Upgrading to an M11 for... the Visoflex?!

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The Visoflex 2 is an irreplaceable accessory together with Leica Perspective Control IMHO. Both generate a new way of framing and composing to me. Not fast enough for sports though. The next Viso will do it with the M12 hopefully. Couple of snaps on M11 with 135/3.4 apo below.

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[CDodkin]

I use my Visoflex II exclusively - far more reliable than the rangefinder viewfinder for nailing focus - especially at wide apertures.

Add to that the WYSIWYG framing and real-time exposure preview - it's a no-brainer.

It's amazing to see just how little DOF there really is - even at f/8, and just how much of the resolution you squander when you guesstimate focus using the rangefinder and end up with OOF subjects when zoomed in. Focus peaking demonstrates how much of a myth 'depth of focus' really is.

Rangefinder was fine in the wayback - but it's 2024, and you're wasting a whole bunch of the camera's capabilities not using an EVF.

I hope the M12 has one built-in. It's long overdue.

[M11 for me]

My Visoflex2 is always on my M11. Its a very useful accessory that I would not miss. 

[M11 for me]

It provides you with a lot of useful information plus you see the perspective control right in front of you.

[Torpille]

On 10/1/2024 at 8:13 PM, JoshuaRothman said:

I'm a hobbyist who shoots with an M10-R, an M10M, and an SL2-S. I have the SL2-S mainly for long-lens photography: I take it to my kids' games and performances and use 75mm, 90mm, 135mm, and 180mm lenses. But it's a big camera and, outside of those times, I don't use it much.

Lately I've been wondering: What if I sold all three cameras and upgraded to an M11 variant with the Visoflex, and maybe a Q3? That would give me a smaller autofocus / bad weather camera. And I could use my 75, 90, 135, and 180 on the M11.

Would the experience of using the Visoflex be dramatically worse than the SL2-S? I'm thinking less of performance photography and more about sports. I find the SL2-S with a 135, say, to be an easy and fun combination: I just manually focus using peaking in the big, bright viewfinder, and it allows me to follow the action in a quick, fluid way. There's very little shutter blackout and it's all very intuitive.

How suitable would the Visoflex be for that kind of situation? I've never used one. (Everything I heard about the Visoflex 020 on the M10 convinced me to just leap directly to the SL2-S, rather than try that route.)

(There are all sorts of other considerations, of course, which I won't bore the forum with—should I give up the M10M? etc.—but the Visoflex is the main thing: if the experience is a lot worse, then it's not worth considering such a trade.)

Thanks for any insights!

Hello Joshua,
Your question is one that many people have. 
The sl system is magnificent but heavy. 
An imperfect but possible solution is to add a Panasonic 24-105 autofocus zoom lens. Light and bright, they'll meet a wide range of needs. 
You can always use the sl's aps-c mode to get 160 mm. Not bad! And occasionally you can always use the 180, for example... 

The m11 won't bring you any revolution. 
With the visioflex and the grip and the 90 to 180 optics, it'll be like a sl but with poor ergonomics. 

The m10's are perfect from my point of view, and deliver stunning image quality from 24 mpx. 

As you can see, I'm all for simplification. 

The m10m is an exceptional body, so keep it if you really use it, and the m10r is also a good body. 

A q2/3/4 will probably make you leave your M's in a drawer... and you'll be stuck with either a 28 or a 43mm. 

Personally, for quality and flexibility, I choose the sl2-s with the 24-90mm. Better is not possible. 
For travel, the m10 with 2 lenses, and for everyday family use, the CL with the 18-56, which is still an excellent system for travel if you add other lenses. 
 

[charlesphoto99]

I use a 135 and 90's all the time on an M10-R. In fact these days the 135 APO is pretty much my walk around lens for a couple of projects I've been working on (landscapes, and crows). No need for a Visoflex, and the few times I've had a tricky composition just resorted to live view. I've also shot youth soccer games and things like Pearl Jam concerts with a 135 and 90 and rf only. One just has to practice focus following, and use the Leica M to its strength of producing emotional photos, versus entirely perfect ones. 

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