The new Sigma SD1 Merrill is available now as several buyers reported receiving them in the last few days. Together with the camera Sigma issued a couple of updates.
*important note
It seems that the SD1 Merrill and the original SD1 have differently numbered firmware versions. And that version 1.0 on the Merrill is feature wise the same as the v1.05 on the original SD1.
Software updates
Both Sigma Photo Pro and Sigma Capture Pro have been updated to support the SD1 Merrill.
» download Sigma Photo Pro 5.2.1
» download Sigma Capture Pro 1.0.1
Firmware update SD1
Benefits of the firmware update
- It is not necessary to run “Update Lens Information” in order to update the lens information in the camera.
- Accuracy of Auto Focus is improved.
- Accuracy of evaluative metering is improved in the backlight or low light conditions.
- Various bugs have been corrected to achieve more stable operation.
» download SIGMA SD1 Firmware Ver.1.05
Special site http://sigma-sd.com/ updated for SD1 Merrill
Including a new Sample Gallery: http://sigma-sd.com/SD1Merrill/sample-photo/
i got mine this week, been playing with it or a couple of days; correct, the firmware on the Merrill is not the same as on the sd1, and therefore the 1.05 version will NOT be necessary on the Merrill.
i have a feeling, judging by the first few test shots, that they have actually improved the camera while reducing the price dramatically … not a bad deal for us!
incidentally, i discovered that my old RS-21 remote from my sd10 days DOES work with the sd1 as well.
now, if only Adobe and Sigma got their act together and got the X3F files supported in Lightroom, life would be wonderful indeed.
it is NO FUN to process those humongous files TWICE (first the conversion in Photo Pro -painfully slow- into TIFF, and then regular processing in LR).
As of today what are the best performing lenses on the SD1?
I am a landscape shooter. So I like both wide and longer lenses.
Thanks
Steven
That’s not an easy question Steven”¦ But I can share with you my own experience. Quite some people seem to be pleased with the 8-16mm. I’ve never tried it but I was not too happy with what I saw. They seem to lack a bit of punch (micro contrast?). I used the 10-20 and do like that, not the sharpest but a good feel. Hope to be able to get my hands on a new 12-24 as I owned the old version in the past and liked it better. And it more than wide enough 🙂
In the middle area I like the 30mm for it’s feel. But it hopelessly unsharp in the corners. The 50mm 1.4 is a very nice lens. The 70mm macro seems to be everyones favorite.
For ultimate macro and tele work I love the 150mm OS. Probably the best we have.
Maybe you can post a link to some work you do. That would make it easier to give a good advice.
Hi, i’ ve a question for you…i’m really interesting at the sigma sd1, but in the raw that i’ve seen until now, there are some strange lines in the area not in focus…in the sd1 merrill is the same? Or some firmware has solved the problem?
Thanks
The RAWs that are available at the moment I believe are all of non-Merrill SD1 cameras. And shot with older firmware. Sometimes I see banding indeed in my photos. But most of the time this is with shots that have been quite pushed in processing. At least with the latest combo of SPP and firmware the quality have improved a lot. For me it is no problem at least.
hello,
i have been shooting with my sd1 merril for a couple of weeks now and have indeed noticed the issue you mention on a few occasions.
i am puzzled, because it does seem to happen at random, i thought at first it was due to a lens, but then it showed with another one … i can only notice it -on occasion- in the ‘sky’ area of an image (when i am shooting outdoors!), and it will not show in the original raw/tiff converted file (unless you enlarge it a LOT, and then you begin to see it; it is much more noticeable when you process the image and push contrast and structure.
it can be eliminated with a little noise reduction.
i have a feeling it is a consequence of having so many pixels crammed onto this sensor, it looks like ‘noise’, but in vertical stripes.
still, i think it is an acceptable trade off considering the quality of the images!
Thank you guys!! i’ve a lot of thinking between sigma sd1 and nikon d800….The sd1 and sigma system is more affordable but d800 now is the ” king” of sensor… What do you think about this? you can recommend?
tricky question; i think the sigma is not the easiest of cameras to love… although it is easy to love the images one can produce.
i am on my 4th sigma now and really like them, even with all their quirks; some people hate them.
if you already own nikon (mount) glass and will be able to use it on the d800, and never had a sigma before, PERHAPS you would be happier with that choice (actually, a D700 would now be cheaper than the SD1, and it is still a great camera).
if you have no nikon glass to use, and feel brave, you could embrace the challenge.
not the easiest journey, but possibly very rewarding! 🙂
Well I pulled the trigger on a SD1M and 4 lenses 12-24, 50, 70 and 150 macro lenses.
I shoot only landscape and had a few questions.
I have been reading that if shooting in a typical sunny day that iso 200 is where I need to be for best DR is this a true statement?
Also I have the color mode set to neutral for now.
I assume all the adjustments on the SD1M body itself, only effect the JPEG images, so for me since I only shoot raw none of these setting, contrast, saturation, sharpening etc., effect the actual raw file. Is this also true.
I did a few quick shots today at iso 200, 50mm macro lens, F8, 1/800 sec exposure. Basically basic daylight exposure, I noticed when I opened the raw file in SPP the highlights were blown, 255,255,255, I had to adjust ev to about -.5
I wonder what the actual ISO is at 200, it would seem to be higher, not sure though.
I really hope Adobe supports the file format, but I have a bad feeling they never will. Can anyone shed some light on this.
Thanks
Steven