An old favorite comes home to roost. It's the Leica 90mm Elmarit-R on the Lumix S1R. Nice.

Leica Elmarit-R, 90mm f2.8 Adapted to the S1R

with a Novoflex adapter.

However you feel about the value proposition of current Leica models it's hard to argue that, through the decades, they've made some of the finest lenses in the world --- and continue to do so today. In the early 1980s one of the most sought after lenses for the M series cameras of the day was still the Dual Range 50mm Summicron (f2.0) which was designed in the 1950s. It could stand up to anything on the market some 30 years later, and it was better than the majority of its competitors. I know, I bought one when I started shooting with a single stroke M3 in 1979.

I was a Leica fan in the film days and throughout the 1990s I shot with both Leica M6 and M4 cameras as well as a very functional collection of R lenses and a motley (and ever changing) collection of Leica R bodies, including: The original Leicaflex, the SL, the SL2 Mot, the R3, R4, R5, R6 and R8 (for some reason I skipped the R7...). I did not own them all concurrently but at any one time I usually had one of the totally manual classics, a mechanical R6 and finally, until the end (death by digital), the R8s. 

But the reason to own Leica R cameras (all SLRs) wasn't for the bodies (some were better than others) it was to be able to use lenses of the same quality that we'd come to enjoy using on the M cameras. There were some things the M lenses did better. I don't miss semi-wide or wide-angle R lenses much; the M versions always seemed better. But the longer lenses (from 80mm on up) were much better suited to SLR style cameras and we started adding R cameras to our systems to get easier good results with fast 90mm lenses, 180mm's and longer. The longer focal lengths were harder to use on rangefinder cameras because the finder images got smaller and smaller while focusing accuracy got worse and worse. 

My favorite working combinations by the late 1990s were M6 cameras with 28mm and 35mm lenses combined with an R6 or R8 equipped with, alternately, the 80mm f1.4 Summilux, the 90mm f2.0 Summicron or the 90mm f2.8 Elmarit. Most Leica R shooters gravitated to the faster lenses not because they were optically better than the slower ones but because the very narrow depth of field on those fast, short telephotos made manual focusing so much easier in dim lighting. Also, we were more or less constrained to use films rated at 400 or 800 ISO at a maximum. So, easier focusing and better light gathering capabilities pushed us to reach for the fastest glass we could afford. And, for the most part, Leica lenses delivered very decent images even when used wide open (as long as you didn't care too much about field flatness...).

Most of us were aware that the f2.8 lenses were either just as good at f2.8 and slower as the fast lenses, the only reason to spend more was for speed, not quality. But we also learned, by shooting thousands and thousands of frames, that when it was possible to shoot in good light and take time to focus accurately, that the last generations of the Elmarit 90-R lenses were better. By f4.0 the f2.8 lenses were sharper and resolved more detail. They were also flatter field lenses so there was less compromise on the edge of the frame. 

Sadly, Leica stopped making R lens compatible cameras for a number of years and interest in the orphaned system of optics waned until the rise of the mirrorless cameras along with their shorter lens flange to sensor distances which allowed for an almost unlimited use of adapters. This brought all kinds of really good, film era, SLR lenses back out of drawers and off shelves and back onto the fronts of cameras. And with highly superior high ISOs (think  6400 and 12500 on the S1 and Sigma fp) the slower aperture hardly matters anymore.

I really like the lenses I've accumulated for the Panasonic Lumix S1 series of cameras I'm shooting with now and my only complaint has been the huge size and  ponderous weight of the lenses that correspond to the focal lengths I'm most interested in using. I love the image quality I can get with the Sigma Art Series 85mm f1.4 but the lens is huge and weighs a ton. I'm waiting impatiently for Panasonic to release their 85mm f1.8 but I fear it will still be a beast; especially if the 50mm f1.4 gives us any indication of their design aesthetic for modern lenses. 

What I really wanted was what I had back in the days of Leica R stuff: a very good lens that's small enough to carry around for a full day and which will blow the doors off many more modern lenses available for other systems. Like the Leica Elmarit 90R. It's not light, even by modern standards, but it is compact and easy to use. The focusing ring on my copy, which is probably 25 years old, is like clarified butter. And the image, even just in the finder, is superb. Quintessentially Leica. 

I bought this current copy of the 90mm from a friend who bought it in a moment of impending Leica lust only to be distracted at the last minute by the Leica S2 camera system instead. I bought it from him immediately. 

I ordered a cheap adapter ring from Amazon.com but in their current disarray, and fervor to ship more toilet paper and Diet Coke in bulk, the adapter ring would not arrive for the better part of a month. Not acceptable. I canceled that order and paid ten times the price for a Novoflex R to L-mount adapter from Camera West in California. It came in a few short days and it fits perfectly. 

I haven't had much opportunity to shoot much of anything with the new/old lens but will take it with me tomorrow on a shooting expedition outside the city. If it's half as good as I remember I'll never take it off the camera. 

Tomorrow I'll shoot it on an S1R outdoors in nature. But what I'd really like to see is how it will deliver when used on the Sigma fp, in the studio, for a nicely lit portrait. That vaccine can't come quick enough. 

