Leica n00b needs help selecting a memory card and accessories for the Leica M 11-P

[TeeBee]

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G'day folks, 

I'm new here and ordered my first Leica, Leica M 11 P, which is due soon. After reading a plethora of articles on selecting a memory card, I narrowed my selection to Sony, Kingston, Angelbird and Sabrent. What is your opinion of the Kingston Canvas React Plus V60 SD Memory Card? When I spoke to the Leica store, they suggested using a V90 card. What is your opinion on this?

I hope to buy a 512 GB memory card to store the RAW files in the memory card and the JPGs in the built-in memory. Does this sound fine?

To give you some background, I used Canon, Nikon, and Sony before switching to Fujifilm GFX 100s. So, I need to buy a smaller camera bag that fits the M11-P and the Zeiss ZM lenses I own: the 21mm f/2.8, 50mm f/1.5, and 35mm f/1.4 distagon. I might get the Zeiss 28mm f/2.8 and maybe the Voigtlander 40mm f/1.4 or the Summicron APO 35mm f/2.0. What camera bag would you recommend for this gear? 

I'm getting a spare battery with the camera and the screen protector. Is there any other accessory I should consider at this stage?

Thanks much in advance

Tee

[lct]

First rangefinder? I'd buy a Visoflex 2 to cushion the blow😄

[Photoworks]

9 hours ago, TeeBee said:

Is there any other accessory I should consider at this stage?

hand grip or half case.
I use a thumbie, but it is not for everyone since you need to tape it on.

9 hours ago, TeeBee said:

they suggested using a V90 card.

if you read all the manuals from Leica they suggest V90 all the time.

you can stay away from sony, lexar.

I use the ProGrade 256  300R, and never had an issue, but many choices are out there and they work fine.

[lct]

List of SD cards i use on my flawless M11, my favorite being the Sony. JFI.
• UHS1 Sandisk Extreme Pro 95mb/s (64gb)
• UHS1 Sandisk Extreme Pro 170mb/s (256gb)
• UHS2 Sandisk Extreme Pro 300mb/s (64gb)
• UHS2 Sony Tough 300mb/s (64gb)

[paulscr]

I personally would avoid accessories at this early stage. Use it a while and decide what’s missing. Internal memory and battery performance should be adequate for most hobbyists (me at least). 

I’ll let you discover the multitude of “which bag” posts

 

[Smogg]

Whibal greycard

[patrickcolpron]

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The only SD cards I use with my M cameras are Angelbird cards, with M10 cameras 128 gig V60 card are great but for the M11 I found I had less issues with Angelbird V90 256 gig cards, when i set the camera to write the files to the SD card first and the internal memory as overflow. 

For other accessories, all you really need to start with is a thumbs up and a good camera strap, I like Leica's thumbs up and Artisan and Artists ACAM 100 straps, what works for me might be different for you. 

Some will say the Visoflex is a must, but it isn't to start with, get use to the range finder and when needed use the LCD screen at the back of the camera. If ever you find yourself using the LCD a lot, get a Visoflex 2, if not - stick to using the camera without. 

[TeeBee]

2 hours ago, Photoworks said:

if you read all the manuals from Leica they suggest V90 all the time.

 

Thanks, I read the manual, but it did not say much about the card's speed. (Unless, of course, I have missed something obvious.) :

Storage medium UHS-II (recommended), UHS-I, SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card SDXC cards up to 2 TB Internal memory: 256 GB

I think half-case seems nice; thanks a bunch for the tip. 

 

31 minutes ago, paulscr said:

I’ll let you discover the multitude of “which bag” posts

Yes, two batteries are more than enough for my needs. However, I'm planning a 300km hike in the bush in Asia with limited access during the 12-day long hike. A bag holding the camera and a few clothes would be perfect. I have about half a dozen camera bags, but most are meant for large camera bodies. I'll search the forum for bag tips. 🙂 

 

23 minutes ago, patrickcolpron said:

The only SD cards I use with my M cameras are Angelbird cards, with M10 cameras 128 gig V60 card are great but for the M11 I found I had less issues with Angelbird V90 256 gig cards, when i set the camera to write the files to the SD card first and the internal memory as overflow. 

I hope to configure it to store raw files into the card and jpegs to the internal storage (DNG on SD /JPG on IN). Yes, I'm leaning toward the Angelbird v90 if I can source one in Australia this week. 🙂 

27 minutes ago, patrickcolpron said:

Some will say the Visoflex is a must, but it isn't to start with, get use to the range finder and when needed use the LCD screen at the back of the camera. If ever you find yourself using the LCD a lot, get a Visoflex 2, if not - stick to using the camera without. 

Thanks, that's a good idea. I have tried Visoflex, but I have never been comfortable with it. I preferred the rangefinder to focus. (I used a non-Leica range finder in high school, a Yashica Electro 35. Then, a Canon SLR (AE-1) before switching to DSLRs and mirrorless.) 🙂 

 

2 hours ago, lct said:

List of SD cards i use on my flawless M11, my favorite being the Sony. JFI.

Thanks, yes, I read a lot of good things about the Sony tough cards. 

 

[Chris_Jenks]

I’ve had problems freezing with SanDisk, but none with Lexar V90. I can also recommend formatting the card first in your PC / Mac using the “SD Card Formatter” App and then again in the camera. 

[Photoworks]

5 hours ago, TeeBee said:

I read a lot of good things about the Sony tough cards. 

Sony Tough cards are the most problematic on this camera if you read up here. some other sony cards are ok.

