The next 'm' and video. Not likely?

[satureyes]

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Am I missing something here.

I'm a pro video user. Shoot on a variety of cameras so this is based on some sense- I hope.

 

If the m10 or whatever it's called has video- how will it work focus wise- and aperture wise?

 

Think about it. Aperture is click-stops not free spinning so it can't be adjusted once you're 'shooting' and focus will have to be set for each shot. How would you fit a follow focus into an m body? Have you seen the size of DSLR rigs? They are huge. Unless Leica are going to make and sell rigs and add ons at a massive price tag.

 

Not sure how video would even be practical in a rf body- even with live view unless they have a new separate range of lenses to accompany the new camera.

 

It just is very unlikely on an M camera. (I think)

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[jaapv]

Maybe yes, probably no - rather uninteresting to the average M user. The non-average user? - most likely well provided video-wise already.

[Sp12]

Follow focuses and manual irises are foreign to the vast majority of those producing video content. Just check youtube. You're talking in the stratosphere of high-budget productions.

 

Those using M-lenses for professional level video will use cameras like the RED. DSLRs are basically a joke as is for real video shooters. Video on the M is aimed at the average user -- one who doesn't want to carry a separate video camera, probably doesn't need a 5K video rig, but still appreciates the small size, optical quality, FF sensor, and ease of use provided by an M system.

[01af]

Not sure how video would even be practical in a RF body—even with live view unless they have a new separate range of lenses to accompany the new camera.

My sentiments exactly. A rangefinder camera with manual-focus lenses and click-stop aperture rings does not make a good basis for a video rig. Still, this probably won't keep Leica from including a video function as soon as technology permits because the majority of the market demands it ... whether it makes sense or not.

 

At least, the first lens for Leica M mount with a stepless aperture ring is already there—the SLR Magic HyperPrime Cine 50 mm T/0.95 lens. Note the 'Cine' part in its name ...

[bpalme]

My guess is there will be no video on an M.

[jaapv]

I would not mind it being there, as long as it is completely hidden. I recently discovered that my Digilux2 of many years seems to have video...Just out of curiosity I will check my Digilux3, which I use at work for this particularly useless-to-me "feature" .

[rosuna]

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A classical M doesn't need video, but this feature may be incorporated easily and kept hidden if you like...

 

A different thing is a M mount camera with a different type of focus system and viewfinder. For such a camera the video feature may be interesting...

[satureyes]

The odd thing is that i've always been a supporter of using a separate camcorder for the casual user- I did believe that it was a lot better than using a camera to shoot video.

 

More and more I find myself leaving my camcorder at home (and it's a very nice little sony titanium model) and shooting video on my iPhone 4s.. or with a compact camera. For the few minutes of film I shoot when Im out and about i think the quality is fine.. plus it's all in one place when I come to back up my images - and the video is already there without having to convert AVCHD files or wherever.

 

The Leica M is a high end camera - and I doubt that it will be used by high end video professionals if indeed the next model has video. I agree it will be used by the casual shooter - who wants to capture something quick rather than being taken up by the community who have grown up around DSLRs (which I agree are the most over hyped cameras for shooting video on)

 

I wonder if we're going to start seeing 'street photography' videos appearing if (and when) a video feature is on Leica M series. Lots of black and white film clips of buskers ahoy!

 

R

[Indina]

I don't miss video on the M.

Of all my cameras that have the option - I never use it.

It even annoys me when I accidentely push the video button.

 

Taking video to me is a different approach than taking photos.

[bybrett]

If Leica can justify and produce a monochrome only camera, it makes more sense to make a video only camera rather than shoe horn it into an M....?

[Paul J]

I thought the same. It would be very difficult shooting video on an M. Unless of corse they develop a whole new range of ridiculously expensive T Stop lenses and focus contraptions. Don't discount that. Don't discount a new mortgage. Don't discount it being outstandingly good though.

[StephenPatterson]

pan...blur...click...pan...blur...click...pan...blur...clickclickclick

 

yes, video sounds like a wonderful option.

[Steve Ash]

Video sounds like torture to me. I never enjoyed looking at any amateur video if it was not an interview. I am more impressed of good photo documentaries.

 

Regards,

Steve

[pico]

I thought the same. It would be very difficult shooting video on an M. Unless of corse they develop a whole new range of ridiculously expensive T Stop lenses and focus contraptions. Don't discount that. Don't discount a new mortgage. Don't discount it being outstandingly good though.

 

Leica has a comprehensive set of cine lenses. They are all matched for the same focusing, aperture, etc gear. I don't know any pro outfit that actually buys the lenses - almost everyone rents such gear.

.

[tappan]

My guesses...

1.) No video

2.) Better processor

3.) Much better ISO image quality

4.) A thumb rest like the Thumbs up or Thumbie

Best,

Mark

[AB007]

I don't care about shooting video. I bought a camcorder 10 years ago but I don't remember the last time I used it. I don't understand why people make such a big deal of video capture on DSLRs and now we are talking about video on Ms. One of the things i love about Ms is the simplicity. Why complicate things by adding video?

