Jump to content

The new M8 - 2.0 Firmware is online


Guest farbtupfer

Recommended Posts

Guest DuquesneG

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Yes...but it's not here: Leica Camera AG - Downloads at least not yet. Thanks for showing me where they did put it. In any case, I'm not going to update mine. I'd never use the auto-ISO, nor any card larger than 2GB (risk too many images on one card, plus I need to change the battery anyway by the time I fill a 2GB card). Also, even if I did want to update, I would wait a while 'till any bugs are found by the early-adopters, since it isn't possible to go back to 1.201. It doesn't indicate in the instructions that 2.0 has the codes for the new lenses (not that I'm insane enough to buy one) so I would expect another firmware update shortly.

 

-framelines are definitely tighter. I can compose now as I always wanted to.

 

Cool. Congrats! Never underestimate the placebo effect ;)

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • Replies 215
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

Top Posters In This Topic

Posted Images

I was at a clients house the other day and they had many family pictures on the walls from years ago, 10-15, that were all in B&W and some wedding shots taken some 25+ years ago. They all looked fine from a normal viewing distance. When I got closer I could see grain/noise in all of them.

I think what everyone with a digital camera and a computer is forgetting is that in the old days we didn't pixel peep. Now everyone wants to blow the image up on the PC screen and pick apart the grain/noise.

Try printing some of your 2500 ISO shots and looking at them for a normal distance.

 

I do. I have.

 

Much depends on what you define as 'normal viewing distance'. If you're printing for someone's wedding album then normal viewing distance will be about 9 -12 inches. That's my benchmark. If you believe the M8 has acceptable noise at 2500 ISO for a 10 inch print viewed from 12 inches then your idea of acceptable quality is very different to mine.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Guys - watch it with those 32 Gb cards!! They have a bad reputation for stability. :eek:

 

LOL.

 

32 GB SDHC cards reputation for stability cannot be worse than M8 reputation for the same thing... Jaap, are you afraid of SDHC card failure or M8 failure? :p:D

.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Is it just me that is finding the 2500iso usable now ?

 

It is looking like the file quality has jumped, similar to how the latest DMR firmware improved the high ISO on the DMR.

 

Robert

 

I haven't tried ISO 2500 yet but I did test ISO 1250 with the old versus the new firmware. I see absolutely no improvement in noise performance with the new firmware.

 

Len

Link to post
Share on other sites

LOL.

 

32 GB SDHC cards reputation for stability cannot be worse than M8 reputation for the same thing... Jaap, are you afraid of SDHC card failure or M8 failure? :p:D

.

 

Not many M8 users in those shops... Why push it. Imo it is idiocy to put 3000 eggs in one basket.

Link to post
Share on other sites

It's really to take advantage of the high writing speed of SDHC. I don't think anyone would fill up the whole 16G everyday. Have you used a SDHC? Now handling DNGs files is like handling JPEGs.

 

Yes...but it's not here: Leica Camera AG - Downloads at least not yet. Thanks for showing me where they did put it. In any case, I'm not going to update mine. I'd never use the auto-ISO, nor any card larger than 2GB (risk too many images on one card, plus I need to change the battery anyway by the time I fill a 2GB card). Also, even if I did want to update, I would wait a while 'till any bugs are found by the early-adopters, since it isn't possible to go back to 1.201. It doesn't indicate in the instructions that 2.0 has the codes for the new lenses (not that I'm insane enough to buy one) so I would expect another firmware update shortly.

 

 

 

Cool. Congrats! Never underestimate the placebo effect ;)

Link to post
Share on other sites

...I can see a difference in writing speed between the Extreme III and SDHC Class 6, especially when you have selected "DNG + JPEG Fine"....

 

 

I take that to mean that you have found the Extreme III to be faster. Could you quantify that? How many shots can you shoot with in 30 seconds? How long can you go before the buffer fills up? Which brand and model of Class 6 card are you referencing?

 

 

v.b.

 

geoff

Link to post
Share on other sites

Not many M8 users in those shops... Why push it. Imo it is idiocy to put 3000 eggs in one basket.

 

Jaap, I agree with you concerning the danger of loosing 16 or 32 GB of images. That's not the point. I don't need to fill my SDHC card. I was mainly concerned by speed but also the possibility of using high capacity storoge when I need it EVEN if I take risks.

