Long Exposure with M11

[SrMi]

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M11 has considerably expanded the possibilities of long exposures in M cameras: no LENR and up to 60 minutes. Admittedly, it is not a traditional use of the M system. However, I like how Leica is expanding the functionality of the M line while maintaining its core rangefinder characteristics.
My M11 tests of up to 10 minutes exposures are very impressive (see image thread). I tested the M11's new metering (aperture mode) for up to 20 minutes. Most cameras like Z 7 II or GFX100S can meter to 30" at most (aperture priority mode). If you need a longer exposure, you must adjust the shutter speed manually (bulb mode). Hasselblad cameras are a rare exception and were my long exposure cameras so far. M11 is very close to X1D's long-exposure capabilities in my tests.
No bad, Leica, not bad.
I would like to hear from other owners' experiences.

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[dkmoore]

8 hours ago, SrMi said:

M11 has considerably expanded the possibilities of long exposures in M cameras: no LENR and up to 60 minutes. Admittedly, it is not a traditional use of the M system. However, I like how Leica is expanding the functionality of the M line while maintaining its core rangefinder characteristics.
My M11 tests of up to 10 minutes exposures are very impressive (see image thread). I tested the M11's new metering (aperture mode) for up to 20 minutes. Most cameras like Z 7 II or GFX100S can meter to 30" at most (aperture priority mode). If you need a longer exposure, you must adjust the shutter speed manually (bulb mode). Hasselblad cameras are a rare exception and were my long exposure cameras so far. M11 is very close to X1D's long-exposure capabilities in my tests.
No bad, Leica, not bad.
I would like to hear from other owners' experiences.

You are turning off LENR? Just clarifying as I'm curious. I'm going to mess around with long exposures in the coming weeks. 

[digitalfx]

Thanks, I have been wanting to test this but keep forgetting the tripod. What page are your images on? I dont see them.

[ianman]

9 hours ago, SrMi said:

M11 has considerably expanded the possibilities of long exposures in M cameras: no LENR and up to 60 minutes.

Why is there no LENR? Is it not required or is it just switchable so the user doesn’t have to wait until the process is finished to take the next shot?

I have to say that I was already impressed by long exposures on the M9.

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[SrMi]

2 hours ago, dkmoore said:

You are turning off LENR? Just clarifying as I'm curious. I'm going to mess around with long exposures in the coming weeks. 

Yes, I am shooting with LENR off. 
A two minutes no-LENR dark exposure with M11 (lens cap on) and, unrealistically lifting exposure + shadows to the max, will show a bit more trouble-pixels with M11 than with a Hasselblad.
Note that Hasselblads are the only cameras with no option to turn on LENR (not needed).

[SrMi]

1 hour ago, ianman said:

Why is there no LENR? Is it not required or is it just switchable so the user doesn’t have to wait until the process is finished to take the next shot?

I have to say that I was already impressed by long exposures on the M9.

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LENR is an option with M11. However, shooting a 10 minutes exposure that requires another 10 minutes wait is annoying. In addition, Jim Kasson has measured image degradation with LENR. It may occur with Leicas too.
How long was your exposure in the nice image that you shared? The great thing about M11 is that the metering in aperture mode can handle exposures 20 minutes or more.

[SrMi]

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Leica shows an example of long exposure in their YT talk (1:16:13). The shutter speed cannot be very long when shooting sky without a tracker, hence higher ISO long exposure. 

[ianman]

1 hour ago, SrMi said:

LENR is an option with M11. However, shooting a 10 minutes exposure that requires another 10 minutes wait is annoying. In addition, Jim Kasson has measured image degradation with LENR. It may occur with Leicas too.
How long was your exposure in the nice image that you shared? The great thing about M11 is that the metering in aperture mode can handle exposures 20 minutes or more.

The exposure was 8 seconds. I thought the NR was quite impressive. Of course 8 seconds is nothing compared to your 10 minutes exposure

So is that without any NR or is it applied subsequently? If so, is it in-camera?

I must say that some of the photos from the M11 are very good indeed. In fact it's the only new digital M body apart from the monochroms that has caught my eye since the M9.

[Chaemono]

ISO 64 is so good that one wants to use the M11 always at base ISO. It kind of makes it a camera for landscape, architecture, fine arts photography and a Schoenwetter-Kamera for street with the ability to crop a lot. In fact, ISO 64 is so good that the M12 just needs IBIS and not a newer sensor. 

[SrMi]

26 minutes ago, ianman said:

The exposure was 8 seconds. I thought the NR was quite impressive. Of course 8 seconds is nothing compared to your 10 minutes exposure

So is that without any NR or is it applied subsequently? If so, is it in-camera?

I must say that some of the photos from the M11 are very good indeed. In fact it's the only new digital M body apart from the monochroms that has caught my eye since the M9.

I can live with LENR with up to 10 seconds. The additional 10-seconds wait is bearable :). 

No NR applied in my long-exposure images, neither in-camera nor in post.
No noise is visible at ISO 64 shots of at least 10 minutes (did not test longer). LENR helps with hot pixels, but they are not visible with M11 unless pushing the file to unrealistic levels.

[Lopezso]

Can you say at which ISO you did the 10 min test (and where can I find the image thread)? I am new here and have been using the q2m for long exposures but having noise issues a when going with ISO above 200. I am considering the m11 (monochrom) since I am quite restricted with the 28mm lens of but am not sure if the same issue I have with it will prevail with the m11m

[SrMi]

1 hour ago, Lopezso said:

Can you say at which ISO you did the 10 min test (and where can I find the image thread)? I am new here and have been using the q2m for long exposures but having noise issues a when going with ISO above 200. I am considering the m11 (monochrom) since I am quite restricted with the 28mm lens of but am not sure if the same issue I have with it will prevail with the m11m

I cannot find my original post neither :), so here it is again (ISO64, 648 sec):

 

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[Lopezso]

So I finally decided to get the m11 (color version) and am also impressed by the exposure metering.
The camera was able to meter a ca. 10 min exposure at iso 68 with two ND filters in-front of the lens of 10 and 6 stops.
That means I don’t have to calculate the shutter speed after filters anymore. The camera is doing a pretty good job here.

Still I’d like to have some control over it using the T or B modes but am struggling with the fotos app for this. I’ll keep trying.