almost never mentioned, although it is a really very good camera and has everything you need. Including a very good viewfinder with a much larger measuring base for better focusing than with a Leica—I had tested both in parallel with the same lenses and finally bought the ZI, with which I am very satisfied. Unfortunately not digital, which I am almost embarrassed to confess."

Mike replies: I certainly mentioned it!

Peter Tutt: "I am with you Mike with the OM2S. I bought one new back whenever for the spot metering. Great for the street too, hold it upside down, 28mm lens, and nobody knows. I put a heap of T-Max 100 through it and it's still going strong. Gem of a camera!"

Even the box is an homage

"Iconic" is a buzzword that is heavily overused now—everything mildly familiar, no matter how trivial, is called "iconic"—but, today, Leica re-introduced the, yes, iconic M6 film camera.

The new version is highly respectful of the 1984–2002 original, down to having "Leitz" on the red dot. Which might have taken some doing—the founding Leitz family sold Leica in 1986 and originally forbade the new owners from using the cherished family name. However, the new one's not an out-and-out replica. There are a number of technical updates and luxurious touches.

• All optical surfaces will be coated. At one point, under earlier owners, Leica tried to cut corners with coatings in the rangefinder optics. Users for a spell complained of spurious reflections in the finder, a problem Leica hastily fixed without admitting there was a problem.
• The top plate will be made of brass with a tough black lacquer. (Black paint is—all right—iconic.)
• The original M6 (basically the Canadian M4-P with an uncoupled light meter cleverly added) just had two little arrows that told you which way to turn the aperture ring to get proper exposure. Later models added a red dot in between the two arrows as confirmation of correct exposure; the new M6 has the red confirmation dot.
• The shutter speed dial is the right size and turns the right way! A victory for the way things are supposed to be.
• A low battery warning has been added. All right, but it took more than a year to run down the battery in an original M6. The quaint but pleasing custom was to replace the battery every year on your birthday, whether it needed replacing or not. You apparently need a newfangled nagging nanny warning. Okay, we're good with that. Me, I hate the tire pressure warning system in my Honda. The old tire pressure warning system was me with a pressure gauge, and it worked much better. Am I digressing again?

There is also a new and (gasp!) tiny (another win for the way things are supposed to be) 35mm Summilux V1 Steel Rim, which Jono Slack has been using for months now.

Cue gushy happy YouTubby comparos between vintage Leitz-labeled '80s M6's and the gleaming new one in 3, 2....

Mike

P.S. If you're buying one, a plea to wait until B&H has 'em for preorder so you can use my links...okay, you're probably not that patient. I understand. Go ahead, I'll eat cat food.  :-]

Book o' the Week

Leica M: Advanced Photo School by Günter Osterloh, second edition. My favorite of all the Leica gear books. And they are legion. You will actually learn practical stuff from this one. Used, but this is the latest edition from 2011.

The book link above is a portal to any purchase at Amazon. You're very kind use our links, as they help support the site.

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Rob L: "Cool! My M6 is again a current model!  :-)  It's really the best M, so glad they brought her back."

John Krill: "I guess if I have to ask the price I can't afford it."

Mike replies: $5,295 body only. Bear in mind there are lots of choices for lenses that don't have to cost an arm and a leg and an arm. Especially from Voigtlaender and Zeiss.

Albert Smith: "Maybe this old-school lens might be a good compliment to the new M6. Leica is reissuing the first generation pre-aspheric 35mm ƒ/1.4 Summilux, same optics in modern body. You could drop 10 grand for the camera and lens. So glad the I bought my M6 when it only cost $2,000 in the late '80s."

Mike replies: Not that it matters, but I myself coined the term "king of bokeh," way back in '97. But not about the original of that lens.

Ned Bunnell: "Mike, regarding your B&H link, I was told the M6 will only be sold through Leica stores and Leica direct here in the U.S. And in very small quantities. So it’ll be interesting to see if B&H gets them."

Mike replies: Figures. So it's just another special edition after all, for collectors.

Ned: "Mike, this is not a special edition just for collectors. By 'small quantities,' I simply meant they’re being made by hand in Germany so production yields will obviously be much smaller than a company who builds a large production run at the start of a new model release. Depending on the response Leica gets, it could be awhile before you get your camera. I also am guessing that Leica knows what used M6’s are going for these days, so they decided they could capture a good percent of this money by offering a new model. I actually think this is a smart move on their part. Since they still have all the tooling for the M6, development costs are much less than designing and building a brand new model."

