Sigma DP1
Yes - the camera is supposed to be out soon, and Dpreview took some shots with a prototype at the last photo fair. So a couple of things struck me:
1: The lens is F4. That’s just not fast enough for street work.
2: Esp. since the maximum ASA is 800. Is that true of the chip in their other production cameras? Dunno.
3: Now here I might be confused. The effective or usable pixels are: 2640 x 1760. But the chip is considered 14 mp, because each of these pixels can contain 3 colors — RGB. But am I wrong - or if you go to do a print and you divided by 300 you get a print size of about 6 x 9 inches? Maybe I’m wrong about that — again, dunno.
Anyway - numbers one and two are enough to disqualify it for me as a street camera; but if number three is also true - then it really goes down a few notches in my estimation.
I was thinking that maybe I had some anti-Sigma bias - but no, I’m loving the 30mm Sigma I have on the 40D - so I don’t think that’s it. Alright - enough of this - someone please let me know that I must be off with my calculations re: print size. In other words, the 40D is a 10 mp camera, with 3888 x 2592 pixels and if you multiply them you do get 10 mp.
And true - the 40D is a DSLR that won’t fit in your pocket - but you hang it around your neck and it has an F1.4 lens that’s fine to use wide open. Frankly, next step up would be a camera that would give me 300 dpi for a 12 x 18 print. That’s about where I want to be. (3600 x 5400, about 20 mp).
Comments
Comment from Robert hoehne
Time: February 15, 2008, 4:32 am
See this article, http://www.ddisoftware.com/sd14-5d/. Enlightening on the subject of that particular sensor.
Comment from Craig Nisnewitz
Time: February 15, 2008, 4:35 am
I am not impressed.
I bought a Canon A 630 about 2 years ago just for carrying around when the DSLR is too big. The results are not good. Using film in one of my Leicas or Voigtlanders and going through developing and scanning produces better results. If not, I’ll carry my Nikon D 50 which is slightly smaller than the D 70.
The point and shoot cameras give too much up to size and weight.
Comment from matt
Time: February 15, 2008, 5:26 am
5400 pixels? Hmmm, Sounds a little bit like a TRI-X file…
Comment from matt
Time: February 15, 2008, 5:29 am
Actually it’s more like 5700 pixels. Of course these are very rough
unpolished pixels…
Comment from Charles Maclauchlan
Time: February 15, 2008, 6:22 am
the potential I see, and I’ve ordered one, is a “Full” size digital sensor in a body that’s smaller than my TVS III film camera. The TVS with TMax (400 pushable to 800) and an f3.7 Zeiss lens is a damn spiffy street camera, one that’s always with me. Digital sensors, megapixels, bayer filters…blah blah blah, it’s a marketers dream. Present generation sensors, bayer or foveon type are capable of producing quite stunning images, regardless of how the pixel count is manipulated or mis-represented. The “14″ megapixel foveon chip in the DP-1 is the same as in the SD-14 and users seem to believe it has about the same capabilities as a 10mp bayer. Good enough.
I’ve carefully studied asa 800 images from an SD-14 and I’m guessing here but the lack of noise tells me this speed is pushable. Asa800, dial in a -1ev and it’s asa1600. I’m also guessing here but I’m hoping the sweet small Nikon flash SB400 will work with it. I’ll let you know sometime this summer.
Comment from M A Andrew
Time: February 15, 2008, 10:06 am
For more black and white street examples check out Carl Rytterfalk’s examples on his site http://www.rytterfalk.com.
He is simulating the DP1 with his DSLR SD14 and the same lens. He pushes the ISO though and achieves ISO 3200/6400 in B&W that reminds me of old film
Cheers
Mike
http://www.picturesforwalls.com
Comment from Adam Maas
Time: February 15, 2008, 3:09 pm
#3 is correct, but because it’s a full colour sensor, not a bayer sensor, you get more resolution for a given amount of pixels. So while you only get 4.6MP, it resolves like a 6-8MP bayer camera. This is due to the lack of a Anti-Aliasing filter and also because the Bayer Interpolation algorithm costs some resolution.
However the real advantage of the Foveon sensor is in colour accuracy. Now that Sigma offers a colour-managed RAW converter you can get incredible colour out of the Foveon sensor. Which is a good argument in favour of the SD14, but not a good one for the DP1.
The DP1 to me looks like the right idea, done absolutely wrong. I’m thinking a Pentax SMC-M 20mm f4 on a Oly E-410 in Live View mode will do the same thing much better, even if it is manual focus.
@Charles Maclaughlin: The incredibly crippled Nikon SB-400 won’t work with any camera that doesn’t support i-TTL. Go for the far, far better SB-30 instead and get auto and manual flash, as well as an IR panel (For using it as an optical trigger). And it’s smaller than the oversized SB-400. Only downside is that it uses CR123’s.
Comment from dave
Time: February 15, 2008, 4:12 pm
Thank you all for the information. I was esp. intrigued by the comparisons where the Sigma 4.6 MP file was upsized to match the Canon 5D by Mike Chaney. That was exactly what I needed to see.
At least now I can understand what the excitement is about.
Comment from Stephen Bray
Time: February 16, 2008, 7:57 pm
Luke writes:
“Like Fuji claims their cameras are 12 MP, but really they’re 6 MP.”
And yes Fuji do this with the S3 Pro, and some other cameras. My compact though is the Fuji FinePix E-900 a pocket-able little beast which runs on two AA batteries.
The curious thing about this machine is that it really is 9 MP. When you process the RAW files they are interpolated up to 18 MP, (apparently all Fuji camera RAW files must be thus interpolated because of the sensor design), in camera processing ~ and indeed many RAW editors then allow the image to be reduced back to its native size.
The lens isn’t the best available but it’s pretty good and wide open at 32mm equivalent, f 2.8 does make it a street camera contender.
Stephen
Comment from luke
Time: February 15, 2008, 3:35 am
1 is debatable. HCB made do with much lesser gear than what we’ve got.
2. ISO 800 is the maximum in standard mode, but if you enable boost mode, you can go up to ISO 1600. Sigma haven’t been known for dealing with noise. Not in the same league as your 40D.
1 & 2 suggest to me that the DP1 is a daylight camera. Much the same as your G9 but better quality images.
3. Sigma play games with their resolution claims. Like Fuji claims their cameras are 12 MP, but really they’re 6 MP. That said, plenty of Sigma users have made big prints and have been happy with them. In good light you might be amazed by the sharpness and detail in the images.
I’d prefer to stick to a little Nikon D60 and the Sigma 30/1.4. Much more flexible and you’ll be able to work in almost all light conditions.