Ninpo33

Welcome to the small camera club...!!! Not sure if it works out where you are geographically but I love the Japanese services I use for buying a ton of open box/Gently used stuff. Frequent 10% off coupons and DHL or FedEx shipping for around $20 US. On the used stuff I have yet to pay any import/customs fees but I'm not sure how that goes in France. I have been gate keeping this for a couple of years but am almost maxed out on gear so happy to share. Also, Japan as a culture tends to be quite honest and forthcoming so buying used items/s has been mostly trouble free compared to Ebay in my experience. https://buyee.jp/item/search/query/Lumix S9?sort=cbids&order=a&translationType=98&page=2&conversionType=top_page_search&vic=YahooAuction_DirectSearch There are several services at this website. Yahoo Auctions are cheapest but there's also a "Flea Market" which has less items but great deals. Then several other shops where things are new. My favorite feature is how they will hold stuff at their warehouse for 30 days free while you shop and then you can combine packages into one bigger box and just pay the one shipping fee. Average price on the S9 has been around $1,100 US but I've seen some deals go for $900 at times. I went with the Fuji X-M5 for now but may end up swapping it for an S9 if I end up with a SL2 instead of a GFX100s.

Well, The best news from today? I can now scoop up an SL2 for just under $2,000 finally. And I can add a s5iix as my second body and not feel bad about what I’m missing out on LOL. I was really hoping for a preview of what LUMIX will bring in 2025 but instead we get to see more recycled tech

Well, SL3-S has recording to SSD and is pretty helpful so really the S5iiX specs, but yeah. Same same mostly.

Agreed. And the Z6 iii just went on sale already this week…!!! Panny Boi is really late to the party…!!!

Well, my little black X-M5 finally arrived from Japan and wow, it’s tiny. Had some fun rigging it up as a tiny little micro cinema cam today LOL. USB C dummy battery arrives tomorrow and a couple little accessories to mount the Ninja V+ in a way that doesn’t look too ridiculous. Only complaint so far is the smallrig cage for it is a little overpriced and doesn’t come in all black. Just the strange steampunk looking retro vibes.

I think you misunderstood my post. I was saying that whatever the SL3-S ends up being at this weeks announcement could give us a clue of what to possibly expect out of the S1H2. Of course Leica isn’t going to mention LUMIX. Ever.. But the normal flow of product releases has been all messed up between the two companies so at this point, who knows…

Looks like January 16th might be the day we finally get to see the new SL3-S specs confirmed. Is it going to be a rebadged S5ii or are we getting more with the red dot? https://leicarumors.com/2025/01/13/here-are-the-leica-sl3-s-camera-specifications.aspx/amp/

Well the rumors about the SL3-S are starting to heat up and there’s an event on 1/16/2024 that is supposed to offer the details. Maybe we will finally see the roadmap for Leica/Lumix unfolding. Or maybe just Leica? So far things sound underwhelming. https://leicarumors.com/2025/01/13/here-are-the-leica-sl3-s-camera-specifications.aspx/amp/

All good points, thank you.

Agreed. A7CR has a few other bells and whistles that came with the most recent AI upgrade but A1 and A7Rv are still lagging behind a bit (which is always a bit odd with Sony) Newer and cheaper cameras get the new stuff and the older flagships get left behind a bit. Not like those two are falling short in specs however…. You sound like me, in that the practical will always outweigh the quirky and fiddly bodies. For me the Sigma FP/L would have to be in addition to my solid workhorses. I really, really love the image those cameras put out but I’m cheap and waiting for anything that’s not crucial for work to fall under $1,000. Good news is that my little Fuji X-m5 was already under $1,000 new and is on its way here from Tokyo as we speak. If I see a FP/L on sale at some point I will probably grab one. For now I’m saving up for the GFX 100s or the Leica SL2 to meet my high res photo hybrid needs.

I thought the same thing but with the A7CR. Despite its compromises, it’s smaller and more compact like the FP L. It does raw out to the Ninja but the main conversation here seems to be the chunky and filmic CDNG files. That’s the mojo. A7CR is now $2,000 and would make a nice little high mp travel companion for my other video spec’d bodies. But I don’t think we would come anywhere close to that filmic image of the Sigma FP/L.

Also at $1,300 USD now, the FP-L has to be the cheapest way to get that 61mp Sony Sensor.

