pcg

Odd, James. I just finished reading the same review an hour ago. Nowhere does he

characterize the G5 as "a significant step backwards."

There are several very picky things he's irritated by, but to leap to such a conclusion

is to have misread the review. A more careful summary of the review is to say that he

says it's essentially a G3 with a 5 MEG image capture, better software and a few

problems, particularly with 3 minute + night time exposures. No where does he

compare the camera to a Leica M7. Geez, talk about tossing oil on a fire...

Focus seems a little off. The photo appears to be unnecessary grainy. And your

grandmother might think it exciting to be on Internet!

I hate to admit it, but I own most of these books (if not all). But out of them, I'd

recommend:

Leica M Photography by Bower

The Osterloh book (difficult to find, & the pages are almost always falling out)

The Van Hasbroeck coffee table special.

These are the ones I keep coming back to. The Lager books are fine if you're a

collector, & then an invaluable reference. Otherwise...

Nice shot. I agree with Scott. You probably wanted to spot meter on her cheek, or to

have simply bracketed, to have prevented the blown out highlighting. But all in all, a

marvelous piece.

Having used the G5 now for a week & a half, I generally concur with feli (& w/ Marc).

The G5 is a slightly improved beast over the G3 (better software, bigger files, faster

focus, less shutter lag), but it cannot replace a Leica for quick, spontaneous shooting.

For much of what I shoot (setups, landscapes, portraits), it equal to or better than my

Leicas. But for street shooting, or the kind of image capture feli describes, the G5 is

terribly inadequate. It's definitely not a P&S--probably best defined as a hydrid

between the old P&S and a pro SLR.

Now, that being said, it's a fabulous tool for many photographic uses. Each of us has

to really consider what we shoot & what technique we favor. City scenes, day & night?

Perfect w/ the G5. Studio stills, landscapes? Ideal. Shooting wiggling babies?

Remember Jay's experience? Probably not a good idea.

A last comment. Speed for AF on the G5 depends on several settings. You can speed

it up considerably or slow it down, depending on how many demands you key into

the programming. Best to experiment before cursing.

And I suggest, in all due courtesy, that Jay exempt himself from further G5-related

comments. He's clearly predisposed to dissing the camera, though he's admitted

using it once for less than an hour (& doesn't own one).

The G5 is many things, but it's not your common "P&S." So this sort of comment is

not helpful to anyone wondering what the hell this is all about. I'd say Jay's

disqualified, until he admits to having used one over the course of a couple days.

Now, onward!

Little too gritty, too high contrast for my taste. Looks like you blew out all the

shadows. But that's personal taste; many many people like these images... And of

course, that's the problem with asking, "What do you think?"

Unbeknownst to you, Travis, there's a new site that defines the exact rules of making

Art. I've followed them myself for the last month, & my photographs have all

improved immeasurably. I highly recommend you check it out (& that you memorize

the rules in the exact order they're given).

www.10RulesforMakingPerfectArt.org

Good luck, man!<div></div>

Sorry, don't like Mark's alterations. Image 1 is the best. Image 2 loses the subtlety in

the shadows, becomes harsher & the colors which "pop out" are immediately read,

rather than requiring a moment of reflection.

Andrew, for me the 50mm finder means 1) virtually no squinting, and 2) a faster view.

I use finders for all of my lens, and have for years. Just easier.

Well, eat your hearts out. Here's my old M3, just back from DAG. It's been modified by

the best of our technical wizards so that I have a slide-in cartridge that captures

images at 30 MG, RAW files to 90 MG. Note the downside though: the 32 MG cf card

that you see was as big as he could go, so the camera is now a single image machine.

But it sure looks cool. And it beats the Canon 1Ds. He even made the Leica lens work,

which they haven't figured out in Germany. Oh, another downside: price. Don has just

invoiced me about a cool $42,000 for the work. Of course he did have six trips to

Japan (w/ two 2 side trips to Taiwan). If you've wondered why repairs had slowed

down at Don's, now you know. My apologies!

