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Leica had the M8 Monochrom but yeah, Leicas are at least as much about the red logo on the camera as they are about actual good photography. Their lenses are qu

Leica had the M8 Monochrom but yeah, Leicas are at least as much about the red logo on the camera as they are about actual good photography. Their lenses are quite good, but not unequaled. Fuji has some cameras with a monochrome mode I think. And their sensor doesn't use a low-pass filter so it's sharper at the same MP count than some others. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujifilm_X-Trans_sensor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujifilm_X-Trans_sensor

_ph_ 9y ago
Leica never made a monochrome camera based on the M8, but both on the M9 and the M(240). The latter is current. A monochrome version of the M10 is espected to eventually arrive. Leica cameras might be pricy, but they are excellent photography tools. You might get higher res cameras from the competition, but for example the M is special with its small size and excellent lenses.
- ams6110 9y ago
  Thanks for the correction -- for a short time I was captivated by the idea of owning a Leica Monochrom when I first heard about them but could never part with the cash. Yes they make excellent cameras -- particularly the film ones. With care they will last indefinitely. The digital Leicas had some problems at least early on. Maybe they are sorted out by now. But for the money, you have to just want to own a Leica. The actual camera and optics are no longer unequaled (and for a lot less money) if they ever were.
  - _ph_ 9y ago
    You can certainly get cameras at a better price/performance level. So on a pure financial scale, they are difficult to justificat. But a M is unequaled by definition - it is the only digital rangefinder in production. Not to rave too much about rangefinder photography by itself, that means a very compact full-frame camera (roughly A7 size), but where it stands out is the tiny lenses. Even µFT struggles to match the M lens sizes. And at minimum for my back, lens size matters a lot. A M camera with 3 lenses fits into an absolutely tiny bag.

_ph_ 9y ago

Leica never made a monochrome camera based on the M8, but both on the M9 and the M(240). The latter is current. A monochrome version of the M10 is espected to eventually arrive. Leica cameras might be pricy, but they are excellent photography tools. You might get higher res cameras from the competition, but for example the M is special with its small size and excellent lenses.

ams6110 9y ago
Thanks for the correction -- for a short time I was captivated by the idea of owning a Leica Monochrom when I first heard about them but could never part with the cash. Yes they make excellent cameras -- particularly the film ones. With care they will last indefinitely. The digital Leicas had some problems at least early on. Maybe they are sorted out by now. But for the money, you have to just want to own a Leica. The actual camera and optics are no longer unequaled (and for a lot less money) if they ever were.
- _ph_ 9y ago
  You can certainly get cameras at a better price/performance level. So on a pure financial scale, they are difficult to justificat. But a M is unequaled by definition - it is the only digital rangefinder in production. Not to rave too much about rangefinder photography by itself, that means a very compact full-frame camera (roughly A7 size), but where it stands out is the tiny lenses. Even µFT struggles to match the M lens sizes. And at minimum for my back, lens size matters a lot. A M camera with 3 lenses fits into an absolutely tiny bag.