As far as native Fuji X mount lenses, I’ve been loving the videos by Stefano and seeing his creative use of focal lengths. He knows his way around his X-H2s and I love his derezed color grades. Fuji 56mm and Viltrox 13mm are both at the top of my list now. The 13mm is huge but that close focus and having a wide angle with shallow DOF is such a trippy look. 56mm f/1.2 https://youtu.be/lQsgQqNslPg?si=tA0cM5FHCGqHrvq8 13mm f/1.4 https://youtu.be/JkX-QCdr5No?si=60nfv2lEZaw3JlWn

yeah, I just meant cameras in general like Lumix and Fuji getting better. Also that the new X-M5 is rumored to have even better AF than the updated X-H2s now. Yes exactly. There’s no free lunch. You can buy a $25, 1960’s rangefinder camera and figure it out or you can pay someone who has already done it. Or you can pay $4,000 US to get a custom cinema level rehousing done. Of course people are charging a lot because it’s a relatively new development and hasn’t gone mainstream with an off the shelf solution. Plus anything with a Leica M mount involved is going to be 10X the price. I’ve seen a few Fuji X mount conversions for under $100, lens included but you just have to keep your eyes open. I’ve bought up almost all the Japanese rangefinders I’ve found interesting minus a couple rare ones I’m still hunting for. Working on an elegant solution and 3D printing some test mounts in the new year so I’ll keep you posted. Meanwhile some of these are worth getting now while prices are good and even if you haven’t figured out the mount you want to go with.

Ok thanks for the recommendations. I’ll dive down the rabbit hole for native Fuji glass. I’ve always just tried to find solid vintage stuff for cheap and adapt to whatever I’m renting or buying for the moment. It’s served me well over the years but we are finally in a time when reliable autofocus is upon us so I’m getting into native glass and AF adapters finally. I’m about to start a new YouTube channel in 2025 (cringe) and need some solid vlogging equipment and lightweight travel setups. Hoping the X-M5 can work out in that role but we’ll see. If not I’ll probably just get a used ZV-e1 or FX30 and use the Fuji for personal stuff. So for the vintage rangefinders you are correct, most people have slept on these lenses because they were not easy to adapt before Mirrorless and also need to be decoupled from the cameras since they were fixed. Good news is that there is plenty of amazing 1960’s glass around still and for dirt cheap. Bad news is that you have to chop them off the cameras and work out a mounting solution. Easy way is to find them already converted. eBay has some and also Japanese auctions. Harder way is to convert them yourself. The $$$$ way is to pay to get them rehoused by a cinema rehousing company. They’ve started to move towards these rangefinders the last few years and the canon stuff has skyrocketed in price. Zack Snyder shot Army of the Dead and some other stuff on them and so people started buying them up. The Canon 0.95 dream lens and Canon Rangefinder sets etc… here is a link to the Mamiya 48mm being rehoused by Zero Optik. https://shops.tryboxedup.com/shop/old-fast-glass/product/BoxedUp11599 So the little known APS-C half frame cameras were made by a few companies and I really like the Yashica 14. Or half 14. 14 for f/1.4. They also made a Half 17 f/1.7. Konica made them as the Eye and Eye 2. Canon had a few too. I’m working on adapting them to either Leica M mount or maybe M42 to keep them kind of universal. cute little cameras and built like tanks. Super tiny as you can see in the photos.

There’s also still a couple LUMIX S9 bodies on the Japanese auction sites I frequent. Good deal, open box for around $925 after the 10% off sale. It was tough to choose between the X-M5 and the S9. The S9 feels like a really good buy if you get it below $1,000. I want to play around with the X-M5 though and figure they may end up becoming hard to find where as the S9 will probably be available cheap in the coming months. The only thing I’m wondering about is the lack of IBIS on the Fuji so we’ll see how it handles. If I don’t like it I’ll sell it and get the S9.

