Sigma TCSTV Sigma DP2 Quattro Review

[Jock Elliott]

Sigma should just give up all pretense that these are serious compacts. They aren't. Serious compacts are small, take anywhere all-rounders. Sure the DPs are small and take anywhere, but they aren't all-rounders. They can't compete with the Sony RX100s, the Fujis, the Panasonic, and the like.

The DPs are field cameras meant to capture carefully-composed scenes with stunning fidelity. And for this they are nearly unmatched. So Sigma, give up the vestigial grip, give up the low profile. Give us a brick with a sturdy tripod socket, an all-day battery, a 5" rear tiltable, hoodable, high res, high gamut, touchscreen LCD, and an image processing pipeline that will spit out JPGs and TIF files in a jiffy so we can review our work in the field.

I'll be the first in line.

Sort-of the digital equivalent of a view camera, no?

Cheers, Jock

 

[RoyUK]

That actually makes quite a lot of sense - except if you want to do some intense hiking before you get to the scene you want to capture. Then, every gram and cubic centimeter is one too many. Although the all-day battery would be nice, as well as the other features you mentioned... choices, choices!

I carry my three Merrills on two and three day trips in the mountains with a sack full of batteries plus a 10,000mA Anker battery pack with the Sigma lead.

I resent all the extra weight of course - and oh, how much a tilt screen would improve things - but the results convince me it's worth it.

Roy

 

[El Guapo]

I carry my three Merrills on two and three day trips in the mountains with a sack full of batteries plus a 10,000mA Anker battery pack with the Sigma lead.

I resent all the extra weight of course - and oh, how much a tilt screen would improve things - but the results convince me it's worth it.

Roy

Curious, which focal length gets used the most?

 

[RoyUK]

Curious, which focal length gets used the most?

In the hills, I shoot a mix of single shot and multi-frame panoramas, which is how I've come to convince myself that I ABSOLUTELY MUST carry all three ;-)

I shoot most panos with the camera vertically mounted on my Gitzo pod. The DPM2 is used most, but if there's no foreground involved, I might prefer the 50mm on the DPM3.

The DPM1 rarely, if ever, gets used for panoramas, so at the end of a trip, it's 19mm lens often hasn't been called upon all that often.

So, overall, the 30mm on the DPM2 sees most of the action but since I'm a keen botanist, the macro on the DPM3 is my go-to choice for flower shots in the hills.

I'm seriously considering doing without the DPM1 in future and carrying my Fuji X-M1 with the excellent Fuji 14mm lens instead.

 

[Chris2500dk]

... a sack full of batteries plus a 10,000mA Anker battery pack with the Sigma lead.

Do you have a link to that battery pack with Sigma lead? Trying to wrap my head around what it is.

So, overall, the 30mm on the DPM2 sees most of the action but since I'm a keen botanist, the macro on the DPM3 is my go-to choice for flower shots in the hills.

Have you considered a closeup filter to cover that part? If you're mainly using the DP3M for closeups and rarely use the DP1M you could cut down to a single camera that way.

 

[RoyUK]

Do you have a link to that battery pack with Sigma lead? Trying to wrap my head around what it is.

Hi Chris

This is the link for the Anker battery pack

http://www.amazon.co.uk/10000mAh-Po...d=1407243881&sr=1-1&keywords=anker+power+bank

The Sigma AC adapter SAC-5 comes with DC connector CN-11 to which it connects via an inline plug.

All you need to connect to the Anker pack is a 5volt USB to 3.5mm barrel jack lead. I got one off Amazon for next to nothing. Mine's just under a metre long.

Have you considered a closeup filter to cover that part? If you're mainly using the DP3M for closeups and rarely use the DP1M you could cut down to a single camera that way.

I already carry a very high quality 2-element macro lens (the 2 dioptre section of the Raynox DCR-5320PRO macro conversion lens) with a ring to reduce from its 72mm to 52mm for the DPM3 lens and which also fits the DPM2 via a further 52 to 49mm step down ring (I carry only 52mm CPL and ND filters).

I find that the longer focal length of the DPM3 is better suited to macro work and is also ideal for multi row panos of mountain landscapes.

I'd love to get down to just one camera, and have deliberately done so on more than one occasion just to see how things worked out.

Unfortunately for my back, it still looks like a minimum of two is the best I can hope for

 

[Chris2500dk]

Ahh, so you're using the Anker pack as a massive battery via the Sigma AC adapter, gotcha.

 

[RoyUK]

Ahh, so you're using the Anker pack as a massive battery via the Sigma AC adapter, gotcha.

Yes - in fact any USB 5v battery of any size would do the job - but only via the bit that goes in the camera. The AC bit can stay at home

 

[Garylh]

I'm seriously considering doing without the DPM1 in future and carrying my Fuji X-M1 with the excellent Fuji 14mm lens instead.

An FYI .. Nothing more since u already have a Fuji w/ the 14..

I have both the dp1m and the Fuji xp1/xe1 that includes the 14f2.8. I have found that the dp1m w/ the wide angle adapter from Ricoh GR will provide a 21fov that only degrades the picture from the dp1m slightly. In the center, this combo is actually slightly better than the Fuji w/ the 14, at the edges, the 14 holds it own and in certain situations is better.

Gary




Sent from my iPad using SeriousCompacts

 

[RoyUK]

Thanks Gary

The reason for the mix & match approach is so that I also have the option of sneaking my Samyang 8mm fisheye into the bag. For rock wall and gully photography it can produce some seriously interesting images.