david_bolduc Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 Today I had the pleasure of playing with the Leica CM at my local camera shop. I must admit that I had been waiting for this day for three weeks since I first found out that the Leica representative was going to be there with all the new stuff. Of course I arrived early and prepared with a roll of cheap Fujipress 400 film, and fortunately the rep was kind enough to let me run a roll of film through this beautiful little camera. On first handling the CM I must say that the size seemed about right. It wasn't too big or too small. The build was VERY nice and solid, but I guess that's what you should expect from a $1000 point and shoot made in GERMANY. The auto focus was amazingly fast, and the shutter and winder were so quiet that I accidentally took three shots in the beginning of the roll because I just didn't realize I had taken any pictures at all. Surprisingly enough, each one of these pictures was in perfect focus as was the whole rest of the roll. In addition, I noticed that the metering was excellent, and I certainly tried to fool it by taking pictures indoors and outdoors with both brightly lit and dark backgrounds. I tried the manual settings for aperture and focusing. Everything worked like it was supposed to. The viewfinder was fairly bright and the aperture and shutter speed were displayed clearly inside. At this point I really wanted one, but my wife, who had accompanied me, was happy to hear that no CM's were in stock and that the next shipment would only arrive in the U.S. in January. Damn, no nice Christmas present for me this year. After I scanned all my pictures on my Minolta Dimage 5400, I looked at each photograph carefully and drew these observations. Each picture was well exposed and correctly focused. The indoor shots that I took with the aperture locked wide open were a little softer than those taken closed down a bit, but that's no surprise. The ones with the lens closed down were very sharp, contrasty and colorful. I saw no light fall off on the edges. Obviously, this camera has a nice lens, and the pictures were comparable to what I usually get with my nice SLR. As for whether it's worth the money, only you can make that choice. All I can say is that it's ten times better than my $100 point and shoot. Now if I can only convince myself that I need another camera�<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allen Herbert Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 shoot made in GERMANY Wow, i better rush out and buy one before they are sold out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff_rivera5 Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 All right, I stick my neck out, are congradulations in order David? If she's not pregnant, than I'm sorry and the lens is crap, 'cause it distorts peoples torsos! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_bolduc Posted December 11, 2003 Author Share Posted December 11, 2003 No she's not pregnant, but I wouldn't call her fat to her face. Probably just posture. Here's another shot.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanford Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 David - does it have diopter control built in? and Jeff, I think your in big trouble. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_bolduc Posted December 11, 2003 Author Share Posted December 11, 2003 Another outdoor shot.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
roger_michel Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 as i said in my own post on the subject, IMO the CM is an absurd failure. the notion that the camera has to focus/calculate exposure before every shot -- whether or not you have preset manual focus and manual f stop setting -- makes it totally unsuitable for any kind of spontaneous photography. combine that with a shutter speed range that varies significantly depending on shutter speed, the lack of any facility for filters/shade, slow AF as compared to the t3 or gr1, a very high price compared to these other cameras, minimal custom settings, and you are left with a trophy camera for f-----lers. it would have been so easy to cherry pick the best features of the t3/hexar/gr1, add leica build quality and glass, and produce a worldbeater. instead, the company has produced an escort wrapped in mercedes sheet metal. it is a sad comment that the new kyocer s5r is MUCH faster to fire than the new CM. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allen Herbert Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 I'm so excicted i've ordered two. i do hope it's got a diopter control built in, i don't think i can contain myself anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patricks Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 that 2.4 disappoints me as well. some shallower DoF would have been nice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_bolduc Posted December 11, 2003 Author Share Posted December 11, 2003 I'm sorry to hear that you don't like the Leica CM Jeff, but I wrote the review for those who are interested in this little camera. I think the best thing for people to do is to throw a roll of film in the CM like I did, and then see if they like the results. I believe this is what you should do with every camera you are contemplating getting. If it suits your taste and your budget, then you should get it. As for me, the CM suited my needs, though probably not my budget.<div></div> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeff_rivera5 Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 "and Jeff, I think your in big trouble." What else is new! Clearly the lens has a major problem, making that young women look, eh..humm... large! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruno_menilli Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 David Thanks for taking the time to post your impressions of this new camera for everyone. Some will like it and others not, but it's strange that it's always those who don't like something who feel that gives them the moral right to' take the piss' out of someone's efforts. I hope you get one, for the new year! Regards Bruno Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jerry_freeman1 Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 David thanks for your efforts. No good deed shall go unpunished...jf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john15 Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 I wonder if any of these so-called upscale, expensive P/S cameras offer more bang for the buck than the Olympus Stylus Epic or my Rollei 35? I've been playing with the idea of buying a T3 from Delta International [$530, no USA warranty]. From what I know of the camera, Kyocera is still putting them together with that crappy one tooth take up spool that will cost about $150 to replace when it fails. Still, small camersa are nice to carry around. Think I'll order another Stylus before Olympus stops making them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_neuthaler Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 Jeff, stop talking! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david_bolduc Posted December 11, 2003 Author Share Posted December 11, 2003 John, the epic will probably give you the most bang for the buck, but it certainly is not in the same league as the CM. I own the original Olympus Stylus (the $100 camera I refered to) and I tried an epic. I think the CM is far superior in every way except cost. To be honest, I'm not sure if the Contax T3,Ricoh GR1 and Minolta TC-1 are worth the money, but I bet their owners think they are worth every penny they paid for them. As for me, I've been bidding on Ebay (really bottom fishing) for a nice Rollei 35. I've heard wonderful things about the Sonnar and Tessar lenses, and I want to give them a try. Of course these all manual cameras are a lot slower than the modern P&S. I guess you can't have everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsr Posted December 11, 2003 Share Posted December 11, 2003 Roger, The Hexar RF gave us Leica build and lens quality and we let the poor thing die ! If we want quality we must buy quality. Best Regards, Bill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael_marsh1 Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 YOU know,ROGER, i would never refer to anyone who wanted a high quality point and shoot as any kind of a loser at all.We should be gad that leica and others are bringing out new film based products.I use an m6 on a regular basis but would consider this as a better than average back up with better than average glass.I wont flame you because it is beneath me to do so.I will tell you that i respect everyones choice of equipment weather its a leica,nikon, minolta or a kodak hawk-eye.My nose is always on the level mj marsh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_kennedy2 Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 David, you can and do have everything! You are married to a very lovely young lady who is light years away from fat. I enjoyed your photos and your review of the CM. Thank you. For Jeff: I haven't got around to trying that very nice f4.0 90mm Elmar you sent met (December in Seattle isn't the greatest) but, sorry, you can't have it back. For all: based on my own personal experience, one must never, never, never ask a woman if she is pregnant or assume that she is. You can't stand the alternative. Thank you all for an amusing and entertaining thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 This and other CM/T3/Minilux threads have finally done in my resolve to get a CM. Too many problems and shortcomings have been reported from E0n shutter errors(CM & Minilux), take up spools with one tooth!(T3), AF lag (and now manual focus lag on the CM) i have just rung Ffordes in bonny Scotland and relieved them of an 'as new', boxed Contax T2 for £345 plus P&P (delivery tomorrow a.m.). This is half the UK price of a T3 or a CM and I know the camera well having used a T2 for over a year in 2000 - 2001 before I (stupidly) sold it to a friend. I have 9 days off starting tomorrow and will be putting it through its paces with Agfa Ultra 100, Reala and T400CN (English weather allowing) next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watts Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 Trevor, I thought your wife had already bought you a CM for Christmas? For what it's worth, I have bought and sold a number of cameras over the last few years and the T2 is the only one I regret having sold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john15 Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 OK, so the only two P&S cameras that were really worthy to be called cameras, the Hexar RF and the Contax T2, are no longer made. I'm curious: if they were so good, why were they taken out of production? I like small, take 'em with you where ever cameras [i enjoy bicycle touring]. The M is not a great, IMO, bicycling camera because the rangefiner is likely to vibrate out of adjustmentand it is a bit on the heavy end because of its all mechanical construction. In some ways, the P&S is actually a more rugged camera for this kind of use. Of course, the Rollei 35 is wonderful as it lacks any kind of rangefinder to go out of wack. The Hexar AF is kinda big to be called a P&S as is the CM. I'm willing to pay the $$$ for first rate quality, integrity, reliability, etc, but mostly what I seem to be seeing is a lot of boutique hype and similar bull---t. Where can I expect to find a really good T2, and what can I expect to go wrong with it? I would appreciate feedback from actual anecdotal experiences from users of the T2. Thanks much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Smith Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 I had a T2 and very happily sold it. As to Roger Michel's comments about the CM having slow focus compared to the GR1 then this has to be the world's slowest focusser - completely at odds with David's comments above. How does one account for this? It takes nothing to throw the GR1 off AF focussing - in fact I find it pretty useless for any action on AF (often it fails to focus even if the object is still). You can preset the focus on the GR1 though which I assume is what you are talking about? Don't care about the filters thing on a P & S. Personally I think that once you start worrying about filters then you might as well take your "real" kit. Robin Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Smith Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 I had a T2 and very happily sold it. As to Roger Michel's comments about the CM having slow focus compared to the GR1 then this has to be the world's slowest focusser - completely at odds with David's comments above. How does one account for this? It takes nothing to throw the GR1 off AF focussing - in fact I find it pretty useless for any action on AF (often it fails to focus even if the object is still). You can preset the focus on the GR1 though which I assume is what you are talking about? Don't care about the filters thing on a P & S. Personally I think that once you start worrying about filters then you might as well take your "real" kit. Robin Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
terry_rory Posted December 12, 2003 Share Posted December 12, 2003 Ian, Hi. My wife was unable to get this ordered at the time due to it not being in the country. So she has arranged something else. (Probably a new PC which we sorely need.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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