Massive Still Life Test (Phase One IQ3, Credo, Sony, Pentax, Canon)

[Doug Peterson]

No Leica S?

There are at least several dozen lens:camera combos I would have liked to include.

We are glad to have you at our offices in LA or NYC if you'd like to make a comparison to a camera not included in our test, and our vault of Phase One gear would be open to you.

[BernardLanguillier]

I have been looking at the files a bit, first comparing the IQ3 100mp to the 645Z at base ISO.

The lens used on the P1 is excellent down to the corners, is that the 80mm LS f2.8? Impressive.

The file (both jpg and C1 Pro 9.03 rendering) is very nice in terms of out of the box tonality, colors and detail. On the other hand, the rendering of the brush displays a lot of aliasing, somehow mitigrated when applying a moire filter.

For the dng file of the 645z, I was first struck by the awaful default rendering in ACR. On the other hand, Iridient Developper does a much better job in terms of tones, colors and detail. The brush in particular is rendered without any color artifacts (much cleaner than C1 Pro for the IQ3 file) but that may result from the fact that the lens used on the Pentax is less sharp in the outer area, and therefore acts as a low pass filter.

I will have to compare again after Iridient supports the IQ3 100mp files to see whether it does a better job compared to C1 Pro.

Cheers,
Bernard

[tsjanik]

Bernard:

I would suggest that if using ACR on Pentax files you try the embedded profile or those supplied by torger.

http://forum.luminous-landscape.com/index.php?topic=104199.0

Tom

[BernardLanguillier]

I would suggest that if using ACR on Pentax files you try the embedded profile or those supplied by torger.

Thanks for the tip Tom!

cheers,
Bernard

[gavincato]

Yes definitely at least use the embedded profile on 645z dng's - whoever wrote the adobe one was clearly a bit distracted at work that day...

[torger]

Adobe has a strategy with some of the newer cameras like the Pentax 645z to make the profile rather desaturated, they do the same with the A7r-II for example. The advantage of this is that it gets very robust in all sorts of light conditions, and you can always push the saturation with a slider. But the default rendering doesn't exactly look good. It's not only desaturation though, Adobe's "look" is not well-aligned with at least my taste when it comes to the subtle subjectivities in color.

I suggest that you use my or some other profile made for good color in normal light conditions, but use Adobe's in say nightscapes with lots of artificial lights and such that can trigger supersaturated tones, especially in the blue range which can become a clipping mess unless using Adobe style profile. The Sony sensors has a wide blue response, maybe for better high ISO performance, with the drawback that deep blues become unstable and difficult to handle robustly in a profile.

Note that the embedded profile is just a matrix profile and then the default contrast curve applied on top. A contrast curve modulates color (although Adobe's HSV-hue-stabilized curve does it less than Capture One's RGB curve) so a linear matrix profile cannot really have that fine-tuned color in it, but one may still like the look that comes out of course, and gradients are always excellent with a matrix profile.

[ErikKaffehr]

Hi Anders,

Thanks for info.

I have been quite happy with the Adobe Standard profile on both my Sony A99 and the A7rII. But it is certainly worth looking into.

I have planned to build a decent setup for making a proper calibration with DCamProf but have not found the time and energy. I admire all the efforts of yours and your willingness to share.

Best regards
Erik

Adobe has a strategy with some of the newer cameras like the Pentax 645z to make the profile rather desaturated, they do the same with the A7r-II for example. The advantage of this is that it gets very robust in all sorts of light conditions, and you can always push the saturation with a slider. But the default rendering doesn't exactly look good. It's not only desaturation though, Adobe's "look" is not well-aligned with at least my taste when it comes to the subtle subjectivities in color.

I suggest that you use my or some other profile made for good color in normal light conditions, but use Adobe's in say nightscapes with lots of artificial lights and such that can trigger supersaturated tones, especially in the blue range which can become a clipping mess unless using Adobe style profile. The Sony sensors has a wide blue response, maybe for better high ISO performance, with the drawback that deep blues become unstable and difficult to handle robustly in a profile.

Note that the embedded profile is just a matrix profile and then the default contrast curve applied on top. A contrast curve modulates color (although Adobe's HSV-hue-stabilized curve does it less than Capture One's RGB curve) so a linear matrix profile cannot really have that fine-tuned color in it, but one may still like the look that comes out of course, and gradients are always excellent with a matrix profile.

[ErikKaffehr]

Hi,

A very good test.

I am much impressed by the Schneider lens (or lenses) used. I am also impressed with the new CMOS backs. Unfortunately beyond my economical means.

For me, this test was an eye opener, demonstrating who good MFD really can be when matched with really good lenses. Thanks for sharing raw files.

Best regards
Erik

We are most of the way through a rather large set of tests. Most of the below have already been or will be done for most of the below cameras (though not every test for every camera; there is only so much time in the day!)

Tests
- Aperture Sweep
- ISO Sweep (normal contrast scene)
- ISO Sweep (high contrast scene)
- Long Exposure Test
- Over/Under Exposure Test

Cameras
- Phase One IQ3 100mp
- Phase One IQ3 80mp
- Phase One IQ3 60mp
- Phase One IQ3 50mp
- Credo 50mp
- Credo 40mp
- Sony A7 II
- Pentax 645Z
- Canon 5Ds R

[Italics indicate the tests that are not yet done, but should be in the next week]

All raw files (around 20gb) available for free from our website.

Massive Phase One, Leaf, Sony, Pentax, Canon Still Life Shootout

[skierd]

Any chance in adding the 645D to the test? 

[voidshatter]

Any chance in adding the 645D to the test?

I don't see much point as you could download sample images from image-resource only to find that it is behind the A7R-II.

[KevinA]

Wow what a test.
I considered downloading all the files and trying them all in different converters, evaluating cost versus performance, handling characteristics, lens selection, warranty, backup service, ease of use, then publishing this mind dumbing information that would be bound to change my life and career.......................then I thought...naa lets go down the Pub and talk footy with my mates.

[torger]

I truly appreciate all this great work putting together this test.

I too got a "burnout" though from the richness of data, I was deep into the IQ3 100 in the beginning but as soon as I established that it was about the same as the IQ250 in terms of tech wide angle compatibility I just let it go and let others do the evaluation work