RustyBug
Offline
Upload & Sell: On
|
 Re: Hasselblad vs Leica image quality (IQ) | |
KLaban wrote:
From what I've seen from other's tests HNCS is an excellent starting point but tends towards some over-saturation. Subjective of course and easily fixed in post.
Your point about over-saturation ...
For many years, I noticed that whenever I would spend the time to diligently correct WB (see note below) in images ... the before / after ... I'd need to pull back on the saturation in the after. This was commented to me numerous times in the PC Forum over several years.
What I came to realize is that when a WB correction is properly conducted so that the color cast is fully removed (shadows / mids, highs) , this is like taking away a dirty veil that is dulling the color (thus revealing the maximum hue differences) with the cast.
I think that when you look at lighting such as Profoto and Broncolor ... their accuracy and consistency of their lighting are similarly responsible for ensuring that the skewed / inconsistency of light (i.e. its color), which are responsible for color degradation ... are not an issue with their product(s). As a natural light photographer primarily, I don't use such lighting ... but, I do appreciate the understanding of how consistency in lighting reveals the maximal amount of color separation potential.
So, when a camera such as the Hassy is calibrated to 3500/0 = 3500/0 (throughout the entirety of its color range) vs. a camera that is functioning at 3500/0 = 3485/-4 ... the former will have a "better" separation of colors, than one that has a variety of variance scattered abroad across its color range. Kinda like looking through museum grade glass vs. a dirty windshield (okay, not that bad, but you get the gist).
That said, the human eye / brain's ability to utilize accommodation sets the stage for the human visual perception variance of where folks say they can't tell the difference in certain things. But, I've had images that folks clearly thought it was white, but really was blue ... and then when corrected they were amazed at how they thought the blue had been white (now seen side by side).
Coming back to the "over-saturation" of Hassy ... imo, it isn't a matter of being oversaturated. It's a matter of the Hassy having "less cast" skewing / reducing the contrast between hues (i.e. 3500/0 = 3500/0 ... vs. 3500/0 = 3485/-4). Comparatively, this may make them seem to be over saturated vs. what folks are accustomed to seeing. This level of "color clarity" (no color cast skewing) is what I find to make the Hassy an excellent tool in this regard. Kinda like how a monochrome camera differs from a BFA (i.e. less degradation) for that last % of tonality ... Hassy is working toward that last % of color separation (i.e. calibration of BFA to 0 deviation, fully across the spectrum).
Some folks prefer Kodachrome, others Ekta / Fuji, etc. and those each have different profiled responses to different colors within the profile(s). The difference in saturation levels of different colors was a point of disagreement among photographers, long before HNCS came along.
Whether or not someone feels the need / perceives the difference in what Hassy has done ... I think it fair to suggest that they have taken the matter of accuracy in color recording to a level of precision that is in line with top tier lighting equipment (i.e. Broncolor, etc.). How many folks around here are shooting with Broncolor ... not many (if any). But, for those who are studious of that "last %" of precision equipment, the HNCS ... with a 3500/0 = 3500/0 ... is in a league that deserves appreciation for that effort to do what the others haven't.
Now, whether or not a person finds that last % of interest to them ... it's kinda like using a knife that has been honed to 2000 grit vs. one that has been honed to 6000 grit. Both are sharp, but some folks find using a 6000 grit honed knife more pleasing to work with. Others, get along just fine with a 2000 grit blade.
Note: WB correction for me includes an iterative process of independently adjusting shadows / mids / highs to neutral, using multiple selection points (typically four each for s/m/h) and having all neutrals being < 5 RGB points apart (typically <2). This is vastly more consideration than a simple eyedropper click on a neutral. But, I find that it is that "last %" of removing color robbing casts, that reveals the most from color.
Also, note ... you can land 'em anywhere your heart desires, but if you want to get the most "color clarity" out of your hues, that dirty car window of hue cast, has got to go.
+1 that color is emotive and there are a zilliion paths to landing things where you want them. But, I do find that Hassy affords a nice starting point with 3500/0 = 3500/0. That is something I respect and appreciate ... even if I don't always choose to shoot with Hassy. But, when I want to create certain color works ... the Hassy is a tool that floats to the top of my list for consideration. I still shoot my Leica's for color work, but when doing so in the field, I often wonder (real or imagined) if I'll get as good of color as if I would have brought my Hassy. My experience with each has left me with this perspective. Nothing to prove to anyone ... just how it is in Kent's world.
YMMV
|
