New design for Foveon sensor

Sigma announced three new DP Quattro cameras, with specs available for DP2 Quattro. As with Merrill line, there will be three models, with the same lenses. The camera body undergone a dramatic change. The most intriguing change is the new design of Foveon sensor. It still has three layers, but only top (blue) layer has 19.6MP, while other two layers have 4.9MP. So, there will be some color interpolation, but it is possible that the camera would get less noise at high iso, and the processing might be a bit faster (less pixels to process). With total number of 'pixels' (photosensors) close to 30 millions and non-conventional color interpolation , it still would require intense calculation.

Sigma Merrill cameras in Oz

In Australia the compact Merrill cameras (DP1, DP2 and DP3) are available for $760 (AUD) through the official distributor.  I wish I would have more time for photography.... Sigma produces very interesting cameras with unique Foveon sensor. Their cameras are not aimed for point-and-shoot crowd. People who understand the cameras do produce stunning images.

Mirrorless camera with Foveon sensor

We have end of the year rush in photo rumours :~). Apparently Sigma may make a new Foveon sensor and a mirrorless camera. The amount of details and sharpness of "Foveon" images are nothing but amazing. Currently Sigma manufactures SD1 Merrill DSLR and two fixed focal length compact cameras, Sigma DP2 Merrill and DP1 Merrill. In Australia both compact cameras are priced under $1000. While DP1M and DP2M are compact cameras, both require careful and experienced photographer. These are not point-and-shoot cameras.

Sigma cameras in Australia

I follow Sigma cameras since the announcement of the SD9. The images from the Sigma cameras have very distinctive "3D" appearance due to use of three-layer sensors made by Foveon. Few years ago I printed several photos from SD14 and SD10 at A3 size and the quality was just amazing. Unfortunately, the Sigma DSLR cameras were rather niche product, so the local price was relatively high. In 2006 Sigma pioneered with big sensor compact, DP1, which shortly was followed by DP2. TAgain, the price in Australia was quite high. In 2010 Sigma released a new DSLR, SD1, with 3x15.4 MP but the price made it out of question for me. This year, Sigma announced the re-branding of the SD1 that now is shipping at more affordable price. It also announced two new compacts with 3x15.4 MP sensor. While the names remain the same (DP1m and DP2m, m stays for Merrill) the cameras undergone significant re-working including lenses that are not expanded as in previous models. 

And today I found that now it is possible to buy the Sigma cameras directly from the Australian dealer of Sigma company, C.R.Kennedy. Right now the new SD1m is priced at 2,000AUD, and current models of DP1x and DP2x cost 600AUS. Note that these are not the latest Merrill compacts, but the "x" versions of the original DP. For comparison, the DP2 is listed at Ted's at 1,200AUD, and it is quite plausible that Teds got the original DP2, not the DP2x. Finally the Sigma prices in Australia are similar to US. Kudos to Sigma and Kennedy! I hope it will be possible to buy Sigma lenses through the same shop. 

New versions of Sigma DP1 and DP2 big sensor compacts

Definitely this year is very prolific for digital cameras with big sensors. Sigma just announced the revised version of their DP1 and DP2 compacts with unique Foveon sensor. Now the new versions of these cameras, DP1 Merrill and DP2 Merrill, have 15x3 megapixel sensors.

Just a brief intro to Foveon sensors: essentially all camera makers use sensors with one layer of photoelements. Unfortunately, the photoelements record only intensity of light, and cannot identify the color. Because of this, the standard sensors have a color filter on top of each photoelement, and the color in final image is interpolated from information recorded in several adjacent "pixels". In standard sensor each photoelement receives only fraction of light passed through the color filter. The Foveon sensors have three layers of photoelements stacked together, with color mask on top of each layer. In this case each pixel in the final image is made of three individual photoelements, and the color information is decoded based on the intensity of three photoelements in the same location. Foveon sensors do not require anti-aliasing filter, and generally produce very sharp images. The images from the Sigma SD1 with the same sensor are just stunning. The price for these compacts are still unknown but it cannot be higher than Fuji X-Pro1 (with lens). I suspect the price will be higher than Fuji X100, otherwise Sigma will not be able to cope with the demand.

Local news: the Photo Continental, my favorite camera shop in Brisbane, advertises Fuji X-Pro1 body for ~1,700 AUD, and the kit with 35mm F1.4 lens for 2,345 AUD, but the camera is not available yet. Again, kudos to the Fujifilm: the price of the camera in Australia is very similar to the price in US. I am curious to see the price of new Olympus E-M5.


Well, with all these announcements, I may resort to very strict budgeting...