SIGMA sd Quattro | SHOOTING REPORT Vol.03

sd Quattro SHOOTING REPORT 01 | sd Quattro SHOOTING REPORT 02 | sd Quattro SHOOTING REPORT 03

As a fan of the Foveon sensor and SIGMA, I had been waiting for this opportunity to test the new sd Quattro. Because there’re already so many reports out there, I will focus on my shooting experience rather than exploring the functions. I used the 35mm F1.4 DG HSM | Art only because I believe the wet rendition of the Foveon would match the sharpness, soft bokeh, and good contrast even at wide open.

( Photography / Text : A.Inden )

Shooting the occasional sunshine from between the clouds. The bright sunshine naturally attracts attention even though it looks tiny. While conventional high-resolution cameras often generate edgy lines, this camera resolves the lighted building smoothly. This natural rendition is just amazing.

 

 

Contrast tends to be very high inside western stone-built architecture because of the large proportion of dense brown color and cement plaster, small windows, and weak light diffusion. Yet, the sd Quattro wonderfully expresses the thick air with its rich tone and color reproduction.

 

 

I checked overexposure in different lighting conditions to learn the change in rendition according to the contrast level. As expected, the highlight part of the last shot doesn’t look good to me. In my opinion, it’s best to avoid direct sunshine if you want the wet rendition unique to the Foveon.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After using the camera for a few days, I learned that the battery life has extended significantly. The operation feels great unless you try to use something that is already hard to use. Although I tried to manual focus using the EVF in order to take advantage of F1.4, I found it hard to focus because the focal peaking wasn’t clear in some conditions. I switched to AF feeling a little worried about precise focusing, but the AF focused very accurately even though it was a bit slow. So, I changed my approach. I used the EVF as a device to hold the camera securely and prevent shake instead of a device to focus. Then, I could shoot without feeling stress. Actually, I found the probability of camera shake has decreased significantly, compared to the dp series. Although I admit the sd Quattro isn’t a quick camera, I’m certain that it has made an excellent progress in capturing the scene as realistically and minutely as possible.

The reason why I am a fan of the Foveon

Human beings use five senses including eyesight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. I believe the Foveon sensor appeals to the "touch" because it does a uniquely wonderful job in expressing the presence which we can almost touch. To be honest, I felt the peculiarity of the rendition has decreased. Maybe some dp fans are feeling the same way. Now, how do you feel about the sd Quattro? A little relieved?

I have a great dream. I said we could enjoy different tastes of lenses in the PY SHOOTING NOTE Vol.17. The next stage is to shoot the same lens on different sensors just like changing films. The sensors larger than APS-C size are CCD, CMOS, and Foveon. I hope SIGMA makes a body like a mirrorless with a short flange focal distance so I can play with many lenses via SIGMA genuine adapter. I know the Foveon sensor is very picky about lenses, but my obsession just doen’t go away…

( 2016.08.10 )