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What to expect when buying a M8 now

StS

By StS
in Leica M8 / Leica M8.2

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StS

StS

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Gents,

 

summing up the discussions on the M8, I found these points which should be observed when buying an M8 now:

 

  • Lenses should have an IR filter under certain conditions
  • Lenses might have to be sent to Solms for adjusting the focus
  • Old lenses should preferrably have a coding added
  • JPEG compression in the camera is poor, RAW should be preferred
  • There were some issues reported with earlier electronics/firmware which should be sorted out now
  • Camera does not work without battery (should be mentioned if one lives in M3 world ;))

 

Is there anything else one should brace oneself for?

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Guest tummydoc

Guest tummydoc

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Gents,

 

summing up the discussions on the M8, I found these points which should be observed when buying an M8 now:

 

  • Lenses should have an IR filter under certain conditions
 
The general concensus, especially amongst experienced photographers and pros, is that the filters are mandatory under all conditions.
 
Lenses might have to be sent to Solms for adjusting the focus
 
Or body or both, but independent Leica repair agencies could probably do as well or better at it than Solms.
 
Old lenses should preferrably have a coding added
 
Old or new, lenses 35mm and wider should preferably have the coding added unless one wants to diddle with corrective software as an added step whilst post-processing. Lenses 50mm and longer benefit only from having themselves identified in EXIF.
 
JPEG compression in the camera is poor, RAW should be preferred
 
Moreover, as the AWB is atrocious, skewed JPEGs are much more difficult if not impossible to correct.
 
There were some issues reported with earlier electronics/firmware which should be sorted out now
 
...and some that have not yet been, such as the "venetian blind" effect on the LCD, out-of-control scrolling, some random crashes (eg one in conjunction with the sensor-cleaning setting), and the notoriously awful AWB.
 
Camera does not work without battery (should be mentioned if one lives in M3 world ;))

 

That's not an issue, the issue is when it refuses to work with battery ;)

 

Is there anything else one should brace oneself for?

 

The end-of-month credit-card statement :D

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citrus

citrus

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Gents,

 

summing up the discussions on the M8, I found these points which should be observed when buying an M8 now:

 

  • Lenses should have an IR filter under certain conditions
  • Lenses might have to be sent to Solms for adjusting the focus
  • Old lenses should preferrably have a coding added
  • JPEG compression in the camera is poor, RAW should be preferred
  • There were some issues reported with earlier electronics/firmware which should be sorted out now
  • Camera does not work without battery (should be mentioned if one lives in M3 world ;))

 

Is there anything else one should brace oneself for?

 

Higher prices today compared to a few month ago.....

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johnalex141r

johnalex141r

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  • Lenses should have an IR filter under certain conditions
  • JPEG compression in the camera is poor, RAW should be preferred

 

Is there anything else one should brace oneself for?

 

As a fairly new M8 user (6 weeks) I'd say that the IR filter caught me. I now have 2 of them from Leica; need 2 more from somewhere.

 

I think that the JPEG compression is a non-issue; either you are taking happy-snappies where one might use a point-n-shoot (which IMHO, the jpeg images are 100x better than what anyone expects) or, you are shooting for picture quality, one would shoot raw.

 

I have been absolutely happy with my M8, and am discovering the joys of my 4 CV lenses (15/4, 25/4, 35/4, and 50/2.5) all purchased hassle-free from Stephen Gandy at Cameraquest. Sure they are slow lenses, but they are small, light, and focus is not as critical.

 

I have not been a "pro" in years; (since the '70s when I paid my way through school) so I'm just out having fun taking pictures of whatever I want to.

 

The only problems that I have experienced are:

1) which set of frame lines matches this lens, again?

2) 4 lenses in a case, lens caps upwards, which one is which? they all say Voigtlander. I'm practicing telling them apart by feel (focus knobs and general body shape differ, and I have put a wideish angle hood on the 50, just to make it look different)

3) Sensor dust, and how to see it in the lcd display, rather than wait til after the vacation.

 

 

JohnS.

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egibaud

egibaud

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Higher prices today compared to a few month ago.....

 

.... a few days ago....

 

I now have 2 of them from Leica; need 2 more from somewhere. JohnS.

 

You can get them for free.... with a second body :-)

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Shootist

Shootist

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Use IR filters on ALL lenses, unless you are going for magenta blacks or shooting IR.

Code all the lenses you own. Most will say you don't need to BUT why not code them if you can afford it.

I haven't had focusing problems except with older lenses, specifically a 135mm Elmarit with eyes. The 75mm ASPH I have does backfocuses slightly but I can live with it for now. Other then those 2 all my lenses focus better then I can.

Never shoot Jpeg only unless you are shooting just B&W and even then you can shoot Jpeg B&W and color RAW at the same time.

No issues that bother me.

That is to be expected with ANY digital camera. If you ever find one that works without a battery, or some type of power source, please let me know.

 

Yes some the most wonderful images you have ever taken.

