Official Talk Leica thread

Spent a few days in Madrid this week, great to really get a feel for the M10 using it almost all day each day we were there. I'm no street photographer but it was fun looking for people to point my camera at!

Realised in all my time using different cameras I've never used zone focussing before. Can't say I've cracked it yet but definitely going to spend more time trying to master it.

Also picked up a Voigtlander Nokton 35mm f1.4 to replace the 7artisans 35mm which I've not been over impressed with.

L1004048.jpg
 
Sensor cleaning. Wondering if it's a bit of a speciality on a Leica sensor, spoken to Wex in Birmingham today and they don't do it which is a PITA!

Wondering if I have to take the trek to the London Leica Store to get it done.
 
wibbly said:
Sensor cleaning. Wondering if it's a bit of a speciality on a Leica sensor, spoken to Wex in Birmingham today and they don't do it which is a PITA!

Wondering if I have to take the trek to the London Leica Store to get it done.
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Hi, I did it myself. Given normal diligence and dexterity, you need the proper swab size (24mm, I bought MOVOJA from amazon, these are seperately sealed) and 2-Propanol
at my pharmacy (I use this, because it is purer than the fluids supplied by the swab-sellers).

(I do not use blowers because I do not want to blow dust around in the camera.)

And then you follow the instructions (and take your time :) )...
 
justpix said:
Hi, I did it myself. Given normal diligence and dexterity, you need the proper swab size (24mm, I bought MOVOJA from amazon, these are seperately sealed) and 2-Propanol
at my pharmacy (I use this, because it is purer than the fluids supplied by the swab-sellers).

(I do not use blowers because I do not want to blow dust around in the camera.)

And then you follow the instructions (and take your time :) )...
Click to expand...

Thanks mate, never tried cleaning a digital sensor and not about to start on an M10-P :ROFLMAO:

I've spoken with the Leica Store in London and you get two free sensor cleans a year through them, just need to get to London now!
 
wibbly said:
Thanks mate, never tried cleaning a digital sensor and not about to start on an M10-P :ROFLMAO:

I've spoken with the Leica Store in London and you get two free sensor cleans a year through them, just need to get to London now!
Click to expand...

Hi, I started sensor-cleaning with my M9. Of course, I could go to Wetzlar, but this is too much trouble ...

And I like being independent.
 
Hi, a digression : (VOIGTLÄNDER SUPER WIDE-HELIAR 4,5/15 E39, novoflex adapter - SONY A7R2). I used this config during a trip to Manchester last weekend,

Caveats: With the SONY lens correction app from SONY playmemories I configured my own lens profile to correct vignetting and colour shift in the corners.
I would not use this lens on the A7R2 uncorrected.

No pink corners:

DSC05217-a7r2-v151-c-tp.jpg



At night, there is some flaring, sometimes. Here, around the street lamps in the foreground, and the dark blue blobs:

DSC05406-a7r2-v151-tp.jpg



This may be due to the SONY sensor stack thickness or the internal coating of the lens, or both.

5 years ago, I took my SONY A7 with the Leica Elmarit 2,8/28 asph and the VOIGTLÄNDER Skopar 4/21 to Manchester. Flaring was even worse then ...
(The A7 flares worse than the A7R2, even with native Sony lenses ... )

This was in my adapting days. Nowadays, I use native lenses, unless there are good reasons. - I needed a wider lens. My SONY lenses are not wider than 21mm,
and I wanted compactness.

New mirrorless L mount cameras from Leica, Panasonic, Nikon, Panasonic, Sigma:

I will not touch them for adapting Leica M mount lenses. Some cameras do not have lens correction apps, all have thicker sensor stacks than Leica Ms.
Leica Ls have internal lens profiles for Leica M lenses, which seem to work for some lenses, according to discussions in LUFI. But this is not good enough for me.

