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Author Topic: Phase One ("How sharp is it)  (Read 1986 times)

tim wolcott

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Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« on: May 19, 2017, 04:49:32 pm »

I shot this image with the Phase One 100 MP back.  Here is a image shot from 43 feet away.  This really amazed me.  Look at them in order you can see a Mosquito and its legs.  Tim
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tim wolcott

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #1 on: May 19, 2017, 05:27:34 pm »

This was shot with a Phase One 75-150 zoom lens
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nemtom

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #2 on: May 20, 2017, 06:14:42 am »

This was shot with a Phase One 75-150 zoom lens

Imagine how sharp the new achromatic back is, as it doesn't need to interpolate color information from the neighbouring pixels.
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tim wolcott

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #3 on: May 20, 2017, 11:29:47 am »

True but at what point is sharp enough.  But then you also can't dodge and burn in density of colors.  Sharp just how sharp is enough.  At what size prints, now, do you need to make before you could see the difference in sharpness from the new back to the 100mp color back. 

We at a barrier point of how big can you make a fine art photograph, we hit them all the time.  I've been thru every barrier.  but now we a big barrier.  Mounting material come 48x96 and 60x120.  Thats are limit and I don't see them making them bigger.

WE are at a point now whether your using a 50mp canon, nike, hasselblad, sony, Phase One.  Since most with a high end camera never sell their prints, nor do they make their prints.  So considering you can make a 100 in print thats sharp with a 100mp back and thats really the limit of mounting materials who really cares if the next back is sharper.  The only thing that really counts is more control, dynamic range, color accuracy and better softwares without any defects.

Don't get me wrong we all want something better, but we are a barrier of most points in photography, the biggest barrier is the reluctance of people to spend more time perfecting their craft, more pain, more patience, more time, more creativity, more studying the art around us.  I see it every where I go and even here.  Just because its there doesn't mean you should shoot it.

The true barrier is the person behind the camera. 



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Rob C

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #4 on: May 20, 2017, 05:52:44 pm »

"The true barrier is the person behind the camera."

It was ever so, and that's why much of photography and certainly cameras sales are going slowly down the tubes. Spending a small fortune only to discover, in a sober moment, that one's pictures still suck is like a dose of salts.

In the pro field of fashion, for example, the people who were stars forty years ago can still cut it - and do - and it strikes me that most of them are using modern machines simply to replicate, as closely as they can, what they got from film. Who needed more?

If there truly was a revolution, it was within the computer, not the cameras.

Rob C

Graham Welland

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #5 on: May 20, 2017, 09:26:19 pm »

I agree with Tim and Rob, the limits to photography these days are still the PBCAS (Person behind Camera and Subject). The current optics and sensors are to the limits of the media we can print on although there's still room for more DR and tonality (which btw is where I do think that the IQ3100 achromatic will have an edge over a converted IQ3100 colour image).

Now I'm lucky enough to have the IQ3100 and where the resolution has made a difference is colour tonality and subtleness. Resolution is nice but it's the smoothness of the out of camera colour that blows me away every time.
« Last Edit: May 22, 2017, 11:14:39 am by Graham Welland »
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Graham

Wayne Fox

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #6 on: May 21, 2017, 01:07:59 am »

Mounting material come 48x96 and 60x120.  Thats are limit and I don't see them making them bigger.
Of course, once you hit the "limit" as you describe, maybe you get creative? I've seen a tryptich where each panel was at last 50-60 x 90-100".  I'e also seen one larger, using 5 panels.

a 100mp back is only a 24x32" image at 360dpi.  Printed at 180 dpi gets you to 48x64.  a 48 x 96 in image would be printed at 120 dpi ... maybe for some images it still would look pretty good, but compared that same image to a multi shot stitch where the image can be printed at 300dpi or greater and there will be a difference unless some physical barrier prevents anyone from approaching any nearer than 15 to 20 feet.  of course if you want to print that 60x120 size print, with a 100mp back you are now down to 96dpi. With the canon you are now at 72 dpi.

But there are other benefits.  Not only is micro detail improved and show less artifacts, transitional tones are more refined and natural looking to me.  I think getting to a point that the glass is the limited factor in resolution, not the sensor will give us the most natural looking images, regardless of how large they are printed.

So while there is certainly something to be said about how far we've come I see no reason to not continue improving the technology.
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stevenfr

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #7 on: May 21, 2017, 01:51:17 am »

This is a print 40" x 120" on Hahnemuhle Photo Rag Baryta that I am just sending off on Monday for mounting. This is a 9 image stitch from the Phase One XF IQ3 100 camera. I was standing on a floating dock to get this image and there was a little bit of rain and movement in the water and the float plane landing is very sharp. For thise interested this is the harbour on Salt Spring Island where I live. I could probably double the size of this print and still retail excellent detail. I may strip it on Monday and see what it looks like. I will get a better image of the print when it gets installed. My wife took this image with the iPad, so it is not a great image, we just grabbed it for the client to see the print.

These prints are a pain to handle and any flaw in the capture is very appartent on larger prints.

Steven

http://www.friedmanphoto.com
« Last Edit: May 21, 2017, 01:55:07 am by stevenfr »
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tim wolcott

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Re: Phase One ("How sharp is it)
« Reply #8 on: May 21, 2017, 06:51:03 pm »

To answer the question.  Is sharp enough, do we need more.  Since most people never ever make their own prints, nor fewer even make a living selling their photos in exhibitions.  For the 99.95% its already sharp enough.  Will I upgrade to the newer higher resolution backs.  Yes, but I make my living selling my photographs.  What I don't see enough is people perfecting the composition, lighting, patience or just spending the time and ignoring the pain it takes to create really great imagery. 

Michael Reichmann, once said to "Tim theres more to life than creating photographs" I disagree, When I ran professionally I ran, now that I create photographs and make my living making photographs for the past 33years. I really only think of one thing, creating photographs.  I don't care what it takes.

WE are at the limits if you use Bi-cubonic interpolation.  But with stitching which I do nearly all the time we are definitely at the limits.  But stitching should be used for perspective not resolution mainly.  Most use stitching for resolution gain thats really wrong.  Stitching should be used like the old Banquet cameras in a modern way to use them, it allows you to get the composition you want without dealing with the distortion of the lenses.  But the stitching companies make shitty stitching heads.  mainly because they didn't study what and how a banquet panoramic camera.
 works.  Tim.


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