Rob Campbell (partial comment): "Film only makes sense if it returns to pre-digital price levels. Other than that, it’s just a silly conceit."

Luke: "Wait...you have to buy a whole new sensor after every few shots? How 'iconic.'"

Ernest Zarate: "Shortly after I got the settlement for the motorcycle accident in which I nearly lost my lower left leg, I bought myself a new M6. Looked just like this, presentation box and all. I got the Leica 35mm ƒ/2 lens, too. Terrific camera. So precise and extremely well engineered. Very…German. But it got sold a few years later so I could get the Mamiya 6.

"Now, that camera was a masterpiece. But I do think of my M6 now and then. I don’t regret selling it. And I’m not laying down the thousands of dollars for this brand new re-intro version (though if I had the do re mi…hmmm…). But I do think of it now and then. That Leica *snick* shutter mechanism was and is intoxicating. In the end, it wasn’t the right camera for me. We never really clicked, it and me. I never did any memorable or really meaningful work with it. Maybe in a sense it was too much camera, or, rather, it was too freighted with the Leica Legacy for me. It was too much a hurdle to get over. A camera (for me) has to be a tool, form following function, that gets me results. That just never happened with this camera. Anyway, it’s a very nice memory I have and I’m happy to see the M6 back."

Alan King: "It’s interesting that they re-issued the original 35mm Summilux. I owned one of the originals, made in Germany, from the second-to-last batch. For myself the lens was unusable wide open, though it was fine stopped down. It was my primary lens for 12 years or so because it was so small and light. When its value hit $3,000 it finally became too expensive to keep. I ended up buying three brand new Voigtländer lenses, and a certain peace of mind, with the money."

Fujirumors is predicting that the tilting viewing screen will be restored to the upcoming Fuji X-T5, due to be announced and shipped in November. It claims that the likelihood of this happening is "100%."

The new camera is also rumored to have 40 MP, and no vertical grip is planned. I've owned a vertical grip for my X-T1 for years and have yet to use it a second time, so I guess this doesn't alarm me personally.

Given that I still own an X-T1 and haven't really "taken" to the X-H1 for whatever reason, I ought to begin saving up for an X-T5. I have a lot of Fujinon X lenses.

More holistically, I hope that the existence of the X-H2[s] will mean that Fuji feels okay about not stuffing the X-T5 to the gills with gee-whiz features. Fujis were always fun to use, and that was arguably their best "feature."

Mike

Book o' the Week

Annie Leibovitz. At long last, the unlimited trade edition of the humongous, limited Sumo edition by Taschen. Mind you, this is still a huge book—15.4 inches high, 556 pages, and almost 13 pounds. And the price! (But that's nothing—the Sumo weighed 57 pounds and cost $7,500.) This is the closest ordinary folks (with ordinary shelves) will get to the ultimate Annie.

The book link above is a portal to any purchase at Amazon. You're very kind use our links, as they help support the site.

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Nico.: "According to the Fuji lens roadmap there’s also a 30mm (45mm eq.) macro lens due this year. With Fujicron form factor(?) Wasn’t ~40–45mm your favourite focal length, Mike?"

Mike replies: Yes, and both my current Sigma lenses are 45mm or the equivalent angle of view. There's nothing special about 45mm, it's just that many of us (not all!) have focal lengths with which we feel at home.

["Open Mike" is the Editorial Page of TOP, wherein Yr. Hmbl. Ed. wanders down tributaries and scolds the internet betimes. It appears now and then.]

-

I'm very happy with my cameras recently. My Sigma fp is not yet converted to mono-only, so I'm still using Jason's—and I still need to shoot with the Leica Monochrom. (My plans were interrupted by COVID-19, from which I have recovered.) But I really like the idea of splitting my arsenal into an "art" camera and a "note-taking" camera...the odd and unusual fp-M as a sort of walk-around B&W view camera (that's kinda how I think of it), and the iPhone 13 for taking visual notes.

The life of an artist
This split—a notepad on the one hand and the ambition to make self-conscious art on the other—has a long history with me. Before I first got into photography in a big way, I was into art—I drew and painted, which was my claim to fame when I was in the "gifted kid" stage of the Life of an Artist—so a lot of of my early photographing was as references for drawings and paintings. That is, it was all note-taking—it didn't matter if a photograph worked as a photograph; it didn't matter if telephone wires spoiled a sky. I was only going to use it as raw material anyway.

