SL2 video troubles and rampant deficiencies

[dem331]

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Video is boring....I know this is not politically correct, but that’s how I see it.

[digitalfx]

12 hours ago, hillavoider said:

Friend told me he’s seen an error message saying card not fast enough for 4K video or something similar, so then turn on turn off, goes away 

You must use an UHS-II cards (with two rows of contacts)...anything less will throw errors. I have not had a single issue with Sandisk Extreme Pro or any other UHS-II card.

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[digitalfx]

13 hours ago, NRKstudio said:

Hate to say the SL2 video capabilities are seriously flawed at 4K recording and C4K.  See the picture below.  The main issues I ran into during a full day of video use (With the 50 APO SL and 35/1.2 Art):

1.  4K recording can only occur for 5 minutes or less on a full battery before error message “battery level too low for 4K recording”.  (Changed batteries and encountered same issue so it’s not the battery)
2.  C4K recording restricts AF usage, limited to only manual focus with the Sigma 35/1.2. 

3. All AF capabilities during recording are very slow to focus, unable to switch faces during face/body detection (in the rare case it captures a face), the AF box may at times capture 2-3 bodies and choose to “average” the focus distance.  
4.  No compressed 4K recording at 50mbps or less.  
5.  Video Focus peaking’s highlighted/colored areas do not match still focus peaking highlighted areas.  
6.  No way to magnify the video during capture to check focus.  
 

 

 

I find the video features very well done. The AF, while slow is certainly more useful than many other cameras...frankly AF and Video are not meant for each other. Stick to MF when shooting video or lower your expectations...I find AFSc + Pre Focus on produces acceptable results...certainly as good or better than most other similar cameras. It could be a tad bit faster, but overall its pretty decent for those rare times you would want to use AF in video mode. For the most part professionals only use MF for a reason.

 

Regarding your battery issue, it sounds like you have a bad battery. I do agree that 4k sucks up the power, and the warning does come up early, but I get significantly more time than 5 minutes. Truth is they should have used a new battery with larger capacity...but what we really need is an adapter to use larger brick style batteries

Overall, I find the video features a big plus, with a well thought out implementation which is a definite step up from the SL

[caissa]

Use an external USB battery bank. (Works with the USB port, no special adapter needed.) Anker is one of the best brands. They usually have a much larger capacity (3 to 10 fold) than the internal battery. And are much more affordable than the original batteries. Works for me, but I am not using video. Please report back if it works for you, or if you still have problems.

Edited December 27, 2019 by caissa

[NRKstudio]

23 minutes ago, digitalfx said:

I find the video features very well done. The AF, while slow is certainly more useful than many other cameras...frankly AF and Video are not meant for each other. Stick to MF when shooting video or lower your expectations...I find AFSc + Pre Focus on produces acceptable results...certainly as good or better than most other similar cameras. It could be a tad bit faster, but overall its pretty decent for those rare times you would want to use AF in video mode. For the most part professionals only use MF for a reason.

 

Regarding your battery issue, it sounds like you have a bad battery. I do agree that 4k sucks up the power, and the warning does come up early, but I get significantly more time than 5 minutes. Truth is they should have used a new battery with larger capacity...but what we really need is an adapter to use larger brick style batteries

Overall, I find the video features a big plus, with a well thought out implementation which is a definite step up from the SL

 

Thanks for the heads up on using MF or AFs when in video mode.  Im sure I was probably on iAF or AFc.  The C4K forces MF as well.

I'm wondering why the error message comes up at all until the battery is severely drained, note the picture shows 90% or so battery life? Is the error message meant to protect batteries? feels more like a firmware bug to me.  The camera should capture 4k till the battery drains to 0%.  

 

 

[NRKstudio]

4 hours ago, frame-it said:

which SD card did you use ?

I first tried a 128gb Sony tough card (uhs2).  Then a 64gb lexar pro uhs2.  @digitalfx

Edited December 27, 2019 by NRKstudio

[NRKstudio]

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I will post a screenshot of the rest of my settings that caused the error.  I know a good deal of experienced, thorough photographers test the SL2 prior to release.  Leica must have known of these issues, but chose not to admit fault or delay the sl2 release till after Xmas.  Dr. Kaufman has done great things for Leica, but it seems obvious now that he is ready to sacrifice brand credibility for 4Q profits or CY2019 revenue.  My m10-p and m-p240 were bulletproof, no firmware issues at all.  What's going on now with the SL2 and Q2?  Is this because of the Panasonic/Leica cooperative tech endeavor ending in September?  Leica relied heavily on Panasonic for software and hardware alike (see: TowerJazz sensors, which were also owned by Panasonic), I hope they can make it now without their support.  

