Sigma DP2X User manual

The Sigma DP series.
The world’s only all-in-one compact camera
with the full spec of an SLR.
Well, now we’ve taken things even further.
Meet the Sigma DP2x.

The camera as it was meant to be —
This photograph shows the approximate dimensions of the Sigma DP2x.
We've made a few changes around here.
Like handing creative control to the photographer.
And bringing back the sheer
joy of making photographic art.
In other ways, we've stuck with tradition.
We believe in capturing life just the way it is.
To us, that's the basic principle of photography.
We remain true to that principle.
Camera formats and mechanisms
may change with the times.
But the definition of a good camera is timeless:
It's one that takes a great picture.
Those are Sigma's photographic convictions,
as embodied in the DP1.
Considering its compact body,
the DP1 delivers amazing picture quality.
It created a whole new high-performance category,
and won a whole lot of fans.
The DP2x, the successor to the DP2,
has taken the principle of being
a camera as it was meant to be, and added further
enhancements to help you get that priceless shot.
The SIGMA DP2x.
Taking pleasure in refinement.
more than ever.
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Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/30s, Aperture Value : F2.8, Focal Length: 24.2 mm 03

Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/60s, Aperture Value : F2.8, Focal Length: 24.2 mm
04

Sigma DP: The world's
new favorite camera series
“An amazing little camera”. That's
what people have been calling the
DP1, ever since its arrival. The DP1 was
the first in our new DP series of full-
spec compact digital cameras that –
uniquely and groundbreakingly – pack
the essence of an SLR into the body
of a compact. From its modest and
understated appearance you'd never
guess this camera could deliver such
ultra-high image quality. No wonder
everyone who's used it has been
dazzled by this amazing little camera.
Thanks to Sigma's proprietary three-
layered the Foveon X3® direct image
sensor, the images created by the DP1
have a unique 3-D look, along with the
kind of clarity and sharpness you'd
expect of a digital DSLR, something
you might create with a much
bigger camera. No wonder amateur
photographers and experts all over
the world have fallen in love with it.
Despite being small enough to carry
anywhere, the DP1 delivers picture
quality easily high enough to print
beautifully in large sizes. It's created a
new category – the full-spec compact
camera – and opened up new horizons
for many amateur photographers. This
is what makes Sigma happy. But after
all, it's just a natural result of sticking
with our photographic convictions.
Ordinary life.
That's where you get
extraordinary photos.
SLRs and other high-performance
cameras tend to be used as tools for
specific jobs. An expensive, large-
format camera tends to be brought
out for a clear-cut purpose: a family
celebration, a trip, a special event.
Those shots are fun to take, and
certainly pack an emotional punch.
But if you had to choose your own
best-ever picture, would it be one
you took on a special occasion?
We're guessing it wouldn't.
That glimpse of unexpected beauty
on your daily commute, early in the
morning or late in the evening. The
subtlety of human drama encountered
on a street corner. The dewy petal
of a nameless roadside flower. As
anyone who loves photography could
tell you, those crucial moments can't
be contrived. There's only one place
you find them: the often overlooked
corners of ordinary life.
The camera that grants
independence to the individual
Every photographer wants to capture
the emotion of that crucial moment,
and turn it into a fantastic shot.
The only cameras designed to do just
that, by combining the technology for
serious photographic expression with
highly-portable compactness, belong
to Sigma's DP series. Meshing neatly
with your personal lifestyle and your
inner life, the DP series is designed
to take you deeper into a whole new
world of photographic expression.
Sigma knows that your photos
express your most deeply personal
sensory experience. Your mental
landscape. That's exactly why we
want our cameras to give you more
independence, and more scope for
creativity. Following our deepest
convictions, we set out to design
a camera offering more creative
options for photographic expression.
Photos that Only You Could Take.
05