Then, when I got more serious about 35mm photography, I deliberately and consciously conceived of my shooting as half art and half personal note-taking. That is, I wanted to make "good" photographs to show, but I also wanted to be free to record things, to shoot things I wanted to explore or remember—and just to play around. I conceived of my contact sheets not only as raw material for art but also as my diary. My idea was that the balance should be half and half. I formulated this early on, and it freed me up to not be too serious all the time.

Ever since smartphones got "good enough," they've created tension in my life. All too often, they've been "the camera I've had with me." And that's been to the detriment of my photography, because photographs happen to you when you're out and about with a camera, and, contrary to the common truism, the best camera is not the one you have with you. In fact, it's a very common mistake, and occasionally a tragedy, to have nothing but the wrong camera with you. What you really need to have with you is the right camera, the camera the occasional good pictures should have been taken with. At this point in history I have lots of pictures taken with various smartphones that I really wish had been taken with a better camera.

Convenient and fun
And yet...convenience. It's what drives the evolution of photography. The quality of smartphone cameras as cameras is almost completely beside the point; their great advantage is the convenience of instant sharing over distances. The other day I shot a short movie, in color, with sound, and sent it to my cousin in California (I live in New York), who received it almost instantaneously, watched it, and sent a comment back. All over the course of just a few minutes. When I entered photography school 40 years ago, that would have been utter science fiction. In response to such an idea, anybody with any knowledge would have responded, "that's never going to happen." (It's one of the cool things about getting older...sooner or later you live in the future.) Anyway, convenience has most consistently been the driver of the evolution of photographic technology right from the start, up until this minute, and it's useless to pretend otherwise. And shooting with a phone is fun. Why would you deny yourself something readily available and free that's so much fun?

(As to what "note-taking" is—my iPhoneography—I was going to post some illustrations in this post, but on second thought I think it would just be a distraction. I'll put some examples in a separate post.)

I used to think that the ideal was to have only one camera that could do everything, which is why I've always leaned toward APS-C and Micro 4/3 cameras. I wanted one camera that was suited for both note-taking and more serious shooting. But for quite a while now—at least since Sara and I went to California to meet her parents in 2014, and I took only my iPhone 4s—I've had this idea that using the smartphone frees me up to balance it out with a camera that's more specialized and less suited to covering the note-taking aspects of photographing. I b'lieve at one point I mused in these pages that maybe it should be a Fuji medium-format digital camera...big balancing out little. (I'd link to that post, but I can't find it.) But honestly, a dedicated B&W camera with an enormous viewfinder that yields as much detail as I could want is just the perfect counterbalance to the iPhone...for me personally.

I want to use the iPhone. I'm going to use it. No sense pretending I won't. The important thing is to have something that suits my personal desires that balances it out. And I feel like I've got that now.

Like I say, I'm just very happy with the solution offered by this pair of cameras. One is easy to use and shoots color and panos and movies and everything is available for instant sharing; the other is funky and deliberate, lets me see in B&W again, has a giant viewfinder, and is perfectly suited to concerted shooting ("concerted shooting" meaning shooting when that's all I'm doing). It's ideally suited (again, just for me) to careful, slow, contemplative photographing. The opposite of the iPhone.

So the two of them balance each other out. One does one kind of shooting I want to do, and the other does the other kind of shooting I want to do.

Express yourself
Of course, the Sigma fp-M paired with the iPhone 13 Pro is a very idiosyncratic answer to the question "which camera?" You could pretty easily make the argument that getting a mainstream high-megapixel FF mirrorless camera with a 24–105mm zoom lens and then having it with me at all times would actually make more sense and be the best thing I could do. But, hey, I've always been an artist at heart. And we march to the beat of our own drummers and take the roads less traveled, right?

Mike

*And by the way, "vs.," the abbreviation for the word versus, is pronounced ˈvər-səs. (Hear it here.) Idiot YouTube has decided that the way to say it is "verse," which is brain-dead. Have you noticed the blinding speed at which the world is becoming illiterate? I come across strange and primitive semi-literate formulations of English almost every day now, even in reputable sources. Verse is the singular of "verses," which means lines of metrical writing. Versus means "against" or "in opposition to." It descends from the Latin word meaning "facing."

