Leica M11 Review: Bridge to the Future

[fcracer]

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In a recent post, I shared my experience of going on a Leica Journey, starting with the Leica Q and then moving to the Leica M10. On January 14th, the next step in my journey came to fruition with the delivery of an M11. Actually, I ordered three M11s for delivery on launch day! One for myself, one for my partner and one for a colleague. In this post, I’ll share my thoughts after using the camera for over a month.

The full review with images and more content can be found here. It's a long post, so I'll do my best to summarize the key points below.

Introduction

It must be a huge challenge for the designers at Leica to come up with a new M model. There’s always the tussle between the purists that want to keep to a film-like experience, while the modernists are looking for Leica to move to a hybrid rangefinder/EVF solution, with more exposure aids and conveniences to be relevant in a modern world dominated by mobile phones and social media.

I can imagine the conversations at Leica HQ where every small change is debated to ensure that the M stays true to its roots, while still changing enough to attract a new generation of customers. After using the M11 for a few weeks, I strongly believe that the M11 will go down in history as a bridge to the future of the M system, similar to how the M8 was a bridge into the digital world. 

Why Upgrade?

No camera (or electronic device for that matter) is perfect. When using the M10 over the past 4.5 years, there were a few areas that I wished could be improved:

1. Highlight recovery
2. Battery life and charging 
3. Weight
4. Resolution 
5. Metering 
6. Connectivity 

Size & Weight

For the M11, this section should be titled Silver Brass vs. Black Aluminum. The M10 was available in only one type of metal arrangement, brass top with magnesium body. The M11 however is available with two options:

• Silver with brass top and magnesium body, weighing 640g with battery
• Black with aluminum top and magnesium body, weighing 530g with battery

I had originally ordered a silver M11 because silver looks absolutely incredible on Leica cameras, however, in this case, I ended up with black. I didn’t choose black, but black chose me. I ordered three M11s for launch day, with two silvers and one black. My colleague and I wanted silver and my partner wanted black. However, Kai Wong leaked a YouTube video a few days before the launch where he disparaged the new black finish; this resulted in many Hong Kong buyers switching their orders from black to silver.

Since I was already being greedy in wanting three M11s on launch day, the shop notified me that I’d have to wait a few weeks to get two silvers. Not being the patient type, I decided to go for one of the plentiful black M11s. When I was packaging the M10 for sale, I really thought I made a mistake in accepting the black M11, having internal debates on whether I should have just waited to get the colour I really wanted. However, with use, I’ve come to love the black, not so much for the colour, but because of the weight savings.

Usability

Live View Metering

The M11 takes a huge step forward in usability with multi-field metering being the standard setting. The multi-field metering means that the sensor takes into consideration the full scene and tries to apply exposure settings that will result in a properly exposed image. Typically, cameras try to expose so that the average of the image equals ~18% grey, and the M11 now operates much in the same way as any modern digital camera. 

While the screen is not active with this new metering mode, the sensor is always exposed and on. When you take an exposure, the shutter now has to close, expose and then re-open. The whole process feels laggy with an uninspiring shutter sound; however under controlled testing, the shutter lag is actually very minor compared to the M10. I’m hoping that Leica can introduce an Electronic Front Shutter Curtain mode so that it reduces the lag and improves the shutter sound. If you have an M11, go into the Fotos app and please submit a request for this feature. 

64 Base ISO

Another big improvement is the base ISO coming down from 200 to 64. This makes it much more convenient to shoot lenses wide open in bright conditions without having to use an ND filter. If the shutter speed does not come down to a sufficient level wide open, the next improvement in usability may help, with the introduction of the electronic shutter.

Electronic Shutter

If 64 ISO is not sufficient to bring the shutter speeds down, the electronic shutter will help. The new electronic shutter can be used from as slow as 60 seconds to as fast as 1/16000 of a second. The new hybrid mode engages the mechanical shutter between 60 minutes and 1/4000 of a second and electronic from 1/4000 to 1/16000 of a second.

Battery Life

With the M11 always being in live view mode (albeit with the LCD screen off), I was worried about battery life, but it has thus far not been an issue. I have yet to exhaust the battery in an outing. However, and I think this is due to some firmware bugs, I’ve experienced inconsistent and excessive battery drain at times. I can go out with 100% and come back home with 85% battery remaining, and then do the same thing the next day and come home with only 45% battery remaining. At first, I thought this was due to the battery taking some time to calibrate, however even with a few weeks of use, I don’t feel fully confident in the battery or the reading. Regardless, 45% battery remaining is still very good after a day’s shooting.   

Battery and SD Card Access

This usability section has become really long, but it’s clear that Leica made improvements in a number of areas to improve the usability of the camera. Another big step forward is the elimination of the traditional bottom plate, a cool relic from the film era. As in the introduction, I can only imagine the debates at Leica HQ around the decision to stick with the purists or move to something more modern. 

