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Archive 2013 · Leica M240 issues

  
 
Lee Saxon
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p.4 #1 · p.4 #1 · Leica M240 issues


I wouldn't accept these kind of early-alpha-firmware-build problems from a $695 piece of equipment. To get them from a $6950 piece of equipment yet still describe yourself as delighted with it...

I get it, Leica's fans are loyal. But refusing to say "no" to them is being an enabler, not being loyal. Only buying Leica products if they're made absolutely right (and be honest about what "right" is, given the extreme price tag - switching from metal to plastic focusing tabs on a $6,000 lens ain't it, for example) is the best thing a Leica fan could do to ensure their beloved brand's survival.



Nov 17, 2013 at 07:10 PM
charles.K
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p.4 #2 · p.4 #2 · Leica M240 issues


I am not locked into Leica bodies, and even though the A7's will be great with legacy lenses, it may not be the panacea or cure for the adaptability of M lenses, which I was hoping for, as a alternative backup. I still have the A7r on order with the FE 35 and 55.

The M9, Monochrome and M240 are all excellent, and the cost and engineering to achieve this is no small feat. I feel we all agree, there are most definite improvements that are needed, in QC and serviceability. It is amazing that the M240 is about 1,500 cheaper in Australia than the Monochrome, so cost of the bodies have not escalated as everyone had expected. For myself, it allowed the chance to upgrade to the M240, by selling the Monochrome, with no changeover. There is not a lot of camera gear that will allow this.

My major investment and passion is in lenses, and I do love the M glass as it is unique, ergonomics and spans over many decades, and one of my favorite lenses is the 50 Cron DR, built in 1958, which is a beautiful piece of engineering. I am still hoping for a "A7r" clone, that will readily accept all my M lenses, but for now the M240 is a great work horse IMO.

As regards, to the serviceability in Australia, the M9 and Monochrome is great now, other than the 10% chance of needing to send the camera back to Solms. The last few times, I was given backup M9, calibrated to my lenses, while my camera was in Solms.

I was also offered a loan M9, when my M240 was sent 2 weeks ago for RF calibration, but they will offer a M240 loan probably next week. I have already checked the website, for tracking repairs, and camera is already fixed, waiting to be sent back. This is not perfect, but it has improved dramatically over the last 2 years.



Nov 17, 2013 at 08:17 PM
Spyro P.
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p.4 #3 · p.4 #3 · Leica M240 issues


Hey guys, re Leica's global service etc I'm not sure if you realise just how tiny Leica AG really is? For perspective, leica does 1% of Canon's annual sales and has 0.5% of Canon's assets and employees. The fact that you paid a lot for a camera doesnt necessarily mean that Leica actually has the resources to offer efficient global customer service. In fact I'm surprised they're even able to maintain that service centre in NJ, but Leica as a business never really made much sense from a financial perspective, so yeah...


Nov 17, 2013 at 10:20 PM
adamdewilde
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p.4 #4 · p.4 #4 · Leica M240 issues


Lee Saxon wrote:
I wouldn't accept these kind of early-alpha-firmware-build problems from a $695 piece of equipment. To get them from a $6950 piece of equipment yet still describe yourself as delighted with it...

I get it, Leica's fans are loyal. But refusing to say "no" to them is being an enabler, not being loyal. Only buying Leica products if they're made absolutely right (and be honest about what "right" is, given the extreme price tag - switching from metal to plastic focusing tabs on a $6,000 lens ain't it, for example) is the best thing a Leica fan could do to ensure
...Show more

What choice do you have? Who else makes a full frame digital rangefinder? Or even a FF mirrorless camera that doesn't crap out with wide angle lenses.



Nov 18, 2013 at 12:14 AM
ulrikft2
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p.4 #5 · p.4 #5 · Leica M240 issues


adamdewilde wrote:
What choice do you have? Who else makes a full frame digital rangefinder? Or even a FF mirrorless camera that doesn't crap out with wide angle lenses.


Sony a7r + Olympus 18/3.5

Lightweight, small, sharp. Will cost you about a third of the leica..



