Guest darkstar2004 Posted June 14, 2008 Share #1 Posted June 14, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) Here is a review of the M8 by a serious photojournalist - Leica M8 Field Test, Iraq From the review - Conclusion I find the M8 useful in some situations. Naturally it shares the benefits of all rangefinders; it is quieter and smaller than an SLR. It is less noticeable in dangerous situations where this unobtrusiveness may mean the difference between getting the picture or not, or even getting home safely or not. In most situations, usually in bright daylight, it will yield a usable image if one is willing to put in some time with Photoshop. That being said, I have found the Leica M8 to be unreliable, poorly designed, and to deliver substandard results in most of the situations in which I have used it. I can’t think of any camera--or for that matter any electronic device I have recently used--that so thoroughly fails to live up to its potential and its heritage. [ouch!!!] The Leica M3 of the 1950’s was an instant success, not because Leica held to quaint design and outdated technology (i.e. the M8’s removable bottom plate) in a misplaced effort to attract classicists, but because they used new technology to build a camera that was on the cutting edge of its time. The M8, in contrast, is years behind other cameras—a photojournalist’s tool that cannot white balance, consistently expose a picture or deliver reasonable low-light performance--and one which has poorly designed controls. As I said earlier, I do not write this because I dislike Leica, quite the opposite. I have used their cameras for 23 years and invested tens of thousands of dollars in their products. When working in war zones, however, my first rule is to eradicate all the uncertainties from my kit. There are enough uncertainties when the shooting starts. The M8 introduces numerous uncertainties into the photography equation. For a working photojournalist in a combat situation, I would judge the Leica M8 to be unusable. Please share your thoughts... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted June 14, 2008 Posted June 14, 2008 Hi Guest darkstar2004, Take a look here M8 review by serious photojournalist. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
stunsworth Posted June 14, 2008 Share #2 Posted June 14, 2008 And here's a thread on the same subject with 227 posts just below this one... http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/55821-m8-iraq-field-test-ouch.html It would appear from the thread that the M8 may be unsuitable if you happen to find yourself being shot at in a Middle East war zone. Or rather it was unsuitable for that particular photographer. All the issues he mentions have been in the public domain for 18 months or so, and let's not forget he bought the camera after using a loaner from Leica. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
atournas Posted June 14, 2008 Share #3 Posted June 14, 2008 Perhaps it's not too late for everyone involved in the M8 issue to admit that M cameras have never been so much a photojournalist's tool as they've been a serious amateur's cult piece. Paul Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephengilbert Posted June 14, 2008 Share #4 Posted June 14, 2008 I admit it: I don't even take pictures with my M8, I just use it as a form of jewelry. For picture-taking, I use my cell-phone. It's way more modern. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted June 14, 2008 Share #5 Posted June 14, 2008 Dear Henri must be turning over in his grave... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHAG Posted June 14, 2008 Share #6 Posted June 14, 2008 Dear Henri must be turning over in his grave... Is it an iPhone in his hand ? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgk Posted June 14, 2008 Share #7 Posted June 14, 2008 Advertisement (gone after registration) An assumption is being made that a digital rangefinder shooting jpegs will be as effective a tool for the type of work being undertaken as an AF dSLR. Things have changed, including I would suggest, expectations. I would say that an M8 shooting RAW can deliver exceptionally good and very detailed images, however I'm far from sure that this is a 'war photographer's' requirement. The digital revolution has challenged many long help preconceptions and the ability to produce images fast may be of greater importance than an ability to produce finely tuned files more slowly. I personally have no desire whatsoever to shoot images of the chaos, as demanded by the media, in Iraq. So for me this 'review' has little significance. The reviewer is entitled to his opinion (although in the past I cannot remember a 'war photographer' actually reviewing a camera as such). I like my M8 and the files it produces, end! Nor so sure that Henri would be shooting in Iraq ..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
vanhulsenbeek Posted June 14, 2008 Share #8 Posted June 14, 2008 Here is a review of the M8 by a serious photojournalist Please share your thoughts... Next time: Please do your research! Let's not go through this thread again please! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ho_co Posted June 14, 2008 Share #9 Posted June 14, 2008 And here's a thread on the same subject with 227 posts just below this one... http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/leica-m8-forum/55821-m8-iraq-field-test-ouch.html And don't forget the thread http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica-forum/digital-forum/55976-leica-m8-bashed-michael-kamber.html. The best thing would be for new posters on the topic to post those links and to remark, "Hey, have you noticed these threads with over 250 posts," instead of offering yet another diversion. Sigh. Maybe someone should post a sticky with the title "Yes, we already know, thank you." lct--Nice shot of HCB! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted June 14, 2008 Share #10 Posted June 14, 2008 ...Nor so sure that Henri would be shooting in Iraq .. Poor Henri, people don't seem to know your life any more. Ever heard of Capa, Magnum, the Spanish war? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
