Leica Q a $5K camera and auto focus sucks

[bullmoon]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

So far I have found focusing to be fast and accurate, in most cases.... 

 

One disconcerting thing is that in Macro, I can get focus confirmation (beep) and shoot while pointing at something 10 feet away - obviously an out of focus shot.  And out of Macro, I can get focus confirmation (beep) and shoot while pointing at something inches away, again an out of focus shot.  The focus hunts around, but within a few seconds decides "something" is in focus and goes RED and beeps!  I'm pretty positive my 5D absolutely will not shoot, nor beep, when OOF unless I'm manually focusing OOF on purpose.  Sure, if you are looking at what you are shooting and you see the RED rectangle and maybe the blurry image, you should catch this, but is this a bug or a setting I have wrong?  I'd prefer no shot when OOF unless I manually do it on purpose.

 

With this behavior, it's easy to see how an errant Macro setting or simply "no focus" could lead to OOF shots especially with "run and gun" or discrete shooting.  

 

I can't fault the camera so much as the apparent lack of safety net implementation. My eyes are old and I need all the help I can get.  Turning off the beep and relying only on the Green or Red might help - not the best solution though.

[stuny]

I always turn off all audible signals on the camera so as not to call attention to myself.  I've found sometimes I don't achieve focus on autofocus, but I have no idea why.  in those instances I go to manual focus, which is remarkably easy for these very old eyes between the quality of the lens and EVF, and the focusing aids - Enlarged center section and focus peaking.

[Advertisement]

The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[Tailwagger]

Points taken Tailwagger. Nice pictures, but all low light situations. Photography is all about light, and sometimes you have lots of it.

In low light photography 2,8 is sufficient, practical only one stop slower than 1,7. Your pictures show, that you can create an atmosphere and a “feeling” in the pictures by leaving the background semi blurred. I think, that I’m a little biased by mostly using wide lenses for nature and people , where I wanted focus front and back. My favorite outfit for many (film) years was a Leica with a 35 and a slr with a 85 . So the closeups often came from the 85 and the totals from the 35.

 

Just what happened to be on hand from the Q, one ultra low light at iso 3200, the second a more reasonable 1/60" @ iso 200.  My time with camera is somewhat limited and although lately its contributions have been increasing, it still takes a back seat to the M. Regardless its generated a significant percentage of shots in good light and bad at f8-11 as well.    All depends on what I'm trying to accomplish. 

 

Some folks see cameras purely as devices to record as accurately as possible what it is they see in front of them. Perfectly reasonable. But some of us wind up shooting Leicas as we've come to  appreciate a certain subtlety, real or imagined, in way they draw which in turn allows us more of an opportunity to comment, rather than simply report, on what we see. I'll admit I'm a little nuts, but its not unusual for me to shoot landscape with the M10/75mm Summilux-M wide open. Controlling DoF, considering lens falloff, character at aperture, etc and their effect on mood and composition are a crucial parts of my process, which isn't to say I'm brilliant at managing those variables, but I am committed to considering their effect pre-shot.  Coming from such a perspective, the extra stop and half widens the creative palette in ways I find extremely valuable and frankly cant live without. 

[Peter L]

The Leica Q's focussing is excellent, fast and dead on , in fact , this is probably the best focussing camera I have ever used, this is among mostly

Leicas, also nikons and Canons.

I frequently photograph in poorly lighted venues, being involved in music both as a musician and photographer.

The Q with its fast 1.7 lens , fast focussing and outstanding iso performence makes this an ideal camera to work with even in difficult

circumstances.

If one does not obtain good result consistantly with the Q, the camera may be defective or there is operator error, such as the macro setting

as mentioned by others.

This image is not great, however, it is sharp , I have many more images taken at music venues in dim light, no flash, with the result nice and sharp.

 

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!

Edited March 8, 2018 by Peter L

[Ole Fasmer]

my comment about f stop (2,8) ,was only meant regarding being able to obtain a decent in focus shot handheld, without going to extreme ISO’s . I take a lot of pictures these days of nature with quite long telephotos, here f 2,8 is almost the largest aperture you can get. My 400 f. 2,8 is a monster to carry around, and you need some kind of support. Mono or tripod or a shoulder from a friend. So sometimes I go 4/3 and pack a smaller, lighter and nimble 300, that almost substitute a 600 Full frame. All this to say, that regarding telephotos large aperture is necessary or important to obtain a sharp image, you need shutter speeds exceeding 1000/sec. All about certain lenses and their rendering at different apertures, is another matter. I’m not a fan of shooting at full aperture with a nd filter, because you’re obsessed with bokeh or the rendering of the lens a full aperture. Sometimes the lighting and the situation merits shooting at full aperture also at moderate focal lengths . Go with it then, but I would personally choose a longer focal length, and move back a little. Because I like the more compressed perspective. And now I also have stated, that having a Leica q as the only camera is not an option for me.

