Leica gent dismisses idea of new Monochrom

[Michael Markey]

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I`ve read that the new model is to be annouced in May.

[Gibbo]

You're sounding a bit like Bill Clinton here.

 

I'm sorry

 

I shall give myself a good talking to

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[ndevlin]

Victoria, that has to be one of the silliest things I've heard out of a salesman, since a moron at Vistek in Toronto opined to me how 'a digital rangefinder was impossible as a matter of physics' about 30 days before the M8 was announced. Chalk it up to a real life version of the dpreview forum

 

All sensors are, by definition 'black and white', or rather luminance-measuring devices only. The Bayer matrix is an add-on. There is no reason why a CMOS device, sans bayer, cannot produce a native black and white image just as well as a CCD can. The fact that stunning B&W conversions are QED from the best CMOS 'colour' sensors is proof enough of that fact.

 

A more obvious indicator, however, is the significant rebate on the MM which has been in place for most of 2015. That is the clearest sign that a new model is coming.

 

Perhaps we will all be proven wrong, but a new MM is likely in 2015. Just wish I could afford it!

 

Cheers,

 

- N.

[wattsy]

Victoria, that has to be one of the silliest things I've heard out of a salesman, since a moron at Vistek in Toronto opined to me how 'a digital rangefinder was impossible as a matter of physics'.

 

It was the official Leica party line (certainly prior to the release of the RD-1). I'm pretty sure there were people in this forum saying the same kind of thing (maybe Jaap?).

[thighslapper]

....... and everyone has overlooked the obvious point that the current MM can't use anything except native Leica lenses which are RF coupled ..... whereas a CMOS version could use liveview and an electronic VF as in the M .....

 

the one thing the MM excels at is producing great images from legacy lenses .... and expanding this facility would create a much larger user base....

 

Leica would be stupid not to update the MM with a CMOS based sensor ..... and past experience suggests that if one is going to appear it should be sometime soon ......

[jaapv]

What past experience ? As far as I know the MM is the first of its line....

[VictoriaC]

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Hi all,

No, he wasn't the manager (pretty sure of that) but I'd never heard the comment that the CMOS sensor doesn't lend itself to black and white conversion as well as the CCD sensor does! I did reply to him that at the very least an MM update would be beneficial just to make the back screen out of gorilla glass and fix the sensor issue and ensure the weather proofing is as good as it can be.

I carry my 240 all the time (it had approx 750 photos when I bought it last year and now I'm up to over 4000). I'm still using the M7 (the M6 has become a back up to the M7 since I got the 240) as I have use of the darkroom for black and white at art school where I'm studying, and I still fantasise about the MM… but I'm waiting.

[earleygallery]

I did reply to him that at the very least an MM update would be beneficial just to make the back screen out of gorilla glass and fix the sensor issue and ensure the weather proofing is as good as it can be.

 

Really? I wouldn't have wasted any more of my breath or time!

[Jeff S]

I did reply to him that at the very least an MM update would be beneficial just to make the back screen out of gorilla glass and fix the sensor issue and ensure the weather proofing is as good as it can be.

 

Plus other M benefits...improved RF, quiet shutter re-cock, smoother shutter release, longer battery life, faster processor, 2m illuminated frame lines, stronger tripod socket….besides the better weather proofing and enhanced reliability. In short, a better built RF camera, irrespective of any possible LV (and EVF option) or video, both of which can be quickly disabled on the M if desired.

 

Jeff

[ndevlin]

The MM is a wonderous camera, but it is a potent reminder how sucky everything except image quality was on the M9. The write-speed is beyond pathetic. The screen might as well not be there, and the light meter would make a Nikon F blush.

 

So yes, an update to the modern electronics would be nice indeed. But man....the files!

 

That said, I was surprised at how grainy/noisy the higher ISO files are on the MM. Having spent the previous nine months looking at nothing but images from a 645z, I realized just how far my benchmarks had moved. ISO 6400 files from the MM can be processed to look very decent, but present day CMOS technology is probably four full stops better. That said, I am not sure I really need clean ISO 12500 that often :-)

 

- N.

[luigi bertolotti]

Well. guys, I think that none of us likes the idea that an innocent (young ?) salesman can have its job at risk...... Leica seems to have a look to the forum, time to time... better not to insist too much on what he said...

Edited March 28, 2015 by luigi bertolotti

[BerndReini]

ISO 6400 files from the MM can be processed to look very decent, but present day CMOS technology is probably four full stops better.

 

 

Four full stops? Really? So a very decent ISO 100,000 compared to the 6,400? Alright then, let's make sure we bring a flashlight so we can see the road when we go out taking pictures.

[FrozenInTime]

Four full stops? Really? So a very decent ISO 100,000 compared to the 6,400? Alright then, let's make sure we bring a flashlight so we can see the road when we go out taking pictures.

 

A monochrome only version of the Sony A7s would be mind blowing enough ...

then add image stabilization like in the A7-II.

[BerndReini]

If they went down to 12mp like the A7s, this would probably be doable. I don't think that it would find many takers though if they decrease the resolution.

[RobertJRB]

I did reply to him that at the very least an MM update would be beneficial just to make the back screen out of gorilla glass

 

The MM has a sapphire glass back screen. Going to gorilla glass would be a step down.

[Chuck Albertson]

A monochrome only version of the Sony A7s would be mind blowing enough ...

then add image stabilization like in the A7-II.

 

If we had some ham, we could make ham and eggs, if we had some eggs.

[ThePioneer]

A new iteration of the Monochrom would be nice, and I look forward to seeing it introduced. However I'm afraid there is no way I'll be able to afford the new model. That means mine will have to last for awhile longer.

 

With digital there always seems to be a "better" version just around the corner. Fortunately the one I already own is already shockingly good. In fact, it is so much more capable than I that I need to spend much, much more time learning to use this one.

[VictoriaC]

The MM has a sapphire glass back screen. Going to gorilla glass would be a step down.

 

Sorry, I forgot which is which. You know what I meant though

[piblondin]

Lots of CMOS cameras converted to B&W by these guys: https://www.maxmax.com/

 

I think that response you got from the salesman is rubbish.

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[jaapv]

A monochrome only version of the Sony A7s would be mind blowing enough ...

then add image stabilization like in the A7-II.

I don't know about Sony. A premier sensor producer, they seem to lack a sense of direction in camera design. They throw a camera at the wall every few months to see which one will stick, as opposed to Fuji, who appear to have a clear-cut design philosophy of marrying traditional camera values to bleeding edge technology at affordable prices.

Not that some Sonys aren't interesting cameras, though.

Edited March 30, 2015 by jaapv