New: Firmware Update v.4.0 for Leica SL3 / SL3-S

[LD_50]

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Just now, Max EPR said:

Leica Photos App won't connect to SL3 after 4.0. (Apple iOS 26.1, Leica Photos 5.7.1.)The App sees the SL3 but won't connect over Bluetooth. The restarting of the phone does not work. I used the SL3 USB cable and I get an error message "wrong cable". I deleted the previous SL3 (that worked) from the App and can't add the new connection. There is no paring connection in the SL3 menu to delete. I even reset the camera, and still can't connect to the App.

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I had no issue connecting to SL3-S and iOS 26.2

[LD_50]

9 hours ago, geronimosan said:

Consolidating AF Mode - what are they thinking??

Especially for people using the SL3's out in weather, instead of using a single camera function to switch between all AF Modes, photographers now need to go into the menu, switch to a basic AF Mode, exit menu, move the camera away from their face, then take their gloves off (for example folks shooting in cold weather), engage the LCD screen, manually manipulate the basic AF Mode to switch between sub-modes of the base AF mode, manually select the sub-mode, put their glove back on, put the camera back to their face, and then continue with shooting their subject.

How does that make any sense at all?  Is all that time and effort better than scrolling through 3 versus 5 AF modes in the menu?

Beyond that, while I have not had time for RL testing yet, inside the house testing on both SL3 and SL3-S
- AF doesn't feel snappier that prior tests
- Tracking bounces around and loses stickiness
- Tracking AF Mode cannot be used with Human/Animal detection modes, which means the user needs to change TWO options (AF Mode and AF Detection) to switch between tracking a subject versus face/eye/body detection
- Eye/face/body detection only seems to work well when faces/bodies are near/within the AF Mode spot/bracket

I look forward to testing all this out in the real world, as AF performance improvements on the SL3 is something I felt was horribly underwhelming for an $8k+ camera body and have been hoping for now for years, but so far indoors I am not impressed (though, hopefully, I will be happily proven wrong).

I just updated firmware on SL3-S. I don't understand the concerns you've expressed with consolidating AF modes.

I don't have to take gloves off, engage LCD screen, take the camera away from my eye, etc.

Pre FW 4.0 autofocus setup:

Front Fn button: AF Mode (Field, Spot, Zone, Tracking, Eye/Face/Body Detection, etc)

Top Fn button: Focus mode (iAF, AFs, AFc, MF)

With this setup, my normal setup would be Spot mode in MF using back button to activate AFc. If I wanted to use eye detection, I would press the front button to switch to Eye/Face/Body detection, and then the top button to switch to AFc, because the back button method of AF was pretty limiting (see another post I made about the switch to SL3-S for more details) so I had to go back to AFc (with half-shutter press, not my ideal setup) to get the expected functionality out of eye detection. 

When eye/face/body detection was activated, the camera would activate detection all the time, even if I was pointing the spot focus point at something else. I didn't want this and this is why it needed to be a separate function from field, spot, zone, tracking. 

Post FW 4.0 setup as I see it initially:

Front Fn button: AF mode (Field/Spot, Zone/Multi-Field, Tracking)

Top Fn button: AF detection (all detection options)

Now in initial testing the system behaves as I would want it to. 

I set AF mode to Field/spot and setup my normal spot AF point.

I set AF detection to Eye/Face. Now the system only focuses on a Eye/Face if I point the spot at the face I want. It doesn't default to tracking it, or sticking to it.

If instead I set AF mode to Tracking, the system again will only find the Eye/Face that I point at, and tracks it around the frame. Perfect.

This solves the problem I had before where in MF focus mode, with back button set to AFc, I could not select the eye/face/body I wanted in the frame without the system constantly jumping to what it wanted. In AFc mode, I could use the joystick to toggle. 

Now I can point at the one I want and it behaves as expected.

I don't have any real testing done yet but so far this is a much better setup than before. 

[JMPerona]

How differs the autofocus system between the SL3 and the SL3-S after the new update? Still differences?

[LD_50]

10 minutes ago, JMPerona said:

How differs the autofocus system between the SL3 and the SL3-S after the new update? Still differences?

You will always have more PDAF points and higher readout speed on the SL3-S. There is a hardware difference.

[stbeyer]

11 hours ago, geronimosan said:

Consolidating AF Mode - what are they thinking??

Especially for people using the SL3's out in weather, instead of using a single camera function to switch between all AF Modes, photographers now need to go into the menu, switch to a basic AF Mode, exit menu, move the camera away from their face, then take their gloves off (for example folks shooting in cold weather), engage the LCD screen, manually manipulate the basic AF Mode to switch between sub-modes of the base AF mode, manually select the sub-mode, put their glove back on, put the camera back to their face, and then continue with shooting their subject.

