ohnri Posted November 7, 2007 Share #1 Posted November 7, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) Any idea how the M8 fairs in inclement weather? Does anyone have any experience with the M8 in the rain? What about Leica lenses?? Thanks, Bill Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted November 7, 2007 Posted November 7, 2007 Hi ohnri, Take a look here M8 in the rain?. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
Speenth Posted November 7, 2007 Share #2 Posted November 7, 2007 Hello Bill, I chose the M8 for its portability and durability as much as for its imaging capabilities. In search of scenery I hike, cycle and ride horses in the muddy stuff. I needed something small enough and tough enough to take along for the ride. My M8, Leica 24mm and 50mm lenses and a Voigtlander CV15 are used outdoors all the time, mostly slung around my neck as I travel across country by bicycle or horse. The kit has shrugged off heavy rain on numerous occasions and snow too. Incidentally, in its short life its also had to tolerate lots of dust and mud ... recently, after a particularly muddy mountain ride, I wish I'd had the presence of mind to photograph my M8 with all but its IR filter covered in Montana 'sh-one-t'! At first I tried to protect the camera inside its Leica neoprene soft case, but I found the neoprene soon gets waterlogged and the camera became seriously (penetratingly) damper than necessary in the consequent mini-sauna inside the case! So now I just tuck the camera inside my excellent Jack Wolfskin waterproof jacket. All my Leica gear is only six months old - so its maybe too soon to tell if any long term damage has been done by this regular exposure to the elements. But I'm pretty confident its all OK (the whole lot always gets lovingly towelled down at the first opportunity of course). My Pentax Spotmatic, which I've owned since 1968, has led a similarly tough life. Its got a few scratches, but its still going strong - as good as the day I got it. It would be a disgrace if the Leica proves to be less than a match for my ageing, but venerable Asahi. I believe strongly in the concept of the camera as a tool. If it can't take this kind of treatment it should be on display on the mantelpiece. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
elviskennedy Posted November 7, 2007 Share #3 Posted November 7, 2007 Speenth: Amen, brother! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
grduprey Posted November 7, 2007 Share #4 Posted November 7, 2007 Mine has seen rain and dust etc. Spent 8 hours a day in -10 degree weather and not one problem. I also clean after use and take only the same precautions as other cameras, mainly just don't drop it into the lake or other body of water, so that it can't be retreived. Gene Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamie Roberts Posted November 7, 2007 Share #5 Posted November 7, 2007 Got caught in a severe thunderstorm at an outdoor wedding this summer with full M8 kit and lenses. Kept on shooting; and no trouble to report! I was absolutely soaked, and so was the M8 (and 5d come to that). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean_reid Posted November 7, 2007 Share #6 Posted November 7, 2007 Any idea how the M8 fairs in inclement weather? Does anyone have any experience with the M8 in the rain? What about Leica lenses?? Thanks, Bill It's a roll of the dice because the camera is not sealed. It may or may not be affected by wet weather. Cheers, Sean Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanhulsenbeek Posted November 7, 2007 Share #7 Posted November 7, 2007 Advertisement (gone after registration) It's a roll of the dice because the camera is not sealed. It may or may not be affected by wet weather. Absolutely, and even weatherprotected camera's are not protected anymore when you change a lens. Only a Nikonos or Sea-Life is really waterproof, to a point. My experience in several days tropical jungle with rain, bugs, etc: no problem if you have a watertight container at hand to put in the camera when it pours. Ortlieb bags shine: Ortlieb Outdoor Equipment See Camarabags under Products. and the M8 shines too! see: Sander van Hulsenbeek Blog Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohnri Posted November 7, 2007 Author Share #8 Posted November 7, 2007 Thanks for the replys thus far. What I have NOT heard, and for this I am grateful, is a story about an M8 caught in a shower that stopped working. Thanks, Bill Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ohnri Posted November 7, 2007 Author Share #9 Posted November 7, 2007 Absolutely, and even weatherprotected camera's are not protected anymore when you change a lens. Only a Nikonos or Sea-Life is really waterproof, to a point. My experience in several days tropical jungle with rain, bugs, etc: no problem if you have a watertight container at hand to put in the camera when it pours. Ortlieb bags shine: Ortlieb Outdoor Equipment See Camarabags under Products. and the M8 shines too! see: Sander van Hulsenbeek Blog Thanks for the tip. Which bag did you find most useful for your M8? The blog is a great link. Is it yours? Thanks, Bill Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 7, 2007 Share #10 Posted November 7, 2007 Mine have been soaked with rain on several occasions with no adverse effects ( I tend to have them under my coat between shots though), having said that in the past I got my non-weathersealed Canon 10D and 300D soaked as well without problem. I think the concept of a "weatherproofed" camera is highly overrated. In the forums I read one report where somebody lost the shutterspeed readout in the viewfinder when the M8 got really wet. It returned upon drying the camera for a few hours. