kidigital Posted February 21, 2007 Share #1 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) We've read and heard about most of the caveats at this point: IR, banding, firmware, trips back to the gnomes in Solms, color, etc. And, the discussions have been informative if not therapeutic at times. Â Looking beyond those issues, I'm finding that I have developed an unapologetic passion for shooting with the M8 and am very, very pleased with the results. Â So, I thought that I'd start a thread where others might be willing to let their guard down and gush a bit about their unabashed, positive M8 experiences. Â ****** Â One tidbit from me is that I thought that I'd hate shooting with a viewfinder. But, I've found that the combination of the CV12 & 15 on the M8 to be a blast to shoot with in close quarters. Â Kurt Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cocker Posted February 21, 2007 Share #2 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Well said Kurt ! I haven't had as much fun with a camera in a long time. I've also not had so many frends say what wonderful pictures you are taking for a long time either. I even find myself stroking it as it sits on the sofa beside me. The cat is very jealous. So - well done Leica:) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guy_mancuso Posted February 21, 2007 Share #3  Posted February 21, 2007 No words needed. I'm happy Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=178500'>More sharing options...
ken_tanaka Posted February 21, 2007 Share #4 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Good idea to pull the curtain back and let a little sun into this often too-gloomy place, Kurt. Â I've been shooting with an M8 for two weeks, sans IR filters or lens codings. After around 1,000 frames I've not encountered a single major problem. Zero. Yes, the M8's white balance can be creative (dependent mainly on ISO and shutter speed) and it has the IR quirk but no banding. But no lock-ups or dead moments. (It does not like to initially wake up until the shutter is pressed half-way but that seems like more of a character trait than a bug, rather like a teen. Â Perhaps the biggest surprise I've observed was how well the M8 seems to withstand cold weather. During the course of shooting a winter project with it I've exposed it to quite cold weather (i.e. 12-20 deg F with wind chills to zero) for several hours at a time. No babying, it's treated just like one of my Canon 1-bodies or 5D. When I first saw its pricey-but-puny battery I figured it would be very short-lived in cold weather. Wrong. That little battery, and the M8's screen and mechanics, have easily rivaled the cold durability of my 5D. In fact I've not yet had to change an M8 battery due to cold drain! Really quite surprising! Â So at this point I'm quite happy with the M8! No, I do not yet have the faith in it that I have for my other cameras and still believe that the M8 was brought to market slightly prematurely. But it's been a wonderful little camera, quirks and all. Â Here are a few thumbnails of M8 images taken for my current winter project. BTW, I've printed each of these at A3 size on a Canon 3800 and they look positively terrific in terms of detail and tonality. Â These first two were taken with a Zeiss C Sonnar 50mm f/1.5 lens. Â Â This third image was taken with a Summilux 35mm f/1.4 ASPH during a fairy-like snow dusting. The image appears to be a duotone ... but it's not. It's a full color image nearly straight from the M8 that illustrates that "creative" white balance that the M8 sometimes assumes. It was easy to normalize the color temperature and tint from the DNG but, after doing so, I decided I liked the M8's version better! So back it went and that's how it will be shown. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guy_mancuso Posted February 21, 2007 Share #5 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Ken really happy that you finally got one and it is working out for you, yes it is a little gem. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artichoke Posted February 21, 2007 Share #6 Â Posted February 21, 2007 I have been delighted with my M8, finding it a perfect compliment to my Fujifilm S3 I have been amazed at the resolution achieved with the combination of a Kodak AA less sensor and fine RF lenses, particularly noticeable with wide angle lenses ...the difference in quality with wide angles is very great using a RF is an entirely different shooting experience & changes the way I think about photography & I think Leica did a fine job with the challenge of building a digital M being able to handhold at speeds I would not have attempted except with a VR lens is a huge plus & using a wide angle stopped down shooting from the hip is a powerful technique for many types of photography that just isn't practical with a DSLR the M8 has reinvigorated my joy of