M8.2

[okram]

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Howard, maybe I am just used to my 1Ds2- but compared to it (and a few other i tried)M8s wakeup time is not in pro standards.

It should be virtually inexistent, and it takes 1sec at least.

With some practice one can learn to allways prepress shutter to wake it up, but I still lose pictures because of it.

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[jaapv]

0.7 sec to exact to shooting-readiness (as soon as the red LED stops flashing) I cannot believe you can bring it to your eye and focus in 0.7 sec. A further 2 sec for the top LCD Too many users wait for this to happen before they use it..

[luigi bertolotti]

Howard, maybe I am just used to my 1Ds2- but compared to it (and a few other i tried)M8s wakeup time is not in pro standards.

It should be virtually inexistent, and it takes 1sec at least.

With some practice one can learn to allways prepress shutter to wake it up, but I still lose pictures because of it.

 

 

Can be... I never tried "pro" DSLR but imho the wakeup is not a real issue... considering that, after all, I think that Leica, making the M8, had not the will to make a "pro standard" camera... and I even don't know if they will try to make one: adressing seriously the whole pro market, to catch a significant share of it, would require investiments that ptobably Leica cannot afford: of course (and we have examples here, too) there are pros that use M8 for certain assignements (not to speak of the many that retain some film M) but I think Leica's strategy, at this moment, is aimed at a different market.

[wlaidlaw]

Howard, maybe I am just used to my 1Ds2- but compared to it (and a few other i tried)M8s wakeup time is not in pro standards.

It should be virtually inexistent, and it takes 1sec at least.

With some practice one can learn to allways prepress shutter to wake it up, but I still lose pictures because of it.

 

I think that is where having a softie or even better a mini-softie on the shutter release makes a big difference. It is much easier to feel the three stages of the release; switch on, lock exposure and fire.

 

Wilson

[delander †]

Howard, maybe I am just used to my 1Ds2- but compared to it (and a few other i tried)M8s wakeup time is not in pro standards.

It should be virtually inexistent, and it takes 1sec at least.

With some practice one can learn to allways prepress shutter to wake it up, but I still lose pictures because of it.

 

I dont have a Canon 1ds2 but from the Canon 1ds3 manual to quote:

 

"If you press the shutter button completely without pressing it halfway first or if you press the shutter button halfway and then press it completely immediately, the camera will take a moment before it takes the picture"

 

If you press the shutter button completely to wake the camera then that 'moment' is at least a second, as the camera achieves autofocus and metering. It really is quite noticable and I think some would expect it to do better.

 

Really the differences between the operation and handling of an M8 and a 1 series Canon DSLR are so enormous that this is minor in comparison.

 

Both cameras need to be woken with a half press.

 

By the way if you are concerned about the accuracy of manual Rf focussing on the M8 my experience so far is that the 1ds3 AF is a long way short of perfect - when you pixel peep.

 

Jeff

[marknorton]

Once again, the Nikon D3 shows the way...

[delander †]

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Once again, the Nikon D3 shows the way...

 

Well I dont have a D3 so I cant comment but surely if it is 'woken' it still has to AF before it can take the pic?

 

Jeff

[ronaldh]

0.7 sec to exact to shooting-readiness (as soon as the red LED stops flashing) I cannot believe you can bring it to your eye and focus in 0.7 sec. A further 2 sec for the top LCD Too many users wait for this to happen before they use it..

 

I find the time varies with different makes of card

[ho_co]

... I suspect the 'instant 1/2 release then full technique' would NOT work in 'A' mode, would it?

Oops! Major correction is in order. Thanks for calling me on this, Erl!

 

I’m now unsure exactly how my M8 behaved prior to January 2008 and to firmware 1.201.

 

After the January 2008 modifications and with firmware 1.201, my M8 works as follows:

If you press the release all the way through when waking the camera from sleep, in manual or in Auto:

a) the shutter doesn’t fire;

the camera wakes up; and

c) if necessary, the LCD asks for confirmation of WATE focal length .

 

So in all cases with the M8, pressing the release all the way through when awakening the camera from sleep doesn’t take a picture. You need a two-step operation:

 

Camera is asleep. Touch button to wake it, then relax finger. Camera is now awake and responds as usual.

 

Sometimes that’s hard to remember.

 

 

I checked my Nikon D200 as well. Pressing the release all the way down when waking it from sleep will take a picture, depending on camera settings, but only after the autofocusing.is complete, which varies depending on the lens and the focus before the camera shut down.

 

I prefer that the camera go ahead and take the picture, even if it takes a second or more to get ready, because at least you know the camera is working and you know what it's doing. (With the D200, for example, you see that the lens is focusing.)

 

With the M8, the camera doesn't respond to the first press. That's no worse than the D200, because the picture you wanted is likely already gone in both cases. But if you've had problems with the M8 in the past, the first thing that goes through your head is, "Oh, no, it just died." And that slows you down in trying to remember just to touch the button again.

[delander †]

Oops! Major correction is in order. Thanks for calling me on this, Erl!

 

I’m now unsure exactly how my M8 behaved prior to January 2008 and to firmware 1.201.

 

After the January 2008 modifications and with firmware 1.201, my M8 works as follows:

If you press the release all the way through when waking the camera from sleep, in manual or in Auto:

a) the shutter doesn’t fire;

the camera wakes up; and

c) if necessary, the LCD asks for confirmation of WATE focal length .

 

So in all cases with the M8, pressing the release all the way through when awakening the camera from sleep doesn’t take a picture. You need a two-step operation:

 

Camera is asleep. Touch button to wake it, then relax finger. Camera is now awake and responds as usual.

 

Sometimes that’s hard to remember.