So far this sweet machine is a one of a kind. Geez, I might even put it on eB**. Think

of the rarity factor! Anyone who wants to write me off-line with offers is welcome.

[My apologies to Don.]<div></div>

LCT notes " colors too saturated" in the G5. Now that's a first. Where did that opinion

come from? The colors can be set almost infinitely, there are multiple white balance

settings & there's no excuse for obtaining colors that are not exactly what you intend.

Sounds like another 'forum' opinion from someone who doesn't own the camera.

Honestly, folks, I remain amazed, all in all, at the general negative tones that have run

through these threads in the last three days. Many many people are speaking in tones

of great authority who neither own the G5 nor have even handled one. One of us

played with one for an hour, & then gave it a general condemnation. I've personally

owned (& exclusively shot Leicas) for over 20 years -- the only exception to that has

been work with a couple Hasselblads I own -- and I have become a believer in this

new camera.

There are several excellent reviews available (contrary to what someone else states).

Image quality is astounding. Software controls are robust. Heft & ergonomics are

good. I cd be picky & describe what I dislike -- but on a scale of 1 to 10, this new

little digicam is a 9. Unfortunately, I'd rate my old TTL at about an 8...

And as I've said previously, image quality at or below 11x16 inch prints rivals our

favorite Leica lens. Marc noted edge distortion etc.: I agree, but this falls into that

category I described above--picky. The benefits far far outweight the minor faults of

the new Canon...

A side note to yesterday's contentious thread. My new G5 DOES have a noticeable

shatter lag when it's in Manual or Custom mode, probably as much as a half second.

In Auto mode, it seems to fit Canon's specs of 0.1 second. But the lag is there, & an

important component if you're really truly shooting 'decisive moment' photography.

The G5 is a marvel, & I cannot be effusive enough, but Canon has not eliminated the

lag yet, at least not in the G5...

On the other hand, the only thing comparable today is the Canon 10Ds, which is,

amazingly, about a 10 MG body. Not too bad for Leica to produce a 10 MG back. The

10Ds runs $7000+, which makes the Leica, amazingly, competitive--& in fact

cheaper.

Last comment: a 10MG back produces a 30MG RAW file, which is getting into a

16x20" print size. I doubt that most of the people belly-aching here rarely print that

size... Really, who cares if the next generation of digicam produces 20 or 30 MG files

which translate to 60-90 MG files? Pros don't need files that size unless they're going

billboard. How many people here need files larger than 30 MG? Hmm.

All in all, doesn't sound bad to me. Let's show a little perspective.

I second Roger's last few posts. So many of the anti-digital arguments thrown out

here are written in ignorance. Too bad. The G5 is simply a precurser of what's rolling

down on us all. Shutter lag is gone; film quality is there in the digital chip; the G5

camera --- & there will be many like it in the next couple years -- is wonderful.

Peter, I agree. My rant is directed at his first post solely.

[Look what you've started!]

Jay,

I find yr first comments re: the G5 rather silly. I've now used the camera for 5-6 days

& remain astounded. I say this after using Leica Ms for 15 years. The G5 can be used

as a P&S, certainly, but it also uses virtually the same software as the Canon 10S, a

very sophisticated package to say the least. There's a learning curve for M users -- &

I admit to spending more time than I expected reading the manual. But the camera

continues to throw out pleasant surprises, & learning how to use has paid great

dividends.

Shutter lag? It's frankly foolish to disparage that. Canon's specs call for a lag of 0.1

seconds. I repeat, that's 0.1. My own experience affirms that. I notice no lag. With this

new generation, Canon has effectively eliminated what was a legitimate complaint in

earlier digicams. And I owned, & cursed, my share of early digitals.

And I firmly stand by my earlier remarks: the lens quality is equal to, if not better,

than the Summilux 35mm & 50 that I regularly use. And I find it hard to make that

statement, because I deeply love my Leicas.

You speak w/ great authority about this camera, while stating th you used it briefly to

take baby shots. Hmm. I was surprised to read yr comments.