Iron Creek Photography®: Testing the Phase One 645AF Part II

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

This is not a crop

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 150D

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 150D

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO50

I wrote earlier on how I came to test the Phase One 645AF. I've spent the past two days using the Mamiya 300 and 150D mm lenses. This time has been spent in getting reacquainted in using the 645AF as well as the 2-lenses. The weather has turned a little worse than it has been with close to 10" of snow being dumped in a 2-day period. High winds have caused blowing snow which is an obstacle in capturing objects that are further away. The high winds have also caused problems in auto-focusing as the camera/lens hunt for a focus point and with the blowing snow between me and my subject it can be hit or miss, thus manual focus is a must.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO50

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO50

this is not a crop

I've promised Dave buffalo however the conditions just haven't been good enough so he'll have to settle of more horses.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO50

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

this is not a crop

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO 50

I've found auto focus to be quick and on the flip side I've found manual focus to be easy and sometimes just as fast.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

this is not a crop

Phase One 645AF mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO50

this is not a crop

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO 50

I've also noticed that I'm much more willing to switch to Sensor Plus on the P65+ and that those images are just as good as without it.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/350 ISO200

Sensor Plus 1-hr before full sunset

100% crop

I enjoy shooting with long focal lenses and both the 150 and 300 fit that bill. I've found the 300 to be just as good a lens as I remember it from 3-years ago. Reminds me of the saying "if it isn't broke why fix it". I never had a prime 150 lens; instead I used a 75-150 which to me was very good. That is until I started using the 150D. The lens rocks. The lens is fast, both in f/stop but more importantly focusing.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO100

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/8 1/250 ISO100

The images included here are all from the second day of shooting. The conditions were much as described in the previous post; snow, blowing snow, wind gusting past 12MPH and in general very cold. The 645AF performed as needed; any problems or concerns were all user caused. The lenses worked. Auto-focus worked when conditions were favorable and when not, manual focus filled the gap. Please note all the images presented so far were all captured handheld. Also of note, the images were opened in Capture One where they were all converted to Jpeg for internet use; very little to no other processing has been involved.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 300

P65+ f/11 1/350 ISO100

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 150D

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO100

It's only been 2-days for using this equipment however I've had a ball. The 2-lenses Dave Gallagher sent fit the bill for long focal points. I called the office late yesterday afternoon and not being able to get anyone in the Atlanta office the call immediately rolled over to the Miami office where Doug Peterson answered. A quick conversation later and a 80D is being shipped.

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 150D

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO100

Phase One 645AF Mamiya 150D

P65+ f/11 1/250 ISO100

Shooting medium format is slightly different from a 35mm. One of the biggest differences is the focal length of lenses used. Sandy has been using her 35mm full-frame Canon 1DsIII and a Canon 300mm lens which remains a 300mm. The 300mm lens I've been using on the 645AF is the equivalent to a 193mm lens, the 150mm is equivalent to 96mm and the 80mm is equivalent to 51mm. This equivalent factor is based on using the Phase One P65+ which is a full-frame medium format digital back. If I haven't lost you yet stay tuned for more technical information.