Poll: Who already has a Leica M11? ... or pre-ordered or firmly planned...

[LBJ2]

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On 3/25/2022 at 5:26 AM, maxpower said:

I've had my silver M11 for a little over a month now, and so far I love it. For me it's the first Leica (and range finder) I've ever owned, so one thing I struggled with was which lens to get. I planned to get just one to start with because I don't have unlimited funds. At the store where I bought the camera, which was not the official Leica store as they didn't have it in stock, they recommended I'd start with the 35mm Summicron. This was a great lens but I got sick and was homebound and with my cat as the primary test subject I felt like I needed a little bit more (even though with 60MP you can easily crop of course), so I ended up exchanged it for the 50mm Summilux (silver) and played with that for a while. I loved the images this lens produced, but it felt a bit heavy and I could go outside again and noticed I could really use the 35mm. I ended up buying the 35mm Summilux (silver) and it's been great! 

Then... I visited the official Leica store in town, where they have a lot of occasions for sale. One of which was a black 50mm Summilux priced about 1300 EUR cheaper than new. Everything works great but there are some scuffs on the housing, the lens itself is excellent. While I was aware of the weight difference in black/silver M11, I was not aware of the difference in lens weight. The black 50mm felt better to me somehow. The sales person did tell me silver ones generally retain value a little better (no clue if that's true). I never even thought about buying an occasion until now, he also tempted me with a few hundred euro discount on a new 50mm lux.. so while I did not plan to buy anything that day, I could not leave without taking this occasion lens home with me. So now I have both! 

It's been a fun experience and maybe at some point I'll find a place to write down more of my thoughts. This is in no way a camera I need, but I've wanted one since forever and now I had an opportunity. The main thing I like (which I know is not exclusive to the M11) is that this is a tool that just works, because there's no automation nothing working against me. When I click the button it takes a picture, and it's fully up to me whether it turns out well. The automated ISO/shutterspeed is still useful for me, but I have noticed I get better results if I take the time and a couple of attempts to set them manually. I'm already starting to get better at manual focus, beginning to understand zone focusing better as well. 

Can't wait to see where I will be at in a few months/year. 

You chose a good time to jump in ...the M11!

I'll never forget my first Leica rangefinder experience with the Leica M10 in 2018. In my case the honeymoon starts all over again each time I pick up my Leica M kit. I started with the black 35 Lux asph/FLE and the 50 Lux asph too which continues to be my pair of choice for my M. 

Between RF and ZF, there really isn't much you can't do with the tiny Leica M kit IMO. 

I find the unbelievable 60MP on the M11 just one more layer of icing on the Leica rangefinder cake. But plenty of other things to gush about on the M11 too 😎

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[LBJ2]

On 3/29/2022 at 3:55 PM, MrQ said:

I have the black M11 and love it.  Despite what I have read, I actually like that it is a lighter camera in weight compared to the silver version (or my other M10-P).  Also the electronic shutter allows me to shoot wide open without using a ND filter.

As a Noctilux daylight fan, I'm getting away with more than I anticipated with the M11's electronic shutter. I do have to mind how much movement in the scene, but to me that's just part of what I do anyway and if I don't have to screw on/off an expensive ND filter...I feel, I'm ahead. 

[Hausen17]

I have decided to come back to Leica after a time with X1D and then 907x. I traded my 907x + lenses for the M11 + WATE + 90mm. I just got tired of lugging the weight around and with travel again an option it made sense to go small again. I am now waiting for it to arrive in 2 weeks. We are travelling in July to Switzerland and my back will appreciate the weight reduction and the smaller bag. I had M8,M9 + M9 Mono and currently have Q2 so it won’t be a shock. I am a LE shooter and the ability to turn off LENR was the deciding factor for me.

[Herr Barnack]

On 3/15/2022 at 8:57 PM, Dsauro said:

Got mine 2 weeks ago………and I love it.

The colors OOC are wonderful.  I am so happy with the electronic shutter.