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MvMaltese Posted November 7, 2007 Share #11 Posted November 7, 2007 Was in NYC a few weekends ago, pouring rain the whole time. Had the M8 in and out of a coat (that soon was soaked itself). No problems to report at this date. Funny, but I ran into a man in Times Square who was also shooting an M8 in the rain with no protection whatsoever. Straight up at the buildings into the actual rain itself. Asked him how he was faring and he replied everything was functioning properly too! Mike ----- MVLimbert Photography Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanhulsenbeek Posted November 7, 2007 Share #12 Posted November 7, 2007 Thanks for the tip. Which bag did you find most useful for your M8? The blog is a great link. Is it yours? Thanks, Bill Ortlieb bags: depends on lenses etc. The smaller the better. Otherwise your guide wants to put in his mobile phone too! :-) Blog is mine indeed! Questions: just ask! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanhulsenbeek Posted November 7, 2007 Share #13 Posted November 7, 2007 Thanks for the replys thus far. What I have NOT heard, and for this I am grateful, is a story about an M8 caught in a shower that stopped working. Thanks, Bill The M8 may be too young for that. Or too costly. The best example from the Leica past comes to mind: Co Rentmeester's 'Buffalo's in the rain'. Co was/is a Time/Life photographer and Leica M user - M3 or M4 at the time - and took some epic photo's in Sumatra, Indonesia. Go to Co-Rentmeester Photography ,look up Books/Indonesia and wait till the unmistakable shot comes up. I remember a second shot, but cannot find it. After that shot his Leica packed in, terminally! On second thought: in the 70-ties, a Leica M must have cost the equivalent of an M8. Or not? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpStart Posted November 7, 2007 Share #14 Posted November 7, 2007 There was this story on Luminous Landscape earlier this year, about a number of cameras that failed - some due to weather and that included some M8's. luminouslandscape.com DBK Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean_reid Posted November 7, 2007 Share #15 Posted November 7, 2007 Thanks for the replys thus far. What I have NOT heard, and for this I am grateful, is a story about an M8 caught in a shower that stopped working. Thanks, Bill There was a photojournalist who wrote a fairly recent M8 article. In it, he describes losing the LCD function on the M8 for a period of time after using it in the rain. The LCD did, however, reportedly come back to life after the camera dried out. Again, the camera is not sealed and one must realize that precipitation could possibly harm it. Maybe it will be fine and maybe it won't. Cheers, Sean Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean_reid Posted November 7, 2007 Share #16 Posted November 7, 2007 Mine have been soaked with rain on several occasions with no adverse effects ( I tend to have them under my coat between shots though), having said that in the past I got my non-weathersealed Canon 10D and 300D soaked as well without problem. I think the concept of a "weatherproofed" camera is highly overrated.In the forums I read one report where somebody lost the shutterspeed readout in the viewfinder when the M8 got really wet. It returned upon drying the camera for a few hours. Hi Jaap, I don't think camera seals are over-rated at all, especially when one is doing professional work that *cannot* be re-shot. As a rule of thumb, if a camera manual specifically states that a camera should not be exposed to moisture then one does so very much at his or her own risk. Sometimes things work out OK but it is not a gamble that I like at all. Cheers, Sean Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nryn Posted November 7, 2007 Share #17 Posted November 7, 2007 It should be noted that even if the M8 were sealed, M lenses (and the M lensmount) are not. So while a sealed camera body may afford more protection from moisture, it would take a whole new set of lenses with rubber gaskets and sealed rings, etc, to truly seal the system. Even on the Canon 1D series, which are sealed, only certain L lenses are also sealed (not all L lenses). I think Oly's bodies are also sealed, though I don't know about their lenses. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean_reid Posted November 7, 2007 Share #18 Posted November 7, 2007 It should be noted that even if the M8 were sealed, M lenses (and the M lensmount) are not. So while a sealed camera body may afford more protection from moisture, it would take a whole new set of lenses with rubber gaskets and sealed rings, etc, to truly seal the system. Even on the Canon 1D series, which are sealed, only certain L lenses are also sealed (not all L lenses). I think Oly's bodies are also sealed, though I don't know about their lenses. Yes, and I discussed this aspect with Leica in 2004 and wrote about it in my first review of the M8. The M9 should be sealed and Leica should offer some M-lenses with seals for use by those who want or need them. Those who don't feel they need them certainly would not need to buy new lenses. Many of Oly's lenses are sealed, including the work horse 14 -54. Every manufacturer who offers seals in their Pro bodies (Canon, Nikon, Oly and Pentax) also offer at least some sealed lenses as well. Of course, one wouldn't need all of his or her lenses to be sealed - just one or two "rain lenses". Cheers, Sean Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nryn Posted November 8, 2007 Share #19 Posted November 8, 2007 Canon's weather sealing is pretty interesting--gaskets everywhere and a thin, circular rubber gasket at the back of L lenses. I suspect German "weathersealing" would probably withstand hurricanes and ocean depths of 500m. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted November 8, 2007 Share #20 Posted November 8, 2007 Hi Jaap, I don't think camera seals are over-rated at all, especially when one is doing professional work that *cannot* be re-shot. As a rule of thumb, if a camera manual specifically states that a camera should not be exposed to moisture then one does so very much at his or her own risk. Sometimes things work out OK but it is not a gamble that I like at all. Cheers, Sean Hi Sean I meant I'm not sure simple weather sealing is a cure-all. In such circumstances a Ewa-Marine housing or "raincoat"might be more appropriate. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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