Help please regarding 1st Sigma Merrill camera

Hello everyone.

I have always been fascinated by photography and have dipped in and out of it throughout my life. I used to be a pro portrait and wedding photographer and used mainly Nikon, Kodak and Fuji S5 cameras.

The Nikon pro cameras were great to use they made you feel good but I always loved the images from the Kodak and Fuji more - maybe it was the extra effort involved to use them or the quirkiness of the cameras and the software.
I have long since given up pro photography and not really shot many images in the last 10 years. My interest in photography has resurfaced again and the choice of cameras these days I find quite bewildering!

After a lot of research I have been drawn to Sigma. I am mostly interested in the Merrill range - I have never used a Sigma camera (I did have a Sigma 30mm 1.4 for Dx and that was great) and it seems you need to be quite knowledgeable to get the best out of them but when you do they knock your socks off.

I was hoping to get some help regarding these cameras.

My favourite focal length is 35mm although I have mostly been using a 8mb Mk1 Ricoh GR which is 28mm and my phone which is also 28mm

I know I can get a DP1m at 28mm (which is from what I can gather the least good of the series) or a DP2m which 45mm (and which is I gather the best overall best of the series).

I was wondering how reliable these camera are now bearing in mind how old they are and if they are worth paying £500 for or if I would be better paying £500 ish for another Sigma camera like a quattro?

I will use the camera for mainly landscapes I shoot digital like I shoot film so speed is not required I just want the best quality possible and don't mind working for it.

Many thanks for any info.

Steve

The SD1M is the most versatile of course as it allows for interchangeable lenses, but it does require patience to get the best results.

I use mine mostly for landscape pano stitching and have found the 70 macro A an excellent focal length to use.

The best image quality comes from using the best glass, i.e. low to no distortion, little to no CA and LCA, center to corner sharpness, etc.

Sigma's best lenses for this purpose are the A lenses: 40 f1.4, 50 f1,4, 70 f2.8 macro, 85 f1.4, 105 f1.4, and 135 f1.8. All of these but the 70 macro are expensive, heavy and bulky, which is one of the reasons I chose the 70 macro (it's also overall the highest in image quality).

A good lens test site to examine these (and other) lenses in detail is: https://www.lenstip.com/index.html?producent=73&obiektyw=all&typ=0&moc=0&szukaj=Search&sort=1

All of these lenses need to be AF calibrated which can take time and practice to do it right.

You also need spare batteries, a remote release either cable or IR (if you can find one) and a right angle view finder.

A less expensive and bulky alternative is the DP3M considered the best of the DPM series.

Steve, does weight concern you?

I've never had a DP1 Merrill. Still, I've printed a photo from one very large, and the image quality is very good. A Quattro will be the same price, but then you'll need a lens. If you think you might want to get a wider lens, you might be better off getting an SD1 Merrill or SD Quattro with an 18-35mm f1.8 Art.

mike earussi wrote:

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You also need spare batteries, a remote release either cable or IR (if you can find one) and a right angle view finder.

I found that a hot-shoe mount optical viewfinder is very useful in bright light on the DPs. Third-party ones from ebay are far cheaper than Sigma's offerings.

idomybest wrote:

I know I can get a DP1m at 28mm (which is from what I can gather the least good of the series) or a DP2m which 45mm (and which is I gather the best overall best of the series).

The DP1M is considered the weakest but it's still pretty good. It needs to be stopped down to F5.6 to get better edge definition.

The DP2M and DP3M are both better edge to edge at F2.8 and F4.

I was wondering how reliable these camera are now bearing in mind how old they are and if they are worth paying £500 for or if I would be better paying £500 ish for another Sigma camera like a quattro?

My DP2M has a 'jumping' main dial where the settings jump as the dial is turned. It needs cleaning with a switch cleaning lubricant every 6 to 9 months.

Bear in mind that these cameras are now difficult to get repaired.

The Quattro cameras are also quite interesting. However I don't think they are quite so good for landscape as they drop in effective resolution in low contrast areas such as green grass and distant foliage.