Anyway, just wanted to let you know that we're up and running on what will be a multi-post test of the lens. Nice to be back in the Leica glass world. Hope this doesn't lead to any rash purchases of current Leica SL lenses, that way lies financial madness...

Shopping for food and then walking for good mental health. All the while practicing the finest social distancing skills imaginable. Today's camera? The Sigma fp.

I got out of the house early today. Well, if 8:45 in the morning can be considered early... Anyway, I wanted to get to my neighborhood Trader Joe's grocery store about ten minutes before 9 a.m. to get some essentials. Nine is when the store opens to all customers but they have put into place a special, one hour opening each day for "seniors." I got to the store and NO ONE was in the senior line. Not wanting to be presumptuous I decided to just get at the end of the regular line; it really wasn't very long, maybe 20 or so people, all waiting patiently with their masks on and practicing a rigorous adherence to the six foot social distancing metric. 

A Trader Joe's employee saw me and asked if I was there for the senior hour. I said 'yes' and she escorted me to the front of the line and into the store. I felt like a V.I.P. I was one of ten customers in the store when I stepped in with my cart.

I am a quick and organized shopper and can decide on substitutions for unavailable products on the fly. I got the stuff Belinda and I needed and then bought some splurgy treats for Ben: some great goat cheese, stone ground whole wheat crackers, some more yogurt, etc. 

When I approached the check out area there were no lines and three ready cashiers. We did the "stand back" protocol as they sheltered behind Plexiglas-glas(tm) screens and I was waiting and humming to myself when a manager walked up and asked if I needed hand sanitizer or toilet paper. I was happy to get two small spray bottles of the hand sanitizer; it's grapefruit and lemon scented and is my current favorite "stay safe" product. I passed on the offer of more toilet paper.

The roundtrip from our house, including the shopping experience, was 20 minutes flat. I was impressed with how organized (and deferential to our noble and glorious seniors) the staff at the store was but I might not accept a move to the front of the line in the future. I think people who have to go on to work or who are shopping with kids at home might have less free time to spare than I do. Just a thought.

But here's my report: No shortages or outages whatsoever. The regular organic whole milk was short dated but I just upgraded to the organic, grass fed whole milk instead. All the meat and produce you could need was in inventory and looked great. The freezer cases were stocked full. One less thing to worry about in the midst of the crisis...

signage for the miniature train that no longer runs through the park...

At my trail head.

Having finished acquisition of provisions in record time, and hearing on the news that we were about to get hit with a few rain storms, I did what any logical exercise enthusiast would do. I laced up my walking shoes, grabbed a black cotton baseball cap (think Steven Spielberg, not Derek Jeter), a rain jacket, and my Sigma fp camera with its 45mm companion and headed out for the trail. I figured, correctly, that the forecast would keep the numbers on the trail to a bare minimum. I was wrong. There was no one out there. Nor did it actually rain for more than five or ten minutes, and even then not very hard.

I had my plans for "masking" and social distancing firmly in place except...there was no one to distance from and no one to protect by masking. I did, however, not feel the least bit guilty today when stopping for a few moments to take a random photo or two. It's not like I was disrupting the traffic flow or inconveniencing anyone. 

Below is my documentation of the perfect social distancing while exercising to my heart's content in a manner compliant with all local laws, and both their intent and moral weight. With some captions.

There are a number of places on the trail where one goes under bridges and these can 

provide wonderful impromptu cover from hail storms and lightning blasts. 

Just over a little pedestrian bridge and looking up the trail to the north. 

Nobody as far as the eye can see. Or the camera can image.

Then, turning around and looking to the south it's the same story... no one.

the Mopac Expressway Pedestrian Bridge. 

Usually a busy conduit for runners because of the close by, outdoor showers and 

water fountains. Unused and abandoned today for my own private walk.

A sighting. At last. A lone cyclist heading down the trail with a bandana covering his

nose and lower face. Heading west.

No cars on the nearby bridge...at 10 a.m.

In the heart of the park. Tables for forty?

I parked directly in front of Barton Springs Pool (which, sadly, is closed for now) and 

I was happy to see that even my automobile was practicing social distancing from

the other two cars in a lot striped for hundreds...

I hung my mask on the mirror and drove off to look for coffee at 

Trianon. I found coffee AND a chocolate croissant.

Oh happy days. 

Hopefully, seeing this will help some of my friends and readers who live in densely packed cities understand why it's okay for people in other locations to go out for a healthy walk in a wide open park.

Staying safe and trying to live like it's the only life I get...

Tomorrow? We've got a reservation at Pedernales State Park. 

Same rules apply.

Today's project, continued. Cowboys. Painting. And more.

We loved the Cowboy Paintings when we moved in.

They seemed just right for a young Texan like two year old Ben.

Today's big assignment was to make an archival documentation of the "primitive" paintings that have graced our back porch for over 23 years. It was long past time to re-paint all the wood and, as we no longer have any children in the house, Belinda decided that now was the time. But before we started the painting process the big, sentimental, nostalgic softie who lives in the house insisted on creating a record of the artworks. (That would be me...). Scrapbook material. Memories.

