Samsung Samsung EX1 appreciation thread

My thoughts are exactly with Wally's on the max shutter speed, never an issue.

Any thoughts on the cap guys?

the cap is kinda a pain, but I do not know what else you would do for a cap that would not be much larger.

I attached mine to the same side of the camera that the shutter button is on. If I remember correctly that is different than what the book says.

By doing that I am able to palm the cap between my fingers and palm which feels very natural and keeps it out of the way
 
hi! i'm new to the forum.
just bought myself a samsung ex1 last week after selling the sony hx5v that i'd purchased the week before and really didn't get on with!
i'm yet to do much serious shooting with the ex1 but i have already warmed to it much more than with the sony.

i'm glad to see that the ex1 is held with high regard here - looks like i made the right choice this time!
 
Hello and welcome bigshape. I've just succumbed and bought an EX1/TL500 from Adorama. At $319 including an 8GB Sandisk card, Lowepro pouch, spare battery and mini tripod it was too good a deal to pass up. Now just need to work out how to tell my wife she has a new camera coming - maybe it could be a Valentine present. :D
 
Hello again all, a few more to share! Still learning to get the most out of it, but it's fun and rewarding along the way.

"Bold Expression"


"The Night"


"Faces in the Alley"


"A Helping Hand"


"Neglected Spaces"

 
Richard, it looks to me as though you've nailed this camera! The quality of those photographs is superb. Great color and depth of tone - details! Glad to see you back here, too!

P.S. Your website is very well done. I need to keep it upfront. You're photographs with this camera are looking really great, Richard.
 
Thanks Wylie, that's very kind of you to say so! Tonality has always been important to me, so it's certainly a different challenge trying to get as much as you can from these sensors with lower DR, but I think it performs pretty well, certainly more in a single RAW than I expected before I purchased. Even combining jpegs has worked pretty well.

Anyway, thanks for making it 'sticky' too, certainly makes it easier to find when I stop by :)
 
Ricardo! I remember you from Dyxum (I'm guessing you're the same)! I took a few years off and sold all my heavy duty gear. I'm getting an EX1 Tuesday, so I dropped in here.
 
Hi all,
im thinkin about buyin this camera because it looks like by all review and forum posts that the IQ is very good. Actually this is a part of a bigger process, that is tryin to get better pictures by understanding photography (i was a sort of illiterate stuck to "all auto" mode on my actual compact). I had thought about buyin a DSLR (but i'm a bit scared of weight and dimension, and also of cost of good optics) and also was quite convinced by tryin the m43 mirrorless way.. then moved to serious compacts like S95 XZ1 etc.. and casually found this EX1 because it's sold for a good price on an italian site (250euro vs 420-450 for XZ1, 400 for LX5, 350 for S95). Yesterday i went to the shop and saw the camera, it's quite bulky (compared to a S95 that was also there) but i can deal with it. I tried the ergonomics and it's ok, probably like some said they could have put some buttons in other places. Unfortunately i couldnt power it on so i dont know how is the menu (i tried a nikon p300 and canon s95 and i liked them).
I've read good reviews: Samsung EX1 / TL500 Review (dpreview also is ok)
and other reviews that stress many bad aspects (even though IQ is always reported as good: The Samsung EX1 (TL500)

so, what do you think of the negative aspects that are stressed in Warren Mars review?
I'm also afraid of the fact that Samsung hasnt released new firmwares on their site after august even though cameras are shipping with newer firmware. Maybe they dont believe in this camera anymore?

Additional question: Ricardo your photo are really beautiful, could i ask you how much PP (or in camera effects) is there in them?


Thank you!
 
Hi Ecio,

Could I ask you to point out the bad points he mentions? It's not very well laid out, and I've never heard of the guy, so can't say I'm going to read much into it.

"I was hoping for an SLR killer, and this is certainly a step in the right direction, but we are not there yet."

Whatever the negatives were, his expectations were clearly out of wack. You find this often when you see bad reviews about anything, some people just expect too much.

Including the dpreview reviews, here is what I looked at:

From the point of view of a photographer; Review – Samsung TL500/EX1 | Enticing the Light

Extremely large review, a little on the promotional side but is considerate too and has a LOT of info; :: SAMSUNG EX1 Review

If you're looking to get into photography more then you really do need full manual controls. I'm not 100% sure how well the TL500/EX1 is suited for that, as although the skills are transferable is far from what I'd call a traditional camera that most would recommend learning from. By which I mean the basic technical principles you learn from manual control, you can learn how to use light, how to express yourself with just about anything that records an image, so in that regard you'll have a lot of fun with whatever you use. Depending upon how committed you are to this project of discovery, you might want to look at picking up a cheap 35mm SLR and a couple of books, few rolls of film. You will learn a lot from that, learn to appreciate the technical in camera values behind creating an image, and simply the value of a single image, a single exposure.... it's not the only way to go about it, but many would agree it gives anyone a great point to start with in photography.