Book o' the Week

Annie Leibovitz. At long last, the unlimited trade edition of the humongous, limited Sumo edition by Taschen. Mind you, it's still a huge book—15.4 inches high, 556 pages, and almost 13 pounds. And the price! (But that's nothing—the Sumo weighed 57 pounds and cost $7,500.) This is the closest ordinary folks (with ordinary shelves) will get to the ultimate Annie. It will be released on Friday, and can be pre-ordered now.

This book link is a portal to Amazon. You're very kind use our links, as they help support the site.

B&H Photo

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

John Krumm: "We like to think the gear doesn't matter, but of course it does, it just is very personal and is not always related to what is broadly popular. So I understand your pleasure with your unusual camera and funky elephant grip.

"I've recently started shooting with a new manual-focus Voigtlander APO 35mm ƒ/2 Z mount lens. [This one? —Mike] I just totally love using it. I'm getting better and better at just looking at the distance scale and guessing the zone. It makes focusing a pleasure, not a chore, when you can skip the whole magnify, fine-tune, then shoot process. But I would not recommend it for most people." 

Mike replies: I focus the 45mm ƒ/2.8 on the fp-M manually too. The AF works fine, but I just like the manual focus.

John: "Re '[This one? —Mike]': Yes, bought a few weeks ago from CameraQuest, the main U.S. Voigtländer dealer, but newly available at B&H. Not a perfect lens, but very nice, with great feel. I'm hoping they eventually make a 28mm version."

Geoff Wittig: "Gaaah. I feel physical pain at the degradation of the English language before our eyes. 'Verse' is bad enough. Nails-on-a-chalkboard for me is 'on accident,' an utterly wrong substitute for accidentally, or by [way of] accident."

Mike replies: I feel like everybody who cares about language has at least one pet peeve that drives them particularly wild. For me it's "loose" in place of "lose." There's no reason why that one in particular should bug me so much—but every time I see it I get to feeling that it might be all right to strangle someone.

Luke: "Easy, Mike. Don't loose it. Breath, breath."

Tom Duffy: "At least a perfect camera combination is possible for you. Always available vs. contemplative. I'm still trying to shoot Tri-X and digital at the same time. And it seems that I really prefer a 6x9 negative to 35mm for Tri-X. And I'm in love with that large 50mm ƒ/1.2 on my Canon. Camera bag no matter what. I don't know how this situation is going to resolve."

Mike replies: What a nice coincidence. I have a quote by Tom Duffy taped to my office wall, and for some reason it caught my eye this morning. After rereading it, I found myself wondering whether Tom still reads TOP, or if he might be among the legion of the departed (there's a lot of turnover in a blog audience, even though this one has many loyal readers who've been reading for many years). And then I turned on my computer and found this comment at the top of the stack. Nice.

Terry Letton: "Arghh. You guys that think words have meanings fixed from on high. No No No. their meaning is whatever the current consensus says it is and that changes over time. Sorry my pet peeve."

Ken: "Yesterday, a photo caption in the paper referred to two cyclists in post-Ian Florida 'peddling' their bikes somewhere or other. I 'must of' missed when pedaling bikes went out of fashion, but it doesn't 'phase me' if some guys just want to sell their bikes instead of riding them."

Kylian: "What? Aren't you going to tell us what quote of Tom Duffy's you have taped to your office wall?"

Mike replies:

"I used to do a lot of climbing when I was younger (OK, way younger) to the point of getting frostbite from a winter climb on Long's Peak in Colorado in '77. Experientially, I found that if I kept looking at the summit of a mountain, I would find myself becoming disheartened at my seeming lack of progress as I climbed. I came to realize that since I knew the goal, all I had to do was keep putting one foot in front of the other, and that steady-state, non-introspective activity achieved the summit.

"The insight stuck with me. Much of success in life comes from endurance and not much more. As important as thinking is, I'd make the case that after defining a goal, it's often more productive to simply endure."

—Tom Duffy

[From this post. Bruce Springsteen said something similar about his early career; he said something to the effect that there were setbacks that could have discouraged him if he had let them, but he knew that if he just kept walking, he would get there in the end.]

Danielsroka: "Having both a note-taking camera and an art camera makes sense to me as well. But not just from the nature of the camera (its convenience, quality, etc.) but from where the photographs end up living, and how they get used. My note-photos taken on my iPhone live on my iPhone. They are made to be quickly referenced, lightly edited (at best) and easily shared. My art photos taken with my Nikon D850, on the other hand, live on my computer, where they can be carefully considered and slowly edited. Neither environment is good for the other type of photo for me, so I appreciate having the clear separation between them."

