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Archive 2012 · leica for portrait / fashion?

  
 
fixedgearmike
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · leica for portrait / fashion?


I sold my 5d2 about 2 years ago to jump on the M9 bandwagon. I love it, it's fantastic for travel & landscapes but am starting to do more fashion shoots and wonder if it's making life harder than it needs to be..

having to think about the framing, the backgrounds, the pose, hair, MU, directing the model, thinking about the light... AND get the focus right and hope that the framelines are 'close enough' is perhaps a bit more than my tiny brain can cope with! Should I switch back to an SLR?

I recon about 20% of my current shots are un-useable because I've screwed up the focus. How often do you SLR users 'miss' one because of focus?


(I've still got all the lenses, which I use on my old 1D2 for horses, so it'd just be the cost of a body)



Jan 15, 2012 at 08:47 AM
Mark_L
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · leica for portrait / fashion?


A rangefinder is really not the easiest tool as you are finding especially with longer lenses (I'm sure some people make it work though). I use a D700 and almost never get an out of focus shot, any mis-frames are not due to any framing ambiguities, you are also limited in your lens length for headshots/beauty, I'm very often at 135 and 200mm. You could be fine in the studio with the M9 if focus is the main issue since you'll usually be at f/11 or something.

One other thing to note is that clients, models, MUAs, hair stylists etc. will sometimes not take you seriously if you don't have a big camera. I know its silly but it is an unfortunate truth.



Jan 15, 2012 at 09:41 AM
fixedgearmike
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · leica for portrait / fashion?


thx mark, that last point is very true, the model last week laughed when I showed her something on the screen - 'I thought you were using film!!'...


Jan 15, 2012 at 10:45 AM
Jonathan Huynh
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Mark_L Wrote:
One other thing to note is that clients, models, MUAs, hair stylists etc. will sometimes not take you seriously if you don't have a big camera. I know its silly but it is an unfortunate truth.


Yes ! this is very true. Most people think bigger camera and bigger flash take better pictures.



Jan 15, 2012 at 02:04 PM
swoop
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Using a rangefinder is really just a matter of practice.

Edited on Mar 28, 2014 at 05:22 PM · View previous versions



Jan 15, 2012 at 10:13 PM
DavidSchneider
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · leica for portrait / fashion?


S2


Jan 15, 2012 at 11:09 PM
fixedgearmike
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · leica for portrait / fashion?


S2 would be awesome, but I'd need to sell my other kidney after the one I sold for the M9

a 1Ds mk2 might be my next buy....



Jan 16, 2012 at 02:36 AM
m.shalaby
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · leica for portrait / fashion?


FWIW - I'm a portrait/fashion photographer and I actually upgraded my 5DmkII to the 1DSmkIII just for the better AF system. I find it critical for shallow DOF (around f2.0) shots. It also helps in a dark studio.

I've never used MF but couldn't imagine ever using it either.



Jan 16, 2012 at 09:04 AM
Micky Bill
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · leica for portrait / fashion?


I don't really think the leica is the correct tool for the job although some can make it work, most studio work is done with a DSLR or MF camera not rangefinder.

I think that the photographers who claim that they won't be taken seriously by clients, models, etc. with smaller cameras/lenses/lights are just looking for a way to justify buying more stuff. Good photos will be taken seriously...



Jan 16, 2012 at 05:45 PM
Mark_L
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Micky Bill wrote:
I think that the photographers who claim that they won't be taken seriously by clients, models, etc. with smaller cameras/lenses/lights are just looking for a way to justify buying more stuff. Good photos will be taken seriously...


Except the photos come AFTER the job. Not to go off topic but this has not been my experience, I have heard from photographs of clients flipping out when they have seen speedlights or alien bees on set or they have used a smaller camera. It's also likely that the OP is dealing with models/MUAs etc. that may not be full time industry professionals either.



Jan 17, 2012 at 06:29 AM
Micky Bill
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Mark_L wrote:
Except the photos come AFTER the job. Not to go off topic but this has not been my experience, I have heard from photographs of clients flipping out when they have seen speedlights or alien bees on set or they have used a smaller camera. It's also likely that the OP is dealing with models/MUAs etc. that may not be full time industry professionals either.



Most clients/models/MUA are familiar with the work of the photographer before the shoot.



Jan 17, 2012 at 04:28 PM
JohnJ
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · leica for portrait / fashion?


I used Leica R professionally for many years and there where always minor practical issues which made them harder and slower to use although I didn't have any issues with focusing. I switched to Canon (back in the film days) and had far less trouble in terms of reliability and the cohesiveness of the 'pro system' for want of a better phrase. High end Canon and Nikon gear is generally very well thought out from a professionals point of view whilst I'm not sure the same can be said of Leica M and R. Sure, the image quality from Leica glass is great, but there's much more to getting the job done and image quality alone isn't enough.

