Any M to Q converts out there?

[_chris_lawrence]

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Hi there,

I'm wondering if anyone who owns the Q, but who also has used an M or still does, has thoughts on using the Q for portraiture. For someone who isn't a full on professional, does the Q in your opinion do a great job grabbing portraits, even if cropped, and without looking weird due to heavy distortion? 

I currently own the Leica M9 with the 50mm Summilux ASPH, as well as a 28mm Elmarit ASPH. It's my first Leica and I really like the camera overall. It has its downsides like the quite loud shutter and missing a lot of shots due to the nature of the rangefinder when not zone focusing, but otherwise it also has some lovely upsides - upsides that you out there as former or current M users will know, hence me seeking your thoughts.

With the coming of the Q2 and how it will be able to handle crops quite well given its sensor size, I'd appreciate your thoughts on using the Q for portraits - bokeh, distortion, whatever comes to mind. 

Thanks in advance!

[pixelman]

I use an MP-240 and a Q. I love the Q for its speed and image quality.  I don’t think it’s strength is in shooting portraits.  

If the Q2 Rumors are true and it is a waterproof 45MP camera with a fixed 28mm focal length, I don’t think it will be a strong portrait camera.  I look forward to seeing what the Q2 is, but I don’t think I’d upgrade if that is all we get.   I’d be tempted to suggest a different path for portraits (like a Fujii XT3)

You could try shooting some portraits on a current Q and cropping in post to the equivalent of a 75mm as a quick test. The rumoured Q2 would be better than this, but not tons better and you’d get a quick sense of the feel of the Q as a portrait camera. 

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[nicci78]

Give up M + 28mm for Q. 

Used to use Q + M (21 35 50 90) for a while. Then switch to Q + CL (18 35 60 macro) 

 

[_chris_lawrence]

1 hour ago, pixelman said:

I use an MP-240 and a Q. I love the Q for its speed and image quality.  I don’t think it’s strength is in shooting portraits.  

If the Q2 Rumors are true and it is a waterproof 45MP camera with a fixed 28mm focal length, I don’t think it will be a strong portrait camera.  I look forward to seeing what the Q2 is, but I don’t think I’d upgrade if that is all we get.   I’d be tempted to suggest a different path for portraits (like a Fujii XT3)

You could try shooting some portraits on a current Q and cropping in post to the equivalent of a 75mm as a quick test. The rumoured Q2 would be better than this, but not tons better and you’d get a quick sense of the feel of the Q as a portrait camera. 

Sound advice. A close friend has the Q as well as an M (monochrome). I've used it, but never did a side by side test. From what I've seen in the LCD screen the 50mm crop on the current Q renders bokeh for sure, but there's always been something that felt a little off regarding the focus. Maybe because of the setting in use. But I'll give a comparison a shot and use manual focusing on the eye to see what comes of things.

 

Thanks for chiming in!

[_chris_lawrence]

48 minutes ago, nicci78 said:

Give up M + 28mm for Q. 

Used to use Q + M (21 35 50 90) for a while. Then switch to Q + CL (18 35 60 macro) 

 

Interesting new setup. Thanks for sharing!

[dancook]

I bought an M10 after having the Q and the SL for a while - in the end I kept the Q and sold the other two.

I've used the Leica Q for portraits, this one had a crop

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these were not typically cropped much, but I planned on the distortion of being close to add to the image

Definite distortion in this one

 

 

Edited February 18, 2019 by dancook

[_chris_lawrence]

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1 hour ago, dancook said:

I bought an M10 after having the Q and the SL for a while - in the end I kept the Q and sold the other two.

I've used the Leica Q for portraits, this one had a crop

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!

these were not typically cropped much, but I planned on the distortion of being close to add to the image

Definite distortion in this one

 

 

Wow, these are some really epic portraits. The costumes/color and makeup are so cool! I personally think that the planned distortion bit gives portraits that little something extra that results in me as a viewer stop[ing and looking just that little bit longer. There's something interesting that your minds eye (or an untrained photographer eye) can't put a finger on, but you keep looking at. 

Gear wise, really interesting that you had the M10 and another, but reverted back to your Q. Have you done prints with these images, and if so, what are your thoughts there? Also what are your thoughts regarding the upcoming Q2? Do you feel a jump in MP offers you something you're lacking or wish you had from the current Q?

Thanks for sharing!