photography Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry Posted February 21, 2007 Share #7 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) Ken, you've taken some very nice shots. I carry my M8 to work every day and promise myself to get out and shoot a bit, but work has a way of shutting out all competition. So I've had to settle for shooting work-related photos and very little for myself. At least the M8 makes a very "fondleable" security blanket -- life is tough. ;-) Â Larry Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidigital Posted February 21, 2007 Author Share #8 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Ken, thanks for the honesty ... no one certainly wants to overlook anything that can be improved, but it does deliver some very fine images like those you and Guy have shown. Â Kurt Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken_tanaka Posted February 21, 2007 Share #9 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Thanks Kurt, Larry and Guy. Â I don't want to be a boor but I do want to add one more to our "happy M8" thread. Â I've not seen many night images from an M8 yet. Here's one that really shocked me a bit. It's a late twilight aerial image of Chicago's Navy Pier and the surrounding mostly frozen lake. It was taken, again I think with that Zeiss 50mm, at ISO 320 handheld at 1/11s. I was quite surprised at how sharp it turned out. (We don' need no stinkin' image stabilizers! <g>) I was also intrigued by how the M8 handled the dozen or so different light sources in this scene. It did it with a very unique style, not necessarily in completely faithful fidelity (to the mind's eye) but really quite pleasing in this case. Â Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 21, 2007 Share #10 Â Posted February 21, 2007 Come on Ken, I've been doing that plenty 1.09 camera: Â Â 1.06 camera... Â Â Banding "issue" Didn't bother me in this shot. Â Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsw Posted February 21, 2007 Share #11 Â Posted February 21, 2007 I've had nothing but positive experiences thus far. I love my M-lenses but scanning my film had always been more of a chore than a joy. So I'm rediscovering M Photography and loving every minute of it. I have yet to get any of my lenses coded and do not have any IR filters yet. I've tried to stay away from the "bitch and moan" threads because i'm not learning anything new from them and they just tend to bring one down and add doubt where there wasn't any before. I'm glad so many others are having fun with their M8's. Thanks for starting this thread! Â Cheers, Henry Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hans Roggen Posted February 22, 2007 Share #12  Posted February 22, 2007 No words needed. I'm happy  Guy,  Did you have time to run this picture through Aperture yet? I would like to see the skintones in this one.  Hans Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hans Roggen Posted February 22, 2007 Share #13  Posted February 22, 2007 When we're talking about feel good results from the M8, this one has to be in this thread. M8, summilux 50mm.  Hans Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=179215'>More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 22, 2007 Share #14 Â Posted February 22, 2007 Very nice Hans, but the "model" does not harm the photograph either. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hans Roggen Posted February 22, 2007 Share #15  Posted February 22, 2007 I take full credit for one and half credit for the other  Hans Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
joern Posted February 22, 2007 Share #16  Posted February 22, 2007 The name M8 = mate says it all...  jørn  (who wasn´t aware of gnomes in Solms) Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=179230'>More sharing options...
cam2000 Posted February 22, 2007 Share #17  Posted February 22, 2007 It is nice to see a positive post on the new M8...... sure we all know that it had it's caprice but looking at the quality photos shown on this forum I think the M8 is working out to be a real friend for the artist in us all! I got mine two days ago and I love it! Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=179273'>More sharing options...
jaapv Posted February 22, 2007 Share #18 Â Posted February 22, 2007 Well. if we're posting pretty young ladies... M8, Summarit from 1954, wide open. Â Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
FMB Posted February 22, 2007 Share #19  Posted February 22, 2007 The cocktail M8 plus M lenses has been a revelation to me. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=179311'>More sharing options...
drjon Posted February 22, 2007 Share #20  Posted February 22, 2007 The M8 still feels good.  Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/16829-m8-feel-good-thread/?do=findComment&comment=179331'>More sharing options...
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