Not sure I follow the above correctly, but I think it's easier now to switch between relevant modes, and if you set the function buttons accordingly, there is no need to use the LCD screen ever.

11 hours ago, geronimosan said:

- Tracking AF Mode cannot be used with Human/Animal detection modes, which means the user needs to change TWO options (AF Mode and AF Detection) to switch between tracking a subject versus face/eye/body detection

Subject detection seems to work as expected with tracking for me. I.e., I move the tracking box to the subject, it detects the shape or the eye and tracks it. 

11 hours ago, geronimosan said:

- Eye/face/body detection only seems to work well when faces/bodies are near/within the AF Mode spot/bracket

Isn't that expected behavior? That's how subject detection should work IMO, and it does so on other systems I have tried (Sony, Fuji, Lumix). This was my major complaint with the previous subject detection implementation. It didn't allow me to limit the area of detection, which made it impossible to use with several potential subjects moving around the frame. 

I have only tried it on the cats and wife at home so far, so I cannot comment too much on whether the actual AF performance is better, but the implementation and usability make so much more sense now. Hopefully, I will test it in a challenging scenario soon (e.g. low low-light concert photography). 

yet to try if the improvements make a

[Drbajm]

13 hours ago, jiggyb21 said:

I’m curious how the user profiles transferred over for everyone, especially considering they’ve separated and tweaked some of the AF menu components.  

Hello,
I carried out the update without any problems, including several types of profiles. Of course, as usual, I made sure to back them up before performing the update.
Best regards.
 

[helged]

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50 minutes ago, JMPerona said:

How differs the autofocus system between the SL3 and the SL3-S after the new update? Still differences?

Check the youtube video linked further up in this thread.

[hoolyproductions]

12 hours ago, geronimosan said:

- Tracking AF Mode cannot be used with Human/Animal detection modes, which means the user needs to change TWO options (AF Mode and AF Detection) to switch between tracking a subject versus face/eye/body detection

I just tested this and, as others have pointed out, this is not the case

For example I set the camera to AF-S, AF Mode Tracking. Then with a single button press (AF Detection) I can switch between face detect on (it will lock on a pair of eyes, and let me switch between multiple pairs of eyes, and then track them) or face detect off (now it works as a regular Tracking)

[FlashGordonPhotography]

5 hours ago, LocalHero1953 said:

A missed opportunity. Either make the function re-assignable or (it would have to be a future model) make it a fixed ISO dial with the appropriate markings, including A. But in practice it is in an awkward position for routine use - my left hand is under the camera, not where my thumb can reach the dial. 

I have ISO set to the rear click dial. I don’t like the way it works switching between auto and manual ISO on the left dial. And I don’t like the position. I have exposure comp set to the rear dial and whatever set to the front dial, depending on the program. So. the left dial is essentially useless to me. I get others may like it.

They could just allow more functions to choose from. How about choosing between profiles or subject detection options? A drive mode option could be useful/ But just three options that are all available in better spots is a waste.

Gordon

[FlashGordonPhotography]

3 hours ago, Max EPR said:

Leica Photos App won't connect to SL3 after 4.0. (Apple iOS 26.1, Leica Photos 5.7.1.)The App sees the SL3 but won't connect over Bluetooth. The restarting of the phone does not work. I used the SL3 USB cable and I get an error message "wrong cable". I deleted the previous SL3 (that worked) from the App and can't add the new connection. There is no paring connection in the SL3 menu to delete. I even reset the camera, and still can't connect to the App.

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Did you remove the camera from the iOS bluetooth list before trying to reconnect? Go to bluetooth in settings. Select the camera and then *forget device*. Should connect after that.

Gordon

[helged]

12 minutes ago, FlashGordonPhotography said:

I have ISO set to the rear click dial. I don’t like the way it works switching between auto and manual ISO on the left dial. And I don’t like the position. I have exposure comp set to the rear dial and whatever set to the front dial, depending on the program. So. the left dial is essentially useless to me. I get others may like it.

They could just allow more functions to choose from. How about choosing between profiles or subject detection options? A drive mode option could be useful/ But just three options that are all available in better spots is a waste.

Gordon

Another problem with the left dial is that it should be lockable. I often carry the SL3 in a tight top-load pouch, sometimes leading to a slight  rotation of the dial when the camera goes into/out of the bag. Annoying to get the ISO-values altered by a design-fault (in my view, anyway).

