Sigma DP2M - A User's Review


Another comparison, this time of a patch of grassy area on a gentle slope.

#20
original.jpg

1/50s f/5.6 at 50.0mm ISO 100
Taken with the D800E

#21
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100% crop of the centre of #20 by D800E

#22
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100% crop of the centre of the image by DP2M

As they say, 'A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words' :what:
 

tomcat said:
I checked the full-sized versions of #6 and #16. There is no repeating patterns in the ceilings of #6 but repeating patterns can still be seen in the facade of ION Orchard in #16. Maybe there's something behind those narrowly spaced horizontal bars that form the facade of ION Orchard that's causing the optical illusion.

The shadows look darker in these images probably because of the broader dynamic range of Foveon images. There are actually a lot of details in the dark areas of these reduced size images that I posted. They can be seen in the 100% crops but could not be seen in the full images posted because they are all shrunk and squeezed together tightly eg #1 & 2, #7 & 8. Since I could actually see the details when I viewed these images at 100%, I did not try to carry out any shadow recovery and left them as they were.

I don't think any dealer would let you just try out the camera without buying as the DP2M does not really have a broad appeal to th usual photographers and the dealers therefore do not carry a lot of stock if any of this camera. Maybe you can try going to the local agent Audio & Photo Distributor (FE) Pte Ltd's showroom at E-Centre@Redhill at Jalan Bukit Merah for some hands-on testing if you are interested in the camera.
Click to expand...

Thanks for taking the trouble to look over the full size samples.
Certain another camera I shall put on my watch list :)
 

I'm amazed at the performance of this camera, it makes me wonder if I should sell my M4/3 camera and lens and get a Sigma DP1M instead? The specs and the sample photos, makes it look perfect for travel photography. Or maybe a DP2M with a wide-angle converter if there is one? I think that would make it great for landscape and portraits.
 

harnamsc said:
I'm amazed at the performance of this camera, it makes me wonder if I should sell my M4/3 camera and lens and get a Sigma DP1M instead? The specs and the sample photos, makes it look perfect for travel photography. Or maybe a DP2M with a wide-angle converter if there is one? I think that would make it great for landscape and portraits.
Click to expand...
I don't think the DP1M and/or DP2M could replace any of the system cameras as they are very much a niche product respectively. The one thing they both do very well is take great photos in good light but there are many things they can't do as well as the other system cameras can do. The DP1M is ideal for landscape photography while the DP2M is great for street photography and would complement the system camera for those instances when you would want the best image quality possible for a particular scene.

Sigma has never made any wide converter for their Foveon-based compact cameras unfortunately. And now with the DP2M, it is even harder to work around this limitation by using third party wide converters as they have done away with producing a filter adapter for the DP1M & DP2M. The new close-up lens filter (AML-2) now would be bayonet-mounted onto the lens body directly instead of onto a filter adapter like for the DP1/2 series cameras.
 

tomcat said:
Thanks for reading. Size comparison with which camera?
Click to expand...

Maybe side by side beside a m4/3 and dslr. It will give a better idea of DP2m size.
 

tomcat said:
I don't think the DP1M and/or DP2M could replace any of the system cameras as they are very much a niche product respectively. The one thing they both do very well is take great photos in good light but there are many things they can't do as well as the other system cameras can do.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the comparisons. I do agree with Foveon being very good in good lightings (ISO 100-200). I am toying with the SD15 (an older generation Foveon) and even at ISO 400, the noise is unacceptable. Another downside that I have noticed for SD15 is that it is very prone to purple and green fringing (axial and transverse CA) under direct source of light and at wide aperture. Maybe TS can find out if this is the same as DP2M. I would think Sigma specially redesign the lens for this camera to correct this? It is indeed a niche camera for products, landscapes and portraits where lighting to a certain extent can be controlled. In these conditions, the results are certainly pleasing.

