icontemprato Posted March 20, 2018 Share #1 Posted March 20, 2018 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hello, I'm a new M8 user and trying to get the most out of it by trying to obtain the lossless DNG files. I have put the camera into service mode and selected the JPG FINE + RAW option. When I take an image, it processes for a few seconds and goes back to the black screen, no preview pops up. When I try to import the photos, I only have JPEG files. I taken the pictures immediately after selecting the RAW files option, so no it did not default to jpeg. Am I doing something wrong here? I appreciate the help. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted March 20, 2018 Posted March 20, 2018 Hi icontemprato, Take a look here Cannot find RAW file when shooting JPG Fine + RAW. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
jaapv Posted March 20, 2018 Share #2 Posted March 20, 2018 Into service mode? Do you mean you are trying to change settings in the service menu that you can access by a series of button presses? That is a sure way to mess things up. Leica never meant the service mode to be a user-setting menu, that is why it is hidden.The M8 needs a factory firmware to be able to produce lossless files. The factory did not incorporate the option because the camera lacks processing power to handle a non-compressed DNG in a reasonable time. There is a computer program that may produce lossless files. The M8 uses slightly lossy DNG files, that is just the way it is. The compression is such that it is really unnoticable in real life. Forget about this and set the camera back to factory settings. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brunomigas Posted March 20, 2018 Share #3 Posted March 20, 2018 Hi, Service mode allows to save raw files for converting to DNG-16. I find the images to be superior to those produced with standard DNG-8. Dynamic range and all. If you do not see the RAW files, are you sure your camera settings are correct? Did set to raw and jpeg? Recheck again Sorry if i could not help Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 20, 2018 Share #4 Posted March 20, 2018 (edited) Hello, I'm a new M8 user and trying to get the most out of it by trying to obtain the lossless DNG files. I have put the camera into service mode and selected the JPG FINE + RAW option. When I take an image, it processes for a few seconds and goes back to the black screen, no preview pops up. When I try to import the photos, I only have JPEG files. I taken the pictures immediately after selecting the RAW files option, so no it did not default to jpeg. Am I doing something wrong here? I appreciate the help. For a beginner on the M8, like Jaap I can only advise against using the special service mode. Become first blindly familiar with all "normal" settings of your M8. If you are then still interested in the uncompressed service mode, thoroughly study everything you can read about the "m8raw2dng"-tool: https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/216705-m8raw2dng-tool-to-convert-leica-m8-raw-files-to-dng/ Alone the handling of the "droplet" which is needed to develop the RAW files to visible DNGs drove me to despair until a friendly forum member explained the setup for my computer step by step. Maybe you are cleverer. But also photographing in service mode is much more arduous. Because of the "Button Dance", which is needed every time turning on the M8, I only use it for photographing landscapes with a lot of time to create every picture. You need a lot more battery power and you should not do continuous shooting because the M8's too-weak processor could get on strike. Whether the results justify these efforts is doubtful, some say yes, others won't see any differences. Good luck! Edited March 20, 2018 by mnutzer Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted March 20, 2018 Share #5 Posted March 20, 2018 Hi, Service mode allows to save raw files for converting to DNG-16. I find the images to be superior to those produced with standard DNG-8. Dynamic range and all. If you do not see the RAW files, are you sure your camera settings are correct? Did set to raw and jpeg? Recheck again Sorry if i could not help There was an article in LFI. To me, this is mostly a placebo effect. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
icontemprato Posted March 22, 2018 Author Share #6 Posted March 22, 2018 Into service mode? Do you mean you are trying to change settings in the service menu that you can access by a series of button presses? That is a sure way to mess things up. Leica never meant the service mode to be a user-setting menu, that is why it is hidden.The M8 needs a factory firmware to be able to produce lossless files. The factory did not incorporate the option because the camera lacks processing power to handle a non-compressed DNG in a reasonable time. There is a computer program that may produce lossless files. The M8 uses slightly lossy DNG files, that is just the way it is. The compression is such that it is really unnoticable in real life. Forget about this and set the camera back to factory settings. I obtained my M8 probably about a month ago for 1000 AUD. Cosmetically it's in pretty good condition, however I noticed when taking pictures that it has a vertical line issue. I'm guessing it could be due to a hot pixel, or dead pixel (correct me if I'm wrong). It seems to my knowledge, that this is the only fault with the camera. With the shots I have taken so far it seems the light meter, and focusing is pretty on point, but that may not be the same from a professional standpoint. I have looked into repairs/maintenance from Leica and it is something I would want to do in the near future, but not immediately. I may have gotten a little overzealous in trying to remedy this myself with the m8raw2dng program. Maybe it's better I just use Photoshop? Anyway, I appreciate all the feedback. I have followed the directions on the m8raw2dng site for verbatim and it seems when I shoot on the JPG + RAW option it's as if it times out and doesn't show me a preview, and only gives me the JPG. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted March 22, 2018 Share #7 Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) [... too complex for me ...] Edited March 22, 2018 by pico Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
icontemprato Posted March 22, 2018 Author Share #8 Posted March 22, 2018 Help us, please - what do you mean by 'service mode'. If you mean the button-dance into internals, then what you get is what you can read in Leica's documentation which does not exist for good reasons. For the heck of it I devoted an M9 to experimentation in service mode, mucking about as I wished. No fun. No damage. . How to enter into Leica M8 service modeIf you want to set your M8 to record the RAW files you have to follow the following Steps. To quickly set the JPG fine+RAW setting press 4 times right arrow button 3 times left arrow button 1 time right arrow button SET button This is found on the m8raw2dng website. I don't know if this is the "button dance" you speak of, but hopefully this clarifies things a little? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted March 22, 2018 Share #9 Posted March 22, 2018 Yeah, I posted that access sequence years back. Enjoy and let us know if there are any global settings that matter. . Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted March 22, 2018 Share #10 Posted March 22, 2018 I obtained my M8 probably about a month ago for 1000 AUD. Cosmetically it's in pretty good condition, however I noticed when taking pictures that it has a vertical line issue. I'm guessing it could be due to a hot pixel, or dead pixel (correct me if I'm wrong). It seems to my knowledge, that this is the only fault with the camera. With the shots I have taken so far it seems the light meter, and focusing is pretty on point, but that may not be the same from a professional standpoint. I have looked into repairs/maintenance from Leica and it is something I would want to do in the near future, but not immediately. I may have gotten a little overzealous in trying to remedy this myself with the m8raw2dng program. Maybe it's better I just use Photoshop? Anyway, I appreciate all the feedback. I have followed the directions on the m8raw2dng site for verbatim and it seems when I shoot on the JPG + RAW option it's as if it times out and doesn't show me a preview, and only gives me the JPG. Precisely. Slow processor and limited storage. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raid Amin Posted March 22, 2018 Share #11 Posted March 22, 2018 Brian Sweeney uses the button dance and he swears by the improved results. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted March 22, 2018 Share #12 Posted March 22, 2018 (edited) Brian Sweeney uses the button dance and he swears by the improved results. Exactly what setting(s) did he change, and did they persist after he turned the camera off (and on again)? Edited March 22, 2018 by pico Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_livsey Posted March 23, 2018 Share #13 Posted March 23, 2018 Exactly what setting(s) did he change, and did they persist after he turned the camera off (and on again)? If you want to set your M8 to record the RAW files you have to follow the following Steps. To quickly set the JPG fine+RAW setting press 4 times right arrow button 3 times left arrow button 1 time right arrow button SET button Now you can go to the compression settings and there you’ll find an additional option JPG fine+RAW at the bottom of the list. Select it and you’re done. caveat: the setting will be deactivated on power-off (manual or automatic energy save mode). On next reboot the compression will be set to JPG fine only. Beware of forgetting to change it otherwise you’ll be shooting JPG only… I deactivated automatic power down for those reasons. Source: http://m8raw2dng.de/help/m8-service-mode/ The web site contains details on using the RAW converter to read the uncompressed file, in 16 bit, to allow a standard RAW converter to work on the file, the the m8 raw converter is command line, if you baulk at the service menu then this is NOT for you. I can see circumstances where the file will be "better" but that is at the extremes of the performance envelope. of course some shoot there all the time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raid Amin Posted March 24, 2018 Share #14 Posted March 24, 2018 Exactly what setting(s) did he change, and did they persist after he turned the camera off (and on again)? Just what Chris said above. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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