Taken the plunge

[PaulP63]

Well I have just bought a new Pixii - will await it's arrival in the next few weeks. I'm sure there will be a learning curve with a camera that is not exactly "mainstream" and it will have many pro's and con's as do most cameras I've owned. I dont give a stuff it's not FF in fact for me this is a positive thing - I understand other people desire FF - so life is great we have choices. I want to have fun with a camera that is unique and the fact it has a stunning monochrome mode is a big positive for me - I was looking at a Leica Q2 Monochrome - £5k and only monochrome ( yes I realise you get a great lens for that money as well but even the Leica Q cameras have had their share of problems and remember the M9 sensor corrosion disgrace so even a company like Leica is still learning ). Pixii are still a very young company but they are daring to break with convention and try something new (what is badly needed in a very stagnant camera market) and should be applauded even if you feel the camera is not right for you. I will let everyone know how I get on ,could be great, might be a disaster - but I feel more it's more likely to be the former rather than the latter.

 

[lxmike]

Congratulations, keep us informed on how you get on

 

[raid]

Congratulations! I don't know the cost for such a camera? Is it reasonable then? Has anyone compared its monochrome output with the output from any of the Monochrom models?

 

[boojum]

The costs are on the company webpage: pixii.fr Reasonable is an individual decision. PaulP63 thinks so as do some others here, myself included.

We have seen the results, meager though they are, and they look good. It has been around for a while in small numbers so we really do not know if this is a Cracker Jack prize or a damned fine camera but I would opt for the latter. You do not have to have been making something for a century to be able to make something. Leicas has been at it a century. Musk has not. I believe we are leaving or have left the Leica age behind and are entering or have entered the Musk age.

People who are really smart do not have to keep doing the same thing over and over. I regard the Leica as an anachronism. Mine have good color in my bad pictures. But I think it is being revealed that Leica is not le dernière cri in RF camera technology. It is time for new tools.

 

[PaulP63]

Congratulations, keep us informed on how you get on

Thanks, I certainly will 🙂

 

[boojum]

Thanks, I certainly will 🙂

And pics! We want pics!

 

[olakiril]

The costs are on the company webpage: pixii.fr Reasonable is an individual decision. PaulP63 thinks so as do some others here, myself included.

We have seen the results, meager though they are, and they look good. It has been around for a while in small numbers so we really do not know if this is a Cracker Jack prize or a damned fine camera but I would opt for the latter. You do not have to have been making something for a century to be able to make something. Leicas has been at it a century. Musk has not. I believe we are leaving or have left the Leica age behind and are entering or have entered the Musk age.

People who are really smart do not have to keep doing the same thing over and over. I regard the Leica as an anachronism. Mine have good color in my bad pictures. But I think it is being revealed that Leica is not le dernière cri in RF camera technology. It is time for new tools.

No need for this kind of talk. Each one can have their own unique advantages. In any case I don't think that using an APSC sensor, no mechanical shutter and a subpar OVF is anything but cutting costs. So comparing it to Musk is silly to say the least, because at the end of the day it is just a design piece.

I am not against people sharing their enthusiasm for cameras, but I would strongly suggest you start sharing your opinion once you have received your camera. Otherwise it looks like you are trying to justify your decision and by itself it doesn't provide much help. But who knows maybe I am the only one here to feel that way..

Don't take offense from my words, I am just trying to tell you my honest opinion.

 

[boojum]

No need for this kind of talk. Each one can have their own unique advantages. In any case I don't think that using an APSC sensor, no mechanical shutter and a subpar OVF is anything but cutting costs. So comparing it to Musk is silly to say the least, because at the end of the day it is just a design piece.

I am not against people sharing their enthusiasm for cameras, but I would strongly suggest you start sharing your opinion once you have received your camera. Otherwise it looks like you are trying to justify your decision and by itself it doesn't provide much help. But who knows maybe I am the only one here to feel that way..

Don't take offense from my words, I am just trying to tell you my honest opinion.

No offence taken. I appreciate your sharing your opinion. I will gladly share my impressions after I get my Pixii and I truly hope it is not about the feel of sackcloth and ashes. As for purchase justification, no, I think not. The money is unused disposable income from investments. I have zero debt. I am getting old and want to spend this money before my heirs do. LOL This is bucket list stuff.

Design exercise? Was Barnack's first effort a design exercise, or Ford's model T or my enduring love, the 2CV? Yes, I suppose but look at all which has flowed from them. It all starts from a seed. The Redwood from a seed the size of a mote. I am optimistic based on what I think is a good, well executed design and from the comments of the early adapters on this board and elsewhere. And if I am wrong you will hear about it, I promise. I am vain but not to the point of dishonesty.

 

[olakiril]

Design exercise? Was Barnack's first effort a design exercise, or Ford's model T or my enduring love, the 2CV? Yes, I suppose but look at all which has flowed from them. It all starts from a seed. The Redwood from a seed the size of a mote. I am optimistic based on what I think is a good, well executed design and from the comments of the early adapters on this board and elsewhere. And if I am wrong you will hear about it, I promise.

Nothing bad with new designs. I and many others on this forum are happy for this company. Maybe v3 is even better. Will it replace a Leica? Doesn't have to...

I am vain but not to the point of dishonesty.

I never said you were dishonest. But I take a serious issue with camera companies that for the sake of marketing are being dishonest. I feel the B&W mode is exactly that. They didn't have to say anything about "no need for another B&W camera" which was directly targeting the Leica monochrome. It is not only wrong, but if successful in marketing it might preclude other companies such as Fuji or Ricoh, releasing a B&W version of their cameras. So we loose.

