Another quick test, Heliar 15 @ F8. Using in camera peripheral illumination +3 seems to remove most of the vignetting and color cast?
By the way, how do you resize your image for web? I uploaded the original to the host and let it resize for me, wonder if it will be better if I resize it myself and then upload. I don't have PS though...
My GXR + M module arrived yesterday. Owning already a Nex-5N, if I took the plunge with the Ricoh, it's mainly because of this thread..
First impressions are mixed feelings, as expected. It's unavoidable to compare both systems. None is perfect and I'm afraid I'll keep the NEX and the GXR. until something significantly better appears.
One thing I noticed with some surprise on my first tests: the CV 15/4.5 has practically the same amount of color drift in the corners on both cameras ( although luma vigneting is less noticeable on the Ricoh )
Question for you, guys:
Being a lifetime PC-WIndows user, I'm very, very reluctant to set up a MAC system (be it hardware, or soft via Hack-virtual machine or whatever ). only for the benefit of using RPP.
Which Win based soft would you advice for the GXR files ? ( offering noticeable advantages over Adobe Lightroom /ACR for color accuracy, sharpness, moire control, etc.. ),. Workflow isn't paramount, I'm not a pro having to process lots of files on a daily basis.
Artur, welcome to the club. Deciding with the NEX5n and the GXR M is not easy, I know that myself. I decided not to keep the NEX5n as there were a few things with the handling and menus that I did not like. Other than that I think the NEX5n is excellent. It has snappier handling in some aspects and the kit lens is actually pretty good. The sensor is what the GXR M sensor should have been and perhaps will be with time.
For actual long term use I find the GXR M superior for my type of shooting and with better focus assist.
Have you set up your GXR M properly yet? There are quite a few settings and custom options that some of us have shared between us that takes the camera to the next level. In this regard the GXR M is outclassing the NEX5n and most other cameras too.
I am surprised about your color cast being the same on the GXR M and on the NEX5n, for me the difference is obvious. Not huge, but obvious. Bad lens sample?
ACR is not a very good RAW converter, in my eyes. Plenty of sliders but poor conversions and not very accurate. It worked ok with my 5D, and my Sony A900 but I realize now there are better options and I am not going back to ACR. I think both the NEX5n and the GXR M files are much better treated by other converters. I am going to go back to old RAW files and try out other converters as I know that I haven't gotten the best out of them with ACR, that much is clear now.
I have not tried them all and have always had Apple/Mac so I can't help you out with PC issues. RPP works well enough for me to tweak the RAW files and convert to TIFF before working with them in other software.
While RPP likely has advantages if they matter to you, I have not been disappointed with my results using Lightroom so far. I haven't done so yet, but it might be worthwhile upgrading to version 4 to take advantage of the built-in moire reduction tool. I think if you're already established with a certain RAW conversion workflow, you should give it some time to see if it meets your expectations with the GXR.
I'm not surprised about your findings with the CV15, which I thought worked very well on the 5N, but you may see greater differences with other lenses.
I was a little disappointed when I first used GXR too, mainly because of the slower buffer and some wrong settings, but once I made some changes to the setting, I have been enjoying using it very much. Here are some of the settings that I am using:
1. Focus assist mode 2, set to be on, assign it to Fn2
2. Assign Fn1 as enlarge all, 4x magnification (enlarge part will only show a low resolution blow up of the center region, which is not helpful at all for focusing and it was what disappointed me at the beginning). When both focus assist and enlarge are on, I can see not only "peaking" around the edge of the subject (like the ears), but on any surface of it (like the eyes). I think it is much more useful than focus assist mode 1 or the peaking in NEX?
3. I set the +/- to exposure compensation, the zoom buttons to white balance, don't use them much though.
4. I have a separate profile for each lens with their name, focal length, etc. I recall them every time I change lens, so these info can be written to EXIF in the pics when it was taken, and I don't need to wonder which lens was used for a certain pic when I import them to LR.
5. If the above example of CV15 looks clean enough to you, you can also try to use the in camera peripheral illumination +3 in the setting, again saved in my CV15's profile. Seems to get rid of any residual color and most of the vignetting of CV15 to me. I am also a PC guy, only use LR and prefer not to do too much treaking in LR. So I found the in camera settings to be very helpful.
artur5 wrote:
Which Win based soft would you advice for the GXR files ? ( offering noticeable advantages over Adobe Lightroom /ACR for color accuracy, sharpness, moire control, etc.. ),. Workflow isn't paramount, I'm not a pro having to process lots of files on a daily basis.
I have two suggestions for you. First, download a free trial of Capture One Six and try it. FYI, C1 6 has a lens correction module where you can set up profiles to correct for corner color issues without having to convert to DNG and run through Cornerfix.
Second, be patient for a little while. PictureCode is working on a new raw converter which could be a breakthrough product. Here's a little info if you haven't seen it:
Thank for the feedback.! -
I've spent a couple of hours today going through the menus and custom settings.
Following your advice, Fn1 is set to Enlarge-all and Fn2 to Focus assist Mode 2.
I made three profiles for the CV15/4.5, ZM25/2.8 and ZM/35/2 on the My1, My2, My3 positions.
As far as I can see, the color and vigneting corrections are visible when you review a picture on the LCD/EFV, but once loaded on the computer I see the same cyan drift/vigneting.
That is, when I open the DNG's or JPGs in ACR/Photoshop, the EXIF data shows the right focal length and aperture but the corners look the same that in non-profiled, so to speak, pictures.