5 hours ago, TeeBee said:

Thanks, I read the manual, but it did not say much about the card's speed. (Unless, of course, I have missed something obvious.) :

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[lct]

No problem with Sony Tough here since firmware 1.6.1. The card seems even more responsive than my fastest Sandisk but i did no measure. Edit: I format all my cards with SD Card Formatter though.

Edited June 17, 2024 by lct

[sometimesmaybe]

19 hours ago, TeeBee said:

What is your opinion of the Kingston Canvas React Plus V60 SD Memory Card? When I spoke to the Leica store, they suggested using a V90 card. What is your opinion on this?

depends how fast you shoot. 

I would personally go with UHS-II v90. on my 100s i use a v90 card for RAW and v60 for JPEG. i find the v90 clears the GFX buffer instaniously 

[TeeBee]

10 hours ago, Chris_Jenks said:

I’ve had problems freezing with SanDisk, but none with Lexar V90. I can also recommend formatting the card first in your PC / Mac using the “SD Card Formatter” App and then again in the camera. 

Thanks. I will try to find a Lexar v90 locally, but Amazon seems to be the best option. I have used SanDisk cards but have never run into any issues. 

 

4 hours ago, sometimesmaybe said:

I would personally go with UHS-II v90. on my 100s i use a v90 card for RAW and v60 for JPEG. i find the v90 clears the GFX buffer instaniously 

Thanks, I don't shoot fast; mostly, my subjects are landscapes, architecture, and street with the GFX100s. In the past, I used bracketing with the Sony A7 RIII, but I figured that's not required with the Fuji. I need to buy a Lexar V90 to be on the safe side for the Leica, but I couldn't find any retailer in Brisbane that has one. 

[crons]

You'll know what you need as you use the camera. Sandisk cards are the only cards I buy. I don't know where people here buy their cards that they say they bought fakes. Personally I order directly from Sandisk or pick them up at the camera store when I go shopping. 

I don't know what possess people to get a Sandisk card from Ebay or whatever. Here's the link 

https://www.westerndigital.com/products/memory-cards/sandisk-extreme-pro-sd-uhs-ii-v60?sku=SDSDXEP-064G-GN4IN

 

Edited June 18, 2024 by crons

[sometimesmaybe]

17 hours ago, TeeBee said:

I couldn't find any retailer in Brisbane that has one

maybe try digidirect - not sure they have it instore but they have a number of lexar v90 cards

https://www.digidirect.com.au/find?q=lexar+2000

[Mute-on]

V90 in Queensland https://www.cheapchips.com.au/memory/secure-digital-sd/?rf=va&va=85

[TeeBee]

11 hours ago, crons said:

Sandisk cards are the only cards I buy. I don't know where people here buy their cards that they say they bought fakes. Personally I order directly from Sandisk or pick them up at the camera store when I go shopping. 

I haven't used anything besides Sandisk cards and never had any issues. I don't purchase camera equipment or accessories from eBay or grey importers. However, I omitted Sandisk after seeing multiple reports of them causing issues in M-11. I agree with you, and they could be counterfeit cards. 

 

1 hour ago, sometimesmaybe said:

maybe try digidirect - not sure they have it instore but they have a number of lexar v90 cards

 

I checked with them, and the Lexar 512GB V90 cards are on backorder. I'm planning to do a ten day hike in Asia, and I doubt I can offload photos during that trip, so I'm looking for a 512GB card. Otherwise, that capacity is way too much for my needs. 

[dugby]

For two recent 20 day trips to Europe (from Perth) I calculated the RAW+JPEG sizes for my 40MP M10-R is approximately 65MB and guesstimated a 512GB card to be suitable, however I decided to buy two x 128GB ProGrade V60 cards after already having a Lexar (x1800 v60) 256GB card, so as to avoid a single point of failure, as the integrity of the cards is the most valuable consideration in digital photography on such journeys. In such journeys the camera (& M experience) is less useful without a reliable SD card.

Not sure if you are aware, after Micron sold Lexar to china, many skilled ex-Lexar folks went on to form ProGrade SD technology.

I avoid Sandisk as I have previously experienced fake versions.

 

I do suggest you attempt a "photographic stress test" of whichever SD cards you chose, in-camera well before you travel. As there seems to be some SD-card uncertainty with some current M bodies.

 

Edited June 19, 2024 by dugby

[TeeBee]

1 hour ago, dugby said:

For two recent 20 day trips to Europe (from Perth) I calculated the RAW+JPEG sizes for my 40MP M10-R is approximately 65MB and guesstimated a 512GB card to be suitable, however I decided to buy two x 128GB ProGrade V60 cards after already having a Lexar (x1800 v60) 256GB card, so as to avoid a single point of failure, as the integrity of the cards is the most valuable consideration in digital photography on such journeys.

Thank you for this valuable tip. To be on the safe side, I will buy a couple of 128 GB UHS-II cards. I have two 256GB v60 cards in the GFX100s, but I would keep them aside. The biggest challenge is finding a camera bag for the intended hike. I think I'm well set, but I need to get the 28mm f/2.8 Zeiss ZM soon as I feel I've been missing that focal length. 

By the way, I received my M11-P, and I love it. The first thing I did was turn off the live view. I need to go through the manual once more to get the settings right. 🙂 

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[dugby]

After 20+ travels to Asia, my camera kit has progressively shrunk. The humid heat is too much for me.

I'm now down to a single lens M10-R & 35FLE only (or sometimes swap this out for a 50APO) and only use this light weight nylon Swissgear front cross body bag.

 

Actually my next trip will be just a Leica X2 and Leica SF26 to do some family special evening events.

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