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Zeiss ZX1 vs Leica Q


ajayk

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But that screen is still way too small (I wonder if that display does nearly show real life colours and/or brightness) to postprocess pictures with that pre-installed lightroom. I don't even want to think about judging whether I really nailed the focus with the help of that little screen.

 

Why would I want to take a picture with such a high resolution, edit it on that small screen and then share it? Then, when you're at home and have a second look on your 32'' calibrated Adobe RGB screen, you find out that you need to make lots of changes to the picture (again) and share them again. Of course, you could then apologize (to your clients/friends etc.), saying "Sorry, I couldn't really judge the colours/sharpness/brightness etc. because I used a far too small screen to postprocess my high-resolution pictures....

 

So that edit-and-share-feature of the ZX1 is not really an advantage to me.

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I think this camera looks exciting. 80 ISO as the baseline, a fast eight element Zeiss 35mm lens, gorgeous industrial design. 1/8000th of a second top shutter speed. 37.5 megapixels, and 512GB of storage BUILT IN. Biggest card I have for any camera is 16GB, and that's always been more than enough for me, even shooting RAW.

 

Essentially, you could shoot this camera morning, noon, and night, in all conditions, and get consistently great images. It looks fantastic, a real break from tradition, and yet it really appeals to the traditionalist in me.

 

If the interface is nicely designed, and works smoothly and seamlessly, I want one. Bravo for someone to really innovate.

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Much as I admire the design (yellow lettering apart) it would be difficult as a Q owner for me to justify purchase, given the excellent IQ, still, at 35mm crop with Leica's lens. The real negatives would be the size and additional 160g weight, which brings the ZX1 into M + lens category. I also wonder how much on-the-fly editing really is attuned to the way photographers want to proceed in 2018. Part of the pleasure for me is to check over what I have taken then upload to a decent size iMac and modify the exposures at leisure. One incidental detail puzzles me, and that's the omission of conventional strap lugs: the photos suggest a small slot on each side of the near-front of the camera, with a vertical post to allow securing of a strap ring. But this could lead to marking the black finish unless Zeiss has a clever solution!

 

All that said, I am still drawn to the ZX1 if largely for sentimental reasons: my first serious camera was a Zeiss Ikonta which took roll film – some 60 years ago!

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I would take a Q in 35mm  :)

 

The ZX1 perhaps is the Leica anti-thesis. 

 

Leica focuses on the photography experience, and ZX1 is marring its offering with smart devices which is not necessarily a bad thing. The only negative on the ZX1 is its size. The design feels like its done by consultants, and not actual photographers but again, is not necessarily a bad thing.

 

I think it probably will not appeal or compete with those who like Leica systems, and perhaps goes after the crowd who prize 'engineered' products which I associate with Hasselblad, Sony, Sigma, Olympus users, etc. The other end of the spectrum I think is where Leica and Fuji users are.

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For me most of the comments here are very critical. I for myself want to wait and see, when the camera launches in 2019. Design, haptics, quality, control and handling, just everything is brand new and has to be checked, if the cam is a really competitor with value. I guess that the price will come close to a Leica M Body. For now my X113 delivers still excellent results. And I am still waiting for a semipro camera with a built-in 40-50mm lens.

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The Leica Q is my primary street/carry camera. As for the Zeiss, I'll have to wait until it's actual available to make any judgements. especially about having only internal memory. When a card fails, you can always pop in another card. But...

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9 hours ago, Fran D said:

The Leica Q is my primary street/carry camera. As for the Zeiss, I'll have to wait until it's actual available to make any judgements. especially about having only internal memory. When a card fails, you can always pop in another card. But...

Cards are more likely to fail than internal memory, for mechanical reasons. When was the last time you had a phone or iPad did because of a problem with its internal flash memory?

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 10/6/2018 at 9:55 AM, Macberg said:

But that screen is still way too small (I wonder if that display does nearly show real life colours and/or brightness) to postprocess pictures with that pre-installed lightroom. I don't even want to think about judging whether I really nailed the focus with the help of that little screen.

Oh, I can judge focus no problem on smaller backside monitors with a 100% button.

But yes why would anyone want to edit images on such a small screen ? As a set of emergency tools, sure. But as the real deal, not so much.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On ‎9‎/‎29‎/‎2018 at 2:00 PM, jmschuh said:

Leica Q and Zeiss ZX1 are very different concepts. Those who use a Q know why they do this and what they have in a Q is a digital camera that works almost like an analog camera. A ZX1 is exactly the opposite of a Q. A camera that works like a modern smartphone.

 
In the future, both cameras will continue to find their customers without making life difficult for each other.
 
I myself wouldn't want a Q that looks or works like a ZX1.

"Two paths diverged in the yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler..."

It all comes down to how you view photography. Is it, "quick, grab it with the cell phone (ZX1, A7R, etc.) and upload it to the cloud", or, "Wow, this is amazing. How can I make this image mine?" All photography is personal. Some of us consciously choose to engage in the process of capturing an image that conveys what we saw, rather than, click....click....click....manipulate.

This is the basic reason Leica still exists. It appeals to a primal, artistic instinct that is not in a hurry and believes that a cloud is a cloud = something to be photographed and enjoyed.

 

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