Another Dimension in Photographic Expression.
The DP series: a new lineage
The DP2x's standard lens is
brand-new and purpose-designed,
with a focal length equivalent to
41mm in a 35mm camera.
We wanted to allow photographic
effects beyond the scope of the focal
length of the wide-angle lens of the
DP1, which is equivalent to 28mm in
a 35mm camera. So we gave the DP2
a standard-range focal length more
suitable for snapshots and portraits.
Still, we also wanted the DP2x to
deliver the unique 3-D feel and texture
that made the DP1 so special. We gave
it the kind of MTF and all-round lens
performance only possible with single-
index models. When it comes to the
textural feel of the images, when focal
length and F-numbers make all the
difference, we've made sure that the
DP2 is right up there with the DP1.
Meanwhile, we've tweaked the DP2'x
user interface, making it even easier to
shoot pictures just the way you want.
While respecting your autonomy
as an artist, we've built in all the
photographic functions you need.
Since the DP2 is a lightweight compact,
we want you to carry it around every
day. That's why we've made it a more
complete photographic tool.
The camera that turns
ordinary into awesome.
The DP1's wide-angle lens is good
with perspective,—geared towards
dynamic shots of scenery, buildings,
celebrations. The standard lens built
into the DP2x, on the other hand,
has a narrower field angle, giving
a stronger effect, making the subject
stand out. In other words, we've given
it the ability to create the photo that
you, and only you, can see in your
mind's eye. Naturally, this is great for
portraits. And for capturing the elusive
beauty of ordinary, everyday subjects,
this standard lens is ideal.
Its focal length is longer than the DP1's
lens. So, at low F-numbers (larger
apertures), you can create amazing
pictures by deliberately blurring the
background. This makes the subject
stand out sharply, in a compelling,
almost mystical way. In this sense,
you could say the DP2x turns
ordinary into awesome.
The single-focal length lens:
hassle or helpful?
Some say that single-focal length
lenses are tricky to use, and too
much hassle. Would you agree?
There was a time when they were
standard. But when high-performance
zoom-lenses appeared on the scene,
single-focal length lenses were nudged
out of their mainstream position and
relegated to the sidelines, where they
have remained for many a year. No
wonder most people think of them
as a niche product.
Sure, when you have to shoot from
just one spot, with no physical room to
move, a high-magnification zoom lens,
covering the range from wide-angle to
telephoto, is the height of convenience.
And conversely, when your single-focal
length lens has the wrong field angle
for the situation, you might not get
the ideal shot.
Nevertheless, despite this
“inconvenience”, many amateur
photographers still love single-focal
length lenses. They keep taking great
pictures with them. Of course, in wide-
aperture lenses of F2 and over, or
telephoto/super-wide-angle lenses,
or macro or fisheye lenses, the single-
focal option gives the best overall
balance. But that's not the only reason.
A lens that takes you
back to basics.
Using a single-focal length lens makes
you pay attention to the basics of
photography. Sigma believes that
taking a photo should always be
a fully conscious, personal act.
Choosing the subject. Finding the best
angle. Framing the shot in the best
way possible. Considering the light
and shadow falling on the subject.
Taking the colors in account. These
are all elements of photography. In our
view, it's only by making these choices
for yourself that you can relate to your
subject and your photo in your own
uniquely personal way.
These are the very shots that end up
being your best-ever pictures.
Your emotionally-charged asterpieces.
The ones that resonate with everyone
who sees them. Sure, you would go
through the same basic process if you
were using a zoom lens.
But with a zoom lens, you can get
the perfect field angle with a single
twist of the zoom ring. Creatively
speaking, that makes it harder to get
into the “zone”. We're not knocking
zoom lenses. Once you understand
how convenient they are, you can go
all-out and take full advantage of the
benefits they offer. But just remember,
their very convenience can diminish
some of the most fascinating and
crucial aspects of photography.
Less is more.
With a single-focal length lenses,
there's no convenient zoom function.
You have to “zoom with your egs”,
and frame the shot yourself.
Remember our conviction that it
should be you, not the camera, who
takes the picture. We think this effort
is all part of the art. Using a zoom lens
is like painting by numbers. A single-
focal length lenses gets you physically
moving, forces you to frame your own
shot, opens your eyes to unexpected
beauty. It makes taking pictures more
fun. It engages your creativity more
fully. Like the saying goes, less is more.
Single-focal length lenses can be
a challenge, but it's no drawback.
Are you looking for a camera that
brings out the artist in you?
That would be the DP series.
What could you do with them?
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Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/640s, Aperture Value : F2.8, Focal Length: 24.2 mm
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Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/640s, Aperture Value : F2.8, Focal Length: 24.2 mm 09

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Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/6s, Aperture Value : F8, Focal Length: 24.2 mm 1 1

