Reichmann's M8 review is up

[Niels - NHSN]

Fyi:

<p>

Michael Reichmann has published his review and video blog. An interesting

read:<br>

<a href="http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/leica-

m8.shtml">http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/leica-m8.shtml</a>

<p>

<i>I don' t think that in all my years of writing camera reviews I've ever been

as generous in my comments about a new camera as I have been here with regard

to the Leica M8. But, try as I might I find little to fault in any regard. The

conversion of the M series from film-based to digital has been accomplished

about as well as one could wish, and almost all of the hallmark Leica

qualities, refined over more than a half century of making essentially the same

model, have been retained.</i>

[david k.]

Michael has been a long time Leica shooter, and has been very caught up in the digi stuff for some time. But like most of us that are long time users realise, there is something special about shooting with a M series.

[john_brewton]

Just finished it. I think perhaps Leica has actually superceded expectations for this new body. It would appear to be everything we wanted and then some. Plus a two year warranty should allay any fears of reliablility problems on a new product. Perhaps I'll be able to afford a used one after the warranty has run out...

One thing for certain - Michael wrote a bang-up review!

[mattalofs]

Two seconds for startup? That's a bummer.

[kjetil_h_iby]

Matt:

I suppose one could just leave it on..? With the LCD turned off and the metering not engaging unless you half-press the shutter - nothing would be drawing much power. And if you need to get the camera from "transport" to "shooting mode" (whether you carry it in a backpack or other luggage of medium accessibility) in a hurry, flicking the switch when you reach for the camera will have it ready very soon after if not before you can point it in the right direction. This is just my experience with the Minolta 7D (which spins the AF-screw on each start up if not set to the hidden full MF mode) over the last year, but our expectancies may vary! :)

 

Back on topic:

I really do need to win the lottery some time soon..

 

Regards

Kjetil

[adrian bastin]

Takes me longer than that to get a camera the right way up....

 

then take the lens cap...um....off - that's right.

[mattalofs]

The battery life will determine if leaving it on is a sensible approach. It might well be.

 

It doesn't take two seconds to bring a camera up to your eye, or at least it didn't with the 10D and the 7D, both of which often left me waiting. This was particularly annoying with the 7D, which couldn't be left on for any amount of time without it eating up the battery. After experiencing the instant on of the D80, I'm not willing to be left waiting.

 

On the other hand, since the RF doesn't need to be powered up for one to start focussing - unlike an AF camera - perhaps the power on delay won't be as much of an issue.

[steven_moseley1]

Hiya,

 

" Plus a two year warranty should allay any fears of reliablility problems"

 

Why should this be any cause for celebration? Hyundai manages to give FIVE years warranty with it's far more complicated but rather average cars. Why on earth cannot Leica give a similar one on it's alleged brilliant products?

 

cheers Steve.

[william john smith]

<I>Two seconds for startup? That's a bummer.</I><P>Love the sound of a good whine in

the morning.<BR>BTW, how long does it take for a M7 meter to kick in after turning it on?

[Brad_]

<I>Love the sound of a good whine in the morning.</i> <P>

 

Yeah, and no doubt there will be even more whiners annoyed that exposure compensation is

set through the LCD panel on the back.

[george_caramanna]

Reichmann is a gear head and seems to buy one of everything. No problem with that.

 

This being said, it appears that the camera is competent and has an image quality equal to other cameras. So whats the point of buying it? This must be the equivalent of the coach handbag for women. More of an accessory for showing off to the rest of us geeks.

 

This being said by a guy (me) who has both a canon eos 1ds and leica m4-p. The thing I like about the leica is its size and being all mechanical.

[fate_faith_change_chains]

We don't wanna know about evil, we only wanna know about love...Sometimes it gets so

hard to listen, hard for us to use our eyes and all around the gold is glistening, making

sure it keeps us hypnotised.

 

Love & Evil by Jean Jacques Smoothie now playing in my Itunes, great song...

[vinay_patel]

I have to wonder when I see these reviews and the endless "commentary" that follows on various fora and blogs, are any people who are honestly undecided and read the reviews to help make a decision, or do mostly people read them to look for confirmation of the decision they've already made, to buy or not to buy. Or, in the case of Leicas, to love or hate :-)

[david k.]

Interesting that while Mr. Reichmann has a complete review, there is nothing on Mr. Puts's site.

 

Has something changed, as to who gets the first official test cameras??

[paul hart]

I think Vinay is on the mark here, although for my part had Reichman and other reviewers

with some credibility given it a caning, I would have allowed my name to slip down my

dealer's order list while things became clearer. For now, it remains nailed to the top...

[mattalofs]

"Yeah, and no doubt there will be even more whiners annoyed that exposure compensation is set through the LCD panel on the back."