I found myself well supervised by a lizard who seems to be one of many that has a key to the house. I find them more often that one would imagine, and in all the weirdest places. I check my hiking boots regularly before putting them on...

I used two cameras to document the painted panels you'll see in this post, along with natural light coming through two semi-diffuse, four foot by four foot skylights that help keep the porch lit up all day long. The primary camera was the little Sigma fp with the highly competent 45mm f2.8 lens (used mostly at f8 and occasionally at f16). This combo was used on a Gitzo G 2220 tripod to keep everything nice and sharp. 

The other camera was a Lumix S1R which I used to make a few wider photographs to show more of the wall and also the set up with the Sigma fp. The S1R was paired with the 24-105mm lens and was used for the photo I like most from today, which is the lizard just above...

The Gitzo G 2220 tripod has a built in "side arm" that allows for two things:

You can shoot from straight over the top of things or you can orient 

the side arm so that the tripod can be used super close to the ground.

It's absolutely as solid as a block of lead. But what did you expect from 

an "old school" metal Gitzo?

A stout Manfrotto bullhead held an Arca Swiss plate adapter

and the whole assemblage offered an infinite range of placements for the 

camera. The fp is just the right size and weight for this kind of work. 

No matter how many tripods you own you should always also have a Gitzo.

Gitzo and fp working beauty shot. 

The new color for the porch will be "Baked Clay" which is being sampled in the background.

It's too light in this shot because I increased the exposure in post to get more 

detail in the black camera body.

Belinda tired of the cowboy paintings quickly (years and years ago) but it's credit to her patience and forbearance that she allowed me to keep them around so long. Like many things in life, I will miss them. She, on the other hand, is always delighted by a fresh coat of paint. 

At least I found a good use for the cameras today.

Re-orienting your photography when it's currently impossible to do work in the style you want...

For the first month of the "stay at home" program I felt a bit powerless and lost. I couldn't justify going out on photography adventures and home seemed so (too) familiar a place in which to discover new visual delights. I almost gave up hope of being able to photograph in a style, and in a location that would inspire me. What if we were constrained to stay home for years? What then? 

But I remembered a phrase from a movie that helped give me some perspective. It was: "Wherever you go, there you are." 

If you've been grieving for your lost photography I think you can survive if you are flexible enough to try new things. 

I'm less than happy to be in one spot all day long. When the parks closed over the Easter Weekend, and the State Parks closed down "until further notice" I thought we'd be stuck in a half mile radius of our homes for a long time. Yesterday the Texas Parks authorities announced that they were selectively re-opening a number of state parks. Restrictions will be tighter. Masks must be worn. Social distancing must be observed, and only a limited number of visitors per day will be allowed in each park.

You must make reservations online, in advance. 

But for me it was like Christmas. I immediately booked a reservation for this Thursday and started planning my new side career in Fine Art Photography as a Texas Hill Country landscape photographer. 

I'm charging up batteries for the S1R and pulling out the wider lenses. I've even reacquainted myself with the high resolution mode  in the Lumix camera so I can squeeze every last nano-meter of hyper acutance out of every frame. 

Pre-Crisis I thought of myself as a photographer whose talents lay solely in portrait work. But if I'm willing to be flexible I might even enjoy taking a landscape or two. At least I can instruct my mind to enjoy the process. And the drive. And the time out in nature with Belinda.

But, after coming to this change of perception I started thinking of all the different ways I could change what I aim my cameras at and why I use them to photograph the things that I do. For example, my ideas about video have always veered toward the utilitarian. As in, how will I use this camera to shoot a corporate interview for profit? How will I use this particular camera and microphone to shoot video to help my client sell their service? Now that we can't do that work until (much) further notice I've had time to regard video in a new way. A less regimented way, and something more in line with the snapshot aesthetic with which I approach a lot of my personal photographic work. Something clicked for me when I got caught under a bridge in a driving thunder storm but also happened to have a Sigma fp hanging around my neck, under my rain jacket. It was the quick video clip of water gushing off the bridge that changed my point of view.

Now I bring the video enabled camera along with me on walks and actively look for little scenes, vignettes, that are visually interesting and have nice movement to them. They go into my file. Sometimes I shoot in a different codec and a different color "look" just to see what the resulting files will look like when I play them back on a bigger screen. 

I was coming home from a long walk yesterday when I looked up and saw thin, defined clouds rushing the through the very blue sky. In the past I would have taken a cursory photograph and then headed into the house. Yesterday I rushed to find a camera that does easy time lapse and spent awhile shooting time lapse sequences of the clouds (now) racing across the rich background. 

Essentially, where in the past I was trained to thing of everything in terms of a test or a job, now I am thinking about how much I'd like to see something rendered as a photograph or a video clip just for my own entertainment and/or pleasure.

I think the key to remaining happy and mentally well during these tough times is to create and execute personal projects. Having a series of projects at hand gives me much needed structure and keeps a camera in my hands. And sometimes the external restrictions can provide a very nice framework in which to toil but also just enough friction to make you push back at life a bit more. 