The M11 brings this great improvement to everyone with the elimination of the bottom plate and aligning with Leica’s other models in having a clever battery that also forms part of the bottom of the camera. A nice (and rather intense) release mechanism ensures that the battery ejects only enough so that you must push it back in slightly to release it fully from the camera. It’s something that only Leica would do and it’s implemented to perfection. If I wasn’t concerned about wear and tear, I’d latch and unlatch the battery all day just for the satisfaction of feeling its wonderful mechanical precision.

Internal SD Card

Leica has done something that makes me scratch my head as to why other camera companies have not done this. Leica now includes 64GB of memory in the camera as standard. It can be used to mirror images, save RAW or JPEG formats onto each card, or as an extension of your inserted card. The idea is right, but the implementation is a bit cumbersome. As of firmware 1.2.0, the only way to import the images from the internal card on MacOS is to use the clumsy “Image Capture” app. There are rumours that Leica will implement a better protocol to allow MacOS Finder to see the camera so that they can be imported more efficiently.

Overall Performance

The M11 has an improved Maestro III processor, which provides the camera with a tangible improvement in how quickly the camera responds to inputs. This is especially noticeable in reviewing images, moving around the image, making changes in menus or any other normal interaction with the camera. You’d never know that this camera has more than twice the number of pixels as the M10. The only interaction that feels laggy is the shutter, but that’s due to reasons noted above.        

Build Quality

If you’ve owned or held an M10, the M11 will feel very familiar. In regards to build quality, nobody can touch Leica at the volumes that they sell. Whether you choose the lighter black or the hefty silver, you’ll be rewarded with the best build quality of any camera on the market. The M11 really does feel like it’s built from one block of machined metal.

Controls

Leica perfected the controls on the M series of cameras starting from the M10. The M11 takes that and evolves it slightly with the movement of a button from the front to the top. Leica seem to have further improved the touch interface in the M11 from previous cameras with the touch interface being responsive and intuitive to use. It’s far better than the ones in my Fujifilm cameras, and for many functions (zooming in and deleting images), has become my go-to interface. 

I love the new menu system (taken from the SL and Q series) and how easy it is to find items. Leica are the masters of taking something very complex and simplifying it, while still offering a rich set of options to choose from. I absolutely love the touch screen grid layout that first appears. The ability to click on an item and easily adjust it is very intuitive. I wonder why other companies like Fujifilm don’t allow touch in their similar Q Menu.

Connectivity

Being able to share images on social media or with friends has become a basic requirement in the modern world, however most camera companies have yet to figure out how to make this seamless for the user. Leica is making great attempts at closing that gap, but the Leica Fotos app is still a work-in-progress. There are times where it’s brilliant and transfers images quickly, and then there are times where it seems to freeze or operate very slowly. It’s so inconsistent that I can’t rely upon it at this time. The MFI or Made for iPhone cable gives me some hope, but we’ll have to wait and see once Leica Fotos is out of beta with the M11.

Image Quality

If you’re coming from an M10, the image quality will knock your socks off. However, if you’re coming from a Fujifilm GFX100S like I am, the image quality will be excellent, but not up to Medium Format levels. At the pixel level, with super sharp lenses like the Voigtlander 50MM APO or any Leica lens stopped down to F5.6, the detail is pretty much the same as the Sony A7R4 when using GM lenses, but a slight step down from the GFX100S using Fujinon lenses. 

The M11 takes two big steps forward over the M10:

1. High ISO is now totally usable up to 12,800 without any fear of the image detail being swamped by noise or grain.
2. The highlight recovery is now on par with the best cameras on the market. 

I think a 50-100MP sensor is the sweet spot for photography for the coming decade. While higher resolutions provide the ability to crop or downsample noisy images, the extra resolution starts to introduce sloppy technique and/or intentional odd framing in order to extract multiple compositions from the image.

On my Fujifilm GFX50R, I often had issues in getting sharp images and needed to increase the shutter speed from 1/1xFL to 1/2xFL or even 1/3xFL. To my surprise, I haven’t found this to be as much of an issue as I expected. I almost didn’t buy the M11 because it lacks In-Body Image Stabilization (IBIS), but I’ve found that 1/2xFL is sufficient for tack sharp images. It also helps tremendously that the Leica M mount has many wide aperture lenses which provide fast shutter speeds in even low-light situations.   

One area I don’t think Leica chose wisely was there investment of engineering resources into the variable resolution capability. The M11 has a unique feature that allows the user to select 18MP, 36MP or the native 60MP for both the RAW and JPEG files. On the surface, this would appear to have some advantages, but in practice, I haven’t found any difference in image quality, noise or dynamic range. 

I think Leica introduced this feature to placate the traditionalists that often complain on Leica forums that anything more than 24MP is sacrilegious and a waste. I don’t see myself using this feature much, if at all, and I wish that Leica had instead put this engineering talent towards introducing an Electronic Front Curtain Shutter or improving the buggy firmware.

Packaging

For anyone that has purchased a Leica M prior to the M11, you would have experienced one of the coolest unboxing experiences out there. The outer shell systematically unravels itself to expose a beautifully built box with a magnetic flap hiding the camera, and well defined cardboard drawers encasing user manuals and cables. It’s an unforgettable experience and makes the first interaction with the camera really special.

