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I don’t really shoot BIF so from an AF point of view, I mainly shoot AFs on all my cameras. Since the SL3 is not officially out yet, only time will tell how it competes with Canon/Nikon/Sony. I can imagine if I really wanted to have a BIF rig, I’d probably go either Sony A1 or Nikon Z8/Z9 as they have some very impressive eye tracking for moving subjects but I’ve never felt such need. As far as wildlife goes, I’d consider myself more of an opportunistic shooter and I’m not one to seek out wildlife to shoot. If I know there’s a good likelihood of seeing some wildlife, I may take a 300/2.8 + TEs and keep them in the car but I’m not one to hike with such a rig. I went to Leica for 2 main reasons. High quality glass and good, sensible, and consistent ergonomics. Sony is definitely the front runner in terms of absolute mirrorless capability and their glass is up there with Leica but the menu system and ergonomics is a dealbreaker for me. I know they’ve improved but it’s still maddening and the fact that every camera they release has a slightly different menu system would drive me nuts. It’s also one reason I don’t use Android because every Android phone has a different look and feel whereas iPhones have had a consistent interface since the beginning so I don’t need to relearn the interface each time I get a new camera. I’ve honestly never had trouble with build quality of cameras. Granted, I’m usually on the mid-upper tier bodies. I don’t abuse my gear but I’m also not babying it either. If anything, the one time I’ve actually had to get a lens repaired was a Leica 35 Summilux ASPH which literally separated into 2 pieces cuz some screws came loose inside. I had it repaired and CLA’ed and now it’s good as new but it just goes to show that anything can ‘break’. For my Canon 5Dm2 system, I had the 16-35/2.8, 70-200/2.8 IS, and 300/2.8 IS. Back in the day, Canon’s wide angle was the weakest so when I got the M10, I pretty much stopped using the 16-35 completely. When I got the SL2-S and 90-280 SL, I stopped using the 70-200/2.8 IS. I’ve since sold both Canon zooms and only keep the 300/2.8 IS around for wildlife. The only reason I even have the 5Dm2 is because of AF on the 300/2.8 IS. If the SL3 can focus as well as the 5Dm2 with the 300/2.8 IS + Sigma EF to L-mount adapter, I’d likely get rid of the 5Dm2 as well. I don’t have anything against the 5Dm2. It has really good colors and it hasn’t let me down on ruggedness but I like having a very consistent interface across the M/SL/Q cameras and it’s more natural to switch between them. Also, the fact that the SL and Q share the same batteries mean there are less extra batteries and chargers to carry. Canon’s 300/2.8 IS was one of their sharpest lenses at the time and still holds up well, especially without extenders. And even with the 1.4x extender, it’s still very good. With good high ISO performance on current generation cameras like the SL2-S, I find there’s not much of a need to have f/2.8 so the 90-280 SL is a more flexible option if I don’t need to go beyond 300mm. However, for proper wildlife photography, I’d want something more around 400-500mm. With the Sigma 500/5.6 now on the market, I think between the 90-280 SL and 500/5.6, they could probably take the place of the Canon 5Dm2 with 300/2.8 IS. If I were to say go on a safari trip, I’d probably just get the SL3 + 500/5.6 and call it done. As good as the Canon 300/2.8 is, it’s big, heavy, and a pain to lug around especially if I’m already carrying a 24-90 + 90-280. I think part of the ‘Leica magic’ is not just in the glass but the color filter array used on the sensors as well as the image processing pipeline. Leica has been known to customize their color filter and micro lens arrays even if the sensors are based on ‘off-the-shelf’ versions from Sony and other sensor manufacturers. Although I don’t own any Sony bodies myself, I’ve downloaded raw images from A1 and A7R5 and tried to edit them in LR just to get a sense of their colors and malleability and I find the Sony files harder to work with. Maybe I’ve grown accustomed to the Leica color science, or maybe it just suits my taste and it’s very close to where I want my colors so I find when it comes to editing Leica files, I don’t have to do much adjustments in LR to get the images looking the way I want. Sigma has been putting out some truly impressive lenses over the past few years, ever since they started shipping DG DN lenses. Their 24/3.5 DG DN is every bit as sharp as the 24 SEM on the M10 and I’ve stress tested it in 100MP multi-shot mode and it holds up nicely to the corners when stopped down. Their 14-24/2.8 DG DN is sharp to the corners wide open. In fact the shot of the milky way that I shared in my earlier post was taken with the Sigma 14-24/2.8. Would I