I'll never forget how bleak the 2008-2010 recession felt to me as we were living through it but, in retrospect, it was an amazingly fertile time for me as a writer and a photographer. In the space of three years I wrote five books about photography and lighting, and even finished a novel that had been languishing on the shelf (so to speak). Had the bottom not dropped out of the financial markets and caused so much chaos I would never have slowed down enough to take on, and then finish, so many alternative projects. Remembering this period gives me hope that I'll be able to find similar silver linings this time around. 

But responding in a positive way to chaos only works if you are willing to be flexible and (temporarily?) let go of the ways you've always done stuff in the past. If you are willing to try something new. A new approach. A new subject matter. A new way of sharing work. The more things you play with and the freer you are to disengage the "work/art" from the "commerce" the more opportunities open up to you. 

One of the true joys of both photography and video creation is that once you own a serviceable camera you can shoot and shoot and shoot without incurring any additional financial costs. As you get better and better you can dump the old stuff off your hard drive and try again. And again. And it's equally cost effective to share the work. 

I have a list of silly projects I've come up with. One which is so silly I probably should not even mention it here but....here goes: I've always wanted to buy some Adirondack chairs for the back yard of our home. The plastic ones in bright colors are cheery, comfortable and cheap. I bought three of them and they should come into stock at my local hardware store tomorrow. I'll pick them up curbside in compliance with all local regulations. And every day I plan to reconfigure them and prop them so that it looks like you've come across a grouping of chairs that were vacated only minutes ago. 

Maybe I'll arrange them in a vague circle and leave a couple of coffee mugs near them, along with a legal pad that seems well used, in one of the seats. The aftermath of a casual business meeting? Another set up might be as though you've come across the remnants of a twilight happy hour. One day all the chairs might be lined up facing the sun and have beach towels strewn over them as though you came across the chairs at a pool or resort. 

With each set up I'll document the feel of the scene. I may even print up my favorites as a show. It seems like a fun idea to me and, as I've written, I've always wanted a little collection of Adirondack chairs for the back yard. Having a little personal project to do with them just adds to the fun. 

Regardless of what project I choose having an assignment and long term subject matter to revisit gives me a sense of freedom and purpose that fleshes out an existence current fraught with constraints. 

We have the cameras and the time right now. Best to embark on something fun and personally compelling and not worry in the least about the idea that the photography or video has to be in the service of work/commerce. Staying busy doing things you like is the vital thing. 

I also find having a routine to be emotionally soothing. We've fallen into a comfortable routine here at H.Q.  most days. It consists of getting up by 8 a.m. Having coffee (me) and then doing Yoga for a while. Then a quick breakfast after which we put on our walking shoes and caps and head out for an hour long walk through the neighborhood (which has some amazing and daunting hills!). Back home I read all the news and look at the financial world's press. Then it's on to each of our personal projects. For Belinda now it's about painting the back porch and selecting paint colors for the living room. For me it's a mix of creative concepting for a law firm mixed with thinking about "Merlot" red Adirondack chairs and making time lapse videos of clouds. Late afternoon I do a longer solo walk around the lake and we meet back up for a glass of wine on a bench in the back yard (if the weather is not too hot) followed by dinner (we take turns planning and cooking). Then we each grab the latest novels we're reading and settle into our favorite chairs. The days race by and things are comfortable.

Today I have an assigned project. It's an assignment from Belinda. She is repainting all the wood on our screened in back porch. Before she starts she wants some good photographic documentation of the art on the low wall on the inside of the porch. There are seven or eight small paintings of different cowboys on the deep yellow boards. They were commissioned by the original owners of the house for their two year old son. About a year before we bought the house. Ben was two years old when we moved in and he loved those paintings, and the freedom and possession of that expansive porch as his "personal" toddler domain. 

Belinda wants a perfect documentation of each painted panel to preserve the memory of the way the porch was for Ben when he was growing up. It's a project and it's next on my agenda. 

I better get to it. 

But before I go, a note of optimism. I do believe that mankind will get a handle on the virus and one day it will be safe to travel again, frequent our favorite restaurants, and even do simple things like go into a store to try on shoes. I don't dwell on "when" but it comforts me to think that there will be light at the end of the tunnel and we will savor that time all the more having been though this.

The arduous and slightly embarrassing process of going out to get coffee. And the coffee I ended up with was lukewarm and mediocre.

In Boston with coffee. Early winter 2015.

I was in the studio yesterday thinking about giving a bunch of stuff away. I need to find a struggling, poor, young but brilliant, aspiring photographer (or more than one...) so I can give away a bunch of lights, old light stands, soft boxes and other gear that would be serviceable for them and is now more or less obsolete to me. 

In the midst of my ruminations about limited largesse I decided that I was tired of making coffee at home and, as it was nearly 3pm it was time for a coffee break --- maybe even combined with a trashy cookie full of white flour, sugar and chocolate. An antidote to having read a blog post on broccoli sprouts and their magical healing powers...

The Starbucks in our neighborhood radius closed up early on and left us with only two options; Trianon Coffee (which is my current fave) and Summer Moon Coffee (which is my coffee desperation location). 