Unfortunately, likely due to environmental reasons, Leica has moved away from this packaging and now has a very basic box with foam inserts. The camera sits in the foam insert as do the cables. The user manual now sits on top of the foam under the very normal and uninspiring outer box. When I first opened the M11, I asked the shop for the “real box” instead of the shipping box, to which I was saddened to hear, “this is the real box”.

Improvement Opportunities

Firmware

For people new to Leica that come from other quality brands, there are some things that may surprise you. For both my M10 and now the M11, the firmware straight out of the box has felt unpolished. I assume the new processor and menu system required a rewrite of the firmware. The M10 used to freeze up now and then, especially when using the EVF, but the M11 freezes in many more situations, and often at random.

Shutter

The shutter feel and sound on the M11 is really rather poor. I can understand why Leica appears to have put no engineering time into the shutter. This goes back to the introduction in that I see the M11 as a bridge into the future. The future M12 will likely have a fully electronic shutter so there would be little benefit to investing R&D into a dying mechanism.

Leica Fotos

I won’t go into detail on the issues with this app because it’s still in beta for the M11 and that wouldn’t be fair. However, I think Leica can take this app in an interesting direction. With the MFI cable, we have the opportunity for high speed data transfer. With that capability, it would be great if Leica could allow in-camera RAW editing in the way that Fujifilm does. 

Conclusion

The M11 is a big step forward over the M10, and a bridge to the future. It has just enough traditional characteristics to keep long-term conservative enthusiasts onboard, and just enough modern technology to bring new customers into the Leica fold. As great as this camera is, and I’m very happy to have upgraded, I really do see this camera as a stepping stone to where I think Leica really wants (and needs) to go with the M cameras. 

This is not the end-game M camera for me; what would make it end-game is where I think Leica is taking the M system. I’ll make some bold (and perhaps foolish) predictions of what the future holds for the M system for M12 and beyond:

Hybrid Rangefinder / EVF – One of the great little known joys in the photography world is using a Fujifilm X-Pro2 with a manual focus lens and the excellent “Digital Rangefinder Patch” in the OVF. With Leica’s incredible engineering talent, I’m sure they can come up with an even better solution than this already excellent one. There are hints of this coming with the introduction of close focusing lenses like the 35MM APO, that focuses down to 30cm instead of the rangefinder’s limit of 70cm.

Electronic Shutter – As much as I love the noise and feeling of a mechanical shutter, it’s obvious that the future is fully electronic. The technology exists today to have a fully electronic shutter at resolutions up to ~50MP. By the time the M12 rolls around in ~4 years, there should be scanning rates sufficient to support higher resolutions.

High-speed Connectivity – Leica has taken a step forward with the MFI cable. I think they truly appreciate the need for a modern camera to have the capability to connect and transfer images seamlessly to a mobile device. I think Leica will find a way to make this simple and easy for the end-user by using high speed wireless technologies instead of a proprietary cable. If they can also add in-camera RAW editing, that would be the perfect end-to-end solution for instant sharing.

In-Body Image Stabilization – For many people, the lack of IBIS is a dealbreaker for the M11; I was of the same mind before actually using the camera. As noted above, I haven’t found it difficult to get tack sharp images at 1/2xFL, which is easily achievable given the wide variety of F1.4 (and even F1-F1.2) lenses available for this system. However, it’s been my experience that there’s really no downside to IBIS, so I think Leica will eventually implement it once they move to an electronic shutter, which would make room inside the body to add other technologies such as IBIS.

To wrap up this review, there’s a lot to love about the new M11. The lighter weight, higher resolution, excellent battery life, elimination of the cumbersome bottom plate and vastly improved highlight recovery make for a compelling upgrade from the M10. However, if you’re coming from an M10-R, I think the decision becomes a lot more difficult. The M10-R has more than enough resolution and also doesn’t have the highlight recovery issue of the M10. If you can get a like-new condition second hand M10-R, it might be the current sweet spot for M cameras; then in four years’ time, you can upgrade to the M12 which I think will re-write the playbook for what an M camera should be.

The full review with images and more content can be found here. The above is a summary of the full review. 

 

 

Edited March 6, 2022 by fcracer

[lct]

24 minutes ago, fcracer said:

High ISO is now totally usable up to 12,800 without any fear of the image detail being swamped by noise or grain.

I would love to see 12800 iso pics like this. Any link? 

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The Leica Q3 is available for pre-order at B&H Photo Video and Adorama

[fcracer]

45 minutes ago, lct said:

I would love to see 12800 iso pics like this. Any link? 

Hi there. Here's an image captured using light from the TV. It's taken at 5000 ISO and pushed 1.32 stops in Capture One for an effective 16400 ISO. The screen shot is a 100% view from Capture One (depending on how this website is configured, the 100% view may in fact show as 200-400%; I can send you the image file via email if you'd like). To my eyes, the detail retention is very similar to the Sony A7R4, so I think the M11 uses a great sensor. 

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!

 

Edited March 6, 2022 by fcracer

[Jeff S]

As discussed elsewhere, Leica has said that attempts to incorporate a hybrid finder have failed, resulting in unacceptable compromises to both RF and EVF.  The Fuji lacks a rangefinder, so different design challenges.  Many here now feel it’s much more likely that we’ll see an EVF based M (or whatever it’s called), possibly in the M12, or variant, if proven feasible and up to Leica standards.

