Leica M11 first impressions after purchase and receipt

[onasj]

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Purchased a silver M11 today (~$9,000+tax) from Leica Boston and also tried the black M11.  Here are a few first impressions, along with some information I didn't know despite the extensive leaks.

- Overall, the camera is an outstanding tool that merges some of the best aspects of M cameras (compact size, rangefinder focus, huge variety of excellent lenses) with some of the best aspects of modern mirrorless cameras (fast, responsive touch screen interface and user experience, very high resolution BSI sensor with excellent low-light performance, speedy WiFi connectivity to an iPhone, an optional EVF that works very well and makes manual focusing very easy, electronic image stabilization when focusing with the EVF or live view—but no image stabilization when shooting photos).

- I like the finish of the silver M11 better.  The black one, as reported, picks up scratches easily—not just skin dust and oil, but actual scratches, probably due to the highly matte "toothy" finish.

- The black M11 is noticeably lighter, but the silver M11 doesn't feel heavy at all—it feels similar or slightly lighter than the M10-R.

- The silver M11 comes with a black plastic hot shoe cover (where's the angry emoji...).  Having us buy a $25 silver hot shoe cover (which you can order from Leica) for a $9,000 camera focused on clean lines and aesthetic minimalism seems silly.

- That said, the overall aesthetics of the camera are beautiful—those familiar with M cameras will appreciate how various lines have been simplified (except on the bottom of course) and the camera overall has a cleaner, more minimalist look.

- I love the assignable button on the top.

- The camera feels more nimble and responsive than the M10-R or M10-M, presumably because of the Maestro III processor inside.

- The battery is now either silver or black since part of the battery forms part of the bottom of the camera.  

- The battery came so discharged it wouldn't power up the camera.  Same for the spare battery I purchased.  

- The charger is tiny and is powered through a USB-C port.  Very convenient.

- The USB-C port on the bottom of the camera can charge the battery, but only with a higher-wattage USB-C cable.  A standard USB-to-USB-C cable did not do the job, but my MacBookPro AC adapter had no problem charging the battery through the camera's USB-C port.

- I was not able to power the camera with no battery inside and the USB-C port connected to a high-wattage power source.  So you may not be able to turn on the camera without at least a bit of charge in the battery, even if you have a high-power USB-C cable attached.

- The new EVF works very well, with a good (but not world-class) frame rate, good resolution, and a very high contrast ratio (deep blacks, thanks to its OLED display).  It fits the aesthetic design of the M11 much, much better than the Visoflex 020.  There is a fair amount of surface-to-surface contact when you mount and unmount the new Visoflex, so I might worry especially if I owned a black M11 that the top plate would get scratched over time.

- The new sensor performs very well in low light, with usable images in the ISO 25,000-30,000 range.

- There is an overexposure bug that occasionally causes photos, especially when the camera is moved through different levels of light just before shutter release, to be wayyyyy overexposed occasionally.  I assume this is a result of the new metering being a bit slower than the shutter release.  Hopefully this can be fixed in a firmware update.

- The Leica M11 half-case ("Protector", they call it) is well designed, looks great, and given the changes to the bottom of the camera is probably the only half-case that will allow you to change the battery without removing the case.  The Protector does NOT have a tripod socket on the bottom, so you cannot use the M11 in the Protector on a tripod.

Hope these early observations are useful.

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[Tailwagger]

40 minutes ago, onasj said:

MacBookPro AC adapter had no problem charging the battery through the camera's USB-C port

Something I was wondering about. Thx for mentioning this!

[M Journey]

I picked up my silver m11 from the Leica Sf store today.  Was wanting to take an iconic picture as my first snap, but like you mentioned, the batteries were completely empty at purchase….

[SrMi]

The nice thing about the new Visoflex 2 is that it does not partially cover the shutter speed dial as the old Visoflex 020 did. Setting the shutter speed is now easier.

[NickTheo]

Love this camera - picked mine up at Leica LA today.  I know they moved the screw thread on the bottom of the camera by a small amount down closer to the center from M10 model to M11 but I am curious if anyone has tried putting a M10 case on an M11 to see how it fits?  The majority of the camera seems like it's roughly the same dimensions and button placement.  Only thing thats different is the thread.

