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Archive 2006 · •Hands-On• Leica M8

  
 
brainiac
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p.18 #1 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


BTW - I would also like to say thanks to Jeff or whoever has edited my previous comments so sensitively. They don't make quite so much sense, but in the circumstances it is generous to spend the time to do that rather than erasing them entirely.


Nov 14, 2006 at 12:31 PM
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p.18 #2 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


I have used the M8 and 5D and 1Ds2 -- among others. All the current warts like IR bleed aside, I can tell you that from a color and detail standpoint, the M8 file is the *best* native digital file I have seen, period.

This does not mean the 5D cannot produce as good an image, I believe it can, just that it takes more work to get it there. The 1Ds2 can offer more detail, but it takes even more work to glean the most that file has to offer.

In the end, it is the way one works with the M that sets it apart from the SLR and the excellent file is a bonus.

My .02 only,



Nov 14, 2006 at 12:59 PM
robsteve
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p.18 #3 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


brainiac wrote:
That's not so easy because of cost and availability. I can't afford to buy one as an experiment. This forum, and your contributions to it, Guy, have been really helpful to me in the past, and I am here because it was the place where I was expecting to see the best results. I will try to be less impatient.


This is where your Leica Representative comes into play. Since you mentioned in a previous thread that you are a professional photographer, try contacting the UK Leica Rep and see if he will loan you a M8 for a day or so. You sometimes have to do this through your dealer, so you might want to try that route too.

The UK contacts are on this page, along with phone numbers and emails. Rather than wasting time with email, just call them and ask for access to a demo.

http://www.leica-camera.us/contact/uk/photography/index.html




Nov 14, 2006 at 01:10 PM
Marco
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p.18 #4 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


Jack Flesher wrote:
In the end, it is the way one works with the M that sets it apart from the SLR and the excellent file is a bonus.

My .02 only,


Thanks Jack,
one of the most wise comments so far.
It's ,02 cents... but of a Vega dollar, which you all know is 10,000x stronger than euro...



Nov 14, 2006 at 02:03 PM
carstenw
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p.18 #5 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


brainiac wrote:
BTW - I would also like to say thanks to Jeff or whoever has edited my previous comments so sensitively. They don't make quite so much sense, but in the circumstances it is generous to spend the time to do that rather than erasing them entirely.


Yup, mine too, *cough*.

So, let's get on with it. I promise to post something useful when I get the M8 back. I am somewhat limited in lens choice, but I think that the M8 with 50 Lux Asph vs. 5D with 80 Lux at, say, f/4.0 should give something like a fair match. The views aren't quite the same, but both lenses are very sharp at those apertures, and I think the limitations will be in the sensors. I will post both pixel-equivalent pictures, and view-equivalent pictures. I am open to requests, as long as they are feasible and don't require massive amounts of time.

I still have to get the M8 back though. Leica has it, so who knows when they will be satisfied enough with it to send it back, and who knows what they will have done to it. I did go to my store yesterday to say that I would rather have it back sooner, focusing fixed, and send it in later for whatever changes Leica are planning.



Nov 14, 2006 at 02:10 PM
Jack Chen
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p.18 #6 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


carstenw wrote:
I will post the best results I can from the 5D and M8 when I get my M8 back. I am just as interested to know as you are, not because I want to see the M8 "win", but because I want to know that trading one for the other isn't a huge mistake.

Hardly anyone has the camera yet. Please be patient.

Sorry about the interjection, Jeff. I promise to be quiet now.


Instead of looking for which camera takes the sharper picture, look for which one takes the "better" picture. In the end, what's presented is not the camera but the gallery.



Nov 14, 2006 at 02:17 PM
Olsen
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p.18 #7 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


DaveEP wrote:
OK, as long as you don't bite me

Here is a 100% crop from both cameras. I took several shots on both, and these are the two that line up the closest (in terms of pixels in the shots etc). The shots taken with the 1Ds2 were from a view point to the left of the dealer doorway, which is why the grill on the ground looks better defined (i.e. I was more lined up with the grill on the 1Ds2). This also accounts for the difference in the reflections in the window.

Now, I must stress that these were not
...Show more


- Sorry, but I think your test is far off. - Just bull, to be honest. I have a 1Ds II and have a M8 in order, - put on wait untill Leica solves the banding and IR problems. The IDs II is by far the best camera on the market today and far beond any 10 mill pixels I have had the pleasure of comparing it to. And I don't think that M8 is going to be any better than, say, Canon 5D. Which means it is quite a bit up to the picture quality level of the 1Ds II. That does not mean that M8 will be a good digital camera. But comparable to 1Ds II on resolution, low noice levels on high ISO etc. etc. it is not.