One good thing I can point to though is that Leica Customer Service (CS) are some of the most professional and responsive in the business.  My Leica CS rep in Wetzlar called the head of Leica Austria's CS, who then represented me to a 3rd party Leica dealer in Austria on the matter of a warranty claim on an SL Summicron lens.  Felt like VIP service, and I am certainly no photography VIP.  I had an out of focus 50 APO M lens, and the Leica USA head tech emailed as well offering to explain how they would service the lens and re-calibrate its focus.  I called him and he gave me 15 minutes teaching me about lens' and photography, really excellent experience.

Edit: I am a loyal Leica user, so I do hope Leica CS and Leica users voice their dismay.  Leica reps (as most tech reps) read these forums, and this info does get to upper management I've read.  You can hear it from interviews with the head of Sigma, Fuji, and even Leica, that they get info about customer feedback, blog rumors, and general online consensus.  

 

Edited December 27, 2019 by NRKstudio

[SrMi]

56 minutes ago, NRKstudio said:

I will post a screenshot of the rest of my settings that caused the error.  I know a good deal of experienced, thorough photographers test the SL2 prior to release.  Leica must have known of these issues, but chose not to admit fault or delay the sl2 release till after Xmas.  Dr. Kaufman has done great things for Leica, but it seems obvious now that he is ready to sacrifice brand credibility for 4Q profits or CY2019 revenue.  My m10-p and m-p240 were bulletproof, no firmware issues at all.  What's going on now with the SL2 and Q2?  Is this because of the Panasonic/Leica cooperative tech endeavor ending in September?  Leica relied heavily on Panasonic for software and hardware alike (see: TowerJazz sensors, which were also owned by Panasonic), I hope they can make it now without their support.  

One good thing I can point to though is that Leica Customer Service (CS) are some of the most professional and responsive in the business.  My Leica CS rep in Wetzlar called the head of Leica Austria's CS, who then represented me to a 3rd party Leica dealer in Austria on the matter of a warranty claim on an SL Summicron lens.  Felt like VIP service, and I am certainly no photography VIP.  I had an out of focus 50 APO M lens, and the Leica USA head tech emailed as well offering to explain how they would service the lens and re-calibrate its focus.  I called him and he gave me 15 minutes teaching me about lens' and photography, really excellent experience.

Edit: I am a loyal Leica user, so I do hope Leica CS and Leica users voice their dismay.  Leica reps (as most tech reps) read these forums, and this info does get to upper management I've read.  You can hear it from interviews with the head of Sigma, Fuji, and even Leica, that they get info about customer feedback, blog rumors, and general online consensus.  

 

Sorry to hear about your issues, and understand that you are not happy. 

I am not a "loyal" Leica user insofar that I use cameras from other manufacturers as well, but I am pleased with the quality and completeness of my SL2 and Q2. Leica may prioritize things differently than I would like, but so do other manufacturers.

[NRKstudio]

Quick question: might be a firmware bug, but: when using M lenses with the Leica m-l adapter on the SL2, how do you get AE-lock to work via the joystick?  I set the joystick functionality to: MF mode, AE-L, but every time I click and hold the joystick, the live view image gets magnified.  For some reason, the magnification shortcut is tied to the joystick in MF mode and thus AE-L is not possible.  

[Leicaiste]

On 12/27/2019 at 8:44 PM, NRKstudio said:

Leica must have known of these issues, but chose not to admit fault or delay the sl2 release till after Xmas.  Dr. Kaufman has done great things for Leica, but it seems obvious now that he is ready to sacrifice brand credibility for 4Q profits or CY2019 revenue.  My m10-p and m-p240 were bulletproof, no firmware issues at all.  What's going on now with the SL2 and Q2?

I understand your frustration but I am sure Leica will solve that.

M-10P and M-P 240 were cosmetic changes to the M10 and M 240. Their firmwares were finalized.

The SL2 is a totally new camera, (new body, new interface, new menus, new sensor, IBIS, new connectivity, new EVF, new processor).

I wonder if there is a single part shared with the SL other than the battery pack and flash connectivity. Maybe the shutter. 

I certainly don’t want Leica to wait months or years to finalize the firmware before release. It was already a bit late in my opinion.

And anyway there will always be problems that only real users can experience.

All I want is to see on a regular basis are firmware upgrades answering the problems discovered by users or adding new functions like they did for the SL.

Coming from the DMR, all the color digital M’s and the SL I can confirm that Leica is doing better and better.

But because of this forum I learned to have a backup during the first months following the release of a new Leica.

In fact none of them ever failed me to the point to not be able to take the pictures I wanted.