Jeff

[SrMi]

2 hours ago, fcracer said:

In a recent post, I shared my experience of going on a Leica Journey, starting with the Leica Q and then moving to the Leica M10. On January 14th, the next step in my journey came to fruition with the delivery of an M11. Actually, I ordered three M11s for delivery on launch day! One for myself, one for my partner and one for a colleague. In this post, I’ll share my thoughts after using the camera for over a month.

The full review with images and more content can be found here. It's a long post, so I'll do my best to summarize the key points below.

Introduction

It must be a huge challenge for the designers at Leica to come up with a new M model. There’s always the tussle between the purists that want to keep to a film-like experience, while the modernists are looking for Leica to move to a hybrid rangefinder/EVF solution, with more exposure aids and conveniences to be relevant in a modern world dominated by mobile phones and social media.

I can imagine the conversations at Leica HQ where every small change is debated to ensure that the M stays true to its roots, while still changing enough to attract a new generation of customers. After using the M11 for a few weeks, I strongly believe that the M11 will go down in history as a bridge to the future of the M system, similar to how the M8 was a bridge into the digital world. 

Why Upgrade?

No camera (or electronic device for that matter) is perfect. When using the M10 over the past 4.5 years, there were a few areas that I wished could be improved:

1. Highlight recovery
2. Battery life and charging 
3. Weight
4. Resolution 
5. Metering 
6. Connectivity 

Size & Weight

For the M11, this section should be titled Silver Brass vs. Black Aluminum. The M10 was available in only one type of metal arrangement, brass top with magnesium body. The M11 however is available with two options:

• Silver with brass top and magnesium body, weighing 640g with battery
• Black with aluminum top and magnesium body, weighing 530g with battery

I had originally ordered a silver M11 because silver looks absolutely incredible on Leica cameras, however, in this case, I ended up with black. I didn’t choose black, but black chose me. I ordered three M11s for launch day, with two silvers and one black. My colleague and I wanted silver and my partner wanted black. However, Kai Wong leaked a YouTube video a few days before the launch where he disparaged the new black finish; this resulted in many Hong Kong buyers switching their orders from black to silver.

Since I was already being greedy in wanting three M11s on launch day, the shop notified me that I’d have to wait a few weeks to get two silvers. Not being the patient type, I decided to go for one of the plentiful black M11s. When I was packaging the M10 for sale, I really thought I made a mistake in accepting the black M11, having internal debates on whether I should have just waited to get the colour I really wanted. However, with use, I’ve come to love the black, not so much for the colour, but because of the weight savings.

Usability

Live View Metering

The M11 takes a huge step forward in usability with multi-field metering being the standard setting. The multi-field metering means that the sensor takes into consideration the full scene and tries to apply exposure settings that will result in a properly exposed image. Typically, cameras try to expose so that the average of the image equals ~18% grey, and the M11 now operates much in the same way as any modern digital camera. 

While the screen is not active with this new metering mode, the sensor is always exposed and on. When you take an exposure, the shutter now has to close, expose and then re-open. The whole process feels laggy with an uninspiring shutter sound; however under controlled testing, the shutter lag is actually very minor compared to the M10. I’m hoping that Leica can introduce an Electronic Front Shutter Curtain mode so that it reduces the lag and improves the shutter sound. If you have an M11, go into the Fotos app and please submit a request for this feature. 

64 Base ISO

Another big improvement is the base ISO coming down from 200 to 64. This makes it much more convenient to shoot lenses wide open in bright conditions without having to use an ND filter. If the shutter speed does not come down to a sufficient level wide open, the next improvement in usability may help, with the introduction of the electronic shutter.

Electronic Shutter

If 64 ISO is not sufficient to bring the shutter speeds down, the electronic shutter will help. The new electronic shutter can be used from as slow as 60 seconds to as fast as 1/16000 of a second. The new hybrid mode engages the mechanical shutter between 60 minutes and 1/4000 of a second and electronic from 1/4000 to 1/16000 of a second.

Battery Life

With the M11 always being in live view mode (albeit with the LCD screen off), I was worried about battery life, but it has thus far not been an issue. I have yet to exhaust the battery in an outing. However, and I think this is due to some firmware bugs, I’ve experienced inconsistent and excessive battery drain at times. I can go out with 100% and come back home with 85% battery remaining, and then do the same thing the next day and come home with only 45% battery remaining. At first, I thought this was due to the battery taking some time to calibrate, however even with a few weeks of use, I don’t feel fully confident in the battery or the reading. Regardless, 45% battery remaining is still very good after a day’s shooting.   

Battery and SD Card Access

This usability section has become really long, but it’s clear that Leica made improvements in a number of areas to improve the usability of the camera. Another big step forward is the elimination of the traditional bottom plate, a cool relic from the film era. As in the introduction, I can only imagine the debates at Leica HQ around the decision to stick with the purists or move to something more modern. 

