[Leica] FYI

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

On 9/16/06 10:17 AM, "Douglas Herr" <telyt@earthlink.net> typed:

> given the glaring faults in his DMR vs. consumer DSLR test I wouldn't
> give this test much attention.
> 
> Doug Herr
> Birdman of Sacramento
> http://www.wildlightphoto.com
Carpal tunnel vision.

If I'm looking at two letter sized prints of the same subject and one looks
better than the other then I want to be shooting with the stuff which
produced the better print.

If its going be noticeably better in a letter sized print it sure would in
an 11x14 which I do a lot of as well as plenty of 13x19s. Heck I'd like to
see 13x19s side by side.

Erwin says "In practical shooting situations with 3-D objects the Leica
images are not better than what the 5D delivers."
But he doesn't go on to specifics as to what that meant to him or us results
wise. As in "I had two prints of such a such size next to each other and the
Canon shot looked better". I hope Erwin makes prints but I have no idea.
Sure he's not going to take a picture of those two prints sitting side by
side on a table. His media is the website and he can show us screen shots or
various pixel transpositions in which are the resolution of our 72ppi
monitors of eyelashes and test charts appear before us on our screens.
Little pixel images.
But in this test from in effect two different formats.

We've got roughly speaking images coming from a CCD with an image circle of
40mm against one which is 30 mm. .
The difference between half frame and full frame formats. Olympus Pen
against Nikon.

Which is why when going up against an intimidating Apo-Summicron-M 75mm F/2
ASPH Erwin doesn't even bother taking the unnamed zoom of his canon FF DSLR
off the camera. And put on a prime. Glass just isn't going to make much of a
difference and he knew this ahead of time. We've got two different formats
going on here.,
In a test chart test the smaller format result doesn't have a chance.
Want to look at test charts from a medium format camera or sheet film camera
with any moldy third party glass you like and compare it against what you
get from ASPH APO hand made 35mm format Leica glass? The 35mm format doesn't
have a chance and you'd have to look far and wide to find glass that's going
to make a difference.
Its apples and oranges all over again.

If I'm looking at two letter sized prints of the same subject and one looks
better than the other then I want to be shooting with the stuff which
produced the better print.
But if I'm a 35mm shooter and the better looking print turns out to have
been done with a Linhof Master Technika then I just don't absorb that test.
Price. 
Size restraints. 
Carpal tunnel vision.
I'd decided that I'm just set up for a different set of paramiters


Mark Rabiner

40?46'58.65"N  73?49'31.68"W
Whitestone NY 11357

http://rabinergroup.com/