I have friends that have gotten very good results with the D100 and D70, so I'm
of the opinion that there's something wrong with your technique or workflow if
you're spending a lot of time doing PS work to get acceptable images.
OTOH, I personally see a sizable number of D100 and D70 images that are very
poorly exposed and really mediocre quality, and that's from people who've had
them 6-12 months. There's something going on. Maybe it's a particular setting
you're missing, as Tom referred to?
Re the D1? or D2h, those are great cameras, but REAL BEASTS, IMO. I don't have
any desire to carry around something like that on a regular basis. Ditto for
the 1D cameras. Then add the weight of good-quality N or C glass and the
weight issue is real. For me, truly the only advantages that I see for buying
into N/C are film/digital crossover usage and the availability of special
purpose or IS lenses. Everything else is a liability, IMO.
The E-1 produces great images right out of the camera. OTOH, don't let anyone
tell you that every shot is perfect. The dynamic range is definitely narrower
than color negative film, so you have to be careful to expose the highlights
correctly. But if I get that right my prints are typically great right out of
the camera to the printer. The WB is very good, but can be fooled by
differences in subject and camera indicent light (as the E-1 has both in-camera
and external WB sensors that it balances).
The FL-50 is very nice, and hasn't failed me yet with getting good exposures.
The ability to balance the outpus either on the camera or on the flash is a
plus. As is the Super-FP capabilities. It's definitely a step up from my
Canon E-TTL or OM-System T-series experience. I'll probably buy a little FL-20
soon to keep in the bag all the time, as the FL-50 is pretty big as a
carry-all-the-time flash.
The long-term viability of the E-System is still an open question, as is the
durability of the lenses. I've elected to take somewhat of a leap-of-faith in
that area, given my good past experience with Olympus products.
Skip
----- Original Message ---------------
Subject: [OM] Re: E1 vs. 10D, D100, D70, etc...
From: Jim Sharp <jsharp@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 09 Jul 2004 00:48:02 -0500
To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxx
>Thanks for the reply.
>
>The lens issue is real, but for me it's not a huge problem. I have $0
>invested in Nikon glass at this point. The only accessory I currently
>own for this camera is an SB80DX flash. My SO has a fairly large
>compliment of N$kon film bodies and lenses and this did help drive my
>purchase but it's not the end all here. Most of her glass is mid-late
>90's vintage and at least a third of them are starting to need some
>mechanical attention. That in itself is another issue since her stuff
>has seen no hard use.
>
>I've no one local to talk to about the D1 series cameras but I'll ask
>around again. Everyone in the area using 35mm abandon Brand N for brand
>C years ago and has since started adding the same brand digital bodies.
> It would certainly be worth a weekend rental fee before I'd even
>consider a D1,D2 kind of investment and in truth, it's way out of my
>price range.
>
>I'm still struggling with the view and editing programs used with the
>camera that will allow me to load curves etc. I've yet to find a version
>that works correctly but I have some hope that I'll get that fixed shortly.
>
>You suggestions and some others that people have made are just what I
>was looking for. This list is the winner as far as overall photographic
>knowledge and living here in flatsville midwest it takes 2 days just to
>get email. :) The chance of finding any help locally is marginal at
>best. For instance, one employee at the local camera shop was astounded
>to hear that Olympus had *ever* made film cameras...
>
> --
>Jim
>
>
>
>AG Schnozz wrote:
>> JS wrote:
>>
>>>Lack of dynamic range. Think of the most contrasty slide film
>>>you've ever shot, but with less latitude. Dark subjects and
>>>blown highlights are the typical D100 shot and it happens so
>>>commonly it's almost impossible to guess what exposure to use
>>>for a given scene. Lots of bracketing and check the histogram.
>>
>>
>> I'd take into account your lens selection and the current
>> investment there. Instead of possibly taking a bath on that,
>> you might consider a prolevel Nikon, such as a used D1X or D2H.
>> The latitude of those sensors and the metering is a tad better.
>> Not to mention the focus speed. Flash control of the D2H is
>> outstanding. I don't know if the D1X is better or the same as
>> the D100 in flash control.
>>
>>
>>>Tons of post process to get decent quality images. I work in
>>>front of a PC all day. I want to practice photography, not be
>>>a photoshop guru. Are the E1 images any better straight out of
>>>the camera or is this just the current state of the digital
>>>world?
>>
>>
>> In the Nikon mount world, I'm seeing the Fuji S2 and the D1X and
>> the D2H producing outstanding results with no post processing.
>> The E1 is, again in my opinion, also an excellent JPEG camera
>> with terrific results requiring little, if any, post-production.
>>
>> I've been hanging out with a couple of Nikon shooters lately and
>> the results and opinions of the D2H are that it's a killer
>> camera except for absolute resolution (it is not a studio
>> camera). Color, though, is exceptional. The Fuji S2 handles
>> highlights very well and produces great JPEGs. The D1X is
>> worthy of being called a Nikon. All of these machines allow
>> various customizations of the curves, saturations and color
>> responses to produce best possible JPEGs. Many wedding pros
>> around here have settled on the D2H with the Fuji S2 for backup
>> and for formals. Nearly all are shooting JPEG with minimal
>> post-production. Strange thing, but there really aren't many
>> wedding pros in this area shooting Canon--the vast majority are
>> Nikon.
>>
>> That all said, I'm very impressed with what I see coming
>> straight out of E1s. Olympus has figured something out in their
>> processing engine that the others haven't.
>>
>> Handling, weight, size, controls and viewfinder are very
>> subjective. I'd say you have to see which one fits you best.
>> In all but the very largest prints you won't see any real
>> quality difference between the E1 and any other 6MP camera.
>>
>> Before totally throwing the D100 out, I'd be running through
>> every possible color tweek in-camera. With my M*n*lt* A1 I've
>> built two white-balance settings that I do MOST of my shooting
>> with. One does a pretty good job of mimicking Provia (Daylight)
>> and the other is a good knockoff of Portra 160NC (Daylight)
>> adjusted to counter must Tungstan light. Auto White Balance on
>> most digital camera just doesn't nail it. The A1 has a four-way
>> white-balance which gives pretty good control and allows you to
>> warm the picture without actually warming the picture--if that
>> makes any sense.
>>
>> AG
>>
>
>
>
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