Since Trianon is closed on Sundays my choice was quite easy. I'd been to Summer Moon Coffee a week earlier and they seem to have had their virus crisis safety procedures figured out. One could still go in and order a coffee and pay for it at the counter. You couldn't touch the condiments, you had to wear your face mask and you had to stand at least six feet away from...everybody and everything. But you could get steaming hot coffee complete with a splash of half and half. Once you picked up your cup you needed to skedaddle. No lingering allowed. 

I ventured over with thoughts of hot coffee bouncing through my head like a melody you can't dispose of. But minutes later I was standing at the front door reading the latest sign: It told me that customers were no longer allowed to enter the store. All orders had to be made online using their app. Once ordered someone in the shop would prepare the beverage and bring it out to "the pick up table" and once they re-entered the shop you would be allowed to pick up your cup and scurry away.

"Oh hell." I thought. "I guess this is the new normal and I better get used to it or risk getting sidelined from society altogether." 

It was 90 degrees outside so I sought the cool confines of my car while I grudgingly downloaded the company's coffee buying app. 

The first hurdle was with the app. I use an iPhone so my version of the app comes from the Apple app store. I double clicked the button on the right side of my phone to approve the download and Apple asked me to enter my Apple user password. I thought I remembered it correctly, even though it is long and complicated but my memory was not up to the task and after the second failed attempt I thought I'd call for help. The idea of coffee tasted so good...

I called Ben and asked him about my password. He uses my account from time to time to download music; his brain is less full and the interconnections are newer and stronger...

He rattled the 12 digit combination right off. I thanked him and completed the download and installation of the app. I went through the menu and realized, sadly, that we were now reduced to ordering only coffee and coffee drinks and no cookies appeared anywhere on the app menu. So sad. Tragic, almost. I found the large, drip coffee and selected it. I was prompted to customize so I selected half and half and hit "next." 

Then we got to the next speed bump in the coffee process; payment. The actual app isn't set up for payment. That's handled by a second app called, "Chow Now." That app will take your credit card information and allow you to finish your transaction. But there is a fee for the service of fifty cents (half a U.S. dollar). I didn't like that but by this point I was in for a pound so I continued. 

The combination of apps applauded me for my successful completion and gave me a job # to reference. For coffee. A job #. 

A few minutes later a young man came out with a mask and gloves and carefully placed my large cup of coffee on the pick up table and then rushed back into the perceived safety of the shop. I placed my index finger over the little hole on the plastic lid from which you get actual coffee to your mouth and then sprayed the entire cup, and attendant insulating sleeve, with 80% alcohol from the spray bottle I keep in the car for just such emergencies. 

Sadly, sadly, sadly, the coffee was, at best, lukewarm. And stale. Boring. Made hours ago. Unsatisfying. But, of course, once you have endured the painful and demeaning process of overpaying anonymously for mediocre coffee the idea of spending more time trying to understand the logistics of how one might remedy this tragedy seems like a waste of time and  energy. I drove back home with cool coffee and no cookie. 

I put the coffee in a mug and warmed it back up in the microwave. I pulled a Pepperidge Farm Chocolate Chip and Pecan Cookie out of the pantry. Mediocre coffee and a packaged cookie. An altogether unsatisfying experience. 

I went to Trianon today and bought another pound of Organic Ethiopian Medium roast coffee and  I'll just take my chances making coffee at home for a while. At least till my memory of the disappointing coffee experience at Summer Moon is lost to time, and my short attention span...

The take away: Always have a plan "B" when it comes to coffee acquisition. Even in times of crisis.

Now heading out to the back yard to play with the time-lapse feature of the fz2500. Fun in store for me!

My leisurely, Saturday review of the little Sigma fp camera. TLDR? = Eccentric but brilliant. Not for everyone. Very much for me.

What is the Sigma fp? 

The Sigma fp is a small camera that looks like it was designed by an industrial engineering firm rather than a camera company (see plentiful images below). The design disregards most camera body traditions and moves away from the rounded corners and vestigial finder humps that grace a huge range of DSLR and mirrorless cameras. It's designed as a boxy little cog that's not really meant to be anything more than the centralized attachment point for lenses and accessories. No one agonized over the feel of the body beyond rounding the corners and edges so they don't poke into an operator's hand. It's the most minimalist expression of camera-ness on the market that I can think of. And, in terms of operation it's equally rudimentary. No custom function buttons anywhere. Hallelujah. 

Essentially your $1,800 USD buys you a very well fabricated "brain" of a camera and then invites you to outfit it to suit your purposes. The body feels very well made and all the controls are built from good, solid materials and are...adequate. There are only three reasons I can think of to own and use a Sigma fp. One is the very good sensor with its commensurate, wonderful color science. Sigma have delivered a sensor and processing package that makes beautiful raw and Jpeg files. The sensor is a full frame (24 by 36mm) device that is among the current state of the art 24 megapixel sensors in any camera brand. I have no idea whether it's Sony chip under the filter or a TowerJazz but whatever it is it's sharp and relatively noise free; I'd go out on a limb and say that the files it produces are currently my favorite of all the cameras I've tried. If all you care about it really great color, and you can do without fast and flexible autofocus, don't need in-body image stabilization, can adapt to using the rear screen for exposure evaluation and composing, and love small packages, then this might be the right camera for you. 

