Sigma Foveon Images

I know this discontinued Foveon sensor but someone may keep storing or shooting with that, who knows.

Let's get started.

 

SDIM0064in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

 

SDIM0197in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

 

SDIM0219bw in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

_SDI0887in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

Dismayed that Sigma have suspended development of the eagerly awaited full frame camera, but there is still hope... Meanwhile, some from a Sigma DP2.

 

 

 

 

IMO, Sigma were never the right company to develop the Foveon sensor, and I have no idea why they bought the rights to it in the first place.

 

Fuji would have seemed a much better match. Since they don't seem to be able to stop themselves from experimenting with weird sensor geometries.

My point of view, which delays FX format foveon sensor is proccessor ability to absorb huge data. This causes unacceptable speed to its users.

And maybe the way to decode X3F to normal JPG, I mean SPP software, is poor.

Another thing, I always face with direct sunlight shooting issue. Same problem I met with Nikon D1* model.

My point of view, which delays FX format foveon sensor is proccessor ability to absorb huge data.

This doesn't seem to be a problem for Sony's 60 megapixel a7Riv. Plus there's no need for complex de-Bayering algorithms that need to look at surrounding photosite data before deciding on a single pixel colour value.

 

A 24 megapixel full-frame Foveon sensor would seem to present no greater processor workload than that of the above Sony.

 

Personally, my heart sank when I learned that Sigma had taken Foveon on board. Such promise, in the hands of a company with (at the time) a very poor reputation, and having almost zero experience with sensor production or cutting-edge electronic development.

 

I surmise that the uptake of Foveon cameras would have been far greater without the S(t)igma attached!

For those who find the Foveon only a dim memory or had not heard of it before

 

Foveon X3 sensor - Wikipedia

 

Great claims were made for it at the time. Sigma called it "true color"

 

But one camera it was on was the Sigma SD-9 which was NOT mirrorless.

I need to dig out my Stgma DP2M and use it more.

_SDI0886in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

An example of the extraordinary 3D rendition from the Foveon sensor. Sigma DP2

 

An example of the extraordinary 3D rendition from the Foveon sensor.

Really?

Nothing to do with the lens or lighting then?

rodeo_joe|1 said:

Really? Nothing to do with the lens or lighting then?

 

Oh no, I wouldn't think so. I'm sure I could have achieved the same result by just holding the sensor up to the rose...

Edited January 25, 2021 by rick_drawbridge

_SDI0949in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

To keep this thread going, here are a few more from a Sigma DP-2. There must be some other members out there with images to post!

 

 

 

#SDQ

_SDI0928in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

Just out of interest. How many pixels do those Foveon images really have?

In pixels high by wide?

Because I can't make any sense of Sigma's claimed megapixel numbers.

 

And is the colour seen above straight OOC?

 

I always thought the Foveon concept showed great promise, but every review picture looked dull. At least in the early days.

 

I hope the rights get passed on to a company with the vision and means to develop it properly. I.e. any other company than Sigma!

rodeo_joe|1 said:

Just out of interest. How many pixels do those Foveon images really have?

In pixels high by wide?....I always thought the Foveon concept showed great promise, but every review picture looked dull.

 

Sigma give a pixel measurement for best quality files from the DP-2 as 2640 x 1760. So far as colour goes, I find the "standard" colour a little too vivid for my taste, and I often shoot in a "neutral" colour setting or desaturate a little in PP. I bought into the Foveon system principally because I was attracted to the quality of the monochrome capture, which some commentators compare favourably with that of the fabulous Leica Monochrom, but I'm certainly not going to get into that discussion! Suffice to say, of the several digital systems I use, the Sigma DP-2 along with the dedicated software produces far and away the best monochrome landscape images, and this was my primary requirement from the camera. I'll post a couple of samples.

 

 

 

Rodeo,

 

OOC file dimension in PS from SDQ FYI

_SDI0971in by blurrist lump, on Flickr

I've looked at Sigma cameras more than a couple times over the past couple years. Ultimately, purchasing one just does not make sense to me. Some of these images are. indeed pretty darn nice tho!

Richohetrider said:

Ultimately, purchasing one just does not make sense to me

 

Quite right. However, it's quite obvious from the tomfoolery involved in my amassing a collection of mainly useless photographic equipment that "making sense" is not my strong suit. As a fellow sufferer recently observed, "In crazy we believe..." Here are a couple more samples.

 

 

 

If I remember correctly, they wanted to multiply the actual photosites by 3 because of the "stack" of bgr sensors in a vertical array. Others countered "no fair" since resolution seemed to depend more on the x-y single surface number of pixels. Blurrist: do we know if the listed resolution above (7680x5120) is the single surface pixel number or that number multiplied by 3 deep?

Just this morning Link Sigma Provides Update on Foveon Camera: 'Back to the Drawing Board'

So the news is; there's no news.

 

That does nothing to increase my faith in Sigma's commitment to develop Foveon.

rodeo_joe|1 said:

That does nothing to increase my faith in Sigma's commitment to develop Foveon.

 

Right, sadly enough. In the meantime, let's make the most of what we've got.

 

Edited February 22, 2021 by Sandy Vongries