Jump to content

Leica M Edition 60: 'Pure Photography' as the Df should have been done?


sunray1

Recommended Posts

<p>No menu's, no display, only RAW, manual focus, just shutterspeed, aperture and ISO-dials...good build quality and nice vintage looks/size...<br>

Seems like Leica did what a lot of Df-purists were hoping for...<br>

So it is possible.. albeit in a limited production run and at a price...<br>

Now that such a camera is no longer a fantasy I must say I'm intrigued. As a lover of film SLR's as well as my D3 I like the idea but know for sure I will never in my life be able to afford such a camera.<br>

What do you think: would you buy one if Nikon ever came up with something like that?</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 77
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

<p>Sincerely, I`m more impressed by the box than by the camera (for those interested, <a href="http://player.vimeo.com/video/106204759?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0?wmode=transparent">here is the video</a>).<br /> I`m sorry, I still cannot understand why they want to convince us that their fatty hyper technologic electronic digital cameras feel like an old film camera... this one must have a load of blocked connections inside. (I wonder if it could be converted to a "normal M" by changing the housing at Solms... ;) Otherwise, it`s a very nice&expensive toy, as usual.<br>

I simply prefer to buy film and enjoy a <em>real</em> film camera.</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>My next purchase -later this year hopefully- probably will be the Df, and I'll be perfectly happy with that.<br /> However, if Nikon should ever come out with something like this <strong><em>at Df-price</em></strong> (!!!) I think I'd buy one and shoot the crap out of it. No glass case and white gloves here :-)</p>
Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>To put things into perspective, here is a link to that announcement: http://www.engadget.com/2014/09/16/leica-m-edition-60/</p>

<p>It is a limited edition of 600 units, with serial numbers from 001 to 600. If I translate that into English, it is a clear indication for a rare, collector's item. The price tag is 15K Euros or a little below US$20K.</p>

<p>I am looking forward to DXO Mark testing its sensor quality. :-)</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>There are some things I like about digital, there are some things I like about film. This new Leica does everything I like about film (simple controls, waiting to see the photos till some later point in time). In fact, given the price, I'll just get a film camera. The money saved buys me a lot of rolls, the scanner and so on.<br>

And I'll let my digital camera do what it's best at too. That includes having a screen so I can experiment, and try again while still in the place. Sometimes that instant feedback is perfect. Sometimes not as needed, in which case I'll take one of my filmcameras (which nearly all fit your description), and shoot the hell out of them, just more slowly and reasoned, with less experimenting.</p>

<p>That said.... Leica at least tries, for which kudos, and they seem to understand their niche market well and come up with products they manage to sell at pretty substantial prices. Nikon, I fear, is too large for that, the Df was already a surprisingly niche entry as it is.</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>Oh no! And all this time I should have been wearing gloves with my FM3a!<br>

Sorry, but this whole un-boxing thing is out of control. I mean, does it really hook people?<br>

I am for the striving of simplicity, and I do commend Leica for exercising gravitas in this type of offering, but the collector angle is a turn off, in spite of the fact that the camera is a great machine.</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>If you really want an "old time camera" just set your DSLR to M - Manual Mode, set the light meter to Center Weight, mount a 50mm or equivalent lens, and turn off autofocus and auto ISO. Voila, and old time camera. Want it small and compact, go with one of the entry level models.</p>
Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>If Nikon could make the Df the size of the F3HP, and leave off the LCD and all the buttons and dials, and just give it two controls, Shutter Speed and ISO, with a built in Matrix light meter, make it shoot NEF and make it compatible with all Nikkor F glass, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.</p>

<p>I love the concept of the Leica M60, not real crazy about their execution and price though.</p>

<p>Best,<br>

-Tim</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>I'm not a professional photographer and for me this is all about 'fun' and has nothing to do with logic or being 'better than' or so. And as far as fun goes: to each it's own...<br>

20K is no fun though, for a camera I'd like to use everyday, everywhere. Maybe at 3K I'd indulge in such fun, if I could afford it...<br>

Meanwhile I'm having daily fun with either the D3 or the F2, 3, 4 or 5 :-)</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>That unboxing ritual was less impressive than the Hermes edition Leica videos of a few years ago. The Hermes edition videos even featured a mini-documentary on the making of the boxes itself. Hey, if I'm gonna spend $20,000 or more on an orange manpurse, it had better come with a fancy box and documentary video. The Leica M Edition 60 video didn't even bother with white balance or avoiding blown highlights in the white gloves. I'm not gonna buy a $20,000 manpurse camera from a guy with a pink shirt and blown white glove highlights. Phooey.</p>