To addon, the file format x3f cannot be recognized by Adobe products. So post processing is limited to Sigma's own software. I have not seen any feature that allow cropping in that software. These 2 , in my opinion, needs to be improved on. However, the Foveon sensor is definitely the one to look out for. They are like the Apple of the camera makers. I hope Sigma can continue to develop on the technology front. I am keeping my eyes on them.
 

Last edited:
How is the Skin tones? I used to used the old fovean dslr and the colours are really off. The wb is totally broken. Sent it for fix, took 1 month but it was still not too good.
 

dniwkh said:
How is the Skin tones? I used to used the old fovean dslr and the colours are really off. The wb is totally broken. Sent it for fix, took 1 month but it was still not too good.
Click to expand...
Looks OK to me in those pics I already posted. Better than the SD14. :)
 

I am ok with the focal length and very impressed with the sensor images. Reason I am still considering is because of the high ISO and the auto focus speed. Sigh....decisions.
 

Took my two day old DPM for another walk-around shoot. Results from my earlier shots were bit of a let down. I am used to Nikon tonal range and black shadows take a bit of getting use to. This time I shoot in raw and tweak the results using Sigma provided raw converter. Very happy with the results. They look very film like to me and I am glad I took a chance to buy it without reading prior reviews. Incredible separation of fine details. Focusing is very fast too.

Taken at China Town.
SDIM0116_cr.jpg


SDIM0125_cr.jpg


SDIM0130_cr.jpg


SDIM0129%2520rz1600.jpg
 

Nice skin tones. :)
Sigma's Foveon sensor based cameras are always meant to be used in RAW mode. The jpeg engine of the DP2M is quite good compared to those of the earlier cameras. The Sigma SD14, DP1 & 2 that I have cannot be trusted to shoot in jpeg mode at all.
The Sigma Photo Pro 5.3 that came with the DP2M is still a work-in-progress to me. It is not powerful enough to process the much larger x3f RAW files of the SD-1M, DP1M & DP2M so much so that many features are unavailable when processing these RAW files eg loupe, zoom in/out, cropping etc. The intrinsically darker shadows of the new x3f files could be unblocked using the x3 Fill Light function which now only work with x3f raw files unlike previously when it would work with all th RAW files of the older cameras. Although it is supposed to unblock the shadows without affecting the overall exposure levels, I find that in practice the exposure level is still affected to some extent resulting in either over exposure or lower contrast levels after using the x3 Fill Light function.

A 'food pic' I took today... my lunch ;)

#24
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1/25s f/3.2 at 30.0mm ISO100
 

Hi tomcat,
I have been looking forward to the new dp2m and have been searching for some kind of comparison with resolution of nikon 800, i own the dp2, 24mm. It's slow, burns up battery fast, hard to focus. Lacks a remote trigger or wired trigger.But i love it, the lens is sharp, i feel even though i'm an amateur the colour looks rich without processing.(maybe i,m bias). All you doubters out there buy one and use it as a spare camera instead of buying a wide angle lens. In fact i,m awaiting for the dp2m 18mm and plan to use it specifically as a wide angle camera. Besides it is pocket size if you exclude the hood and it has iso 50 (I,m not sure if it matters, not sure what the native iso is for sigma sensor).
Your comparison reinforces my perception of the quality of the dp2m as a wide angle camera. Thanks for taking the time to do the comparison.
As for spare batteries, when all else fails there is amazon. btw i have 3 sets of batteries and plan to keep the dp2 even after buying the newer dp2m 18mm!
 

A couple of night shots...

#25
original.jpg

6s f/3.2 at 30.0mm ISO 100

#26
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4s f/3.2 at 30.0mm ISO 100
 

Got myself a DP2M. First time using Sigma. I am impressive by the image. I do not want to compare with dslr. As a compact, it is easy to use, great image quality and light enough to carry with other cameras. Well battery life is abit low but interface is easy to use and understand.

Below is some random shots taken with the camera. All JPEGS from camera. no edit. only crop some. still learning...










 

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