Nov 18, 2013 at 12:35 AM
Planetwide
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p.4 #6 · p.4 #6 · Leica M240 issues


The thing with the M240 vs the M9 is its about colour management in your work flow. With the M9 many users could get good colour straight out of the camera with minimal colour management. The M240 is much more like a DSLR, its work flow needs some sort of colour adjustment. You do not need to get overly involved, but you need to set it up in your work flow.

Personally, I have just continued to use the same sort of work flow for almost all of my camera's and my results are good. The M9 gave me more trouble than the M240 because it had a very unique colour profile right out of the camera. This "look" is maybe what many users are missing, was it accurate, debatable.

FYI, the latest firmware update to the M really improved its colour straight from the camera, and moved it somewhat closer to the M9.

I travel with my M all the time, and it had been rock solid. You now have a second focusing option if the RF loses calibration. If anything it is more reliable than the M9.

As for putting a Oly 18mm on a 36mp camera, I think that you will find that, the lens cannot resolve the sensor fully. This sensor is going to push a lot of lenses past their respective resolution limits. The diffraction limit on this sensor is around F/3.5 The Olympus 18mm only produced acceptable corners at F8 and higher in my testing.



Nov 18, 2013 at 08:33 AM
adamdewilde
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p.4 #7 · p.4 #7 · Leica M240 issues


ulrikft2 wrote:
Sony a7r + Olympus 18/3.5

Lightweight, small, sharp. Will cost you about a third of the leica..



Does the 18/3.5 work well on the A7r?
(not as pretty).



Nov 18, 2013 at 09:58 AM
Gary Clennan
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p.4 #8 · p.4 #8 · Leica M240 issues


adamdewilde wrote:
Does the 18/3.5 work well on the A7r?
(not as pretty).


The OM18 is a bit overrated IMO. I researched it a while ago when I was considering it for the M240. The 18SEM is a much better performer - even though it is waaay more costly. I suppose you get what you pay for (when it comes to wide angle RF glass).... I also don't think you can adapt filters to the OM18 but I am not sure.



Nov 18, 2013 at 11:08 AM
ulrikft2
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p.4 #9 · p.4 #9 · Leica M240 issues


adamdewilde wrote:
Does the 18/3.5 work well on the A7r?
(not as pretty).


Well, it is an SLR-lens, so no reason to believe otherwise. Not quite as pretty with adapter, but of and in itself I think it looks quite good

I'm planning to use a tamron adaptall 17/3.5 on my coming a7r!



Nov 18, 2013 at 12:49 PM
Gary Clennan
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p.4 #10 · p.4 #10 · Leica M240 issues


The Tammy might work out well for you Ulrik. Have you seen any sample images yet from that combo?


Nov 18, 2013 at 12:52 PM
ulrikft2
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p.4 #11 · p.4 #11 · Leica M240 issues


Gary Clennan wrote:
The Tammy might work out well for you Ulrik. Have you seen any sample images yet from that combo?


No, not yet, planning to bring my copy of the lens to the store when they get the camera in.



Nov 18, 2013 at 03:42 PM
CVickery
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p.4 #12 · p.4 #12 · Leica M240 issues


Tried the Tamron Adaptall 17/3.5 on my M last night with no apparent edge colour or smearing, so it's a good prospect for the A7 and A7r. It does have some colour fringing (blue/yellow) on high contrast edges that needs to be dealt with in post-processing. It's also a lot bigger than the rangefinder alternatives.


Nov 18, 2013 at 04:04 PM
Arka
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p.4 #13 · p.4 #13 · Leica M240 issues


Lee Saxon wrote:
I wouldn't accept these kind of early-alpha-firmware-build problems from a $695 piece of equipment. To get them from a $6950 piece of equipment yet still describe yourself as delighted with it...

I get it, Leica's fans are loyal. But refusing to say "no" to them is being an enabler, not being loyal. Only buying Leica products if they're made absolutely right (and be honest about what "right" is, given the extreme price tag - switching from metal to plastic focusing tabs on a $6,000 lens ain't it, for example) is the best thing a Leica fan could do to ensure
...Show more

It's not really a question of loyalty. It's a question of whether certain "warts" are acceptable when compared with other things that are done well. I rarely expect any product, even an expensive one, to be perfect. For example, a good fountain or technical drafting pen costs more and leaks more than a $1 rollerball. My sister's extremely expensive mechanical watch needs to be wound every day, while a $30 Timex keeps better time without needing to be wound at all.

