M8 in greenland &^%%(

[imported_reinierv]

After just 5 days in greenland, whe had a pretty heavy storm with lots of rain. For safety I put the M8 inside my backpack, rather than in the camera case outside. When back in camp the M8 was dead ^%#^& and could not be revived the rest of the 3 week trip. The screen showed a lot of moist in the camera.

So I have to send it back to Leica for repairs, it is 8 months old so still guarentee. Will they implement more decent weather sealing, that fit a 4K camera, or can I better dump the M8 if I make these kind of trips?

Worst of all I had to look 2 weeks and the dirty grin of a 400D+kitlens owner who even took pictures during the storm And even worse, the two weeks after that were the best weather since a long time in greenland...

Luckely I was clever enough to also pack an M6 and some film, intended for use when the 3 (I bought 2 brand new ones I thus never came to use) batteries would not last the trip...

[vanhulsenbeek]

Originally Posted by imported_reinierv

After just 5 days in greenland, whe had a pretty heavy storm with lots of rain. For safety I put the M8 inside my backpack, rather than in the camera case outside.

Sorry to hear that Reinier! Fortunately you could still use your lenses!

I have resorted to Ortlieb's products for this sort of eventualities:

-Last year in 6 hours walking in the rain in the Sumbawa jungle down Mount Tambora (Indonesia),
this waist-attachable 'Aqua-Cam' case helped: ORTLIEB product description

-and this year in South Africa and Namibia we religiously both kept our camera's in this 'Zip-City' shoulder bag:
ORTLIEB product description

plus all chargers, cards etc in this 'Rack-Rack' during dusty car rides:
ORTLIEB product description

Not pretty, but not expensive. Billingham insert used for the Zipcities ( can one get more snotty? )

[WPalank]

I always have a Zip-Lok bag inside my camera bag.
Also, in a pinch (learned this on the Forum somewhere), save those shower caps you find in the hotel room. They fit perfectly over the M8.

[jimmy pro]

Well yesterday when someone suggested useing the M8 in a monsoon and I was sceptical someone else posted this gem:

Originally Posted by jaapv

Hmmm. Tina Manley did. She appeared to be not too unhappy...
http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-...roof-m8-s.html

So maybe you should trade yours for the little-known Cousteau limited edition M8

[jaapv]

Beter to forget your swimming trunks than to forget your Pelican Case, Jimmy.

[jimmy pro]

Don't say that till you've seen me without my trunks

[imported_reinierv]

well...I got a message from Leica...water damage is not covered under waranty..so pay 2800euro's or bad luck

Now I'm really pissed of...I took good care of the camera and protected it. At the most it may have been a bit damp in the backpak. Budget camera's survided similar treatment...and my 4K pro camera doesn't.

Leica, you are amazing in the way you treat your customers.

Hopefully the insurance will pay after all or otherwise a lawyer (I have witnesses) has to come in...

If there is any way I will spend 2800euro's it will not be in getting my M8 repaired

[vanhulsenbeek]

Originally Posted by imported_reinierv

well...I got a message from Leica...water damage is not covered under waranty..so pay 2800euro's or bad luck

Now I'm really pissed of...I took good care of the camera and protected it. At the most it may have been a bit damp in the backpak. Budget camera's survided similar treatment...and my 4K pro camera doesn't.

Leica, you are amazing in the way you treat your customers.

Hopefully the insurance will pay after all or otherwise a lawyer (I have witnesses) has to come in...

If there is any way I will spend 2800euro's it will not be in getting my M8 repaired

Reinier!

Who is your dealer? He should help you and he should fight for his clients. Any dealer should! If he is in the Netherlands, he is in legal terms the party you should address.

I had a similar problem with my 3 months old Canon 20D, 1500 EUR at the time. It died in the tropics. Canon said: waterdamage/errosion so no warranty repair. Total loss. I did not accept that, had some interesting talks with my dealer, finally things went quite high up in Canon Europe and I got a refurbished camera in the end. And Canon has a very bad reputation in these matters.

My argument was: this is a semi-professional camera and it should hold out for years including use in inclement circumstances, barring of course immersion or fire or the like

If you have no dealer to fall back on, then you are on your own.

[kirkmingle]

2800 EUR! I hope you will not have to pay that. Maybe you have some insurance that covers the repair or at least some of the cost? (Now I'm really afraid to use my M8 on rainy days!)

[imported_reinierv]

as the dealer is not nearby but almost 2 hours driver, I send it to the imorter here in Holland directly. They offered me a new M8 for the same price, pretty decsent, but ofcourse I will not accept this...

It is a shame that these days you ave to really fight for your rights...
The bigger companies have a police to demoralize you and just hope you give up or don't take the trouble. I have the same with my rented appertment where the owner (a big company) used some nasty tricks to keep the rent low officially but take the profit form idiotic energy costs from a company they in the end also own...I'm close to another case for a lawyer...
(Problem is that it is pretty hard to fight that because they use different companes...)

[wattsy]

Originally Posted by imported_reinierv

well...I got a message from Leica...water damage is not covered under waranty..so pay 2800euro's or bad luck

€2800! It would be cheaper to buy a second hand M8 (what is a used one worth now - €2000?) though I'd understand if you felt it was like throwing good money after bad. Hopefully, your insurance will come through.