The R9-DMR batteries died slowly, I received a free IR filter for the M8 and I had no corrosion on my M9.

Thinking about it, I had more trouble with some of my analog R’s and M’s and some of their lenses.

From my experience, their level of professionalism and quality control are much improved since Dr Kaufmann took it over.

This not to say that the SL2 is perfect.

I’m surprised that on a totally new camera they didn’t change the positioning of the shutter release and of the front wheel to improve the user experience.

It is particularly annoying with an hand strap.

No firmware will improve that.  😉

 

 

 

[digitalfx]

My warning only pops up when the battery is below 10%
 

try using a freshly charged new battery and see if it happens again. 
 

are you using a new battery or old battery from previous camera?

[hillavoider]

i'm getting the battery error with a nearly full charge as well 

hopefully a firmware fix

[Daniel81]

"nonlinear focusing in manual focus on the Summicron SL lenses" . . . . yep, for lenses of such pedigree and price-point, the truly terrible nature of the manual focus is just unacceptable.

[NRKstudio]

22 hours ago, hillavoider said:

i'm getting the battery error with a nearly full charge as well 

hopefully a firmware fix

I tried two separate batteries and both showed the same error.  I haven’t encountered the error recently tho, it may have been the combo of the Sigma 35/1.2 lens plus the video settings, or maybe not, but hopefully we will see these errors addressed in a firmware release.  
 

i will admit though that the c4k video with my 28 Summilux looks incredible, really. 

[Aaron Daniel]

*audio from thinking out loud while recording – apologies for mindless slurs lol*

 

I just received the Leica SL2 yesterday morning, along with the Atomos Ninja V.

Although I've yet to shoot with it enough to judge its true video quality in real-world shoot settings, I'm already ecstatic about its fit within my shooting process.

 

Right off the bat:

- Intuitive menu + buttons for video

- Simple form factor

- Relatively discreet

- Correcting + grading with L-log is phenomenal with the 4:2:2 colour space and 10bit capabilities.

 

Issues in video:

1. Frame shifting in first clip recording. It doesn't happen in the ending clip; the only significant difference between the recordings is that the last clip is significantly smaller at 3.23gb VS 43.64gb). If you have an idea why this happened, please let me know

2. If you're used to adjusting ISO with a quick thumbwheel scrub, the SL2 requires you to dig into a menu selection first (at least to my knowledge). I wish there was an option to assign Exposure Index ASA to a thumbwheel. If you know a way, please let me know!

3. There is some noise as you pull up the exposure – but it is definitely a good organic-looking type of noise. Very filmic and is not a complaint at all.

 

Thanks for the watch, all! This is my first time really posting on the forum, and can't thank you all enough for the insight I've gained just by being here.

[digitalfx]

your first issue is likely how you rendered the footage. We we need to know all the details before offering help like what resolution you recorded the clip and exactly how you processed it and uploaded to YouTube.

ISO changes are not difficult, you can assign the function or simple tap the quick menu screen for ISO

[Aaron Daniel]

6 hours ago, digitalfx said:

your first issue is likely how you rendered the footage. We we need to know all the details before offering help like what resolution you recorded the clip and exactly how you processed it and uploaded to YouTube.

ISO changes are not difficult, you can assign the function or simple tap the quick menu screen for ISO

Thanks for your reply!

Apologies if the video wasn't clear. As written in the video, the settings were as follows:

4K 60fps 10-bit 4:2:2

L-log

Externally recorded to a Ninja V

 

I don't believe the issue was in how the clip was rendered, imported, or edited, let alone uploaded to YouTube, as the unaltered MOV file straight out of card shows the frame shifting.

Screenshot of sample frame attached.

 

In terms of ISO change, is there a specific way to assign the function of Exposure Index to the thumbwheel specifically?

 

Thanks again,

Aaron

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[digitalfx]

seems like the issue is in the Ninja then (chk the Ninjas input settings)...have you tried recoding to the SD card?

 

re: ISO

kinda...you need to assign it to a function button, then use the thumbwheel to select the iso.

[Photoworks]

I am getting it too now, and the battery is full...

 

Leica answer : The Leica SL2 need a lot of energy for 4K video. Please use an external power supply via USB-C or attach the handgrip with a second d battery to the camera.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica L-Mount

[digitalfx]

6 hours ago, Photoworks said:

I am getting it too now, and the battery is full...

 

Leica answer : The Leica SL2 need a lot of energy for 4K video. Please use an external power supply via USB-C or attach the handgrip with a second d battery to the camera.

 

Well I sure hope this isn't an official response...adding a handgrip or external power defeats the entire concept of a small handheld camera.