Surely I'm missing something, Did anybody else notice this ?. ( for the CV15 I used +3 for perip.ilumin. and R+1, B-2 for color drift on each corner.)
I'm just a newcomer in Gxrland. but I'm warming faster to that Ricoh than I ever did to the NEX-5N. ( though the EVF looks a bit shabby compared to the Sony )
Thanks for the heads up, Jeff. Let's wait and see what PictureCode does
I used Capture One with the M8 and I disliked the interface ( hated it, in fact ), That was 4 or 5 years ago. Maybe CO. 6 is more friendly. I'll give it a try. Could be useful for NEX-5N files. As you say, converting to DNG and running Cornerfix it's a hassle,
I tried the color shading correction, it seems to only affect the LCD and I don't see any difference it make in the jpg or raw output.
The peripheral illumination does change the jpg and raw, just make sure that you have it saved in the profile. You can go to the shooting menu, page 3, to see if it is set correctly.
artur5 wrote:
I used Capture One with the M8 and I disliked the interface ( hated it, in fact ), That was 4 or 5 years ago. Maybe CO. 6 is more friendly. I'll give it a try. Could be useful for NEX-5N files. As you say, converting to DNG and running Cornerfix it's a hassle,
I've used Capture One since version 3. I can't remember whether it was the release of C1 version 4 or version 5, but one of them completely changed the interface compared to the prior versions which were out three or four years ago.
I've always had RPP envy, but didn't want to switch from my PC equipment to a Mac just to try it out. I'm cautiously optimistic that PictureCode may come out with a really useful product.
To me, getting a new raw converter would be more exciting than a new camera or new lens.
Welcome Artur to the club... let's jointly beat Ricoh for a nicer EVF. And a full frame M mount.
Tariq, I'm busy collecting bits and pieces for my Hack...er... Freakintosh. Tangible progress not just parts soon I hope.
Jeff, I can't bring myself to buy a Mac either, but building a Mac Pro workstation equivalent I can stomach since I'd more or less acquire the same bits and pieces to build a Windows or Linux machine for my office, so there's zero risk. A little upheaval though.
OS/X costing only $29 also helps. The Apple wired keyboard cost me more than the OS, take note Microsoft. Being a hardware/software geek the pursuit and time investment is also enjoyable for me.
It'll be interesting to see what PictureCode comes out with to be sure.
Parts acquisition mission complete... time to build. Or sleep. But probably build.
Do I have to start wearing a beret once I am Macified?
This is the first "Mac" I will have used since... gosh, years. Used an original Mac - a 128k monster! - in the mid 80's. Not much before then to that we had a Lisa in the office that would later go on to spend a long time sitting in my garage before I disposed of it. Probably as a collectors item I could have sold it for something at some point.
Nope, I'm green, green, green, but am well versed in Unix at least so it won't be completely foreign for me, except for the itchy beret and the odd lingo. And all this so I can try out RPP. Ok, not solely for that reason...
I have to ask: what is the aversion to buying Macs I started in CPM machines; was a power PC user before getting my first Mac laptop; I can work in any system, but the total package (including iCloud, iPhone) is pretty convincing, IMHO. No flame wars now!
Rich M wrote:
Uuuummmm........jeans.....black turtle neck.
Sorry Kit.......back to the thread.
I guess you missed the Microsoft clone of Steve Jobs, Steven Sinofsky. He will likely be the next CEO and his fashion and autocratic style closely mimics that of the Apple version. "Microsoft...We copy more than just the OS!" By the way, I'm typing this on Windows 8, not too shabby actually.
I'll be back to photography myself soon enough, although the darn rain has returned. Ugh.
This message coming to you from a turtleneck-wearing *very* recently Freakintosh-running mw who has just discovered control and direction keys do different things in Mac land. A period of adjustment is in order apparently.
RPP'in a buncha GXR files is on my agenda for later today, just sayin', in order to appease the on-topic overlords.
michaelwatkins wrote:
I'll be back to photography myself soon enough, although the darn rain has returned. Ugh.
This message coming to you from a turtleneck-wearing *very* recently Freakintosh-running mw who has just discovered control and direction keys do different things in Mac land. A period of adjustment is in order apparently.
RPP'in a buncha GXR files is on my agenda for later today, just sayin', in order to appease the on-topic overlords.
Wow, that was a quick install/ hackintosh. Congrats.
It did go together fairly quickly... but not quite done yet. I found a ton of documentation, much of it done well, but its surprising how little details that can trip you up aren't in the docs or have been outdated by new knowledge. Definitely the Hackintosh is a labour of love, not a "toaster" press a button and its done sort of thing. I've probably spent more time tracking down some of the corner case issues (keyboard wakes computer from sleep but needs disconnect from USB and reconnect to actually work, stuff like that) than doing the installs.
Beyond simply being intrigued by a new OS as I can appreciate them all to some degree or another, I'm finding lots that I personally like about this one. If Windows works well enough virtualized, I'll finally be free from a Windows box in my office.
Geekbench (unpaid 32 bit eval only) reports 16,000; I've not overclocked it yet. Whatever the number if feels fast. I put 16GB of ram in it as I tend to have a zillion windows and things going on all the time.
Back to photography... took a break from system issues to have a quick look at RPP and my initial impression is simply WOW. Am going to try to find a few challenging images and will post some comparisons of GXR DNG files translated by Lightroom 4 and RPP as soon as I finish moving my LR catalog from my former editing machine to this beast.
) 
I started in CPM machines; was a power PC user before getting my first Mac laptop; I can work in any system, but the total package (including iCloud, iPhone) is pretty convincing, IMHO. No flame wars now!