Leica M, a fast camera?

[Joshua Lowe]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I admit the last AF camera I used was a 5DMk3, but in my experience AF systems aren't that reliable after dark. I shot some complex scenes tonight with my M240, such as a Shabbat ceremony at SF's union Square. The rabbi was carrying a lit torch and the square was relativity dark against the backdrop of brightly lit buildings. I think those conditions are highly suited to an M, especially an MM. More often, I found myself wishing for a clean ISO 6400 or even 12500 than I did for instant focus.

[lct]

Hard to say that digital Ms are fast cameras when comparing them to DSLRs or modern mirrorless cameras. A self-respecting Leica should have short startup times an should be able to shoot as many frames as we need w/o any blackout. If others can do it, why not my Leicas? 

[Steve Ricoh]

I'm very happy on the whole with the M240, but like all electronic equipment it has a start-up or wake-up time, and that can mean the difference between getting or not getting the shot when things are moving/happening at a quick rate, eg on the street. Perhaps the perfect camera for street work is a film camera, such as an M6, since it's always on and is ready in an instance, assuming it's loaded and cocked.

[grillo]

Hard to say that digital Ms are fast cameras when comparing them to DSLRs or modern mirrorless cameras. A self-respecting Leica should have short startup times an should be able to shoot as many frames as we need w/o any blackout. If others can do it, why not my Leicas? 

I don't know about yours, but my M has no blackout at all, even with the camera switched off or the lens cap on.

[hepcat]

Nice blog post. But I see you're in Los Angeles - f11 land - so that's not quite fair. Put a 50 on your M and come to Chicago right now, where it's pitch dark at 4:30 and the daily grayness is compounded by the deep shadows of dense, tall buildings. 

 

After having neglected my X-Pro for so long, I took it out on the streets the other day and couldn't believe how bright the OVF was by comparison, how easily it focused (and it's no speed demon), and how great exposure lock worked. 

 

So I agree that with a short lens and plenty of light, an M has few equals. But in my dim winter universe, where shutters are slow and apertures big, there are so many faster options than an M. I'll keep using my MM all winter but speed won't be among the reasons. 

 

John  

John, I'm about two hundred miles west of you and at the same latitude.  I've not had any issues shooting in downtown Chicago after sundown with my M9P.   It just takes practice.   And MY X-Pro1 missed focus as often as  two out three shots.  It was abysmal.  It was actually the camera that drove me to buy my M8 so I could focus for myself.  Needless to say I don't have the X-Pro1 any longer.  I DO have an X-T1 as my M9P's backup body though.  It's in an entirely different universe than the X-Pro1. 

 

Hard to say that digital Ms are fast cameras when comparing them to DSLRs or modern mirrorless cameras. A self-respecting Leica should have short startup times an should be able to shoot as many frames as we need w/o any blackout. If others can do it, why not my Leicas? 

 

Why don't Leica's have a quick-return mirror?  Because they don't need them.   If you need eight fps and a huge buffer, then the Leica M is not the right tool for your job.  

[lct]

[...] If you need eight fps and a huge buffer, then the Leica M is not the right tool for your job.  

 

8 fps? It cannot even be twice as slower... Pity that Leica Ms are supposed to be inferior cameras compared to (much) less expensive competitors...

[John Ricard]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I'm very happy on the like all electronic equipment it has a start-up or wake-up time, and that can mean the difference between getting or not getting the shot when things are moving/happening at a quick rate, eg on the street. Perhaps the perfect camera for street work is a film camera, such as an M6, since it's always on and is ready in an instance, assuming it's loaded and cocked.

Uh, my 5 year old Leica M9 has no wake up time. Neither does my $150 Nikon J1.  My 7 year old Nikon D3x has no wake up time either.  In fact, the only camera I own that has a noticeable wakeup time is my M240.

[Steve Ricoh]

In my short tenure of an M240, I've missed quite a few potential street shots due to wake up lag

 

I love the Leica experience, however, and left wondering whether an analogue M would be the perfect tool on the street - an 'always-on' camera!

[A miller]

I think the M is considered a fast camera in a broad range of contexts if you know what you are doing.  

And the range of those context would be MUCH MUCH broader if Leica could figure out how to triple the usable ISO range in its digital M 

I just don't know why they don't get it and are wasting their R&D on the bloody VF  

[jaapv]

There are no black cats in coal cellars in the Leica R&D department...