I had a similar issue when Fuji were adamant about their X-Trans sensor. They had managed to convince a huge crowd of people.And I own (and have owned) a lot of Fuji cameras. I know that using their color profiles, a.k.a. "color science", with a Bayer sensor that has more color resolution could offer even better colors. Not to mention the pain with Lightroom and the worm artifacts. Now they are releasing all their medium format cameras with Bayer designs...

 

[boojum]

Nothing bad with new designs. I and many others on this forum are happy for this company. Maybe v3 is even better. Will it replace a Leica? Doesn't have to...



I never said you were dishonest. But I take a serious issue with camera companies that for the sake of marketing are being dishonest. I feel the B&W mode is exactly that. They didn't have to say anything about "no need for another B&W camera" which was directly targeting the Leica monochrome. It is not only wrong, but if successful in marketing it might preclude other companies such as Fuji or Ricoh, releasing a B&W version of their cameras. So we loose.

I had a similar issue when Fuji were adamant about their X-Trans sensor. They had managed to convince a huge crowd of people.And I own (and have owned) a lot of Fuji cameras. I know that using their color profiles, a.k.a. "color science", with a Bayer sensor that has more color resolution could offer even better colors. Not to mention the pain with Lightroom and the worm artifacts. Now they are releasing all their medium format cameras with Bayer designs...

Oh, another unintended branch. I only wanted to make it clear that I would "fess up" to being taken if I felt I were. I would serve neither myself nor my confreres here by lying about the camera. If it is a dog I will admit it, even if it is a cute puppy. You folks have all been generous in sharing your knowledge and encouragement. I could not but repay you except in the same coin. As we say out on the street, "That's how I roll."

 

[Gid]

To the OP, congratulations. I was an early adopter of the Epson R-D1 (2004) so I can appreciated the excitement (and maybe a little trepidation). Good luck or more appropriately bon voyage 🙂

 

[PaulP63]

To the OP, congratulations. I was an early adopter of the Epson R-D1 (2004) so I can appreciated the excitement (and maybe a little trepidation). Good luck or more appropriately bon voyage 🙂

Thanks - it will be a journey I'm sure - a bit like life itself 🙂 I love the Epson R-D1 - I should have bought one back in the day but didnt , mainly as I thought Epson - cameras ? What a mistake that was so I hope this time around I've learnt not to be (too) afraid to try something different from a new player in the market. Those dials on the R-D1 remind me of my Nikon 35Ti (still a regular user for me) and a very cheap Samsung WB1000 digital camera - which I still own and is still great despite its pixel famine by todays standards🙂

 

[boojum]

The wait time has gone from two weeks to what it is now, four weeks, since 4 April when I put in my order.

I am sure that the two YT posters, Burling and Williams, both RFF members, have had something to do with it. There is another posting about how the guy hates the camera but will not give it up that is a good one (Sam Hurd). I am pleased to see them getting going. The current flavor seems very close to where they want to be. FF sensor would be nice but as we know the camera is just a container, upgradeable is the plan.

 

[kshapero]

I applaud you taking the plunge. I am satisfied with my present rigs, but new things pushes everyone else along. Bravo.

 

[boojum]

Just getting antsy and anxious as the lag time increased from two to four weeks and I have not heard a peep from Pixii. Perhaps I am not as important to them as I am to myself. ;o) But I would really like to have a Pixii to work some vintage lenses with, and some new CV's, too. "Please Mr. Postman . . . "


/snivel

 

[boojum]

David took time to write me that my camera will be done this week. OK! So, say it is done this Friday that means if it does not get lost in Godfrey's Sargasso Sea of UPS it will be here about a week from today. That is the best case scenario. The good news is that I have a committed date of fabrication. The bad news is that I will be posting photos I have taken with it. Suffer in silence. ;o)

I am thrilled. And I do sincerely hope I can post to you folks some good pics. Let's see.

 

[jsrockit]

I'm excited for you guys...

 

[boojum]

I'm excited for you guys...

Thanks. I am not sure whether to thank all you folks for your professional advice and experience or to curse you as enablers. LOL It is gratitude which is owed. I enabled myself. I am stoked. I guess Godfrey did not get his today and that is just awful. That poor fellow getting horsed around by UPS. I hope he soon has his Pixii and we can see the results.

 

[boojum]

In the three weeks that have passed since David at Pixii informed me the camera would be done Friday, that Friday, it has been made, shipped and lost in the UPS maze. AFAIK it is still in Louisville where it has been a week. Yea UPS, you incompetent fools. "On The Way" in Louisville now for a week. No, now it has been "Import Scanned" and has "Departed Facility." To France or to me? And all the screw-ups before, like saying I refused delivery. I asked for relief from Pixii and the "git 'er done" person, Isabelle, says tomorrow or the day after a second camera will be on its way to me. It was suggested I fill out the customs forms for import but I have jumped through that hoop for buying lenses overseas. The first lens was a wrestling match. Now they just show up.

So, again, I am eager and hopeful. And grateful to Pixii for cleaning up UPS's mess. The Pixii folks are a bunch of good guys. Now I hope UPS can just get a box from A to B. And to think that people make fun of the USPS.

 

[jos58]

Sorry to hear this.
My pixii was send to me last monday and is due today, also with ups, but from France to The Netherlands.
Hopefully they show up today with the parcel.