buy the Leica version if it were available when I purchased the Sigma? Maybe? But I got the Sigma 14-24/2.8 DG DN before Leica had their rebadged version and it is very bit as good as the 16-35 SL for all equivalent focal lengths and aperture values. I spent an afternoon last summer doing side-by-side testing against all the L-mount lenses that I had and compared them in 100 MP multi-shot mode and the Sigma glass can hold its own from a sharpness point of view. The only lens that truly stands out from the rest was the 28 APO SL which is head and shoulders more sharper than any of the native L-mount lenses that I currently own. If anything, the reason to get into the L-mount system is really for the APO SL primes. Otherwise, if you can live with the Sony menu system and the Sony color science is your jam, then I don’t see any reason to buy into the L-mount system. For me, L-mount makes sense in that I’ve always liked the Leica ergonomics, color science, and the Sigma makes some top notch glass that I’d be happy mounting to the SL bodies. The biggest factor for me is actually the fact that Sigma is part of the L-mount alliance. There’s no way Leica would be able to build out a full lens line-up for L-mount on their own and even if they did, I wouldn’t be able to afford such a system. With Sigma in the game, I have options. I can build up a core kit with Leica glass (SL zooms and APO SL primes) and then fill the gaps with Sigma. To be frank, I wouldn’t have bought into the L-mount system if Sigma wasn’t part of the L-mount alliance. Like I mentioned earlier, I don’t baby my gear and the only time I’ve actually experienced legit, ‘catastrophic’ equipment failure was with the 35 Lux and this is over the span of 15 years. The closest I’ve gotten to breaking anything else was shooting with the M8.2 in pouring rain in Norway and Alaska. I know the M8.2 is not weather sealed but, like I said, I don’t baby my gear. I buy camera gear to shoot and not to keep in a bag or a cabinet. Weather sealing on the M10 was a big reason for me to upgrade from the M8.2. In my experience, the hardest conditions on camera gear is generally rain and dust. Cold and snow is actually not that bad. As long as the camera is acclimated to the outside temperature , you can toss a camera in the snow and it’s not going to impact it because the snow will just brush off. It’s not like the snow will melt and drown the camera. Although most cameras are rated down to 0°C or -10°C, they can go much colder. The key is just to keep your spare batteries in an inside pocket so that they stay warm. Back in the M8.2 days, there’s been times where the batteries would be crapping out in at -20°C after some shooting and I’d had to literally stick them into my armpits to warm them up to get a few more shots but I haven’t had to do that on the M10 or anything newer. I’ve taken M/SL/Q cameras on hikes, climbs, and I’ve skied with both the SL and Q. The only thing I would shy away from on the M is skiing because if I take a fall, I don’t want to risk throwing off the rangefinder. That’s literally the only reason I don’t ski with the M10. If I’m ice climbing, the camera stays in the bag until I’m in a safe spot and I’ll take it out to take photos. If I’m hiking or scrambling, I generally have the camera out slung across my body diagonally to keep it from bouncing around while walking. The only time I put my camera in a bag is if I need to go up a chimney or run down a scree slope where I don’t want to bang my camera into the rocks while shimmying up some narrow sections or get the camera super dusty. In such case, I just toss the body in a beanie/hat and put it in my backpack and as soon as I’m clear, I’ll take the camera back out. Or if it’s a short section, I may hand the camera off to a friend. When I’m hiking/climbing/skiing, I never carry a proper camera bag. Since I’m usually going fairly light, I’ll just put the body/lenses in a padded pouch that goes in my backpack. Biggest limitation with Canon and SL gear is just the weight and bulk. Sometimes, I just don’t have enough space or I can’t afford to carry so much weight for long days in the mountains. If I’m looking to move fast and carry minimal gear for an extended long day, the Q3 is perfect for this, especially in the Rockies. These days, if I’m in the mountains, I’m normally carrying either SL2-S + 24-90, SL2-S + 16-35, or Q3. Since getting the Q3, I’ve mostly been using that in place of the SL2-S partly because of the compactness and weight, but also because of the higher resolution camera. Also with LR panorama stitching, I don’t really need a super wide angle unless I’m shooting moving subjects so the Q3 works pretty well most of the time. I’ve done some 300+ MP panoramas with the Q3 and they look great with the latest panoramas stitching algorithms from LR.