If you need great continuous auto focus, high frame rates with great AF, and an excellent eye level finder then this is profoundly NOT the camera for you. I can't imagine handholding with camera with a 70-200mm f2.8 on the front. Not for more than five or ten minutes at a time...

And, while I'm mentioning weak points of the camera for general photographers, I have to say that this is definitely not the camera for you if you often shoot with flash in the studio or EVER shoot with flash outdoors. This is because the camera uses an electronic shutter with a very, very slow maximum sync speed. Think about the fact that while using this camera with flash you'll be syncing at 1/30th of a second, or slower. If you want to shoot flash while using the .DNG raw setting at 14 bits you'll be looking at a sync speed of 1/15th of second. Pretty limiting for nearly every flash scenario of which I can think. You certainly would NOT want to use this camera, along with a flash, for events or weddings!

While we're on the subject of the electronic shutter you should also be aware that, like most other electronic shutters, you'll definitely see banding if you shoot under fluorescent lights or most non-professional LED light sources. The banding will get progressively worse the higher you set your shutter speed. So, not a great camera for catching available light shots in a corporate cube farm or a call center. 

If you are still reading and haven't thrown your hands up in the air and yelled "deal killer" at least once then I have one more negative thing to add to the mix: the battery life is mediocre when shooting photographs. Mediocre as in....maybe 250 shots if you've implemented the battery saving settings offered and don't "chimp" too much.

So, who in their right mind would consider this camera? I conjecture that it's made for very advanced users who already use a different and more fully featured system in their day-to-day work. I'll get to why I think it's a useful addition for someone who is already shooting in the L-mount system but I'll preface all the rest of the review by saying that this is not even really a photography camera but a very targeted video camera that, in a nice but limited envelope of capabilities, can also provide stunning photos. But you have to use it in appropriate settings. Only in continuous light and only with small and manageable lenses. But for video it's a whole different equation. 

Summing up what the fp is: it's a small brick with very few features and very limited photographic capabilities but blessed with a sensor that can deliver beautiful files over and over again --- if the use case is just right. No eye level finder, no super fast focusing, no in-body (mechanical) image stabilization. No real flash capabilities. And a body you won't want to hand hold with long lenses for very long because of its "primitive" haptics and small size. 

Who is the Sigma fp really for?

I'm pretty sure Sigma designed and outfitted the fp to be the leading edge in the L-mount system for high end video. Really high end video. That's where the camera shines. But you have to understand what kind of video production this camera is really aimed at. 

Video production has two forks. On one hand you have what we used to call electronic news gathering or ENG cameras. These cameras are meant to be used in the field by TV camera men and documentary film makers who need a solution that can handle lots of scenarios quickly and easily. The average news gathering camera used today is basically a very nice camcorder with a fixed lens that offers a fairly fast maximum aperture and a nice zoom range. It uses a smaller sensor so it's easier to keep everything a cameraman needs to keep in focus in focus. (That also helps when it comes to making fast, long range zoom lenses). These cameras have every bell and whistle you might need to get the shot including professional microphone inputs (XLR) and built-in neutral density filters to handle outdoor lighting scenarios. Most of the current cameras used for this type of work offer autofocusing and good image stabilization. 

But those kinds of all in one, ENG video cameras not made for what is generally called narrative film making. This is a totally different animal with a different set of artists' preferences. High end digital video cameras for film making (TV shows and movies) are almost never equipped with smaller sensors, in fact, over the last few years film makers have moved from using super 35 (basically APS-C) formats to full frame and even larger formats. When these cameras are used for making movies and commercials the directors of photography are selecting very specific lenses for their projects with a current preference for extremely well corrected, very fast aperture prime lenses, although there are a number of cinema zoom lenses that are also superb. The average prime lens for the interchangeable movie cameras is generally two or three times the price of an entire ENG camera set up and can frequently cost more than a nice car.

What these film makers want from their cameras is a beautiful, full frame (or larger) image that doesn't use a consumer, low data rate, compressed video codec. Red Digital Cinema created a stir in the movie production community a little over ten years ago by introducing cameras that output huge raw video files. Just as in still photography the raw files offer a much broader range of color correction capability as well as the possibility of rescuing either over or under exposed files. The cameras also shoot at very high bit depths like 14 and 16 bit which means they don't suffer from banding in skies or weird artifacts in shadows to mid-range transition tones. But the very few cinema cameras that shoot raw mostly come just like the little Sigma fp; they are little more than a box full of processors and an imaging sensor to which any number of accessories can be attached. 

The downside of raw cinema files is that they require very fast processors and very fast memory to recorder and process  the data gushing off the sensor. While a typical ENG camera writes to an SD card and delivers .MP4 or .Mov files that are between 50 and 100 megabits per second of data, the cameras that can do cinema raw deliver files that can be as big as 2700 megabits per second; some even more. The end result is files with amazing color detail and amazing color discrimination. The video from raw files also offers pretty tremendous dynamic range too. The cameras are essentially writing 4 or 5k raw files in the DNG format 24 times a second, or more. Each frame is a fully encapsulated, stand alone raw file. 

