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Sony A9 making me rethink Leica Setup - any A9 owners?


dancook

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I have spent a few hours getting everything ordered

 

The Sony A9s will arrive tomorrow along with the 24-70

 
A9 x 2 + 24-70 2.8 GM
85mm 1.4 GM + 35 1.4 ZA + 2 Batteries
70-200 2.8
Sony Trigger for Godox Lights
Memory Cards 128x2 300mb/s 64x2 95mb/s
VG-C3EM Grip x 2
TT685S Flash Guns
BLACKRAPID DOUBLE Breathe Harness
 
I don't think i forgot anything!
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There's an actual requirement to photograph multiple portraits of every model walking towards the camera on a catwalk during a school fashion show event.

 

(...)

 

 

Don't get me wrong, but that's really "astonishing" to me: Purchasing an additional complete new pro gear for...well not for, let's say an Hermes-event in Paris but a local (I suggest) school fashion event ;). This is profoundly ambitious :). A little bit exaggerated, right? ;) Unless their parents are exceptionally wealthy...

Edited by panoreserve
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Don't get me wrong, but that's really "astonishing" to me: Purchasing an additional complete new pro gear for...well not for, let's say an Hermes-event in Paris but a local (I suggest) school fashion event ;). This is profoundly ambitious :). A little bit exaggerated, right? ;) Unless their parents are exceptionally wealthy...

 

It actually is a private school in a wealthy county, the bar has already been raised

 

The Leica's were always a compromise for me I wanted to make them work, but I had lost the speed of the DSLRs I had been used to ( 5dm3, d750) - now I most definitely need the speed, and I welcome it too as I can get the shots that I've been missing.

Edited by dancook
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The story so far.. let me take you back...

 

I looked at the Hasselblad X1D a high IQ portrait camera; through that research I found out about the SL I got excited and thought that it could replace my D750 and give me that higher image quality I wanted.

 

Whilst It never truly replaced my D750, I enjoyed the quality and wanted to make it work.

 

I bought the 50mm 1.4 SL and 90-280mm first.

 

I was frustrated by the low light AF of the 90-280 @ 280 f4 for indoors during the evening at a wedding, but it was great for portraits during the day and I just had to use it closer to 90 indoors for more reliable AF and less hunting

 

The 50mm 1.4 well I only shot a few weddings with that before I sold it, I loved the image quality but the AF speed in any condition frustrated me. I bought the 50mm 1.4 L-M and used that for some time, and although it's only manual focus it was a lot easier to use than the 50SL. I used that longside my Leica Q for weddings and that was fine for a time - the 28mm would help me keep up with nearby fast action.

 

Only recently that I bought the 24-90 because I needed it for the new school related work, trying to keep up manually focusing the 50mm 1.4 on close up action was fun but stressful, and I don't want stress. I also bought 75mm SL because of GAS, It replaced what I wanted in the 50mm - a high IQ AF portrait lens

 

Almost getting to the decision of whether I need to spend more on second SL body to run both zoom simultaneously for live theatre events, I reached breaking point.....

 

So that's how I ended up deep in a system which never really worked for me as well as a D750 did.

 

 

 

So I'm hitting the reset switch, I need a setup for paid work that I have confidence in to get the shots I want.

 

I don't have to get the D750 now, I have other options - so I'm choosing the A9, because why not.

Edited by dancook
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I have spent a few hours getting everything ordered

 

The Sony A9s will arrive tomorrow along with the 24-70

 
A9 x 2 + 24-70 2.8 GM
85mm 1.4 GM + 35 1.4 ZA + 2 Batteries
70-200 2.8
Sony Trigger for Godox Lights
Memory Cards 128x2 300mb/s 64x2 95mb/s
VG-C3EM Grip x 2
TT685S Flash Guns
BLACKRAPID DOUBLE Breathe Harness
 
I don't think i forgot anything!

 

Fashion show, ramp walking might need longer than 70 amd 85 mm, maybe the 70-200 is needed too.

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that's mentioned and on it's way :)

standing at the end of the ramp, 100mm + is needed to shoot as they start the walk, longer if the photographers' platform is farther, behind the audience...how fast would your lights recyle? Shooting on red carpets with Canon speedlights with quantum power pack I cannot shoot fast continuous shutter. 

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standing at the end of the ramp, 100mm + is needed to shoot as they start the walk, longer if the photographers' platform is farther, behind the audience...how fast would your lights recyle? Shooting on red carpets with Canon speedlights with quantum power pack I cannot shoot fast continuous shutter. 

 

I think they will keep up with 11fps at 1/16th power - they are portable studio lights.

 

Also i'm not sure how it compares to a 'proper fashion show', the catwalk is only about the length of about 10 people sitting alongside it - I'd be sat a couple of rows in at end of catwalk.

 

39984362474_8d6f62a5ba_b.jpgfashion by dancook1982, on Flickr

 

There's typically a bit more of a stream of girls, this was the last one of a set.

Edited by dancook
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Here's an example of the 'continuous stream', I'd have about three of her strides to get this girl in focus take a decent enough shot walking then a shot posing. Note the first girl will have to actually get clear for me to see the second girl. In this photo she is not even clear yet.

 

I'm not confident with the Leica to manage this, for all those people who think it'll be fine and the SL is plenty capable - kudos to them for being awesome.

 

39984757974_7e9f1fab6a_b.jpgfashion3 by dancook1982, on Flickr

Edited by dancook
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I'm not confident with the Leica to manage this, for all those people who think it'll be fine and the SL is plenty capable - kudos to them for being awesome.

 

 

I think you are absolutely right that you have to have 100% confidence in the equipment in this situation and there is nothing gained from being sentimentally attached to a particular brand. However, if you absolutely must have printable photos of every model on the runway then I'm glad it's your job and not mine. :D  I've done a small number of catwalk shows at private events and, even with the luxury of being able to position myself where I wanted to be and not having the pressure of needing to photograph absolutely everything, I still managed to miss a few of the outfits being modelled. I hope you have a good assistant on hand.

Edited by wattsy
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I think pro grade Nikon or Canon fitted with either 24-70 or 70-200 zoom would eat such show for breakfast.

 

Yes I really would love a Nikon D5 or 1DXII if I didn't think they'd be too big, heavy, indiscreet for the other things I shoot.

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Yes I really would love a Nikon D5 or 1DXII if I didn't think they'd be too big, heavy, indiscreet for the other things I shoot.

I think even semi-pro (prosumer) models like D610/D750 or Canon 5D/6D are not far behind, these are just full frame, than there are APS-C cameras optimised for fast AF...

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Yes I really would love a Nikon D5 or 1DXII if I didn't think they'd be too big, heavy, indiscreet for the other things I shoot.

 

Actually, they aren't that bad. People get used to you carrying it.

And it's just a little bigger and quite comfy to work with after the first 6 months when your muscles get used to it. And it's invisible after a while.

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