The advantage of the DPM and DPQ cameras is that they come with decent lenses (donwside is that the lens is fixed).

I will use the camera for mainly landscapes I shoot digital like I shoot film so speed is not required I just want the best quality possible and don't mind working for it.

The DPMs can produce stunning images but the dynamic range needs to be handled carefully - they lose colour detail in low contrast and shadow areas and don't deal well with shooting at light sources such as the sun or bright street lights.

With a modern APS-C or FF sensor then you can typically recover the under exposed areas and retain colour in post processing. The Merrill sensor typically doesn't provide enough colour to do this.

The Merrills can produce striking skies where there is cloud shape and texture. They can produce stunning foliage and surface texture detail. However distant low contrast detail tends to look destaturated - I tend to think of the shadows as being muddy and magenta and the mid tone low contrast areas as being grey and pale green.

If you shoot towards a light source then you can end up with a matrix of purple and green blotches extending out from the overexposes light source.

I'm not trying to put you off. The majority of 'keeper' landscape images that I have are from my DPMs - and many of my favourite urban images are from the DP0Q. But you have to accept the limitations as well as the strengths of these devices.

idomybest wrote:

Scottelly wrote:

Steve, does weight concern you?

I've never had a DP1 Merrill. Still, I've printed a photo from one very large, and the image quality is very good. A Quattro will be the same price, but then you'll need a lens. If you think you might want to get a wider lens, you might be better off getting an SD1 Merrill or SD Quattro with an 18-35mm f1.8 Art.

Thanks Scottelly,

I was hoping to get a lighter solution but open to suggestions. I like the idea of the FP but it is a fair price to pay for my 1st Sigma and it doesn't have the Merrill sensor. Still interested in reliability of these older cameras.

Well, the fp is a different world. It's an L mount camera, and if you want small, that is definitely a good way to go. If you want high resolution you should look into the fp L, which is Sigma's newest camera. It's got a 61 MP full-frame sensor in it. The new 35mm f2 lens looks to be pretty good too. You may love that kit, and you can add the tilting EVF. The fp cameras don't have Foveon sensors in them though.

idomybest wrote:

There is a chap selling a DP1M down the road from me for £500. I would only be shooting at F8 or F11 whichever give the best sharpness so that might be OK.

I've owned a DP1 Merrill. The 920,000 dot LCD is excellent and couples nicely the focusing ring when used in magnified view mode. I do not think you would be disappointed with that one, especially from the POV of sharpness. With the small pixels, f/11 might apply noticeable diffraction but your call of course. I would use the supplied SPP5 or I can send you SPP 5.5.3. Steer clear of SPP6 - once it has opened a Merrill X3F file, that file can never be opened in SPP5 again.

DP1 Merrill example:

Note: shot at f/4 ...

idomybest wrote:

xpatUSA wrote:

idomybest wrote:

There is a chap selling a DP1M down the road from me for £500. I would only be shooting at F8 or F11 whichever give the best sharpness so that might be OK.

I've owned a DP1 Merrill. The 920,000 dot LCD is excellent and couples nicely the focusing ring when used in magnified view mode. I do not think you would be disappointed with that one, especially from the POV of sharpness. With the small pixels, f/11 might apply noticeable diffraction but your call of course. I would use the supplied SPP5 or I can send you SPP 5.5.3. Steer clear of SPP6 - once it has opened a Merrill X3F file, that file can never be opened in SPP5 again.

Thank you that is good information. Do the later versions of SPP not work as well with the older cameras?

Later versions are said to work the same for older cameras, although some here do not agree. I personally prefer to use SPP version that is more contemporary with the camera used. For my SD9 and SD15 I use 3.5.2; for my Merrills I use 5.5.3; I do not use Quattro, therefore I have never used SPP6.

xpatUSA wrote:

idomybest wrote:

There is a chap selling a DP1M down the road from me for £500. I would only be shooting at F8 or F11 whichever give the best sharpness so that might be OK.

