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M8 Competition?


wilfredo

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You really consider that to be competition? It looks like a nice TOY I guess...

 

I would say my Holga 135DC is an even nicer toy.

 

How can a camera without a viewfinder for manual focusing be considered competion for the M8? At lest the G1 with it's faux dSLR hump lets you hold it up to the eye for focusing.

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This new Olympus is generating a lot of interest. Will it pose a threat to the M8? There is a nice half case for it that has the look of Luigi's work.

 

Olympus Pen EP-1 sample images to download (Four Thirds User)

 

I don't thing the case looks anything like Luigi's hand made work...

Edited by sfokevin
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From a quality and precision of manufacture standpoint, never. But, from an economic and higher resolution position, absolutely. And, competition won't just come from Olympus. It will originate from other companies wanting a bigger slice of the digital camera pie. Leica is extremely weak in not having a full-frame M-whatever model. Dependency must be broken with Kodak for the next sensor with the later being a big boat anchor. Economics will always play a part and Leica will continue tostruggle in the psychology of what people perceive of the company and products "keeping up." On the flip side, with adapters Leica glass stand to become even more popular with the Micro Four Thirds crowd. As a Leica user my opinion stems from the business / economics side.

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Quality- and precision-wise a camera without a viewfinder cannot compete. But, there are other forces that I'm taking into consideration here. These concentrate on economics, manufacturing/parts partners/suppliers, and psychology. There's nothing like a Leica M for me. But, other pressures on the bottom line exist. So, the competition I'm referring to is more or less outside the given understanding of the sheer quality of a Leica M. I'm not trying to stir up any trouble but just expressing the other factors. The fear of a diminished Leica is quite problematic for people like me.

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How can a camera without a viewfinder for manual focusing be considered competion for the M8?

 

 

And how many times have we heard people talk about their ability to do street shooting because they zone focus or use hyperfocal and save time? I'm not saying it is a replacement for the M8 but people on this forum argue the same argument both ways.

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This new Olympus is generating a lot of interest. Will it pose a threat to the M8? There is a nice half case for it that has the look of Luigi's work.

 

Olympus Pen EP-1 sample images to download (Four Thirds User)

Hi Wilfredo;

Enthusiasts strongly motivated, and funded, to buy an M8 will do so regardless of the Oly E-P1's existence. So in that regard I don't think that the PEN will "threaten" the M8.

 

I am not foolish enough to waste time offering counterpoints to the con-E-P1 arguments presented thus far here on the M8 forum. Having owned an E-P1 for, at this writing, three days, however, I can safely say that they are mostly badly formed opinions. The E-P1 is a very serious camera, well-manufactured, stylishly designed to instill a certain heretofore missing spirit into digital photography, and sold at a price point within reach of many people.

 

With regard to the general M-mount product sphere, however, the E-P1, and the Micro FourThirds product lines, offer new opportunities to M-mount lens makers to remain in business. Sales of new M8s will certainly not otherwise be sufficient to sustain the manufacture of such lenses by three companies for long. So to that end Leica should applaud the Oly PEN.

Edited by ken_tanaka
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Quality- and precision-wise a camera without a viewfinder cannot compete. But, there are other forces that I'm taking into consideration here. These concentrate on economics, manufacturing/parts partners/suppliers, and psychology. There's nothing like a Leica M for me. But, other pressures on the bottom line exist. So, the competition I'm referring to is more or less outside the given understanding of the sheer quality of a Leica M. I'm not trying to stir up any trouble but just expressing the other factors. The fear of a diminished Leica is quite problematic for people like me.

 

Leica is already a niche brand now by your yardsticks. How would it go even more diminished than that? I have faith Leica is able to continue the legend for a very very long time. The other day a young man in Shanghai with a Canon 40D bummped into me and said he liked my M8 a lot for its rangefinder shooting but unable to afford. I said go buy a Bessa and enjoy the fun. He simply said "I want a Leica". My advertising career experience tells me a product/company having such emotional bonding is life, the rest are details only.

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Guest malland
...I have faith Leica is able to continue the legend for a very very long time. The other day a young man in Shanghai with a Canon 40D bummped into me and said he liked my M8 a lot for its rangefinder shooting but unable to afford. I said go buy a Bessa and enjoy the fun. He simply said "I want a Leica". My advertising career experience tells me a product/company having such emotional bonding is life, the rest are details only.
Right on, consumerism will win out any day.

 

—Mitch/Paris

Bangkok Hysteria©: Book Project

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And how many times have we heard people talk about their ability to do street shooting because they zone focus or use hyperfocal and save time? I'm not saying it is a replacement for the M8 but people on this forum argue the same argument both ways.

 

Comparing E-P1 with M8 is unfair and basically meaningless. I do agree they complement to each other. Just personally I am rather disappointed that it does not come with a built-in EVF, otherwise I would have already bought one right away.

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Comparing E-P1 with M8 is unfair and basically meaningless. I do agree they complement to each other. Just personally I am rather disappointed that it does not come with a built-in EVF, otherwise I would have already bought one right away.

 

I wish they had made a detachable EVF as well but it is still very easy to focus my 50 lux wide open and in most instances faster than I can with an M8 and I tend to be more accurate. I completely understand everyone's desire for a full frame M. I just personally think that Leica missed the boat here in not going after m4/3 as there is another group of shooters that a)doesn't care about full frame at all or B) doesn't need full frame for a second more compact camera.

 

If you think about it the Digilux 2 was actually pretty close to micro 4/3 (without a changeable lens) and why they gave up the progression of that camera will always be a mystery to me.

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I wish they had made a detachable EVF as well but it is still very easy to focus my 50 lux wide open and in most instances faster than I can with an M8 and I tend to be more accurate. I completely understand everyone's desire for a full frame M. I just personally think that Leica missed the boat here in not going after m4/3 as there is another group of shooters that a)doesn't care about full frame at all or B) doesn't need full frame for a second more compact camera.

 

If you think about it the Digilux 2 was actually pretty close to micro 4/3 (without a changeable lens) and why they gave up the progression of that camera will always be a mystery to me.

 

Yes, I also think Leica should go after the m4/3. Full frame in fact is a technical thing not a pleasure consideration. A lot of people do not need it, at least I do not. After all, 135 format was first a lesser film than 120, then the market accepted it and grew. I see m4/3 has the same potential with the advantage to use Leica M lenses which offer top image quality.

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I think Olympic is smart to post images you can download and play with. I was sold on the M8 because of its unsurpassed ability to produce B&W files. I played with a couple of the Olympus images converting them to B&W. Based on what I got here, I think this is a very serious camera. I also cropped both images. Granted, I still think the M8 surpasses this, but this is not bad and for those times when the frame lines are getting in the way of your photography, this might be a great option.

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Edited by wilfredo
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Hi Wilfredo;

 

With regard to the general M-mount product sphere, however, the E-P1, and the Micro FourThirds product lines, offer new opportunities to M-mount lens makers to remain in business. Sales of new M8s will certainly not otherwise be sufficient to sustain the manufacture of such lenses by three companies for long. So to that end Leica should applaud the Oly PEN.

 

Ken,

 

Are you saying there is an adaptor allowing the use of M lenses on the Oly PEN?

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