Wolfgang Esslinger Posted May 10, 2012 Share #1 Posted May 10, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) ... because they go luxury (Hermes), super-niche (2/50 + M9M) and try to milk the brand with relabeled Panasonics. Probably a promising set-up for Asia but not for me. I admit I was hoping for an alternative to Nex to supplement the M8 in the telephoto area. Alas, I will still have to carry the DMR around for this... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted May 10, 2012 Posted May 10, 2012 Hi Wolfgang Esslinger, Take a look here Now is the time to get out of Leica.... I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
4X5B&W Posted May 10, 2012 Share #2 Posted May 10, 2012 I can understand your disappointment, it certainly was not what I was expecting on May 10th. Seems like it was another one of those "what can we release to the market while we are coming up with a REAL new product" kind of announcements. Some may remember that the M8 was a pretty good monochrome camera Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SJP Posted May 10, 2012 Share #3 Posted May 10, 2012 Nope you can still buy a M2 with an old lens and it will be marvelous. Why the fixation on the newest of the newest? The old and decrepit stuff they made is awesome as well. That is also a pro of Leica, I do not need to buy their current range. I could but I won't, it does not serve the purpose for me. So I will stick with Leica, there are few similar brands around. EDIT: moreover the M8 & 50/1.4 ASPH is all I want for the time being. It does not get get much better than this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
luigi bertolotti Posted May 10, 2012 Share #4 Posted May 10, 2012 My greater surprise is they didn't announced the much rumored APS (or "more") EVIL... probably they'll wait for Photokina... seems that this announcement, considering that the (fine !) monochrome is a niche product, is not yet in the direction of broadening the market share, which was one of the pivotal points of the new shareholders plan. Ok... we in the LUF maybe put ensemble an excessive heat on this event... a proof on how much we are tied to this brand... but can be a lesson for the future. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_co Posted May 10, 2012 Share #5 Posted May 10, 2012 It just means photokina is going to be a blockbuster! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andalus Posted May 10, 2012 Share #6 Posted May 10, 2012 O crap. Leica wants to sell a 7k plus Summicron APO. Can it really be worth almost twice the cost of a 50 Lux ASPH that FASTER??? Insane. Nothing to crow about here. Who wants a monochrome camera. I can create B&W with my M9. I can't wait for my D800E to show up. I might abandon Leica altogether... Disappointed... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
earleygallery Posted May 10, 2012 Share #7 Posted May 10, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) See my post 'Helpline' from earlier today. There's no need to panic. Your Leica gear will carry on delivering quality results for you. Forget the new stuff. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
doolittle Posted May 10, 2012 Share #8 Posted May 10, 2012 ... because they go luxury (Hermes), super-niche (2/50 + M9M) and try to milk the brand with relabeled Panasonics. Probably a promising set-up for Asia but not for me. I admit I was hoping for an alternative to Nex to supplement the M8 in the telephoto area. Alas, I will still have to carry the DMR around for this... I thought the M9M was quite exciting. I hope other manufacturers follow Leica's lead and release something similar (maybe a fixed lens bw model). New lens announcement always positive, the rest left me cold though too. I really enjoyed looking at your photo book on Islay, especially as I'm just back from the Scottish Highlands. Didn't manage to get as far as Islay, but did visit Talisker on Skye and Dalwhinnie on the mainland. Going to have a wee dram of Talisker now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinnfell Posted May 10, 2012 Share #9 Posted May 10, 2012 Now is the time to get into Leica... I think these are excellent products. Even though I will never be able to afford a $7500 standard lens. Think of this lens as a showroom car whose groundbreaking technologies will benefit other, more accessible products down the road. It has been a long time since Leica tried to be a jack-of-alltrades like canon and nikon. The products are highly specialized. If they are not for you then they are not for you. But if you are a pro you know what you need and can write off the cost on the expense budget. Leica isnt going to sell a ton of these, but for those who do need one it could be a godsend. Medium format, possibly large format quality in a tiny camera. My only concern is rich amateurs buying it because they think it will turn them into a super-famous photographer, and then start poo-pooing it on this forum when their pictures look like everyone elses (or worse). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CalArts 99 Posted May 10, 2012 Share #10 Posted May 10, 2012 Higher end automobile manufacturers tend do this all the time. It becomes part of their R+D program and can help fund the 'regular' versions. Yet nobody seems to complain about it. And they always still offer the models that are less expensive for people who want quality and performance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dickgrafixstop Posted May 10, 2012 Share #11 Posted May 10, 2012 Maybe the few people that have S systems will see today as a very positive reinforcement of their buying decision. The new lenses and the Hasselblad adapter might even give a boost to S sales - considering a 30+ megapixel Nikkon D800 is so backlogged you can't get delivery at 1/10th the price. