jp_wirig Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 I was super close to buying an mp last year. I ended up buying a mamiya 7II. Now that the m9 is showing the M as a very viable system, I want to get into the game. I can't swing a m9 now but I want to get shooting now. What do you think of an m8 as a way to get rolling? Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aplumpton Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 <p>The Mamiya 7II gives you greater black and white image potential than a film Leica. Also for color. The M8 is turning into a good buy, as it is not far off the M9 in quality and much les expensive. If you shoot color you may need the IR cut filters on your lenses for some shots. Mint and lightly used M8s are in the 3000 dollar range, sometimes less. Wait to see the more rigorous comparative tests of M8 versus M9.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john_shriver Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 <p>Reasonable used M8's are at about $2300 and falling. But the difference in price now and a year from now will be small compared to the investment in lenses, which won't depreciate.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JDMvW Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 <p>Of <em><strong>course</strong> </em> it's crazy to spend so much for a few grams of metal and glass! I'd go for it if I had your feelings about it. ;)</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tedms gallery Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 <p>M8 is the way to go, especially if you already have some M-mount glass.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray . Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 <p>Assuming you want to shoot digital then yes, but make sure you either already have or can afford at least one good lens- with coding and IR filter if you want color.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wai_leong_lee Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 M8 better than m8.2 actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jp_wirig Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 Thanks for the replies. Yes I should clarify. I wanted my first full manual camera last year and had only a big dslr. I got the mamiya because it seemed like amazing quality for the price and I thought leica wasn't going to be able to transition to digi after I read some bad m8 reviews ( and the mamiya was a cheaper than leica for film.). The problem is that I just can't take enough photos with film because I cheap out and I also I want that instant gratification and feedback. I'm excited to hear that there's no fatal flaws with the m8 so I can maybe sell my mamiya and dip my toe into a system that looks like it's here to stay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nee_sung Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>Apart from the lack of instant gratification, were you comfortable with the range-finder system?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex_Es Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>JP you would be perfectly sane to get the original M8 (not M8.2) at this point. I love mine. The frames allow for close-up and give you leeway if you are shooting quickly and cannot frame perfectly. I also find that in distance shooting I can use an 85mm lens on the 75mm frames and a 100mm lens on the 90mm frames. It also shoots up to 1/8000 sec. which is way cool. I do not think that the M8's shutter is all that louder than M8.2's.</p> <p>Also a tip on coding. If you don't tell people you are using uncoded lenses no one will be the wiser.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bms Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>An M8 sold here I think for less than $2000. Go for it.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ray . Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>"If you don't tell people you are using uncoded lenses no one will be the wiser."</p> <p>I hope my friend Alex is saying this in jest! Eat right, get enough sleep, and if you're shooting color, use a coded lens.. ;) </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brent_nicastro Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>Been using one since they first came out and still love it as much as the day I got it. So much that I really have no desire to get the M9. I don't think mine will ever find its way onto the used market. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jp_wirig Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>I'll research the coded lenses issue as I'm sure there's lots of good info on that out there. <br> I just wanted the kind of "dust has settled" take on the original M8 and now I am pretty excited. <br> I have loved the rangefinder shooting and actually had a pretty good success rate of in-focus and correctly exposed photos. (artistry is another story)<br> I just mailed my Mamiya kit to keh to start raising funds (hey at least the M8 depreciated about as much as my mamiya 7 did)<br> Thanks again</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alastair_anderson Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 <p>This response may irritate a few people and I should say at the outset that it's a highly subjective opinion. Now that there is an M9 I would never consider buying an M8. I know that ultimately I would never be satisified with lenses longer than they were designed to be! For me, even at half its current price I wouldn't buy one because in the long run it would be money down the drain. It's just so much better to have full frame. </p> <p>This is not because I have to have the latest gear. If an M10 with better high ISO performance, a more detailed LCD etc. etc. were to come on the market, that would not preclude my buying an M9 as its price begins to decline, but the M8...no. The need for IR filters and a cropped frame means that ultimately I'd want to ditch it for a full frame version.</p> <p>I once owned a Canon EOS 5. I used it for a few years and took a lot of pictures that gave me much pleasure. However, in the end I traded it in for a used Leica M3 because the Canon had certain spec. limitations that I found increasingly irritating; the lack of a 100% finder being the main one.</p> <p>This is irrational because in capable hands the M8 will certainly deliver the goods, but I wouldn't buy one.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richard_francisco Posted October 5, 2009 Share Posted October 5, 2009 Don't believe all the reviews you read out there. A lot of the people who gripe about leica don't even own one or probably just used one to test in a shop. It's your opinion that matters the most. I bought one when it first came out. I shoot mostly color but never had any issues on magenta. I also never turn on the lens coding feature. Most of my lenses are new asph leicas but I have 2 voigtlanders but never had an issue with coding. If you like it, get one. It's a good camera and the only rangefinder that has a 1/8000 shutter speed allowing me to use my lenses with a wider aperture in sunny days. It's also got a 1/250 flash sync which is unavailable on the M8.2 or the M9 which for me puts the M8 in its own category. I'm not a pro although I have sold a few shots here and there so maybe my opinion won't hold much water against all the pros out there but if you got the itch, scratch it so long as you got some extra benjamins to burn.I'm still getting an M9 though and have already put myself on my dealer's waitlist. Funny how we call our camera gear suppliers dealers... It's almost like we're addicted to gear and the dealers have developed a new type of coccaine haha... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyr_smith Posted October 7, 2009 Share Posted October 7, 2009 <h1>Would I be crazy to buy an m8? ( not .2)</h1> <p>YES, or an M9 for that matter.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce_erickson1 Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 <p>Wait and get the Leica X1 and then review it for all of us. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
l_dasousa Posted October 8, 2009 Share Posted October 8, 2009 <p>If you will buy an M8 now for $2000-2200 and it falls to zero resale value in 3 years (which I am certain will not happen), you will still lose far less in those 3 years than would you to buy an M9 new, now. In a dSLR a crop factor is mostly 1.5-1.6, which is much more than the 1.3 of the M8 (which is similar to pro Canon 1D, not "S", series). Unlike crop-factor dSLR, the viewfinder in M8 is not tiny and dim. You can buy for about $500 a 12mm lens which give you the effective of 18mm on the M8. How much wider you need, honestly? Right now Leica have made full-frame for people who are stuck on that idea, but left some problems incompletely solved. Maybe the M10 will have a much-improved sensor with 3 stops better noise, and no IR at all, but that is not the M9.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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