It looks like both iPhone 14 "Pro" models—the Pro and Pro Max—will feature one camera with 48 MP. This can be used two ways—for expanded cropping options, or for pixel-binning down to 12-MP in low light. The sensor on the wide module is still 12 MP, but it's physically bigger. And multi-exposure computational photography isn't just for Night Mode any more—you can use it for normal shots as well, to get better quality. The range of focal lengths is also changed, to four: .5X, 1X, 2X, and 3X. How that works out is that the three modules are 13mm-equivalent (12-MP), 24mm-e (48-MP in Pro Raw), and 77mm-e (12-MP). The "2X" option is 48mm-e and uses a cropped section from the 48-MP module.

DPReview points out a very interesting little fact: that iPhones, in sensor size and number of megapixels, have now caught up to the old all-in-one small-sensor digicams such as the Canon Powershot G15 of ten years ago. Albeit with far more capability thanks to processing, binning, and image combining.

Check out Tom Burke's comment from the other day (you might remember Tom—scroll down a bit at that link):

TB: This summer I decided to be honest with myself and recognise that I was simply no longer using my DSLR and lenses. When we went to Dubai in late winter they never left the hotel room; I used the iPhone instead. So during the summer I sold all my photo equipment and I've been waiting for Apple's announcement. I like the hardware improvements in the iPhone camera system, such the bigger sensors, improved apertures, and the increased resolution of the main camera sensor which it seems can be used in either full resolution mode or in binned 12 mp mode. And of course the continued improvements in the software are also attractive.

But the camera and its surrounding system are just part of the story. What I've come to understand is that good technique is as important with an iPhone as it is with any system. Night mode, for example, works pretty well however you use it, but with the phone on a tripod and exposure triggered remotely (via my Apple Watch, for example), the results can be stunning. So I'm pretty sure I can see an iPhone 14 Pro in my future. Mastering it is going to be my next photographic journey, and I'm looking forward to it.

It's a perfectly legit approach, and I'll be interested to hear how he gets along with the new iPhone 14.

Mike

Peter Wright: "I watched the presentation today. Very slick! Looking at the camera section made we wonder why I even think of getting another camera any more. I doubt if anything I want to photograph can’t be done with the 14 pro. Seriously, isn’t buying a dedicated camera a waste of money for almost all of us? The only exceptions could be if you have some very special needs like professional wildlife, or some strange proclivities like the desire to photograph with a 'greys' camera."

I've added a few more shots to the fp sample album. I spent well over three hours out shooting yesterday. I got five keepers, although I only posted three of them. I'm holding a few back so I have something to post in case I don't get anything today. (I always worry about where the next picture is coming from.)

To me, using the fp-M is like walking around with a medium-format camera that shoots 4x5. Here's a funny thing: I've always said I want a camera with IS and my new camera doesn't have IS; I've always said I like small cameras and my new camera (as I'll configure it) isn't small; I've always said I don't care for high resolution and my new camera has high resolution; I always said I don't need full frame and my new camera is full frame; I've always said I didn't mind 3:2 and I've decided to shoot the new camera in 4:3 (for the most part). I guess I'll add that I've never done video and the camera was meant primarily for video.

And, when I first started writing about photography almost 40 years ago, the one brand I knew I didn't like was Sigma, which at the time made very inexpensive commodity lenses for people (and there turned out to be many of them) who couldn't afford better. And now I'm a Sigma shooter.

Goes to show you, you never know what's going to click.

As for the OC/OL/OY idea, here's another funny thing: you don't actually want me out photographing all the time. The more time I spend out photographing, the less time I spend writing about photography, and the latter is what I'm really good for.

The same thing has usually been the case when people make other suggestions to me, like, that I should teach workshops. The problem is the same: the more I do of other things, the less I'd write.

How It Works
By the way, here's how I'd do a portfolio, or a body of work, or a book:

• Start with a defined idea.
• Shoot every day.
• Distill the day's shooting down to that day's keepers. Aiming for between one and five.
• Do provisional post-processing on them so they can stand on their own well enough to be well seen (and so I know the files will work.)
• Do that for a year, or some other defined but extended period of time.
• End up with 400–1,500 keepers.
• Make a quick pass and throw out all the "what was I thinking" or "I don't even remember that one" or "I'm repeating myself" duds.
• Resulting in 100–400 strong pictures.
• Get down to serious editing/sequencing.
• End up with 40–60 pictures that work together in sequence and express my take on my idea.

