Crop zoom

[snaimpally]

Excellent. Does it also work with the TTA 40/2?

No. It may be that the TT needs a f/w upgrade to enable that because the crop zoom is grayed out in the menu. I should clarify that crop zoom is available but you just can't assign the focus ring to adjust the zoom for the TT 40mm, currently.

 

[AlanB]

Many thanks for letting us know.

 

[Mmichaelhh1234]

I'm a recent S9 buyer and just added the 50/1.8 to my 18-40mm. This is probably not news to experienced panasonic users, but I've discovered with the 50mm that if I have crop zoom turned on and assign the zoom function to the focus ring (whilst in AF mode), this effectively turns the prime into a zoom lens, the zooming achieved by turning the focus ring. Very clever indeed.

All this talk about too many megapixels!! This is why we need sensors with more density. Love the versatility, you just taught me a new trick.

 

[Mmichaelhh1234]

Indeed, that‘s a nice feature. My Viltrox 16mm f1.8 acts like a 16-33mm zoom

I wonder if this would work with a zoom lens whereas you could use the optical zoom and then crop at different focal lengths?

 

[AlanB]

The menu option called hybrid zoom does something similar with Panasonic zoom lenses. Whether it works with £rd party lenses I could not say.

 

[Mmichaelhh1234]

The menu option called hybrid zoom does something similar with Panasonic zoom lenses. Whether it works with £rd party lenses I could not say.

I was thinking to use them independently, not that it’s necessarily practical or needed, but when I do hybrid zoom, I assume my resolution is decreasing all across the range incrementally.
So I guess I could use a 24-105 and maintain resolution then use crop zoom,…you know, it just occurred to me

Why would I use crop zoom at any focal length under 105. I suppose crop zoom would be sufficient to work at 105.

Now I’m curious. Does hybrid zoom reduce resolution before maximum optical focal length is selected?

 

[snaimpally]

I was thinking to use them independently, not that it’s necessarily practical or needed, but when I do hybrid zoom, I assume my resolution is decreasing all across the range incrementally.
So I guess I could use a 24-105 and maintain resolution then use crop zoom,…you know, it just occurred to me

Why would I use crop zoom at any focal length under 105. I suppose crop zoom would be sufficient to work at 105.

Now I’m curious. Does hybrid zoom reduce resolution before maximum optical focal length is selected?

I would enable it and try it. I used hybrid zoom with the Lumix 18-40 and the zooming was very seamless. I think the resolution is normal up to the maximum optical focal length and then it gradually reduces as you zoom past the max optical focal length.

 

[Vale46]

Now I’m curious. Does hybrid zoom reduce resolution before maximum optical focal length is selected?

From my understanding that's how it works - by reducing the resolution.
Using a zoom lens in my opinion it makes sense to hybrid zoom when the max. focal is reached.

 

[GeorgeHudetz]

Now I’m curious. Does hybrid zoom reduce resolution before maximum optical focal length is selected?

Raw files are always unaffected - they are always full resolution, and the max focal length is that of the lens which is attached. In other words, it’s the same if you had hybrid zoom disengaged. JPEG file resolution when hybrid zoom is engaged can be somewhat affected by menu settings; the way I have it setup, at the wider end JPEGs are always full resolution, but as you zoom in they will jump to lower resolution at a certain point. For example, on a 20-60, with the crop set to 1.4x, up to 28mm I get full resolution JPEGs, but from 33mm on up the JPEG resolution is decreased to that dictated by the 1.4x crop (5808 x 3872 on the S1RII) for all focal lengths. I’m not sure exactly where the crossover point is, or what happens when you use a larger zoom/crop factor.

 

[CharlesH]

I had a post several months back about how Hybrid Zoom works, and how it differs from Crop Zoom. If I get a chance I'll try to reconstruct it. The value of Hybrid Zoom is you can go smoothly over the entire range with the zoom ring of the lens, from the widest angle to the highest crop telephoto. The disadvantage is it breaks the cropping into a just few bands, typically three, so it is unlikely the focal length you have chosen has the best possible crop. Crop Zoom is different, the camera crops exactly as you would with software in your editor. So if you want the most possible pixels for a photo, use Crop Zoom instead of Hybrid Zoom.

Raw files are always unaffected - they are always full resolution

Not always true. The trick is to use RAW+JPEG. You will get the crop in both RAW and JPEG. But RAW is much more flexible. In Lightroom wth RAW, for a photo that has been cropped with Hybrid Zoom of Crop Zoom, in the Develop mode, select the Crop function. You will see the entire RAW photo with the cropped region highlighted. In this mode you can move the highlighted cropped region around to reframe it, or make it smaller or larger, up to full resolution. The number of pixels in the cropped region is displayed for reference.

I use Crop Zoom quite often. I call this method "Frame it and Change it". It is especially useful with fixed focal length lenses. For zoom lenses I first use the zoom ring up to the maximum and if I want a higher focal length I use Crop Zoom.

 

[GeorgeHudetz]

I had a post several months back about how Hybrid Zoom works, and how it differs from Crop Zoom. If I get a chance I'll try to reconstruct it. The value of Hybrid Zoom is you can go smoothly over the entire range with the zoom ring of the lens, from the widest angle to the highest crop telephoto. The disadvantage is it breaks the cropping into a just few bands, typically three, so it is unlikely the focal length you have chosen has the best possible crop. Crop Zoom is different, the camera crops exactly as you would with software in your editor. So if you want the most possible pixels for a photo, use Crop Zoom instead of Hybrid Zoom.


Not always true. The trick is to use RAW+JPEG. You will get the crop in both RAW and JPEG. But RAW is much more flexible. In Lightroom wth RAW, for a photo that has been cropped with Hybrid Zoom of Crop Zoom, in the Develop mode, select the Crop function. You will see the entire RAW photo with the cropped region highlighted. In this mode you can move the highlighted cropped region around to reframe it, or make it smaller or larger, up to full resolution. The number of pixels in the cropped region is displayed for reference.

I use Crop Zoom quite often. I call this method "Frame it and Change it". It is especially useful with fixed focal length lenses. For zoom lenses I first use the zoom ring up to the maximum and if I want a higher focal length I use Crop Zoom.

Ah yes, I was speaking from the Capture One perspective, where the raw file (unfortunately) doesn’t show the crop you used when the image was recorded.

However, in all cases, the fundamental underlying raw file has the full resolution of the sensor - no data is lost. As you said.

 

[CharlesH]

I was speaking from the Capture One perspective

Thanks, I've not figured out which photo editors read the EXIF data for Crop Zoom with RAW and let you use and edit the crop. It is such a great capability, I hope others will implement this for our Panasonic cameras. Anyway I'll cross off Capture One.

About non-Lumix lenses that have implemented the Crop Zoom adjustment with the lens focus ring, I've checked my Sigma lenses and with the (big) ART lenses this works, but with the (small) Contemporary it does not. (I've only checked the 24mm f/3.5 Contemporary, but assume this has not yet been implemented for the rest of the Contemporary line.) I do hope Sigma implements this, it is such a useful feature with our Panasonic cameras. Of course one can use the control wheel buttons for Crop Zoom with the Sigma Contemporaries, but zoom with the focus ring is sooo nice.

By the way, the (now old as well as big) Sigma 14-28 f/2.8 ART works with both Hybrid Zoom and Crop Zoom, and the lens focus wheel works with Crop Zoom. So thanks to Sigma for updating this lens to the latest L-Mount capability.

 

[snaimpally]

The trick is to use RAW+JPEG.

I always use RAW+JPG. No reason not to.