 

 

I checked my Nikon D200 as well. Pressing the release all the way down when waking it from sleep will take a picture, depending on camera settings, but only after the autofocusing.is complete, which varies depending on the lens and the focus before the camera shut down.

 

I prefer that the camera go ahead and take the picture, even if it takes a second or more to get ready, because at least you know the camera is working and you know what it's doing. (With the D200, for example, you see that the lens focusing.)

 

With the M8, the camera doesn't respond to the first press. That's no worse than the D200, because the picture you wanted is likely already gone in both cases. But if you've had problems with the M8 in the past, the first thing that goes through your head is, "Oh, no, it just died." And that slows you down in trying to remember just to touch the button again.

 

Howard,

 

Both my M8s take a picture when I press the shutter button all the way without pausing. There is a short delay during which metering (1-2seconds) takes place and then the shutter fires.

 

It is not dissimilar to the way the Canon functions.

 

Jeff

[ho_co]

Howard, maybe I am just used to my 1Ds2- but compared to it (and a few other i tried)M8s wakeup time is not in pro standards.

It should be virtually inexistent, and it takes 1sec at least.

With some practice one can learn to allways prepress shutter to wake it up, but I still lose pictures because of it.

 

Thanks. I accept that.

 

I had just hoped that there was a confusion there that we could straighten out.

[ho_co]

Both my M8s take a picture when I press the shutter button all the way without pausing. There is a short delay during which metering (1-2seconds) takes place and then the shutter fires.

 

It is not dissimilar to the way the Canon functions.

Jeff--

Wow! That's different from mine, and it's the behavior I like.

 

Have they been serviced after January of this year?

 

Thanks for the info. Now I'm out of date again.

[Guest DuquesneG]

Mine fire with a straight push also, as long as they haven't lapsed into sleep mode. For the record, they're both 3,3xx,xxx, bought 11 months ago.

 

Best,

Gordon

[Guest DuquesneG]

Mine fire with a straight push also, as long as they haven't lapsed into sleep mode. For the record, they're both 3,3xx,xxx, bought 11 months ago with firmware 1.09 originally (since updated to latest), and have always worked thussly.

 

Best,

Gordon

[gravastar]

I've just tried this with two cameras, both with firmware 1.201 After they've gone to sleep (2 min wait) they both wake up and take a picture about 0.7 sec after the release is quickly pushed all the way down in one movement.

 

One camera is an early 310101x which has been back to Solms for focus adjustment almost exactly a year ago and the other is a later 319699x. It makes no difference if they are set to auto exposure or fixed shutter speed.

 

Bob.

[ho_co]

Mine fire with a straight push also, as long as they haven't lapsed into sleep mode.

Gordon--

Yes, you've got it: "as long as they haven't lapsed into sleep mode."

 

Although I guess I didn't make it explicit, I was describing my camera's behavior when being awakened from sleep.

 

When my camera has gone to sleep, it needs one press, full or partial, to wake it up; after that it functions as you say.

 

Sorry to confuse.

[Shootist]

Gordon--

Yes, you've got it: "as long as they haven't lapsed into sleep mode."

 

Although I guess I didn't make it explicit, I was describing my camera's behavior when being awakened from sleep.

 

When my camera has gone to sleep, it needs one press, full or partial, to wake it up; after that it functions as you say.

 

Sorry to confuse.

Mine will fire even if it goes into sleep mode with one push BUT, and this is a big BUT, You have to keep the shutter button depressed until it fires, about .7 seconds. Actuallly a little over a second.

If you just hit it and then release it the shutter will not fire. Howard check your M8 and I bet it's the same.

[marknorton]

Well I dont have a D3 so I cant comment but surely if it is 'woken' it still has to AF before it can take the pic?

 

Jeff

 

To make a valid comparison of just wake-up time, you need to set the DSLR to fire even if the image is not in focus - which is exactly what the Leica will do; in that case, the Nikon wake-up time is near instantaneous and (I've just tried it), the Nikon can take at least 5 shots before the Leica has gathered up its skirts and fired one.

 

I expect part of the difference is accounted for by the use of a CCD sensor instead of a CMOS sensor. CCD sensors use different power arrangements and these will need to stabilise before the CCD sensor is ready to capture an image.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[ho_co]

Mine will fire even if it goes into sleep mode with one push BUT, and this is a big BUT, You have to keep the shutter button depressed until it fires, about .7 seconds. Actuallly a little over a second.

If you just hit it and then release it the shutter will not fire. Howard check your M8 and I bet it's the same.

 

Ed, thanks! You, Bob, Jeff, Gordon (and maybe others I've missed) have caught me lying again!

 

You are correct and everything I said above is wrong.

 

The camera does fire on being awakened from sleep with a single quick press all the way through, though it takes a large part of a second.

 

My error. Thanks for checking me.

 

For my punishment, I'll shoot the D200 for a few days.

[ho_co]

Mark--

Your recommendation to consider AF settings is good. That's why I said above that the D200's response "depend on camera settings,"

 

If the camera is set to fire only when in focus and a lens passes through proper focus in its AF hunt at turn-on, then the camera doesn't fire at all.

 

But if the camera went to sleep with approximately the same focus it finds when it is awakened, then it wakes and fires immediately.

 

Compare that to the M8. Whether it's still in focus or not, it still waits nearly a second before firing.

 

There are so many AF possibilities in dSLRs that I simply took as an example my own general usage of the camera.

 

Similarly, if I'm awaiting a specific event but don't know when it will occur, I will have prefocused the M8's lens--and will then be nonplussed when I press the release but the camera delays and doesn't fire in time.

 

 

It's interesting again at this level to find such a behavioral difference between CCD and CMOS, though I'm finding the behavior of the D200 similar to what you say of the D3.

 

What do you think, possibly due also to the simpler component design of the M8 as compared to the ASICs and specialized processor of the D3?