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Wabi-sabi
Kyoto's Ginkaku-ji (銀閣寺 ie Temple of the Silver Pavilion) remained unfinished as the intended silver foil overlay was never done.
Its unfinished look hence became the symbol of one of the aspects of "Wabi-sabi" being the acceptance of the incomplete or even imperfect appearance.
With the bare branches and harsh light, I thought it accentuates its wabi-sabi quality best in monochrome.
Been thinking about “baked-in” software corrections and “enhancements” (collectively referred to as “adjustments”) in RAW files.
Quite a number of new mirrorless lenses these days came with baked-in software adjustments with the cameras they were made for. Some even have auto adjustments that we can’t even switch off, like the extreme auto distortion and vignetting corrections in the Nikon Z 14-30mm f4 S, there’s also baked-in sharpness algorithms that can’t be switched off.
As far as I know, there are hardly any review tests done on lenses with all the auto software adjustments switched off, which can be performed with the lens contacts taped over.
Distortion corrections are fine provided it’s not too extreme. Back in the analog era, lens designers have to prioritize low distortion and even vignetting over sharpness and size. Thanks to the advent of distortion corrections via software, lens designers have more freedom now.
However if other lens qualities like color, sharpness etc are baked into the lens’ software enhancement, why should we pay extra for these when we can make the very same adjustments via post processing? As it is, very sophisticated sharpening softwares already exist for a long time, for those who care about post processing of course.
Bottomline, if lens reviews cannot distinguish innate lens qualities from the extent of software adjustments applied by the manufacturer, their conclusions are useless especially for lenses that relied extensively on software adjustments. For now, most reviews will touch on distortion, vignetting and lateral chromatic aberration corrections only, they ought to go further to check what other adjustments have been baked in.
⭐️ It’s useful to keep all this in mind when comparing older DSLR lenses vs new extensively software adjusted mirrorless lenses, sometimes the perceived gap in image quality may well be nothing more than mere sophisticated baked-in software adjustments which we can easily bridge with post processing. ⭐️ These days, there’s also baked-in noise reduction in RAW files as well!
Not too long ago, there was a dearth of 35mm Primes in the Sony E mount system. It never rains but it pours, now Sigma is going to release a 35mm f1.4 DN Art after their boat anchor 35mm f1.2 DN Art and more balanced i35mm f2 DN! This comes at the heels of the Sony FE 35mm f1.4 GM and Voigtlander 35mm f2 APO Lanthar E. Sigma, where’s your 50mm f1.4 DN Art!?
Wabi-sabi
Kyoto's Ginkaku-ji (銀閣寺 ie Temple of the Silver Pavilion) remained unfinished as the intended silver foil overlay was never done.
Its unfinished look hence became the symbol of one of the aspects of "Wabi-sabi" being the acceptance of the incomplete or even imperfect appearance.
With the bare branches and harsh light, I thought it accentuates its wabi-sabi quality best in monochrome.
Been thinking about “baked-in” software corrections and “enhancements” (collectively referred to as “adjustments”) in RAW files.
Quite a number of new mirrorless lenses these days came with baked-in software adjustments with the cameras they were made for. Some even have auto adjustments that we can’t even switch off, like the extreme auto distortion and vignetting corrections in the Nikon Z 14-30mm f4 S, there’s also baked-in sharpness algorithms that can’t be switched off.
As far as I know, there are hardly any review tests done on lenses with all the auto software adjustments switched off, which can be performed with the lens contacts taped over.
Distortion corrections are fine provided it’s not too extreme. Back in the analog era, lens designers have to prioritize low distortion and even vignetting over sharpness and size. Thanks to the advent of distortion corrections via software, lens designers have more freedom now.
However if other lens qualities like color, sharpness etc are baked into the lens’ software enhancement, why should we pay extra for these when we can make the very same adjustments via post processing? As it is, very sophisticated sharpening softwares already exist for a long time, for those who care about post processing of course.
Bottomline, if lens reviews cannot distinguish innate lens qualities from the extent of software adjustments applied by the manufacturer, their conclusions are useless especially for lenses that relied extensively on software adjustments. For now, most reviews will touch on distortion, vignetting and lateral chromatic aberration corrections only, they ought to go further to check what other adjustments have been baked in.
⭐️ It’s useful to keep all this in mind when comparing older DSLR lenses vs new extensively software adjusted mirrorless lenses, sometimes the perceived gap in image quality may well be nothing more than mere sophisticated baked-in software adjustments which we can easily bridge with post processing. ⭐️ These days, there’s also baked-in noise reduction in RAW files as well!
Not too long ago, there was a dearth of 35mm Primes in the Sony E mount system. It never rains but it pours, now Sigma is going to release a 35mm f1.4 DN Art after their boat anchor 35mm f1.2 DN Art and more balanced i35mm f2 DN! This comes at the heels of the Sony FE 35mm f1.4 GM and Voigtlander 35mm f2 APO Lanthar E. Sigma, where’s your 50mm f1.4 DN Art!?