petersm59
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 p.3 #1 · Thoughts on the Panasonic L10? | |
I think a lot of the inconsistencies are more about how you may be using the AF. It seems the more I use it the better it becomes. Coming from mostly OM-1II cameras, my expectations are pretty high. So far it's been very good in fast moving dynamic situations. I find using Tracking CAF with Face/Eye detection on is the best way to get consistent results, which is exactly how I use my OM cameras.
Since I mostly photograph people moving, I put the tracking box over the person I want to focus on and half press the shutter, and it sticks like glue to that person wherever in the frame they might go. Larger area AF patterns seem to introduce some inconsistency as I never know where they will find focus If I do photograph something static, I turn off subject detect and just use the tracking box, and it seems to work well. I've programmed the red video button to toggle face detect on or off.
Since I can't upload here at the moment, I'll post a URL from my website with a wide variety of L10 photos in all kinds of situations. Bright light, to low light, to no light, personal work, paid work and family photos. The whole gamut.
https://www.mikepeters-photography.com/Personal-Work-sets/L10/n-jkZHR5
Most of the people were shot in situations where either I was on the move, or my subject was. Yes, I shoot much of my personal work in square format, and family and paying gigs get rectangles. I've also begun taking advantage of the leaf shutter and mixing some flash in harsh daylight situations, just for fun.
Like most new cameras, it takes time to figure them out. If you're coming from Sony to this, it's going to take a lot more time and effort to learn the details and to find out how best to use it. If you've ever used a Lumix or an OM, it should be a bit easier. There are a zillion choices to make when customizing the buttons. If you don't take the time to make some decisions along the way, you'll be frustrated. Give it time.
For me, this an excellent close quarters combat kind of camera, when you're close to your subject and right in the middle of the fray. Like the protest photos from 9/11 in NYC. It didn't skip a beat. My first day out with it was July 24, and now after about 15,000 frames and more than a few projects, I'm feeling really good about it.
This goes for any camera. When I switched from Lumix to OM a few years ago, it took me about 4 months of daily shooting to finally begin to wrap my head around what the AF could do. And again, when I switched from Canon to Lumix back in 2013, it was a steep learning curve. I never blamed the camera, I looked in the mirror and saw the weak link staring back at me, and I figured it out what I was doing wrong. I had to meet the camera where it was, not with unrealistic expectations based on past experience.
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