Do Digilux 2 photos have distinctive look?

[Blindjock]

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F4.6 1/2000 90mm - post b&w

 

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[carlosecpf]

I took this one 3 weeks ago. It is from a favela located in Sao Paulo, Brazil neighboring a luxury building.

 

RAW converted using Aperture 3 and mounted on a GorillaPod.

Even though D2's jpegs at ISO 100 are superb, the RAW converted files look even more incredible IMHO.

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[philipus]

though D2's jpegs at ISO 100 are superb, the RAW converted files look even more incredible IMHO.

 

I agree totally Carlos. RAWs the way to go. And since the files are so small the computer really flies during the editing process which is also nice.

 

Has anyone else noticed that the save time for RAW seems to increase when an SD card is more than half-full?

[wda]

Bump for the thread with a quick snap

 

Few people would believe this lovely cat portrait was taken with a 5mp camera. Just look at the fur detail, let alone the proverbial 'cat's whisker'!

[wda]

Here we go!

Yet an other very happy camper who just took delivery of a D2.

"Very happy" is obviously an understatement. I feel like a kid who is just getting the toy he had dreamed about for several months.

Ok I should better start from the beginning: as a Nikon D200 user, I wanted a lighter camera to carry around all day long without hurting my neck and with a fast zoom lens.

So, after researching the net, I stumbled a couple of months ago across 2 sites, one from a guy called John Thawley and an other one from Thorsten Overgaard. Dare I say time stopped as I read in one go all their pages related to the D2, then read them again, then re-read again and again.

Exactly what I was dreaming of: a lightweight camera with a convenient fast zoom lens, manual controls, occasional raw capabilities and everything packed in a sexy body.

Further reading took me to this site where I went thru the 77 pages of this thread, filled with mouth-watering pictures.

So, decision was easy. I had to have one.

After loosing several bids on eBay, I came across a small ad (on a site similar to craigslist) and contacted the vendor this past Monday to make an appointment on the next day.

Needless to say, the night was short. But on the next day, I was fully awake to meet the vendor in person. He was a pleasant retiree who had no use anymore for the D2 and just wanted a pocket camera.

So, he showed me the D2. Gosh, the lady is in pristine condition, still in the original box, with all the accessories and it even comes with the leather Leica bag. All of this for a modest price of 450€. I thought I was daydreaming but no, it was for real.

Back home, I realized I had no SD card. Stupid, testing will have to wait until the next day.

The next 2 days were busy reading the manual, getting acquainted with the camera, making test pictures. What a joy this camera is!

Even the EVF is pleasant to use with both eyes open (gives the HUD feeling).

The D200 feels neglected but shouldn't, because it is still vey valuable for macro and long tele works.

Here are some samples of the last 2 days. Don't know wether they have the special Leica look but for me, they are certainly special.

As a final word, many thanks to JohnT, Thorsten and all the posters on this thread for sharing their enthusiasm, knowledge and pictures.

See you soon.

Michel

Michel, Welcome to D2 ownership and to the forum!

[John Thawley]

Here we go!

Yet an other very happy camper who just took delivery of a D2.

"Very happy" is obviously an understatement. I feel like a kid who is just getting the toy he had dreamed about for several months.

Ok I should better start from the beginning: as a Nikon D200 user, I wanted a lighter camera to carry around all day long without hurting my neck and with a fast zoom lens.

So, after researching the net, I stumbled a couple of months ago across 2 sites, one from a guy called John Thawley and an other one from Thorsten Overgaard. Dare I say time stopped as I read in one go all their pages related to the D2, then read them again, then re-read again and again.

Exactly what I was dreaming of: a lightweight camera with a convenient fast zoom lens, manual controls, occasional raw capabilities and everything packed in a sexy body.

Further reading took me to this site where I went thru the 77 pages of this thread, filled with mouth-watering pictures.

So, decision was easy. I had to have one.

After loosing several bids on eBay, I came across a small ad (on a site similar to craigslist) and contacted the vendor this past Monday to make an appointment on the next day.

Needless to say, the night was short. But on the next day, I was fully awake to meet the vendor in person. He was a pleasant retiree who had no use anymore for the D2 and just wanted a pocket camera.

So, he showed me the D2. Gosh, the lady is in pristine condition, still in the original box, with all the accessories and it even comes with the leather Leica bag. All of this for a modest price of 450€. I thought I was daydreaming but no, it was for real.

Back home, I realized I had no SD card. Stupid, testing will have to wait until the next day.

The next 2 days were busy reading the manual, getting acquainted with the camera, making test pictures. What a joy this camera is!

Even the EVF is pleasant to use with both eyes open (gives the HUD feeling).

The D200 feels neglected but shouldn't, because it is still vey valuable for macro and long tele works.

Here are some samples of the last 2 days. Don't know wether they have the special Leica look but for me, they are certainly special.

As a final word, many thanks to JohnT, Thorsten and all the posters on this thread for sharing their enthusiasm, knowledge and pictures.

See you soon.

Michel

 

That's great! Enjoy. Funny how this camera emotes a reaction among those who own it that can only be compared to some closely held secret shared by only those who wear the secret decoder ring. LOL

 

Enjoy!

[sh0wtime]

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i have to say that Johns continuing enthusiasm for the D2 is one of the reasons i bought mine last year. i'm busting for some decent weather so i can get out & about with it

[Blindjock]

Few people would believe this lovely cat portrait was taken with a 5mp camera. Just look at the fur detail, let alone the proverbial 'cat's whisker'!

 

Thanks

It was a useful test as cat fur is full of detail and contrast. This shot was taken with the help of the bounce flash too.