The M11 brings this great improvement to everyone with the elimination of the bottom plate and aligning with Leica’s other models in having a clever battery that also forms part of the bottom of the camera. A nice (and rather intense) release mechanism ensures that the battery ejects only enough so that you must push it back in slightly to release it fully from the camera. It’s something that only Leica would do and it’s implemented to perfection. If I wasn’t concerned about wear and tear, I’d latch and unlatch the battery all day just for the satisfaction of feeling its wonderful mechanical precision.

Internal SD Card

Leica has done something that makes me scratch my head as to why other camera companies have not done this. Leica now includes 64GB of memory in the camera as standard. It can be used to mirror images, save RAW or JPEG formats onto each card, or as an extension of your inserted card. The idea is right, but the implementation is a bit cumbersome. As of firmware 1.2.0, the only way to import the images from the internal card on MacOS is to use the clumsy “Image Capture” app. There are rumours that Leica will implement a better protocol to allow MacOS Finder to see the camera so that they can be imported more efficiently.

Overall Performance

The M11 has an improved Maestro III processor, which provides the camera with a tangible improvement in how quickly the camera responds to inputs. This is especially noticeable in reviewing images, moving around the image, making changes in menus or any other normal interaction with the camera. You’d never know that this camera has more than twice the number of pixels as the M10. The only interaction that feels laggy is the shutter, but that’s due to reasons noted above.        

Build Quality

If you’ve owned or held an M10, the M11 will feel very familiar. In regards to build quality, nobody can touch Leica at the volumes that they sell. Whether you choose the lighter black or the hefty silver, you’ll be rewarded with the best build quality of any camera on the market. The M11 really does feel like it’s built from one block of machined metal.

Controls

Leica perfected the controls on the M series of cameras starting from the M10. The M11 takes that and evolves it slightly with the movement of a button from the front to the top. Leica seem to have further improved the touch interface in the M11 from previous cameras with the touch interface being responsive and intuitive to use. It’s far better than the ones in my Fujifilm cameras, and for many functions (zooming in and deleting images), has become my go-to interface. 

I love the new menu system (taken from the SL and Q series) and how easy it is to find items. Leica are the masters of taking something very complex and simplifying it, while still offering a rich set of options to choose from. I absolutely love the touch screen grid layout that first appears. The ability to click on an item and easily adjust it is very intuitive. I wonder why other companies like Fujifilm don’t allow touch in their similar Q Menu.

Connectivity

Being able to share images on social media or with friends has become a basic requirement in the modern world, however most camera companies have yet to figure out how to make this seamless for the user. Leica is making great attempts at closing that gap, but the Leica Fotos app is still a work-in-progress. There are times where it’s brilliant and transfers images quickly, and then there are times where it seems to freeze or operate very slowly. It’s so inconsistent that I can’t rely upon it at this time. The MFI or Made for iPhone cable gives me some hope, but we’ll have to wait and see once Leica Fotos is out of beta with the M11.

Image Quality

If you’re coming from an M10, the image quality will knock your socks off. However, if you’re coming from a Fujifilm GFX100S like I am, the image quality will be excellent, but not up to Medium Format levels. At the pixel level, with super sharp lenses like the Voigtlander 50MM APO or any Leica lens stopped down to F5.6, the detail is pretty much the same as the Sony A7R4 when using GM lenses, but a slight step down from the GFX100S using Fujinon lenses. 

The M11 takes two big steps forward over the M10:

1. High ISO is now totally usable up to 12,800 without any fear of the image detail being swamped by noise or grain.
2. The highlight recovery is now on par with the best cameras on the market. 

I think a 50-100MP sensor is the sweet spot for photography for the coming decade. While higher resolutions provide the ability to crop or downsample noisy images, the extra resolution starts to introduce sloppy technique and/or intentional odd framing in order to extract multiple compositions from the image.

On my Fujifilm GFX50R, I often had issues in getting sharp images and needed to increase the shutter speed from 1/1xFL to 1/2xFL or even 1/3xFL. To my surprise, I haven’t found this to be as much of an issue as I expected. I almost didn’t buy the M11 because it lacks In-Body Image Stabilization (IBIS), but I’ve found that 1/2xFL is sufficient for tack sharp images. It also helps tremendously that the Leica M mount has many wide aperture lenses which provide fast shutter speeds in even low-light situations.   

One area I don’t think Leica chose wisely was there investment of engineering resources into the variable resolution capability. The M11 has a unique feature that allows the user to select 18MP, 36MP or the native 60MP for both the RAW and JPEG files. On the surface, this would appear to have some advantages, but in practice, I haven’t found any difference in image quality, noise or dynamic range. 

I think Leica introduced this feature to placate the traditionalists that often complain on Leica forums that anything more than 24MP is sacrilegious and a waste. I don’t see myself using this feature much, if at all, and I wish that Leica had instead put this engineering talent towards introducing an Electronic Front Curtain Shutter or improving the buggy firmware.

Packaging

For anyone that has purchased a Leica M prior to the M11, you would have experienced one of the coolest unboxing experiences out there. The outer shell systematically unravels itself to expose a beautifully built box with a magnetic flap hiding the camera, and well defined cardboard drawers encasing user manuals and cables. It’s an unforgettable experience and makes the first interaction with the camera really special.