[Jetdude]

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

[Lucena]

Advertisement (gone after registration)

I think I a.ready told above somewhere I took gorgeous pics of people in Dubaï and elsewhere with the Q in full auto mode. The wide 28mm allows cropping with quality. For me it is the easiest and more sure way because you dont have to think but just shoot, and when you see a person you want to shoot discretly you cannot/have no time to adjust...

I think I even gave a link to some examples but I am answering with my iphone so itis not easy to go and get the links again.

Did you try?

 

I also have the M10 with a 50lux, both are complementary but do not serve the same purposes IMHO

Edited March 14, 2018 by Lucena

[viramati]

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

 

I'm really not sure where you are going wrong (or if there is a fault with the camera) but this was taken very quickly using face detect and just hit the mark straight off. Pretty low light and at f2 as well. I have always been impressed by the focus capabilities of this camera

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!

[jaapv]

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

Even on face detection? There are really only two options: a faulty camera or user error. I would send the camera in for a check, if I were you.

[Leica Guy]

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

There is no way I’d keep traveling with the Q if I were you. I’d get another camera you have confidence in. I’d send the Q in immediately for service. Either it’s fixed and I’m very happy or I’d sell it and move on. I’m very happy with my Q for traveling, but I also take a lot more landscapes than people shots. I’ve found the multi-point focus to be my most reliable for people even though I intuitively want to use single point focusing. IMHO the Q is an excellent focusing camera, but it is mirrorless and not a DSLR. Good luck. Edited March 14, 2018 by Infiniumguy

[viramati]

 This is shot from the hip, f2.2 with face-detect AF,  the camera hits focus dead on the face and we're both moving towards each other. This camera almost reads my mind hitting focus like no other I know. My A7rIII is pretty good but the Leica q is so much quicker and easier to change settings

 

Untitled by Viramati, on Flickr

Edited March 14, 2018 by viramati

[brickftl]

I didn't bother to slog through all the responses, but my AF is blazing fast and accurate, best of any camera I've ever owned. Sorry to hear about your experience.

 

Here are a few shots, AF nailed them.

 

https://flic.kr/p/W3Crnd

https://flic.kr/p/XHfw1S

https://flic.kr/p/W7YDMJ

https://flic.kr/p/YMYws4

Edited March 24, 2018 by brickftl

[Flu]

I've had 3 Q's and every single one spectacular in AF performance. IMO it's the best travel camera and I travel with the Q only and nothing else. I've also not experienced any issues big or small with any of them.

[fotografr]

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

 

I think your camera needs to be serviced. Something is clearly wrong with it. I almost always use the AF on my Q and I'd estimate that in 18 months I've been using the camera, fewer than one percent of my shots are not properly focused.

[Stealth3kpl]

I am going to exchange it it almost has to be a decentered lens or defective camera. The Q has received too much praise with a capital P for its quick and accurate AF for me to be having these issues. Another thing I am noticing is the ISO in automatic seems higher than it should be for a given scenes as well as lower shutter speeds. An out door photo overcast but still outdoord mid day F2.8 ISO 800 1/50th of a second? 

 

How did you get on? Did you get a replacement?

Pete

Frustrating, to say the least; another trip and about 60% of my images, the subject(s) are out of focus.

I followed the tips from some of the responders here; the macro ring, that was disqualified, not the issue. The second one about reducing the size of the focus point. I just did that one and will try again tomorrow.

Spent ten days in Ethiopia, where people aren’t fond of being photographed, at least for free, and it is frustrating to see that my iPhone 7 plus came out with greatest shots than my Q. The thing is I am not a pro in photography, but not a newby either.

I really appreciate all responses and tips. Still working on the problem, I need the AF system that is the reason I didn’t buy the M10.

Thank you all.

Jetdude

I think you should get a replacement or at least find someone who has a Q you can compare with.

Post some pictures here. It might give us some clues as to what's going on. The Q is so good I find it hard to imagine how someone can have such a high rate of failures in the absence of a fault with the camera.

Pete

Edited March 25, 2018 by Stealth3kpl

[Tailwagger]

I think you should get a replacement or at least find someone who has a Q you can compare with.

Post some pictures here. It might give us some clues as to what's going on. The Q is so good I find it hard to imagine how someone can have such a high rate of failures in the absence of a fault with the camera.

Pete

 

 

I have to concur.  It's possible there are better CD implementations out there, but after several months of use, I find the Q's AF to be as better than any others that I've  owned.  

Edited March 26, 2018 by Tailwagger