Hi all,

Just got my LX3 yesterday after spending an entire morning on the phone trying to locate a black on in LA. I eventually found one at Bel Air.

I really needed something like this for my "carry" camera as my DSLR's are just too much grief to drag around on street trips and reconnaissance shoots.

Anyhow I've been playing around and so far I'm extremely impressed with the little beast. I intend to get all the add ons for it as soon as I can find them to make the outfit complete.

One question. I've got CS4 and Lightroom 2.2 but I'm not sure either of them properly support the LX3. What are you guys using for RAW from this thing? Is the Silkypix thing any good and is there something better?

Thanks in advance for any advice and I'll get some shots in this thread as soon as I can.

Cheers

Alex

GMSQD wrote:
One question. I've got CS4 and Lightroom 2.2 but I'm not sure either of them properly support the LX3. What are you guys using for RAW from this thing? Is the Silkypix thing any good and is there something better?


I believe both CS4 (ACR 5) and LR2.2 support the LX3 just fine. With older versions you have to convert to DNG first and the DNGs are unusually large so it is a bit screwy. But with CS4 and LR2.2 you should be just fine.

As far as Silkypix goes I actually have grown to like it a lot, it is very full featured. Its downsides are that it runs a bit slower than some converters, if you are a pixel peeper I don't think it does quite as good a job at recovering pixel level detail as other options, and the tool names and documentation are a bit hard to follow as they are translated from Japanese. That said, you can change how it generates preview images to speed it up a bit, while the pixel level detail isn't as great as others the global adjustments (color, contrast, etc.) are really very well done, and you can get a $3 e-book that makes up for the badly translated manual here:

http://www.eos-images.com/silkypix-resources/ebook-an-introduction-to-silkypix

All that said, if you already have a RAW work-flow you like with ACR or LR then you'll probably be happier with that.

Ken

Thanks Ken,

I tried a few RAW's in LR 2.2 and I think the default Dev' module settings were not exactly usable so I assumed that it wasn't a good converter for the LX3. I'll give it another go and report back.

Cheers,

Alex

These are silkypix converted LX3 raws.

Hey, if we're talking compacts, why not the Sigma DP1 as well. If you don't mind being a little slower and deliberate in your shooting this thing can produce some stunning images...

ewadler wrote:
dasrocket wrote:
great pics guys!
I have returned my LX3 after two weeks of frustrating use, and have been blown away by the G10 since! I find using it more than my D300 setup for many applications minus the obvious

What frustrated you?

I can't speak for dasrocket, but I can tell you why I got rid of mine. I had the G9 and sold it to get the LX3 cuz I wanted better images and a smaller camera. And the image quality of the LX3 is very good, but the ergonomics were so frustrating I hated using it. The grip is too small and there's barely any place to put your thumb on the back. (And I don't have big hands.) So the end result is that you basically end up holding it with your fingertips. The buttons on the back are small, crowded, and flimsy. The dial turns on it's own way too often. And I discovered how much I dislike not having a viewfinder for real picture taking vs P&S snapshots.

I just bought a Ricoh GX200 with EVF that will be here Friday. The IQ isn't as good over ISO 400 but the ergonomics, handing and functioning of the camera are much better than the LX3. It feels great in the hand and you can operate it with one hand. The GX200 lens is slower, but is a little longer and has less distortion and CA. In a perfect world, I would love the chip and fast lens of the LX3 in the body of the GX200. But I'll live with the higher ISO limitations of the GX200 until the DP2 or Oly M4/3 come out cuz I know I'll enjoy using it.

rscheffler wrote:

Chris Sorensen wrote:
The buttons on the back are small, crowded, and flimsy. The dial turns on it's own way too often.

Buttons are definitely small and crowded given how small the camera is overall, but I certainly wouldn't call them flimsy at all. Pretty substantial actually. And yes, the damn dial is always moving when you pull the thing out of a case!

As far as the size goes, definitely one man's blessing is another man's curse - regardless of hand size. I have fairly large hands and yet I have no trouble with small cameras, love them in fact. My SLRs are Canon Rebels and I love the fact they are so small and I love how compact the LX3 is. Others it seems just want more flesh in contact with a camera and don't like it. Like most things, if you can try before you buy!

Ken

This is great as I'm in the dilemma of which of these to get. I think that there is such a thing as too small and so favor the G10 for that but the lens speed is what really draws me to the XL3. The G10 is faster in operation ... is it not?

All in all, while I long to get another ps (my last was a G1) I may wait this out and see what sigma offers for the successor to the DP1. If they get the speed in operation a bit faster and perhaps a 2.8 fixed 28 or 35 lens (24 is too wide for me) I will jump on that one as I like to shoot at 400 and find slower speeds stifling.

Great thread ... keep it going!

I wanted a more "pocketable" p&s so the LX3 fits the bill. I've asked for it for my bday and it should be here by friday

Pavel wrote:
I may wait this out and see what sigma offers for the successor to the DP1. If they get the speed in operation a bit faster and perhaps a 2.8 fixed 28 or 35 lens (24 is too wide for me) I will jump on that one as I like to shoot at 400 and find slower speeds stifling.

Great thread ... keep it going!

The DP2 was announced with specs in September. It's a 41mm 2.8 lens. And the next generation image procesor, so hopefully faster. Recent rumors have it coming out in February/March, but Sigma has a record of delays.

http://www.dpreview.com/news/0809/08092305sigma_dp2.asp

A quick shot out the car window with the LX3. I wish there had been time to find a more appropriate foreground, but its nice to be able to carry such a camera in your pocket.

Another from the LX3 Stainless steel interior of the elevator in my garage.

This is the reason I have the LX3. It is the camera I plan to use for some time to grab shots along the trail when I've gone up with my 4X5 camera. In this sense it is replacing a function of my dslr.

These were taken yesterday on the ridges above Loveland Pass in Colorado.











Here is the proper camera set up for a shot.

LX3 - Red Rocks Canyon, Colorado Springs.

You guys. It's how you take the pictures, not about the camera. I only hope I can make my LX3 create similar output.

I looked at Silkypix online manual and decided to bail and obtain the LR update that I've been recalcitrant about ordering up till now.

LX3 shots, processed in lightroom 2:

Cute kid Kuan.

I only got my G10 recently, and much of what I've shot so far is still in my backlog, but here's a few:

G10. Starved Rock State Park, Illinois.