So why is the M8's grip so bad compared to older M's?

[lars_bergquist]

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Most people do seem to find the M Grip objectionable. I do. I think, really, that there should be two little black screw bushings for a plastic streamlined finger grip that fits directly to the body wall. No need for it to be more than c. 5mm thick. Why, it might even look as if it belonged there. After all, the M8 doesn't look like the dear old Leica I ...

 

The old man from the Age Of.

[stunsworth]

I used a RapidGrip on my M6 and found it a useful accessory, but it looks increasingly like Tom is not going to be producing one for the M8.

[wparsonsgisnet]

As I ordered my M8 with the grip, I have never handled the camera without one. I find it eminently usable with the grip in place and often shoot one-handed (wide lens, usually).

 

(I also use the neck strap. $5k doesn't grow on trees.)

[jrc]

I use a handgrip. I may be insane, but I think it's not only the covering (which is different between my M7 and the M8, and the M7 is better) but the paint on the M8 also seems slicker than the paint on the M7. Somebody here has put a small plastic or rubber self-adhesive "bump" on the back of the M8, just to the right and above the "Made in Germany," and says that helps. I haven't tried it, but whenever my thumb falls there, it occurs to me that it would be a good idea, whatever it may lack in aesthetics.

 

JC

[Guest tummydoc]

Well if aesthetics aren't a factor, Staples sell a ventilated rubber finger cover made for turning pages, just slip one on your thumb and Bob's your uncle

[fotografr]

+1! I'm happy someone else said precisely what I was thinking If one carries one's cameras on a neck strap and rests it in the palm of one's left hand whilst shooting, the texture of the covering doesn't have a significant affect. Those who carry the camera in one hand need more of a grip.

 

That's pretty much my feeling on this. I would have preferred a thumb lever for manual shutter cocking on the M8 because it would have made the camera quieter and also provided something for the thumb to grasp for more secure handling. I really have never felt the camera was slippery, however, and don't have any trouble gripping it.

[divory]

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Goto Leicagoodies.com and look at the Sling. I use it and it becomes part of your hand and if you want to go further look at the Hook and the Sling as well. It has completely changed the way I use and hold the M8 in the field. Needless to say, I am just a satisfied customer.

 

David

[Philippe D.]

I've changed the covering of my M8 for a unusual one.

 

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Going safari next week.

[ozdavid]

Erl,

After our lunch I bought two straps from Gordy and find them great to use, either in combination with your sharp shooter or a little Fogg Piccolo case.

It gives security, holding the body alone doesn't, and freedom which neckstraps constrain.

Regards

David

[Jack_Flesher]

My take on the M8 "grip-ability" is that because of the absence of the traditional wind lever, the whole dynamic is changed in how you can hold it.

 

Agreed. Having the lever to slip your thumb under makes a huge difference.

 

Also though, the M8 is perceptably thicker front to back than previous M's, and IMO this exacerbates the problem. I added the grip base which made a huge improvement,and then one of those little rubber dot/bumbers to the back just below where the open lever used to be. I find that combo works pretty well for me. I have gone back and forth with the wrist strap versus the neck strap, and now have both bodies equipped with the grip, bumper and neck-straps. Though for an all-day shooting excursion, I will probably load the wrist-strap back up on one of the bodies.

 

Cheers,

[Guest tummydoc]

Perhaps I need a refresher course on holding a camera. I understand that a 1.5 kilogram DSLR with a 1 kilogram lens benefits from a very ergonomic grip just to bring it up to eye-level, but I tend more to cradle a light-weight camera such as a Leica in the palm of my left hand, with the right hand there for a little added steadiness but mostly to adjust the shutter speeds and press the shutter release. Bringing it up to my eye, I can do just grasping it between my thumb and first two fingers. I think there's a bigger market for accessorising Leicas than for Barbie dolls

[Shootist]

Well I tend to agree with you but to me the covering on the M8 just feels different and less secure in my hand/s then all the M3's I have handled. My present M3 has original covering and it never slips in my hand/s. That is why I've never been drawn to getting a grip add-on for it. But after having the M8 for about 1 month I sprung for the grip base. When I bought my second M8 I figured I go without the grip on that one, but I bought a second grip for that one also.