Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2009/05/31
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I've been lurking for a while and have found the thread on anti-aliasing filters very instructive. I read here because I stumbled across a reasonable deal on a IIIf and Summitar, now at DAG; seems like it's time to dig out the darkroom stuff, get some TriX, and see how well I do at street shooting. I suppose that's just justification, given that I've never been innoculated against the Leica-bug ;) But now there are some real issues, so it seems. I'm (still) trying to learn something about photography, and have gotten a Canon 40D and some lenses, including a 100/2.8 macro; instant feedback teaches more effectively than waiting for film to be processed long after the scene is gone. It seems that I can't get a really sharp image. Using a well weighted tripod, the macro lens at f5.6, MLU, remote release, and shooting a stationary well detailed target at about 15 feet, manual focusing via Live View at maximum magnification, I could not manage to get a sharp image. Taking shots and reviewing them the same way shows no change. Absent the removal of the AA filter, or an investment in a Leica system, am I unlikely to ever get real sharpness from this (or any comparative) digital gear? I follow the anti-aliasing arguments, but certainly don't have the necessary information to make any judgment. If the site with the comparisons between Nikon D200's is to be believed, the anti-aliasing filters are well below the Nyquist limitations, I would think. Ergo, the argument about software capping output at that level is irrelevant. Or am I not even in the right parking lot, let alone ball park? I'm thinking about acquiring a Pentax K7 to use with all my K series glass (have LX, etc), and so either of these two cameras might be a candidate for a filter removal. I can't imagine that neither Canon nor Pentax have sensors equal in capability to the Nikon D200. The question might be whether or not anyone knows how to get rid of said filters. Is this something that someone who can dismantle and reassemble a wrist watch movement might be able to do, given the tools, etc? Or does anyone know? Thanks for reading. Bill Tallman