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfgang Esslinger Posted May 10, 2012 Author Share #12 Posted May 10, 2012 Why the fixation on the newest of the newest? .... It's not the newest necessarily. I was just hoping for something more convenient to accompany the M8 when traveling. Because there are situations when 200mm+ are nice to have at your hand. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveYork Posted May 10, 2012 Share #13 Posted May 10, 2012 And leica's not like a car manufacturer that has a range of models. Traditionally, they've only one line/one model/one choice. The Sumarit line of lenses is novel for them. But there's still lots of great old stuff on the market, even used digital bodies. Film is still plenty available and fun to use. And there are other companies that make M mount lenses. The sky's not falling. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wolfgang Esslinger Posted May 10, 2012 Author Share #14 Posted May 10, 2012 ...Think of this lens as a showroom car whose groundbreaking technologies will benefit other, more accessible products down the road ...My only concern is rich amateurs buying it because they think it will turn them into a super-famous photographer, and then start poo-pooing it on this forum when their pictures look like everyone elses (or worse). I understand Leica has to have the best lens because Leica stood for best image quality some time ago. Today electronics are at least as important as optics to get to the top. And here Leica is not up to date - high ISO is abysmal as I just experienced (yes, I know, some people will differ, but try to shoot a concert in one of Glenfiddich's warehouses; or maybe it was the booze that stopped me :-) ). Frankly I seriously doubt that anyone will be benefit within a reasonable time period from some groundbreaking technologies in this area of technology, ie. get better lenses for less. As far as amateurs are concerned: Leica have always lived off them, haven't they? And they will again this time. Because I understand that to use a lens to the fullest you have to put in on a tripod - and who does this with an M camera? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
01af Posted May 10, 2012 Share #15 Posted May 10, 2012 We want a new Summicron-M 50 mm. The current one is getting old. Impossible. If we made a new one then it will be at least as expensive as the Summilux-M 50 mm Asph, if not even more. That's economical suicide. We can't do it, and we won't do it. We don't care the cost. We want it! We want it! We want it now! Listen to your customers! Okay, you wanted it; we did it. Here you are. It's $7,000, but it's the world's best 35-mm-format standard lens ever made. It's too expensive. Do you think we are fools? No-one needs a 50 mm f/2 lens at this price. Come on, let's go Canon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnbuckley Posted May 10, 2012 Share #16 Posted May 10, 2012 Now is the time to think about the progress that Leica has made. Good Lord, it wasn't that long ago they were about to go belly up! They were resistant to digital, etc. And what does today tell us? It tells us that a) that Leica knows it has a big enough customer base that appreciates its traditions and classic black and white photography that it can dare release the Monochrom, that it can exploit certain high-end market segments to make money (Hermes edition), c) that its S line is so successful that it is rounding out its lens offerings. My wife said, There's zero chance you want the M9-M, right? I said, not so fast. But I need to save money for the M10 first... I doubt Leica is expecting huge sales. But they know the M9M will get a LOT of attention, and help the brand. Like many, I am waiting for the M10 and for an EVIL or some other option to the X1, now X2. We can wait four months til Photokina, right? We can handle the wait, right? Leica is thriving, it is relevant, it is experimenting with new options, and it is staying true to its ideals with the M9M. This makes me happy, and I bet it makes others happy, too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
01af Posted May 10, 2012 Share #17 Posted May 10, 2012 Isn't it funny how everyone feels that 'M9-M' was the natural name for the M Monochrome—except Leica Camera AG? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pico Posted May 10, 2012 Share #18 Posted May 10, 2012 [...]Nothing to crow about here. Who wants a monochrome camera. I can create B&W with my M9. Does the word quality ring a bell? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
rramesh Posted May 11, 2012 Share #19 Posted May 11, 2012 Leica is a case study in camera marketing. One one hand they re-badge Panasonic cameras and charge more. On the other hand, they progressively remove the red dot first and then the engraving on the top plate, and charge even more for their M9s, albeit with a super high performance B&W sensor. All of this would not be possible if not for the sheer vision and quality of their engineering. Goes to show that marketing will not work without strong engineering and R&D. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
NZDavid Posted May 11, 2012 Share #20 Posted May 11, 2012 I think Leica has lost the plot. But the old stuff still works fine. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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