[HN Gopher] Pieca: A Raspberry Pi Camera System for Leica M Moun...
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       Pieca: A Raspberry Pi Camera System for Leica M Mount Lenses
        
       Author : SanjayMehta
       Score  : 111 points
       Date   : 2022-11-05 08:20 UTC (14 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (teaandtechtime.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (teaandtechtime.com)
        
       | nmstoker wrote:
       | The project shows serious dedication, it's impressive.
       | 
       | When they become more widely available would be interesting to
       | consider upgrading to something like the 64mp Arducam:
       | 
       | https://www.arducam.com/64mp-ultra-high-res-camera-raspberry...
        
       | cunidev wrote:
       | It is shocking how much the glass affects the quality of
       | pictures. Given the relatively humble sensor used on this build,
       | results are still almost pro-level.
        
       | JKCalhoun wrote:
       | Very cool. Now if I only had a collection of Leica M-mount
       | lenses...
       | 
       | I'd like to try to do something similar with Micro 4/3.
        
         | anta40 wrote:
         | Well you don't have to use Leitz lenses. Zeiss, Voigtlander
         | also make M-mount lenses. Overall excellent and much more
         | affordable.
         | 
         | Also, Leica screw mount lenses + M39-to-M adapter is also a
         | great option :D
        
         | jnovek wrote:
         | I suspect you're being facetious, but there are several 39mm
         | screwmount lenses from the former Soviet Union that can be had
         | for less than $100 (often much less) and offer excellent
         | rendition for the price. It's how I can afford to shoot a
         | rangefinder on a shoestring. :-)
        
           | epicide wrote:
           | Largely off-topic, but I've had so much fun and luck getting
           | old lenses to use with my mirrorless camera[0]. I've been
           | able to get several lenses from random brands for an average
           | price of like $15 apiece. Mirrorless cameras work especially
           | well with those lenses because the adapters can be made very
           | simply and usually had for like $10.
           | 
           | Are they gonna get you the "tack sharp" sports and wildlife
           | photos like a high end lens of today? Hardly. But retro and
           | lofi photography styles are pretty popular right now and are
           | a blast! Why spend $200+ on some wacky retro-inspired lens
           | when you can get a real vintage lens for less than 1/10th of
           | that? Probably built better too[1].
           | 
           | The biggest potential drawback is a lot of these don't even
           | have an option for auto anything (focus, aperture, etc.).
           | Even if you get one that has it, the auto function likely
           | won't work with any digital camera body[2].
           | 
           | Personally, I've actually grown to _prefer_ manual focus in
           | most cases and I shoot in aperture priority 99% of the time
           | anyway. These have become my main lenses for now. Paired with
           | Fuji 's film simulations, I get decently close to aspects of
           | the film experience but with modern benefits[3]. I'm not
           | gonna get perfect color representation, but that's honestly
           | what I'm aiming for anyway.
           | 
           | If I really need autofocus[4] or want a shot without my retro
           | "filter", I can always use my phone.
           | 
           | [0]: A used Fujifilm X-T30 mk1
           | 
           | [1]: Even if it's just due to survivorship bias.
           | 
           | [2]: A lot of the old mechanisms for things like autofocus
           | would be like a specifically placed worm gear. These adapters
           | usually don't engage those mechanisms.
           | 
           | [3]: As much as I like the restriction of having limited
           | shots and not knowing what it'll look like til later, it's
           | still a steep cost. On top of that, it's hard to even trust
           | the in-camera light meter as many were designed for mercury
           | batteries. I've been able to use modern hearing aid
           | batteries, but the voltages aren't exact matches, so the
           | readings are slightly off.
           | 
           | [4]: Even though I like manual focus, handing my mostly
           | manual camera to a non-photographer family member always
           | requires a mini photography lesson, for better or worse.
        
       | formerly_proven wrote:
       | Why are there no sensors other than the IMX477 available for the
       | raspi? There's a plethora of CSI sensors, yet all aftermarket
       | boards use this one. Is the RPi locked to use only that
       | particular sensor?
        
         | [deleted]
        
         | nakedrobot2 wrote:
         | because broadcom doesn't release their ISP documentation.
        
         | mschuster91 wrote:
         | IIRC the problem is you need to bake in support for CSI sensors
         | into the firmware itself, and for that you need datasheets...
         | CSI is only the communication interface, not the protocol - for
         | webcams, UVC exists on top of USB, but embedded doesn't have
         | that luxury.
        
         | atoav wrote:
         | Using the sensor with existing, working software support is
         | easier than one without it I guess?
         | 
         | Not anybody is able to take a modern sensor and make it work
         | with just any device. If you are the type of person who both
         | _can_ do that and is _willing_ to do it, the whole community
         | would definitly be grateful.
        
       | hamandcheese wrote:
       | > For this, I want to use heat-set inserts and screws to clamp
       | everything together relying less on super glue to hold things
       | together.
       | 
       | There is actually no need for heat-set inserts, you can print
       | holes sized such that standard machine screws will cut their own
       | threads. I've done it with M2, M2.5, and M3 sized screws.
       | 
       | Heat-set thread inserts are nice, though, if you will be doing a
       | lot of re-assembly, since they aren't so easy to strip.
        
       | justincormack wrote:
       | Leica M lenses are not ideal for this size sensor, hence the
       | reducing lens. 16mm cine lenses are C-mount and work nicely,
       | maybe 8mm/super 8 D-mount not tried, it all depends on the sensor
       | size you use and focal length you want.
       | 
       | I use Mokose UVC webcam https://www.mokose.com/collections/hd-
       | cameras with vintage 16mm cine lenses, there are some nice lenses
       | available.
        
         | FeistySkink wrote:
         | There aren't many reviews of these Mokose cams. How does the
         | image quality compare to a mirrorless/DSLR in terms of white
         | balance, color reproduction, etc.? It seems to compare
         | favorably to the usual awful Logitech IQ.
        
           | justincormack wrote:
           | Yeah I have been meaning to do a review I bought them having
           | not seen any, I have two of them. The UC80 (IMX485, the most
           | expensive one) is really good, its still a smaller sensor
           | than DSLR (1/1.2 inch, similar to 16mm film) but hugely
           | larger than normal webcams. The auto settings are really
           | good. The UC70 (the one thats $165) is not as good its a
           | smaller sensor and has some limitations.
        
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       (page generated 2022-11-05 23:01 UTC)