Unfortunately, likely due to environmental reasons, Leica has moved away from this packaging and now has a very basic box with foam inserts. The camera sits in the foam insert as do the cables. The user manual now sits on top of the foam under the very normal and uninspiring outer box. When I first opened the M11, I asked the shop for the “real box” instead of the shipping box, to which I was saddened to hear, “this is the real box”.

Improvement Opportunities

Firmware

For people new to Leica that come from other quality brands, there are some things that may surprise you. For both my M10 and now the M11, the firmware straight out of the box has felt unpolished. I assume the new processor and menu system required a rewrite of the firmware. The M10 used to freeze up now and then, especially when using the EVF, but the M11 freezes in many more situations, and often at random.

Shutter

The shutter feel and sound on the M11 is really rather poor. I can understand why Leica appears to have put no engineering time into the shutter. This goes back to the introduction in that I see the M11 as a bridge into the future. The future M12 will likely have a fully electronic shutter so there would be little benefit to investing R&D into a dying mechanism.

Leica Fotos

I won’t go into detail on the issues with this app because it’s still in beta for the M11 and that wouldn’t be fair. However, I think Leica can take this app in an interesting direction. With the MFI cable, we have the opportunity for high speed data transfer. With that capability, it would be great if Leica could allow in-camera RAW editing in the way that Fujifilm does. 

Conclusion

The M11 is a big step forward over the M10, and a bridge to the future. It has just enough traditional characteristics to keep long-term conservative enthusiasts onboard, and just enough modern technology to bring new customers into the Leica fold. As great as this camera is, and I’m very happy to have upgraded, I really do see this camera as a stepping stone to where I think Leica really wants (and needs) to go with the M cameras. 

This is not the end-game M camera for me; what would make it end-game is where I think Leica is taking the M system. I’ll make some bold (and perhaps foolish) predictions of what the future holds for the M system for M12 and beyond:

Hybrid Rangefinder / EVF – One of the great little known joys in the photography world is using a Fujifilm X-Pro2 with a manual focus lens and the excellent “Digital Rangefinder Patch” in the OVF. With Leica’s incredible engineering talent, I’m sure they can come up with an even better solution than this already excellent one. There are hints of this coming with the introduction of close focusing lenses like the 35MM APO, that focuses down to 30cm instead of the rangefinder’s limit of 70cm.

Electronic Shutter – As much as I love the noise and feeling of a mechanical shutter, it’s obvious that the future is fully electronic. The technology exists today to have a fully electronic shutter at resolutions up to ~50MP. By the time the M12 rolls around in ~4 years, there should be scanning rates sufficient to support higher resolutions.

High-speed Connectivity – Leica has taken a step forward with the MFI cable. I think they truly appreciate the need for a modern camera to have the capability to connect and transfer images seamlessly to a mobile device. I think Leica will find a way to make this simple and easy for the end-user by using high speed wireless technologies instead of a proprietary cable. If they can also add in-camera RAW editing, that would be the perfect end-to-end solution for instant sharing.

In-Body Image Stabilization – For many people, the lack of IBIS is a dealbreaker for the M11; I was of the same mind before actually using the camera. As noted above, I haven’t found it difficult to get tack sharp images at 1/2xFL, which is easily achievable given the wide variety of F1.4 (and even F1-F1.2) lenses available for this system. However, it’s been my experience that there’s really no downside to IBIS, so I think Leica will eventually implement it once they move to an electronic shutter, which would make room inside the body to add other technologies such as IBIS.

To wrap up this review, there’s a lot to love about the new M11. The lighter weight, higher resolution, excellent battery life, elimination of the cumbersome bottom plate and vastly improved highlight recovery make for a compelling upgrade from the M10. However, if you’re coming from an M10-R, I think the decision becomes a lot more difficult. The M10-R has more than enough resolution and also doesn’t have the highlight recovery issue of the M10. If you can get a like-new condition second hand M10-R, it might be the current sweet spot for M cameras; then in four years’ time, you can upgrade to the M12 which I think will re-write the playbook for what an M camera should be.

The full review with images and more content can be found here. The above is a summary of the full review. 

 

 

Thank you for the write-up, I know it takes time.

Corrections:

• M11 is not always in LV mode. When in RF mode, the sensor is read sparingly in a power-saving way.
• To transfer images from M11's internal memory, you can first transfer images from the internal card to the SD card. Also, with Mac, you can use Android Transfer to access the internal memory.

Now that Z 9 (no mechanical shutter) will use a 'meow' sound for the shutter, I also firmly believe electronic shutter is the future ;-).

[lct]

5 hours ago, fcracer said:

Hi there. Here's an image captured using light from the TV. It's taken at 5000 ISO and pushed 1.32 stops in Capture One for an effective 16400 ISO. The screen shot is a 100% view from Capture One (depending on how this website is configured, the 100% view may in fact show as 200-400%; I can send you the image file via email if you'd like). To my eyes, the detail retention is very similar to the Sony A7R4, so I think the M11 uses a great sensor. 

