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I bought an M8 today and I think I like it


Pangur Ban

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Somewhat to my surprise, I am now an M8 owner. Over the past few years I've had several film Ms - M3, M2, M6ttl, MP, M7 - and until recently was not tempted by the M8 or its descendents. I love the world of film processing and particularly black and white photography though the scanning of film does bore me at times.

 

I'd sold off some of my collection recently to narrow down to essentials and retained my M3 and M7. I very much enjoy using the M7, even preferring it over the MP. (I also like the M3 much more than the M2). I realised though that whereas the M7 was still worth roughly what I paid for it, secondhand, a couple of years ago, the M8 has all of a sudden become affordable and for about £400 on top of the sale value of my M7 I now have an M8. It was too tempting an opportunity to overlook.

 

I'm not quite sure I've done the right thing, as first impressions of the M8 were not good - a noisy, crude camera compared to the smooth M7 let alone M3. However, playing about with it today - and its only been a few hours in my posession as I write - I think I'm going to like the M8. I like the menu system, the ease of use, the simplicity of the concept. I have uploaded the latest firmware which overcomes some of my initial disatisfaction with the noisesomeness. I also like what little I've seen of the play shots I've taken so far - especially when setting the monitor to black and white.

 

One catch for me is that I no longer have any contemporary Leica lenses, having found them not so much to my taste for film as the older ones so my M8 will have a diet of collapsible Summicrons, LTM Summarits, Tele-Elmars as well as some Voigtlander and Zeiss lenses. I suspect the newer lenses would provide even better results with the M8 but nevertheless I think we'll have an interesting time...

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Welcome to the wonderful world of the M8. :) I quite understand your initial concern about the feel of an M8 compared to film 'M' cameras. The first time I pressed the shutter release on my M8, I shrieked and nearly launched the accursed thing into orbit. :eek: But one soon becomes used to this different sound, and after a while barely notices it. You can use discrete mode to separate the sound of the shutter from the re-cocking process, but then it goes 'Whuurp!' whenever you let go of the shutter button.

I hope that you enjoy your camera, and make lots of photographs with it. I trust that you have invested in some UV/IR-cut filters to keep the purple terrors at bay? (And no, I don't mean the Iceni, although living where you do, that may apply too.) :)

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If you want the best out of the M8 you really need to shoot DNG. You'll lose the B&W review but you can convert all images to B&W once you get them on your computer.

 

Of course you can shoot DNG+JPG and retain the B&W review but it makes the camera very slow.

 

By the way there is no way to switch the cameras LCD to B&W. You are doing that in the color saturation settings in the menu system and then all you get is B&W JPG's with no hope of having a color image.

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Coming from 40 years with a M4, I found the M8 delightful. As Nicoleica says, you do become accustomed to the noise — though it is about the only thing really objectionable with the M8. Its rather crude compared to M2 - M6. Using filters is no big deal. And you learn to live with the crop factor because the files from this camera are simply stunning. So overall the whizbang noise is easy to overlook.

 

I've got a drawer full of older M lenses that I rarely use. For example my DR 50 Summicron will not mount without serious modification and my 90 Tele Ele just didn't cut it on the M8. The others are just old collectables. I've ended up with a simple kit: 21 Biogon, 35 IV Summicron and 90 Elmarit M. Light and reasonably inexpensive, all three lenses are stellar performers on the M8. Of course there are times when I'd like a 28 and a 50 but not often enough to pry those extra few thousand out of the bank.

 

You'll no doubt end up replacing a few lenses. But don't rush. Your collapsable cron should work fine and if you have a 35/2.8 LTM Summaron, it is probably great on the 8.

 

Tom

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I fully subscribe all of Nicoleica's remarks, as I went through the very same inconveniences. But as she wisely states, it's just a matter of habits. I had a Nikon D300 which was more silent than the M8 and had a way better LCD screen, but was also accompanied to worse lenses.

In the street no one further than a couple meters will hear the shutter's noise. It may be trickier if you go to classic concerts, but as for that, my policy has become to stay quiet during the performance and start shooting at the end when the musicians go for encores and everyone is in more a relaxed mood.

 

Older lenses shouldn't be an issue. If you loved them on the film cameras, you'll keep loving them on the M8, as the outcomes have a zest of analogue.

 

One of the things that I noticed first is that at high speeds the digital noise produced by the M8 reminds a lot the grain of equivalent high speed films. Just bear in mind that at higher speeds the M8 suffers from underexposition and dark areas might be scattered with color noise clusters. But if you convert the pic into B/W you'll see the magic of old grainier high speed films. Think about TriX 400 pushed at 800 or Recording 1250 if you get my point.

 

Also, the so called IR issue turned into an advantage to me. B/W images depicting foliage will result in more nuances than usual and the skies will be darkened a bit.

 

So welcome to the Club and enjoy!

 

Bruno

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Well, I did until it stopped working. ERR in the viewfinder and Attention Shutter Fault on the LCD meant it's been returned to the dealer for despatch to Solms. Fortunately all under warranty but deeply disappointing - especially as the camera had only had about 1400 actuations and I'd only taken about 50 exposures with it. I guess I was unlucky?

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Sorry to hear about the M8 locking up, glad it is under warranty. Mine came in yesterday, and I am still getting used to it. I believe the older lenses will do quite well on it, I'm starting with a Type 1 Rigid Summicron on mine.

 

I set the shutter to "discrete mode" which I like much better than the default.

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Sorry to hear about the M8 locking up, glad it is under warranty. Mine came in yesterday, and I am still getting used to it. I believe the older lenses will do quite well on it, I'm starting with a Type 1 Rigid Summicron on mine.

 

I set the shutter to "discrete mode" which I like much better than the default.

 

Just make sure dont use C mode :D

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I have had my m8 for 3 months now and still love it. I still have not purchased an IR cut filter. If I see purple, I just convert it to B and W. However, I did buy filter that lets the IR through so I can also take IR photos and some of them are just incredible. There is no other stock camera that can do this

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