Compact proficiency

Read the post just below this, if you already haven't, to hear the reason for the XZ-1 at the Carrie Furnaces. All taken with the EVF and the new productivity enhancing lens cap.  Anyway didn't know what to expect under really tough conditions.  I think these are stunning snaps — digital cameras have come a long way with these kind of results from a compact, albeit an enthusiast compact.

So what doesn't work so well?  Dynamic range.  While DSLRs can recover lots of highlights, large sensor compacts cannot, in these dark shots any sunlight coming directly in is completely blown out.  Even the passé 10D has a little bit of latitude for highlight recovery.  Solution... make sure the framing is is accomplished to reduce the required demand on dynamic rage. The supply just isn't there.

XZ-1, f/2.2, ISO 640, 1/50, 18.2mm (what ever that means).  Standard one-shot processing.

XZ-1, f/2.2, ISO 640, 1/50, 18.2mm (what ever that means).  Midnight filter in Color Efex 3.

XZ-1, f/2.0, ISO 640, 1/30, 11.8mm (what ever that means).  Standard one-shot processing.

XZ-1, f/2.0, ISO 640, 1/50, 6mm (what ever that means).  Standard one-shot processing.

XZ-1, f/2.0, ISO 640, 1/25, 6mm (what ever that means).  Standard one-shot processing.

Juice

or actually no juice and a severe lack of MIPs too!.  Twelve hour round trip to the Rivers of Steel "Hardhat" "Tour" of the Carrie Furnaces in Rankin, PA.  Not really a tour (good), no hardhats for the touristas (not an issue) and no batteries for the MIPless snapper.  Yep, 4+ hours out there, get all strapped up, cameras hooked up, hit the on switch switch and nothing, absolutely nothing, perhaps because the batteries were 4+ hours away in Charm City. Serious MIP shortage.

I did manage to toss the XZ-1 in the bag and it had power and a backup and fellow snapper (who did the driving) had a backup body, a rather long in the tooth, 10D (ca 2003).  So I guess we shall see what trumps what, equipment or the artiste.  10D high noise at high ISO (800 for the indoors shots) might present some challenges, it was dark inside the furnaces.  I suspect most of these will wind up in B&W.

I can see why Tim rarely uses the handmedown 10D anymore.  It is slow, really slow and the buffer even fills up writing RAWS to a fast card after a couple of fast bracketed shots.  Five years is a long time in camera technology.

Three shot bracket, 10D, 70-20 f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/2.8, bracketed off 1/125 @ 70mm.  HDR Efex & Silver Efex Pro 2.

Three shot bracket, 10D, 70-20 f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/2.8, bracketed off 1/30 @ 70mm — saved by IS.  HDR Efex. Looks like some color might work.

No HDR here, just one shot with 10D, 70-20 f/2.8 IS, ISO 800, f/2.8, bracketed off 1/15 @ 70mm.  Hit with Color Efex Midnight Filter.

Three shot bracket, 10D, 70-20 f/2.8 IS, ISO 100, f/2.8, bracketed off 1/2000 @ 70mm. HDR Efex. No problem outside at all.

Single shot, ISO set wrong at 3200 from prior indoor shot.  Actually looks pretty good with high ISO in decent light.  24-70 f/2.8L @ 24mm, 1/500.

CF&I

Colorado Fuel and Iron, Bessemer (Pueblo), CO.  One of the first shots of a day meandering over a big chunck of Colorado.  A warm up for the Carrie Furnace Tour, in Rankin, PA, next Saturday.  Snapped from a bridge spanning I25.  More, very varied snaps to come from the rest of the day.

7D, 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L, because it happened to be on the camera.  Silver Efex Pro B&W conversion. Again a less than stunning downsizing for the blog post.