When I did my review of the SIGMA 85mm Art series lens I thought I was done, but I couldn't bring myself to return this lens to my friends at B&H because it was just so darn good. I ended up keeping it for a few days longer and took a few more photos that just further reinforce how impressed I am with this lens.
Simply put, this lens is too good for just one review!
Close up video of a frozen creek
Unedited Frame Grab from 4k Video
I wasn't prepared for doing video when I was on this hike, but I had to see what the SIGMA 85mm Art series could do with these awesome frozen branches in the creek, so I switched my Canon 1DX Mark II into 4k mode and did a quick video using its auto focus feature.
All images and video in this article are Copyright Ron Martinsen - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
My apologizes for the shaky cam, but if you appreciate sharp lenses then you'll enjoy this:
View at full-screen to fully appreciate
Another Unedited Frame Grab from Canon EOS-1D X Mark II 4k 60fps Video
More Real World Shots
Here's some more real world shots that were all taken hand-held except the long exposure shots and all are unedited in-camera JPEG's. See part I of my review for details about how these are taken with my Canon 1DX Mark II).
All images and video in this article are Copyright Ron Martinsen - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
f/2.5 @ 85mm for 1/200 sec at ISO 320 While I wouldn't consider this a good lens for shooting flowers due to its minimum focus distance, if you step back you'll likely be satisfied with the results
f/4 @ 85mm for 1/160 sec at ISO 800 Nailing the focus handheld at the the minimum focus distance with this lens did prove challenging, but worth it if you are patient (or you bring out the tripod)
f/1.8 @ 85mm for 1/200 sec at ISO 640 f/1.8 gives you the creative freedom to create multiple shots from one scene as shown below where the only difference was the focus point
f/1.8 @ 85mm for 1/200 sec at ISO 800 Compare to above where only the focus point differs (which did result in a different ISO for a correct exposure)
For a full gallery of images see http://photos.ronmartblog.com/lens/sigma/85mmArt . You may view the photos while your browser is open on this article, but you may not edit, save, share, link or otherwise use any images in this gallery or article without my ink on paper written consent. All images copyright Ron Martinsen - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
For those who are interested, I connected this lens up to my SIGMA USB Dock and took some screen shots of what settings are available from the latest version of SIGMA Optimization Pro:
If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, but it does help to support future articles like this.
NOTE: This site requires cookies and uses affiliate linking to sites that use cookies.
If you enjoyed this article, please support future articles like this by making a donation or saving money by using my discount coupon codes. Either way, your support is greatly appreciated!
This blog is intended for freelance writing and sharing of opinions and is not a representative of any of the companies whose links are provided on this site.
The opinions provided are of Ron Martinsen alone and do not reflect the view of any other entity
As Canon 1D X owner, I was expecting to be blown away by the D5 so much that I'd finally switch over to the Nikon camp. However, my D5 testing reminded me of an old saying amongst the Nikon faithful - don't get the D series until the D*s model comes out. Sadly, this would be the case again as the D5 disappointed me greatly with its poor and inconsistent metering behavior, and an AF system that took a step backwards from the flawless performance I experienced with the D4s.
Canon has underwhelmed me for quite some time with its sensors, so I was expecting to be very disappointed with the 1DX Mark II. However, I was extremely surprised to discover that this time they seemed to make some improvements to dynamic range.
About this review
There will be plenty of people doing reviews that focus on the sports aspects of this camera, and that makes a lot of sense. However, I'm taking a different approach for this installment where I focus on the everyday use of this camera.
While I do shoot sports, a good portion of what I also shoot are pictures of the kids and things that grab my eye in every day life. I like the performance features when photographing my kids, and I love the control I have over my camera for pretty much every subject matter you can imagine. This is the unsung value of pro camera bodies that goes far beyond the glamourous sports photographer usage.
While these camera bodies look slightly different, they are functionally very similar. Canon users will appreciate and be more familiar with many things that will cause them to gravitate to the 1DX Mark II and Nikon users will do the same with the D5. With that said, both have a wealth of new features that only previous pro body users from both camps will understand initially - and both thankfully mostly mirror their excellent predecessors.