75% Film stuff and 25% photos is my norm. I have 0 native Fuji lenses but have the Kipon M42 - X speedbooster as well as the Konica - X adapter also the Minolta AF - X adapter so I have a lot of my vintage glass needs met. Metabones makes a Minolta AF - X speedbooster but it’s pricey at $450. Still… I have the whole set from 16mm - 200mm and it’s really amazing glass. I’ll get a few native lenses for autofocus but probably just a couple wides. What I’m most excited about is the Blazer Nero 1.5x Anamorphic adapter which looks great on APS-C and will be a perfect match to the 6.2k open gate raw. That’s a monster of an image for the price. I also have a whole set of 1960’s Yashica and Mamiya rangefinder lenses that I’m slowly converting to Mirrorless. A few of them were “half frame” lenses that shot two images per 35mm frame. These fit APS-C perfectly and are nice F/1.4 lenses. So yeah, lots of options LOL. what are your favorite Fuji X lenses? I’ve heard great things about the 16mm and older 35mm f/1.4.

Merry Xmas to me. Couldn’t pass up the 10% off sale and free shipping. $873 out the door. 6.2k open gate 12bit Raw to my Ninja V+ for some reason the black ones aren’t here in the U.S. till April so I grabbed one from MAP Camera Tokyo, New open box with the kit lens.

I didn’t make that reference but I understand. We were talking in general about S35 as a format and I’m saying that you most definitely have been able to shoot in 4k S35 on many, many cameras for a while now. The FX6 is getting long in the tooth so maybe not the best example of current technology

I picked up my really nice copy for $250. They list at $1,200 or so these days and yeah… I wasn’t about to pay those prices for one. Couldn’t believe I got it for such a low “buy it now” price but it worked out I guess… I’m also building a Yashica set of lenses built at the Tomioka factory and the 55mm f/1.2 was kind of mandatory for the set. It’s a pretty sweet lens and f/1.2 was somewhat rare back then and quite expensive even at the time. Radioactive glass I think, I haven’t tested my copy yet but it has the gold glass with age now and either the Thorium or other rare earth elements give it quite the warm tone. it’s rare and collectible and also a good lens but I think just optics alone places it at something under $750 or so maybe? These days it’s tough to say what something is worth on performance alone, just look at Canon FD prices… The rear element goes right to the edge so they are always getting chipped or cracked on the back end. Might be another reason why they are becoming rare.

Who said anything about 4k? I said full frame. (And yes Full Frame because I’m not talking about cinema cameras I’m mostly talking about Mirrorless cameras used for video) My buddy runs a large rental house in LA so I’m just passing along what he told me last week. He works with Apple on a lot of their shows and some other big studios. Alexa 35 is not renting well or the Canon C400. He ended up selling the C400’s to buy more Fx6’s

Well if that was the case I would scoop it up…!!!

I wish the S9 and the X-M5 would have a little love child. X-S9? The Panasonic IBIS, full frame sensor and autofocus. Anamorphic support and LUTS but 6.2k open gate Raw to the Ninja V+/Ultra like the Fuji. Color presets for JPEGs and the $800 price. If Panasonic had given us raw out of the HDMI it would have been too much though I agree. For Fuji to have left in the same specs as the XS20 and XH2s is nuts.

https://www.canonrumors.com/need-a-point-shoot-fujifilm-to-bring-a-fixed-lens-100mp-gfx-rangefinder-style-camera-in-2025/ I wish they could have been able to get faster lens in there but it’s already going to be quite the engineering feat at that size.

I think technology is just moving along and we’re able to do things now with sensor technology and processing that weren’t possible before. Fast enough read out speeds of a full frame sensor reducing rolling shutter and giving superior low light performance with low noise. As Andrew mentioned, you have a super 35 crop built into your FF sensor anyway now and things like “clear image zoom” on the consumer level Sony cameras for making use of all that realestate. Also, My friends at the rental house here in Hollywood say the Arri 35’s are sitting on the shelf. The Mini LF’s are rented out all day long along with the Alexa 65’s. They say it’s those two cameras on the high end and the FX6’s on the low end/doc work. That’s literally it. We also have to remember that these are companies that need to sell products so things are changing also based on a need to sell something new, to innovate. Why upgrade your 5 year old camera otherwise? I think FF is the sweet spot with all the glass that is out there from years of 35mm photography as well as form factor, light gathering, shallow dof if desired.. the new little fixed lens rangefinder GFX camera that’s rumored to be coming out soon has a 100mp MF sensor. Designs show a little zoom rocker switch to change crop modes/punch in. Huge sensor with a wide angle lens but the ability to have whatever you want in camera or in post. I think that’s where we’re headed.