If that idea is completely overwhelming, then a compact with manual settings like the EX1 is another good starting point.

As for firmware, I think mine still has the original in honesty, never bothered to upgrade as I only use a 4GB card and didn't think there were many other benefits. I doubt we'll see any further firmware upgrades, but I wouldn't be concerned by that - the camera is what it is, you shouldn't hope for more. Just accept it and learn how to get the most out of it.

Thanks for your compliments on my photos, that's very kind of you. I don't do a lot of processing in honesty, but if you haven't been into photography long it might seem like a lot I suppose. It's simple, quick atleast. I mainly just do exposure blending, because of the limited DR on the sensor (although it's still better than I expected). Basic adjustments to colour, contrast, nothing fancy.

I hope that helps,
Richard
 
Hi ricardo,
thanks for your reply I'll check those reviews asap.
The layout of that "review" is not exceptional but i think it's quite interesting because this guy was quite detailed in stressing what he doesnt like. It's also interesting because he reviewed it, used it on a trip, then added some additional comments after this "stress test".
Just to sum them up,
negs:
-poor hand grip (too many buttons not enough space for fingers) and some controls could be better (front roller not so usable, "Hair-trigger shutter" that makes you loose some shot when you recompose)
-raw files are big (20MB+) and so slow write (and you can do burst mode in raw) and in preview they're not shown in full res
-bugs/missings features in user interface (shooting info bar covers partially the photo, no custom menu, no ISO info before shooting)

pros:
-sensor good
-lens ever better -> very good IQ
-AWB very good
-great LCD
 
To be honest Ecio (speaking as a LX3 user and having only handled the EX1) these all sound like pretty minor issues. The first one regarding handling you could make of any high end compact - try putting that much control on a small body and you are going to have a lot of buttons and switches and dials clustered together. Depending on the shape and size of you hands and how you hold the camera all compacts are going to have this problem. Some work better than others for different people so it's important to go into a store and handle all your potential choices yourself.

Same with the user interface - there are things about the LX3 I would change if I could but these are minor irritants. I have no doubt that the same would be true of any other camera.

Only you can decide if the large raw files and slower write speed would be a problem for you but most of the reviews I have read, while noting this, don't see it as a big issue.

Good sensor - good lens: this is something al the good serious compacts have in common. With this you're set. The rest is detail:)
 
Thanks olli for the additional info, I'm really thinking about buyin it.
PS I've seen that they sell this camera also in bundle with a Lexar SHDC 16GB, but i think it's only Class 4 so it will be better if i buy at least a class 6 or a class 10.
 
As my first post:
sam06202.png
 
Every time I have a chance to shoot with Samsung EX1, I can't help but feel that I made a mistake by investing in Micro 4/3 system.
Samsung EX1 is such a wonderful camera. It is significantly more compact than even E-P1 and has a very useful 24-72mm zoom range. And that Schneider-Kreuznach lens is simply gorgeous: fast, sharp, with low distortion and CA. Oh, I also forgot to mention high-resolution flip-out AMOLED screen.
It's such a useful camera to take everywhere I go. It's a bit too large to fit in my coat pocket, but it's small enough to fit even in the smallest bag. Fast lens and image stabilization make it easy to shoot in low light. This shot, for example, was taken at 1/8 of a second; I doubt I could have managed it with my Panasonic G2:
Image quality is surprisingly close to Micro 4/3, too. Samsung EX1 at ISO 400 is very similar to Panasonic G2 at ISO 800 with the welcome addition of wide DOF. If I want the same DOF with G2, I have to stop down the lens and shoot at ISO 1600. And - surprise, surprise - files from EX1 tolerate lifting of shadows better than files from Panasonic G2, although G2 is better at preserving highlights.
Overall EX1 works great when I just want to wonder around alone and take shots of whatever I find interesting.



Superb shots, all of them.
Bravo!!!!
I had narrowed my posh compact list to the Samsung or the XZ-1. The similarity in UI to my E-PL1 and the fact the XZ can take the same EVF tipped the scales but I would have been happy with either.
I understand how you feel, I felt that about my 4/3 DSLR's after getting the m4/3 and now about the E-PL1 after getting the XZ.
A camera you can take with you beats the best camera you have to leave behind.
 
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