Only then could I begin to think about the logistics and financing of a show and a book. Which is why I'm so impressed with people who have a show and create a book!

Over the past week or two you've watched me do steps 1–4 with the borrowed Sigma fp Monochrome. The keeper rate would go way down during the long Winter months, but in a year, maybe two, I could be ready for the next eight steps.

Of course, no one really needs me to do that. I think people would rather I write.

Mike

P.S. Oh, I forgot one! This is pretty funny. I used to have to wait till after sunset to do darkroom work, because my various darkrooms were seldom light-tight enough during broad daylight. And now, I have to wait till after sundown to process the day's shooting, because the glare out on the porch where I work makes it too difficult to judge values of gray during the daytime. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Book o' the Week

Fred Lyon, San Francisco Noir. "The version [of San Francisco] that Fred Lyon celebrates in his new book is a classic San Francisco full of smoky jazz clubs, neon lights in the fog and sharply dressed men and women stepping on and off of trolley cars. Made mostly during the 1950s and '60s, Lyon's images are big on atmosphere and style, and hit many parts of the city that visitors love." (PDN)

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B&H Photo

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Peter, in Boulder: "I don’t know who to put this into words Mike, other than to say this post makes it very clear how much you’ve enjoyed taking pictures this past week. I’m smiling reading it."

robert e: "I've always enjoyed your writing and looked forward to your posts, Mike, but the fp-M saga really has me on the edge of my seat anticipating the next post and uploads. Your excitement is contagious. I'm still flabbergasted by what seems to me extreme depth of field. I'm wondering what the trick is, but maybe it's not a trick at all—maybe it's just been a really long time since anyone on the internet has stopped down. We do want you writing, sure, but I think all of us would prefer you writing about having fun. We just need to figure out how to make that practicable."

Mike replies: In a short while I'll upload to Flickr an example of what the Ancients called "pan-focus" or front-to-back focus...the world of today has forgotten that this was the manifesto of the then-revolutionary Group ƒ/64, to have everything in focus front to back, ƒ/64 being a stopped-down aperture that gave good depth-of-field on an 8x10 view camera. [UPDATE: Here it is.]

Stephen McCullough: "Although you’re making photographs, this is creating material for the writing. And you ‘sound’ happy. I’m enjoying this series."

Mark: "Finally a Speed Graphic replacement…."

Tom Duffy: "I really like this picture. The tones on the shady side of the barn are perfect. I'm not sure I could have resisted making the sky a little more dramatic. Good restraint on your part. I remember when digital started becoming a thing for Leica and people were commenting on the great image resolution. A naysayer commented, 'Since when did the Leica become a view camera?' Since digital, almost every camera has become a view camera. This is why I own two tilt-shift lenses for my Canon."

As of today, Adorama is having a big sale on the Sigma fp—only $1,759 for all three pieces I need, the camera, the lens, and the magnifying finder—that's $300 less than the best price yesterday. At some places it was $500 more. What a difference a day makes. I bought one this morning. So, decision made, for better or for worse.

Seeing for yourself
This is how it's going to be nice for the blog: before I send it off for conversion, I can compare the color and monochrome versions of the exact same camera.

Not only can I compare the monochrome-sensor fp to edits from the regular uncoverted color fp, but so can you—I can post large B&W files from the converted camera and large color files of the same scene from the unconverted camera. You can download the files, change the color files to mono, and compare them for yourself. So the question "which are better, files from a monochrome camera, or converted color files from a color camera?" is one you will have some evidence for on your own, with your own methods and preferences applied, which is usually the best way.

Sometimes a price drop is as good as a shove

Plus, Sigma has an in-camera monochrome DNG option, so I can report back on that, and perhaps compare that to the monochrome-sensor files as well.

'Interior'
Check out my latest, if you haven't seen it—I love playing around with this camera, so just for fun I wanted to see how close I could come to the "feel" of the light in my living room when it's sunny outside. "Interior" is a HDR merge in Photoshop (File > Automate > Merge to HDR Pro, then "Tone in ACR" to adjust as usual). I "fooled" Flickr by uploading a lighter image, but I couldn't defeat the sharpening or whatever is going on there. The lamp base has haloing around it that is not there in the real file.

This merging of several exposures is very easy to do, by the way. I like the way this one turned out.