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chris_tribble

chris_tribble

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Brace yourself for:

- having more fun with a camera than you've had for a long time

- being able to pack 15/21/28/35/50/75 + 2 bodies in a Domke Reporter Satchel (you have to make your own insert so you can stack the lenses)

- being able to do street and reportage photography in places where your DSLR would have had your subjects diving for cover

- being surprised by the quality of lenses you'd not been using that often with film (the 75 in my case)

- having to upgrade or buy a lot of computer hardware (lots of firewire external drives are a good idea) and software (I'm very happy with Lightroom + CS3 - I wouldn't be happy with C1 lite and nothing else)

Enjoy!

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chris_tribble

chris_tribble

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A reflection on Charles Peterson's post - do you have a higher chance of having problems with the M8 if you're based in North America... is it my imagination, or have most of the people who've had to send their cameras back to Solms been from that side of the Atlantic??? Anyone have a thought on this?

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cocker

cocker

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A reflection on Charles Peterson's post - do you have a higher chance of having problems with the M8 if you're based in North America... is it my imagination, or have most of the people who've had to send their cameras back to Solms been from that side of the Atlantic??? Anyone have a thought on this?

 

That was exactly my thought Chris observing the origin of the posts over the past period. There are a vast amount more posts from America complaining of problems than UK and Europe. Possible explanations are maybe

 

  1. Shipping to USA does something to the camera
  2. Americans are picky, insecure and anal
  3. There are vastly more cameras in America

I have no view on which of the options is correct.:)

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Alberti

Alberti

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A reflection on Charles Peterson's post - do you have a higher chance of having problems with the M8 if you're based in North America... is it my imagination, or have most of the people who've had to send their cameras back to Solms been from that side of the Atlantic??? Anyone have a thought on this?

 

Chris, I have been surprised by this as well. Looks like ambush marketing.

 

Statistically it could be checked out if it is true (customer forum), but there is some strange thing around certain posts:

there are reports of 'my autofocus knob broke', or of 'the front lens element detached when I was shooting in moonshine', 'how can I lock the mirror?', or even 'the bottom plate broke off while I had it on a tripod'. These are partly SciFi. Fictions. Ridiculous. User problems. Other complaints like, 'the battery went dead without a warning' or 'my camera gets warm when I use the cable' look like frickled or unsure shooters.

 

And then often, we see a response pattern, advice given, yes, you certainly should...'. papa assuring you. Or a lawyer taking over that role. In some cultures it is all taken seriously, LOL!

 

So we should add a section, called LOL or FUN.

albert

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gogopix

gogopix

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Gents,

 

summing up the discussions on the M8, I found these points which should be observed when buying an M8 now:

 

  • Lenses should have an IR filter under certain conditions
  • Lenses might have to be sent to Solms for adjusting the focus
  • Old lenses should preferrably have a coding added
  • JPEG compression in the camera is poor, RAW should be preferred
  • There were some issues reported with earlier electronics/firmware which should be sorted out now
  • Camera does not work without battery (should be mentioned if one lives in M3 world ;))

 

Is there anything else one should brace oneself for?

 

It won't really have a 'film' look. LOL

 

Actually I had NON of the issues (and I have over 30 M lenses of different vintages from new 6 bit to pre-war.

 

the jpg are quite usable unless you 'fool' it with combo lighting (light sunlit room witrh tungsten lights on.)

New electronics are fine

i had changed even thouh in 5000 shots had only one that showed the problem (none since)

all cameras have problem. For many, like Canikons, people do not bexpect perfection and live with issues - typical mass market idea 'well if everyone else has it i guess just what is'

not so tolerant with MB, Patek and Leica; we pay mucho dinero and expect perfecto.

don'tr

what you have is one of the best cameras on the market, and it takes a little more work (like ferraris)

 

:-)

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Venkman

Venkman

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Possible explanations are maybe

 

  1. Shipping to USA does something to the camera
  2. Americans are picky, insecure and anal
  3. There are vastly more cameras in America

I have no view on which of the options is correct.:)

 

Shipping from US and turnround times are nasty - maybe that's why US folks are easier p****ed off than the Euros. If I ship my cam to Solms, I can rest assured that I'll have it back in 2 weeks time latest.

 

If you do that from the US, we probably talk months.

 

Now, which group is most likely to complain? :D

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Shootist

Shootist

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Shipping from US and turnround times are nasty - maybe that's why US folks are easier p****ed off than the Euros. If I ship my cam to Solms, I can rest assured that I'll have it back in 2 weeks time latest.

 

If you do that from the US, we probably talk months.

 

Now, which group is most likely to complain? :D

 

That's why Leica needs to have a fully staffed service center here in the USA.

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StS

StS

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Thank you all for your views.

 

First impressions - if the shutter dial is set on 'A' there is a nice lens cap warning ;), the manual is almost superfluous if one is used to M's. Maybe there will be a Luigi case soon having a rest for the right thumb ;) .

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