Camera : SIGMA DP2, FileType: X3F Raw, Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority AE, ISO Setting : 100, White Balance : Auto, Shutter Speed : 1/1000s, Aperture Value : F5.6, Focal Length: 24.2 mm
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13

Sometimes Bigger is Better. Image Sensors are a Case in Point.
Big photoreceptors mean
high image quality.
The bigger the film size, the better
the image quality. That's common
knowledge in the world of film
cameras. Ever tried using a Brownie
film camera to shoot high-quality
photos? Then you'll have a vivid sense
of the exponential increase in image
quality as film size increases. Basically,
the same goes for digital cameras.
In other words, sensor performance
being equal, the image quality of
a digital camera is determined by the
size of the image sensor, be it CCD,
CMOS or any other type.
In the era of film cameras, both SLRs
and compacts using the 35mm system
used the same size of film, and image
quality came down to lens quality
and performance. There used to be
compact film cameras that delivered
high image quality despite their small
body size, and those compacts had
a large following among amateur
photographers. When cameras
made the switch from film to digital,
however, it was taken for granted that
DSLRs and digital compacts would
use different image sensors.
The digital camera of
anyone's dreams
Implementing a large sensor
presented all sorts of problems:
the cost of the sensor, the difficulty
of designing the lens, the high
processing capacity required for
the image-processing engine,
enlarging the circuit board, increasing
the memory capacity, and so on.
Until these problems could be
overcome, it was generally accepted
that DSLRs used large sensors, and
compacts used small ones. Eventually,
these problems were effectively
solved, allowing sensors to be made
smaller. However, this involved
a trade-off: reduced image quality.
From then on, amateur photographers
dreamed of a compact digital camera
with an SLR-sized image sensor.
A camera small and light enough
to carry around everywhere, yet
offering the technology for serious
photography. Those dreams have
come true with Sigma's DP series.
Startlingly evocative image quality
At 20.7 x 13.8mm, the DP's
14-megapixel image sensor is
SLR-sized. This is about 12 times
larger than the 1- to 2.5-inch sensor,
and 7 times larger than a 1- to
1.8-inch sensor used in a conventional
digital compact. This generous size
takes the DP2x's image quality to a
different dimension.
Picture this. Light traveling through
a small lens is captured by a small
sensor and turned into an image.
Light travelling through a large
sensor is captured by a large sensor
and turned into an image. What's
the difference between these two
images? Essentially, it's a difference
in quality. In the case of the small
image sensor, the image is magnified
by a high ratio when it's printed or
displayed on a computer screen.
This makes it tricky to reproduce the
dynamism and 3-D feel of the subject.
The SIGMA DP does just that by using
a large integral image sensor.
The natural background-blur
you get with an SLR.
The small size of the image sensor
used in a conventional compact
digital camera explains why it
captures rather flat, unmodulated
images. If the image sensor is small,
the focal length of the lens is short.
The shorter the focal length of
the lens, the greater the depth of
SIGMA DP's Direct Image Sensor
Conventional
Compact
Digital Camera's
Image Sensor
The DP has an integral 14 megapixel,
SLR-sized (20.7 x 13.8mm) image
sensor. This is about 12 times larger than
1- to 2.5-inch sensor, and 7 times larger
than a 1- to 1.8-inch sensor used in
a conventional compact digital camera.
This generous size takes the DP's
image quality to a different dimension.
What's more, the pixel pitch of the
image sensor is a generous 7.8micron.
An ordinary compact digital camera
delivers “high quality” with a high pixel
count achieved simply by dividing up
the sensor into smaller sections. In the
DP2x, however, the large photodiodes
deployed at a large pixel pitch capture
pure, rich light efficiently, so the image
signal is superb right from the start.
This gives the DP its high resolution and
richly-graduated tones.
Image Sensor Size Comparison
field— in other words, the greater
the range of distances over which
the lens can focus.
The prosaic quality of the images
captured by an ordinary compact
digital camera is caused by the depth
of field characteristic of a small image
sensor: the lens focuses evenly on
everything between the subject and
the background, eliminating any
cadence within the image.
The DP2x, however, have an SLR-sized
image sensor, so their standard lens is
equivalent to 41mm in a 35mm camera,
and with an F-number of 2.8, it has
a large aperture as well. This means
you can utilize the kind of cool natural
background-blur effects you would
normally expect of an SLR.
14