Mike

Book o' the Week

Fred Lyon, San Francisco Noir. "The version [of San Francisco] that Fred Lyon celebrates in his new book is a classic San Francisco full of smoky jazz clubs, neon lights in the fog and sharply dressed men and women stepping on and off of trolley cars. Made mostly during the 1950s and '60s, Lyon's images are big on atmosphere and style, and hit many parts of the city that visitors love." (PDN)

These book links are your portal to Amazon. Please use our links; they help support the site.

B&H Photo

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Robert Roaldi: "I have found that the best part about coming to a decision is that once the decision is made, you don't have to spend time thinking about it anymore, and you can get back to what you were doing."

KeithM: " I look forward to hearing more about this camera and the B&W conversion. I have toyed a few times with the possibilities or practicalities of using the Sigma fp or fp L as one would use a view camera—i.e. only a couple of primes and always on a tripod. It would be a step up in resolution and image quality from the Micro 4/3 cameras I usually use—when not shooting LF film (which is not often!). I think the tripod and restricted lens/focal length choices makes one think harder about image-making. Anyway, I look forward to hearing about, and seeing, the results of your new project.

"And, by the way, I also look forward to seeing more lovely images of your local environs—you are lucky to be able to live in such a beautiful spot."

Guy Perkins: "Not related to this post, but about B&W photography, I wonder if you have come across the work of Ando Fuchs. I'm sure you look at far more photography than me so the answer is probably yes. But I thought of his work in relation to your thoughts about B&W toning and style. His work might be overly dark in tone for your taste, but following him on Instagram I find his work of a very high standard, and his style is his own. Thank you for the blog."

Mike replies: There's always room for photography when we're talking about photography. Thanks for the good tip.

I have just been having a high old time with Jason's loaner camera, the monochrome-converted fp. I love B&W and I am so happy being able to shoot it again in a free and unfettered way. I've been spending a lot of time out and about with the camera these past few days. This is just provisional for now, pending further investigation, but it seems that a converted sensor can give results that are as good, in most cases, or at least almost as good, as conventional color files converted in software.

Osprey Nest, edited to look as close as I can come
to Kodak Plus-X in D-76 1:1 with a yellow filter

I believe two things will be true: 1.) that I'll get better at editing these files as time goes by and I practice more, and 2.) that my taste will evolve to move a little closer to the way the files naturally want to look. It's not like there's ever been one invariant look to the B&W materials and processes I've used over my lifetime, up to and including edits into B&W of X-T1 files.

So I have a decision coming up.  Assuming the sensor conversion itself is a sunk cost, because I'm going to do it one way or the other, I need to decide: whether to follow my original plan and have my Sony A6600 APS-C camera converted; or to recreate Jason's camera for myself.

It makes the most sense to convert the A6600. I already own it; I don't believe I need the outstanding resolution of the FF sensor, nice as it is; the camera is smaller and easier to carry; and it has IBIS. I would need to buy a lens with an aperture ring for it, but there are candidates.

Unfortunately, you can't try these things before you buy. Ideally I'd convert the A6600 and then pit it in a comparison against the Sigma fp. But converting it would destroy some part of its resale value, which is about $1,100 right now; and if I resell it I will be out the $1,200 cost of conversion. This makes for a potentially disastrous mistake if it turns out to be the wrong choice. I'd have to unload a camera I have $2,400 invested in for maybe six or eight hundred dollars if I'm lucky. I've taken losses that bad before on my photography hobby, but ya hate to lead with your chin.

On the other hand, an fp like Jason's is an expensive proposition. Camera and lens are $1,900, the viewing magnifier $300, the grip $100. It's okay to dismiss the cost of the conversion because, as I say, that's a sunk cost presuming I get a camera of any kind converted. It's also okay to dismiss the resale proposition, because I like the camera a lot and I think I can commit to keeping it for the long haul—even if I don't use it much I still think I'd enjoy having it and using it occasionally. But it's $2,300 out of pocket not counting the conversion. I'd have to sell a bunch of stuff to rationalize the purchase.

The fp doesn't have IBIS. That is a serious drawback. (Friday's task was experimenting with low-light shooting with the fp.) but I like other aspects of the camera so much that I might be able to put up with that. Also, I still need to have a few prints made before I get too carried away.

The best outcome would be to convert the A6600 and have it be good enough to live with. The worse outcome would be to convert the A6600 and not be happy with it and still continue to want an fp.

