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<p>M8.2 Sequence [Firmware 2.014] :<br>

1. Turn Camera OFF<br>

2. Turn Camera ON<br>

3. Press the Menu button<br>

4. Press the DOWN arrow 10 times [to access Auto Review]<br>

5. Press SET [to access Duration]<br>

6. Press SET again to access the options for Duration<br>

7. This menu contains 5 options and will cycle through them all continuously as you press the DOWN arrow. It starts at your current setting so it is literally a shot in the dark to find the OFF option in your case. So be prepared for some trial and error :<br>

- OFF<br>

- 1 second<br>

- 3 seconds<br>

- 5 seconds<br>

- hold <br>

Good Luck! That said, I would get it fixed.</p>

 

<p>My M8.2 + 35/2 Summicron ASPH with hood fit absolutely perfectly in the Lowepro Cirrus TLZ 5</p>

<p>I'm not sure what the diameter of your hood is; but my choice would be to keep the lens hood attached and try a LensCoat X-small Hoodie (fits 2.75" to 3.25" diameter hoods). <strong>http://tinyurl.com/4qpg6gn</strong></p>

<p>Last year I sent my 50mm Summicron ASPH to Leica Service in New Jersey. It was 6 weeks. I discovered that lens groups are replaced rather than disassembled when an element has a problem. My suggestion is to bite the bullet and send it in rather than try to find another 50 Lux in this market. Your lens will benefit from the extra care.</p>

<p>I change my M8 lenses frequently in windy San Francisco. I've never needed more than the Arctic Butterfly to clean my sensor. I've used the Photo Solutions' products in the past to clean an oily substance from a nearly new Nikon D3 sensor. But I consider wet cleaning the sensor only when I can't get the spot removed with the Arctic Butterfly which is very rare. </p>

<p>VisibleDust also has a new product called the <strong>Zeeion Blower</strong> which I haven't tried. http://www.visibledust.com/products3.php?pid=444 It operates on the same principle of neutralizing static charge on the sensor. If it can do the same thing as the Arctic Butterfly 724, then all the better by reducing the number times you have to actually touch the sensor in order to remove dust specks. Since I have used the Arctic Butterfly successfully for the last two years I recommend that option.</p>

<p>I agree it's most likely a dust speck on the sensor. A static charge on the sensor will attract particles of opposite charge like a magnet. A blower cannot remove this type of dust. I suggest the <strong>VisibleDust Artic Butterfly 724.</strong> http://www.visibledust.com/products3.php?pid=3 It's worth every penny. It has 2 AAA batteries which spin the bristles to charge them so that when you swipe the sensor they neutralize the charge between the particle and the sensor and allow it to be removed. </p>

<p>I use ExifTool by Phil Harvey. http://www.sno.phy.queensu.ca/~phil/exiftool/ It involves using the command line in the OS X Terminal but is very straightforward. The trick to using this tool is to understand that there can be NO SPACES when typing a command or option except for separating the command from the option and the path. Options are always preceded by a Hyphen(dash). ExifTool will add the spaces into the EXIF data. You can type more than one command by adding a space between them. Once you have entered all the exiftool commands in the terminal hit the spacebar. I use the Bridge so I select all the thumbnails of the images I want and drag them to the Terminal which adds their path to the command line (You can do this from the Finder too). Hit the Enter key and the commands will be executed. Be sure to use double quotes for any multi-word EXIF data. When this process is completed exiftool will create a new file with the EXIF data and the old file will be saved with a .original added to the filename.</p>

<p>Here are commands that I use for my non 6-bit lenses. Remember: Command[space]-Option[space]Filepath[Return] I suggest experimenting with a single duplicate file until you feel comfortable with the process.</p>

<p>exiftool [Return] to explore all the commands to control EXIF data with examples.<br>

exiftool -FocalLength=50 -MaxApertureValue=2.0 -Lens="Leica Summicron-M 50mm f/2.0"<br>

exiftool -FocalLength=50 -MaxApertureValue=1.5 -Lens="Zeiss 1.5/50 C-Sonnar ZM"</p>