This photograph shows the approximate dimensions of the Sigma DP2x. 15

A Color Sensor Delivering Pictures with Unique Purity
The SIGMA DP's the Foveon X3
® direct image sensor utilizes the
special properties of silicon, which
is penetrated to different depths
by different wavelengths of light,
to successfully achieve full-color
capture for the first time ever in
a single-chip configuration. No
color filter is required.
Since the Foveon X3® can
capture all the color information
in its three layers, the
aforementioned late-stage color
interpolation necessitated by the
Bayer filter image-sensor is not
required, and exquisite, nuanced
color expression can be created
in pixel-location units. Compared
with the color-fudging Bayer
filter image sensor, the Foveon
X3® takes color resolution to
a new and truly amazing level.
Since it does not need a color
filter, the direct image sensor
does not generate the color
artifacts that color filters, by their
very nature, tend to produce.
This, of course, means that no
optical low-pass filter is needed
either. This full-color capture
system can cope with all kinds
of high-frequency areas, and
capture the full complement
of colors. That's why the results
are both absolutely natural
and truly exquisite.
The Bayer filter Image Sensor
The old-fashioned Bayer filter image sensor
can only capture 50% of the green color data,
and a mere 25% each of the blue and the red.
R: 100% G: 100% B: 100% R: 25% G: 50% B: 25%
The Foveon X3® Sensor
The Foveon X3® has three layers of
photosensors, enabling it to capture 100%
of the RGB color data at once.
16

The evolution of
color-handling in photography
In 1907, the Lumière brothers
of France amazed the world by
launching the first commercial color
photography process. Known as
Autochrome, the process used a
filter consisting of grains colored
red, blue and green (the primary
colors of light). The filter was
spread over a glass plate, and the
colors were recorded horizontally.
Made from grains of potato-starch,
this RGB filter was rather crude,
yet even by today's standards, the
color photographs it produced are
amazingly vivid, considering that
they were taken a hundred years ago.
In later years, color film photography
evolved by a method in which three
layers of photosensitive material were
stacked vertically, and processes
using a horizontal orientation, like
the Autochrome process, were not
developed any further. But time
changes everything, and now that
digital photography has taken
over from film as the mainstream
technology, horizontally-oriented
color-handling has once again
become the standard approach.
Conventional digital cameras
use monochrome sensors.
Apart from the SD series and the DP
series, almost all the digital cameras
on the market use monochrome
sensors only capable of capturing
light intensity. Because these sensors
do not capture color data, a color
filter with a mosaic of pixels for the
three primary colors – red, blue and
green (RGB) – is mounted on top
so that color data can be
represented. But each light-sensing
photodiode has a one-color filter,
which means that each pixel can only
capture one color, and data for the
other two colors is discarded.
Until this stage, of course, as in
the Autochrome process, the RGB
color “particles”, or pixels, are
recorded unmodified, forming the
photo. A color interpolation process
known as demosaicing is therefore
performed in the latter stage of the
image processing, and this restores
the colors lost by individual pixels.
This interpolation process basically
consists of guessing the missing
colors by analyzing the neighboring
pixels, and adding those missing
colors back in.
Post-processing the image
leads to a loss of detail
Having been continuously improved
over an extended period, this
image-processing method has
matured to a certain extent, so the
color interpolation is now performed
fairly accurately. But because colors
are interpolated from neighboring
pixels, the subtle color nuances of
the original subject are lost.
Conventional digital cameras using
color filter arrays also generate
color artifacts – colors not found
in the original subject – during the
demosaicing processing. This is
due to the action of the color filter
(generally a Bayer filter), which tries
to regulate the color distribution if
the subject contains too much detail
(high-frequency areas).
A conventional digital cameras
using a Bayer color filter has yet
another filter, known as an optical
low pass or blurring filter, interposed
between the lens and the sensor,
in order to suppress color artifacts.
The optical low pass filter acts on
the images resolved at a high level
by the imaging lens, its job being to
eliminate any detailed elements
likely to generate color artifacts
(high-frequency areas above
a certain level), immediately before
they reach the sensor. So it can
effectively suppress the generation
of color artifacts. However, the
downside is that it reduces the
resolution of the image.
The Foveon X3® captures
the very feeling in the air.
Have you ever looked at an image
generated by a digital camera and
noticed something, well… unnatural,
about it? The edges may be strongly
emphasized, and the image may
look reasonably nuanced, but there's
definitely something wrong. Right?
Images produced by Sigma's SD
series cameras, and by the DP series,
have what's been called an “emotional
quality”. The emotion comes with
a level of image quality that only
the Foveon X3® direct image
sensor can deliver. Image quality
of a clarity and exquisiteness easily
outclassing that of conventional
digital cameras. This level of image
quality reproduces the scene you
shot, right down to the feeling in
the air. It's only possible in a vertical
color-capture system that does not
require color interpolation, and an
image-processing system that does
not require an optical low-pass filter.
A conventional image-sensor,
on the other hand, fudges the colors,
and even cuts out high-frequency
areas. To compensate, the sharpness
processing is ramped up to give
some overall nuancing and a general
impression of high resolution.
This explains the tendency to
generate images that, as a whole,
have an unnatural feel. The colors
can be adjusted to some extent in
post-processing, but the detailed
data previously lost cannot be
recovered. The breathtaking image
quality delivered by the Foveon
X3®, which reproduces pure, rich
data and nothing else, has to be
seen to be believed.
Discards none of the original light
and color. And adds none either.
The SIGMA DP's Foveon X3®
direct image sensor utilizes the
special properties of silicon, which
is penetrated to different depths
by different wavelengths of light,
to successfully achieve full-color
capture for the first time ever in
a single-pixel site configuration. No
color filter is required. Like modern
color film cameras, it uses a method
that captures all the colors vertically.
Because it does not need color
interpolation or a low-pass filter,
the Foveon X3® produces images
that are sharp right from the start.
Therefore, sharpness processing
in the latter stages of the image
processing – creating edges and
emphasizing contours – can be
reduced to a minimum.
This is why reviewers have evaluated
the images captured by the Foveon
X3® as having a truly nuanced,
sharp feel and praised them
as very natural and demonstrating
superior image quality.
17

