[Leica] M8 Impressions, Pro and Con

[grduprey at mchsi.com (grduprey@mchsi.com)]

Tina,

Thanks for the quick review and comparison.  I had been wondering when we 
would hear from you on the new M8 you took delivery on.  Can't wait to see 
some of the photos later.

Gene

-------------- Original message from Tina Manley <images@InfoAve.Net>: 
-------------- 


> LUG: 
> 
> I've had my M8 for four days now and I used Leica's for 3 days, so 
> after one week with the M8 here are my initial impressions. I'm 
> comparing it to the Canon 5D, the camera I was carrying around for 
> everyday use. 
> 
> M8 Pro: 
> It's a rangefinder. 
> It's small, light, easy to carry and operates intuitively. 
> All of my M lenses will fit and work well with it. 
> It's quiet and unobtrusive. Nobody notices when I'm taking photos. 
> High ISOs are better than I expected. 
> I can post photos for discussion on the LUG without feeling guilty 
> that they're not from a Leica :-D 
> 
> M8 Con: 
> The battery lasts less than one day of use and spare batteries are 
> over $100 each. 
> The battery takes three hours to recharge. 
> The buffer fills up quickly. After taking 4 or 5 photos in rapid 
> succession, you have to let the camera catch up. 
> The camera is not instantly "on". It take several seconds after you 
> turn it on before you can start to take photos or set the menus. 
> As a left-eyed shooter, my nose smudges the LCD monitor with every 
> shot. I'm going to have to learn to shoot right-eyed. 
> Either the viewfinder is dimmer than my M7's or my eyes are getting 
> worse (a possibility!) It's harder to get the focus right than with the 
> M7. 
> It's not as indestructible as the M7's. I'm sure if I dropped it in 
> a river it would be dead. 
> It's not full-frame. 
> 
> Canon 5D Pro: 
> It's automatic focus (my eyes are getting old) 
> The L lenses are very nice. 
> The battery lasts forever - over a week - spare batteries can be 
> bought for $29. 
> The battery charges in 30 minutes. 
> You can take many rapid photos in succession and the camera never has to 
> stop. 
> The camera is instantly on. 
> It takes my R lenses with an adapter. 
> It's full-frame. 
> It's 12.8 megapixels. 
> High ISOs are very, very good. 
> 
> Canon 5D Con: 
> It's an SLR. 
> It's big and heavy. (Not as big and heavy as my 1DMII, but much 
> bigger than the M8) 
> It's not as waterproof or weather-sealed as my 1DMII. (But maybe 
> better than the Leica?) 
> It's fairly loud and noticeable. Everybody comments on the big camera. 
> 
> You may notice that I didn't mention the magenta cast or streaking as 
> cons for the M8. I'm not worried about that. Leica will come up 
> with a solution and in the meantime, it can be fixed in photoshop. 
> 
> Your mileage may vary since everybody uses cameras differently, but 
> for my purposes, these are the pros and cons of both cameras. I 
> don't regret buying the M8 at all. It will be the camera that I 
> carry with me everywhere. I'll still carry the 5D and/or the 1DMII, 
> depending on what I'm planning to photograph and how far I have to 
> walk to do it. I'm still working on comparing similar photos from 
> the two and also some film photos that I shot with my M7 in 
> Rockport. I'll get those posted as soon as I can scan them. 
> 
> I hope this helps those of you sitting on the fence about whether to 
> get the M8. Those who aren't interested have already deleted the 
> message anyway ;-) If you have any questions, I'd be glad to try to 
> answer them. 
> 
> Leically (again!!) 
> 
> Tina 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Tina Manley, ASMP, NPPA 
> http://www.tinamanley.com 
> 
> 
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