Any links below are affiliate links.
Natural
"PHOTO STYLE"
CONTRAST
-1
SHARPNESS
+1
+2
-0
HIGHLIGHT SHADOW
-2+3
iDYNAMIC
OFF
LUMINANCE LEVEL
0-255
Unsharp Mask*
ADOBE
POST-PRODUCTION
AMOUNT
?
RADIUS
?
THRESHOLD
?
Blur / Sharpen
DAVINCI RESOLVE
POST-PRODUCTION
LENS @FULL WIDE
?
LENS @MID-ZOOM
?
LENS @FULL TELE
?
REAL RATINGS
After testing each lens-sensor combo, I like to know if the rendering is going to look realistic SOOC (Straight Out of Camera) or if it will need a LUT (to match the shots to other lenses and cameras).
CONTRAST
?
IS THE CONTRAST "REAL"?
SHARPNESS
?
IS THE SHARPNESS "REAL"?
NOISE
?
IS THE NOISE "REAL"?
COLOR
?
IS THE COLOR "REAL"?
*Click here to learn more about "REAL" Ratings. These ratings are AFTER my custom settings are applied (most combos don't look real good with default settings).
NOTES:
This lens was made by Sigma (but the version I tested was a Quantaray, one with green lettering). There are a number of versions of the 70-300 from Sigma that LOOK very similar, but there are a couple of differences, and a few ways to identify this version. First of all, this is not the MACRO version, and there is no MACRO switch (though it actually has the same little square panel where the macro switch is on some of the other models). Second, it is not the LDO version (Low Dispersion Optic version).
So, is this version of the 70-300 lens a good lens? Well, I tested a very similar Sigma APO version on the same day (with the same camera, the G85) and the optics on the APO version were a lot better. I tested the MACRO version of the Sigma APO, which also made me not want to recommend this non-macro version, because it's just much more convenient to have macro available, if and when you need it.
So, these CUSTOM SETTINGS do help make this lens better on the Panasonic LUMIX G85, but I do not recommend picking up this version if you can get either the MACRO version, or the Sigma APO version (I'm not sure if the Quantaray LDO is the same as the Sigma APO, as I haven't tested the LDO version of this lens yet).
The goal of our camera settings is to improve what we call the "lens-sensor relationship" by adjusting the contrast, sharpness, noise reduction and color to create an image that looks less digital and more organic (more like film, etc). Therefore, the first step is to apply the custom settings while shooting, and the second is to add a lens-sensor LUT, to finalize the image.