I am a relatively new entrant to the M platform, and am not rabidly loyal. But I do like it. A lot. It causes me to do things I haven't done in years... like wandering around and shooting everyday, just for the heck of it. It is so light and comfortable to use, yet so solid, tactile, and beautifully mechanical in feel. The image quality is simply superb, as good as my D800 at ISOs up to 800.

These aspects of the system overshadow, for now anyway, the "early-alpha-firmware-build problems" you speak of. The fact that there are plastic focusing tabs on my otherwise metal-and-glass Summiluxes simply doesn't matter, as they don't diminish my ability to use and enjoy them.

But then there's the inescapable matter of choice, which there is precious little of when you want to use these lenses...

What choice do you have? Who else makes a full frame digital rangefinder? Or even a FF mirrorless camera that doesn't crap out with wide angle lenses.

Sony a7r + Olympus 18/3.5

Lightweight, small, sharp. Will cost you about a third of the leica..


And where do I get one of those? Oh, that's right, it's not available yet, and won't be for almost another 2 months.

While the A7r looks to be an amazing camera that I might even buy, I won't be dumping the M. The Sony won't have the build quality, ergonomic simplicity, or RF focusing that I so enjoy with the M.

Arka C.



Edited on Nov 19, 2013 at 03:25 AM · View previous versions



Nov 19, 2013 at 02:50 AM
Arka
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p.4 #14 · p.4 #14 · Leica M240 issues


ulrikft2 wrote:
Well, it is an SLR-lens, so no reason to believe otherwise. Not quite as pretty with adapter, but of and in itself I think it looks quite good

I'm planning to use a tamron adaptall 17/3.5 on my coming a7r!


I'm using a CV 21mm f/1.8 Ultron as a wide angle solution. It's a terrific lens; performs as well as the 21Lux at f/2 for 1/7 the price (and smaller too!)



Nov 19, 2013 at 02:58 AM
ulrikft2
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p.4 #15 · p.4 #15 · Leica M240 issues


Arka wrote:
I'm using a CV 21mm f/1.8 Ultron as a wide angle solution. It's a terrific lens; performs as well as the 21Lux at f/2 for 1/7 the price (and smaller too!)


Works well at the edges too? Not seen many samples from a7(r) + 21/1.8 yet, have you posted any in any of the many (and long) threads?



Nov 19, 2013 at 05:03 AM
Arka
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p.4 #16 · p.4 #16 · Leica M240 issues


ulrikft2 wrote:
Works well at the edges too? Not seen many samples from a7(r) + 21/1.8 yet, have you posted any in any of the many (and long) threads?


Not yet. I've been very pleased with the edge performance, but I also concede that I haven't done any rigorous, tripod-oriented "testing." I plan to this weekend, and will present a report.

Arka C.



Nov 19, 2013 at 11:11 PM
ulrikft2
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p.4 #17 · p.4 #17 · Leica M240 issues


Arka wrote:
Not yet. I've been very pleased with the edge performance, but I also concede that I haven't done any rigorous, tripod-oriented "testing." I plan to this weekend, and will present a report.

Arka C.


Thanks!



Nov 20, 2013 at 04:47 AM
edwin_sn
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p.4 #18 · p.4 #18 · Leica M240 issues


My M240 is about 2 months old and have not shot more than 500 clicks on it since i had an eye operation when i received my unit. I've experienced a few lock ups and was resolved by restarting the camera. I've also experinced the magenta thing when you zoom in on a photo when reviewing a shot. And tonight, Christmas eve here in the Philippines, the camera had frozen again and the bad news is it would not shoot anymore even after restart. I replaced the sd card and still a no go. During restart the red light seems to indicate that its reading the card while starting up, but it wont shoot. I have the 2.0.0.12 firmware installed. I will remove the sd card and the battery for the whole night. I hope that tomorrow it will miraculously turn on


Dec 24, 2013 at 10:26 AM
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