 

Yup, pretty that's dumb too. And so is having to take off the baseplate to change the battery.

 

SD cards, now that was a smart choice.

[james_to]

I wonder if the findings concerning image quality in the above review are also relevant/applicable to the DMR?

 

Michael Reichmann makes comparison with 5D or 1Ds2, but does not mention DMR at all. Can any DMR users comment on how the M8 and DMR images may be similar in light of Michael's review?

[mark_amos]

"I have to wonder when I see these reviews and the endless "commentary" that follows on various fora and blogs, are any people who are honestly undecided and read the reviews to help make a decision, or do mostly people read them to look for confirmation of the decision they've already made, to buy or not to buy. Or, in the case of Leicas, to love or hate :-)"

 

Vinay, I recognize that your oversimplification or wonderment is more a cynical commentary on the consumer than the reviewer, and perhaps I share it, but this review is very helpful to me. Unlike some, I do read a lot of what is available to help direct my track, and I can deal with delayed gratification. I want to decide whether to buy some DSLR I don't really want or wait until the digital rangefinder alternative might someday be available at a price I can responsibly afford. I won't be buying an M8 at that price, but these reviews help me decide to what extent the goal of an ergonomic digital rangefinder camera should remain a priority on my radar. If Leica can't do it for $4800, then I might as well buy a...(I'm not sure what), but if they can do it, and it appears that they have, then perhaps Cosina will do something acceptable through Epson or Zeiss, and I'll just keep having my film scanned as I see it unfold.

 

I like defining my need and taking my time to select what will fulfill it, studying equipment and enjoying the act of photography and the result all the way. Have a little faith. We are not all fools.

[Jim_Tardio]

<i>exposure compensation is set through the LCD panel on the back.</i>

<p>

That's a biggie, IMO. Not a wise decision at all by Leica.

[kevin m.]

Having read the reviews of the M8, I finally made a deposit.

 

But the deposit was for the purchase of a brand new film scanner. $1,000 for a new

Coolscan 5000 lets me keep my 'cheap' film bodies that aren't so f-ing precious that I can't

take them out in public. I also get to keep my fast, wide glass. Plus my

electronics depreciation stays right where it belongs: in my office next to the computer.

[mikko_kalavainen]

What does that wheel on the back do when you're shooting? Are the 4 buttons next to it assignable to something when you're shooting? I bet they are.

Why doesn't the answers to these questions ever seem to come up in these "reviews?"

 

Do the Big Guys think they don't need to read the manuals because "hey, it's a Leica, I can use it with my eyes closed!"?

[jtdnyc]

<exposure compensation is set through the LCD panel on the back>

 

For traditional Leica photographers who don't use AE, exposure compensation will NOT be set on the LCD panel on the back -- it will be set by turning the aperture ring on the lens or the shutter speed dial on the camera body, just as it has with every Leica except the M7, and even with the M7 in manual mode.

 

The relatively few Leica photographers who are accustomed to using their M7 in AE mode and haven't figured out how to compensate for backlighting by metering a darker part of the scene and then depressing the shutter button halfway to lock exposure may have to set exposure compensation through the LCD screen.

 

I realize that having a separate, easily accessible control for every function might be desirable in an automated camera, but I think Leica balanced this consideration against Leica users' oft-expressed desire that the digital M should be as clean and simple as possible, like a film M.

 

Time will tell whether these users are happy getting what they asked for.

[mattalofs]

"oft-expressed desire that the digital M should be as clean and simple as possible"

 

From a human interface design perspective, modal buttons on the back of the camera are actually inferior to a tactile single function dial. A lack of controls doesn't necessarily indicate simplicity.

 

In a perfect world, the M8 would have been a Hexar RF with a sensor crammed in and a top plate lcd to show ISO, WB, battery etc. WB would have been set with a ring around the lens mount a la shutterspeeds on a OM.

[Brad_]

<I>For traditional Leica photographers who don't use AE...</I><P>

 

Those <I>Leica</I> photographers are probably best served by staying with film. Others,

who want to embrace digital, won't feel the need to be shackeled to how things were done

50 years ago.<P><P>

 

<I>Time will tell whether these users are happy getting what they asked for.</I><P>

 

Really? OK, so apparently users were asked and responded that they wanted AE, but didn't

want an easy method for setting compensation Anyone on this forum asked by Leica what

they wanted? Perhaps the removable baseplate to change memory cards and battery? <P>

 

Matt gets it. Good user design/ergonomics is more than just slamming a function/control

into a menu.

[dan_brown4]

I sold my Leica gear when I went digital in '03. The M8 has me trolling back over here, and

I just bookmarked the Leica Forum again.