Jason's Camera Changed My Life

And this is it! This is the last picture with Jason's monochrome fp(m), and the last picture in the Flickr album of test shots. A BIG thanks to Jason for the loan of the camera.

My own fp(m) came home yesterday. Since I now have both cameras here, I spent the evening making a series of comparison shots to make sure the new camera is working as expected (it is), comparing the various menu settings so I can start where I left off, and doing a few boring tests. Oh, and I also thoroughly perfluxed and bedaddled my decrepit old brain by spending a solid hour turning the house, grounds, drawers, and dog upside down looking for the new fp's battery charger! Sure, I had Jason's attached to an outlet in the kitchen, where I've been charging the battery for weeks now, but what in the world did I do with mine? I must have looked through the box three times, as if I couldn't believe it wasn't there, and searched high and low for the thing, wondering all the while why I had removed it from the box and what I possibly could have done with it.

You're ahead of me, aren't you? I finally thought to check the "in the box" list at Adorama, where I bought the kit...and...there's no charger included. And the proper USB charger of Jason's I've been using costs ninety-five dollars. NINETY-FIVE DOLLARS. And it's nothing special, just a regular old garden-variety charger. Cheap little bits o' plastic 'n' wire. So that's one way they get you. Sheesh.

Don't run out of 'film'
While I'm confessing my peccadilloes, I guess I have to admit that I drove to Geneva three nights ago and on the way home saw a wonderful scene with roiling clouds and the sun struggling to peep through. I screeched to a halt, backtracked, grabbed the camera and jumped out of the car, and..."No Media." Fer Pete's sake, Mike, really?

Well, that won't happen again. With the new camera, a new card goes in whenever the old one comes out, no exceptions. Sheesh!

Mike

Featured Comments:

Albert Smith: "I was in the Air Force and whenever a major (or even minor) component was removed from an aircraft, besides the usual documentation in the aircraft forms, a tag was put on to let others know that things were removed and to not try to use as normal. In my own life I do continue with this practice. I made up several tags: 'NO BATT' and 'NO CARD' and I tie them to the camera strap with bread twist ties any time that I remove either the battery (for charging) or the card (for direct uploading). I have several cameras, and this practice has absolutely saved me from grabbing an inoperable camera for what would be a disappointing outing."

Grant: "On behalf of the TOP readers, I would like to nominate Jason for the Nobel, or Pulitzer, or something that's worthy of his contribution to TOP. This series of posts have been among the best ever seen here. Thank you Jason."

Not THAT Ross Cameron: "LOL—you’re not the only one. I have a nice little kit for a Nikon 1 V2 and a few lenses. If the family is going for a bushwalk somewhere, I like to bring it along. If I’m planning for it, I’ll get things organised the night before, and all goes well. If I think to myself 'I’ll grab it in the morning,' then I’ll quickly grab the bag on the way out of the house, and once we get to the start of the walk I invariably face one of these three things: flat battery, no battery, or no card. You’d think I’d learn…."

Comments

[Roger Bradbury]

After I managed to go out with no card in the camera, I swore it would never happen again.

You've all guessed it; I did it again. Now I keep a card permanently in my wallet, for when I forget yet again. I've only used it once so far...

[brian]

FWIW, I've used my Sony A7R III for five years now without using the supplied battery charger. I simply charge a battery in the camera using a USB-C cable plugged the camera's port and into into either a portable power pack or an Apple wall wart. Something like this could work with your fp(M).

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1335192-REG/pearstone_usb31_3cmam3_usb_3_1_gen2_c_m_a_m.html

[Greg Heins]

Yes, I wasn’t keen on the Sigma fp idea of charging in the camera. But then I discovered, courtesy of some guy in Austin who also has one, that the clutch of batteries that I have for my Lumix FZ1000, and the charger for them, also work in the fp.

[Greg Smoczyk]

The fp battery could be directly charged via USB-C.
Thx

[scott kirkpatrick]

No media, huh? My Leica M11 couldn't figure out how to make room for two chips in its film-slim frame, so they embedded 64 GB of writeable store into the new processor that is inside it. Once chip comes out, the other is always inside, and the internal chip is a bit faster than the inserted one. They sure made some fine lemonade out of that one.

[Mike Ferron]

"No Media." Fer Pete's sake,”
Mike you are refined and polite. Even if I don’t verbalize my thoughts I think in harsher terms when that happens. (And it does happen).

[Dave]

Mike,

A replacement unit for my Pentax K1II only costs $49.00 and it's got the "deluxe" features that the cheap units don't include. (Won't overcharge the battery and catch fire, etc.) A quick charge unit is available for $100, but my "in the box" charger is fast enough. I just bought extra batteries. :>)

[Zack S]

Now that your have the camera why not keep it in your vehicle? Get a cheap bag to store it in, a few spare batteries and a tripod. Then no matter where you are you will always have a camera with you. And you will never have an excuse about the "shot that got away". Oh and always store it out of sight of thieves!

[james wilson]

In my FP I use the batteries that I had for my GH2 and the charger as well. Spares on Amazon.

[Ralph]

Zack S suggested "why not keep it in your vehicle?"

Personally, I've never been comfortable leaving a camera/lens in our car because of concern about damage from the extreme heat of the sun beating down on a closed vehicle. (Check the specs for the permitted temperature range.)

Also because cars are often broken into by thieves. (I've got insurance, but dealing with an insurance company has been an awful experience for me, every single time, so best avoided.)

[ChrisC]

Is it just a USB charger? When it comes to USB, there can be a big difference in chargers. Nowadays, fancy expensive ones (PD capable) can push out over 100 watts of power. An old of cheap one might just be giving you 5 or 10 watts. Depending on your device, that can make a huge difference to your charging time. (Don’t get started on cables as the power and data rate specifications are separate, so you can get a fancy “fast charge” cable which only does 480 Mb data transfer)

[Hank]

I found a nice leather "wallet" that holds a battery (I never seem to forget to take a spare battery) and two SD cards. Handy!

(I'd post a pic here, but I do not know how)

[Bruce Polin]

Mike, have you heard that the newly released Hasselblad X2D has 1TB of hyper fast BUILT-IN ssd storage? There's also a CF Express slot for even extra shooting capacity or, perhaps, dual-write backup of files.
I think this is a brilliant idea that I would think will, or should, catch on with other brands. Anyway, with the X2D you will never leave home without "film."

[Bill Giokas]

I lost my lens cap for my LEICA 90 MM LENS . Replacement cost $50
for a simple lens cap but oh I’m paying for the Leica name on a piece of plastic! Bill

[Olybacker]

Life as a pro photographer always (ahem, always should) teach(es) that back-up kit is essential: batteries, memory cards, lenses, camera bodies, flash units.