The R10 substitute

[masjah]

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Every time we see a new product from Leica, the abandonment of the R users comes again to mind. I am perfectly aware of the position adopted by many along the lines of "It was never going to be economical, it's over, get over it, move on". I enjoy using film, and I love my Leica R lenses, but I feel under increasing pressure to use digital as well. I am the only film user at my local photographic society!

 

Here are my own, purely personal constraints:

 

I don't want to start messing around scanning film

 

I want to be able to use my R lenses with film as well as digital - this rules out the Leitax/Nikon solution

 

I want full frame, because otherwise the wide angle end is compromised, and I do a lot of architectural photography. This rules out the DMR (apart from the inevitable worries about unserviceability and batteries).

 

I don't mind stop-down metering with my mailny tripod work, but I do want it to be accurate in stop-down mode. I'm not sure that the Canon+adapter solution provides this.

 

I don't want to start messing my lenses around by removing shrouds etc., or shaving camera mirrors This also seems to rule out the full-frame Canon+adapter solution.

 

I want some sort of reliable method of focussing - focus confirmation would be good.

 

Those of you who know, please could you tell me whether a Sony full-frame + adapter would meet my needs?

 

Otherwise, I stick with film, and all its limitations, until it's no longer practicable, then say goodbye to Leica, and buy into the very best Nikon system and lenses.

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[andybarton]

 

I want to be able to use my R lenses with film as well as digital - this rules out the Leitax/Nikon solution.

 

Not if you buy a Nikon film body too.

[gyoung]

If you go down the Leitax/Nikon route you can use Nikon film camera bodies, perfectly competent.

 

Gerry

[masjah]

Andy and Gerry - yes I agree. I guess I'm asking for the moon in that I was thinking of continuing to use my R8/R9 for film!!!

[andybarton]

In which case, you will need to buy another set of R lenses and Leitax them

 

If you bought a DMR, you'd need a second R body, as you'd never remove the digital back. Mind you, R9s are dirt cheap these days, so that's no real hardship.

[hamey]

Like you John, however I have gone down the Canon path with my R lenses.

Always hoped that Leica would provide us users and lovers of the R system with a basic Digital body but to no avail.

 

Unfortunately the mob running Leica now days are no longer interested, only with a ongoing BS excuse

of a solution which will not arrive, IMHO it was just a markeeting ploy to sell all their remaining R stock.

 

I don't want to change my mount of my R lenses as I still use my Leica R Cameras with slide Film.

 

So to try out a Digital camera with my R lenses, I went for the basic model in the Canon 600D and the

Images it produces with my 21-35mm, 28-90mm and the 80-200mm are terrific.

The only criticism I have of the 600D is the small view finder compared to my R cameras but nevertheless for 800$ Australian I should'nt complain.

 

The digital future for me is now Canon, so frankly I could'nt care less what Solms comes up with , and after

today 11/5/12 it makes me wonder what planet these people originated from......Lol.

 

Good luck on your choice, you want be sorry with Nikon or Canon.

 

Ken.

[mgcd]

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I have to admit that although I have 3 completely refurbished DMR batteries I haven't been using my Leicas so much anymore. I have moved on to Nikon with Nikkor lenses, I can't convince myself to change my R mounts to Leitax. That said I have very little interest in any new Leica products these days as they have no link to the R system. However, if Leica were to produce a full colour version of the M Monochrom (black chrome, no markings or logo whatsoever) a 24MP CMOS sensor with no AA filter at the M9 regular price, it might be worth looking at... Since this won't happen in my lifetime, when will my D800E be delivered?

[masjah]

Thanks everyone. Andy, the second body is no problem, since I already have an R8 and R9! I would think about a DMR for one of them (Ff***** had four of them last time I looked) but I worry about the long term reliability given their age and cost. I guess I could continue to use film for wide-angle work.

 

Ken, my problem is in wanting to use all my lenses on a full frame Canon, and I thought there were problems with shrouds etc., with my 21-35 and 28-90 zoom!

[earleygallery]

John,

 

Canon is the easiest solution for you. Only a few lenses are affected, see here SPECIFIC LEICA-R LENSES WHICH MAY NOT WORK ON A CANON dSLR

 

The focus confirmation adapter I have works well enough, but you really need a split image focus screen IMHO.

 

It is true from my experience that the TTL metering cannot be relied upon all the time with stop down metering. I don't know if this is an issue with Sony/Nikon bodies also?

 

However the issue is at least consistent so with a little practice you will know how much to adjust the exposure.

 

Unfortunately there isn't a perfect answer if you must have a FF DSLR.

[farnz]

John,

 

Regrettably you'd definitely need to shave the mirror for your 28-90 Vario-Elmarit.

 

 

 

James (and others),

 

Please note that the (not-included) 5D Mk2 has a slightly larger mirror than the 5D to accommodate its increased viewfinder coverage of 98%. I have no information on the 5D Mk3's mirror but my guess would be that it's larger again because the 5D Mk3 claims to have 100% viewfinder coverage.

 

Pete.

[masjah]

James and Pete, many thanks for this. There's no substitute for direct experience!

[gvaliquette]

...

 

If you bought a DMR, you'd need a second R body, as you'd never remove the digital back. Mind you, R9s are dirt cheap these days, so that's no real hardship.

 

Why??? My R9 goes from film with the motor drive to digital with the DMR and back and forth all the time! They actually both feel and behave the same; the only difference one has to keep in mind is the crop factor of the DMR. I keep the DMR screen in the viewfinder and either use or ignore the DMR frame lines.

 

Since Leica seems to have reneged on its "R solution" promise, I will have to consider traveling with both some M items (M9 and wide angle lenses) and some R items (R9+DMR with Macro-Elmarit and longer lenses and zooms).

 

Is that the "R solution" Leica promised???

 

Guy

[andybarton]

You are the only DMR user I have heard of who swaps backs out.

[gvaliquette]

You are the only DMR user I have heard of who swaps backs out.

 

It takes less than 5 minutes! And it's the perfect occasion to blow/sweep the dust off the sensor.

 

Guy

[jaapv]

I think my DMR might end up in the B&S at one point. Not because of the DMR, but because of the stack of failed R8 and R9 bodies I am accumulating. Well, maybe just once more this year, for nostalgia's sake.

[leicapages]

Every time we see a new product from Leica, the abandonment of the R users comes again to mind.

 

Here are my own, purely personal constraints:

(...)

 

Otherwise, I stick with film, and all its limitations, until it's no longer practicable, then say goodbye to Leica, and buy into the very best Nikon system and lenses.

 

 

I feel your pain :-(

[Ruhayat]

Over the years I've tried out several digital camera platforms for my R lenses - Olympus 4/3, Canon EOS, Nikon, Pentax K and Panasonic micro-4/3. Also tried a Sony with a friend's adapter. This is what I have experienced:

 

For sheer convenience, it's either 4/3, m4/3 or EOS. You just fit the adapter to the camera mount and then the lenses can come on and off as per normal. Sony E mount (NEX) is similar, but I have not tried this yet. I had great results for colour with the Olympus E1 + 28mm Elmarit. I don't like Canon colours, but the 5D + 50mm Summicron in B&W was rather good.

 

For colour tonality that seems closest to the Kodak sensor "look", I prefer Nikon. Pentax is nice, too, but having to replace the mounts with these 2 platforms makes it harder to share the lenses easily between different platforms. Plus, you need one adapter for each lens, versus just one adapter as per the above.

 

For stunning colour and image quality that looks filmic (at least in daylight), I prefer Sony. But again, for the Alpha mount you have to replace the mount on the lens.