Review of Epson RD1

I currently shoot both digital and film. They should have made this a full frame sensor IMO. They would have captured a MUCH wider audience....waiting for a FF RD2 :)

EDIT:
Well after reading the entire review, it is nice. I still stand by my first statement. I have the Nikon D100 and 1.5 x FOV stinks IMO. To go true wide you spend lots of $$$.

I can see the arguement that, "Hey I wont need to buy the 75mm when I can just get a 50mm and it will work the same." It does not work that way.

Again, IMO, RF are more for wide shots rather than telephoto from what I have read so far. So they need to focus more, ALOT more on stuffing a FF sensor in there, then worry about noise reduction and weather sealing.

Can you imagine an RD2 with FF sensor, 8mpx, weather sealed and noise free images at ISO1600! I would sell most of my gear to pick that up...

The main reason I am back to film is a 50mm is a 50mm is a 50mm....Even my 1D with its 1.3x FOV is not acceptable.
 
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David, I understand your grief that the RD1 doesn't have a full-size sensor, but I suspect two things:

1. the price would be more than double what it currently is

2. the camera would have to be considerably larger (look at the size of the current full-frame DSLRs)

If the RD1 were to come down in price, I'd be mighty tempted... Just what I need -- another camera on the lust list :D

Gene
 
The current cost of a full frame sensor is just too high for its use in a camera that has a "reasonable price."

I agree that most RF shots are wide angle, and the FOV factor definitely works against most of us.

I wonder if the RD-1 will be a commercial success?? After all, the RF market isn't exactly a growth market. To further reduce the potential market with the much higher cost of a full frame sensor, and associated electronics is just too big a risk. I suspect that the volume of sales will be evaluated carefully before any RD-2 will be developed.

Martin
 
:)

I wouldn't call $3000+ reasonable.
I rather had a price of, say, $1000 - $1500 in mind, which would still be double or triple the price of a new 8mp digital camera of one of the big brands.
 
They have gotten it in at my local Samy's Camera store and it looks pretty sweet. They have it sitting in the case with a 35mm f/2 ASPH on it. I was there when it got there, and the guy knows that I use a Leica and like that sort of thing, so he cracked it open and let me play around with it. We did not turn it on, but it feels nice in the hand and it actually seemed lighter than an M to me. It's pretty cool -- if it were full frame at around the same price I probably would have bought it. As it is, I will wait to see about the digital M. By then I should be either finishing up or done with my Visual Journalism program, and it would probably be the perfect tool on assignment.
 
Two points and one question :)

1. It shows vignetting even with an APS-C sensor, FF would be worse!
2. The price is high, but it's not a mass product and there is no competition

So I'm settled with that, a kit with 25/4 Skopar and finder is 3500 Euro, hm, next year Salvador de Bahia in Brazil or Marseille in France?

But the real question, what about the framelines? A 25 on a 1:1.5 sensor should have the FOW of a 35. Why didn't they adjust the framelines to show what the sensor records?
 
Socke said:
But the real question, what about the framelines? A 25 on a 1:1.5 sensor should have the FOW of a 35. Why didn't they adjust the framelines to show what the sensor records?
Click to expand...

See that's my point. It gets worse, IMO, with the 1.5x FOV. When I put a 50 on my D100 and a 50 on my 1D then move the 50mm to my EOS3...I want to pitch the Nikon out the window. I shoot interiors for a home builder and it really can be a pain!

If CMOS is SOOOO much cheaper to make than CCD, why not cut a deal with Canon and grab their CMOS chips and build an RF around it!

I would spend 3k (after selling my truck) on a digital RF with FF.
 
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