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!

 

Sorry but seems like what you're showing here are the noise reduction capabilities of Capture One. Would you mind to drop a 12800 DNG files in a dropbox? Or just say "ouch" and i will understand . Just kidding.

[analog-digital]

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vor 5 Stunden schrieb fcracer:

Hi there. Here's an image captured using light from the TV. It's taken at 5000 ISO and pushed 1.32 stops in Capture One for an effective 16400 ISO. The screen shot is a 100% view from Capture One (depending on how this website is configured, the 100% view may in fact show as 200-400%; I can send you the image file via email if you'd like). To my eyes, the detail retention is very similar to the Sony A7R4, so I think the M11 uses a great sensor. 

 

 

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!

In my eyes, the resolution and image quality of this photo is very poor. M11? OMG.

[fcracer]

20 minutes ago, analog-digital said:

In my eyes, the resolution and image quality of this photo is very poor. M11? OMG.

It's an example of extremely high ISO 16400. I don't know anyone that would shoot an M11 at this ISO, but surprisingly, if downsampled sufficiently, the images are still usable (ie, for social media or viewing on a mobile device). Usually at this ISO, colours would start to fall apart and there would be tons of colour noise. I think the M11 does a very good job at this ridiculously high ISO.

There are hundreds of ISO 64 images on the net, but for completeness, here's an example of a base ISO image (full size and then 100% crop). I've taken the same image with my Sony A7R4 and the M11 image quality is pretty much on par (the corners are better on the Sony GM lenses, but then I don't have the 35MM APO). The M11 however is still a step below the GFX100S, as would be expected given the sensor size and incredible GF lenses from Fujifilm.

Full size (downsampled to 4098px to upload to the forum):

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!

100% Crop:

Edited March 6, 2022 by fcracer

[fcracer]

27 minutes ago, lct said:

Sorry but seems like what you're showing here are the noise reduction capabilities of Capture One. Would you mind to drop a 12800 DNG files in a dropbox? Or just say "ouch" and i will understand . Just kidding.

Hi there. I'd love to help, but I'm currently in central quarantine and the internet is severely limited. Uploading 90MB RAW files may take a while! However, I did find some RAW files that you can play with at DPReview at >12000 ISO:

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5740841570/leica-m11-pre-production-sample-gallery-dpreview-tv/3789588258

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5740841570/leica-m11-pre-production-sample-gallery-dpreview-tv/0667017903

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5740841570/leica-m11-pre-production-sample-gallery-dpreview-tv/0196737996

Once I'm out of quarantine and have proper Wifi again, I'll be happy to share some of the RAW images with you that were used in the review.

[idusidusi]

59 minutes ago, fcracer said:

https://www.dpreview.com/sample-galleries/5740841570/leica-m11-pre-production-sample-gallery-dpreview-tv/0196737996

Thank you, I downloaded this one and I am impressed at the iso used, this is more than acceptable to my eyes.

[Sean ASA]

FCRACER, regarding Live Metering pattern. Do you think it would be a worthy FW upgrade if you could turn off the metering via a FN switch. i.e Open curtain, take a reading, close curtain and fire as per normal, open/close. Only taking exposure reading when you wanted to. To my logic that would speed up shutter response and synchronise sound to what our ears are used to. I'm not always taking readings and changing settings between shots that often, only when the light situation changes. Thank you for your thoughts and thanks for the review, nicely laid out. 

[fcracer]

34 minutes ago, Sean ASA said:

FCRACER, regarding Live Metering pattern. Do you think it would be a worthy FW upgrade if you could turn off the metering via a FN switch. i.e Open curtain, take a reading, close curtain and fire as per normal, open/close. Only taking exposure reading when you wanted to. To my logic that would speed up shutter response and synchronise sound to what our ears are used to. I'm not always taking readings and changing settings between shots that often, only when the light situation changes. Thank you for your thoughts and thanks for the review, nicely laid out. 

Hi Sean, that's an interesting suggestion. I'm not sure it would work though because that would add even more steps than what we have today.

Currently, the M11 works in this manner: Shutters are open (the camera uses the sensor to meter the image) --> Initiate exposure --> Front Curtain Shutter closes --> Front Curtain Shutter opens and exposes for the shutter speed --> Rear Curtain Shutter closes --> Rear Curtain Shutter opens exposing the full sensor again.

What I'd like to see is an Electronic Front Curtain Shutter option like most modern mirrorless cameras have. In those cameras, the shutter works in this manner: Shutters are open --> Initiate exposure --> Electronic Front Shutter is used --> Expose for the shutter speed --> Rear Curtain Shutter closes --> Rear Curtain Shutter opens exposing the sensor again.

The EFCS reduces a full mechanical (front) shutter close and open cycle. This could in theory reduce some of the perceived lag the M11 shutter has. It's something available in the A7R4, and I believe it's on by default in that camera. Shutter lag on the A7R4 for example is 0.022  with EFCS and 0.093 with full mechanical shutters (Source: Imaging Resource). 