Nov 14, 2006 at 02:55 PM
DaveEP
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p.18 #8 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


Olsen wrote:
- Sorry


Apology accepted


but I think your test is far off. - Just bull


Thanks, I thought there was a funny smell around here

Anyway (you do know I am joking right?)....... you assume that I set out to do a test, whereas I did not. I simply went to a Leica dealer with a memory card to take a few shots that I could bring home and examine on my own monitor. I just happened to grab a few shots with the 1Ds2 as I left.

It was not intended to be a 'test' in any controlled way. What I came away with are the shots taken by the respective cameras 'on the day'. I have to tell you I was VERY dissapointed by the 1Ds2 results, because this camera has generally (99% of the time) produced excelent results for me, and I honestly expected better. There have been times where there have been some unexplained noise, and perhaps some focus errors, which is probably what happened here. So, 'on the day', the M8 produced the better results, but the next day it may have been the other way around.

I did not post the shots here as a 'hey look at my test results', so please, don't any one spend their $5K (Ł3K) based on these shots, because I do not expect them to be representative of all shots taken all the time by all people !! Remember, I was merely happier with the M8 shots taken 'on the day'.

To me, what is important is not whether the M8, 5D, 1Ds2 or any other camera you care to mention is the 'best' at everything. I don't care if the 5D is less noisy at ISO 3200 than the M8 is at (say) 1250, or whether the 1Ds2 'should' provide more resolution. What is important to me (and I am sure a lot of other people) is can the M8 deliver the goods on the day I want to use it as my preferred tool. If the answer is yes, then it's good enough. If the answer is no, then you should choose a different tool that day.

There are times when size and weight are no object, and I can turn up with a couple of 'rollers' full of gear. Then there are times when a 1Ds2 + a couple of decent lenses are just too big & bulky, too heavy and too 'pro looking' to allow me to get where I want to be and take the shots I want to take.

This should not be a Rangefinder vs SLR question, it should be a 'can the M8 do the job I want'? If it can't do the job you want (this is not aimed any any one in particular!), then move on, and stop criticising every aspect of the Rangefinder concept. Just move on.....

I don't see the need to choose between Rangefinder and SLR. They should not have to be mutually exclusive technologies. I want them both, as a compliment to each other. If you can only afford one of the them, and you are happy with the 5D or 1Ds2, or you need super high ISO performance, then stick with what you have already. For others who don't need that kind of performance 'day-in day-out', then you need to evaluate both types (RF and SLR) yourself, and not rely on words and images posted here. For those people who already have SLRs and were thinking of swapping (as opposed to adding), I suggest you wait until Leica have done their fixes, and all the fog has cleared. There seems little point evaluating (and if you don't like what you see - start bashing) a product which is still undergoing changes. Wait for it to mature, then come back and have another look. Until then..... move on..... and be happy





Nov 14, 2006 at 04:12 PM
woodyspedden
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p.18 #9 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


pdmphoto wrote:
Woody, with all due respect, how about a post to show us the results you are geting? I hear plenty of users saying they are getting great results but very few picture posts to show us. In fact, I can count the 100% crops I've seen on one hand, and most of those were handheld "test shots". Horseshoe Bend would be an ideal setting to show excellent detail and color.



Paul

Very sensible request. I am on the road between Page Az and my home in Fort Collins CO. At the Digital Printing Summit i am really proud and pleased that Joe Holmes really loved my "Little Yellow Flower" Image and so i will post this as soon as i get home to do it right. Joe could not believe that the results were not due to sharpening, so I had him look at the original raw file in C1. I don't think I exaggerate when I say he was blown away by the detail. The shot was a daylight image using the 35 Cron Asph. No one will ever take this tool from me. Of course it has issues in some circumstances and Leica must, repeat MUST, fix these.. But the camera, as is today, is a very capable instrument.

Frankly, I say, without prejudice, that many of the posters on these forums must get out from behind their computers, and into the field to put everything into perspective. I promise you that in "normal" lighting situations i.e. normal daylight for images such as landscapes, you will be pleased to no end with the M8. Same for outdoor photojournalist images. You will love it. If I were a wedding photographer, working in mixed lighting, I would have to work real hard to see if this tool is capable of what is needed for my work. This is where I point folks to Sean Reid who is a wonderfull reviewer and is a pro wedding imager. his experiences with this system should prove invaluable.