[hoolyproductions]

14 hours ago, albireo_double said:

I recall that the lens FW update addressed the inconsistent exposure vs. EVF preview that had been present when shooting with the APO Summicrons. The zooms did not suffer from this issue. So no need to update the 24-90.

Yes all my APO lenses updated, but not for the 24-90, 90-280 or Summicron ASPHs 

[geronimosan]

3 hours ago, Max EPR said:

Leica Photos App won't connect to SL3 after 4.0. (Apple iOS 26.1, Leica Photos 5.7.1.)The App sees the SL3 but won't connect over Bluetooth. The restarting of the phone does not work. I used the SL3 USB cable and I get an error message "wrong cable". I deleted the previous SL3 (that worked) from the App and can't add the new connection. There is no paring connection in the SL3 menu to delete. I even reset the camera, and still can't connect to the App.

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Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

I ran into pairing issues, but solved it by clicking on the X in the upper right to close out of that screen and back to main UI, then on the camera I initiated the pairing process. They connected perfectly after that.

[jiggyb21]

2 hours ago, FlashGordonPhotography said:

I have ISO set to the rear click dial. I don’t like the way it works switching between auto and manual ISO on the left dial. And I don’t like the position. I have exposure comp set to the rear dial and whatever set to the front dial, depending on the program. So. the left dial is essentially useless to me. I get others may like it.

They could just allow more functions to choose from. How about choosing between profiles or subject detection options? A drive mode option could be useful/ But just three options that are all available in better spots is a waste.

Gordon

I was hoping that they would at least add an option to disable the dial completely. I have no use for the 3 available choices either. 

[helged]

Some internal proudness here (and for good reasons, I would say).

The SL3 sensor readout speed is what it is (=slow), but good that the AF algorithms have been upgraded. And no more "Animal (beta)" autofocus, good.

 

[carlosgavina]

I've only tested this so far very briefly around the house (with subject detection on and off).

I think the change in the AF is definitely in the right direction, way more stickier, separating the modes and subject detection makes sense to me as I described on another post, and it covers many of my main complaints about it! So congrats and thanks to the Leica team!

However I do see some quirks/bugs still.

Tracking mode makes much more sense now, then toggling on/off the subject detection seems promising, however, there seems to be a bug/quirk:
- I I select tracking mode
- If I have subject detection off. Everything works great, I hold the shutter button, starts tracking whatever was behind the tracking indicator, take the photo, if I stop holding the shutter button the indicator returns to its initial location.
- BUT, if I turn subject detection on, the tracking just stops working if there's no subject in the frame. It becomes "useless" and works a bit more like the other modes where it only focus on anything on its initial position, no tracking. Only when a subject overlaps the indicator location, kicks in the tracking to the subject. I was expecting for the tracking to work the same if there's no subject detection in frame.

On the Nikon Z8, in their 3D tracking mode, you have the square tracking indicator (that can be moved), and if subject detection is on, but no subject is in frame, it just defaults to normal tracking whatever there was behind the indicator when you hold the shutter button. I think this makes a lot of sense to me. I believe it's similar to what the Sigma BF does as well.

This way it would make it even less frequent to have to toggle modes/subjects. Not sure how others do, but I do like to be intentional in "locking" into a subject, then press and hold the shutter button to "track" a subject, then recompose and shoot.

Small quirks but this is to me already a big improvement both in AF stickiness and UI. And I love the multi shot mode on the SL3 too 👏

I second @FlashGordonPhotography, we just need EFCS so I can use the 90-280 without having to resort to the electronic shutter or super high shutter speeds.

Edited yesterday at 12:47 PM by carlosgavina

[isha76]

Still no EVF improvements when magnifying 😩

[Photoworks]

a missed opportunity not to put in the WB shift option in this firmware, just like we have in the M11.

[Jonathan Levin]

8 hours ago, helged said:

Another problem with the left dial is that it should be lockable. I often carry the SL3 in a tight top-load pouch, sometimes leading to a slight  rotation of the dial when the camera goes into/out of the bag. Annoying to get the ISO-values altered by a design-fault (in my view, anyway).

I thought I saw something in Dials menu(?) when I was reseting everything about locking dials. I know there is something lockable for joystick. Sorry for vageness but I agree on an easy way to lock/unlock that left dial. I had a few close calls.

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[TOM CADWALADER]

I was kind of expecting the AF Acquisition menu to have a sub menu where you select the animal to be tracked.  But it seems to lump birds, dog, cats, etc all in one animal group for focus tracking.  Am I missing something ?