Leica T

[Black Pearl]

Interesting camera - expensive but well made like most proper Leica's and while the sensor may not set the world on fire the big touch screen is a turn up for the books.

http://en.leica-camera.com/Photograp...eica-T/Details

http://www.dpreview.com/previews/leica-t-typ701

Nice review:

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2014/0...by-steve-huff/

Would I buy one over a Fuji X?
Not sure but I do love that body.

[Donald]

Nice review:

http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2014/0...by-steve-huff/

Excellent review.

Leica has obviously established there is an audience out there for this product. I just don't know who that is.

[Black Pearl]

Won't be a big seller but the price will cover the lower sales numbers - need to pick one up if only out of interest because I bet it will feel epic.

[John 2]

.......Would I buy one over a Fuji X?
Not sure but I do love that body.

Interesting question. The quality is guaranteed. The body price isn't too far off but the price of the lenses is more than I would pay given that Fuji lenses are at least equal if not better in some cases.

I came across this article/debate which in places is over the top about some other reviewers but none the less raises some interesting points. You need to scroll down past the adverts.

http://soundimageplus.blogspot.it/20...fuji-x-e2.html

[lukaswerth]

A Leica is something I never wanted in the first place, and I still couldn't be less interested. What a waste of money! Well, I am probably also not wealthy enough to be their targeted customer, so... sour grapes, perhaps. But there you are. It seems to me that ever so often when people buy a Leica, they buy the name.

Lukas

[Manfred M]

A Leica is something I never wanted in the first place, and I still couldn't be less interested. What a waste of money! Well, I am probably also not wealthy enough to be their targeted customer, so... sour grapes, perhaps. But there you are. It seems to me that ever so often when people buy a Leica, they buy the name.

Lukas

As a Leica shooter since the 1970's, all I can say is that this is a typical comment of someone who has never used one. The build quality and optical quality are superb. And yes, you do pay a premium for it.

[thequacksoflife]

I have to say if I had money to burn (when the lottery comes in ) I'd love to own a Leica M. I don't need it but it's a camera that just says use me......

I suspect the T will sell...... there are people who will buy the Leica versions of Panasonic compacts for £200 more.....

[JR1]

Well I have used Leicas, film and Digital, and I never have wanted one either and never will, yet another compact, and I can afford one.

[RustBeltRaw]

Is it just me, or is anti-Leica snobbery now as widespread (possibly more so) than Leica snobbery? I ask, because I think I'm guilty of the former. Reserving judgement until I've shot one. Probably a film version, since even renting one of their digitals is cost-prohibitive.

Overall, I like the design. The rear is reminiscent of the Samsung Galaxy NX, and quite a clever format for a point-and-shoot. But again, I am not the customer, and I will not be purchasing one. As usual, I think the buzz around this camera says more about its reviewers than the product. Reading Luminous Landscape's coverage has put me off their content.

[Adrian]

I don't mention it often here, but I am also a Leica user (M240. previously M9). They make jewel like cameras that have jewel like lenses, and everything is small and light compared to a DSLR kit with pro glass. The technology is rarely (if ever) leading edge, but they do have an undefinable quality that adds to the pleasure (and frustration) of use.

Price as a factor depends to a degree on your economic circumstances and value judgements. Pro level DSLR gear is not cheap either when you factor in the glass.

All cameras are just tools really and they all have their place, fans and detractors.

It is worth remembering that used Leica kit (as for Canon L glass) tends to hang onto its value pretty well, so the cost of ownership is about financing / opportunity cost rather than depreciation.

Adrian

[Black Pearl]

You can't look at a Leica, or any other ultra high end brand regardless of what they make, on a purely cost basis. You are not just buying performance (which you are) you are buying into the purchase experience, the pride of ownership and the fact that you have bought something that someone took time to design, time to build with the best possible materials and the time to make sure is just so.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion but similarly everyone is entitled to buy what they feel is right for them. I have a couple of nice automatic watches (not madly expensive but well into the hundreds) that I love. There is something about knowing they have been hand made in Switzerland, have lots of moving delicate parts within them and that a little care was taken in their manufacture. As it happens my basic quartz watches is far more accurate but I still love owning the automatics and don't for a moment regret their cost.

[DanK]

Come on folks--we're only talking about a camera. Even if it is a Leica, it's still a camera.