I appreciate that Nikon locates the row of buttons to the left of the LCD instead of under it as shown above on the Canon, but Cano's wheel is a huge improvement over Nikon's thumb pad - especially its touch sensitive feature for video.
Batter performance and features are excellent on both, so my experience was both was that they are a delight to use day in and day out. Really the only gripe that can be made is about the weight, but they are built like an old Mercedes so you feel armed with a tool that definitely seems to be optimized for Gulf War photojournalism duty.
Where both bodies shine is where you can control the range of many settings and show/hide features to get your configuration set up exactly the way YOU work . You can even dial in exposure compensation in-camera for the meters so the 0EV performance matches your preference - not the choice of the engineers that built it. Basically it is tweaking to your hearts content, so if you've ever been unhappy about a feature in a lesser camera body - this is the camera that will allow you to dial in things the way you want it. This also includes reprogramming the buttons to different things beyond what their labels imply.
Whereas Nikon learned from the D4/D4s that trying to combine Compact Flash with XQD was a stupid idea, Canon didn't get that memo and foolishly opted to force users to only one CF slot and only one CFast slot. This means if you don't jump on the CFast bandwagon, you are limited to one card. However, if you do, you still need a CF if you want to use that other slot. This is super frustrating because the rollover from card 1 to card 2 slots means a drop in performance if you use CFast and it means card switch time if you don't. Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb!
Another thing that is annoying is that Canon didn't match Nikon's touch screen which has twice the resolution and support for swipe and pinch to zoom on playback. Since Canon offers a touch screen, hopefully this functionality will come in a firmware update.
Lastly, Nikon stumbled in its implementation but I commend them on shipping the AF Fine Tune feature (video in this article). This feature attempts to make setting the AF micro adjustments much easier, but Canon didn't try that here. Given the price of both bodies, you want each to do everything possible for their mega price.
Because I am a Canon shooter, I tend to notice the faults and take its strengths for granted. The D5 reminded me once again that while Nikon may have some advantages in high ISO performance, their metering is child's play compared to what you get with Canon.
While shooting RAW will save the Nikon from ruining a shot, the out of camera result I get with a Canon 1D X Mark II is print worthy whereas the D5 always requires white balance, curves and vibrance tweaks.
This won't matter to web trolls, but photojournalists and event/wedding photographers will appreciate how the Canon will give them something they can deliver to a client straight out of camera - especially if they tweak the picture styles to their desired output.
To minimize high ISO usage, I typically limited my shutter speed to a maximum of 1/1000. This introduces some occasional motion blur, but that's not the fault of the camera.
Nikon has Picture Controls for this same functionality, but I find that more challenging to dial them in without also having the camera in the correct white balance mode (often shade) and manually adjusting the exposure just right (since the in-camera meter often fails to do what I want like the Canon does).
As a former Canon 1D Mark III and up owner, I've invested a ton of money while Canon has learned how to build a proper focus system. After testing the Nikon D4s, I was frustrated that Canon could have made it that easy to use, but now they finally have.
While the Canon has more options to dial in your desired preferences, it also means it is easy to shoot yourself in the foot. However, the defaults are almost as good as the D4s defaults. With basic tuning (i.e., setting focus as a priority over speed), you can get performance that noticeably outshines the 1D X.
In full auto with face detection is was about as good as I could do with a single point on Nikon D3s or 1D X. Using a single-point AF with no pre-focusing (i.e., half press shutter button for a half second) using a default speed priority, I could typically get all but the first two shots in perfect focus. If I did a focus priority shot with pre-focus, then I got D4s autofocus performance (which is superior to D5 in my opinion).
I'll discuss more about image quality and ISO in part II, but I found the high ISO performance to be very good at 25,600. This is every bit as good as ISO 6400 just a few years ago, so I'd have no issues with printing images shot at this ISO. For on-screen display I'd probably run Noiseware on the RAW and sharpen it.