[M Journey]

50 minutes ago, SrMi said:

The nice thing about the new Visoflex 2 is that it does not partially cover the shutter speed dial as the old Visoflex 020 did. Setting the shutter speed is now easier.

it also feels very secure on the m11 and shouldn't accidently come off when taking it out or putting it back into a bag.

[Archiver]

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1 hour ago, Artin said:

 the black is very stealthy Matt finish but feels like Shark skin. It’s like a 1000 grid sand paper. I almost want to take a polishing compound to it and make it gloss 

That would probably be a very bad idea 😄 Congratulations on being one of the first to have the M11!

[Herr Barnack]

On 1/13/2022 at 6:41 PM, Artin said:

...the black is very stealthy Matt finish but feels like Shark skin. It’s like a 1000 grid sand paper. I almost want to take a polishing compound to it and make it gloss 

The M11 black finish is said to be the same finish that's on the Q2 Reporter.  I do not recall reading of people not liking the Q2 Reporter finish, although I may have overlooked those reports, if there were any.

@Artin do you find the 1000 grit emory cloth feel of the black finish to be objectionable?

[Yarosuav]

18 minutes ago, Artin said:

I am not a huge fan of it, in all honestly it makes the camera feel cheep. That along with the lighter weight feels like your carrying around a Fuji. 
I wish it was more like my MP 240.  Finish. With the brass plate and the Matt black paint

Harsh!!! But that’s what I was afraid of - and that’s why I opted for silver. 

[Herr Barnack]

I think before I part ways with $9000 USD, I'm going to have to see/feel a black finish M11 with my own hands, even if that means a 12 hour drive to my Leica dealer and an overnight stay.  That, or just play it safe and order the silver chrome finish M11.  I have never had a chrome M camera; it may be time for one.

[Gobert]

The effort you have to do to collect your new body is part of the fun. 

[Tailwagger]

1 hour ago, Herr Barnack said:

I think before I part ways with $9000 USD, I'm going to have to see/feel a black finish M11 with my own hands, even if that means a 12 hour drive to my Leica dealer and an overnight stay.  That, or just play it safe and order the silver chrome finish M11.  I have never had a chrome M camera; it may be time for one.

Having taken black, personally and bearing in mind that my sensibilities register in the negative numbers on the fashionista scale, I'd offer up the following psychological test to determine whether black will or will not work for you. 

Find a room that needs repainting and paint it. Wait a week. When you walk into the room, do you admire your work or see nothing but all the spots where you screwed up?

If you either refuse to paint or wait, buy the black. You're lazy and the only difference you'll notice is the delivery date.  If you forget to revisit the room in a week, go either way. Clearly, it doesn't matter that much to you one way or the other. Finally, if all you see is the flaws in your paint job, you will never be happy unless you buy the silver version. 

Hope this helps 😃

In all seriousness, after examining the paint for a second, I haven't given it a second thought, except when I read about it here. 

[onasj]

If it matters, I was told that Leica shipped far more black M11s than silver ones.

[digitalfx]

I have always owned black and never once owned one long enough for it to show brass. The new black is very nice, and the weight difference is very noticeable. IMO the weight is perfect

[Herr Barnack]

7 hours ago, Gobert said:

The effort you have to do to collect your new body is part of the fun. 

After the effort required to create an extra $9K to buy my M11, I may  not be able to drag myself to the front door to sign for delivery of it. 😫

[Tailwagger]

39 minutes ago, Herr Barnack said:

After the effort required to create an extra $9K to buy my M11, I may  not be able to drag myself to the front door to sign for delivery of it. 😫

Then I'd strongly suggest, assuming you manage the trek,  getting the black for the weight reduction. Might not make it back to the couch otherwise. 😃

[mon10a]

Hi @onasj. I think I saw you purchase your silver M11 last Thursday at Leica Boston. (I was there to pick up a black one.)

I really like the less slippery feel of the black finish and I don't see any indication that it scratches easily. All your other observations are spot on, though!
 

[Tailwagger]

On 1/13/2022 at 7:15 PM, M Journey said:

it also feels very secure on the m11 and shouldn't accidently come off when taking it out or putting it back into a bag.

Indeed, the fit is very tight. I'm not sure I could get mine off if I wanted to. The profile is far, far, better for in and out fo the bag. Lost an 020 once due to that. Doubt its at all possible with the new unit. 