A current, middle of the road, Red Digital Cinema camera (with no lens, no finder and no battery or memory) runs about $25,000 and up. The top of the line Red Digital Cinema camera is currently around $80,000. It's fan cooled and weighs a ton. There are other brands, like Arriflex, that offer similar solutions at even higher prices. 

I write all of this by way of trying to clarify the value proposition of the Sigma fp. It's one of the very few cameras under five or ten thousand dollars that offers a cinema .DNG raw file and which can be highly configured for cinematic/narrative projects. With fast Leica L-mount lenses on the front, an outboard digital monitor for composition and exposure evaluation, and an attached, fast SSD drive attached to the USB 3.1 port the Sigma fp can rock cinematic, raw video at 12 bits @23.98 or 29.97 fps, outputting data at up to 2500 megabits per second. And it can do all of this without overheating. 

The weak point of the camera for video production is audio. The input is a standard 3.5mm jack and the controls for gain are pretty rudimentary but certainly adequate for "scratch" audio. Most high end production crews are recording audio to digital audio recorders like the ones from Sound Devices which offer great limiters and a lot more control and redundancy than the ones you will find in just about any standalone camera. But in narrative work and movies you have specialists on the crew to handle each shooting and recording parameter. They would use the scratch files to sync the externally recorded audio to the video clips.

So, if you look at the fp from that perspective then it starts to make a lot of sense to production companies that require the right "brain" or bare camera,  but will plan on supporting the camera with all the peripherals that they already use. At $1800 per camera the fp costs about what a professional compendium lens shade for a cinema lens retails for. The need for small, inexpensive but gloriously file capable cameras like this on motion picture sets is endless. While you might still use a very expensive Red or Arri camera as the primary camera you could use multiples of Sigma fp's shooting raw as b-cameras to capture different angles simultaneous with the primary camera. But there's no reason you could not use the Sigma fp as a primary camera either. Most narrative project crews won't be flustered at its lack of scene modes or face detect AF as they prefer to manually focus their cameras and lenses, want to shoot raw, and are used to working with SSDs as camera storage. 

But why would I buy one? 

I'll admit that I get a lot more use out of a more generic camera like a Lumix S1 but there are things about the Sigma fp that intrigue me. And I've come to realize that many of my camera preferences are eccentric (to say the least). 

First of all the size, for a full frame camera, is wonderful. When you couple the fp with a Sigma 45mm lens it's a great package to walk around solo and shoot with. It's fairly light (though dense) and I've yet to hit an exterior situation in which the camera and lens together didn't excel. 

If you are looking for ultimate image quality in a scene and you can use a tripod and long exposures you can put the camera in the raw DNG still mode and set ISOs as low as 6. Yes. 6. At all the ISOs below 100 the camera takes multiple frames and builds the file by a form of file stacking. This was a feature in the Kodak SRL/n that I loved but it wasn't as nicely implemented as it is in the Sigma. When you shoot this way the camera is assessing the noise in each frame (and electronic noise is essentially random) and comparing with with the other files generated in the stack which allow the processor to separate the noise from real data and kick the noise out of the resulting, final file. 

While Panasonic, Olympus and other's use multiple framing with movement between shots to create files with more resolution Sigma is opting to use multiple frames with no movement between shots to create noiseless very color accurate files. A trade off I personally like. Of course, this feature is not usable with flash. 

It's these wonderfully eccentric additions that make the camera so interesting to me. 

I also notice (from cases where the camera has obviously failed) that the digital image stabilization is also a combination of separate frames which are analyzed and combined for correction. If I'm moving too much I can see overlaps in some parts of the files which the camera is unable to correct. That's okay because the camera does interface perfectly with the Pro lenses from Panasonic's L-mount inventory, and both the 24-105mm f4.0 and the 70-200mm f4.0 offer really good, optical image stabilization. 

The fp also provides me with a different color and tonal look than my other cameras and I like being able to select those "looks" when I want them. A lot of the presets, like "teal and orange" or "cinema" are too strong or over the top but each color profile can be blended back with a control slider in the menu that will mostly get me into the ballpark I want to be in. 

The biggest argument for my owning the fp is that it's control interface and operational controls are all very minimalist and very logical. It took me all of two days to master the camera and compared to other cameras that's a highly compressed time frame. There were still one to two operational things that threw me but I've figured them out and now the camera seems wholly transparent to me, which I love. 

I've tried the raw video files (with the help of video guru, Frank) but to really use them to their best potential I'd have to be much better colorist/color grader than I am. Abject laziness had me ending up shooting some of the lower data rate files in video (1080 10 bit All-I @ 200 Mbs) and converting them in DaVinci Resolve to a more workable file format. But when that huge art project comes rolling around and needs to be shot in the ultimate codec at least I'll be ready. 

I will also say that I like a number of the lower data rate files in the .Mov space. They're fine for most of my current projects but for on camera interviews I would use this camera as a "B" camera since the Lumix S1 with the V-Log update is a more complete solution for that kind of video. 

