Micro 4/3 atom

[TraamisVOS]

First RAW shot with my brand new LX5, via Silkypix. Still learning how to navigate this camera though, and absolutely no idea how to work with RAW much less Silkypix.

The photo is a bit on the noisy/grainy side but then the camera had to deal with extreme contrasts within the shot in low light.

Are there any recommended books on working with RAW, photographic workflow and colour correction/grading?

 

[BBW]

Atom is a cutie!! Love the glint of light in his eyes!

I can't help you with Silkypix. I'd suggest you start a thread in the Image Processing section if you want to see if anyone here can give you pointers. I use Lightroom, convert my RAW files to DNG...

There are some helpful posts within a couple of our LX5 review threads that get into some of the details on how the camera's controls work. Check out Don/Streetshooter's here: https://www.photographerslounge.org/f9/shooters-observations-lx5-no-not-another-techie-review-522/ , Vince's review: https://www.photographerslounge.org/f9/panasonic-lx5-my-ongoing-review-updated-29-09-10-a-457/ and, of course, Amin's review: https://www.photographerslounge.org/f41/panasonic-dmc-lx5-review-502/ where you'll also find pointers.

Please don't hesitate to ask about anything to do with the camera. There are quite a few of us here who are using the LX5, so there shouldn't be an issue with getting answers and, as always, opinions.

 

[TraamisVOS]

Thanks Wylie, I didn't notice the glint in the eye until you mentioned it!

I had seen Amin's review which helped me when I first started researching the LX5 a couple of weeks ago. I wouldn't have a clue where to begin with post-processing questions though. I was trying to decide between Lightroom or Aperture (I have a MacPro as a main computer and a PC laptop) but I think I will settle on Lightroom only because I found what looks like a decent beginner's guide book for it:

Computer Books & Technology Books: The Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 Book by Martin Evening, Evening, Martin: Better World Books

(I really need a book like this to guide me through it from the beginning.)

About the LX5 - I assumed that since the store I was ordering from delivered from within Australia, I thought it'd be the PAL version which would've had 25p video. Even so, I was a bit disappointed to find that the camera that arrived is the NTSC version and it can't do 24p video unlike the NTSC LX3. No idea why they'd have that function for the LX3 but not for LX5..?? I honed in on the LX3-LX5 relatively early on because of the 24p function. I even checked the US and Australian Panasonic websites for technical specifications, both of which didn't state 24p in spite of that function being buried in the menus in the LX3, so I assumed it would be available in the LX5.

About the lens cropping (ie. 4:3, 3:2, 16:9) how does that work exactly, the fact that the MP changes tells me that the sensor is compromised for each crop is that right? Does the 4:3 10MP size mean that the whole sensor is in use?

 

[olli]

Once you've covered the core material with Evening I can recommend the following two podcasts which have short 5-10 minute video tips on using LR. Lots of useful stuff in both. I've no idea how you post podcast Url's so you can find them by going to ITunes Store and searching podcasts for 'Lightroom for Digital Photographers' and 'Lightroom Killer Tips'.

 

[Wally Billingham]

FWIW I have the Martin Evening book you mention but I also have the Lightroom 3 book from Scott Kelby and find it much better written and easy to understand.

Also Michael R. from The Luminous Landscape has produced a wonderful series of downloadable videos on Lightroom that are very good and easy to follow
L-L Guide to Lightroom 3 [Lr3_1] - $49.95 : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce

 

[grebeman]

About the lens cropping (ie. 4:3, 3:2, 16:9) how does that work exactly, the fact that the MP changes tells me that the sensor is compromised for each crop is that right? Does the 4:3 10MP size mean that the whole sensor is in use?

In 4:3 the sensor uses 3648 pixels horizontally and 2736 pixels vertically, for 3:2 this becomes 3776 x 2520 and for 16:9 it becomes 3968 x 2232.

I wouldn't describe it being compromised, it's just that the sensor is bigger than any one format so there will be some pixels around the edge that aren't used in certain formats. It's so much easier to visualise this with a diagram, imagine 3 rectangles of the above sizes all drawn on top of one another.
Give or take a few pixels the diagonal of each format is approximately the same.

Barrie

 

[TraamisVOS]

I can recommend the following two podcasts which have short 5-10 minute video tips on using LR. Lots of useful stuff in both. I've no idea how you post podcast Url's so you can find them by going to ITunes Store and searching podcasts for 'Lightroom for Digital Photographers' and 'Lightroom Killer Tips'.

I'll definitely check it out, thanks!

FWIW I have the Martin Evening book you mention but I also have the Lightroom 3 book from Scott Kelby and find it much better written and easy to understand.

Also Michael R. from The Luminous Landscape has produced a wonderful series of downloadable videos on Lightroom that are very good and easy to follow
L-L Guide to Lightroom 3 [Lr3_1] - $49.95 : Zen Cart!, The Art of E-commerce

I might check out the Scott Kelby book first if it doesn't cost too much more. I'm happy to take your recommendation on board rather than going into it cold.

In 4:3 the sensor uses 3648 pixels horizontally and 2736 pixels vertically, for 3:2 this becomes 3776 x 2520 and for 16:9 it becomes 3968 x 2232.

I wouldn't describe it being compromised, it's just that the sensor is bigger than any one format so there will be some pixels around the edge that aren't used in certain formats. It's so much easier to visualise this with a diagram, imagine 3 rectangles of the above sizes all drawn on top of one another.
Give or take a few pixels the diagonal of each format is approximately the same.

Barrie

Thanks for that, so I guess even with the setting on 3:2 which covers the entire LCD screen, that is not reflective of the actual size of the sensor in use. Nor does the 4:3 setting at 10MP mean the entire sensor is in full use either.

 

[TraamisVOS]

Re-cropped the photo, I think I like this composition better.

 

[grebeman]

Thanks for that, so I guess even with the setting on 3:2 which covers the entire LCD screen, that is not reflective of the actual size of the sensor in use. Nor does the 4:3 setting at 10MP mean the entire sensor is in full use either.

You will often see in camera specs total sensor size in terms of MP and effective sensor size in MP, the latter being smaller than the former. The effective size refers to those pixels actually used to form the image, the extra pixels are also gathering information, but that will be used to formulate the EXIF data for example.
So yes there will always be more pixels in the sensor than are actually used in image formation.

Barrie

 

[TraamisVOS]

Thanks Barrie! (I also had to look up what an EXIF is.)

Ever since I signed up on this forum which was not that long ago, I keep getting reminded how much I have to learn.

 

[BBW]

I miss Atom's ears in your second one, but he's still awfully cute.