P.S. Is this series from some sort of convention or specific fantasy genre people seek shots for, or was this a halloween thing? Really enjoying the images.

Edited February 18, 2019 by _chris_lawrence

[dancook]

4 minutes ago, _chris_lawrence said:

Wow, these are some really epic portraits. The costumes/color and makeup are so cool! I personally think that the planned distortion bit gives portraits that little something extra that results in me as a viewer stop[ing and looking just that little bit longer. There's something interesting that your minds eye (or an untrained photographer eye) can't put a finger on, but you keep looking at. 

Gear wise, really interesting that you had the M10 and another, but reverted back to your Q. Have you done prints with these images, and if so, what are your thoughts there? Also what are your thoughts regarding the upcoming Q2? Do you feel a jump in MP offers you something you're lacking or wish you had from the current Q?

Thanks for sharing!

P.S. Is this series from some sort of convention or specific fantasy genre people seek shots for, or was this a halloween thing? Really enjoying the images.

Thanks,

The one's in front of the bonfire are just a couple from one Halloween, the one's that are dressed up in full cosplay, the collage of portraits above, are from the London MCM comic con - which happens twice a year, and also in other places in the UK like Birmingham.

I produced A3 prints for quite a few of the images above and they look great

There were a few reasons I sold the M10 and SL - but the main drive was moving into professional photography and needing a system to cope with my needs. I also like to minimise my gear so that I'm getting the most out of what I have without having too many things losing value.

I currently have 2 x A9 for professional work and for personal use the Leica Q and Hasselblad X1D with 90mm - I'm selling the Hasselblad in anticipation of the Leica Q2.

The higher MP Leica Q2 will give me more versatility in a single body, for travel and street.

[Michael Kersting]

vor 19 Stunden schrieb dancook:

The higher MP Leica Q2 will give me more versatility in a single body, for travel and street.

Please explain that to me. In my understanding more MP means working more accurate at higher shutter speeds and when having low shutter speed with a tripod to avoid pixel-shift through shaking. So more MP are not useful for travel and street, because you would work without a tripod handheld and sometimes in bad light, where fast shutter speeds are not available or when available only with an increase of ISO, which is considerably worse with more MP.  

[dancook]

3 minutes ago, Michael Kersting said:

Please explain that to me. In my understanding more MP means working more accurate at higher shutter speeds and when having low shutter speed with a tripod to avoid pixel-shift through shaking. So more MP are not useful for travel and street, because you would work without a tripod handheld and sometimes in bad light, where fast shutter speeds are not available or when available only with an increase of ISO, which is considerably worse with more MP.  

Because I can crop to a different field of view and have still enough MP left to work with.

[Michael Kersting]

Am 17.2.2019 um 16:47 schrieb _chris_lawrence:

For someone who isn't a full on professional, does the Q in your opinion do a great job grabbing portraits, even if cropped, and without looking weird due to heavy distortion? 

Hi Chris,

just to inform you about how astonishing the Q does portraits look at the LFI 8.2018 and the cover story from Marksteen Adamson. He is "just" a hobby photographer and with his portraits gets a cover story in this renowned magazine, which I find remarkable. He uses a Leica Q and off camera flash. His photos remind me of the ones from the great Bruce Gilden or Martin Parr. All his portraits are spontaneously bespoken on street. So have a look, what can be done with the Leica Q. I tried it myself and portraits look amazing.

But you have to decide, if this one kind of portrait style suits you. If you want to add a camera to the Q other than the manual focusing M, that you have, my recommendation are

either the Leica SL with the APO-Summicron 75mm (although there is a 90mm I would go for the more versatile 75mm)

or the Leica CL with the Summilux 35mm 1,4 (this is a stellar combination given its price and weight)

Hope I could help.

.

[Michael Kersting]

vor 7 Minuten schrieb dancook:

Because I can crop to a different field of view and have still enough MP left to work with.

Right if you don't blur the image with pixel-shift.

[dancook]

Just now, Michael Kersting said:

Right if you don't blur the image with pixel-shift.

I shoot with the Hasseblad X1D with a 50MP sensor and longer focal length (90mm) I never get 'blur from pixel-shift' - and I've also taken 1:1 sharp shots at 1/45th hand held.

If with the Leica Q, 1/125th, F1.7, ISO 100 provides the correct exposure for an image with stationary subject, neither the 24MP or 47MP are likely to exhibit blur, but the 47MP sensor provides more MP to work with.

