p.6 #1 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Steve Spencer wrote:
I was just pointing out that this argument doesn't make sense to me. Why would removing the color filter array prevent these sensors from working? As far as I know phase detect still works on Sony cameras when they are converted to monochrome. If these converted Sony cameras have phase detect AF, then phase detect sensors cannot be the reason the sensor is not made.
p.6 #2 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
ATPphoto wrote:
Not rationalizing, at least to my knowledge.
Someone asked what I like about shooting with a monochrome-converted camera.
I gave my thoughts.
What surprised me is that many others also had thoughts about it, but they hadn't used such a camera before.
You're right, I should have just kept quiet. I think I get triggered every time someone says that shooting with a mono is like shooting with film, or when they claim that a mono reproduces the grayscale conversion of a Tri-X.
p.6 #3 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
It’s right on the FAQ for the conversion: Phase Detect AF is reduced or eliminated because PD uses color for AF. https://monochromeimaging.com/faq/
Steve Spencer wrote:
I was just pointing out that this argument doesn't make sense to me. Why would removing the color filter array prevent these sensors from working? As far as I know phase detect still works on Sony cameras when they are converted to monochrome. If these converted Sony cameras have phase detect AF, then phase detect sensors cannot be the reason the sensor is not made.
p.6 #5 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Nifty Fifty wrote:
You're right, I should have just kept quiet. I think I get triggered every time someone says that shooting with a mono is like shooting with film, or when they claim that a mono reproduces the grayscale conversion of a Tri-X.
I didn't mean to single out anyone, it was the vibe. It went downhill fast.
p.6 #6 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Steve Spencer wrote:
Well, I do not see why the economics would be any different for the Q3 than the Q2. Remember we are talking about a Leica camera that costs over $7,000, so the sensor can be pretty expensive and they can still have good margins.
That's why I said "Look it up online".
Aug 17, 2025 at 10:07 PM
Steve Spencer Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: On
p.6 #7 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
ATPphoto wrote:
That's why I said "Look it up online".
Sorry, I just don't find go digging on the internet as a very useful response. If you have links on why it was economical to make a Q2 but not economical to make a Q3 I would love to see them, but I can't find anything and I don't think anything exists.
p.6 #8 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Steve Spencer wrote:
Sorry, I just don't find go digging on the internet as a very useful response. If you have links on why it was economical to make a Q2 but not economical to make a Q3 I would love to see them, but I can't find anything and I don't think anything exists.
Well, maybe Leica THOUGHT it would be cost-effective, but the Q2M proved them wrong. Who knows.
p.6 #9 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
I guess my question is, q2 monochrom is AF, and it works enough to sell. What would make the Q3 much different?
ATPphoto wrote:
Can confirm that phase detect is unreliable on my Sony monochrome.
It works, but badly.
Aug 18, 2025 at 02:04 AM
Steve Spencer Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: On
p.6 #10 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Nifty Fifty wrote:
Well, maybe Leica THOUGHT it would be cost-effective, but the Q2M proved them wrong. Who knows.
Or maybe Leica just haven't gotten around to making a Q3M yet. There is always quite the gap between when Leica makes a regular model and when they make a monochrome model.
p.6 #11 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Steve Spencer wrote:
Or maybe Leica just haven't gotten around to making a Q3M yet. There is always quite the gap between when Leica makes a regular model and when they make a monochrome model.
Well, there were 18 months between the Q2 and the Q2M. The Q3 has been around for 27 months now. Anyway. First, there has to be a sensor, right? Leica doesn't produce one.
Aug 18, 2025 at 06:25 AM
Steve Spencer Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: On
p.6 #12 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Nifty Fifty wrote:
Well, there were 18 months between the Q2 and the Q2M. The Q3 has been around for 27 months now. Anyway. First, there has to be a sensor, right? Leica doesn't produce one.
Leica doesn't produce any sensors. They didn't produce the one for the Q2M either, or for the Leica M9M, or the Leica 246M, or the Leica 10M or the Leica 11M. And here are the delays in release between each of the color cameras and the monochrome version.
Leica M9 - released in Sept., 2009; Leica M monochrome (the monochrome version of the Leica 9M) - released in May, 2012
Leica M240 - released in September 2012; M246 (monochrome version of M240) - released April 2015
Leica M10 - released January 2017; Leica M10M - January 2020
Leica M11 - released January 2022; Leica M11M - April 2023
As you can see several of the monochrome versions of Leica M cameras were released much more than 27 months after than the original M versions. In fact, the Leica Q2 with it relatively quick release of the Q2M was the aberration and this time Leica made a Q3 43, which obviously could have delayed a Q3M. I think it is way too early to infer that Leica is not going to make a Leica Q3M. Maybe they won't, but it would be well within their past practice to wait another 6 or even 9 months or so before releasing it.
p.6 #13 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
Steve Spencer wrote:
I think it is way too early to infer that Leica is not going to make a Leica Q3M. Maybe they won't, but it would be well within their past practice to wait another 6 or even 9 months or so before releasing it.
Well, I'm not predicting anything myself, and leaving a considerable gap between the color and black and white models makes perfect sense in terms of profit maximization. If both versions are available, some Leica enthusiasts might opt for the Mono straight away. It's much better to buy the color Q first and then the black and white Q later. Even better, of course, would be a quartet consisting of one color and one black and white version each of the Q and the Q43.;-)
p.6 #15 · Your experience having a Sony camera converted to Monochrome?
gdanmitchell wrote:
threads evolve, as this one has.
no, that was you
My opinions are not veiled, nor are they insults. Your inability to deal with opinions other than your own doesn’t make them insults.
Nonsense.
I’ll have a fact based discussion on the subject — which is what I was doing — but you the ad hominem did not come from me.
Here’s the thing, you SEEM to care. A lot. ;-)
Speaking of blowing hard… ;-)
Just so we're clear, Dan, I had only quoted one of your posts before this thing we can now call an argument. This was the portion of the post where you went from making your points verbosely, which is fine, to being a blowhard.
gdanmitchell wrote:
One odd thing about the monochrome sensor fetish is that lots of folks who “go there” don’t really replicate how we shot film back in the day. For example, I used to carry around a whole set of colored filters (plus a CP) when I shot film, since the “color balance” of monochrome film often did not give us the optimum total characteristics and because the ONLY way we could adjust that was by applying these filers. But today, unless you are replicating that part of BW film photography and using those physical filters on the camera, you are giving up a form of controlling image quality that was _central_ to BW film photography… while if you bring a full color raw file into post you can still do that.
I suspect that, to some degree, the monochrome conversion thing is about feeling special and looking for some kind of photographic magic bullet that will make the buyer feel that they have separated themselves from the pack.
Your choice of language (fetish, feel special, photographic magic bullet) is clearly derogatory and meant to disparage the entire endeavor; an endeavor with which you have no practical experience. That's horseshit. It also shouldn't matter to you how anyone else uses their camera or how they have it modified. It can't possibly make any difference to you unless they're threatening to steal your gear and convert it for you.
