M8 PHOTOGRAPHS, POST THEM HERE

[Guest JMF]

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Doubles by careca2013, on Flickr

 

M8+ Summilux 35 pre asph

[sunafan]

.

 

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[ael]

Walk on the Ice

[Guest JMF]

Elmar 5cm + M8

 

Untitled by careca2013, on Flickr

[abelqv40]

Hi Wilfredo

Hi all,

Always with M8...

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[Pintpot]

Hi all

One from last year. Fletcher Moss Garden, Manchester

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[to_arch]

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I am new and excited with my first digital M (M8) , just did some test shots over the weekend!

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[Fotovogel]

...last days of C|O Berlin been in the Postfuhramt in Berlin/Mitte. Visited with my M8.2.

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[LucisPictor]

I love the M8 for an unobstrusive way of taking photos and the b/w frames I get from "her".

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[Lax Jought]

White Night Melbourne 2013.

 

 

 

 

[tah]

L1022553-Edit by Mr.Mansen, on Flickr

 

L1022755-Edit by Mr.Mansen, on Flickr

[Vidar]

Testing out my newest (and for me the fastest ever) lens, Voigtlander Nokton 50/1.1. Still learning how to best use this lens, but I really like it so far:)

Kafé by VidarFoto, on Flickr

Kafé by VidarFoto, on Flickr

Kafé by VidarFoto, on Flickr

[tah]

L1022776-Edit by Mr.Mansen, on Flickr

 

L1022700-Edit by Mr.Mansen, on Flickr

 

L1022573-Edit by Mr.Mansen, on Flickr

[MegapixSHEL]

MegaPixShel:

 

Beautiful shots. You obviously know how to work your tools. I still contend that the M8 renders the best flesh tones of anything out there. What I've seen of the new M doesn't really come close.

 

Thank you sir.. for once, i thought i wasted my money buying M8, but after some time of using it, i feel connected every time.

[MegapixSHEL]

Street or studio, coloured or BnW, M8 does the job all the time

 

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[Vidar]

Søndag by VidarFoto, on Flickr

[WestMichigan]

Hello Lax Jought,

I really must credit you for some lovely night photography with e M8. Aesthetically pleasing, a sense of joyous moments in time well caught, and I'm glad to have seen them. Kudos.

 

I must ask though which Lens or Lenses were you shooting with and which Raw converter did you use to get such noise free images with such lovely blacks?

 

Sincerely

Richard in Michigan

[Lax Jought]

Thanks for the kind words, Richard.

 

At the White Night event, I was using just one lens with my M8.2 - the Voigtlander Nokton 50mm f/1.1. I shot wide open at f/1.1 all night without changing the aperture. I missed a couple of shots because of the razor-thin depth of field but for the most part, I'm glad to say my focusing was not too bad.

 

I upload my raw files directly into Lightroom 4. I must admit I was quite surprised at how the photos came out relatively clean-ish without too much noise. In one or two shots I actually added a little bit of noise in Lightroom.

 

Here is something I learned about controlling noise from these photos - it helped to convert the images into black and white, and then process the images into low key photos with high contrast deep blacks. It hides some of the noise in the process. Having said that, I think the colour versions aren't too bad for noise either, if I remember correctly.

 

When I got to the event it was already after midnight so I took a couple of test shots to work out the best shutter speeds and ISO and then for the rest of the night I didn't move the settings very much, except when I know I'm shooting directly into a spot light or other lights. So for the whole night, I used ISO 320 as a base, and ISO 640 when it was darker. I stayed mostly around the shutter speeds of 1/45 - 1/60, unless there were bright lights in which case I increased the shutter speed as needed.

 

The first photo above is 1/250 & ISO 320. Second photo is 1/60 & ISO 640. Third photo is 1/60 & ISO 640. Fourth photo is 1/45 & ISO 320. Fortunately the girl and guy in the second photo weren't moving very much but the two guys in the third photo were actually dancing.

 

I have to say, the 50mm Nokton has been an amazing lens, it has great contrast which goes a long way to giving it that 'look', plus the ultra-fast f/1.1 which allowed me to stay with those shutter speeds and low ISOs. I can only imagine that the Noctilux f/0.95 must be a dream to use.

 

Another point I have to make is I intentionally under-exposed when necessary. I really needed a fast shutter speed to control motion blur, 1/60 might be a little too fast for the very low level illumination on the streets that night, even though the f/1.1 helped a lot. SO, I went ahead and took under-exposed photos. I then compensated for exposure in Lightroom later. It's not just a matter of moving the exposure slider though, it's a combination of using the curve, clarity, brightness/shadows/white/black and exposure sliders to create a sort of balance I suppose, to brighten the image but maintain the blacks (and control the noise).

 

I know people say you MUST nail the exposure in your photos but for me personally, if I NEED to under-expose the photo, I WILL intentionally under-expose and correct it later. Of course I cannot under-expose too much, it's a balancing process because I am working in the dark with an M8 after all, not the latest DSLR with ultra-high ISOs.

 

This is why I find it easier to process these 'difficult' photos as black and white, rather than trying to keep the colours and details in the blacks. In fact, I was really happy with the look of the black and white photos when I did that.

 

Below are a couple more photos I took at 1/60 where there is some motion blur. Lucky for me, the motion blur in these photos are either not too noticeable, or the blur is 'just right' to show only a little movement at the right places. The most important thing is to get the focus spot on so that there are at least some clarity in the photos.

 

So it was all one big compromise:

 

• nail focus for as much sharpness and clarity as possible,
  
• max ISO 640 to control sensor noise,
  
• shutter speed at least 1/45 - 1/60 to control motion blur for fast-moving people,
  
• don't be afraid to slightly under-expose, only if necessary, and correct it in post,
  
• convert to black and white to hide and distract from residual noise.
  

1/45 & ISO 320

 

1/60 & ISO 320

 

1/60 & ISO 640

 

1/60 & ISO 640

 

 

 

Hope that helps.

 

 

 

 

Hello Lax Jought,

I really must credit you for some lovely night photography with e M8. Aesthetically pleasing, a sense of joyous moments in time well caught, and I'm glad to have seen them. Kudos.

 

I must ask though which Lens or Lenses were you shooting with and which Raw converter did you use to get such noise free images with such lovely blacks?

 

Sincerely

Richard in Michigan

Edited March 3, 2013 by Lax Jought

[WestMichigan]

Thanks

Excellent info. I have always been a shoot with the exposure needed to get the 'shot' kind of guy all the way back to my Bulk Loaded Plus-X days in college 20+yrs ago. Man, I'm starting to get old, I think. Your Lightroom processes sound a lot like mine, actually. To be honest, I'd thought you'd shot the images with a f1.4 lens and were at iso's of 640 and up shooting those images. Based on those thoughts I'd 'hoped' you had found a magical application to strip out the high iso noise yet still leave such lovely details behind. Alas, I was quite wrong.

 

I will say that your images have inspired me. I'm going to have to pick me up a fast lens now for my own M8! I keep bumping into the limitations of F1.8/F2 and high iso noise in my shooting.

 

Sincerely,

R in Mi.

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Hallo,

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[Lax Jought]

Man, I really waffled on in my last post didn't I. I didn't remember it being that long. But then again it was about 4am when I typed it out.

 

My only lens on the M8 for the better part of 2 years was a f/1.4 which was quite awesome in low light photography but the f/1.1 gave it that extra kick I needed.