My R-D1s Came...

[Jeff Fillmore]

Still waiting on the lens though. 40/1.4 Nokton is supposed to arrive on Thursday. Until then I will take pictures OF the camera I guess.

 

[kuvvy]

Have fun Jeff. Think you'll find the 40mm pretty good for the RD1. I have the 40mm rokkor for mine and it seems to suit the 35 framelines well.

 

[Ronchnam]

Right same for me with the Leica C40/2. Just fit the 35 framelines

 

[Jeff Fillmore]

Thanks guys- I was wondering about the frame lines.

It's killing me the camera is sitting here with no lens. Tomorrow can't get here fast enough.

 

[Mr_Flibble]

Oh, that's gotta be torture!

The paint on the 's' seems a little more crinkly then on the R-D1, or is that just me.


Heh, I hope you can manage to get some sleep tonight with all that anticipation. 😉

 

[zuikologist]

Try some pinhole photography.

 

[thinkfloyd]

I use the 40 nokton with my RD-1, it suits the 35 framelines almost perfectly, though it crops a little at the bottom. Nothing serious, maybe about .5mm or so haha... still, the 40 works great!

 

[kermaier]

The paint on the 's' seems a little more crinkly then on the R-D1, or is that just me.

You're right -- I have one of each, and it is. Also, at least on the copies I have, the R-D1s has a stiffer, more "positive" click to the jog-dial knob's movement.

::Ari

 

[kxl]

Hi Jeff - that camera looks familiar 😉

Have fun !!! It's a very enjoyable camera to use

Cheers,

 

[Jeff Fillmore]

Well today is the day! I snuck home at lunch to check and no UPS yet- so I guess I'll get to try it out after 5:00- what's a couple more hours- right?

Keith- Thanks. I was looking at your galleries the other night- some fine work there. Looks like this camera has seen the world a lot more than I have yet.

Thanks again for the info all-

 

[Jeff Fillmore]

Well I got to use the new rig a bit- pretty much carried it around all weekend. And whoa- it is really a different animal than anything I have ever really used. I like it but it is going to take a lot of practice to get proficient at using- especially focusing on moving targets. Some quick observations with this setup:

• The camera takes ultra-conservative pictures- even at +2 EV it was nearly impossible to blow any highlights unless I forced the camera into doing something it did not want to do. Seems to underexpose by at least 1 stop?
• The camera eats batteries like crazy. It came with two spare batteries and I had them in rotation the whole weekend. Pretty much had to change them every time I put in a new 2gb SD card.
• The Auto-WB seems excellent. Better than any Nikon or Fuji DSLR I have ever owned. I have a weird mix of lights in my kitchen that confuses every camera- every camera until now anyway.
• 40mm is nowhere near wide enough for me on this. The 40/1.2 was fast and not too expensive but I need to find something a lot wider when I can.

Here are a 'few' samples. 😉

 

[PatrickT]

Gorgeous photos!

 

[kuvvy]

Great shots Jeff. Wish mine were that good. Know what you mean about wanting a wider lens. I've got the CV15mm Heliar which is good but probably wider than I use on a daily basis. Just got a CV28/2 Ultron which I've yet to 'break in' properly. Until now my wide choice has been the CV25/4P. It's the rangefinder coupled version. Okay it's not very fast at f4 but it's compact and to be honest for general shooting it is fast enough. While I have just got the faster Ultron I'm in two minds whether to hang on to the 25mm just for it's compactness. The Ultron is bigger and heavier.
Look forward to seeing more pix from you.

 

[Johnmcd]

Great shots Jeff!

I have the 40/1.4 also and while it is my favourite lens for low light portraits, I purchased the 21/4 for my standard street stuff.

Keep them coming 🙂

John

 

[Catto]

Hey Jeff, some great images there - you're nearly selling me on the 40mm f/1.4, just when I was about to get the Summaron 35mm f/3.5 instead!

If you're after a bit wider, the Voigtlander 28mm f/2 Ultron has really impressed me in the ~8 months since I got my R-D1, my only concern with it is that it seems to be reasonably contrasty, which (with the contrasty sensor) can be a plus or a minus. I'm considering the Summaron mostly because it might be a less contrasty option to have on hand, which would open up the shadows just a little in the crisp New Zealand sun for me.

Anyway - the 28mm seems great wide open, so for low light / shallow DOF at (relatively) wide angles it's ideal. To get a wider & faster option costs a great deal more, the next option seems to be the 25 f/4 for most people, which is quite a bit slower for a tiny bit wider...

Look forward to seeing more of your work,
R!