Real World Shots
Work duties have kept me from getting out and enjoying this camera as much as I would like, but I did manage to do some casual shooting here and there. As usual, the images featured are straight out of camera and you can click on them to see the full-size in-camera JPEG originals. Unless noted, the photos are taken with default camera settings except for the exposure settings. I also favored the Auto Selection AF in AI Servo Case 1 using the EOS iTR AF (Face Priority) setting for most of my shooting.
You can view the images while you are viewing this article in your browser, but please delete them afterwards. No permission is granted for reuse, printing, editing, redistribution, etc... without signed written consent.
Click here to see the gallery for other images not shown..
Click here for a link to a series of 45 shots taken in burst mode using the aforementioned settings.A few shots had minor focus misses, but that's pretty good for a face detection fully auto mode!
Click here to see the gallery for other images not shown.
This camera really shines when paired with good glass and so far the best glass I've tested it with has been the amazing SIGMA 85mm Art Series lens. Click here to see my review and click here to see my 2nd bonus review which features 4k video and some cool outdoor shots like this:
If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. Thank you so much for supporting this blog by coming back here and using my links when making your purchase!
NOTE: This site requires cookies and uses affiliate linking to sites that use cookies.
If you enjoyed this article, please support future articles like this by making a donation or saving money by using my discount coupon codes. Either way, your support is greatly appreciated!
This blog is intended for freelance writing and sharing of opinions and is not a representative of any of the companies whose links are provided on this site.
The opinions provided are of Ron Martinsen alone and do not reflect the view of any other entity
Canon PRO-1000 11 Color + Chroma Optimizer Pigment Ink Printer
I'm a printing geek who loves getting those digital images off hard drives and on to paper, so when I do I want the highest quality possible. What's more, when I sell those prints to clients I want to do it once and be sure they'll be happy with the quality of that print for the rest of my lifetime as well as theirs. With the PRO-1000 printer I can create beautiful vivid prints that can stand the test of time as well as look great in a wide variety of lighting conditions. The reason for this is thanks to Canon's Chroma Optimizer technology which at first seems just like another ink, but when you see it in action it's more like magic.
What is Chroma Optimizer and how does it work?
If you search the web you'll find this definition:
The Chroma Optimizer reduces the difference in ink droplet height to form a flat and smooth ink layer. The result is evenly reflected light, deep blacks, and bright, saturated colors.
However, I found this obscure video to be a lot more accurate at explaining and actually showing how it works in real life:
The colors and blacks - especially in black and white prints - just pop thanks to this miracle of modern printing technology.
So this is the secret sauce that makes these prints look great, but like any printer a good print always requires a combination of a outstanding ICC profile and correct usage of the application and and printer driver settings to get the best result.
Hardware Observations
Physical Size & Weight
At 28.5 x 17 x 11.2" (72.4 x 43.2 x 28.4 cm) and 70.5 lbs (32 kg) this isn't some tiny desktop printer - it's substantial so you'll want to put it on a very solid surface and leave a little room behind it for the steep angle of the paper guide. What's more, if you don't have a strong back and arms then you'll want help getting this printer placed in your house.
It's a real imagePROGRAF
For those who have used Canon printers in the past, the PRO-1000 is a proper imagePROGRAF printer which means it's a professional quality archival printer meant to do the highest quality jobs for fine art prints - despite it's consumer division name.
Not to be confused with the PRO-1, PRO-10 and PRO-100 printers all of which were consumer grade printers with tiny ink cartridges and lower price points, this is a pro duty printer that tries to build on the success of the PRO-1 as well as addressing its many usability shortcomings.
Canon is also trying to align with its professional "L" lenses which use the famous red strip to indicate that they are for the pros, so this is how you end up with a name that seems like it could be worse than the PRO-100 (the lowest of the consumer photo printers). Confused, yeah, me too but ignore all that because what you get is a printer that looks awesome in real life and feels very well built.