 

You reminded me that last year I won a camera in a competition. If I recall correctly, it was an upper model in the lifestyle Canon p&s range with 12 mp. I took a few shots and was so disappointed with the poor image quality and noise that I carefully repackaged it. My old Canon ixus (4ish mp) took better images. I gave the camera away to a teenager who was overjoyed with it.

[Tietje]

I was out with mine on Sunday having used a D-Lux 5 for over a month, its a lovely camera but I wanted to use my Digilux, its such a beautiful camera to use. Its colour rendering is something else!

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[AlbertoDeRoma]

Bump for the thread with a quick snap

 

 

Great photo. Our beloved D2 never ceases to amaze.

 

However, I have to ask: Did you apply some sharpening to the image after you took it?

 

Thanks,

 

Alberto

[gauss2000]

Morning light of yesterday, JPG straight out, Lightroom resize.

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Edited May 1, 2012 by gauss2000

[Blindjock]

Great photo. Our beloved D2 never ceases to amaze.

 

However, I have to ask: Did you apply some sharpening to the image after you took it?

 

Thanks,

 

Alberto

 

I probably did sharpen it slightly when I cropped it. No fancy software though. It was uploaded to my iPad and tweaked there (snapseed). The exif data was wiped by the Flickr app so can't be sure until I check the iPad later.

[lemalk]

Fantastic pictures, all. Makes me sad to report that my LC1 has officially bitten the dust.

 

I heard the rattle of a loose screw inside the body - and that appears to have shorted something out within the camera.

 

Unfortunately, the motherboard and replacement parts now cost more than I paid for the camera back in 2007. And it appears that prices have continued to increase with an LC1 selling for nearly $1300 USD on a certain auction site this week.

 

I'll continue to drop in to catch up on the great images everyone continues to post.

 

Good luck and good images!

[philipus]

Really sorry to hear this!

 

There are some European dealers with the D2 in stock, though perhaps you'll be punished tax-wise if you buy from them. Leicashop in Vienna has one for 650 Euro and Red Dot also has one, for £549.

[Blindjock]

Unfortunately the motherboard is very pricey. In europe it is about €300 and even more in the states I imagine.

 

There is a small (surface mount) fuse on the motherboard which can be replaced, however your damage may be more extensive. If you keep an eye on eBay, you might be lucky and pick up one with a broken CCD to use for parts.

 

Either way don't bin the camera, the remaining parts have value (for example, i'd pay between £50 & £100 depending on what components were damaged and in the states it may be worth more).

Edited May 1, 2012 by Blindjock

[mija1789]

I feel for you.

There is currently a LC1 on the famous auction site and the german vendor is shipping worldwide.

There are also several D2, but the vendors only ship to Germany (you have to log on the german site to be able to see them). However, they may be willing to do an exception for you.

[mija1789]

Despite being only 5 MP, this camera is still able to resolve very fine details.

Here is an example from today: backlit "Cotinus" leaves at sunset.

The first picture is the jpeg from the camera, only resized and sharpened for the forum.

The second picture is a crop from the first one, increased in size (with Capture NX2 and the 10%-step approach) to match the size of the first one, then reduced to the forum size and sharpened.

Look for the tiny spider web wires that appear with the cropped version! Amazing.

The third picture is a screen capture comparing on the left the original picture zoomed in and on the right the crop enlarged using the 10%-step up-sampling.

Cheers

Michel

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[Guest derbykentucky]

 

hi there, i'm a bit of a noob here but i might be able to help you with some advice

 

i used an LC1 on 3 trips abroad in 2008 & found myself always going back & looking at the pics & thinking how good they all looked. since then i've been shooting an LX3 a Nikon D200 & a D2Xs yet i still had a yearning for an LC1 or Digilux2.

well 2 weeks ago i spotted a very nice, little used, boxed with all accessories etc example on ebay & stuck a bid in. i paid £510 which seems to be the going rate these days. since then i've not had a lot of opprtunity to get out & about with it but the few pics i've taken look pretty good. the B&W mode is excellent & like has been said before the lens is amazing

 

there are plenty of sample images on flickr- Flickr: The Leica Digilux 2 Pool

 

plus there are some very good user sites also - leica.overgaard.dk - Thorsten Overgaard's Leica Sites - Leica Digilux 2 sample photos and tests (as well as Panasonic DMC-LC1) - Page 1 of 3

 

plus John Thawley has written many interesting articles about using one in his journal

 

The Leica Digilux*2 - Journal - Motorsports Photography by Motorsports Photographer, John Thawley :: American Le Mans, Grand Am,

 

plus more links to digilux related items here

 

Search - Motorsports Photography by Motorsports Photographer, John Thawley :: American Le Mans, Grand Am,

 

also a massive thread discussing the "look" of the Digilux2 images on the L-camera forum. some nice ones on this page plus more as you scroll back through the topic

Do Digilux 2 photos have distinctive look? - Seite 63 - Leica User Forum

 

tbh i think you should have a good read up on its strengths & weaknesses buy it & try it (you wont ever loose money on it. at worse you'll break even) see how you get along with it. they have an almost iconic/cult status & i'm certainly not disappointed that i bought into it. yes the lower resolution might be a problem if you're doing very large prints but all full screen size preview on my 23inch cinema display they look great

 

as for the operational speed yeah for sure they're not as fast as a pro bodied DSLR but is any "serious compact"?

you just need to remember that these cameras are from an era where photography was about capturing light. nowadays everyone seems to want to be able to take pics of a moving subject, in the dark, with no flash!

 

go for it. you'll love it

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica Lux

[hypnosapien]

A very quick snap with the Elpro-D walking into work this morning. Only resized and slightly sharpened.

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[mija1789]

@hypnosapien

Did you buy your Elpro-D from THE auction site? Was it expensive?

It looks great (not to say that the picture is nice because of it ).