Leica Q3 43 Exposure Preview Issue

[alymatt]

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I got my Q3 43 last week and updated it to V3 firmware. I have been unable to understand why all the profiles I set which used AFs had the viewfinder darken on a half press of the shutter (the smaller the aperture the worse - at F8 onwards it is almost completely dark and useless), the one I set up with AFc does not have this problem. So I reset the other profiles to AFc and the problem goes away. Of course I'm now stuck with AFc when I don't want it which will no doubt be frustrating at times, but seems a practical work around for the time being. Am I missing something obvious I wonder? The previous posts seem to suggest the issue is very inconsistent - sometimes affecting AFs or the other two focussing modes? Does anyone know if Leica recognise this as an issue and plan to fix it? 

 

[Le Chef]

Have you turned off iAF? That seems to be the source of the problem.

[alymatt]

Thanks Le Chef, I have double and triple checked. I repeatedly and consistently get the problem in AFs, but never get it in iAF or AFc - have tried in the default profile and my user set profiles and the issue is consistent in all cases?  Very frustrating! Never experienced any issues like this with earlier Qs. Perhaps I should try resetting the camera?

 

[alymatt]

I reset everything on the camera using the reset menu option except the shutter count in the hope this would solve the issue. I had updated to version 3 firmware when I purchased the camera last week using the Leica Fotos app.

Before doing this in AFs the screen and viewfinder darkened as the aperture narrowed to the point it was impossible to see anything at all at apertures smaller than f8 as soon as I half pressed the shutter to focus and preview. Looking into the lens it was clear that half pressing the shutter closed the aperture in the lens darkening the viewfinder/screen. Oddly the actual image when the shutter was released was properly exposed. None of this happened in iAF or AFc modes. Very frustrating as I had to reset all my profiles to AFs as a workaround but really didn’t want this mode or the constant hum/buzz that comes with it for 90% of my shots.

Anyway the reset seems to have solved the problem though I have no idea why or whether it will remain correct and consistent. There is no darkening of the viewfinder/screen on AFs when ai half pressing the shutter. I’ve returned my presets to AFs and the problem has remained resolved so 🤞it stays that way.

Sorry it’s a bit of a long post but my experience might be useful to anyone else suffering the same glitch.

First few times I’ve posted on the forum but wanted to say a big thank you to those who have provided such a wealth of info I’ve found invaluable in getting my Q3 set up as I want it.

[Leon_B.]

Am 23.2.2025 um 10:24 schrieb alymatt:

Anyway the reset seems to have solved the problem though I have no idea why or whether it will remain correct and consistent. There is no darkening of the viewfinder/screen on AFs when ai half pressing the shutter. I’ve returned my presets to AFs and the problem has remained resolved so 🤞it stays that way.

Thank you @alymatt.
It looks like a reset works for most users with this issue.

So if you have problems with the exposure preview of Q3 or Q3 43 try a factory reset first. 

[Woodstock]

I too have suffered intermittent issues with exposure preview and with the histogram seemingly not corresponding to the exposure settings with my Q3 28, although did not experience them with my previous Q2.

 

I have put my faith in factory resets and firmware updates to resolve the problem but neither have provided a consistent solution. I have also tried the numerous workarounds suggested by forum members (but why anyone purchasing a prestigious camera should be expected to need workarounds to get the thing to work as it was designed to do is a mystery to me, just as is Leica’s apparent silence about the concerns). To be fair, the problem has been in abeyance since downloading firmware 3.1.1, but previous experience tells me that this may very well be only a temporary reprieve.

 

Crunch time is approaching, as I only have about 6 months remaining of the guarantee period. With that in mind, can I ask if any forum members have had a successful remediation through Leica support, even if this involved returning the camera?

[Woodstock]

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Following my previous post I can now report that it is several weeks since downloading 3.1.1, and that I have not experienced the exposure preview/histogram problem since that time, whereas I would have expected it, based on previous behaviour, to occur during such a period.

 

I am well aware from posts by forum members and others that, like me, many have experienced this as an intermittent rather than consistent issue, which combined with reported huge variability in the circumstances in which it occurs and in the success or failure of response to various workarounds, factory resets, battery pulls and firmware updates, means that this is unlikely to be a one size fits all solution. I also cannot as yet have any certainty that my experience is other than coincidence and entirely unrelated to the firmware update, but based on the timescale of what has happened I suggest that for anyone who has yet to download 3.1.1 it would be worth doing so in the hope that it might provide an answer to this particular problem.

[F-train]

In my Q3 43 it appears to happen only below a certain LV.

My Q2M has no issues under same conditions.

 

Pretty clear then why Leica hasn’t solved it yet: office hours in Wetzlar are always in daylight. Except for a few weeks in December, but then the whole of Europe has at least two weeks of Christmas holidays. Ah well, the price of quality.