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Hi Rod-
Thanks! Shots were all single-hand held. One thing that intrigued me about the GR series is that everyone seems to just hold it up with one hand, point, and shoot!
It was a bright day, so I guess the shutter speeds were high (except the pool photo). I honestly don't KNOW why they are so sharp and detailed!! I was astounded when I opened the images on my Mac. Add the fact that I was shooting at f2.8 and it is truly amazing. If I had shot the same with an X100V, I think there would be a noticeable difference. I am MORE than pleasantly surprised by the GR IQ. I was fully prepared for disappointment, but I feel the exact opposite.
Post processing... well, this was fun. I shot RAW only, and when I brought the DNGs into LR, there were no recipes applied. I searched and found out that LR won't import RAW images with the recipes applied! LR has 5 GR recipes in the Develop/Profile Browser, but they sure don't look the same as when they are used in camera.
Weirdly, on a Mac, images quick viewed in the Finder have the correct recipe applied. It must be embedded somehow, so why won't LR find that same info? Frustrating. Anyway, I eventually went back to the GR and processed the RAWs to JPEG in camera, then imported the JPEGS into LR. I A/B'ed the RAW and JPEGS in the Mac Finder at full size on a 4k monitor, and saw NO difference in IQ. Nothing. Both are identical at 100%. I even had to check to make sure I was actually looking at 2 different files! I may eventually go with JPEG only, but it's always nice to have the RAW tucked away just in case...
I did VERY minimal extra PP work in LR. Maybe a teeny bit of added clarity to cut the Brooklyn smog? Smoothed out the histogram a bit. But hardly anything. There was no need!! I have the protect highlights option turned on in the GR (I forget what that's actually called), which I think was what kept the images nice and punchy without blowing out the skies.
The "Leica Look" YouTube video is here:
Go to 5:00 where he shows his setting changes from the basic Standard setting. It is a really nice profile... rich and warm and very natural. I love it. I also love the Ritchie's B&W Negative recipe. Perfect amount of punch without closing up the shadows.
Anyway, thanks for the thumbs up on my photos! I have been very active in the Sony FE images thread for many years, but a couple of years ago my business suddenly got super busy, and I just didn't have the time to get out and shoot. Work has calmed down a bit, so I decided to treat myself to the GR and jump start my photo juices again! :-)
Be Well.
-John
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