Gearhead: Reviews – Ming Thein

Review: the 2019 Olympus ZD 12-200 f3.5-6.3

February 27, 2019 by Robin Wong

Olympus has just released the M.Zuiko 12-200mm F3.5-6.3 which joins their current two superzoom lenses, the 12-100mm F4 IS PRO and the 14-150mm F4-5.6. The new 12-200mm lens has weather-sealing but is not positioned as a PRO grade lens. The existing 12-100mm F4 IS PRO (review here) is an exceptionally sharp lens for such a long zoom range. While the non-PRO 14-150mm F4-5.6 lens (article here) may not achieve the same level of optical performance as the 12-100mm PRO, it performs slightly better than basic kit lenses offered by Olympus, and has weather-sealing making it a great all-in-one solution. In this article, I want to test the newly launched 12-200mm lens and find out where it sits in the lineup.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews, Robin Wong Tagged With: 12-200, gearhead, mingthein.com, olympus, review, robin, Robin Wong, wong

By popular demand: Nikon Z7 and D850 JPEG picture controls and ACR presets – 29/12/2021 UPDATE: Z7 PROFILES ALSO COMPATIBLE WITH Z9

January 14, 2019 by Ming Thein

I’m giving in to the large number of people asking me for Z7 and D850 Adobe Camera Raw presets/profiles that are compatible with Workflow III. Now available is a supplementary pack that includes these presets, as well as a bonus: what are arguably the best SOOC JPEG profiles available at the moment for the Z7 and D850. I’ve been looking at ways to make my own workflow more efficient for the majority of cases where I don’t need perfect files, so I can spend more time shooting (or doing other things) rather than being stuck behind a computer. Inspired by the results from the PEN F, I spent some time using Nikon’s byzantine picture control management software to make a set of curves that plays nice under the majority of situations. The monochrome picture controls were calibrated specifically for velvety rich shadows and smooth highlight rolloff; I think of it as ‘Acros Plus’ with a light orange filter; for some odd reason getting monochrome right was much more difficult than color – I put it down to the sensitivity of Nikon’s curve implementation.

Important update, 29 Dec 2021: the Z7 profiles are also compatible with the new Z9.

Included in this pack are:

Nikon Z7 ACR flat color preset, for use with Workflow III and PS
Nikon Z7 ACR flat monochrome preset, for use with Workflow III and PS
Nikon D850 ACR flat color preset, for use with Workflow III and PS
Nikon Z7 monochrome picture control (SOOC JPEG)
Nikon Z7 high contrast color picture control (SOOC JPEG)
Nikon Z7 low contrast color picture control (SOOC JPEG)
Nikon D850 monochrome picture control (SOOC JPEG)
Nikon D850 high contrast color picture control (SOOC JPEG)
Nikon D850 low contrast color picture control (SOOC JPEG)

The preset/picture control pack is available to purchase here for $50.

All sample images in this post were shot with the Z7 and one of the three picture controls; PS was only used for batch resizing. More samples and notes after the jump. Expect an email from me after purchasing, within half a day at worst in case I’m not at the computer.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews Tagged With: acr preset, acr profile, adobe, d850, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, nikon, picture control, thein, z7

Long term thoughts on the Nikon Z7 and system

January 12, 2019 by Ming Thein

I’ve now had a few months, a few assignments and what I’d consider a decent amount of time with the Z7: long enough to be familiar with its various peccadilloes and figure out exactly where it fits in my arsenal. Think of it as an extended field test, and perhaps more important than the initial review that people seem to expect me to produce within hours of a camera’s announcement. Truth is, you don’t really know a camera until you’ve had a chance to use it as you normally would, for the kinds of subjects you normally shoot, for an extended period of time – it’s just not physically possible to cover that many scenarios in a short test. Trouble is, not many of us have the time to do that (and especially not sites that have dozens of cameras to cover every month). It also requires consistency in the way one works to provide a baseline of expectations. As usual, I preface my thoughts with the caveat that not everything will apply to everybody, and validity of course increases the more similar your photographic style is to mine. I may not cover some things that matter to you, and I may obsess over other things that are trivial. With that, and assuming we have a mature audience, let’s move on.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews Tagged With: long-term, ming, mingthein.com, mirrorless, nikon, thein, z7

Guest review: the 2018 Nikon Z6

December 12, 2018 by Praneeth Rajsingh

MT: Today’s thoughts on the Z6 should be thought of as an accompaniment to my Z7 review and are courtesy of the man behind the scenes and one of the partners in my watch venture, Praneeth Rajsingh, who’s the one keeping me organised and pointing in the right direction these days. I tried to get him to buy the Z7, but he knows his sufficiency threshold…

Hello! While I’m usually involved behind the scenes, Ming thought it might be interesting to have me share my thoughts on the new Nikon Z6 – which I recently acquired. As an amateur photographer who only buys gear to meet his needs (and budget), my review will not be the comprehensive and in-depth coverage that MT excels at, but I hope some of you find it useful.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews Tagged With: gearhead, mingthein.com, nikon, praneeth, praneeth rajsingh, rajsingh, review, z6, z6 review

Full review: The 2018 Nikon Z7 and Z 24-70/4

September 29, 2018 by Ming Thein

Executive summary: the last bastions of mirrors have both joined the brave new world. Nikon’s effort feels like a D850 and an E-M1.2 met in a bar and had an illegitimate child. Yes, it’s expensive; yes, for the most part, it performs pretty much how you’d expect. It doesn’t feel like a first effort except for a couple of relatively minor things (as it shouldn’t given how long Nikon took to release it) – if anything, they should be commended for releasing it when ready rather than as soon as possible. And yes, I bought one.