Let's not get crazy but continue posting images so that we continue to discuss facts, dealt with objectively, rather than get over the top based on postulations and speculatiions. I love this system, getting to know its limitations based on today's situations, and look forward to Leica producing a system that get's it done for all of us.

Congratulations to leica for what we already have and for the things to come and for those who want perfection out of the box, I think you are doomed to be continually disappointed. Relax and enjoy the (Decisivde) moment (s).

Love and hope to all

Woody Spedden



Nov 14, 2006 at 08:31 PM
woodyspedden
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p.18 #10 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


O.K Guys

I am willing to take the grief, so here is my post.

Image at Horseshoe Bend, Page Az, of a section of the area that incorporates the detail of the left side of the bend, and an outcropping that incorporates a little Yellow Flower that shows the remarkable ability of God given elemants to survive what seems at first glance impossible. If you don't like the image , that is cool. What I am trying to show is what the M8 is possible of creating. Please feel free to contribute your own.

Please look carefully at the image and ask yourself if this camera is capable of producing the images you want.

I know what I like, the rest is up to you

Your friend in photography

Woody Spedden



Nov 14, 2006 at 09:00 PM
woodyspedden
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p.18 #11 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


O.K Guys

I am willing to take the grief, so here is my post.

Image at Horseshoe Bend, Page Az, of a section of the area that incorporates the detail of the left side of the bend, and an outcropping that incorporates a little Yellow Flower that shows the remarkable ability of God given elemants to survive what seems at first glance impossible. If you don't like the image , that is cool. What I am trying to show is what the M8 is possible of creating. Please feel free to contribute your own.

Please look carefully at the image and ask yourself if this camera is capable of producing the images you want.

I know what I like, the rest is up to you

Your friend in photography

Woody Spedden



Nov 14, 2006 at 09:08 PM
cmb_
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p.18 #12 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


No image Woody. Give it another try.


Nov 14, 2006 at 09:19 PM
zaknat
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p.18 #13 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


Woody,
I think your M8 has an invisibility cast

David



Nov 14, 2006 at 10:24 PM
AGeoJO
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p.18 #14 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


As we all know, the Leica M8 suffers from magenta cast issues. Black or dark colored synthetic materials reflects pretty high levels of IR light that due to the insufficient IR filtering of the sensor, is registered as having magenta cast, at least so we understood. IR filters were suggested by Leica in a pinch and that caused an uproar among Leica fans. Needles to say, the "debacle" puts a significant dent into the enthusiasm of Leica fans world wide. Some consider returning their newly acquired cameras (so did I) and some postponed its delivery and some cancelled their order and understandably so. Leica announced their game plan in two weeks, that means in about 10-12 days from now.

Folks on the Leica forums and MR from Luminous Landscape experimented with different camera profiles built in into Capture One Pro 3.7.6 and discoverd that an alternative profile actually pretty much cures the magenta cast issue. Here is the link: http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/cameras/m8-magenta.shtml. I have been using this RAW converter software for my Canon RAW files . Until Leica comes up with a permanent solution, this will do it for me. The positive thing about this is, it looks like an updated firmware and/or a properly calibrated camera profile is needed and has to be included with the camera. FYI, this alternative profile is not provided with the camera; only the Limited Edition of Capture One with a Leica M8 profile, which causes the "furchtbar" magenta cast, is included.

This is a picture taken today converted with the Leica M8 profile. Please look at the "black" backpack and the "grey" box/package inside the mini sleigh:

http://www.pbase.com/ageojo/image/70246871.jpg


This image was converted using Phase One P30 Flash - Easy Black profile of that RAW converter software. Please compare the two items on the other image. The overall saturation is definitely less but the rendition of both colors and saturation here is more accurate. Skin tone benefits from this profile as well. Until Leica comes up with the actual and more permanent solution, this will be the way I will be converting my DNG files... It certainly looks like this problem can be fixed by updating the firmware/better calibrated camera profiles and that my friends, can cause a big sigh of relief .

http://www.pbase.com/ageojo/image/70246878.jpg


Edited by AGeoJO on Nov 14, 2006 at 10:47 PM GMT



Nov 15, 2006 at 01:37 AM
joseph ramos
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p.18 #15 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


Is this forum about the M8 or the M8 vs. the 5D. I dont see how you can compare a rangefinder to an slr.


Nov 15, 2006 at 01:37 AM
carstenw
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p.18 #16 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


Well, Joseph, you look at the results :)

It is a perfectly valid comparison, for those are interested. Not everyone is, of course. I am, very much, since I am selling one for the other.