elansprint72 Posted June 14, 2008 Share #11 Posted June 14, 2008 Poor Henri, people don't seem to know your life any more.Ever heard of Capa, Magnum, the Spanish war? Nice to hear a voice of reason from the "old forum" but..... some fell on stony ground . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kent10D Posted June 14, 2008 Share #12 Posted June 14, 2008 Yup. Poor old Henri. People seem to forget that he was captured by the Nazis and spent 35 months as a prisoner of war, doing forced labor. He wasn't only about blokes jumping over puddles. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sean_reid Posted June 14, 2008 Share #13 Posted June 14, 2008 Poor Henri, people don't seem to know your life any more.Ever heard of Capa, Magnum, the Spanish war? Hi LCT, One of my favorite HCB photos was made when he was photographing the liberation of the concentration camps at the end of WW II. Cheers, Sean Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wilfredo Posted June 14, 2008 Share #14 Posted June 14, 2008 I had a recent conversation with Nick Ut, Pulitzer prize winning photographer who to this day remains devoted to the rangefinder. In his hands, the M8 would go a long way in any situation. BTW, Leica promised to gift him an M8 but I think he is still waiting for it. In the mean time he's using an Epson RD1 with Leica glass. I'm not a photojournalist but some of what I shoot has journalistic value. The M8 remains my favorite. I hardly ever use my Canon 5D. Here's a shot I managed to shoot with the M8 on my knee without this Israeli soldier noticing. I could not have taken this shot with a DSLR without him noticing. In the end, I think what a photographer uses is all a matter of choice, the setting, and working style. Having said that, I think the review by Michael Kander is quite good, and should be taken very seriously by anyone shooting in similar situations. Picture below Copyright Wilfredo Benitez. Cheers, Wilfredo Benitez-Rivera Photography Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/55449-m8-review-by-serious-photojournalist/?do=findComment&comment=581624'>More sharing options...
ChrisC Posted June 14, 2008 Share #15 Posted June 14, 2008 Is it an iPhone in his hand ? I think you'll find that it's a castanet. ............. Chris Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgk Posted June 15, 2008 Share #16 Posted June 15, 2008 Poor Henri, people don't seem to know your life any more.Ever heard of Capa, Magnum, the Spanish war? You miss my point. Would such photographers actually be satisfied with in-camera jpegs? Wouldn't they want to produced something that captured our imagination rather more than the images we are bombarded with. Is there in fact a sufficient market for the quality of image the HCB et al produced. I may be out of line, but I see few images produced which I do more than glance at (I don't even bother with newspapers these days). Few photographers seem capable of going back to basics and utilising depth of field (scales) or other basic techniques that early rangefinder users were familiar with and IMHO it shows - we get very generic images of wars. An M8 and a fast lens is not as easy a tool to use but does force you to think about what you are doing. Something which is in general terms somewhat out of vogue, it would appear. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stunsworth Posted June 15, 2008 Share #17 Posted June 15, 2008 You miss my point. Would such photographers actually be satisfied with in-camera jpegs? Carier Bresson probably would - or if not he'd probably have handed over a card of Raw images to his 'lightroom technician'. He wasn't that interested in the technical side of things - as can be seen in many of his photographs which are pretty poor - and would produce negatives that drove his printer to near despair. For him - and I realise I'm putting words into his mouth - he preferred to "capture our imagination" by use of careful, very careful, composition and the use of light rather than agonising over the technical side of things. In fact from memory he had two blobs of red paint on his camera. One on the lens to indicate his favoured distance - 2 metres, can;t remember? - and another on either the shutter dial or aperture - can't remember which - so that he could set his camera to his preferred setting without having to think about it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgk Posted June 15, 2008 Share #18 Posted June 15, 2008 he preferred to "capture our imagination" by use of careful, very careful, composition and the use of light Very interesting comment. I can remember going to a South Bank exhibition of CB's work back in my student days. One of his images still remains firmly fixed in my mind - of a child in a North African (I think) street. Over the years there are very few images which have embedded themselves in such a way - one or two from Viet Nam, a few by Ansel Adams and just one or two others. Oddly I find it difficult to remember ANY recent images which have impacted so well, which is strange when you consider the technical advances. Now I must just pop out to find my pot of red paint....... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rolo Posted June 15, 2008 Share #19 Posted June 15, 2008 Looking at the recent Magnum Meeting video, it's pretty obvious that the 'active' members were using DSLR's, including Philip Jones Griffiths using a Canon and the older members were holding Leica M's. Probably HCB would be a DSLR user if he was of this generation, perhaps not as being in sharp focus was quite secondary to him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stunsworth Posted June 15, 2008 Share #20 Posted June 15, 2008 Oddly I find it difficult to remember ANY recent images which have impacted so well, which is strange when you consider the technical advances. Because you still need a photographer to "see" the photograph? Or to put it another way, we now live in a world where we are bombarded with images, yet how many great photographers are there? More than there were in the 50s and 60s? There's more likelihood now of great photographs being diluted by the dull and the worthless. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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