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How tough is the M8?


steamboat

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"The sign at the entrance to my gym locker room says 'no cell phones please, cell phones are cameras.' They are not. A camera is a Nikon or a Leica or Rollieflex and when you strike someone with one,--- that is take your camera and use it as a weapon, they know they have been hit with something substantial. When I was a civil rights photographer (two Nikon Reflexes), I recall a news camera man who had a 16mm (wind up) cast iron camera. When I admired it he said it was 'good to hit people with'. That’s a camera." - Danny Lyon

 

This quote from Magnum photographer Danny Lyon got me to wondering how tough the M8 is. I mean really. I'm not advocating using it as a weapon but I'm wondering if a drop on concrete would cause the base plate to fall off. This would probably cause the battery and SD card to also exit. Has anybody had a good (bad) drop of the M8? How did it survive? The baseplate?:confused:

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Thanks, mat. With my film M's the lens has usually taken the damage. The rewind crank got pretty messed up on my M4 when it took a dive.

David - one of my cellphones has a camera but I've never taken a photo with it. (Same can't be said for my iPhone. lol).

My question about the baseplate is based one 1) the early problems with tripods and the perception that the baseplate is "weak", and 2) the very small nub that the baseplate "hooks" onto. The film M's have a very stout point to connect to.

Anyway, that's the reason for the question plus Danny's great quote on 'real' cameras.

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I dropped mine from less than waist high onto a carpet an put the RF out! Dropping a camera is really 'Russian Roulette.' You never know what is going to happen.

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C'mon guys, you don't need to drop your M8 to see how tought the M8 is!

 

Sensor darn lines, shutter self destruction, red and green bulbs, SDS, "CARD FULL" and "SHUTTER FAULT" messages, electronic glitches... In fact, I think the M8 is a very solid camera... because no other brand than Leica wouldn't be able to sell (still) a camera with so many problems! :D :D :D

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C'mon guys, you don't need to drop your M8 to see how tought the M8 is!

 

Sensor darn lines, shutter self destruction, red and green bulbs, SDS, "CARD FULL" and "SHUTTER FAULT" messages, electronic glitches... In fact, I think the M8 is a very solid camera... because no other brand than Leica wouldn't be able to sell (still) a camera with so many problems! :D :D :D

 

And they are the perfect travelling camera. Mine has travelled back to Solms twice now, all on it's own! :rolleyes:

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And they are the perfect travelling camera. Mine has travelled back to Solms twice now, all on it's own! :rolleyes:

Your M8 can move around on its own? What model is it the M8B (biped)? I want one that way it can walk on its own when I hike.:D

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I dropped mine from less than waist high onto a carpet an put the RF out! Dropping a camera is really 'Russian Roulette.' You never know what is going to happen.

 

Dropped mine on concrete from about 4' (if I recall correctly) & the result was a broken shutter mechanism, damaged shutter blades, unusable viewfinder/RF patch....

 

Fine since - with shutter upgrade & a CLA from NJ.

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Mine jumped from a picnic table onto concrete in a sudden mad bid for freedom. It suffered a very slight VF misalignment (as I later discovered) but no other ill effects surprisingly. It wore a dazed expression for a little while but perked up after a stiff brandy ...

 

Pete.

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And they are the perfect travelling camera. Mine has travelled back to Solms twice now, all on it's own! :rolleyes:

 

Nicole,

 

As you know most PS cameras have a "Print" button. You connect the camera to a compatible printer and you print your pictures without a computer.

 

My friends at Solms told me you will also find a new button on the M9... Not a "Print" button but a "Trip" button. If you encounter a serious problem, you just have to press it and the camera will arrange itself a trip to Solms. No need to call or email Customer Service, no need to take it to the Post Office... I believe the "Trip" button will start a new era for the M cameras ! :rolleyes:

 

I thought my friends were just kidding... but your M8 must be the Beta version :eek:

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Mine suffered a 1m drop onto concrete and still worked absolutely fine BUT it had developed a rattle, so took a trip to Solms to sort it out!My M8 spends a fair amount of time on boats where it is subjected to heavy vibration, jolting, etc., none of which seems to bother it in the slightest.

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Hi. Was just in NYC shooting a job. Got to airport, threw the backpack over my shoulder and heard a very uncomfortable crack... It was my M8 hitting the ground cracking the baseplate - I didn't close the backpack properly, thank God it wasn't my Hassy/P45 combo! - I knocked the rangefinder out both vertically and horizontally and it left me with a very stiff focusing 50mm lens. Called Kinderman and asked for help. They helped me get the horizontal fixed, but the vertical was out still. Managed to shoot, and had to use that camera lens combo as these were the last two images in a series of 13. Camera worked, got the shot. Guess thats what counts.

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