wavecrestphoto Posted March 7, 2013 Share #1 Posted March 7, 2013 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hello everyone! I am fairly new to the forum, and have been shooting M8 for some time now and really enjoying the rangefinder experience very much! I have been a Canon DSLR shooter for many years and adding the M8 to my portrait and wedding work has been really exciting. While I am happy with the color that I am getting out of the M8, I find myself enjoying the native color from the M9 files I've been seeing a bit more. I've also been looking for a bit more resolution to better match the file sizes from my D SLR bodies. So for those of you that have moved from M8 to M9, are you finding your out of camera color even better? Also, relative to focus does the larger sensor and presumably shallower depth of field on the M9 make focusing any more difficult? I'm getting wonderfully sharp images from my M8 body, and I was wondering if the full frame sensor made that process any harder. Thanks for any input you may have. This forum really has been a great source of information as all of my photo buddies are non-rangefinder people warmest regards, Kevin Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted March 7, 2013 Posted March 7, 2013 Hi wavecrestphoto, Take a look here Moving from M8 to M9. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
hepcat Posted March 7, 2013 Share #2 Posted March 7, 2013 The biggest change for me (and I have both M8 & M9) in IQ is just the file size. There are some things I like better in the M9; the ISO button on the back, and the camera's processing responds faster. I shoot them more or less interchangeably without issues. YMMV. Oh, and I have UV/IR cut filters on all of my lenses for the M8, and I don't bother removing them for the M9 unless there's a point-light-source reflection issue. I really like the rendering of the M9 with the UV/IR cut filter in place most of the time. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
martha Posted March 7, 2013 Share #3 Posted March 7, 2013 Kevin: I went from an 8.2 (using UV/IR filters) to 9-P (without filters) and was struck by the quality (fabulous!) of the out of camera color on the 9-P. Focusing has not been an issue for me in any way. I hope this answers your questions. --martha Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hhmrogers Posted March 7, 2013 Share #4 Posted March 7, 2013 ............Also, relative to focus does the larger sensor and presumably shallower depth of field on the M9 make focusing any more difficult? I'm getting wonderfully sharp images from my M8 body, and I was wondering if the full frame sensor made that process any harder.............. Well, the depth of field depends on the lens rather than the body. I think most people who like rangefinders find focussing easy enough and you do have some extra help from the depth of field engravings on the lenses. Autofocus on a DSLR is nice to have but I don't personally find manual focussing with a rangefinder a problem though with a 135mm lens the shallow depth of field requires a bit of extra care. SLRs really come into their own when your subject matter demands a long lens. Don't part with your M8 when you get an M9 unless you need the trade-in value. I bought an M-E in October last year and my M8 gets plenty of use too so I'm glad I was able to keep it. Henry Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavecrestphoto Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share #5 Posted March 7, 2013 Thank you for the input! Were there large changes in raw workflow between the two? I'm a Lightroom user, and found the default profiles not very good for the M8. After custom profiling the camera colors improved dramatically! Do the M9 files process differently? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hhmrogers Posted March 7, 2013 Share #6 Posted March 7, 2013 Thank you for the input! Were there large changes in raw workflow between the two? I'm a Lightroom user, and found the default profiles not very good for the M8. After custom profiling the camera colors improved dramatically! Do the M9 files process differently? I'm still learning my way round Lightroom so wouldn't like to pontificate but I started editing digital data from scanned images long, long before I bought a digital camera so I'm more interested in how I want to do things than in what the software tells me to do! Also, only some of my lenses are Leica ones and only some of those are coded. So my editing tends to be manual rather than just letting the software get on with it, particularly since some of my pictures end up as B&W. The M8 with a red filter on the lens works pretty well too if you want a change from ordinary mono. I can't say I find huge differences between the two cameras, except for IR. Whether you consider that a nuisance (need for IR/UV filters) or an asset is a matter of taste. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff S Posted March 8, 2013 Share #7 Posted March 8, 2013 Advertisement (gone after registration) After owning a couple of M8.2s, I tested them against the M9 and ended up keeping what I have. I preferred the color output from the M9 in some circumstances, but I preferred the M8.2 as a b/w camera. The external filtration is more effective than the M9's internal filtration. I don't print huge, or super wide, or shoot extremely high ISOs, so the M9 didn't offer me some of the advantages important to others. Apart from IQ, I prefer some other aspects of the M8.2 over the M9, e.g., 2m frame lines, standard sapphire screen, standard chrome option, top display and camera covering. (Of course one can pay more for an M9-P and get the screen and the chrome options.) Some people are troubled by the M8's crop factor and UV/IR filters. I was never bothered by either. I actually preferred using my 50 Summilux asph with the M8.2 over using a 75 Summicron asph on the M9 for roughly similar POVs; I never really liked the 75 frame lines. All this is personal based on my needs and preferences. YMMV. But my mileage might vary as well, once I test the M. If IQ suffices (color and b/w), then I like that it will incorporate the 2m frame lines I prefer, in addition to having weather sealing, quieter shutter, faster processor, longer battery life, better build quality and the potential to use longer lenses. I'll test and decide. Jeff 4 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wda Posted March 8, 2013 Share #8 Posted March 8, 2013 Kevin, I currently operate both M8 and M9 bodies. Both serve me well. But the M9 has a slight quality advantage over the M8 and doesn't require corrective filters on camera. I think one of the main advantages I find is that I can name my user presets in the M9. It is a small but significant advantage to me who uses presets constantly to normalise camera operations after making in-use alterations while shooting. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tobey bilek Posted March 11, 2013 Share #9 Posted March 11, 2013 My M9 colors are better. I like the fact that now my wide lenses are wide again and the rest of them work as they should. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hepcat Posted March 12, 2013 Share #10 Posted March 12, 2013 Thank you for the input! Were there large changes in raw workflow between the two? I'm a Lightroom user, and found the default profiles not very good for the M8. After custom profiling the camera colors improved dramatically! Do the M9 files process differently? I haven't noticed any significant color differences between the M8 and M9 files, honestly. As I said, I have UV/IR cut filters on all of my lenses for the M8, and I don't remove them for the M9 so that may add a level of color rendering consistency to my images between the two bodies that others who rely only on the internal filters of the M9 don't get... YMMV. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted March 12, 2013 Share #11 Posted March 12, 2013 I went M8 to M9-P and I can't say I noticed much difference in the colours. I normally post-process colours in Photoshop's LAB colour space, which separates colour information from luminance, so if there were significant differences then I think I'd have noticed. I liked my M8 very much but my M9-P gave me back my true focal lengths so I only used my M8 for infrared work after that. I don't miss having to mess around with UV/IR filters anymore. Pete. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
LotharZhou Posted March 14, 2013 Share #12 Posted March 14, 2013 What I have notice is that M8 does a B&W job much better than M9's, M9's B&W needs a lot more work to get the level of M8, colour wise I do prefer M9. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
fursan Posted March 14, 2013 Share #13 Posted March 14, 2013 To be honest, I prefer my M8s to my ME ( bought because of the anticipated display going faulty eventuality ). With sw, I do not see much difference between the two. Crop don't bother me none. I am at ease with both. My house was not made for bill boards. The new M 240...shall think about it after they fill out the missing M 100s. Best. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jedi996sps Posted March 14, 2013 Share #14 Posted March 14, 2013 I did not jump from the M8 to the M9 and have always been happy with what it delivers. I may now however look at the M240 but not because i am unhappy with the image quality of the M8, but because of the peak focus facility. Oh, i also do not print large size anymore, but have successfully printed several images from the M8 at 44" x 44". Good luck 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! 2 Quote 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/199967-moving-from-m8-to-m9/?do=findComment&comment=2271309'>More sharing options...
DirkB17 Posted March 14, 2013 Share #15 Posted March 14, 2013 I am quite new to Leica and pleased with the results of my M8. Usually I do prints of 12x18, sometimes 24x36, which is fine, especially for b&w. Now that I am getting used to the quirks and limitations of the M8, an upgrade to the M9 does not make too much sense for me. However, I am tempted by the Monochrom, very much, to be honest. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ecar Posted March 17, 2013 Share #16 Posted March 17, 2013 In terms of useability/feeling, the M9 is a marked improvement over the original M8. Less so vs. the M8.2 IMO. At moderate printing sizes, I'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between the respective output of the two cameras, except perhaps in BW, where the M8 does indeed have a small clarity/crispiness edge. In other words, any difference in color may be down to the conversion profiles used. The M9 has three main obvious advantages IMO: somewhat better high-ISO performance, higher resolution and ability to use your lenses at their nominal focal length. Bottom line: if you own an M8.2, don't shoot in low light, don't print large and are happy with using the lenses you have (and putting filters on them), the M9 may only provide a marginal IQ improvement. YMMV. I kept both. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke_Miller Posted March 18, 2013 Share #17 Posted March 18, 2013 My experience pretty much matches that of Ecar. I find that my M9 feels a bit more like a finished product than my M8.2, but image quality is comparable. My primary reason for going to the M9 was the crop factor. Having shot crop bodies since 2002 I was really ready to return to the 35mm format. The one big change for me with the M9 was lens choice. On the M8.2 my most used lens was a 28mm, while on the M9 it is a 35mm. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lax Jought Posted March 23, 2013 Share #18 Posted March 23, 2013 Bottom line: if you own an M8.2, don't shoot in low light, There is scope to take low light photography with the M8/M8.2. Having a fast lens helps though, admittedly. But I regularly take low light shots with my M8.2 and I think they look great: http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/2325264-post1032.html 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_j Posted March 23, 2013 Share #19 Posted March 23, 2013 I keep looking at M9 and ME upgrades but I see more and more forum threads saying the M8 is superior for monochrome and that, file sizes and crop factors apart, there is little to choose in image quality. Also I do like to take a few infrared pics. I have handled an 'M' and it felt fat and heavy - just as the M8 did after my M6. It's a bit of a quandary - I would like to talk myself into buying an ME or M9 but need to be certain before spending capital on an inessential purchase. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
doolittle Posted March 23, 2013 Share #20 Posted March 23, 2013 I keep looking at M9 and ME upgrades but I see more and more forum threads saying the M8 is superior for monochrome and that, file sizes and crop factors apart, there is little to choose in image quality. Also I do like to take a few infrared pics. I have handled an 'M' and it felt fat and heavy - just as the M8 did after my M6. It's a bit of a quandary - I would like to talk myself into buying an ME or M9 but need to be certain before spending capital on an inessential purchase. I have an M8 with a coffee stain, so could get a discount from Leica on an M9. I don't like the 24/35mm frame lines of the M8, though am slowly getting used to them. The frame lines of the M9 are definitely better. Not having the crop factor would be nice too. However, the camera isn't holding me back in anyway, so I have no urgency to change it. I also like taking infrared pictures, which the M8 really excels at, I think I would miss that. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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