Near Catastrophe with DLux3 Noise

[richam]

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On my first outing with my new DLux3, I had not yet fully figured out the sometimes counter-intuitive menu system nor had I read all the fine print in the manual. As a result, I got a lot of phony noises when I took a picture, and hadn't yet figured out how or even if they could be silenced. I say phony since the noises are unnecessary and so poorly implemented that they make the phony CSI camera noises seem almost real.

 

Anyway, the near catastrophe occurred when I took the following photo. The noises spooked the horse, and he bucked, tossing my grandson off his back. Luckily, my niece's husband (on the right) was able to break his fall before any damage was done. Good grief, this is a Leica, not a CSI prop. It's supposed to be quiet. Why is silence not the default value?

 

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[doubice]

Gee,

 

I don't know.... I use my D-Lux2, cell phone and other gizmos near horses all the time, without any spooking. Maybe you have a horse that is a liitle spookier than others?

 

Happy for you that your grandson did not come to any harm!

 

Best,

 

Jan

[stunsworth]

Michael, it's not the default because many (most?) people expect to hear a 'camera' noise when the press the shutter or get a focus lock.

 

I have a LX2 and one of the first things I did was switch the sounds off.

[karlitos]

Micheal, shutter sound and focus indication can all be turned off in menu. By the look of the eyes on that horse I'd say it was capable of throwing anybody! That's one really narked animal:)

 

Karlitos.

[richam]

Steve,

 

"Most people" are not Leica users. I'd expect noises from the Panasonic and other P&S brands, but it just seems Leica ought to be quiet.

 

BTW, I did find the settings and turned off all noises. Now the DL3 seems more like a Leica.

[rob_x2004]

So the first frame you ever shot was up the nose of a hemned in horse?

[doubice]

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Steve,

 

"Most people" are not Leica users........Now the DL3 seems more like a Leica......

 

Michael,

 

Do you own a Leica M? My M6, M7 and M8 are noisier than the D-Lux 2. And M Leicas are touted to be the quietest cameras around (with the exception of the M8 of course ).

 

Maybe it was somebody's sudden movement that spooked the horse? If the horse gets spooked by the shutter noise of a D-Lux 3, I would stay away from him. I once rode a horse called Spooky and needless to say had to be very careful when handling him.

 

Best,

 

Jan

[richam]

So the first frame you ever shot was up the nose of a hemned in horse?

 

No. Not first frame, and horse was not hemmed in.

 

Michael,

 

Do you own a Leica M? My M6, M7 and M8 are noisier than the D-Lux 2. And M Leicas are touted to be the quietest cameras around (with the exception of the M8 of course ).

 

Maybe it was somebody's sudden movement that spooked the horse? If the horse gets spooked by the shutter noise of a D-Lux 3, I would stay away from him. I once rode a horse called Spooky and needless to say had to be very careful when handling him.

 

Best,

 

Jan

 

I own several Ms, and none are anywhere as noisy as the Dlux3 out of the box. All I've suggested is that Leica default to silent operation out of the box, and let users choose the noises if they want. And it was definitely the noise that spooked the horse.

[bernd_muc]

No. Not first frame

 

Well, you have known the "noise level" before then, haven't you? So why do you blame it on the camera? One look into the manual (or playing with the menu as most men do first) and you could have set it to silent. I don't know of any digicam that comes noiseless by default - and for a reason: feedback. Most people would wonder if the camera really took a foto without the artificial noise. Just as your Mac makes the noise of crumpling paper when you empty the trash.

 

So please, don't blame the camera for shying the horse - we are not in the US where nobody is responsible for his/her actions when there is someone/something else to blame (like getting burnt by spilling their own coffee or slipping on their own coke that they've spilled 30s earlier.

 

Bernd

[richam]

Well, you have known the "noise level" before then, haven't you? So why do you blame it on the camera? One look into the manual (or playing with the menu as most men do first) and you could have set it to silent. I don't know of any digicam that comes noiseless by default - and for a reason: feedback. Most people would wonder if the camera really took a foto without the artificial noise. Just as your Mac makes the noise of crumpling paper when you empty the trash.

 

So please, don't blame the camera for shying the horse - we are not in the US where nobody is responsible for his/her actions when there is someone/something else to blame (like getting burnt by spilling their own coffee or slipping on their own coke that they've spilled 30s earlier.

 

Bernd

 

Bernd,

 

You've completely missed my point, but inadvertently helped me make it. I am not blaming the camera for my own mistakes, and you are right, I should have completely absorbed the user's manual and set the camera to my personal preferences before I started using it ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT A LEICA IS JUST ANOTHER CHEAP P&S CAMERA. I'm merely suggesting that Lecia can better justify their higher prices by differentiating their digital models -- making them more "Leica-like," in this case more silent.

[stunsworth]

I started using it ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT A LEICA IS JUST ANOTHER CHEAP P&S CAMERA

 

Michael, to the majority of people who buy it I'd guess that's exactly what it is.

 

Maybe not cheap, but certainly just a point and shoot camera that they expect to behave like all the others,

[richam]

Michael, to the majority of people who buy it I'd guess that's exactly what it is.

 

Maybe not cheap, but certainly just a point and shoot camera that they expect to behave like all the others,

 

Steve,

 

A wise but sad comment. I don't know how much it takes to implement a more "Leica-like" sound, but it might be a smart marketing idea to capture a real M-sound and use it on these little cameras. The phony CSI sound effects say "cheap."

 

BTW, I wonder if it was the red dot that helped spook the horse?

[bobs]

There is a very old saying "When all else fails, read the instructions" Unfortunately, we are also impatient to try out our new "toys" and make rather unfortunate mistakes.

 

Bob S