Edited March 8, 2022 by fcracer

[lct]

2 hours ago, fcracer said:

Currently, the M11 works in this manner: Shutters are open (the camera uses the sensor to meter the image) --> Initiate exposure --> Front Curtain Shutter closes --> Front Curtain Shutter opens and exposes for the shutter speed --> Rear Curtain Shutter closes --> Rear Curtain Shutter opens exposing the full sensor again.

Do you mean it works the same in the M11's e-shutter mode? Just curious.

[fcracer]

5 minutes ago, lct said:

Do you mean it works the same in the M11's e-shutter mode? Just curious.

The Electronic Shutter mode does not move any mechanical shutters during the exposure; it's fully electronic. In comparison EFCS mode still closes and opens the Rear Curtain Shutter during the exposure. Eventually, all cameras will use an Electronic Shutter once the sensor readout and processing is fast enough; the benefits are just too great to pass up with lower cost, better reliability, and less shutter shock. The Nikon Z9 for example has no mechanical shutter.  

[fcracer]

It’s been over a year since I acquired the M11 and wrote the review in this post. I’ve seen so many people suffering with lockups and overexposure issues. I just want to share that not all M11s have been afflicted with the same frequency or severity of these issues.

I’ve had the occasional lockup, but nothing more than what I get with my GFX100S or X-T5. I had one or two overexposed frames as well, but it was very rare. I’ve applied the latest firmware which is supposed to fix these issues, which were rare for my camera to begin with.

Overall, I continue to love this camera and feel it’s a worthy successor to my M10, and a great bridge to the future for whatever Leica brings to the M12. I’m hoping for IBIS and a more responsive and less clumsy EVF experience in the M12. That would part me from my money.

 

[Kiwimac]

I presume the IQ difference you mention between M10 and M11 is lessened when you’re talking M10-R to M11?

[jakontil]

8 hours ago, fcracer said:

It’s been over a year since I acquired the M11 and wrote the review in this post. I’ve seen so many people suffering with lockups and overexposure issues. I just want to share that not all M11s have been afflicted with the same frequency or severity of these issues.

I’ve had the occasional lockup, but nothing more than what I get with my GFX100S or X-T5. I had one or two overexposed frames as well, but it was very rare. I’ve applied the latest firmware which is supposed to fix these issues, which were rare for my camera to begin with.

Overall, I continue to love this camera and feel it’s a worthy successor to my M10, and a great bridge to the future for whatever Leica brings to the M12. I’m hoping for IBIS and a more responsive and less clumsy EVF experience in the M12. That would part me from my money.

 

thanks i always love for an update for a long term users, or reviewers or some sort in this case

however, i wish the vanila M12 keep its compact body regardless any improvements the make or not at all... otherwise another variant with the evf and an ibis won't hurt either

[Herr Barnack]

On 3/9/2023 at 3:11 AM, fcracer said:

It’s been over a year since I acquired the M11 and wrote the review in this post. I’ve seen so many people suffering with lockups and overexposure issues. I just want to share that not all M11s have been afflicted with the same frequency or severity of these issues.

I’ve had the occasional lockup, but nothing more than what I get with my GFX100S or X-T5. I had one or two overexposed frames as well, but it was very rare. I’ve applied the latest firmware which is supposed to fix these issues, which were rare for my camera to begin with.

Overall, I continue to love this camera and feel it’s a worthy successor to my M10, and a great bridge to the future for whatever Leica brings to the M12. I’m hoping for IBIS and a more responsive and less clumsy EVF experience in the M12. That would part me from my money.

 

Regarding the above, my ongoing question still remains unanswered:  Why are some M11s afflicted with lockups and/or overexposure issues while other M11s are not?? 

Is it something the user is doing that causes these issues?  Or is it defective hardware in the afflicted cameras?  Or is it something else? 

Will we ever have a definitive answer?

 

Edited March 11, 2023 by Herr Barnack

[geotrupede]

despite initial shock and bugs and the EVF saga, I am very happy with M11. It is a very good upgrade and for me a solid machine. 1.6.1 seems to fix all problems which had earlier on with charging, with EVF and random exposures. The additional fast fps, live view, immortal battery and light weight are really great to have for me. Would never consider going backwards.

 

 

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[jaapv]

On 3/6/2022 at 9:59 AM, fcracer said:

It's an example of extremely high ISO 16400. I don't know anyone that would shoot an M11 at this ISO, but surprisingly, if downsampled sufficiently, the images are still usable (ie, for social media or viewing on a mobile device). Usually at this ISO, colours would start to fall apart and there would be tons of colour noise. I think the M11 does a very good job at this ridiculously high ISO.

There are hundreds of ISO 64 images on the net, but for completeness, here's an example of a base ISO image (full size and then 100% crop). I've taken the same image with my Sony A7R4 and the M11 image quality is pretty much on par (the corners are better on the Sony GM lenses, but then I don't have the 35MM APO). The M11 however is still a step below the GFX100S, as would be expected given the sensor size and incredible GF lenses from Fujifilm.

Full size (downsampled to 4098px to upload to the forum):

 

100% Crop:

 

Please read the upload instructions at the top of one of the image threads before uploading to the forum. If you deviate the result will be quality loss.