canticleer Posted November 22, 2015 Share #1 Posted November 22, 2015 (edited) Advertisement (gone after registration) Hi, I've been a Leica M6 user since the early 90's of last century. Ten years or so later I moved on to digital photography and stuck to Nikon, the other brand I had been using for ages. Since then I moved through Nikon DX1, DX2, D200, D300 and most recently D800. All that time my Nikon FM2, Nikon F5 and Leica M6 were gathering dust on my shelves. Every once in a while I had a look at the digital M's from Leica but due to the cost I never considered buying one. Up till now. The new Leica M (262) is very appealing and it looks like it will be the most affordable M yet. Before I make the jump I have a few questions though. Are there any caveats I have to be aware of? In the past I read about the necessity of a IR filter to correct color aberrations in the corners, lenses that have to be coded, older lenses that don't perform to their max on the digital bodies… and so on. These are the Leica lenses I own: ° Leica Summicron-M 35mm f/2, made in 1992 in Germany (type 4?) ° Leica Summicron-M 50mm f/2 with clip-on hood, made in 1992 in Germany (type 4?) ° Leica Apo-Summicron-M 90mm f/2 Asph made in 1999 in Germany So, I'd appreciate it very much if anyone can tell me what I have to beware of or take care of when buying an Leica M (262) considering the lenses I own. Thanks, Ivan Edited November 22, 2015 by canticleer Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 22, 2015 Posted November 22, 2015 Hi canticleer, Take a look here Jump from M6 to M (262). I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Mark Pope Posted November 22, 2015 Share #2 Posted November 22, 2015 Ivan, the IR filters are only required on the M8. There's no need for them on the M9 or newer CMOS cameras. It might be worthwhile looking into getting your lenses coded by Leica. With the longer lenses (50mm and 90mm), I don't believe it's strictly necessary, but for wider lenses, it is. I think there has been some debate over whether it's necessary with 35mm lenses. However, the convenience factor of having the camera read the correct lens type for the exif data is useful and saves having to select the correct lens type from the camera menu, or forgetting as I used to! The 262 interests me, though it's hard for me to justify as I already have the M9-P. I don't think you will regret your purchase. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted November 23, 2015 Share #3 Posted November 23, 2015 Better have your lenses coded and calibrated for digital. You won't see much difference with your 35/2 and 50/2 v4, provided thet are well calibrated already, but digital is more demanding for the 90/2 apo. So much so that i would prefer a second hand M240 with (optional) EVF personally. Now with a good sight and a good CLA you should not find focusing too difficult with the new M262 normally. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Pandorf Posted November 23, 2015 Share #4 Posted November 23, 2015 Looks to me like you have a great setup to really enjoy your entry into the digital M world. Don't worry yourself over getting the lenses coded as you can easily create a profile for each of your lenses. It may take you a couple times around the block to remember to change the in-camera profile when changing lenses but an easy routine to develop and adapt to until you decide if you wish to have the lenses coded. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FrozenInTime Posted November 23, 2015 Share #5 Posted November 23, 2015 My 90mm Summicron ASPH was seriously out of whack at mid distances on my M9 and MM - something I never noticed on my M6. I believe many other people had similar issues with this lens in the M8 era. Sending it in for 6bit coding and re-calibration truly sorted it and I now trust the RF accuracy. My other lenses did not need any work. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff S Posted November 23, 2015 Share #6 Posted November 23, 2015 Before you dismiss a discounted M240, keep in mind that LV comes in very handy to do your own quick camera/lens focus calibration tests. And if you don't want LV (or video), there's a simple menu setting to disable them both. The M262, though, should be a terrific camera, and quieter/lighter than the M240. BTW, some folks here still use UV/IR cut filters on the M... http://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/220490-do-you-use-uvir-cut-fitlers-with-m240/ I don't. Jeff Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 23, 2015 Share #7 Posted November 23, 2015 Advertisement (gone after registration) I do. But not always. When IR content of the light is very high, there will be non-correctable colour casts in the image. For instance with high sun in the tropics the M240 can give some shots a nasty yellow-orange cast, easily avoided by using an IR cut filer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_tribble Posted November 23, 2015 Share #8 Posted November 23, 2015 Agree with others. Classic lens line up and no need to change. If you are making the jump to digital RF then worth having the lenses coded and checked. Also agree on comments re a discounted M240 - but either way I think you'll be very pleasantly surprised. The one focal length you may end up wanting once you get back into the swing of things is 28mm. Look at the work you'll find in publications like M magazine (http://m-magazine.photography/ceemes/en/) and you'll find that the vast majority of image are made with 28 or 35. IMHO this is where the Leica M excels. Looking back through my own work I'd estimate 70% of images are with either 28 or 35, 20% with 50 and the rest shared out between 18, 21, 75, 90 and 135. If push came to shove and I had to sell lenses, the first to go would be 90, followed by 75 and then 50. 