Control Panel Operation
While it lacks the touch screen from the PRO-2000, from a usability standpoint this printer has been a pure delight to use. What's more, they have taken one feature from the consumer side that some might appreciate and that's the ability to print templates for things like graph or staph paper really easily. This does add some value in the household setting where you just have one multi-duty printer.
The buttons operate with a good tactile feel, the menus have been easy to understand, and it's got the right amount of access to stuff geeks care about.
Paper Handling
Tasks like paper loading have been great - to date I've not had one negative experience or print ruined using a wide variety of papers from as small as 4x6 to as large as 17x22 through the sheet feeder. I've tried plain paper up to hearty ILFORD GALERIE Prestige Smooth Pearl Photo Paper (12mil 325 gsm) and there's been no head strikes or scratches and no issues with ink being too heavy for plain paper.
Performance
I haven't done hard performance testing, but I will for my long-term report. For now a complex letter sheet size print is taking about 4 minutes to print out when doing one job at a time. It also takes the printer about 54 seconds to get going if it has been sitting idle and energy saving features have kicked in (longer if in full-sleep mode).
Software Observations
On the software side of things, everything just works for the most part so I've been quite happy.
Setup
Setup was brilliantly smooth and just worked without ever having to connect a cable or go through any hoops.
If you want to bypass the router for a faster direct connection you can, but I didn't find that necessary as overall performance has been reasonable.
After your printer is set up it offers you some tools that assist you in your printing tasks.
Documentation
After installing the printer you see the above page which looks nice and seems very helpful, plus you eventually end up here at the online manual which seems promising as well. Finally, there's even a bunch of video here that all inspire confidence. However, in practice it seems that Canon's attempt at trying to serve the needs of many printers with a limited amount of actual content behind the pretty buttons often results in documentation that leaves you wanting for more info.
With that said, most things "just work" so fortunately this isn't a huge issue in practice.
Interoperability
I've printed via the Canon Print app, AirPrint and Google Cloud Print as well as via Windows 10 using the regular and XPS drivers, and everything has "just worked". In fact, wireless printing has been so good that I haven't bothered to set up wired Ethernet or USB even though it supports both.
Accounting Manager
Canon PRO-1000 Accounting Manager
This has always been one of my favorite features of Canon printers because I love being able to see detailed job data, and in this case if I plug in the consumables cost then I can see exactly how much a print cost.
It works well and I love it. What's more, now I can see both my PRO-1000 and PRO-2000 jobs together or filter down to just what I want to see.
I love this and it is great for answering the question - what is my exact cost for this print?
My Canon PRO-1 printer was capable of making nice color prints and excellent black and white images, and its introduction of the chroma optimizer was a big deal. When I had clients in my studio and showed them prints from my Epson and PRO-1, they generally preferred the PRO-1 results thanks to its warmer tones and rich blacks.
With that said, the lack of an LCD made it a pain in the buns to figure out what was going on when things were out of sorts. What's more it loved to drink ink fast from its ink tanks that seemed like they were about the size of a pixy stick. Lastly, it's lack of wireless support made it a dated printer in the modern world not too much longer after it was released. Despite it's superior image quality, I still preferred the ease of use of my PRO-10 so my PRO-1 didn't see as much use as it would have if it was wireless with bigger ink tanks.
Now that I have my PRO-1000, I have no use for this printer anymore. Sure, it still produces great prints, but the PRO-1000 is just so much better in every imaginable way.
I've really enjoyed the PRO-1000 much more than I thought I would. I'm a huge Epson SureColor P800 fan boy so when I saw the specs for this printer I thought that Canon was playing catch up to build a 3880 with wireless networking support.
In practice I can honestly say that I like the prints I get from this printer more than I do from my Epson P800. Those are big words because I still really love my Epson P800 and didn't think this printer could outshine it. However, this printer has better software, a network wireless connection that doesn't break when you reset the router, and most importantly phenomenally good prints!
With what I have in my studio today, if I had a job to print $500 and up prints then they'd definitely go on the PRO-1000 - the prints are just too good not to do that.
