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Diglloyd and the S(006)


John McMaster

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John, it is odd, isn't it? :o  Interesting that he uses a tripod to shoot at f/10 with a WA, and then complains about AF?

 

I know firsthand that I received an S typ 006 and SE-S 24 at the same time that Lloyd and his client got theirs. Lloyd was very excited. My gear works perfectly, at least so far.

 

I am a bit lost with all of this focus on AF, as neither myself nor Lloyd are sports or wild game photographers. Moreover, taking into account how AF works, how on earth can one expect a centrally-fixed contrast detection system to evaluate the focus plane properly with a wide FOV? I mean, there is so much surface variation in that tiny target to begin with, how is it supposed to work? I have asked Leica about this and await an answer.

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Mumbo jumbo either it works or it doesn't from what I have read the auto focus is placed on the back button and camera is in manual focus for most users! With one central spot for focus using auto on a tripod (that's what you said I did not read the blog) is not the way I would choose to work it's a PITA.

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One cannot deny that he is knowledgeable and has discovered anomalies before, but this tactic of crying wolf initially, and then trying to lead people onto the paid site for a more thorough evaluation is getting a bit annoying, me thinks. He did the same with the Q just a couple of weeks ago

 

Personally I have had problems focusing the 180 which I find challenging, possibly just because it is a tele, but for all lenses I think AF greatly improved with the last firmware.

 

The problems he refers to with lens FW, I suspect user error.

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Testing a new S-E body last weekend i found the af to be perfect (using the back button/mf setting) with one 180mm lens and horribly incorrect on another 180mm lens, both firmware updated.  Achieving proper focus on the second lens required 10 trial/error manual focus tweaks.  I don't doubt that Lloyd's findings were correct for his sample, what I do find sad is the evaluation stopped with the af problem and no further insights into the camera/lenses were made, other than to praise their potential.

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Oh dear, he continues http://diglloyd.com/prem/s/LEICA/LeicaS2/lens-100f2-MTF.html?dglyPT=true

 

'Curiously, MTF for infinity focus at center rises from f/5.6 to f/8, suggesting a slight focus shift (or possible some other optical shortcoming); use of f/8 ought to suffer versus f/5.6 due to diffraction.'

 

f8 is where diffraction cuts in on FF 36MP not the point on a 37.5MP 30x45 sensor....

 

john

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Lloyd seems to need to find some dramatic complaint, but sometimes it seems to get irrational. In the early report on the S2 he went on and on about the awful lack of live view. I have not subscribed for a couple years...

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I subscribed for a year, and then gave up. He has interesting and detailed reviews, but it is angels-dancing-on-a-pin stuff, rather than real-World unacceptables. I have many items that he grizzles about that I have been very happy with. My theory is that I'd rather be out taking photo's than looking at 500 pictures of a Joshua tree.

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While some of Lloyd front page headlines may be dramatic, his coverage on the paid side of the wall is quite thorough. Asking for live-view makes sense when you have such high resolution and only one center AF point. His comment about the poor LCD on the S2 is spot on - it makes big difference when you have a high res LCD to check the post-shot focus in the field. Not all is doom and gloom in his reviews - his comments about the S sensor and earlier comments about the 70MM bear this out.

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I am not as subscriber, so I can't read digilloyd's evaluation after the initial cry wolf about the S AF. But he is now into evaluation of the S lenses. Abot the 24mm he says:

"This is a truly outstanding performance probably unequalled by any lens for the 35mm format. To see it on medium format 45 X 30mm sensor is very impressive. The particularly high cost of the Leica 24mm f/3.5 Super-Elmar-S ASPH is neatly explained by this example. But cost should not be confused with value—this is as good as it gets for a lens this wide (19mm equiv in the 35mm format) and thus the 24/3.5 SEM is surely a must-have lens for the S shooter."

I can only agree.

About the 45 (that I don't have) he says:

"I liked the Leica 45mm f/2.8 Elmarit-S ASPH a lot and found it very appealing in the field. Highly recommended for Leica S shooters."

About the sensor itself he says:

"The CCD sensor on the S006 is superb."

The S007 is now rumored to be released Aug 31. I know the first samples are out for testing, looking forward to the first reviews.

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