Decisions, decisions...what I should probably do is simply keep shooting with the fp until Jason needs it back, and then decide. If you can't decide, delay.

Mike

Book o' the Week

Fred Lyon, San Francisco Noir. "The version [of San Francisco] that Fred Lyon celebrates in his new book is a classic San Francisco full of smoky jazz clubs, neon lights in the fog and sharply dressed men and women stepping on and off of trolley cars. Made mostly during the 1950s and '60s, Lyon's images are big on atmosphere and style, and hit many parts of the city that visitors love." (PDN)

These book links are your portal to Amazon. Please use our links; they help support the site.

B&H Photo

Original contents copyright 2020 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Jeff: "I bought a mint used original Leica M(9) Monochrom, with new sensor/service and warranty, for $3,500 in 2017. I could sell it now if I wanted to for about $3,800. Regardless, I’ve received more than equivalent value and joy from the experience in the meantime, and the prints are reminders. Sometimes it costs less in the long term to make up your mind, pay more up front and enjoy the ride."

Severian: "You wrote 'If you can't decide, delay'—there is some real wisdom there, when applied properly. The pain of an unmade decision (ambivalence) is often overwhelming to some people so they resolve the tension too soon, often to a less than optimal answer.

"Over the years, reading what you've written about how much you value IBIS, I think you need to delay long enough to fully recall how much a non-IBIS camera is a major annoyance for you.

"I think no IBIS would be a constant burr under the saddle for you. Of course, you know 'you' better than your readers!"

Mike replies: I wonder if I do, though. My brother Scott, who knew me really well, used to say that I was much better at advising other people than I was at knowing what to do for myself.

David Aiken: "There are two ways to get a camera that shoots B&W only: you can obtain a camera with a monochrome sensor or you can restrict your own personal choice in shooting. You're the man who has proposed the one camera, one lens, one year challenge to readers on a couple of occasions. I'll propose a challenge to you. Pick a camera you have, set it up to show a B&W viewfinder and screen, and use it only for B&W for a period, six months to a year. If you want to shoot colour for a particular purpose, you have to use a different camera but you then can't convert anything taken with a different camera to B&W. That way you're faced with a binary choice when you go out to take photos, if you choose a particular camera then you have to shoot B&W or colour depending on the choice of camera; if you want to shoot in B&W or in colour you have to choose a specific camera.

"Those are the same choices you'll be faced with if you obtain a monochrome camera so just start doing it today with the cameras you have and see how it works for you. If in six months or a year, whatever time period you set yourself, you can't imagine working any other way, then get the monochrome camera. You'll have answered your questions about whether having a purely monochrome camera will work for you and whether you're prepared to deal with the cost issues without the reservations that currently seem to bedevil you."

Mike replies: Excellent, sage, sane advice. However, unfortunately, I've tried exactly what you're proposing on many different occasions already...with the NEX-6; with the Fuji X-T1 (I was very dogged that time, and stuck with it over hundreds if not a thousand+ images, but ultimately it was just too much of a struggle and not fun; with the "Big Dragoon" AKA D800, which I bought specifically hoping I would love it for B&W....

B&W with the Big Dragoon

It's all documented back there in the archives if you go looking for it. 

Rob Griffin: "Decisions, decisions, certainly a skill that is not my strong suit, but I think it would be a good idea to make some prints before you make a final decision. You and many others here on TOP have said that an image file is not really a photograph until it’s printed.

"Many people have commented on and don’t understand your 'mindset' issue. I have the same mindset issue you have spoken of when trying to shoot black-and-white images on a digital camera. I wish I didn’t, but I am not sure that any sort of mental training would help me overcome the issue. I am happy for the majority of readers of TOP that don’t have the same issue, but it is a real thing for some of us.

"I number of people have said seeing an image in black and white in the EVF or on the LCD is helpful to them when shooting black and white with a digital camera. I wish I felt that way. I feel mostly uncertain as to what I am seeing when viewing the image on what amounts to a black-and-white monitor. Mike, you wrote about when shooting black-and-white film in a film camera the image in an optical viewfinder or on the ground glass is in color. For me, having taken up black-and-white photography years before digital photography was invented, seeing color in the optical viewfinder but black and white in my mind’s eye feels natural, what I am used to. If possible, I think you should try a camera with an optical viewfinder converted to monochrome before you make a decision.

"Your pardner in a specific 'mindset.'"