[dancook]

Further to my point, I took this photo with the hasselblad - I could not have taken this photo with a Leica Q without significant cropping. 

the 47MP sensor would provide a larger file to work with, and I see no reason the Leica Q would suffer from micro-blur versus my X1D...

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[Michael Kersting]

Hey Dan great photo by the way. referring to good light I agree, but street is shoot in not so good light situations, so that is where my camera must perform.

[dancook]

31 minutes ago, Michael Kersting said:

Hey Dan great photo by the way. referring to good light I agree, but street is shoot in not so good light situations, so that is where my camera must perform.

I do not share your concerns and do not believe them to be correct, but I'm not going to get into that debate.

[_chris_lawrence]

21 hours ago, dancook said:

Thanks,

The one's in front of the bonfire are just a couple from one Halloween, the one's that are dressed up in full cosplay, the collage of portraits above, are from the London MCM comic con - which happens twice a year, and also in other places in the UK like Birmingham.

I produced A3 prints for quite a few of the images above and they look great

There were a few reasons I sold the M10 and SL - but the main drive was moving into professional photography and needing a system to cope with my needs. I also like to minimise my gear so that I'm getting the most out of what I have without having too many things losing value.

I currently have 2 x A9 for professional work and for personal use the Leica Q and Hasselblad X1D with 90mm - I'm selling the Hasselblad in anticipation of the Leica Q2.

The higher MP Leica Q2 will give me more versatility in a single body, for travel and street.

Thanks Dan,

You have quite the lineup for your work! Hopefully one day I can have some more options

I'm looking forward to the Q2's release. It may be a great option for a few years if I'm relegated to just one system for street, off-hand portraiture, travel and more. Will be interesting to see how the 35-50mm crops look in regards to distortion if you don't stand too close to someone. It seems like the camera still gets great bokeh.

While it won't be the same as my M9 + 50mm Summilux, it may also not be a huge difference for someone who isn't full on portraiture professional. 

Thx again for sharing your insights!

[_chris_lawrence]

1 hour ago, Michael Kersting said:

Hi Chris,

just to inform you about how astonishing the Q does portraits look at the LFI 8.2018 and the cover story from Marksteen Adamson. He is "just" a hobby photographer and with his portraits gets a cover story in this renowned magazine, which I find remarkable. He uses a Leica Q and off camera flash. His photos remind me of the ones from the great Bruce Gilden or Martin Parr. All his portraits are spontaneously bespoken on street. So have a look, what can be done with the Leica Q. I tried it myself and portraits look amazing.

But you have to decide, if this one kind of portrait style suits you. If you want to add a camera to the Q other than the manual focusing M, that you have, my recommendation are

either the Leica SL with the APO-Summicron 75mm (although there is a 90mm I would go for the more versatile 75mm)

or the Leica CL with the Summilux 35mm 1,4 (this is a stellar combination given its price and weight)

Hope I could help.

.

Thanks for the tip to that issue of LFI, Michael. They're definitely reminiscent of Gilden's work. I've never touched the SL or CL but I'll do so next time I'm at a Leica store. 

I took on the 50mm 1.4 as a complete newb and after weighing out the pros and cons of the 35 vs it. The one thing I didn't really have a handle on was zone focusing. When I use the 28mm elmarit on a sunny day, super easy to snap away. That 50 makes me work but when you nail focus it's a beautiful thing

Thx for sharing your insights. Cheers!

[Michael Kersting]

vor 48 Minuten schrieb dancook:

I do not share your concerns and do not believe them to be correct, but I'm not going to get into that debate.

Two different way of looking at he Q2. but for me I rather have 2 bodies with 2 lenses attached, then 1 body one lens and have to rely on more pixel to crop. 

 

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[Lonescapes]

I used to shoot 55 / 35 (was an M246 user), now I shoot 55 / 28, with the Q instead of the M. I do a lot of environmental portraiture as I publish my photos in newspaper articles, etc.

There's no way around it: 28mm is a bit of a dog for portraiture, even environmental portraiture if you compare with a good 35. But the Q can isolate subject from background, and its optics are wonderful, so at the end of the day it's simply nice to have something a little wider (and therefore more versatile) in my bag along with the 55, which I choose over a normal 50 for the same reasons (a little more reach than the standard 50, tighter composition--it's more 50 than a 50).

Edited February 24, 2019 by Lonescapes