[jaapv]

I can understand this. Dropping the camera, water damage, being caught in a fire, how can any manufacturer give warrantee for that? Leica explicitely states that the camera is not weather protected.Those events are covered by insurance for that reason. And yes - an insurance company may well demand that you took reasonable care. I think, from your posts, that you will be well able to show that.
I really feel for you, it must be frustrating to the extreme, but honestly, lawyers won't be any help, unless Leica would want to avoid the costs and bad publicity from a lawsuit and settle (I hope for you that may be the case!)
Otherwise I would take Transcontinenta's offer if I were you and take all I could from my insurance.

Btw, I would recommend the use of a Lowe Omnitraveller camera case. In the circumstances you describe, it can fit it exactly into a Pelican case. Some Silicagel and it will keep out the moisture. Unfortunately keeping a camera in an extremely wet environment inside a damp bag for a longer period of time is exactly the worst-case scenario for moisture damage to the inside of the camera. It will give water the chance to insinuate itself into every nook and cranny. It is much worse than a short drenching.

[chris_tribble]

I don't understand... Is there no passport scheme in you countr? This covers all accidental damage in the UK.

[jaapv]

No, there isn't, Chris. So one has to take out separate insurance, fortunately not too expensive.

[Shootist]

I really feel for you but I agree with jaapv. Keeping the camera in a backpack that is being rained on and wet for a long period of time is probably the worst thing you could of done. Now maybe if it was in a plastic bag inside your backpack. What I'm finder hard to understand is just how do you take any picture with the camera inside a backpack. There was nothing to photograph on your walk/trek through the area you were in.

I any event good luck getting this sorted out and thanks for your experience. I now know what not to do if I'm ever caught in a downpour.

[vanhulsenbeek]

Originally Posted by Shootist

Now maybe if it was in a plastic bag inside your backpack

Outdoor stores in the Netherlands sell special ziplock bags for these eventualities.

But then: "il est trop tard de boucher la haie, quand la vache est partie".

[imported_reinierv]

the camera was put in thebackpack to protect it against rain...The backpack itself had a rain cover. When it was dry the camera was ofcourse outside the backack in de dedicated bag.

Ofcourse a bit damp it will always be, but it has not been exposed to water. So no exposure to any bad weather. Imo a pro camera as an M8 is should be able to withstand conditions like this, as discussed above. Or are we limmited to bring our camera to location with temeperatures of 20-30c and humidity of max 30%. If that is the case I will dump it right away and buy a 400D which seems to be able to cope with these conditons...

[sean_reid]

Originally Posted by imported_reinierv

After just 5 days in greenland, whe had a pretty heavy storm with lots of rain. For safety I put the M8 inside my backpack, rather than in the camera case outside. When back in camp the M8 was dead ^%#^& and could not be revived the rest of the 3 week trip. The screen showed a lot of moist in the camera.

So I have to send it back to Leica for repairs, it is 8 months old so still guarentee. Will they implement more decent weather sealing, that fit a 4K camera, or can I better dump the M8 if I make these kind of trips?

Worst of all I had to look 2 weeks and the dirty grin of a 400D+kitlens owner who even took pictures during the storm And even worse, the two weeks after that were the best weather since a long time in greenland...

Luckely I was clever enough to also pack an M6 and some film, intended for use when the 3 (I bought 2 brand new ones I thus never came to use) batteries would not last the trip...

For several years now I have been encouraging Leica (publicly and privately) to put put full weather seals in their digital M camera. People periodically report M8s that survive in the rain, etc. but those folks are reporting upon luck, ultimately. Since the camera isn't sealed it is vulnerable to moisture. Hopefully, at some point Leica will take that issue seriously because computers and water do not mix. There is a reason that Canon, Nikon, Pentax, Olympus and now Sony include seals in the camera bodies they promote for professional use.

The 400D owner got lucky. That camera isn't sealed either.

Cheers,

Sean

[sean_reid]

Originally Posted by imported_reinierv

well...I got a message from Leica...water damage is not covered under waranty..so pay 2800euro's or bad luck

Now I'm really pissed of...I took good care of the camera and protected it. At the most it may have been a bit damp in the backpak. Budget camera's survided similar treatment...and my 4K pro camera doesn't.

Leica, you are amazing in the way you treat your customers.

Hopefully the insurance will pay after all or otherwise a lawyer (I have witnesses) has to come in...

If there is any way I will spend 2800euro's it will not be in getting my M8 repaired

I sympathize with you completely and I hope that more and more people start to voice their requests for full seals in the M8. Simply put, the warranty doesn't cover moisture damage because the camera is not designed to withstand rain, snow, etc. Again, I've been trying to stress this for years now and would *love* to see Leica make this aspect a priority.

Cheers,

Sean

[sean_reid]

Originally Posted by jimmy pro

Well yesterday when someone suggested useing the M8 in a monsoon and I was sceptical someone else posted this gem:



So maybe you should trade yours for the little-known Cousteau limited edition M8

Tina has been fortunate so far. If others want to spin that wheel, it is only a few thousand dollars they're risking. I was shooting yesterday and hated having to put my M8 in a case when it started to rain. Some are willing to take the gamble and there are various stories out there of M8s that have gotten very wet and survived. But if the camera was designed to withstand that, the manual wouldn't caution against it.

Cheers,

Sean