I’ve now had a couple of days to do shoot my production/ retail Z7, 24-70/4 and FTZ adaptor, and my thoughts follow. More images to come as I have time to shoot with the camera; I rushed this out in the middle of a family vacation – the first one since before I started photography professionally.

Updated 23/10/18 after extended battery testing.

Updated 28/10/18 after long distance testing of the 24-70.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews Tagged With: gearhead, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, mirrorless, nikon, nikon z7, review, thein, z7

OT review: the 2018/9 BMW M2, midterm

September 28, 2018 by Ming Thein

I make no secret of the fact that I’m a bit of a petrolhead; at least to the extent possible in Malaysia given the heftiness of our taxes and limited market affordability leading to a fairly uninspiring range of choices for the motoring enthusiast. That’s partially offset by affordable petrol and lax speeding enforcement, but given the state of traffic in Kuala Lumpur – the opportunities to enjoy it are few and far between. Nevertheless, I’ve often made my transportation choices emotionally driven rather than rational; the last time I did the latter, it was competent but not very fun. My options boiled down to either something completely impractical but fun (like a Lotus Elise) but cheap enough to afford a second family car where I would spend most of my time (and thus itself have to be tolerably interesting) – or something that could do double duty and have four seats (but not necessarily four doors). Some of you may recall I had a Z4 some time back. It turns out the limits of the car weren’t that high, no matter what one did to the underlying oily bits – there remained this delayed feeing to the steering that felt too indirect and vague for my liking. And whilst the 2.0T motor put out a healthy ~300bhp at the crank after tuning and on the right fuel, there was always a feeling of fragility given how often it would knock if not on RON 98 or RON 100. Fast forwarding a bit though several sensible diversions, I arrived at the M2 after a) waiting a very long time for a manual transmission and giving up, and b) somewhat regretting the F56 Mini Cooper S I purchased previously.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews, Off topic Tagged With: automotive, bmw m2, cars, ming, ming thein, mingthein.com, off topic, review, thein

Drone diaries: the 2018 DJI Mavic 2 Pro review

August 24, 2018 by Ming Thein

I’ve been flying the Mavic 2 Pro (Hasselblad version, of course) for nearly two months now – both for color/tonality tuning and flight testing. Yesterday, DJI announced two versions in an update to the highly successful original Mavic (which is what I’d been flying up to this point). The Mavic 2 Pro carries a 1″ sensor camera, 28mm-e f2.8 lens, and Hasselblad imaging pipeline; that camera module is designated as a Hasselblad L1D-20c. The second bird is a Mavic 2 Zoom, which carries a 2x 24-48mm-e zoom on a 1/2.3″ sensor. Everything across the board is significantly improved – we’ll go into the details after the jump. In short: it’s a Phantom 4 Pro in a Mavic’s clothes.

Disclosure notes: I work for Hasselblad/DJI, I was involved with the development of the Mavic 2 Pro, and this report was made on the basis of my experience with prototypes at various stages of development. Small image thumbnails are clickable for larger versions, and there are full sized samples where noted.

Digital classic: Robin reviews the original Canon 5D in 2018

August 20, 2018 by Robin Wong

The idea of shooting with a Canon 5D (from 2005) has been on my mind – and I wanted to answer the question “what if I started out with a Canon 5D instead of an Olympus Four Thirds system?”. Larger image sensors provide greater latitude in high ISO shooting and dynamic range, but a camera and its user experience cannot be judged on the spec sheet alone. Having a chance to extensively test a full frame camera, even an obsolete model gave me the opportunity to better understand the advantages and shortcomings of different systems. Special thanks to Nurul Munira Rohaizan for loaning me her Canon 5D.

Before we dive in, let me be clear that this article is not meant to be a full frame vs cropped sensor argument. Some comparisons will be made between using the Canon 5D versus Four Thirds/Micro Four Thirds system but in the context of practical shooting differences. Lets keep the discussion pleasant and not stray too far into an endless debate. I am sure many readers have wondered what my thoughts on full frame cameras are? Therefore, I am answering those questions here from my own personal standpoint. At the end of the day, I believe that we choose the tool that works best for our own shooting needs.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Gearhead: Reviews, Robin Wong Tagged With: canon 5d, classic, gearhead, mingthein.com, review, robin, Robin Wong, wong

Repost: What makes a ‘good’ lens? (part II)

August 2, 2018 by Ming Thein

This might seem like a very obvious question, but the moment you try to define a set of criteria to quantify ‘good’, you soon realize there’s quite a lot more to lens performance than immediately meets the eye. So, for those of you without the ability to try a large number of lenses – let alone samples of the same lens – how do you know if the one you’ve got is ‘good’?

Continued from part I.

Repost: What makes a ‘good’ lens? (part I)

July 30, 2018 by Ming Thein

Following an odd resurgence of emails lately about system matching, lens quality (on non-native systems), sample variation, decentering and similar topics – I thought it made sense to revisit this topic from the archives. ‘Which is the best lens for X?’ might seem like a very obvious question, but the moment you try to define a set of criteria to quantify ‘good’, you soon realize there’s quite a lot more to lens performance than immediately meets the eye. And this is before (but really should be much after) creative considerations, perspective etc. In any case: for those of you without the ability to try a large number of lenses – let alone samples of the same lens – how do you know if the one you’ve got is ‘good’?