Pete Askew
Admin
Having originally decided that, while an interesting concept, I was not interested in the M Monochrome, my mind was changed as I started seeing the output from the camera in various articles etc and to understand its design and function better. So, after a surprisingly short wait, Robert White (http://www.robertwhite.co.uk/) called to say mine had arrived. Frustratingly, it arrived while I was in Germany and so I had to wait 2 weeks to get to play with it and then I didn't find much time to do so when I got back. But I took a few shots at our recent company annual party and while out for a short walk down to the river today.
As one would expect, it handles line and M9 although my first impression was that the metering is different. I suspect I am wrong but I will do a couple of experiments anyway. The preview is raw rather than JPEG as is the histogram and the files are quite low in contrast straight out of the camera and more like a slow panchromatic film. The base ISO is 320 and high ISO performance is much better than an M9 and very film-like (as is the general output) and I guess that was deliberate. This high base ISO will be good for general shooting and low light but might prove challenging in bright light where a wide aperture is required to control DoF and I shall probably get a couple more ND filters for those occasions (maybe a variable one). Detail in the files is, as one would expect as all of the sensor elements are given over to luminance data, noticeably greater than from the M9. The files edit very nicely in both LR. PS and Nik SilverFX Pro 2.
As an example, this is a screen grab of a file straight out of the camera (DNG) and below is one that has been edited in LR and SilverFX Pro 2. It was shot using a Zeiss Distagon ZM 18mm f1:4.0 using ISO 320 1/60s at f1:8.0. The day is grey and overcast with very little detail in the sky. A gradient was applied to the foreground to reduce the exposure up to the gate and about 20% clarity was applied. Control points were used in the sky in SilverFX to reduce exposure slightly and increase structure. A neutral film profile was employed (I often use Neopan) and grain density was 'increased' to 400 / pixel to give more texture to the file. A light coffee stain was applied. The file was not input sharpened (I do not input sharpen M9 files either) but was output sharpened in Nik Output Sharpener as usual (40% adaptive as normal for my M digital files) but only 80% applied (it seemed to need less than a M9 file).
I still need to play with the way I expose using this body and will explore a yellow filter (I often use one with film). I also need to play with PP a bit more.
As one would expect, it handles line and M9 although my first impression was that the metering is different. I suspect I am wrong but I will do a couple of experiments anyway. The preview is raw rather than JPEG as is the histogram and the files are quite low in contrast straight out of the camera and more like a slow panchromatic film. The base ISO is 320 and high ISO performance is much better than an M9 and very film-like (as is the general output) and I guess that was deliberate. This high base ISO will be good for general shooting and low light but might prove challenging in bright light where a wide aperture is required to control DoF and I shall probably get a couple more ND filters for those occasions (maybe a variable one). Detail in the files is, as one would expect as all of the sensor elements are given over to luminance data, noticeably greater than from the M9. The files edit very nicely in both LR. PS and Nik SilverFX Pro 2.
As an example, this is a screen grab of a file straight out of the camera (DNG) and below is one that has been edited in LR and SilverFX Pro 2. It was shot using a Zeiss Distagon ZM 18mm f1:4.0 using ISO 320 1/60s at f1:8.0. The day is grey and overcast with very little detail in the sky. A gradient was applied to the foreground to reduce the exposure up to the gate and about 20% clarity was applied. Control points were used in the sky in SilverFX to reduce exposure slightly and increase structure. A neutral film profile was employed (I often use Neopan) and grain density was 'increased' to 400 / pixel to give more texture to the file. A light coffee stain was applied. The file was not input sharpened (I do not input sharpen M9 files either) but was output sharpened in Nik Output Sharpener as usual (40% adaptive as normal for my M digital files) but only 80% applied (it seemed to need less than a M9 file).
I still need to play with the way I expose using this body and will explore a yellow filter (I often use one with film). I also need to play with PP a bit more.
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I'm sure yours is in the right hands, and I definitely look forward to seeing what you come up with once you have got used to it. I too have been impressed with what some others have done with it, and it's great to see a serious attempt at adapting digital to b&w photography. Have fun, Pete!
