Thomas Kachadurian
Senior Member
There has been much speculation around here about the Pro-1. So much so that I had formed several conclusions which were completely wrong. I have had my pro-1 for only one day, but there are many first impressions I must share.
One: This thing is tiny. It won’t fit in your pocket, but it is really small. I don’t have it any more, but it seems smaller than a G2, but with a better grip and a lens that sticks out more. If you want a small camera, this is it. Because of that, it is completely silly to try to compare the digital rebel (or any SLR) to this camera. It would be in line with trying to compare a Hummer to a Honda CRV. (“The both have four wheels and a steering wheel, Why would you want a hummer?”) I bought this for a vacation, and if it didn’t come I was going to take a 17-40f4L and a 70-200f4L with a 10D which would have given me roughly 27-300mm. For less weight than the 10D body alone I can have 28-200. Sure there are limitation, but it’s a question of convenience.
Two: The EFV is very, very usable. Sure it’s not an SLR, but have you ever looked at the ground glass on a view camera. Ever try to focus an older Hasselblad? This is easy, clear and bright. Not to mention you can get the preview right in your face without having to move your eye. If you just touch the shutter button the preview goes away. Don’t want the preview, you can turn it off.
Three: The Minolta has a better layout. Hooey. Perhaps it’s because I’m a long time Canon EOS shooter, but this camera felt exactly right straight out of the box. I never even looked at the manual and I used it all afternoon. When I finally did sit down to read the whole manual, which I did in about 40 minutes, I only found two or three things I hadn’t already figured out. The manual, by the way, is a nice little 3x5 pocket book you can easily slide into the pocket of any camera bag, or even your coat. The camera is well thought out. For example, if you have the rear display closed and are using the EVF, you can set the ISO by looking in the viewfinder or right on the top LCD panel. The very nice lens hood is made to fit reversed right over the lens for storage. Nothing bothers me more than hoods that are easy to lose.
Four: The zoom by wire is hard to get used to. Give me a break. Don’t ever buy a 1Ds. I’m still trying to get used to the odd combinations of buttons you need to push to access the menus on that camera. Sure the zoom takes a bit of practice, but it works very well, and if you move it slow it is quite sensitive. The manual focus by wire focus is pretty workable too.
Five. The finder locks up. Well, sort of. It does freeze while it locks focus, but the minute it does locks on it goes right back to the normal dynamic display. I am finding the EVF much easier and more accurate to use than the optical viewfinders on the other digital P&S cameras I have used, the G2, S30 or S400. All of those optical viewfinders are guess finders.
You can set the camera to the high speed continuous mode and the EFV doesn’t freeze and the preview stays off. I think some people are having problems with this camera because they are setting it to the green auto mode, which disables many of the features of the camera. If you want a simple camera, I’m not sure this is the best choice.
Six. Image quality. It was a grey day here, so I wasn’t making any art, but the lens is crisp, and the images are as detailed as you could possibly want. The slight imperfections you see on the screen at 100% are impossible to find on an 8x10. To really see any noise on a 50 ISO shot you’d have to look at a 16x20 at closer than 18”.
Seven: Build quality. Many people have said that it is well made, but you don’t really get it until you hold one. It’s the one place where the digital rebel comparison is interesting, because this thing makes the rebel look like a plastic Kodak brownie. It has the jewel like build quality of the Nikon 28Ti or Contax T2 if you are familiar with those.
Summary: This is a photographers camera. Lots of capability. Great lens. I’ll be carrying happily many times when I don’t want to have bulk and weight of a bigger system. It will go on trips. It will go in backpacks. It will ride with me on my bike. I could see using it often, because it will always be at hand. Compared to the $600 I paid for the G2, this is an exceptional value.
I’ll be back from my trip in two weeks with a full field report and photos. But don’t wait. If it sounds like a camera the will suit you, you will not be disappointed.
Tom
--
http://www.kachadurian.com
One: This thing is tiny. It won’t fit in your pocket, but it is really small. I don’t have it any more, but it seems smaller than a G2, but with a better grip and a lens that sticks out more. If you want a small camera, this is it. Because of that, it is completely silly to try to compare the digital rebel (or any SLR) to this camera. It would be in line with trying to compare a Hummer to a Honda CRV. (“The both have four wheels and a steering wheel, Why would you want a hummer?”) I bought this for a vacation, and if it didn’t come I was going to take a 17-40f4L and a 70-200f4L with a 10D which would have given me roughly 27-300mm. For less weight than the 10D body alone I can have 28-200. Sure there are limitation, but it’s a question of convenience.
Two: The EFV is very, very usable. Sure it’s not an SLR, but have you ever looked at the ground glass on a view camera. Ever try to focus an older Hasselblad? This is easy, clear and bright. Not to mention you can get the preview right in your face without having to move your eye. If you just touch the shutter button the preview goes away. Don’t want the preview, you can turn it off.
Three: The Minolta has a better layout. Hooey. Perhaps it’s because I’m a long time Canon EOS shooter, but this camera felt exactly right straight out of the box. I never even looked at the manual and I used it all afternoon. When I finally did sit down to read the whole manual, which I did in about 40 minutes, I only found two or three things I hadn’t already figured out. The manual, by the way, is a nice little 3x5 pocket book you can easily slide into the pocket of any camera bag, or even your coat. The camera is well thought out. For example, if you have the rear display closed and are using the EVF, you can set the ISO by looking in the viewfinder or right on the top LCD panel. The very nice lens hood is made to fit reversed right over the lens for storage. Nothing bothers me more than hoods that are easy to lose.
Four: The zoom by wire is hard to get used to. Give me a break. Don’t ever buy a 1Ds. I’m still trying to get used to the odd combinations of buttons you need to push to access the menus on that camera. Sure the zoom takes a bit of practice, but it works very well, and if you move it slow it is quite sensitive. The manual focus by wire focus is pretty workable too.
Five. The finder locks up. Well, sort of. It does freeze while it locks focus, but the minute it does locks on it goes right back to the normal dynamic display. I am finding the EVF much easier and more accurate to use than the optical viewfinders on the other digital P&S cameras I have used, the G2, S30 or S400. All of those optical viewfinders are guess finders.
You can set the camera to the high speed continuous mode and the EFV doesn’t freeze and the preview stays off. I think some people are having problems with this camera because they are setting it to the green auto mode, which disables many of the features of the camera. If you want a simple camera, I’m not sure this is the best choice.
Six. Image quality. It was a grey day here, so I wasn’t making any art, but the lens is crisp, and the images are as detailed as you could possibly want. The slight imperfections you see on the screen at 100% are impossible to find on an 8x10. To really see any noise on a 50 ISO shot you’d have to look at a 16x20 at closer than 18”.
Seven: Build quality. Many people have said that it is well made, but you don’t really get it until you hold one. It’s the one place where the digital rebel comparison is interesting, because this thing makes the rebel look like a plastic Kodak brownie. It has the jewel like build quality of the Nikon 28Ti or Contax T2 if you are familiar with those.
Summary: This is a photographers camera. Lots of capability. Great lens. I’ll be carrying happily many times when I don’t want to have bulk and weight of a bigger system. It will go on trips. It will go in backpacks. It will ride with me on my bike. I could see using it often, because it will always be at hand. Compared to the $600 I paid for the G2, this is an exceptional value.
I’ll be back from my trip in two weeks with a full field report and photos. But don’t wait. If it sounds like a camera the will suit you, you will not be disappointed.
Tom
--
http://www.kachadurian.com
Of course all cameras have their limitations compared to something else, but it sounds like this one has a broad-use spectrum.
