Strolling Paris with an M9

[helen.HH]

Alright I will Agree, Lovely Photos
But i am not really Impressed with the M9 😱

I have seen You shoot with a half a dozen cameras over the last Few years
Any of them woud have Done Fine... Your a Good Photographer, so any camera film or digi works well in your Hands 😉

 

[domagojs]

I really love your shots! I guess #5 got my eye, but the others are great too! And nothing wrong with photographing one's family, might in the end make for the most remembered shots 🙂

 

[gbealnz]

Great shots, I am in Paris at the moment, and have been shooting like crazy, with an X1 I bought on the way, and an M6 with 35 Summicron, and APX100.
It's our second time here, and loving it more and more.
Gary

 

[Richard G]

I could say that I think that Paris is overrated, like the M9, and I see nothing special in your shots. The truth is, however, I think Paris is pretty good, and I love the M9, and I really like that first shot, especially the sharp high contrast punctuation of Montmartre that you've placed in the middle of the horizon.

 

[David_Manning]

I appreciate all the comments. It's hard to find unique views in Paris, especially under the time pressure of keeping a family happy and engaged (and moving). Lots of good family pictures were made too (good, because its my family 😀 )

Helen, I ALMOST pulled the trigger on an M7 (I admit...I fell for the siren call of aperture-priority)...but I looked around me in my study and see uncut rolls of film from the springtime and have to admit that the digital flow is just so much more realistic in a busy life. So, the M9 checks the blocks.

Interestingly, I like the b&w output from the M9 very much. In fact, I truly believe it's a much more capable image maker for me than an MM. That being said, I still can't figure out a way to view b&w images on the playback, but shoot in DNG only. So, a little imagination is still required when out in the field.

 

[David_Manning]

A few more images that I snuck in while on vacation with the family (what a selfish pr*ck)... 😀

 

[akarin]

I really like the first and second photos. Well done!

If you don't mind, I'd love to hear more about the setting on those two photos and any post processing that you may have done on them. The graininess on the two photos I mentioned worked really well.

 

[raid]

The details in this image blow me away.

 

[JSU]

Interestingly, I like the b&w output from the M9 very much. In fact, I truly believe it's a much more capable image maker for me than an MM. That being said, I still can't figure out a way to view b&w images on the playback, but shoot in DNG only. So, a little imagination is still required when out in the field.

David--

I, too, appreciate your vision, you've offered some compelling looks.

While it slows down the M9 writing from the buffer to the card, I keep mine configured to record both a DNG & JPG. The JPG I only shoot is Vintage B&W, which offers a look I have yet to be able to replicate in PS CS 3 or 5.

It is my understanding there is a creamtone option in LightRoom, which I don't have/use so I offer this only from hearsay.

However, when the M9 is configured to write both a DNG and B&W JPG, a B&W image is displayed for image review. The flexibility of both a DNG for a color rendering and the Vintage B&W file works best for me.

 

[raid]

I may try out your DNG & JPG approach, Steve. I love what the M8 does with B&W, o the M9 is hopefully as good.

 

[charjohncarter]

Nice David!

 

[lynnb]

thanks for sharing these David. I was also impressed with the detail of that first scene. Lovely photos.

 

[David_Manning]

Thanks again to everybody.

Akarin...I import my DNG files into Aperture, and export to the SilverEfex Pro 2 plug-in. My favorite starting point is the Ilford HP5 preset...it has a great tonal curve. I add or subtract grain to suit the image, and dodge and burn like I would attempt in a darkroom. It really depends upon the image...some look too flat, so I use a contrastier tonal curve like TMax (usually for faces/skin tones if they're too muddled and gray). Again, it's just a starting point for tones...I change/add grain, dodge/burn, etc. One thing I don't often do is sharpen, or use structure. A small amount sometimes shows details, but too much sharpness is hyper-real and a dead giveaway for digital capture, and I prefer my images filmic at the expense of sharpness or grain-free.

JSU...thanks for the info. Every other camera I've used allows a purely raw workflow but can project a preset to the rear review screen. The M9 is the only one I've used that won't allow that, requiring DNG and JPG capture simultaneously. It's not a huge deal, I'd hate to slow down the camera any more than it is...but a b&w review would be nice when I'm shooting in the "zone." 🙂