 

In April, when I was in the Philipines I wished on many occasions to have SDHC cards because sawping SD cards could be more problematic than the probability of using SDHC cards..

 

PS: my previous message was written with some humour (just for pulling your leg a bit)

Link to post
Share on other sites

Guest DuquesneG
Works great. Auto ISO is a terrific and much needed addition.

 

LOL! Maybe the M9 will have "picture modes" like the entry-level DSLRs. Only, the M9 will have "Bokeh", "Decisive Moment", "Glow"...and of course, mustn't forget the most-needed of all: "Lens Test". :D

 

BTW, does the auto-ISO require a coded lens to take the focal length into account in re minimum shutter speed before bumping the ISO up? Or do you input your age and the firmware decides how slow a speed you can hand hold :rolleyes:

 

Really, it gets me no end that Leica is going the auto-ISO, "Snapshot mode" route, but not putting in a menu to set the lens codes. Shows who their target market is...and/or what they think of the capability/intelligence of us all.

Link to post
Share on other sites

... I just ran a quick and dirty test with an...ATP ProMax 4GB Class 6 SDHC[/url] memory card, model AF4GSD, which I have had laying around in wait for SDHC firmware support.

 

I got up to 15 shots in 15 seconds before the buffer had to clear. Not too bad compared to about 4-6 shots with a Transcend 4GB X150 “SD Compatible” memory card, model TS4GSD150.

 

The big news is that when I allowed a two second interval between shots, I found I could shoot endlessly until the memory card was full with never running into a full image buffer! In comparision, the Transcend with the latest firmware 2.0, again, got tied up after about 4-6 shots.

 

Hey Bill Parsons, are you reading this!

 

 

Geoff

myspace.com/geoffotos

 

Geoff, thanks for the pm and this note as well.

 

I'm looking forward to testing some SDHC cards with the new software.

 

As it happens, I have a wedding shoot this weekend, so I won't be updating my fw until next week. There's that old saying about old dogs.... Dunno what the "new" saying might be.

 

Has anyone run any dng's thru C1 v4 to see if there's been any change in the color as rendered by C1? Until we got to 1.2x the color balance using profiles in C1 was sliding sideways.

 

I have been using a 4gb non-HC card when I wander around being a tourist. I think I'll upgrade to a 4 or 8 GB HC card for this purpose. When doing shoots, I will continue to change cards every 50 or hundred shots, just for safety.

 

Actually, when shooting either dance poses or portraits, I generally stop after 30-50 shots to review the images with the subjects on the computer screen. This has the advantages of making sure that the images are in the computer (backed up), allowing the subject(s) to catch their breath (not a inconsiderable requirement when shooting dance movements), and allowing the subjects to see how beautiful they are.

 

Regards,

Link to post
Share on other sites

Really, it gets me no end that Leica is going the auto-ISO, "Snapshot mode" route, but not putting in a menu to set the lens codes. Shows who their target market is...and/or what they think of the capability/intelligence of us all.

 

I agree, but I can't really fault Leica for it. It's not Leica that's going the full-automation route, it's their customers and the market. There's a very small set of people who are willing to actually learn how to take photographs. We used to call those professionals, but even the profession--perhaps all professions--have been moving away from skill skill and towards production. As much as I detest that general trend, I understand it--pros need to make money, and to do so they feel they need blindingly fast AF, 21 MP, 30 frames per second, and 14TB cards. And many consumers, particularly those with money, want to look like pros. Or --as is more often the case-- consumers with money. :) I think we all know that the market is really not about the photography anymore.

 

Just browse the threads from the last year. People ask if the next M can have autofocus. Autofocus! Or Live View. Live View!

 

As much as I'd love to see Leica draw a line in the sand and say "we make tools for the photographer--let Canon, Nikon, etc. make photo-taking machines for the masses", it's clear their ability to do so has a limited lifespan. Leica's, and Ms in particular, are already a niche market and who knows if Leica is actually turning a profit in this sector after R&D and all the quality mishaps (recalls, fixes, etc.).

 

Well, we can at least find some solace in the fact that Leica has made these features optional. I don't know that I've ever used the "A" setting on my M8. Maybe once. But I didn't buy my M8 to be an expensive Elph. I bought it to help me feel like I'm actually taking photos again--like I'm part of the photo-taking process, not just a bipod for a photo machine with a button which makes all the decisions for me.

 

Anyway, I'll get down off the curmudgeon box now.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...