I still have all my Leica R gear but (aside from using some of the lenses on Canon bodies) it doesn’t get used for paid work.

JJ



Jan 18, 2012 at 07:02 AM
HerbChong
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · leica for portrait / fashion?


shooting wide open with my 90 Summicron, i get far more OOF shots than i really want to deal with. 20% is probably low for me but when i get the shot, it's worth it. however i have to say i get a much better percentage with my D3X and Zeiss 100 MP shot wide open. the results are comparable and it is a whole lot easier than with the M9. work with moving models, which i do much more than still ones and manual focus is hopeless. if these are paying gigs, all that extra time is costing you and your clients even if they aren't paying for it directly.

Herb...

fixedgearmike wrote:
having to think about the framing, the backgrounds, the pose, hair, MU, directing the model, thinking about the light... AND get the focus right and hope that the framelines are 'close enough' is perhaps a bit more than my tiny brain can cope with! Should I switch back to an SLR?




Jan 18, 2012 at 05:10 PM
2613pch
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Find a tether ball post and ball try your auto-focus with your canon see if you can nail it (I doubt it).
Then take your Leica put it in continuous mode (depending on the lens u use ISO at 200 Shutter at 1/500, F2.0 or F5.6 and try to nail the shot by exposing three frames while slightly panning to the right and forwards and backwards.....so, as you hold down the shutter button its one, two slightly forwards and to the right, three backwards and to right...I bet one of those is perfect, but it take practice to get the rhythm down. You can also shoot at F8.0 for the DoF zone and nail it every time. Funny how the simple solution is always the hardest to figure out. It was taught to me by Thorsten Overgaard up to that point I couldn't focus on a subject either.Find a tether ball post and ball try your auto-focus with your canon see if you can nail it (I doubt it).



Jan 22, 2012 at 02:19 PM
jusjee
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · leica for portrait / fashion?


I am by no means a pro photographer, but I've discussed this many times with pros. If you can deal with the MF and are extremely critical on nailing the focus perfectly, a perfectly calibrated rangefinder will no doubt be the ultimate solution. While it does take practice and more time, you get that extremely critical focus that I have yet to see an AF system nail every time (of course it will nail it every now and then, but if it is not repeatable every time, I cannot rely on it). Even MF on a DSLR is not as reliable as you need the special focus screen and the method isn't as binary as the RF focusing.

With that said, every photographer will have to be aware of the level of focus they really need to achieve vs how much work and time you are willing to (or have to) spend on this one item that may or may not make or break your final image.
2613pch wrote:
Find a tether ball post and ball try your auto-focus with your canon see if you can nail it (I doubt it).
Then take your Leica put it in continuous mode (depending on the lens u use ISO at 200 Shutter at 1/500, F2.0 or F5.6 and try to nail the shot by exposing three frames while slightly panning to the right and forwards and backwards.....so, as you hold down the shutter button its one, two slightly forwards and to the right, three backwards and to right...I bet one of those is perfect, but it take practice to get the rhythm
...Show more



Mar 27, 2014 at 02:00 PM
fixedgearmike
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · leica for portrait / fashion?


i'm the OP - just noticed this thread has floated up to the surface again!

Since I posted the question I've done loads of paid portrait and wedding work, all with a 5D3 which I bought after my M9 refused to work one day - luckily I was on holiday not on a job.

My M9 is gathering dust and I'm even contemplating selling it... I just find the 5D better: easier, more reliable, better images 90% of the time, a much safer way of working.

I still love it, but it's a luxury not a tool.



Mar 31, 2014 at 03:22 PM
GoGo
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · leica for portrait / fashion?


Hey Mike,

Something to consider, 1 is none, 2 is 1, 3 is 2!

Trust me, if it has not happened to you yet it will. You can't go to a gig without a back up camera (lighting gear etc). If you do one day you will be victimized by Murphy's law.

BTW, your 5DIII is a fine camera but a Leica S or a Hasselblad H5D will wow you and your clients. I know that you said it's too expensive, but it makes a difference in the results and isn't that what we all strive for?

The M9 is a very fine camera CCD sensor setting it apart from any DSLR, too bad you couldn't get it to work for you.



Apr 01, 2014 at 09:21 AM
fixedgearmike
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · leica for portrait / fashion?


GoGo wrote:
Hey Mike,

Something to consider, 1 is none, 2 is 1, 3 is 2!

Trust me, if it has not happened to you yet it will. You can't go to a gig without a back up camera (lighting gear etc). If you do one day you will be victimized by Murphy's law.


yep, that's exactly why I'm happy not using the M9 on paid jobs - I've only got one and not many lenses, and it's nowhere near as reliable as my 5d.

My backup is a 6d, and I've got lots of overlap in the lenses and lighting.. I sometimes take the M9 with me and leave it in the car, just in case both DSLR bodies crap out but it's not happened yet!



Apr 02, 2014 at 03:26 AM





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