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Hello All,

Well I have had a number of Leica 50mm lenses, so I will list them and why I like or Don't like / have them anymore.

Leica 50mm f/2 Summicron Collapsable: Good Lens. Low Contrast. Liked it for B/W but didn't like the bright chrome finnish.

Leica 50mm f/2 Summicron Version 4: This was a great lens. I have never seen…[Read more]

As you might guess… I don t shoot this type of subject much. I am really into street shooting and some sports ..so i am more likely to be working with an M9 or D3s.

I believe you are correct about the star trails…but i was trying to determine if they were this large because the star moved that far in 32s or if its from overloading a…[Read more]

Take it from an aurora photographer…those are star trails. Your camera is perfect (well, at least in this way). We are on a spinning rock…if you want stars to be point sources (especially on 37.5mp), you need very short exposure times (just a few seconds) or a tracking tripod (don't even know what they are called) like the ones used in astronomy.

I laughed at first, but I guess there are certain things that people don't shoot often, myself included and so I won't know about at first! No disrespect here, and love your photos on your site. However, I don't expect a problem with your camera!

I think the biggest telltale signs that this is star trails is that in your reference images,…[Read more]

Its using the current firmware .

I expect its star trails as well . Nothing shows up when shooting in a dark room. however I doubt the star moved that far in a 32 s exposure . Is this similar to pixel overloading when shooting a bright point source. Something like this was reported on the M9 .

I ve never heard of landscape…[Read more]

These are definitely star trails!

Roger:

From here they look like star trails. Have you tried photographing a dark wall or something similar where you can eliminate all other variables? I have never seen an issue like this on the S2. Also, have you verified that your firmware is updated?

attached an easy to see example . ISO160 32S exposure . Similar diagonal stripes in other images less dramatic and they don t seem to show up in shorter exposures.

I think Diglloyd found a similar issue on a M9 ..have to do more work to tell.

Attached files

Nice work, especially since you said you were not in the mood. I look forward to seeing your work when you are in the mood.

Roger:

Can you post a sample image showing the problem you are experiencing? The above comments are correct, one of Leica's firmware updates for the S2 this year increased the maximum shutter speed of the S2 from 32 seconds to 125 seconds. What firmware version do you currently have installed?

I would make sure you have the latest version of firmware. A recent upgrade should give you the ability a go up to 120 sec in the A mode. Just ran the test at ISO 160 at f9.5 at 60sec. I didn't experience any problems.

Roger;803 wrote: Looking at my feeble attempts at landscapes I noticed that on exposures of 32S(which appears to be the maximum on “A” and ISO 160)…..I have some diagonal white lines in the sky . At first I thought these were stars but the only appear at 32S and always run at a 45 degree angle . At 100% you can see they are following the pix…

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Joe;771 wrote: I was recently able to use my iPad 2 as a viewing monitor of S2 images in the field. I thought you might have an interest in the process if you have an iPad 2. Here are some thoughts that I shared with David recently.

David,

Here are some links describing the iPad 2 to S2 set up process. As mentioned in the links, I have…

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I have to say my favorite 50 is the one I currently use now. A summicron rigid from the mid 50's. Hard to believe that its been around twice as long as I have. I acquired with an M6 earlier this year for only $300 (not including the M6). I actually bought the body apart from the lens and didn't have one until the guy that sold me the M6 LOANED me…[Read more]

Well that didn't last long! Out of stock again, for now. Check here for updates.

Lens is sold, thanks everyone!

David,
Looks like USB3 may be coming to mac.

“Next year’s Ivy Bridge will bring more Display options to Macs (and likely USB 3 since the controller is built into the Intel chipset).”

Thanks Doug, I appreciate your feedback.

I didn't mention it in my initial post, but I'm very interested in any comments or suggestions regarding the images. Always trying to improve.

Best regards,

Joe

In my decision is the fact that I have already owned the #2 since before S2
and spending another $800+ for the #3 isn't motivating. On David's trip I may learn otherwise. If I were starting fresh, I would buy the #3.

I have used the Gitzo GT3541XLS and the RRS TVC-33 both with the RRS BH-55. I have been satisfied with both configurations and haven't seen any real difference. Personally, I would not use a smaller tripod – the difference in size and weight is not a big deal to me. I use a lever release on the BH-55 and prefer that to the knob. I have used…[Read more]