21 and 18 could then go with the real agonising being whether to keep 35 or 28. Hope I never have to go there! Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Kilmister Posted November 23, 2015 Share #9 Posted November 23, 2015 Canticleer, First of all, welcome to the forum. The lenses you own are perfect for some people's needs. I can see chris_tribble's well-made point about the 28mm. However, because I live in the countryside 28mm would hardly ever get used. 35mm is as wide as I ever need. I often use 50mm and regularly use 90mm. If I did a lot of street photography or went to areas with high-density population and loads of buildings then my needs might be different. Each to their own. From what I have read and seen of the M262 it looks a good choice for entering the digital world. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wattsy Posted November 23, 2015 Share #10 Posted November 23, 2015 However, because I live in the countryside 28mm would hardly ever get used. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Kilmister Posted November 23, 2015 Share #11 Posted November 23, 2015 wattsy, What's not clear? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
canticleer Posted November 23, 2015 Author Share #12 Posted November 23, 2015 Hi, Thank you all for your replies and the links to similar topics. I appreciate it very much. To summarize: IR-filters are mostly unneeded with M9 bodies and more recent ones, but they can come in handy in certain situations, varying from taking pictures at high altitudes to artificial light photography. The downside of using IR-filters is that they may cause flare and ghost images. Coding lenses is not strictly necessary, because you can select the used lens from the camera menu. But in the end the coding is convenient. The biggest issue might be focus calibration of the lenses, especially for the 90mm. Inaccuracies that don't show up in analogue photography might be visible in digital due to the high resolution sensor. So if I send in a lens for calibration I can get it coded at the same time. Thanks for pointing me in the direction of a discounted M240. In fact it's the same advice I give people when they ask me about equipment on a limited budget: buy premium glass and go (for the time being) for a second hand body. Cheers. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter H Posted November 23, 2015 Share #13 Posted November 23, 2015 wattsy, What's not clear? I can't answer for Wattsy, but just to mention I live in the countryside and my 28mm gets a great deal of use, so it's not clear to me what the connection is. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Kilmister Posted November 23, 2015 Share #14 Posted November 23, 2015 Thank you for your reply, Peter. In 24 years living where I do I have never found that I needed anything wider than 35mm. On one visit to a town in France there was one shot where 28mm or 24mm could have helped. Instead I used 90mm and photographed details. Hopefully that makes sense. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Kilmister Posted November 23, 2015 Share #15 Posted November 23, 2015 canticleer, It sounds like you have a clear plan. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wattsy Posted November 23, 2015 Share #16 Posted November 23, 2015 wattsy, What's not clear? Pretty much what Peter said. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wattsy Posted November 23, 2015 Share #17 Posted November 23, 2015 On one visit to a town in France there was one shot where 28mm or 24mm could have helped. Instead I used 90mm and photographed details. Hopefully that makes sense. It doesn't to me but we are all different. For me, a 28mm (or any other focal length) is a way of "seeing" a scene and nothing to do with the type of environment within which I am photographing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted November 23, 2015 Share #18 Posted November 23, 2015 Welcome Ivan! Your summery was correct. If, you loved your M6 you are going to love the M. Personally, I would encourage you to take advantage of one of the used M240 cameras because the LV really does have advantages even if you plan on turning it off. Rick Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick Posted November 23, 2015 Share #19 Posted November 23, 2015 Thank you for your reply, Peter. In 24 years living where I do I have never found that I needed anything wider than 35mm. On one visit to a town in France there was one shot where 28mm or 24mm could have helped. Instead I used 90mm and photographed details. Hopefully that makes sense. Maybe, it is time to expand your horizons? Rick Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Kilmister Posted November 23, 2015 Share #20 Posted November 23, 2015 Rick, I love my horizons. I can look out across the beauty of the South Downs and most of the time I can see no other human being. As the Who once sang, "I can see for miles and miles and miles." Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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