Should I replace it all with an M11?

[hdmesa]

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2 hours ago, JoshuaRothman said:

Thanks for all the responses—they are genuinely helpful, and I'm grateful for all the advice.

My reflection this evening is as follows:

• The goal here would really be to simplify the kit to just one camera for everything, for reasons of minimalism and clear-headedness. So keeping the SL2-S alongside an M11 would be beside the point; if I'm going to have two cameras to choose from on any given day, I might as well have three and stick with my current setup.
• Just from the perspective of capability, my current kit is hard to improve upon. If I move to a single M11, I'd gain in some ways and lose in others. For example, it seems like I'd gain in dynamic range over the M10-R, but might lose vs. the M10M. I'd gain in portability over the SL2-S, but lose in terms of the EVF.
• The real benefit would be simplicity. One kit that could work in all circumstances and fit in a single smallish camera bag. I'd probably simplify my lenses as well.
• . . . And yet I could always just pack a subset of my gear. I could simplify in my head, rather than in reality.

So I guess it boils down to whether having a smaller and simpler kit is itself a source of value, and whether that value outweighs the compromises and lost opportunities involved in giving up on having specialized cameras (e.g., a Monochrom).

There's no obviously right answer, unfortunately . . . . Inertia would dictate that I stick with my current kit, a spirit of adventure would suggest changing it up.

Speaking from experience, clear-headedness does not come from simplifying your gear, it comes from inner work to simplify your mindset and quiet your mind.

Consolidating to one camera will only give you clarity for a short time, and the clouded thinking will return in GASeous form.

 

[JoshuaR]

This has been a really useful thread for me—thanks, everyone.

@Photojournoguy, I think you and I are both absorbed in taking pictures of our families…. After reading your very thoughtful questions, I spent a couple of hours looking through my pictures, handling my cameras, and considering things. What stands out to me is the richness of my hobby, which is reflected in my gear. My cameras are incredibly beat up. They’re all getting used—I don’t think a day goes by when I’m not using the Ms, especially—and the lenses are also well-worn because they’re all taken out quite frequently. It’s true that I spend some time mulling over which cameras and lenses to bring for my various projects, and that this constitutes a kind of work. But, actually, doesn’t that work just boil down to thinking about my aesthetic goals, and about my own state of mind? In that sense, it’s productive and meaningful. I’m probably wrong to experience it as burdensome.

I also came across the picture below, a little mirror selfie my son and I took the other night. He’s six, but actually quite proficient with the rangefinder if he takes his time, and has learned the rules about how to handle a camera carefully, with a strap. He missed focus on this particular shot, but gets it right most of the time. He’s taken some great photos of his kid sister and printed them on our tiny Canon Selphy printer. Looking at this picture, I thought, Why would I want fewer cameras in the house?

So I’m going to stick with my current kit and enjoy it, and not pursue the minimalist path.

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Edited October 31, 2024 by JoshuaRothman

[Jeff S]

No bad choice; whatever works for you.  But if you ever come to second guess the minimalist kit approach, you needn’t buy or sell gear. Just pick one of your cameras and use exclusively for an extended time.  And stay off the forum in the meantime.

Jeff

Edited October 31, 2024 by Jeff S

[pedaes]

26 minutes ago, JoshuaRothman said:

So I’m going to stick with my current kit

That's this week sorted, then.

[Photojournoguy]

Enjoy your newfound clarity!

And I'm jealous of a few things:

- you use your M's (or M&Ms in this case...) every. single. day.

- I haven't had the guts to share my M with my oldest (same age) and am missing out on the lovely memories you're making with yours, and sadly the novelty very quickly wore out on her kiddie camera that takes a pic and prints it out on a little roll of paper. You've reinvigorated my motivation to find creative and fun ways to get her camera out when I'm using mine to build that bond. I'm thankful though my kids are growing up to view any camera as just a natural fact of 'how life is.'

You almost had me wondering how to snag an M10R-BP for my daughter....came THIS close! 😉

[Jon Warwick]

On 10/30/2024 at 4:31 PM, jonoslack said:

I'm with Photoworks on this one

Sell the 2 M10s and get an M11 (or recently secondhand M11). Keep the SL2-S for a while and see whether you still use it. 

The M11 is pretty stable these days so I don't think you need to worry about that - the -P and -D are nice, but don't have any actual photographic advantages over the base M11. For me at least 64gb of internal memory is quite enough. 