<div></div>

<p>I am using both the 35/2 Biogon and 35/2 Summicron on a digital M8. My Biogon is considerably sharper than my Summicron for landscape work. For near focus work they're equally sharp but I prefer the Summicron's rendering. The Biogon is an excellent lens.</p>

<p>In general, you should install the latest firmware, but before you do, test the function of the camera to make sure it's working correctly. Check the camera Menu for its firmware version. It may already have v2.004 installed. If you are uncertain about ANYTHING call/email Leica tech support.</p>

<p>Once you're satisfied with the camera functions install the v2.004 firmware - no intermediate steps needed. Be sure to have your battery fully charged before starting the process and then follow the Leica firmware update instructions to the letter.</p>

<p>Just say NO to drugs.</p>

<p>I was a Nikon/D3 user until June of this year, when I switched to a M8.2. Sixty-two years and a troublesome right wrist compelled me to think lighter weight. I am very satisfied with my decision. I think it's important that you are comfortable as a manual lens user first before changing - not everybody can be these days. Framing is another issue for SLR users using a RF camera. You seem comfortable with that. I think the most compelling reason to switch is the quality and feel of the optics available from Leica, Zeiss, and Cosina-Voigtlander. They are a true joy to use and draw beautiful images. The one big draw back with the M8 for a wedding photographer would be color rendition which demands 6-bit lenses fitted with UV/IR filters. Without them all your black tuxes will probably have a magenta cast. Others here can address that problem better than me since I am primarily a B/W photographer. </p>

<p>I am a new Leica user (June 09). I had a similar experience with a brand new silver 35mm Summicron on a new M8.2. For comparison I have a 24mm Elmar which allows me to actually move the split-image past infinity in the viewfinder. The split-image for the Summicron always stopped short of infinity and I never had the feeling I was actually in-focus at infinity even though the image was fine in the digital file. The problem is that this makes one question focus accuracy for all other distances.</p>

<p>I sent both my camera and the Summicron to Leica Service in NJ to marry the lens to the camera. A month later both returned with certificates affirming focus accuracy. I have seen an improvement in the split-image alignment in the viewfinder for the Summicron, but it still does not seem to nail the split-image alignment at infinity. There is absolutely no problem with the digital image at infinity or any other distance. Since I wear glasses and I am in my 60's, I wonder if it's just me and how I position my eye relative to the viewfinder. </p>

I recently compared the 17-35mm f/2.8 ED, 28-70mm f/2.8 ED, and 35mm PC f/2.8

lenses set at infinity, 35mm, and f/8. The 28-70mm was narrowly but noticeably the

sharpest. I haven't had any experience with the 35-70mm f/2.8.

I have used the VisibleDust Econo 1.6X Sensor Brush on a D1X and a D100. It works great,

but it does not get the "welded" dust spots caused by humidity and evaporation. That

requires a wet wipe of the sensor with another product. I had one of those large twisty

dust spots along with a few small dust spots. The brush got them all. I suggest watching

all the Quicktime tutorials that describe how to use the products at the VisibleDust

website. In addition, you must have the appropriate Nikon AC Power Adapter, EH-5 for the

D100/D70 or the EH-4 for the D1X, in order to access the sensor. You also must have a

can of compressed air to "charge" the brush so that it will attract the dust. That is exactly

what it does. I was blown away with how easily it works. Since you can't really see the

spots on the sensor, you're often wiping the sensor "blind." That's makes the larger brush

more useful. Even so, it takes two swipes with the brush to get the entire sensor. Just for

good measure, I take two swipes both ways. The best part is that you feel more

comfortable swapping lenses in the field knowing how easy it is to clean normal dust

spots.

We haven't upgraded to Nikon Capture 4, but version 3.5's only value has been for

real time tethered firewire capture. If you are saving to CF cards, Photoshop CS is the

best all around software choice for RAW files. You gets 16-bit RAW file

conversion and more bang for the buck editing capabilities. It is your digital

darkroom. Heck, my Omega D-2V enlarger cost $375 way back when. If you are doing

digital do it right.