The M11 is a game changer…..

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There's a first time for literally everything, I suppose.  😅

I'm very happy to hear that there is one M11 user in the world who doesn't loathe the M11 shutter with every fiber of his being.

Edited April 5, 2022 by Herr Barnack

[SrMi]

6 hours ago, Herr Barnack said:

There's a first time for literally everything, I suppose.  😅

I'm very happy to hear that there is one M11 user in the world who doesn't loathe the M11 shutter with every fiber of his being.

Most M11 owners do not loath the M11 shutter. Among those few who loath the shutter are mainly non-owners.

[Jewl]

vor 11 Stunden schrieb SrMi:

Most M11 owners do not loath the M11 shutter. Among those few who loath the shutter are mainly non-owners.

For me the shutter is not an issue / something to dislike. Coming from an M10-P which had a very pleasant and silent shutter! No downgrade or degradation for me tbh. 

[TENTMAKERSMINISTRY]

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I took the advice from one of the members here.  I cancelled pre-order at a major dealer in USA.  Then searched store by store and found Berlin store had 1 silver M11 and got it right away.  It will be delivered in a few days.  Finally....Cool!

[Olaf_ZG]

On 4/3/2022 at 3:57 AM, Hausen17 said:

I  am a LE shooter and the ability to turn off LENR was the deciding factor for me.

Really curious if the m11 can match the HB for LE and colourdepth… 

I use a GFX for LE (up to 15min in full sunlight) but did not yet see enough of LE by m11 to make the switch. Even then, may be a SL3 would be a better option (for me).

[Photoworks]

9 minutes ago, Olaf_ZG said:

may be a SL3 would be a better option

totally bro!

but I would hold to SL4 come out, that would be in 2030-2032 by then LE is going to be amazing

[SrMi]

11 minutes ago, Olaf_ZG said:

Really curious if the m11 can match the HB for LE and colourdepth… 

I use a GFX for LE (up to 15min in full sunlight) but did not yet see enough of LE by m11 to make the switch. Even then, may be a SL3 would be a better option (for me).

HB and M11 can meter long exposures correctly (e.g. 20 minutes), while GFX cannot. For long exposures I'll use either X1D or M11, not GFX. They are more convenient and the results are excellent.

[Olaf_ZG]

11 minutes ago, SrMi said:

HB and M11 can meter long exposures correctly (e.g. 20 minutes), while GFX cannot. For long exposures I'll use either X1D or M11, not GFX. They are more convenient and the results are excellent.

I don’t have problems with metering, but I do shoot with bright light, not at night. ND16-19 is what I use, but I do check metering manually by recalculating values with and without ND.

 I really would love to switch the GFX for a m11, as it is one system less to carry. 
 

But it will mean new filters etc as well, and I for sure will miss the tiltable screen, which I use a lot when working on a tripod….

[Olaf_ZG]

22 minutes ago, Photoworks said:

totally bro!

but I would hold to SL4 come out, that would be in 2030-2032 by then LE is going to be amazing

Somehow, I have feeling SL might come out within 18 months, don’t know why. To me the m11 is an expensive camera, so I need to save up. By the time I have funds, the SL3 might be there as well 😏

[hdmesa]

 

On 3/23/2022 at 10:41 PM, mzbe said:

Not M11 vs. Hasselblad, but M11 with 75MM APO Summicron vs GFX. Scroll down for the city + landscape images; not a scientific comparison, but shows that there is still a difference (e.g. M11 grainy noise across the fields in the distance); click twice on each image to zoom in to full resolution:

https://mostlyblackandwhite.wordpress.com/2022/03/18/its-what-it-is-now/

I like the GFX image quality better but could not take the camera with me every day (unlike M11).

 

Should be very little difference between them since they are the same underlying Sony sensor made in two different physical sizes. The M11 is essentially a full frame version of the GFX 100S that works better with M lenses due to its thinner cover glass and M-lens-specific microlens design.

