Thread: Sigma DP2 Merrill Review at The Luminous Landscape

Yes Biro, an anti-establishment camera.

I'd like to believe that this camera was a statement against the photographic hegemony. Bad low light/high ISO behavior, poor battery life, slow write speeds, etc. may just be part of the territory with the current iteration of this sensor.

Something troubles me: several pictures on the web, viewed at full size, exhibit fine white lines especially in the sky areas even at iso 200. This would be a deal breaker for me. I don't know if this is the same thing as 'banding' which the sensor is susceptible to at higher iso.

Originally Posted by drd1135

I'd like to believe that this camera was a statement against the photographic hegemony. Bad low light/high ISO behavior, poor battery life, slow write speeds, etc. may just be part of the territory with the current iteration of this sensor.

It's not that bad in low light. Here is an example of a hand-held 1/15s ISO800: Untitled | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Originally Posted by Xuereb

Something troubles me: several pictures on the web, viewed at full size, exhibit fine white lines especially in the sky areas even at iso 200. This would be a deal breaker for me. I don't know if this is the same thing as 'banding' which the sensor is susceptible to at higher iso.

The new sensor combined with AFE is noticeably noisier than the non-AFE Sigmas, even at low ISO. Proper exposure minimizes the problem, but this leaves very little room for error, especially when timing is critical and chances to get another shot are limited.

Originally Posted by Xuereb

Something troubles me: several pictures on the web, viewed at full size, exhibit fine white lines especially in the sky areas even at iso 200. This would be a deal breaker for me. I don't know if this is the same thing as 'banding' which the sensor is susceptible to at higher iso.

Originally Posted by Prototype

The new sensor combined with AFE is noticeably noisier than the non-AFE Sigmas, even at low ISO. Proper exposure minimizes the problem, but this leaves very little room for error, especially when timing is critical and chances to get another shot are limited.

I just realized I didn't explain it clearly, but instead just repeated what has been said thousands of time before. What I meant was: There seems to be banding at all ISO values. At base ISO, it's not visible until the file is harshly processed.

But....

There has been an update to Sigma Photo Pro and initial reports claim that banding is no longer an issue. I've just updated both the software and the firmware on the camera (yes, new firmware too!) and currently investigating these claims. Very exciting!

I saw this at DP Forum. Let us know how you get on with the new software.

Lloyd Chambers Esq is reviewing the DP1 M: diglloyd - Blog I don't (yet) subscribe. From what I can gather: astounding resolution especially in monochrome but rubbish conversion software, skin tones distorted. Images shown appear stunning even at f2.8.