Just bought a CL

[JoshuaRothman]

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For a long time, I'd been eyeing a CL as a companion to my Q2. I'd been made a little wary by all the concerns about whether Leica APS-C was going to continue—who wants to buy into a system that's ending? Then I found a very good deal on a used CL, along with the 18mm TL, and couldn't resist. The kit was fairly inexpensive because the 18mm has a big scuff on the front of it. Camera and lens arrived a couple of days ago.

Well, wow—it's a great camera. I'd handled it in the Leica store, but having spent more time with it now I'm even more impressed. The build is wonderful. The control scheme is smart and fun to use. The viewfinder is great, especially the eyecup. The feel and sound of the shutter is addictive. The image quality is really good, too (although I do find myself missing the Q2's super-high-res image size, which buys me so much freedom for cropping). All in all I'd say the camera compares very well with the Fujifilm X-Pro3, which was my main daily camera for several years, except that it's smaller. With the 18mm, it's comparable to the X100V or perhaps X-E4 in size—it really is jacket-pocketable. Part of me wishes I'd gone with the CL instead of the X-Pro3 to begin with, except that there's no way I would've been able to spend the asking price for a new CL kit back in 2017, or afford any other TL lenses, which are still too expensive for me. (And in fact the Fuji has many virtues of its own, including an OVF, etc.)

Two tiny things bug me so far. One is that different menu items appear to have slightly different font sizes. Why this should be I have no idea, but it makes the camera seem a little unfinished. Another is that I find the top-plate display a little hard to read—I wish it were higher-contrast, or perhaps white on black. But overall the CL feels very much a sibling to the slightly-newer Q2. I don't quite have the right analogy for it, but it's kind of like the Q2 is a jet fighter and the CL is a helicopter. (At least that's how it feels for the way I use my cameras, which is one-camera, one-lens—so the CL is limited to just one FOV, while the Q2 is almost like a zoom.)  

I bought the CL along with the Laowa 9mm f/2.8 and the TTArtisan 50mm f/1.2. I don't know how much use I'll get out of the TTArtisan—75mm-e is a little long for my daily use; I probably shouldn't have bought it—but the Laowa is lightweight, fun, and challenging. I'm not sure which other lenses I'll need or want. I mainly shoot 28-50mm, photographing my everyday and family life, plus occasional travel that I do as a journalist. The Q2 covers almost all of those needs at an absurdly high level. I bought the CL to serve as (1) a lightweight alternative and (2) a platform for unusual (to me) focal lengths. So I think I'm going to get started by using the CL + 9mm to do a new project involving wide-angle nature photography in my area, and otherwise continue to rely on the Q2 for everyday photography, enlisting the CL + 18mm when I want a camera that can fit into a jacket pocket. Maybe down the line I'll pick up a tele-zoom for dad-photography (kids' sports, etc.)—possibly the Panasonic 70-300—or a long prime from Sigma. The idea of adapting a small lens with character from Voigtlander is appealing, too—I like "special" lenses—although I'm trying to keep my lens-buying in check, so as to minimize choice when I walk out the door. I could also imagine a scenario where the CL + 18mm + 55-135 in a pocket makes for a great hiking / backpacking setup.

Two days is definitely not enough time to evaluate a camera. Really, I'm just writing this to think out loud. But my initial impression is that the CL is still a very, very good camera nearly five years after its introduction. I have no idea what will happen with Leica APS-C, but in the meantime, I think this is a great setup that I'll be able to use for many years!

Edited January 27, 2022 by JoshuaRothman

[Boojay]

Good choice, enjoy your CL, and don't forget to add images to the photo threads, will be interesting to see your images from the Laowa.

 

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[wda]

Joshua, well done. It is a joy to read your enthusiastic first impressions. There is a lot of useful information in this forum.  You might also like to see my article here https://www.davidaskham.com/news109766.html which reflects my experience, so far, with this highly useful camera. As to the future; who cares? We all hope for further development. In the meantime, let us enjoy what we have and help each other to get the very best results possible. I am still using old Leica digital cameras from 2004!

[Sjz]

Congratulations, I adore my CL and invariably have it with me when I travel.  I fully agree that with the 18 on it, it is very similar in size to my X100 (in fact it fully replaced it).

Make sure you post photos!

[Porchpockler]

CL is a terrific camera! Enjoy it.  I get that people are anxious to get IBIS, weather sealing, etc….but the CL as it is right now is a terrific camera capable of excellent images.

[Le Chef]

Congratulations! It’s a great camera with lots of “stretch” in terms of what you can do with it from creating different profiles to the lenses that work. It really is a system. And the shots you take can be terrific. Look at the shots here and also on LFI and you will see what the camera’s capable of. Enjoy!

[1stLeica]

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I had my eye on that same camera but just couldn't pull the trigger as I am not doing much photography at the moment.  Glad to see it's going to a good home.

[papimuzo]

Hi Joshua, congratulation and have a lot of pleasure with the so easy CL to bring on walk, on a so versatile camera, sufficiantly light and compact to be with you in any circonstances. The available set of L optics made CL a complete tool.
You will never be decepted with your CL.
I made the complete inverse road: we owned up to three CL's in the family, and went just to buy a Q2 after selling one CL. I cann't yet express my feeling on the Q2 being not yet mastered... No fear in case of difficulties: I still own CL's 😊

[Camaro5]

I like my CL and whether Leica stays with APSC or not doesn't matter to me.  Lots of people use older or discontinued Leicas and being older or discontinued doesn't make them irrelevant unless you're the kind of person that has to have the latest and greatest of everything. 

My CL gets used mostly for photos that are going on social media or other web-based sources.  I do a lot of cars shows and real estate with it.  No one has ever complained about image quality.  If I want or need top-quality images, I use my M10.  The CL is the perfect complement to that.  

[nicci78]

Q2 and CL are made for each other. Good choice