 

[Photoworks]

14 hours ago, hdmesa said:

 

 

Should be very little difference between them since they are the same underlying Sony sensor made in two different physical sizes. The M11 is essentially a full frame version of the GFX 100S that works better with M lenses due to its thinner cover glass and M-lens-specific microlens design.

 

There are other sensor manufactures and it is not proven the sensor comes from Sony .

in any case is it really important that it comes from Sony? It has been made to Leica specifications.

Sony can make so many difference sensors, they are not all the same! they even keep the real good technology for themselves until the next gen comes out.

[hdmesa]

2 hours ago, Photoworks said:

There are other sensor manufactures and it is not proven the sensor comes from Sony .

in any case is it really important that it comes from Sony? It has been made to Leica specifications.

Sony can make so many difference sensors, they are not all the same! they even keep the real good technology for themselves until the next gen comes out.

It's generally accepted that the GFX 100/100S, A7R4, and the M11 share the same base sensor, and that's a good thing IMO. All three of these have unique customizations made to the manufacturer's specs: cover glass thickness and distance from sensor – IR filtration – microlens design – etc.

And no it's not important except to illustrate that the M11 should perform at about the level of the GFX 100/100S when the GFX is used in 35mm crop mode. It was being suggested that the M11 was lagging behind the GFX, but as others pointed out, the M11 sample was shot at a higher ISO than the GFX sample.

[SrMi]

1 hour ago, hdmesa said:

It's generally accepted that the GFX 100/100S, A7R4, and the M11 share the same base sensor, and that's a good thing IMO. All three of these have unique customizations made to the manufacturer's specs: cover glass thickness and distance from sensor – IR filtration – microlens design – etc.

And no it's not important except to illustrate that the M11 should perform at about the level of the GFX 100/100S when the GFX is used in 35mm crop mode. It was being suggested that the M11 was lagging behind the GFX, but as others pointed out, the M11 sample was shot at a higher ISO than the GFX sample.

To complete the list: Sigma fp-L and Phase One IQ4 150 are also using the same base sensor. 

[Olaf_ZG]

So, and sorry for being stupid, if the sensors are the same base, then basically DR, and so on should be more or less the same, right?

an image, on let’s say 100 iso of the m11 vs gfx50r would reveal no or barely visible differences if lens is of same quality?

[hdmesa]

5 minutes ago, Olaf_ZG said:

So, and sorry for being stupid, if the sensors are the same base, then basically DR, and so on should be more or less the same, right?

an image, on let’s say 100 iso of the m11 vs gfx50r would reveal no or barely visible differences if lens is of same quality?

The M11 sensor is similar in tech to the GFX 100/100S, not the 50S/R. The M11 is BSI tech, 50S/R is the older FSI sensor tech.

That said, there may still be differences between the M11 versus the GFX 100/100S (in 35mm crop mode) since the M11 sensor has a base ISO of 64, and the GFX 100/100S has a base ISO of 100. So base ISO versus base ISO for the same exposed sensor area (GFX in 35mm crop mode), the M11 might have a slight advantage.

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[hdmesa]

1 hour ago, SrMi said:

To complete the list: Sigma fp-L and Phase One IQ4 150 are also using the same base sensor. 

Yes, thank you. One thing I didn't think about was base ISO on the M11 is ISO 64, which I believe is unique in the list of shared sensors. I think a case could be made that the M11 variant of the same base sensor is more heavily modified than just taking the same sensor and adding different toppings (cover glass, IR filter, microlenses). It might be better called an improved/newer/alternative variant of the base sensor.

[SrMi]

43 minutes ago, Olaf_ZG said:

So, and sorry for being stupid, if the sensors are the same base, then basically DR, and so on should be more or less the same, right?

an image, on let’s say 100 iso of the m11 vs gfx50r would reveal no or barely visible differences if lens is of same quality?

In this context, the larger the sensor, the better the DR.