I was intrigued by this when I first saw it, and the Leica reputation for quality is of course a draw. The more I looked at it, the less appealing I found it. Start with this: If someone offered--for considerable money--to strip the rubberized grip off your current camera and replace it with smooth aluminum, would you see that as a plus? I might if it were an object to put in a table, but in the field, I want a high-friction grip. Would you want most of the controls you have now removed and replaced by a touch screen? I don't think I would, although I would be interested in trying it to see how well I could manage it. If I am not mistaken, there is no image stabilization. I lived without IS for decades, but I really do like having it. And, of course, the cost of the kit is a real issue, at least for me.

[lukaswerth]

You can't look at a Leica, or any other ultra high end brand regardless of what they make, on a purely cost basis. You are not just buying performance (which you are) you are buying into the purchase experience, the pride of ownership and the fact that you have bought something that someone took time to design, time to build with the best possible materials and the time to make sure is just so.

Everyone is entitled to an opinion but similarly everyone is entitled to buy what they feel is right for them. I have a couple of nice automatic watches (not madly expensive but well into the hundreds) that I love. There is something about knowing they have been hand made in Switzerland, have lots of moving delicate parts within them and that a little care was taken in their manufacture. As it happens my basic quartz watches is far more accurate but I still love owning the automatics and don't for a moment regret their cost.

One point for the Leica: it certainly arouses emotions! And of course, everyone to her own.
Still, a few points: first, you can certainly drive a nail into a wall with a Leica, but even Leica has had some issues over the years. Lenses are generally first quality, certainly, but many Leica R lenses were just Minolta lenses checked to a somewhat higher standard. I remember that some years back, some Leica M gave problems with a too weak infrared filter. And, correct me if I am wrong, high ISO performance seems not good at all with Leica Ms (I have no idea about the S).

Robin,

delicate point, but I can't help pointing out, even at the danger of alienating you, that I have some basic issues with it. The "purchase experience" seems to display to me an attitude of blatant consumerism which for me is deeply unproductive and, if I am honest, gives rise also to ethical issues. What one effectively does is to buy one's identity, or to link one's identity to material objects whose justification is just that, giving a boost to one's identity/status.

As you have rightly pointed out, the issue then is also removed from quality as such, let alone creative/expressive photography, and what I see is a realm of fetishism.

Lukas

[Black Pearl]

Fetishism/ethical issues/consumerism

Really?

Personally (that's personally and not for anyone else) I like to own well designed, well made and interesting objects.

I would much rather use my Tivoli Model One than a modern DAB radio. It is mono, you have to turn a dial (a rather nice one by the way) to tune it and there are no digital inputs but I love the way it looks, I love the experience of using said dial and it has become part of our furniture in a way a plastic, garish product might not.

As I said above I would rather have my automatic watch than a quartz one. I have to monitor its time keeping, it isn't particularly waterproof, it shouldn't be subjected to strong shocks, it can't tell the difference between a 28/30/31 day month and if I leave it for more than a couple of days the power reserve runs out and I have to give it a wind then set the time. But personally I feel aesthetically it is far superior, there is a pride in knowing it is keeping time by mechanical means and that simply by swinging my arm it is winding itself up. As to the purchase experience then I sat down with the chap in the store, I was offered a glass of wine, I tried a few watches on, he made sure the strap was just right and then carefully packed it in a box that is probably more expensive than a fair few watches themselves. There was no hurry, no pressure too buy and the whole experience was a rather convivial one.

Is that ethical? Is that consumerism? Is there an element of fetishism?
Possibly but I wouldn't change a thing about the whole experience.

[rpcrowe]

Although I have shot extensively with 35mm film Leica rangefinders (mostly with the M-2) and consider the imagery that they produced excellent; I have never liked the ergonomics of the Leica. In the days of film rangefinder cameras, I far preferred the Nikon S series (especially the SP) to any of the Leica Rangefinders. I also considered the Nikon SLR cameras

So, therefore, I am not a member of the Leica Mystique Club...

However, my dedicated video camera: Panasonic HDC-TM900 has a Leica lens and the quality is great.

I am not a person who is awed by the mystique of a product. I only care about its utility. I drive a Honda CRV. I could drive any number of more expensive vehicles but the old CRV suits my purposes just great and I will drive it until the wheels fall off.

I generally wear a very cheap Chinese watch which I purchased at WalMart. I bought it for fishing at $12 USD. However, it has been keeping such good time that I normally use that watch instead of the more expensive top-line Seiko which lives in a drawer...

I enjoy top-line lenses because of the image quality from those lenses, not because they are "white" or wear a "red ring"...

I also enjoy using excellent fishing tackle because it is more fun to use, not because of what I look like when I am using that quality tackle.