I’ve been shooting digital M since the 2010, first with an M8.2, then with the M10, and then went onto the SL2-S, and most recently the Q3. Like you, unless I’m traveling, my primary subjects are focused around landscapes, nature, and wildlife in a more documentary style. Through out my years with Leica, I’ve kept a Canon 5Dmk2 for more dedicated wildlife photography which I acquired before my first Leica. I mainly use my camera outdoors while hiking, skiing, climbing, etc… in the Canadian Rockies so it’s generally dry or if it’s snowy, it’s cold. However, I’ve shot my M/SL/Q systems in all weather conditions from 40°C humidity in the tropics to -30°C and below in winter, and downpours in between. So these are what I perceive as strengths/weaknesses of each system in very broad terms. Since most people also carry their smartphone, I’m going to throw the iPhone 14 Pro in the mix since this is what I have and I do also use it alongside the Leicas. iPhone 14 Pro Strength: It’s always in my pocket and I can take a photo within a few seconds Pro RAW at 48 MP on the main wide camera is very good, dynamic range is pretty good too Photos and videos are always geotagged Weakness: Colors are not the same as Leica, even when editing Pro RAW images in LR, I’m more likely to run into the limits of what LR can pull out M8.2/M10 + M lenses Strength: Lenses are compact and I can fit them in my pocket. The smaller primes will fit in a backpack waist belt pocket. System size is small not too heavy (at least compared to SL system) My main 3 lens kit(s) (24/35/90, or 18/24/90 ) + body weigh around 2-2.5kg (5lbs) total Being able to focus with the lens covered is actual a pro while shooting in the rain or water spray because I can focus with the rangefinder with the lens hood on, and then only uncover the lens for a split second when pressing the shutter, thereby avoiding the need to constantly wipe the lens’ front element Lens value stay reasonably stable. They go up but not faster than inflation, specially if you’re actually using your gear and they experience normal wear and tear. If you really want to collect some special piece and you actually want to see the value go up, don’t shoot with it and put it in a safe deposit box but now you have a lens sitting there literally collecting dust. There are some gems in the M lens lineup that are truly reasonably priced but spectacularly sharp on the M bodies like the 18 SEM, 24 Elmar which will continue to hold up to the 60 MP all the way to the corners but many of the other summicron and summilux will not hold up unless you’re either stopped down or you’re buying the most recent generation of uber expensive APO Summicron M. So get ready to drop a ton of cash to get good corner sharpness. Weaknesses: At least on the M8.2, anything above ISO 320 was noisy. The M10 was good to around ISO 3200 but shutter speed limits made it unsuitable for astrophotography Although I’ve taken Ms while hiking and climbing, I would hesitate to take it skiing due to the risk of throwing off the rangefinder if/when I take a fall My M10 actually arrived with a misaligned rangefinder and it was out of commission for a 1 yr to get that sorted (long story for another day) Leica stopped making the 18 SEM and 24 Elmar which are absolutely amazing (won’t be selling these two) Trying to service any M lenses is a giant pain in the butt due to how long it takes to get lenses serviced SL2-S + SL zooms and APO prime Strength: Dynamic range is fantastic, even at ISO 12500 and colors are very natural and easy to edit in LR. SL zooms perform as well as just about all the best M primes except APO Summicrons and 75 APO Summilux. The SL zooms will happily resolve to the corners even at 50-60 MP but 100MP is a bit of a stretch. APO SL primes are absolutely incredible, second to none, and have no trouble resolving to the corners at 100 MP and should hold up to 200 MP Sigma’s L mount DG DN lenses will get you SL zoom performance for a fraction of the price and will support all the capabilities of the L-mount specifications if you are ok with ‘third-party’ brands The Sigma 14-24 DG DN is as sharp as the Leica 16-35 SL zoom. Sigma is slowly but surely providing a huge range of top quality specialty lenses including the 14/1.4, 15/1.4, and 500/5.6 DG DN which are spectacularly sharp You can use zooms which are pretty much a must in dusty environments (think desert and safaris) unless you are willing to carry multiple bodies You can share the batteries between the M and Q system Charging via USB-C is nice because I no longer carry a dedicated camera battery charger while traveling If you want a camera to do everything except birds in flight or fast action, then the SL2 series will do the job. Maybe SL3 with PDAF will address this last hurdle. EVF is as good as having an OVF Weaknesses Most of the lenses a huge compared to M lenses Although you can adapt M lenses, the performance from all but the latest generation (35 APO M and later) will not perform nearly as well compared to mounting on an M body. If optical performance is your goal, then stick with native L-mount lenses as it’ll be cheaper, and more robust. All the Leica and Sigma Art series of the lenses are heavy SL2/SL2-S body is heavy. The SL2-S + 24-90 weighs as much as a 3-4 lens M kit so unless you need the flexibility of multiple focal lengths, the M kit will be lighter and definitely smaller. AF is not good enough on the SL/SL2/SL2-S for fast action photography Without PDAF, focusing non-L mount AF lenses like the Canon 300/2.8 IS is very slow but maybe the SL3 will address this Q3 Strength Small, light, and compact and one I can take anywhere, including skiing Has a fast aperture prime that is very sharp and will get you good performance to near the corners but the far corners are slightly compromised, even when stopped down Shares the same battery as SL2/SL2-S, and most likely SL3 USB-C charging means I’m not carrying any chargers while traveling The 28mm lens has IS and feels more like a 26-27mm lens than a 28mm, which is closer to my preferred 24mm focal length Dynamic range is very good. As good as the SL2-S and colors are fantastic. EVF is as good as having an OVF Weakness If you’re shooting video, the lens has focus breathing You’re stuck with one focal length so you better like shooting at ~26-28mm I wouldn’t travel with just the Q3 alone but I would take it on outings where I don’t need/plan to shoot wildlife At the end of the day, any of the cameras will perform amazingly well for shooting and it’s more about what kind of shooting experience you prefer. There’s really something for everyone. Although I haven’t sold many of my Leica lenses (just 1 M prime), I wouldn’t consider myself a collector. I buy my lenses for shooting and over the years, I’ve built a sizable M and SL kit. However, for the past 2+ years, I’ve mostly been shooting with the SL and Q because they just perform so well and I find I often shoot at 24mm on the M10, and I want to geotag my photos, which means I need an EVF so it kind of defeats the purpose of having a rangefinder. Some images from M10: Some images from SL2-S: Some images from Q3:

You either consulted Erwin Put’s Leica Compendium or you waited for the invention of the internet, Youtube, and the evolution of influencers. 😉

At this point, the APO Summicron line is a known quantity as far as handling is concerned. Optically, it’s the best 21mm that Leica can make while hitting a $5500 USD price point and it will probably be the highest performing 21mm on the market for many years. With that said, there are many other high quality comparable options on the market since Leica announced their roadmap in 2018 such as the Sigma 20mm f/1.4 DG DN and Sony 20mm f/1.4 GM (yes, not L-mount compatible). Looking at the MTFs (and accounting for the different lp/mm), the Sigma 20 f/1.4 DG DN will give the 21 SL APO a serious run for its money. I’d be most curious about how the two stack up side-by-side. The Sigma gets you probably 95-100% of the image quality at less than 17% of the price of the Leica. To put things in to perspective, people often pay more than 17% for tipping at a restaurant in North America! Funny coincidence. The Sigma 20/1.4 DG DN’s magnification ratio of 1:6.1 is also coincidentally the same ratio as the price between the Sigma and Leica.

The reviewers are probably busy reviewing the M11-P. 🙂

My biggest complaint about the Sigma 14-24 DG DN is that it can flare/ghost in bright sunny environments which is hard to avoid when it has such a wide field of view. I’m wondering if: The 14-24 SL has different internal lens mount than the Sigma DG DN version which could potentially help with improved flare/ghosting The 14-24 SLversion with Leica’s coating has better flare/ghosting resistance compared to Sigma’s DG DN version

I recall @robb had posted some pre-released MTF charts for the 21 APO a while back. Can’t seem to find that post anymore but I’m curious how it differs from the official MTF released today.

What video setting are you shooting that’s giving you issues? For example, are you shooting *.mov or *.mp4 containers? 8K, 4K, C4K? LongGOP, All-i? Normal colour or Log? 4:2:0 or 4:2:2? What app are you trying to watch the videos in? Photos, DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut, or some other third-party app?

It’s a geothermal area in Kerlingarfjöll, in the highlands of Iceland.

I can’t speak for Jpegs but for DNGs, in terms of the WB temperature value for AWB on the Q3, they do tend to run in the 7000K range even when I expect it to be in the 5500-6000K range for daylight which is what I see on the SL2-S. With that said, as long as the actual final image looks good, it doesn’t bother me much. As for magenta tint, it seems to be part of Leica’s color signature in recent years. I see it in the SL2-S and M11 images as well.

Looking back a bit, I noticed this issue came up part way through a trip 2 weeks ago where things were fine and then they weren’t and I didn’t update FW on the Q3. The only thing that change was that FOTOs app was updated to v4.0.4 on iOS. I think this is likely the problem so hopefully Leica can fix this in an FOTOs app update. The problem seems specific to Q3 and doesn’t seem to be a problem on the SL2-S since I was using both cameras together and only saw the problem on the the Q3 images.

I noticed the same thing. Seems like time update via GPS was broken in the latest FW and/or iOS FOTOs app.