Digital zoom

[kirkmc]

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I've had my Q2M for 24 hours now, and I really like it. I was hesitant about the 28mm lens at first, but seeing how detailed the files are, cropping really isn't a problem. 

The only thing I'd like to see is an option to, instead of frame lines showing in the LCD and EVF, have the image actually zoom, which is what many other cameras do. It could be a lot easier to compose if you do want to use the digital zoom to compose to a crop. 

Am I alone in thinking this would be a good feature 

Edited September 1, 2021 by kirkmc

[acg69]

You are certainly not alone! This has been my main beef with the Q2 since day 1. I have tried to make the point here in the forum and gain some traction, so that we can ask Leica to at least offer this is a menu option with a future f/w upgrade. Some people say that this a legacy issue, i.e. makes the Q2 feel more like an M, but, if you ask me, this is   a very impractical implementation that makes the digital zoom hard to use, ir not completely unusable (at 75mm). So, please voice your opinion loud and clear and maybe we can be heard:)

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[prio]

YES PLEASE! Would definitely enhance the experience.

[T25UFO]

3 hours ago, acg69 said:

completely unusable (at 75mm)

Not sure if I agree with that.  The 75 frame lines in the Q2 are similar to the 90 frame lines in the M10.  I would say completely usable, although the 135 frame lines are challenging.  Given the choice, I would still the viewfinder to zoom.  An easy thing to request, but perhaps a lot more complicated to achieve.  But what do I know?  I'm not an optical engineer.

[acg69]

2 hours ago, T25UFO said:

Not sure if I agree with that.  The 75 frame lines in the Q2 are similar to the 90 frame lines in the M10.  I would say completely usable, although the 135 frame lines are challenging.  Given the choice, I would still the viewfinder to zoom.  An easy thing to request, but perhaps a lot more complicated to achieve.  But what do I know?  I'm not an optical engineer.

Not familiar with the M10 at all. What I do know is that the 75 frame lines create an extremely small window for any meaningful composition to be facilitated. On the M, obviously this is a necessity die to the OVF, but on the Q2 is an anachronism and it just irks me that the only reason they are doing it is the M legacy... If someone wanted an M, they would get an M. I am not a rangefinder guy and that's why I chose the Q2, among other reasons. Also, it is not hard to achieve because (a) virtually all other companies are doing it and (b) it is already there in a way, i.e. when you shoot JPG+RAW and use the digital zoom, the image is previewed in the EVF zoomed in, not with the frame lines.

[Marc B-C]

I am not sure why this is an issue (from my perspective at least). I never use the Q2 crop lines but crop in post to the frame that fits. It may turn out to be equivalent to a 37.3m lens but the number is not important, just the final crop. TBF though, I have no interest in 75mm via the Q2. I suggest it is just a marketing gimmick to appeal to more buyers. The beauty to me of the camera is the 28mm and the full 47mp.

Edited September 2, 2021 by Marc B-C

[kirkmc]

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1 minute ago, Marc B-C said:

I am not sure why this is an issue (from my perspective at least). I never use the Q2 crop lines but crop in post to the frame that fits. It may turn out to be equivalent to a 37.3m lens but the number is not important, just the final crop. TBF though, I have no interest in 75mm via the Q2. I suggest it is just a marketing gimmick to appeal to more buyers. The beauty to me of the camera is the 28mm and the full 47mp.

It'd be easier to compose in the frame, with the crop lines, if the cropped image filled the frame. 

[Marc B-C]

Just now, kirkmc said:

It'd be easier to compose in the frame, with the crop lines, if the cropped image filled the frame. 

I know what you are saying, I do not appear to have that problem, but then I also have no in interest in longer lenses anymore.

[T25UFO]

I also crop mainly in post processing and sometimes the crop is greater than 75mm, but mostly I use the Q as my ‘wide angle’.  The Q2 partners my M10 Mono with a 50mm lens and if I’m carrying the Q2M then the partner camera will be SL2 with either 50mm or 75mm.  I try to avoid changing lenses in the field.

For those that use the crop frames, I agree that filling the frame would be better than M type crop lines, but I am sure Leica won’t make the change.  It might be technically feasible, but I suspect it would be more complicated than writing a few lines in the firmware code.

OK, some users don’t like it, I get that, but the Q series has been a huge success for Leica so why change a winning formula?  Given the choice of a Q2 with frame lines or another make with a full digital viewfinder, I would still choose the Q2.  Others may choose differently and that’s called freedom of choice.

Nothing wrong with that.

[BAASCH]

On 9/1/2021 at 2:35 PM, kirkmc said:

I've had my Q2M for 24 hours now, and I really like it. I was hesitant about the 28mm lens at first, but seeing how detailed the files are, cropping really isn't a problem. 

The only thing I'd like to see is an option to, instead of frame lines showing in the LCD and EVF, have the image actually zoom, which is what many other cameras do. It could be a lot easier to compose if you do want to use the digital zoom to compose to a crop. 

Am I alone in thinking this would be a good feature 

I prefer it the way it is now. It seems to me many people don't get the reasoning behind the 'digital zoom' (a very silly name, 'in camera crop' would have been better). The idea really is that the frame lines make you take enough distance from the scene to avoid distortion. You could fill the frame with a person's head, for a head shot, but it probably wouldn't look good. Switch to 50mm crop and compose inside the virtual frame: no distortion. And composing is much easier if you can see beyond the edges of the frame. For street photography, I'd use the 35mm crop, precisely for that reason. You want to the person/lorry/camel that is about to enter the frame!

[stuny]

I suspect if you are an experienced rangefinder user you would prefer the Q the way it is.  If you are an experienced SLR user, I suspect you'd like to see the zoom filling the frame line.  I think the ideal would be to have a menu item or button to select between the two modes.

[lucy63]

I always compose within the 35 frameline, to me it's so useful to be able to see outside of it. 

[Corius]

Resurrecting an old thread...

I'm fairly new to the Q2, but the discussions regarding digital zoom versus cropping in post don't seem to take into account that the camera  measures exposure from the cropped area and not the full image. Hence, the Raw files taken with and without digital zoom will differ. This is very obvious if you take a photo of a bright TV in a dark room with and without digital zoom.

This would seem to imply that there can be a real benefit to using the digital zoom with DNGs if you do intend to crop in post.

btw, does anyone know of any image editors other than LR that show the Q2 crop area?