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Shutter actuation number of the first shot?


henry joeng

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Sorry for bringing an old thread back.

 

Curious to know whether the shutter actuation count for recent M9s (new out of the box) are any higher than those sold in 2009. Mine bought in May 2010, steel gray, had the count at 145. More testing at the factory?

 

Thanks.

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Umm - Art, you probably need to read the whole thread.

 

The file name (L100000xx.dng) gets reset by Leica to zero when they ship the camera. The shutter actuations (including the factory tests) get counted using the UNIQUE IMAGE ID in the EXIF data.

 

See post #24.

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And the file name can be reset in the camera menu, but not the Image ID.

I am curious to find the average count when the camera left the factory b'cause the M9 I bought (new) have the sticker that is attached to the cap (that covers the lens mounting) with some soiling, indicating it has been held (or maybe used) many times at the dealership.

Nothing wrong with that though, as the camera has performed flawlessly. I decided to buy it from the dealers (who claimed the box is unopened, then) cause my waiting list was only 1 hour! I decided to call around the Leica dealers that morning and it turns out the dealer have one silver grey in stock, so I was down at the shop within 1 hour after the phone call. But I may think twice about buying lenses from them.

 

Thanks in advance for any response.

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Hi Tom,

That is quite high for a new camera. But you need to look at the EXIF data of the photo you've taken to actually find out the actuation number. I am not an expert on this, but from other posts, I use an EXIF viewer that's downloaded from the internet to determine the Unique Image ID, which is a number in hexadecimal, and convert it to decimal. The EXIF viewer I have can only read JPGs file, as the example below. That ID of x1c6 = 454, which means the shutter has actuated 454 times.

 

Thanks for your reply.

 

 

File name: L1000309.jpg

File size: 4484076 bytes (5212x3468, 2.0bpp, 12x)

EXIF Summary: 1/45s ISO200 35mm (35mm eq:35mm)

 

Camera-Specific Properties:

Equipment Make: Leica Camera AG

Camera Model: M9 Digital Camera

Camera Software: Aperture 3.0.3

Maximum Lens Aperture: f/2.5

Focal Length (35mm Equiv): 35 mm

 

Image-Specific Properties:

Pixel Composition: Unknown

Image Orientation: Top, Left-Hand

Horizontal Resolution: 72 dpi

Vertical Resolution: 72 dpi

Image Created: 2010:06:03 21:08:04

Exposure Time: 1/45 sec

Exposure Program: Aperture Priority

ISO Speed Rating: 200

Exposure Bias: 0 EV

Metering Mode: Center Weighted Average

Light Source: Unknown

Flash: No Flash

Focal Length: 35.00 mm

Color Space Information: sRGB

Image Width: 5212 Image Height: 3468

 

Other Properties:

Exposure Mode: Manual

White Balance: Auto

Scene Capture Type: Standard

Unique Image ID: 000000000000000000000000000001c6

 

Resolution Unit: i Exif IFD Pointer: 220

Exif Version: 2.20

Image Generated: 2010:06:03 21:08:04

Image Digitized: 2010:06:03 21:08:04

Shutter Speed: 1/45 sec

Digital Zoom Ratio: Unused

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My M9 purchased new from a reputable dealer in New York with appropriate documentation shows

L1003362

as the first frame. I am confused.

Tom

 

did you use the same card in another Leica? the same memory card I used in an M8 shows the next number despite that I reformatted it in my M9.

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The Unique Image ID number shows in Adobe Bridge EXIF data

 

HEXADECIMAL to BINARY conversion, HEX to Decimal converter, Hexdecimal convertor

 

My first recorded image converts to 210, so accounting for an evening in front of the TV shooting away at my feet and the sofa before downloading something 'serious' to the PC I'd say it would have started around the 100 mark give or take a bit.

 

Steve

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RE new M9 with 3,500+ first image number.

 

to bman:

Which EXIF reader do you recommend? Mine does not show the hexadecimal unique image ID for the M9 (but does for the D700). Please, advise.

 

to miklosphoto:

The SDHC 4GB memory card was brand new, taken from its factory packaging, but not formatted (the Leica manual says that it is not required).

 

At the Montreal Leica Roadshow, however, the moderator recommended formatting of memory cards after every download.

 

Many thanks for the useful contributions.

 

Tom

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to miklosphoto:

The SDHC 4GB memory card was brand new, taken from its factory packaging, but not formatted (the Leica manual says that it is not required).

 

 

Page 157 of the English M9 Manual says exactly the opposite.

 

Steve

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Steve:

 

You are correct about the formatting advice in the English Leica Manual, p 157. However, in the Quick Guide section under Notes on p 18, it says explicitly: "This <i.e. the formatting> is generally only necessary if the card has not been factory-formatted." and this is what I followed. I know better now, of course.

 

However, I am not clear at all how the formatting could affect the camera dependent image number?

 

Tom

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(...) to bman:

Which EXIF reader do you recommend? Mine does not show the hexadecimal unique image ID for the M9 (but does for the D700). Please, advise.

(...)

 

Dear Tom,

 

I can't speak for bman, my recommendation is ExifTool by Phil Harvey, which also supports many, many tags of both M8 and M9 (besides lots of other cameras).

 

Best,

Michael

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"However, I am not clear at all how the formatting could affect the camera dependent image number?"

 

There is a "safety feature" in most cameras in that if they THINK they see a previously used image number/file name, they will automatically "jump" to a higher number to ensure that there are never any pictures with duplicate numbers to avoid overwrites or deletions.

 

My M9 "jumped" to numbers in the 1060000 range (after only 500 exposures or so) when I used a card that had been used in an M8 shooting in that range. The M9 saw the folder called "Leica106" from the M8, and in formatting the card, just reset its own numbering to match.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I originally posted an inquiry about the high (3500+) initial image file number on my new M9 and a new Sandisk 4GB card that I had not formatted in the camera before use. I apologize for the delayed update.

 

From the hexadecimal notation in ACR-Bridge I gather, that the unique image ID (i.e. actual number of shutter actuations) on my camera was 68, which appears to be the average posted.

 

Using the advice from the forum, I was able to reset the image file number to L100 0001.

 

Many thanks for your help.

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