A Lens that Produces an Astonishing Image
The Sigma DP2x feature
an integral standard lens
A lens with a focal length of 40mm
to 60mm on a 35mm film camera is
known as a “standard lens” because
it delivers natural perspective, close to
what the human eye perceives.
The usual definition of a standard lens
is one that has a focal length close
to the diagonal length of the image
format. The focal length of the DP2x's
lens is 24.2mm, and the diagonal
length of the image sensor is 24.86mm.
So, the lens used in the DP2x
really does deserve to be called
a standard lens.
In the past, standard lenses have
traditionally been of either the Tessar
or the Gauss type. The Gauss type is
basically used for larger apertures with
high performance. Its disadvantages
include susceptibility to saggital
coma flare when used with a point
light source, and a tendency for the
light volume to decrease towards the
periphery. The Tessar type, on the other
hand, has a simple structure, making
it easy to miniaturize. However, its
drawback is that it tends not to deliver
high performance at larger apertures.
Adapting SLR lens technology
for our own purposes
Sigma believes that a photo is only
as good as the lens it was taken with.
So we decided that the kind of quality
we wanted for the DP2x would not
be attainable using the traditional
techniques used to design standard
lenses. We rethought the design from
the development stage, and
set out in pursuit of the highest
possible lens performance.
We took the bold step of using
a retrofocus lens of the type mainly
used as wide-angle lenses for SLRs.
Besides having the excellent
telecentricity vital in lenses for digital
cameras, this retrofocus lens has
many other advantages: for example,
this format makes it easy to suppress
field curvature and astigmatism,
and to ensure that the light volume
stays the same right to the periphery.
However the lens does need to be
longer. Therefore, in order to minimize
the total length of the lens while still
attaining ideal image quality,
we used two groups of lens elements:
the group at the front have a high
refractive index, and the group at the
rear are aspherical glass-mold lenses.
This way, we successfully developed
a standard lens with a relatively
modest overall length, but very high
optical performance.
A super-high-performance lens that's
flat as a pancake right to the edge
In order to maintain high resolution
and contrast from the center of the
screen right to the edge,
and to allow scope for those cool
background-blur effects, we aimed
for the kind of MTF and all-round
lens performance only available with
single-index lenses. We are confident
that the DP2x's lens, improved time
and time again in the interests of
delivering the best possible finished
image, encapsulates Sigma's expertise
as a leading manufacturer of lenses.
The impact of the eye-popping
image quality delivered by the DP2x's
lens is something you really need to
see for yourself.
The DP2x's integral lens is of the retrofocus
type. Besides having the excellent telecentricity
vital in lenses for digital cameras, this
retrofocus lens has many other advantages:
for example, this format makes it easy to
suppress field curvature and astigmatism,
and to ensure that the light volume stays the
same right to the periphery. However the lens
does need to be longer. Therefore, in order
to minimize the total length of the lens while
still attaining ideal image quality, we used two
groups of lens elements: the group at the front
have a high refractive index, and the group
at the rear are aspherical glass-mold lenses.
This way, we successfully developed
a standard lens with a modest overall length,
but very high optical performance.
As well as employing a rear-focus system,
we used aspherical glass-mold lenses,
enabling aberration variation to be minimized.
And the elements that make up the DP2x's
lens have been treated with a super-multilayer
coating that succeeds in keeping ghosting
and flare to a minimum.
That's not all. Some of the DP2x's lens
elements are hyperchromatic, which enables
chromatic aberrations to be corrected to a large
extent, without impacting other aberrations.
This means that even with a wide-open
aperture, the images produced have minimal
color flare, and are nice and sharp and crisp,
right to the edge. The Foveon X3®, which
delivers amazing color resolution, also makes
a big contribution to the very high level of
“emotional image quality” delivered.
The construction of the special-design lens
Sigma Lens 24.2mm F2.8 / MTF Chart
10 lp
30 lp
Spatial Frequency Sagittal Line Meridional Line
The MTF chart gives the results at the wide-open aperture.
Glassmold Aspherical Lens
1
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.3
0.2
0.1
0
IMAGE HEIGHT (mm)
CONTRAST
0 2.5 5 7.5 10 12.43
18

