eyelike back calibration
Author
Discussion

andybuk99

Original Poster:

312 posts

259 months

Tuesday 10th October 2006
quotequote all
i know there are 3 people with a eyelike back on here , i am having a bit of trouble with 16 shot captures. they dont appear perfectly sharp and i am wondering if it needs calibrating, have any of you had the need to do it? if so any tips?

Bacardi

2,235 posts

306 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
4 eyelike users, including you? Blimey, all on PH!

I can't help but hopefully someone will be along soon who can. Or try prodig or maybe LL forum.

I can only suggest you don't hand hold it .

bacchus180

779 posts

314 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
I find generally 16 shot captures to be softer than 4 shot or single shot straight from the camera. its purely because of the file size. As we all know everything needs a bit of sharpening to bring it to life.. in the case of 16 shots you are generating a much higher res file so the sharpening needs to be that much more. I raised this question with michael at jenoptic because I'm used to using an emotion and when I got my precision I was suprised the first time I used 16 shots.

if however you feel there maybe something amiss you may need to do a peizo calibration or zero. this I was told is used when the back has been idle for a week or so or yo've dropped it!... which I have done.. and accidently spat on it when blowing off some dust!

the simple way is to hit the piezo zero button next to the white balance button..



which I do as a matter of course before emarking on any multi shot work. if you want to calibrate it further, then you need to get the card that has the two tone pattern on it and go to scan mode.

it will put up a rectangle and you fill the screen with the card and fire it off. its not that complicated and all detailed in the manual, you don't have to do it that often.. like I said unless you drop it or travel somewhere with it and it gets knocked around.

if you don't have the card I think the website has one in the download section.

I rarely use 16 shots as the files are so big, I really use it for fine art repro for a gallery I do work for, I photograph the artists originals which go for reproduction. each image is just under 490mb so clutters up my hdd and makes my mac run like its clockwork




to give you an idea of sharpness this is a 100% of the above with some sharpening applied.... bearing in mind this is a scrren capture and the image is almost 1 metre across. so when I say some sharpening it maybe as much as 250%.. you have much more latitude than you think. if your images really are soft.. then maybe there is a fault. but I think there is a significant difference between 1 shot, 4 shot and 16 shot. 16 shot is effectively a scanning mode so not only are the files huge but they are softer as well.

the other thing to be aware of is at that resolution it does come down to quality of glass as well.. if you are not using digital lenses, then there will be softness. we compared the two one time and the difference is very noticable.. it depends on what platform you are working with, I use schneider digitar lenses. using them against film lenses for a comparision was a huge eye opener




but to be fair I leave the adjustments to the lab who print.. who also adjust the colours.. but I have to say since using this back very little adjustment is needed.. it seems to work straight out of the tin!... the beauty of uninterpolated colour in 16 shot!


I've been using eyelike back for a couple of years, I have both the emotion on an H1 and the M22 on an Arca.. they are not easy to get to grips with , the software is clunky and quirky. the workflow is basic and the communication from the dealers is non-existant,

I speak with eyelike direct when I have issues and they are quite helpful. but its a case of experimentation and finding out which way works for you the best.

and as barcardi says.. its not a sports camera.. I love the 15sec delay between hitting the shutter and it firing.. I always think its broken!

i hope this is of some help.. if you need anymore just ask.




Edited by bacchus180 on Wednesday 11th October 08:20

andybuk99

Original Poster:

312 posts

259 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
thanks very much for that thumbup

when i get time i will do a another 16 capture and post post a small 100% crop unsharpened so you can see if you think it is ok or not.

just thinking if it is that easy to calibrate with the test card i might do it any way to be safe.

just one more question.

when you put the card in the frame do you press the piezo zero button or fire the shutter on multishot?

Edited by andybuk99 on Wednesday 11th October 09:14

bacchus180

779 posts

314 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
i'm pretty certain you fire the button via the capture window.. to be honest its along time since I've done it. I know it has a walk through menu for calibration,

the piezo button does do a simple calibration for when you are on the move or about to start.. but it only does it for four shots. thats all I use reguarly

tank slapper

7,949 posts

313 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
bacchus180 said:

the other thing to be aware of is at that resolution it does come down to quality of glass as well.. if you are not using digital lenses, then there will be softness. we compared the two one time and the difference is very noticable.. it depends on what platform you are working with, I use schneider digitar lenses. using them against film lenses for a comparision was a huge eye opener


What is the difference betweeb the two? I would have though that a lens projects a sharp image on to the film plane) or sensor which then records it. Not disputing there is a difference, but just interested to see why.

bacchus180

779 posts

314 months

Wednesday 11th October 2006
quotequote all
I'm not entirely sure on the technicals behind this... but here goes.

film is like a sponge and absorbs light, a sensor is a much harder plane and its crucial to direct the light into the pixels at the right angle hence the use of micro prisims infront of each pixel.

older film lenses were not as precise, the newer lenses made by schnieder, rodenstock and sinaron are resolved for pixels that are 9 microns. as the backs until recently used sensors with those dimensions. hence the digitar/digital lenses are better for use with backs.

the proof is in the pudding .. I have used an old rodenstock 47 to demo and it was a soft as shite on a warm day. however the newer range of lenses are clean and sharp... so thats all I care about

andybuk99

Original Poster:

312 posts

259 months

Tuesday 28th November 2006
quotequote all
Finally got around to get a sample of a 16 shot capture. The image is unsharpened but I have now noticed a pattern across the whole image. It doesn't appear to be movement of the camera, any suggestions?

_dobbo_

14,619 posts

278 months

Tuesday 28th November 2006
quotequote all
That looks like moire, is it a 100% crop?

andybuk99

Original Poster:

312 posts

259 months

Tuesday 28th November 2006
quotequote all
yep 100% crop but its not moire, its a multi shot capture and the pattern is a cross the entire image.

Bacardi

2,235 posts

306 months

Tuesday 28th November 2006
quotequote all
Some sort of calibration error, but I would be guessing. I've just given bacchus180 a nudge, he's the only one around here who may have an answer. You would be better to post this sort of question on LL or prodig, better audience for it there.

bacchus180

779 posts

314 months

Wednesday 29th November 2006
quotequote all
i'm guessing too .. as I've not seen this before. it looks like a calibration error.. or how one would look I guess. I've not experienced the same issue before.

I'm assuming you did a calibration before taking this and used the card. if thats the case and you are getting this issue i would strongly recommend speaking direct to eyelike. call michael guthmann or email him, he's very approachable and will no doubt help you resolve this problem. or else you could spend hours and hours trying to fix it to no avail.

michael.guthmann@jenoptik.com

but its not something I've come across myself...

andybuk99

Original Poster:

312 posts

259 months

Wednesday 29th November 2006
quotequote all
just got email from michael, he seems to think exposure error in two of the 16 shots! how the hell he could tell that i don't know eek will try another shot tomorrow