Black and white mode on M8?

[albertwang]

I see that the saturation settings list a black and white setting. Presumably this is black and white JPEG?

I wonder what the settings for this would be in terms of desaturation process. It's cool to think of this like shooting Tri-X or T-Max?

A grave mystery because I know that Leicamen are fanatical black and white shooters. Anyone can explain this setting?

[sean_reid]

Hi Albert,

It works in the usual way, same as other digital cameras. It does allow one to use the all-B&W RAW workflow I've talked about in the reviews because the camera can record a RAW file and a B&W JPEG simultaneously if desired.

Cheers,

Sean

[rosuna]

The B&W quality of the D-Lux 2 surprised me.
I expect to see a similar quality in the B&W mode of the M8. This implies a great set of B&W profiles for Capture One LE.
When Sean completes his review we will know how good is the native B&W conversion compared to the JFI B&W profiles (for instance).

[sean_reid]

Originally Posted by rosuna

The B&W quality of the D-Lux 2 surprised me..

Me too, they are lovely aren't they?

Cheers,

Sean

[albertwang]

This sounds impressive. I tend to visualize a lot in black and white so basically seeing it that way on the back LCD helps me quite a bit. In fact, it's a different mentality. I rarely find black and white medium as a version of color. Different approach I firmly hold.

[egpj]

Originally Posted by sean_reid

Hi Albert,

It works in the usual way, same as other digital cameras. It does allow one to use the all-B&W RAW workflow I've talked about in the reviews because the camera can record a RAW file and a B&W JPEG simultaneously if desired.

Cheers,

Sean

So the M8 is able to record raw Black and White files? What is going when it does that? Is it just recording one band in raw or is it taking the information from each pixel without assigning the different color bands according to the bayer pattern? That would be exciting. Would be fast and there would be allot of information and just think of the resolution you would gain by being able to use each pixel.

[adan]

Elbert - no, RAW is always what the sensor saw, so it contains the RGB data regardless. No way to "record one band" since the color bayer filters are built right into the chip.

Sean has a technique of editing (choosing shots) from the "B&W" jpegs and using 3rd-party profiles to balance the colors and get final B&W images from the RAW data - which I'll let him explain in more detail, since I'm probably already explaining it badly.

[sean_reid]

Hi Elbert,

Just as Andy said, RAW data is in color (unless one is actually working with a monochrome digital camera). The M8, however, can record a simultaneous RAW and B&W JPEG which is very useful for photographers who prefer an all-B&W workflow. For further explanation of the latter, see the "Working in B&W" section of the Canon 5D article I wrote for Imaging-Resource.

Canon EOS-5D Digital Camera Review: Guest Review by Sean Reid

Various cameras can do this: R-D1 (with S firmware), 5D, D-Lux 2. etc. My current favorite way to work in B&W is to convert straight to that medium using C1 and a JFI profile (reviewed on my site).

Cheers,

Sean

[albertwang]

Nice, having the original RAW file isn't a bad idea especially if you want to tweak the output or adjust the exposure accordingly. Of course, I am most excited about the M8 various saturation mode and allowing one to have max options.

[frc]

Dedicating my MP to tri-X is what I had in mind.
M8 for colour.
Yes I know, some people use a digi only workflow.
Saying tri-X looks nicer than a digital B&W I don't dare.
"ve been bashed before on this forum;-)

BTW in RAW I don't care what or how, if there's a need for monochrome: channelmixer > monochrome > voila.
Yellow, orange, red, green and bleu filter, everything is there with three channels to work with.