Nov 15, 2006 at 02:07 AM
KJbruin
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p.18 #17 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


What may be obvious to many here is the fact that not everyone's definition of a "better" image is strictly in terms of resolution, detail, or "realistic" colors. Not everyone here is using the same definition of what is a "better" image. "Better" in my opinion comes down to a matter of personal preference. Mine used to be that the most "realistic" and "accurate" image captures with the most detail was "better". Now having seen Leica's version of a "pleasing" image (thanks to Guy and all the other contributors of the DMR Bible and the Leica User Forum) I do admit that Leica's representation does have its merits. Despite the fact that it may not be the most accurate in terms of color or contain the most detail, I have seen enough in the posted comparison and sample images to put an M8 on order to use with a growing collection of M lenses.

So in my opinion no matter how hard some may try to "expose" the M8 and all of its faults for being only "half as good" as a much less expensive 5D the fact remains that for some of us it comes down to a simple preference for one look or the other. If one cannot get past resolution and cost comparisons and see that there is an individual character to the way Leica captures and renders images then they will never understand how anyone could ever prefer the M8 and *gasp* have to use filters in the interim. For some the cost is prohibitive but that is really a seperate discussion altogether as for most I would venture to guess that the Leica look even if they preferred it would not be worth an additional $2K. For others the "look" is worth the extra cost.

brainiac wrote:
Show me.

All I have to go on in the pepsi challenge is Michael Riechmann's train display image. I see the 5D at 3200 considerably outresolving the M8 at 1250. Nobody has put forward an M8/5D comparison at iso 160. I don't know why.

The few pictures that forum members have kindly uploaded here show inaccurate colour, noise hurting dynamic range, and less than stellar resolution. And that's not even mentioning the black=magenta IR problem, streaking which renders the shot unusable, and IR filters giving cyan corners with wideangles despite not fully solving the IR problem.

Where is your evidence for "state of
...Show more



Nov 15, 2006 at 02:27 AM
brainiac
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p.18 #18 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


No image Woody. Give it another try.

<joke>
See? This is the conspiracy of silence I have been banging on about!
</joke>



Nov 15, 2006 at 03:18 AM
brainiac
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p.18 #19 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


I think the question of colour accuracy should matter to a serious photographer (presumably anyone buying an M8 is serious). I used to choose my film carefully for each job. It affected noise but it also had an impact on colour. Is this an Agfa RS1000, a Kodak VNC, a Velvia, or a Kodachrome job? You had to know which films did what to which colours. (I still have 20 rolls of way out-of-date 120 format Agfa RS1000 in the fridge if anyone wants to make me an offer!)

Most pro's turned their noses up at consumer grade Kodak Gold 100 because it gave consumers what they wanted: strong saturation which nuked tonal gradation in areas of rich colour. Strangely, I was runner-up in an award with a picture shot on consumer Gold 100, because at the time I had b+w in the camera, saw a shot on the street that required colour, and bought the only roll the corner shop had. At the award people asked how I got the rich colour. I kept my mouth shut. Here's the picture:
http://www.cyberphotographer.com/m/maguirebraine/photography/1.jpg

Like many other pros who have to work fast, I often shoot JPEG. If you get exposure and contrast right, like you had to in the old days, then JPEG isn't much inferior to raw. It's an order of magnitude quicker and it saves a lot of disc space.

The Leica colour pallet seems to be built in, so it's like having to shoot kodachrome for every job (although with the volume of pictures that most pros shoot these days, the Kodachrome lab would have returned pictures long before you have batched the raws ;-).

So given that now you only have one film that you are going to use for every job, some of which may demand the truest colour, it is not unreasonable to suggest that colour fidelity is a crucial aspect of a capture device.

If you like the Leica pallet, which I think can be described as a slight general yellow cast, with slightly olive-shifted greens and turquoise shifted blues (I didn't say magenta blacks! ;-) then you can always apply it later, either via raw processing or a saved JPEG HSB manipulation.

Pros try to avoid colour shifting in scanners, printers, inks and papers, on the premise that colour shifting, when required, should be a deliberate choice. Why is the situation different for a camera? I see it as a classic garbage in, garbage out situation.



Nov 15, 2006 at 04:25 AM
Andi Dietrich
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p.18 #20 · •Hands-On• Leica M8


50 for the fridge and you may keep the filmrolls!


Nov 15, 2006 at 04:47 AM
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