In my original post my recollection of what Nikon states on its info sheet was WRONG.

My apologies. After finally getting my hands on the info sheet I realized my error. The

reference is to vignetting caused by HN-29/HN-34 lens hoods attached to the filter

itself and NOT vignetting caused by the filter.

 

Here's what it says...

Lens: 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED.

HN-29: can be used only at 35mm zoom setting.

HN-34: can be used only at 35mm zoom setting

 

The lens itself comes with the HB-23 bayonet lens hood. The value of the B+W filter

is that you can attach the lens shade after mounting the filter. With the Nikon filter,

you cannot use the stock lens shade after the filter has been attached and it is

practically impossible to attach the filter after the lens shade has been attached. So

you must make a choice between vignetting or the possibility of flare when using or

not using the HN lens shades attached to the filter. Carefully picking your lighting

allows you to leave the shade off the Nikon CP filter and there is no vignetting.

With other photographers saying from experience that the Nikon filter does not

vignette at 17mm, it sounds like a case of Nikon's legal department insisting on a

CYA approach to documentation. But even if the Nikon CP Filter doesn't vignette, I

still have a major issue with the size of the filter. For me it's still a monster on the

lens and in the gig bag.

I almost hate to bring this topic up but the image I submitted was from a 17-35mm

lens on a D1X which means the 17mm was effectively 25.5mm. Nikon specs out its

24mm at 84 degrees which should correspond to what I was getting with the 17mm

end of the zoom. I was surprised to see the amount of polarization in the center of

the image. Perhaps that is a characteristic of this filter at maximum effect in

combination with this lens. Anybody?

You have multiple issues to resolve here. First of all USB 1.1 (the reader that came

with your 1Gb card) is a very slow means to transfer your files to the computer. The

D1X uses a much faster Firewire connection to transfer data to the computer. So go

with a Firewire solution here. Unfortunately the cable is usually not included with the

camera. But you can either tether the camera to the computer or use a Firewire Card

Reader.

 

To determine which cable do the following. The D1X has a 6-pin Firewire port at the

lower right of the back. Before you buy the cable, you need to make sure your

computer has a Firewire port. You must determine whether the computer has a 4-pin

or 6-pin port. If your computer doesn't have the port you need to add a Firewire card

(if possible). You end up with two Firewire cable possibilites: 6-pin to 6-pin (Mac) or

6-pin to 4-pin (generally PC). The cables come in various lengths but should not

exceed 14' without special hardware.

 

Once you have the camera attached to the computer you can control the camera from

the computer with Nikon Capture Control, which will also gives you added control

over the RAW files. But you will have to pay for that too. In the end you may find that

a good Firewire Card Reader attached to the computer is all you need. Pop the card

out of the camera and into the reader and copy the files off the card with Nikon Image

Transfer which comes with the camera in the Nikon Browser software.

Nikon very specifically states that its 77mm CP filter will vignette the 17-35mm at

17mm in its info sheet supplied with the filter. This is not a problem if you are using

either the D100 or D1X since they don't take advantage of the entire field of view at

17mm because of the smaller sensor size. It should also be noted that the Nikon CD

filter is VERY massive 3/8" thick rotation ring. It comes in a large plastic box that is

difficult to store in a moderate sized gaget bag.

 

Personally I use the B+W Kasemann Slim filter which is a very elegant piece of

hardware that makes it very easy to attach the lens shade with the filter mounted. It

doesn't have front threads. For me that's not a issue since I want the minimum

amount of added glass between the scene and the sensor/film. You do have to be

very careful about over polarization with a wide angle lens. This particular filter will

produce a darker circular gradation in the middle of your sky if you over polarize.<div></div>

The D2H is a new generation body and if Nikon has any intention of having a full

frame sensor in this generation it will be engineered into this body. It seems to me

that one would only have to raise the mirror in the D2H and see if Nikon's LBCAST

sensor fills the capture chamber, or have they provided room for a larger full frame

sensor in a D2X?