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[digbyhp]

An early adopter of the black here as well. I agree with most of the OPs points. Here are a few of mine (this is the first digital M for me, so some of this may be old news to many of you);

Pros

- I like the black finish, the matte look and the texture work for me.

- It feels very solid and weighty, even if it is lighter than the silver. 

- No problems with accurate focussing with the rangefinder on a 75mm f2 at f2, so although I have the EVF, it may not get much work except in low light.

- No issue with using full 60mp hand-held, perfectly sharp at reasonable shutter speeds. Some people predicted that 60mp would be too much resolution without stabilisation, I just don't think that is true in my short experience.

- The variable pixel feature, which I thought would be a gimmick, is actually a real boon. My preferred method is to put the DNGs to the internal, and the JPGs to the SD. As I only use the JPGs for social media, 18mp is ample so I will be able to fit an awful lot of images on the 64gb card I bought.

- File transfer, whether via wi-fi or cable, is a breeze. Although I had to download Android File Transfer for my Mac.

- Resolution on Leica glass is astonishing. I cropped an image I took with the 75mm down to a 135mm equivalent for some distant boat sheds, and could clearly read signage that was not visible at the original magnification.

- Electronic shutter another delight. I set it to 'Hybrid', so when I am out in bright daylight and lens wide open, no need for ND filters, at least for static subjects.

- In-camera charging. This is a simple but real advantage for travel.

- Really long exposures up to 60 mins. I love a bit of LE  so this means no need for cable release.

- Don't understand the fuss about no more bottom plate. New arrangement works well. Just have to remember to lie it on it's back when USB-C cord is plugged in.

 

Cons

- Have had two lock-ups so far.

- The lack of aperture display surprised me, but now I understand the reason for this and it is the same for all Ms.

- No multiple-exposure setting. Something I very rarely use but I thought this was a standard thing by now. Also apparently not for Ms.

   

That's about it so far. I think the feature set is very mature. Plaudits to Leica for achieving all this while still maintaining a body that is almost exactly the same size as my M7.        -

[Jeff S]

9 minutes ago, digbyhp said:

An early adopter of the black here as well. I agree with most of the OPs points. Here are a few of mine (this is the first digital M for me, so some of this may be old news to many of you);

Pros

- I like the black finish, the matte look and the texture work for me.

- It feels very solid and weighty, even if it is lighter than the silver. 

- No problems with accurate focussing with the rangefinder on a 75mm f2 at f2, so although I have the EVF, it may not get much work except in low light.

- No issue with using full 60mp hand-held, perfectly sharp at reasonable shutter speeds. Some people predicted that 60mp would be too much resolution without stabilisation, I just don't think that is true in my short experience.

- The variable pixel feature, which I thought would be a gimmick, is actually a real boon. My preferred method is to put the DNGs to the internal, and the JPGs to the SD. As I only use the JPGs for social media, 18mp is ample so I will be able to fit an awful lot of images on the 64gb card I bought.

- File transfer, whether via wi-fi or cable, is a breeze. Although I had to download Android File Transfer for my Mac.

- Resolution on Leica glass is astonishing. I cropped an image I took with the 75mm down to a 135mm equivalent for some distant boat sheds, and could clearly read signage that was not visible at the original magnification.

- Electronic shutter another delight. I set it to 'Hybrid', so when I am out in bright daylight and lens wide open, no need for ND filters, at least for static subjects.

- In-camera charging. This is a simple but real advantage for travel.

- Really long exposures up to 60 mins. I love a bit of LE  so this means no need for cable release.

- Don't understand the fuss about no more bottom plate. New arrangement works well. Just have to remember to lie it on it's back when USB-C cord is plugged in.

 

Cons

- Have had two lock-ups so far.

- The lack of aperture display surprised me, but now I understand the reason for this and it is the same for all Ms.

- No multiple-exposure setting. Something I very rarely use but I thought this was a standard thing by now. Also apparently not for Ms.

   

That's about it so far. I think the feature set is very mature. Plaudits to Leica for achieving all this while still maintaining a body that is almost exactly the same size as my M7.        -

Wonder if others have had lockup issues and, if so, specific circumstances. You might want to initiate a separate discussion. 
 

Jeff