SD1 Craziness

[Bill Pierce]

No question that the list price of the Sigma SD1 at near $10,000 stopped a lot of folks in their tracks. What interested me was that, of the 13 test shots posted on the Sigma website, 11 were taken at the base speed of ISO 100, 2 were taken at 200 and none were taken at speeds above that. (Well, add to that fact that the camera only takes Sigma lenses.)

http://www.sigma-sd.com/SD1/sample-photo/index.html

The Foveon sensor has always had problems with high ISO’s. On the other hand, an inherent advantage of that kind of sensor is that it doesn’t need or benefit from an anti-aliasing filter.

Sigma has promoted the color rendition of the Foveon sensor as its main advantage over the CMOS sensor. That, of course, is not only a matter of taste, but a matter of how adept you are at controlling color in programs like Photoshop.

Any thoughts? My only one is that Sigma is crazy.

 

[Faintandfuzzy]

Here’s my blunt assessment of the camera. Foveon sensors are renowned for actually having relatively poor color rendition. High iso is hampered by a good 2 stop disadvantage over Bayer sensors. Prone to magenta blobs at high iso. For B&W imaging, resolution is just 15mp. Poor quality LCD. Limited to Sigma lenses only.

I just don’t see this being a serious contender in the professional market. I think this will represent a huge botched product launch!

And yes...they're crazy

 

[Voe]

On the 25th of May Sigma highlighted a sub-$7000 street price, which is still a lot of money to pay for a Sigma camera. On the other side the resolution of the new sensor based on the sample photos seems astonishing, but it is still to be confirmed how the current Sigma lenses will perform from corner to corner.
I would love to see how the Sigma sensor compares to Leica M9 in per pixel sharpness, dynamic range and color rendering.
I believe the reason for the high price is the limited production capabilites and complicated sensor technology which might cost them more to produce than for example other DSLR camera manifacturers.

 

[lynnb]

It does seem like a high risk move - Michael Reichman sums it up in his usual no-nonsense style here http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/rationalizing_the_irrational.shtml
In MR's 20 May item about the SD1 he mentioned that as soon as he can get his hands on one he will be comparing the SD1 with an M9 and a 645D, both in the same price ballpark.
If I had that much money to spend I would want to be very sure it was the equal of those platforms in handling, IQ, lens range and quality, and support. If I perceived a risk factor with Sigma I would expect a substantial price discount. I think MR's analysis is right.

 

[LKeithR]

In MR's 20 May item about the SD1 he mentioned that as soon as he can get his hands on one he will be comparing the SD1 with an M9 and a 645D, both in the same price ballpark.
If I had that much money to spend I would want to be very sure it was the equal of those platforms in handling, IQ, lens range and quality, and support. If I perceived a risk factor with Sigma I would expect a substantial price discount. I think MR's analysis is right.

I am not--and probably never will be--in the market for any of those cameras but I am convinced that Sigma has killed the SD1 with its pricing. As much as I love the Foveon sensor in my DP-1 I can't imagine spending that amount of money for an SD1. If I did have that kind of coin to toss around I would unhesitatingly grab a 645D. By far the best bang for your buck in that category...

 

[dseelig]

sigma

sigma

I had three copies of sigmas 120-300 f 2.8 lens why so many the quality control was terrible all three were screwed up. thelast one I sent in to sigma for adjusting it was off axis. To put myself at the mercy of sigma for all my lenses would scare the hell out of me. The thought of there body working right just as scary. Maybe they would have a prayer at 2 grand but 7 htye just shot themselves up the you know where.