Print Studio Pro
Print Studio Pro was designed for advanced users who wanted all of their driver settings in one easy to use view with layout management options available. In theory it all sounds good, but in practice I've found this app to be slow and cumbersome to use.
If I want to do complex layout I'll use QImage on the PC or fight with Lightroom on the Mac. If I want color management then I'll use Photoshop or Lightroom along with the driver, so while I appreciate the intention here - the execution of this app leaves me wanting for something more (and faster!).
That said, after wrestling with it you can get good prints and it's consistent between the PRO-1000 and PRO-2000 so that's handy if you are trying to train someone to print with both printers.
What's more you can do cool things like the imagePrograf series Export Module from Photoshop used to do like Pattern Print (aka variations) to test get a test sheet of thumbnails that illustrate what impact certain settings will have on the print without wasting a lot of ink and paper as shown here:
There is an even more advanced example here too, so this app offers value - I just wish it was faster.
ColorByte ImagePrint v10.0.17 & up (SOLD SEPARTELY)
Print on Epson paper with ColorByte ImagePrint 10.0.17 & up
ColorByte Software makes a RIP for this printer that is worth mentioning, despite it being a separate and significant expense. ColorByte Software has supported Epson printers for years, but it hasn't been until recently here that they finally supported their first ever Canon printer - the PRO-1000 (requires version 10.0.17 and up). In fact, I can easily say that the best prints I've seen come out of ImagePrint are the prints from the PRO-1000!
This product offers a wealth of custom paper profiles that have been optimized for various daylight conditions which means you can not only get a perfect color print, but you can also make sure it's going to look its best in the lighting conditions in which the print will be displayed (and yes, they have mixed condition profiles too). They also have profiles optimized for black and white for the best tonal range you can get out of this printer.
The quality of their paper profiles are outstanding and that alone would be worth the price when you consider the cost of a profiling kit and the hours you spend creating each profile. However, this product goes beyond that and controls the printer at the droplet level to yield the best tonal range possible for every paper type that it supports (and that's a lot and more are possible upon request).
I'll have more info on this product in an upcoming review.
Get 10% OFF ImagePrint
I have worked a special arrangement with ColorByte to offer you the first ever discount that has been made available for a blog. ColorByte is offering a 10% off discount to readers of this article when you contact JVH Technical, LLC by phone or email. You can not get this discount through the web or ColorByte directly, so you must contact JVH and you MUST mention this blog in order to get the discount. If you have any questions or concerns, don’t hesitate to contact JVH, ColorByte or contact me directly about this discount program.
Conclusion
In case you haven't noticed, I love this printer. It does what it sets out to very well - it prints gorgeous archival quality prints on sheet paper and doesn't' try to be anything more than that. It also does it in a "it just works" fashion which is greatly appreciated these days.
Yes, I wish it had a roll adapter like the P800, but other than that I think they are on equal footing with the PRO-1000 having the edge thanks to the chroma optimizer.
My only negative that I've noticed thus far is that compared to the PRO-2000 the images are slightly more yellow even when using the same exact paper and ICC profile. I suspect that despite having the same print head and ink set, there's some additional factors that are coming into play at the hardware level that cause the slight variation. I wouldn't say it is a negative thing as I tend to like warmer images anyway, but it's something to consider if you were thinking you could save time by using one profile for both the 1000 and it's larger siblings - you can't.
I definitely highly recommend this printer based on my experience so far, but let's see how it does with the long-term test. .
If you make a purchase using links found in this article, I may make a commission. It doesn’t cost you a penny more, but it does help to support future articles like this.
NOTE: This site requires cookies and uses affiliate linking to sites that use cookies.
If you enjoyed this article, please support future articles like this by making a donation or saving money by using my discount coupon codes. Either way, your support is greatly appreciated!
This blog is intended for freelance writing and sharing of opinions and is not a representative of any of the companies whose links are provided on this site.
The opinions provided are of Ron Martinsen alone and do not reflect the view of any other entity