I've owned a DP1 Merrill. The 920,000 dot LCD is excellent and couples nicely the focusing ring when used in magnified view mode. I do not think you would be disappointed with that one, especially from the POV of sharpness. With the small pixels, f/11 might apply noticeable diffraction but your call of course. I would use the supplied SPP5 or I can send you SPP 5.5.3. Steer clear of SPP6 - once it has opened a Merrill X3F file, that file can never be opened in SPP5 again.

DP1 Merrill example:

Note: shot at f/4 ...

Ted,

As a matter of interest why would someone like myself want to go back to SPP 5.5.3 when SPP 6.8.0 does the job just fine. Whatever was contained in 5.5.3 is also contained in 6.8.0 and the latter is much faster.

S

DP2 Merrill. If you can't find in good condition then DP2 Quattro.

And for landscapes only definetly DP2 Merrill, but if you want bit more versitale then DP2 Quattro.

Also I'd take into consideration the Sony RX1RII if you can afford.

idomybest wrote:

How does the DPO Q compare to the DPMs when using, battery life, screen, handling - which would you choose if you could have only one?

DPQ has a much better rear screen and the battery is larger. It has quicker AF and an electroinc level. (I think the DPM rear screen is quite poor by comparison).

The shape is a bit of an acquired taste. (I think it's gimmicky).

The DP0Q lens is excellent.

I personally prefer the DPM over the DPQ for landscape  but if travelling to a city or urban area - then I like to have the DP0Q because of the lens - but also the Quattro sensor works well for me in that environment.

Hi, I was late to the Foveon party but had always aspired to own one − I didn't really like what I saw on Flickr for the Merrill, so my first Foveon was a dp0 Quattro. I pre-ordered and there were definitely teething issues regards image quality but I loved the images that I was getting; all landscapes, but nearly always with an ND grad because the dynamic range really is poor.

Buying the dp0 drove me to join this forum, where I discovered what the Merrill chip was really capable of. So I bought a DP3M, and haven't looked back . A DP2M or DP3M is what I'd suggest but £500? Somebody is taking the absolute p*ss! They often pop up on eBay in very good condition for £350, so I'd suggest setting up an alert and waiting.

My DP3M is still going strong, no issues whatsoever albeit the SD1M is now my workhorse. Both are proving perfectly reliable − the only issue with the SD1M is that the clock battery has died, so if you don't have a battery with charge in the camera at all times... it looses the time and date. A small nuisance.

P.S. the DPxM cameras are very well built, they'll tolerate the fair level of abuse that comes naturally with landscape photography in the UK. My dp0's top plate was exceedingly prone to moisture ingress, rendering the camera useless until it fully dried out; which once took a week in Scotland!* I was back home before it was usable again. The SD1M is built like a tank, but it's not for everybody.

*it hadn't even left the camera bag, a very soggy day on the Ring of Steall. For what it's worth, the DP3M was sat next to it and was fine.

Ceistinne wrote:

xpatUSA wrote:

idomybest wrote:

There is a chap selling a DP1M down the road from me for £500. I would only be shooting at F8 or F11 whichever give the best sharpness so that might be OK.

I would use the supplied SPP5 or I can send you SPP 5.5.3. Steer clear of SPP6 - once it has opened a Merrill X3F file, that file can never be opened in SPP5 again.

Ted,

As a matter of interest why would someone like myself want to go back to SPP 5.5.3 when SPP 6.8.0 does the job just fine. Whatever was contained in 5.5.3 is also contained in 6.8.0 and the latter is much faster.

S

I was stating a personal preference to someone who hasn't yet bought a Sigma camera. I was not recommending for current SPP6 users to revert to earlier versions.

<>

Is it still the case that, if someone sent me a Merrill X3F that had been opened in SPP 6.8.0, I would not be able to open it in 5.5.3?

idomybest wrote:

Also how has the SD1 done over the years are there any issues to look out for?

I've yet to have any issues except it doesn't hold the date/time anymore. Overall it's a very well built camera body.