[Leica] M9, lag time, perception and other things

[leicar at q.com (Aram Langhans)]

> Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:42:07 +1030
Marty.  Just wondering.  Did you measure the lag on the M3, M7 and Nikon D3 
or are these stated times?  If they are stated times, perhaps the vast 
difference is in the measurement technique, and perhaps that is why others 
have not noticed any real problem.

But it sounds like you are a scientist (microscope reference) and have 
probably accounted for this already.

Aram



> From: Marty Deveney <benedenia at gmail.com>
> Subject: [Leica] M9, lag time, perception and other things
> To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> Message-ID:
> <ee8fa51c1001280012s3456bc6fw80acdc1c4ba7be9 at mail.gmail.com>
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>
> I changed the subject line because I agreed with Steve that the
> previous one was absurd.
>
>>How does one measure 0.08s?
>
> You measure it using a device designed for the task.  These shine a
> laser in onto a mirror that you attach to the film or sensor plane and
> have a sensor next to the laser outside the camera that detects the
> reflected beam.  The sensor is also attached to the shutter release.
> There is a very precise chronometer or computer in the middle.  You
> set it to go, the shutter fires, the chronometer or the computer tells
> you the lag.  It compensates for shutter button travel by determining
> where the cutoff point lies prior to measuring the lag.
>
>>And this is important because?  Its only 8 hundreths of a second, who 
>>really cares?
>
> Maybe it isn't important to you, but it is to me; I still perceive a
> distict gap between when I pressed the shutter and when the camera
> took the picture - it matters for most of the stuff that I photograph.
> With a mechanical M or an M7 it's almost instantaneous, whereas with
> an M8 or M9 it is not.  If you don't care, or can't perceive it, then
> it is no problem.  I can and for me it is an issue.  It means my M8
> spends most of its life tethered to a microscope where it's slowness
> doesn't bother anyone.
>
> It matters to some of the rest of us too; take a look in the archive.
>
> Marty
>