[adan]

I've been in the "no video in M cameras" camp for quite a while - but I am becoming less dogmatic on the subject, from multiple angles.

 

First, I still believe that dumb amateur video that happens to be shot with a $12,000 Noctilux will still be - dumb amateur video. The glass used to shoot a video makes up maybe 2% of the value of the video (if that) - far more value lies in sound, pacing, editing and organization.

 

And yes, that requires gear that has nothing to do with the lens or the camera - mikes, controls, editing and shooting "smarts," and so on.

 

However, I am now less dogmatic about what is required for effective use of the video medium. Not every video has to be shot to broadcast quality, with shoulder braces, follow-focus, clickless apertures, etc. - to be effective. "Slick" is a requirement for some paying clients - but "down and dirty" can communicate effectively as well.

 

"Street Photography video"? Why not? Robert Frank made films as well as shooting in the streets - who's to say he couldn't/wouldn't have made "Pull My Daisy" with a "video-Leica", had such existed at the time? Pull My Daisy - YouTube

 

An acquaintance (and fellow Leica user) is a photo/videographer for NOAA - he (i.e. the government) just swapped his big ol' Panny AVX rig for Canon 5Ds and Olympus OM-Ds for video capture. Better quality with less luggage.

 

My own epiphany was looking around the camera store where I work, and noticing the owner's collection of old Bolexes and dumb little 8/16mm Army-issue WW2 "movie" cameras. No sound, no shoulder braces, horrible ergonomics for changing aperture and focus while shooting, and usually a single fixed lens (or at best a turret with wide/normal/long primes - no zooms). A galilean "Leica-type" viewfinder (no ttl).

 

Exactly what was probably used for most of the footage in this piece:

 

Here's my own recent piece, with a 5D2 setup made as simple - and as close to those old "newsreel" cameras - as possible. A tabletop tripod underneath for a hand-held pistol-grip, a mike in the hotshoe, and prime lenses (Leica-R 21, 50 or 180) - mostly 21mm, with focus set on the footage scale.

 

ColoradoSeen - Rough Cut

 

If there were an M body with video capability, I could have used that. It wouldn't have lightened my load much (since I'd still have been carrying a separate unencumbered M and 5D for still pictures). It would have offered the option of "viewfinder" over live-view viewing - so long as I was smart enough (I am!) to know what part of the frame would be included in the HDTV-format cropping.

 

Since I already have the 5D setup and am happy with the M9, I would not run out to buy a new Leica simply because it adds video capability. But when they need replacing?......who knows?

[FlashGordonPhotography]

If there is no video on the next M I couldn't care less. If there is, I'll use it occasionally, just like I do on my other video enabled cameras. The M platform seems like an ergonomic nightmare for video, however, if it's all you've got them you may press it into service.

 

Any claim that only a dedicated video camera is used by serious videographers is already plainly wrong. Top TV shows, sports broadcasting agencies and indie movie makers have embraced the video DSLR with both hands. And in my industry, weddings, DSLRs dominate the video market by a significant margin.

 

While on an individual basis, video seems like a waste of resources, fusion is the future. It costs nothing to implement into any camera with live view capability and is a marketing opprotunity for the manufacturers. If the next M has live view then it will have video. It can easily be hidden away like Fuji have done. I can see several circumstances where having video would make the M more desirable. In journalism for one. Destination and travel photographers for another. Not everyone needs cine lenses and a steadycam. Sometimes discreet is better.

 

Gordon

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[rramesh]

If I wanted video I will use my video camera. The problem with most video cameras is not the picture quality. It's the sound. By the time you add quality directional microphones, the camera becomes truly bulky.

 

Most implementation of video in DSLRs lack good sound in the inherent setup.

 

Plus I don't believe it will be an elegant solution on an M, any rangefinder for that matter.

 

Leica believes in useful, high execution engineering design. Otherwise they will never have designed the M-Monochrom. Not everyone will use it or buy it, but when they chose to do so, they will be tremendously impressed.

[IkarusJohn]

While Leica could easily include video if they switch to a sensor offering live view, I don't think they will.

 

This is a company that persisted with, and perfected one of the simplest (I mean in terms of operation) and most elegant means of capturing the highest image quality they can into their products. The M9-P could have had all means of complex add-ons (see any of the competition from Japan for comparison), yet they just kept it simple.

 

Similarly, this is the company which produced the Monochrom.

 

I can't see them adding a video function to a flagship model like either the M or the S cameras, unless they can match the quality of a RED camera or similar - that would bulk up the camera considerably. I do see video in the EVIL camera, if/when it comes, as a no brainer. But not the M10.

 

As an aside, I like the option of video on my NEX-5n, but I hate the implementation, with the separate record button. Everyone who uses that camera (once I convince them that, yes, they do need to focus), finds that they often push the record button by mistake.