I understand the feeling that the M10-R was a 'peak' but in actual use the M11 has so many obvious advantages (see below)

For me it is the electronic shutter for shooting wide open in bright light, the improved battery life, the internal memory and the USB-C charging is the real deal.

. . . . . and I like the colour better too - especially for skin tones (although I acknowledge some disagree).  The only downside as far as I'm concerned is that the shutter noise is not as nice as the M10-R, but you'll get used to that quickly. 

 

• The new base improves weather sealing and strength
• New black paint option is very resilient with grippy finish
• Aluminium top plate on black version makes it 110 gms lighter
• 3 New programmable function buttons (Fn, top-plate, thumbwheel)
• New battery with 700 shot CIPA standard
• 64Gb of very fast internal memory
• Brand new and faster Maestro III processor
• New 60mp BSI sensor with excellent dynamic range
• Full time off-sensor metering (much more accurate, no extra shutter lag)
• Electronic Shutter (up to 1/16,000 sec)
• USB-C Charging,
• PTP and Apple MFI connectivity using USB-C port
• Improved Fotos app allowing filtering selections and tethering
• New well constructed EVF with bigger and brighter image (like Q2)
• The New LCD has more than twice the resolution of that on the M10
• Both EVF and LCD have image stabilisation (to help compose/focus)
• Combined Quick Menu and status screen
• Menus changed to be even more comparable with Q2 and SL2
• Improved menu system for uncoded M lenses
• Digital Zoom mode with framelines for 1.3 and 1.8 crops
• Variable DNG size (18.4mp, 36.5mp and 60.3mp)

 

Thanks Jono, an excellent summary of the M11 benefits. It’s perhaps a bit niche, but for those of us that frequently use a tripod, the Leica M11 variants also allows one to use its dedicated Leica handgrip with built-in compatibility onto an Arca Swiss tripod head. The grip + tripod coupler of course existed for the M10 via the likes of Really Right Stuff, but those might be a challenge to find now.

[satijntje]

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I was fed up with those freezes and sold my M11 and exchanged it 1 to 1 with a  beautiful M10-R Black Paint.
Sold my M11-M and got a M10-Monochrom.
Best decision I made (for me)

[JoshuaR]

22 hours ago, Photojournoguy said:

Enjoy your newfound clarity!

And I'm jealous of a few things:

- you use your M's (or M&Ms in this case...) every. single. day.

- I haven't had the guts to share my M with my oldest (same age) and am missing out on the lovely memories you're making with yours, and sadly the novelty very quickly wore out on her kiddie camera that takes a pic and prints it out on a little roll of paper. You've reinvigorated my motivation to find creative and fun ways to get her camera out when I'm using mine to build that bond. I'm thankful though my kids are growing up to view any camera as just a natural fact of 'how life is.'

You almost had me wondering how to snag an M10R-BP for my daughter....came THIS close! 😉

@Photojournoguy—we worked our way up to him using the M. He used his own little camera (a Camp Snap Photo camera) for a while. Then I let him use a Ricoh GR IIIx. Now he sometimes uses the Ms and even the SL2-S. My plan for this Christmas is to buy him one of those Olympus Tough cameras, the kind that can go underwater and get dropped from eight feet in the air. I figure that can be "his" camera most of the time. Something that really increased the fun level was buying the Canon Selphy printer. It's incredibly easy for him to make his own 4 x 6 prints and stick them on the fridge!

[hdmesa]

18 minutes ago, satijntje said:

I was fed up with those freezes and sold my M11 and exchanged it 1 to 1 with a  beautiful M10-R Black Paint.
Sold my M11-M and got a M10-Monochrom.
Best decision I made (for me)

Honestly it's only now that we have 2.1.3 that it's a good time to own the M11. At least you ended up with a beautiful camera. Hopefully we get an M11-P Black Paint edition as well.

[Photojournoguy]

2 hours ago, JoshuaRothman said:

@Photojournoguy—we worked our way up to him using the M. He used his own little camera (a Camp Snap Photo camera) for a while. Then I let him use a Ricoh GR IIIx. Now he sometimes uses the Ms and even the SL2-S. My plan for this Christmas is to buy him one of those Olympus Tough cameras, the kind that can go underwater and get dropped from eight feet in the air. I figure that can be "his" camera most of the time. Something that really increased the fun level was buying the Canon Selphy printer. It's incredibly easy for him to make his own 4 x 6 prints and stick them on the fridge!

Very cool, thanks for the tips!! Keeping this in my back pocket, for sure. And lucky boy!