Leica X Vario shooting approach

[Peter L]

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How does everyone here use their X Vario ?

 

Walking with my dogs, I use auto everything except for the Iso setting that invariably

gives too slow a shutter speed

For focus I use face detection , as it defaults to 11 point when there are no eyes present.

 

With everything auto, I use the program shift occasionally to alter the f-stop.

 

For close up I use manual focus.

 

I usually leave the shutter speed at auto and use the appropriate f-stop, usually when I dial in the shutter speed , I end up with what the camera would have selected .

 

In bright weather, I apply -1/3 tp -2/3 exposure compensation to avoid blown out highlights.

 

For the evf I use the Olympus.

 

I intend to get a grip and a aftermarket hood, 43 mm can be had for around $10.

 

My photography is mostly snaps, however, I do like to get good images, colour and sharp.

 

I am not fond of black and white photography, so I can't comment on that , perhaps others can.

 

Please post your approach, so we can all learn from that.

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[Carduelis]

Although I have yet to use the X Vario in anger, I will probably set the exposure compensation to -2/3 because I always feel slightly underexposed shots are easier to view on the monitor and as you say it can prevent blown out highlights, plus you can use a tad quicker shutter speed. I have yet to acquire a 43mm UV or skylight filter to protect the front of the lens. I tend to photograph in either manual or aperture priority mode using the lowest possible ISO setting I can get away with. I think given the range of this zoom lens, I will try and ensure that 1/60 sec is the slowest hand held shutter speed unless I can use a fence or post as a prop to improve stability. In poor light,I can see myself using shutter speed priority set at 1/60 sec and working with the auto ISO function. I am not one for low f numbers and prefer depth of field and generally shoot above f5.6 and up to f11/f13 ish for landscapes. For portraits using a telehoto lens, I tend to shoot f4 to f8 with focus on the eyes, because I prefer trying to get as many of the facial features in focus rather than being out of focus. The autofocus and zoom lens will be a big plus for portrait shots and for quickly composing street scenes.

 

Whilst travelling on long haul holidays of a life-time, I always carry two cameras in case one breaks down and also because the photography is more varied ie cityscapes, landscapes, people, architecture. At the moment, I can see myself carrying the Ricoh GXR with 90 mm tele-elmarit (thin) and 15 mm VC lens extending my range to 135 mm and 22.5 mm respectively whilst keeping the weight down. I may also take the Summarit 35 mm f2.5 because it is also compact and light and 50 mm is my favourite focal length. I have to admit that the Ricoh will be more useful for landscapes with its electronic spirit level and access to hyperfocal distances on these lenses.

 

I am not a B&W enthusiast and when I feel B&W is required, I am content with B&W versions of my colour images.

[Guest badbob]

I start with both dials on 'A' (auto), focus ring on 'AF' (autofocus), zoom on 50mm, the power on lever at 'C' (continuous), ISO fixed at 400, EV at zero and bracketing off, average white balance, and everything else at defaults. This is where my best odds are of getting a fast shot off if necessary. If I knew I would need a specific minimum shutter speed such as when shooting surfers, I would set that on the shutter dial and either change ISO to Auto or make some tests that would tell me I can freeze it at 800, 1600, etc. I'm not a fan of auto ISO when quality is an issue (quality is why I bought the XV), since the camera doesn't always make the best auto decisions that I think it should. I don't see myself using the aperture dial much, unless I'm doing something from a tripod that requires precision, mainly because aperture is so restricted with the XV's zoom range. Burst mode isn't always necessary in good light, but anything less than really good daylight and having multiple images to choose from makes a difference in getting a sharp image, when shooting handheld. For landscapes, especially with clouds or other large areas of the image that don't have much contrast, I'll usually set the focus to Infinity to be sure, otherwise to autofocus.