RobertZ Posted June 13, 2009 Share #1 Posted June 13, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hello all. My primary camera gear is a Canon 40D, some L lenses,etc. I was previously using a G9 for my day to day use camera. It was a great camera but a bit too big, poor at above 100 ISO and no HD video. I was considering the LX3 but for approximately $150 more the Leica was far more appealing. After seeing one wrapped in a Luigi half case I was sold! This was a costly purchase for a P&S but considering the cost of my 100-400 L lens alone it is reasonable. Hopefully the Luigi case doesn't take too long. I have a San Francisco, Monterey, Paso Robles, Yosemite trip in four weeks. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted June 13, 2009 Posted June 13, 2009 Hi RobertZ, Take a look here New To Forum, Just Bought D-lux 4 & Luigi Case!. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Tenor1 Posted June 13, 2009 Share #2 Posted June 13, 2009 Welcome to the forum Robert, You selected a fine camera and a beautiful case. We look forward to enjoying some shots from your time in California. Try and see the Monterey Bay Aquarium if time permits. P.S. - Adjust the Kelvin setting to 10,000 if you take pictures at the aquarium. This is neutralizes the blue of the water. Aquarium photography is one of my hobbies and this camera does a fantastic job with it. Another suggestion is to step back from the aquarium to take a shot. The fish are easier to capture that way and you can crop the picture to focus on one or two species. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertZ Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share #3 Posted June 13, 2009 Welcome to the forum Robert, You selected a fine camera and a beautiful case. We look forward to enjoying some shots from your time in California. Try and see the Monterey Bay Aquarium if time permits. P.S. - Adjust the Kelvin setting to 10,000 if you take pictures at the aquarium. This is neutralizes the blue of the water. Aquarium photography is one of my hobbies and this camera does a fantastic job with it. Another suggestion is to step back from the aquarium to take a shot. The fish are easier to capture that way and you can crop the picture to focus on one or two species. Carlos, thanks for the tips! I had the opportunity to thake plenty of photos of the Aquarium a few years back. You are right. I had a difficult time with the blue of the water as well as the capturing of the fish, jellyfish, and sharks. I was also not using my SLR so the shots were dissapointing. This time I will be prepared with my 40D, L4, and HV20. I just wish I had one more arm so that I can use them all simultaneously. I see you're from the Bay Area. I am originally from San Jose (now Deep South Texas). Have you taken photos at the Pinnacles? Alum Rock Park is also a local gem. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenor1 Posted June 13, 2009 Share #4 Posted June 13, 2009 Actually, I live in Southern California and have not been to the places you mention. I thought I should explain how to adjust the Kelvin setting. It is one of the AWB selections, identified with a little wrench with a "K" alongside it. Click on the "Display" button after selecting it. An adjustment scale appears on the screen. Use the toggle key to raise or lower the value. The highest value is 10000K, which increases the red to maximum causing the blue to neutralize. This WB option allows you to fully adjust any of the presets available and is the main reason I bought the camera. One of my hobbies is keeping aquariums and taking pictures of major aquariums and those of friends in my aquarium clubs. Many members enjoy the flexibility of the "Film Mode" options and I suggest you explore them. Another strength is it's low-light ability. I take church and concert hall interiors at ISO 200 and LOVE them. I can sit fairly far back for a concert and get the entire orchestra. Don't worry about the limited zoom. Just crop the picture and that acts like a zoom. I don't make large prints, usually only 4x6, and they look fantastic due to the lens speeds and clarity. One thing I find limiting is the lack of being able to zoom while make a video. I also don't see THAT great a quality over the Canon G-10. I prefer using the G-10 for this because of the zoom feature. I also have a Canon G-10, which is another amazing camera. It doesn't do as well for the aquariums due to the slower lens and has more of the blur problem, which you probably experienced with your own shots. It's low-light shots are not quite as good but respectable. Browse though the older posts here to find how others use the camera. I find it an amazing camera in such a small package. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertZ Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share #5 Posted June 13, 2009 Thanks Carlos. I mistakingly read San Carlos. I was considering the G10 but even at 200 ISO theres a bit too much noise. I like the fact that the G9/10 menu system is easy to use because of my experience with the Canon dSLR. The Leika was just too sexy to pass up. The videos on Vimeo are impressive compared to my G9. I was considering purchasing the LX3 or even the titanium Lux 4 but I still prefer the red dot! What are other recommended accessories for the camera? The viewfinder seems outrageously priced. I would love to see some options that eliminate the lens cap. I had the G5 with a lens cap and I still cringe when I think about the string and the cap hanging. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenor1 Posted June 13, 2009 Share #6 Posted June 13, 2009 The lens cap has an interesting option and you will need to use the forum search feature to find it. Someone modified a lens cover that automatically opens and closes when the camera is switched on and off. I haven't yet made one for my camera. The thread tells what to do and has illustrations included. Are you using the included lens-cap leash? I bought the Panasonic viewfinder but don't use it probably due to my lack of knowledge on how to use it effectively. It doesn't zoom with the camera and that bothers me. I keep it on the camera and will use it in really dark settings when the LCD screen isn't effective. The Panasonic version is a lot less expensive and seems to be a good quality. A good thing with using a viewfinder is extended battery life. The LCD can be turned off through a menu option. The picture is displayed VERY briefly on the LCD immediately after the picture is taken, then reverts back to the black screen. The experts here say they much prefer using the viewfinder. It's just my lack of experience with compensating the lack of viewing the zoom. My only "other" suggestion is to get extra batteries, enough for a full days worth of shooting. We like to take pictures using the DL-4 and G-10, then exchange cameras and view what the other person took. This is really hard on battery life, but it's fun. The DL-4 does not have a long battery life in my opinion. It uses the same battery as my DL-2. The G-10 has a huge battery that lasts about 3x as long. Another thing that works for me to extend battery life is to turn off the sleep-mode feature. It takes power to reactivate the camera once it goes into sleep mode, but this is dependent on your shooting style. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tenor1 Posted June 13, 2009 Share #7 Posted June 13, 2009 Advertisement (gone after registration) Robert, here is the thread's link for the lens cap modification. http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/digital-forum/69201-ricoh-lc1-auto-lens-cap-d.html Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted June 13, 2009 Share #8 Posted June 13, 2009 Robert, Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new D-Lux 4! The modification to the Ricoh LC-1 lens cap is very easy to do: - buy some self-adhesive felt buttons for sticking to the feet of things that stand on polished wooden surfaces. You'll need 3 of about 1/2 inch diameter and 3 of about 1/4 inch diameter. - turn the Ricoh LC-1 lens cap over so that you're looking at the inside and place it on a flat surface. You're going to need to apply a little pressure to stick the felt buttons to the lens cap so the flat surface will prevent the 'barn doors' from being damaged. - stick one 1/2 inch felt button over the little spring on each 'barn door'. It'll cover most of the spring so it doesn't matter too much where it goes as long as it doesn't go beyond the edge of the barn door it's stuck to. Make sure that the adhesive part is securely stuck to the flat part of the barn door on both sides of the spring. - next you need to stick one 1/4 inch felt button to the top of each of the 1/2 inch felt buttons you've just stuck to the barn door. This is to open up the barn doors when the D-Lux 4 is at maximum zoom to prevent vignetting by the barn door corners. Stick the 1/4 inch felt buttons to the 1/2 inch felt buttons towards the outer edge of the lens cap. - to attach the lens cap to the D-Lux 4 remove the Leica lens cap and remove the ring covering the filter thread by unscrewing it. Then simply push the Ricoh LC-1 lens cap onto the filter thread and you're good to go. You have to push quite firmly (don't try to screw it on) but you won't damage the camera or lens. I've done it many times and there's a nack to it that gets easier with doing it a few times. I've been using the Ricoh LC-1 lens cap for about 6 months and I wouldn't consider going back to the Leica one because you don't have to take anything off to shoot. Just switch the D-Lux 4 on and the barn doors open up and you ready to shoot. Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertZ Posted June 13, 2009 Author Share #9 Posted June 13, 2009 Thanks Pete. I hae a couple of questions about the mod. Does the lens pushing the doors open cause any type of strain on the motor or are the doors relatively loose? Also, how much of a gap is there to let dust in? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan100000 Posted December 13, 2009 Share #10 Posted December 13, 2009 Hello: Briefly, I had been looking to replace my old Sony 3.2 megapixel camera with something more up-to-date, and though I don't consider myself a serious photographer, I ended up buying the D-Lux 4. It's likely overkill for my purposes I suppose, but my mother had a Leica M3 all through my childhood and so sentimentality won out here. I've been researching the various case options on these forums in order to protect my investment. The Luigi cases look great, and I don't mind paying for quality. As I don't want to have to take my camera out of a case every time I want to use it, Luigi's appears to be the best option for me. Leica's "Ever Ready" mocha case looks nice, though perhaps just a bit bulky from the few photos I'd found online. Luigi seems like a colorful guy and I found nothing less than glowing reviews of his products on the internet. Upon receiving my D-Lux 4 about two weeks ago, I sent Luigi an email with a few questions about his cases, and I asked for his opinion as to why I should choose his case over the Leica "Ever Ready" case. He never responded. Earlier this morning I sent him another message--this time through the eBay system--asking what colors he had in stock & ready to ship with the built-in grip for my D-Lux 4. He got back to me in a matter of minutes with 4 or 5 color options in stock along with the breakdown of the base price + built in grip + FedEx rush shipping + 4% PayPal fee, and he said that he'd await my payment as he could package it together for tomorrow's mail if I acted quickly. I realize that someone paying nearly $300 for a case shouldn't be worrying about an extra $10 or $15, but I felt mildly insulted that he's asking me to pick up the PayPal fees as that's not only a violation of eBay's rules, but he plainly states on his auction page that there is no additional charge for paying through PayPal. So I emailed him right back to say that yes, I'm interested in one of his brown cases & I'm ready to do the eBay transaction, but I'd like an explanation as to the 4% PayPal fee he's billing me for. A few hours have passed and I've gotten no response. Um, so can anyone vouch for the "Ever Ready" Mocha case from Leica? Ivan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivan100000 Posted December 14, 2009 Share #11 Posted December 14, 2009 Please disregard my above message. I'm looking forward to receiving my Luigi™ case. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted December 14, 2009 Share #12 Posted December 14, 2009 Thanks Pete. I hae a couple of questions about the mod. Does the lens pushing the doors open cause any type of strain on the motor or are the doors relatively loose? Also, how much of a gap is there to let dust in? Sorry, Robert, I missed your questions - hope the answers aren't too late for you. The barn doors are very light and the spring tension to move them is feather light, although enough to keep them shut in all positions, and there's no way that it would strain the motor. The gap between the barn doors is 1 millimeter at most on mine and dust hasn't been a problem. Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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