To end my review I would say that most people who are interested only in photography will (and probably should) reject the Sigma fp out of hand. For around the same outlay of cash there are cameras that offer a much more complete feature and capability set. And for someone who shoots photos with a Lumix S1 or S1R it makes more sense to shoot day-to-day video projects with one of those cameras. For everything but raw files they'll yield the same quality (but with a different overall look) as the Sigma fp. 

It's a camera that requires you to have some nostalgia (as a photographer) for a time when camera controls were simple and straight forward and didn't require massive "customization." Unless you shoot only art for yourself you'll want to have a back-up system for professional work or for those times when someone begs you to shoot graduation photographs of a kid from kindergarten in a big, fluorescent lit auditorium. 

If you are making a film though, a couple of these and a little basket of great lenses would get you into the same technical arena as the big players. You'll need to know your stuff for fully manual film work, and you'll grimace at the micro HDMI port every time you plug in your monitor, but you'll get great files to work with and your editor will be happy with you. 

Or, you can be like me and buy one because it's.....intriguing... and you hope it will be the magic bullet that will make all your work look better (but my rational brain is NOT counting on it in my case). I've already gotten ten or fifteen images from the camera that I really like. I might not have gotten them or even shot them with a different camera --- so there is that. I'd love a second one. And when/if I ever retire it would be fun to see how long I could stand just using this camera and a 45mm lens. Maybe I'll try it.

This is the unadorned camera with the 45mm Sigma lens on it. The whole package is small and light for a full frame camera with a great 24 megapixel sensor. It's extremely likable too. One point I forgot to mention above is that now three of my favorite cameras all take the same Sigma/Panasonic battery. The Sigma fp, the Lumix GX8 and the Lumix fz2500. Nice that they are all interchangeable.

The 45mm is long enough to put backgrounds well out of focus. The white balance is superb.

If you look at the space between the back of the camera and the rear screen you'll see a little grating. The entire back of the camera, under the screen, is a huge heat sink that allows this camera to blaze away at amazingly high data rates without overheating. No overheating means no noise. But the downside is that the sensor needed to be anchored to the heat sync for the best efficiency and that ruled out in body image stabilization.... Also, the camera is weatherproof, splash and dust resistant.

The anchor points for the camera strap are engineered as standard quarter inch screw sockets so you can actually use the socket on each side or the bottom of the camera to attach it to a tripod. This view shows the camera with a small hand grip attached. It works well and the grip provides socket so you can still attached a strap lug. While the grip isn't big and chunky it provides a good hold and has a nice thumb pad to rest your right hand thumb on. 

Close up of attachment point for strap. The company makes a number of useful accessories. Allegedly they make a magnifier hood for the rear screen but I've had one on order from B&H Photo since last year and have yet to see one. I think it's a unicorn product that will only come once I've moved on to the next model.....so sad when production lags demand. But, at the moment it's saving me three hundred dollars... so there is a silver lining.

The rear screen is great and easily viewable in every situation except when full sun is striking the screen directly. A magnifier hood would come in handy. Or you can use your hand to shade the screen. But that seems so "old school." Okay Boomers. Use your hands.....

The menus are logical, straightforward and well laid out. In fact, the menus are one of my favorite things about the camera.

When you switch between the "cine" setting and the "still" setting on top of the camera the camera brings up the right menu. Notice just above that it's showing me time code (top left), a waveform meter on the bottom right and along the bottom of the screen it's showing me shutter angle and fps. You can hit the second button on the bottom row to change the display for more or less detail and clutter. 

Finally, an easy to operate camera with no infernal nest of custom function buttons to confuse or distract a real photographer. Notice the grill at the bottom which gives a better illustration of the heat sinks. That's about as calm a camera top as I could wish for. Ah....

Two of the compelling reasons for me to own this camera are the really, really good 24 megapixel sensor and the L-mount lens mount. I'm saving up so I can put some outrageous Leica SL lens on this camera. Just because it's possible. Works with all my Sigma Art lenses and my Panasonic S Pro lenses. 

This is about as discreet and unobtrusive as I think a full frame camera can be. And, of course, the shutter can be absolutely silent. If you are composing on the rear screen everyone will assume it's just an old point-and-shoot camera and not pay any attention to you at all...

this is the noble 45mm lens hood that broke the fall of a brand new S1 when it tumbled off

a picnic bench and hit the concrete. The tape is covering a shiny spot where the 

concrete shaved off some black paint. The lens still works perfectly.

Come to think of it, so does the camera body.

During the current crisis I am becoming my most popular (but not most favorite) model.

I took all of the photos of the Sigma fp with this Lumix fz2500. It's pretty sharp and easy to do close ups with. Getting reacquainted with its video menus this week. 

So far we're safe and sound over here and doing all sorts of domestic stuff like painting and sword fighting. I've been walking with the Sigma fp and that inspired me to write about it again. It's a fun camera if you have a particular bent toward odd but simple tools. Keep an extra battery in your pocket. One less thing to worry about.

Added next day: Here's a nice video review that does a really good overview of the Sigma fp's strengths and weaknesses: https://www.l-rumors.com/sigma-fp-photographer-review-by-richard-wong/

Added a day later: Here's a nice review from a photographer in Chennai, India: https://medium.com/@hornbill/an-honest-review-of-sigma-fp-cd4e40579212