19

A Photoprocessing Engine Designed to Deliver Priceless Images
The brand-new “TRUE II”
image-processing engine
The DP1 offers a specially-designed
image-processing engine called
“TRUE”. For the DP2, we developed
this key technology further, creating
“TRUEII” and it was first incorporated
to the DP2. Applying our exhaustive
knowledge of the image-creation
mechanism of the direct image
sensor, we used a proprietary
algorithm to do full justice to its
uniquely sophisticated 3-D rendering
power, successfully optimizing both
the image-processing time and the
in-camera image processing itself.
Having focused our efforts on
optimizing and recording the pure,
rich signal captured by the sensor,
we were determined that the DP
series would be the only camera fully
able to deliver the optimal image
quality we had pursued throughout
our development of SLRs. The
rich optical signal captured by
the groundbreaking Foveon X3®
direct image sensor needed to be
translated into an information-rich
image. We entrusted that crucial task
to our new, improved “TRUE II”.
JPEG mode: photos
finished the Sigma way
JPEG images captured by the SIGMA
DP are photos finished in what Sigma
considers the most appropriate way.
If you find that the photos you take
in JPEG mode look the way you
intended, then by all means enjoy
the ease and convenience of the
JPEG setting. Your JPEG images are
ready to print – just plug the camera
into your printer – and the image
data files are ready to share with
your friends and family. If you want
email-friendly image files that can
be transferred straight from your
camera, JPEG mode wins hands-
down on convenience.
However, when you create a
JPEG file, the data is subjected to
irreversible compression, which
leaves very little scope for image-
correction afterwards. And here's
the rub: if you only shoot JPEG
mode, you may find it very difficult
to reproduce the photo you saw
in your mind's eye, which is your
own personal sensory experience.
If you've ever used a conventional
compact digital camera that only
has JPEG mode, you'll know how
unsatisfying the results can be.
Unfortunately, it can be extremely
difficult to fully express your artistic
vision using only JPEG images,
which are created using the camera's
automatic settings.
Photo-finishing software
designed to handle RAW files
The SIGMA DP has an X3F mode
(RAW file format) in which all
the image data captured by the
sensor can be recorded without
any significant deterioration in
camera performance. If you want
to do your own hands-on photo-
finishing, then for best results,
we recommend Sigma Photo Pro,
the image-processing software
designed exclusively for these X3F
files. You may think that “RAW data
processing” sounds like something
intimidatingly technical, requiring
high levels of knowledge and skill.
If so, just try Sigma Photo Pro for
yourself, and you'll soon find out
how easy it really can be. Sigma
Photo Pro focuses on only those
functions you really need for artistic
photo-finishing. Its interface is one
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