Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/01/28

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Subject: [Leica] First M8 experience
From: eduardoalbesi at ciudad.com.ar (Eduardo Albesi)
Date: Sun Jan 28 04:55:35 2007
References: <C1E18597.434B2%mark@rabinergroup.com> <2FB314C6-0801-4A00-B41D-7CBFFFD02DC2@spectare.com>

Jim,

There has been a very extensive and illustrative discussion about all  
this issues on the International Leica Users Forum, which is  
sponsored by Leica themselves. It led to two very important  
conclusions and associated solutions.

First, the increased IR sensor sensitivity is responsible to the  
magenta cast, as it is very known, but that it also contributes to  
most other blooming and streaking and banding phenomena seen with  
this camera. As saying that blown up highlights are blown up actually  
by both the visible light in excess AND the near-IR that adds to the  
overcharging of the sensor region involved in the blown up areas.

Second, that the factory color profile shipped with the camera and  
used by CaptureOne but also by the rest of the software that relies  
on ICC profiling is absolutely off, introducing all sort of color  
artifacts and inaccuracies in the images. So one of the members,  
Jamie Roberts, has developed a couple of new profiles much more  
accurate in terms of color reproduction and capable of correcting to  
a high degree the 'magenta cast' due to IR contamination, meant to be  
used without the IR-cut filters.

So, just as a Sunday test before starting to pack the camera for  
returning it to the dealer, go to http://www.leica-camera-user.com/ 
digital-forum/9637-new-m8-profiles-c1-instructions.html download the  
profiles and read the instructions about how to install them and   
give the camera a second chance.

If you knew already all this, sorry for the verbosity.

Best,

Ed


El 28/01/2007, a las 03:41, Jim Laurel escribi?:

> Hi Mark,
> The foreground plants/trees look just like the EOS1Ds image.  That  
> one is pretty accurate.  Trouble is that if I start desaturating  
> colors, the rest of the image gets thrown off.  It's not so much a  
> color cast that you can fix by desaturating across the entire  
> image.  It's that certain things in the image, in this case the  
> foreground plants, seem to have taken on a wacky color.  And what  
> is the deal with all the color fringing up around the roof and  
> fascia of the building?
>
> I called Tamarkin today and they were very helpful.  They advised  
> that the IR/UV filter would take care of all these problems.  I can  
> believe that could be the case with the plants in the foreground.   
> Apparently, they're reflecting IR and turning magenta, but I'm  
> skeptical about the color fringing in high contrast areas.  I  
> specifically asked them if the IR filter would solve the fringing  
> issue as well and they assured me it would.  However, I'm having a  
> hard time believing that.  Now, I am trying to decide whether I  
> should try the filters at all or just send it back as Ted says.   
> I'll have to ask the good folks at Tamarkin, but I think once I get  
> the filters, I won't be able to return the camera.  What that means  
> is that there's really no way to know if I can be satisfied with  
> the darn thing.
>
> As of now, I'm ready to throw it out the window!
>
> Cheers - Jim
>
>
> On Jan 27, 2007, at 7:41 PM, Mark Rabiner wrote:
>
>> On 1/27/07 9:38 PM, "Jim Laurel" <jplaurel@spectare.com> typed:
>>
>>> So here's a dumb test shot, taken this morning right outside my  
>>> front
>>> door.
>>>
>>> Here's the shot from the Canon EOS1DS.  Natural color, as I have  
>>> come
>>> to expect from this camera.  No problems here.
>>> http://www.twango.com/media/jim.public/jim.12553?sort=5
>>>
>>> Here's the shot from the leica.  Wow!  Disneyland!  Notice how many
>>> of the plants in the foreground have gone magenta.  And if you click
>>> through to the larger image, notice all the color fringing in the
>>> high contrast areas:
>>> http://www.twango.com/media/jim.public/jim.12552?sort=5
>>>
>>> Some people are emailing me and saying that they have not had any
>>> trouble like this in several weeks of using the camera, even with no
>>> IR filters.  Have I got a bad one?  Because it is completely  
>>> unusable
>>> as it is.
>>>
>>> --Jim
>>>
>>>
>> I  would go into Photoshop and desaturate the magenta a bunch.
>> Although it looks red not magenta to me.
>> desaturate the red.
>> Or the magenta and yellow separately.
>> I do that with most my pictures anyway and I shoot with a Nikon D200.
>> Desaturate the gamut of colors individually so they are less gaudy.
>> What did the tree really look like?
>>
>> Mark Rabiner
>> New York, NY
>> 40?47'59.79"N
>> 73?57'32.37"W
>>
>> markrabiner.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>> Leica Users Group.
>> See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Leica Users Group.
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>



Replies: Reply from jplaurel at spectare.com (Jim Laurel) ([Leica] First M8 experience)
In reply to: Message from mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner) ([Leica] First M8 experience)
Message from jplaurel at spectare.com (Jim Laurel) ([Leica] First M8 experience)