<p>Semi-seriously, this is one of Leica's more interesting publicity stunts. For years some purists and Luddites have been claiming they really want a digital camera that works exactly like a basic manual film camera. These Leicas will go to a dozen or so high profile photographers, some with social media clout, whose very name association will lend credibility no matter how lukewarm or merely polite their responses. If the responses and public comments seems favorable, I wouldn't be surprised if Leica eventually offers a somewhat more affordable version - although most of us wouldn't consider even the least expensive new Leica M affordable.</p>

<p>It's more likely another more adventurous manufacturer will steal their thunder and offer a truly affordable stripped down digital camera - no rear LCD, just basic controls. This is the sort of thing I can imagine Sony doing, perhaps based on their RX1 chassis. And I keep wondering whether the folks at Cosina might have a digital Bessa up their sleeves - they already have the rangefinder part of the mechanism. A partnership between Sony or perhaps Fuji and Cosina/Voigtlander could be interesting for producing an affordable Luddite's dream camera.</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>This is something I also have never understood... they like to say "<em>concentrate on the essential</em>", supposedly, only the essential controls are the ones you will find on pure photography but, it is not more <em>essential</em> to concentrate on the subject???</p>

<p>Thanks to the AE we started to really concentrate on the subject, and not in the exposure. It was a significant advantage, the speed. Now, we have the AF systems. The auto ISO and WB. Automatisms, are made to improve image quality, not photography quality. I also understand that pure photography is not about the gear, but on the <em>decisive moment</em>, where only the shutter should be the essential camera control.</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>Anyone knows the dimesnion of the M 60 vs say and M7 or MP? I bet even without the LCD it's significantly thicker (lens mount to back) than the film counterpart. The M9 and M 240 are way thicker than the M7 or MP. Leica could throw in the advance level just for cocking the shutter and yeah the shutter can be mechanical. </p>
Link to comment
Share on other sites

<blockquote>

<p>If Nikon could make the Df the size of the F3HP, and leave off the LCD and all the buttons and dials, and just give it two controls, Shutter Speed and ISO, with a built in Matrix light meter, make it shoot NEF and make it compatible with all Nikkor F glass, I'd buy one in a heartbeat.<br /><br />I love the concept of the Leica M60, not real crazy about their execution and price though.Best,<br /> -Tim</p>

</blockquote>

<p>+1<br />I don't consider myself a Luddite, but admit that I have a weak spot for some things that aren't really logical or practical, but which I enjoy using. <br /><br />A stripped down, affordable digital camera -preferably made by Nikon- would fit nicely along my newly made, (and thus reliable), single channel, non master volume tube amp with 'just' 18 Watts and a single 12" speaker and my Triumph Thunderbird Sport which is a 900cc retro looking naked bike with 'just' 82HP, limited luggage options and not much comfort but with great looks, plenty torque and modern brakes and suspension :-)</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

<p>So, there was no "Pure Photography" before the sainted Oskar cobbled together his oddly formatted tin box?</p>

<p>Squinting through an undersized peephole at a double image that has to be placed centrally over the subject to focus has never struck me as a very good way to go about things really. All those detractors of the focus-and-recompose method should readily agree - Oh, that's unless they happen to be Leica fanboys as well.</p>

<p>I once dared to post a question in the Leica forum some years back; innocently asking why Leica had apparently made little attempt to give their digital model a full-frame sensor. I was immediately lambasted with numerous patronising and, frankly, insulting replies, which lowered my opinion of Leica collectors (and I use the term in its most patronising and insulting way) considerably. Lo and behold, within less than a year Leica had brought out a full-frame model, despite my having been told in no uncertain terms that the technical difficulties of designing a full-frame sensor of a high-enough standard were nearly unsurmountable.</p>

<p>I've nothing against precision engineering at a realistic price, but Leica are just taking the mickey now. The M5 60 is a computer pretending to be an abacus, and hardly anybody is going to take pictures worth a damn with the thing. Real professionals will totally ignore it, as will anyone else that isn't still living in the last century and hankering after the rubbish quality that "only film can deliver".</p>

<p>So Leica fans, stop trying to flame this forum and go and troll your own kind. I for one am quite happy to adapt to new technology and embrace what it can offer. I like the flexibility of being able to change the ISO and white balance on the fly, and to check exposures with a histogram. Pure Photography? Pure snobbish drivel more like!</p>

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now



×
×
  • Create New...