Of course, this is my highly personal view, based on my experiences and preferences ... ---

P.S.: A recent article on this topic. The author wisely avoided the "danger zone" of wider lenses:

https://www.dearsusan.net/2019/10/31/zeiss-zm-leica-m-lenses-sony-a7rii/
 
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ecniv said:
As to the cleaning sensor.. I think I will need to learn . Gets dirty quick...
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Yeah, they sure do don't they! I think I need to learn too... mind you once I've got mine cleaned, I think I'm just going to leave my lens welded on to the body! :LOL:
 
wibbly said:
Yeah, they sure do don't they! I think I need to learn too... mind you once I've got mine cleaned, I think I'm just going to leave my lens welded on to the body! :LOL:
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Hi, I never change lenses in the open, always leaving home with just one lens mounted.

However isn't there one of Murphy's Laws ?:

The more lenses you have, the greater the likelihood you have mounted the wrong one. :LOL:
 
justpix said:
Hi, I never change lenses in the open, always leaving home with just one lens mounted.

However isn't there one of Murphy's Laws ?:

The more lenses you have, the greater the likelihood you have mounted the wrong one. :LOL:
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Haha, yeah that is a good point Immo :LOL:

In fairness I've been mincing around changing lenses on it far too often since I got it and that's probably why it's in the state its in!
 
Hi, a digression : (VOIGTLÄNDER SUPER WIDE-HELIAR 4,5/15 E39, novoflex adapter - SONY NEX-5N, f 8, crop). I used this config for the flight to Manchester last weekend,
It is a nice cheap (used) pocket camera, reminding me of the ROLLEI 35, of which I have used a few ...


DSC01865-nex5-v151-c-tp.jpg



@ecniv: uwas are difficult to use with an M. My M9 has no level or lines in the display to help with alignment. So, I use the viewfinder sides for vertical alignment help.
I also slide a small level in the hotshoe. Being lazy, I avoid vertical alignment of building sides in PP with this ... (Don't tell anybody ...;) )
 
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Hi, autumn is seen as a season of solitude by many poets (Rainer Maria Rilke in Herbst: ... "Wer jetzt allein ist, wird es lange bleiben" ... )

In this vein, a lonely lemon (Don't pull a sour face ( :LOL: ), (Leica M9 - ZEISS Sonnar 1,5/50 f 2,8) :


L1020199_DxO-z50s-c-28-tp.jpg
 

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Hi, autumn solitude - final part: the trembling twig (Leica M9 - ZEISS Sonnar 1,5/50 f 1,5) :


L1020219_DxO-z50s-15-tp.jpg



This is a rather sad picture, for me. The day after I took it, the trees were cut down. This is farming land, which will be put to other uses. - But I got used to the trees over the years ...
 
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justpix said:
Hi, is Leica losing its soul ??? :

https://www.streetsilhouettes.com/h...ntary-on-the-future-and-holding-onto-the-past

One reaction:

https://photo.imx.nl/blog/files/75caecf5a21140ab6c9b46f825ef253c-143.html


Reminds me a little of the heated debate when Porsche went from air-cooled engines in the 911 to water-cooling ... ---

Ultimately, time and market-success will tell ...
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I think they're just trying to keep up with the market. The articles look like over reactions to me, especially if the M is continued in analogue and digital form..
 
justpix said:
Hi, is Leica losing its soul ??? :

https://www.streetsilhouettes.com/h...ntary-on-the-future-and-holding-onto-the-past

One reaction:

https://photo.imx.nl/blog/files/75caecf5a21140ab6c9b46f825ef253c-143.html


Reminds me a little of the heated debate when Porsche went from air-cooled engines in the 911 to water-cooling ... ---

Ultimately, time and market-success will tell ...
Click to expand...

i spoke with a Leica guy about this a couple (so probably 3) of years ago

he said that Leica’s vision was to offer as many different possibilities across the market segments as possible and that partners made this a reality

(this conversation was before the L mount alliance)

the huawei partnership was the mobile market
the fuji partnership was the instax market
the Panasonic partnership was the compact market
then the X compacts
the q compact
then the M
the SL
and finally the S MF line

he said no other company had such a broad coverage with so few models and that leica weren’t looking to flood the market (like say how many A7x or XTx models Sony/Fuji release) but to offer a leica solution in each area (and sensor size)

overall it’s tricky I think.... the M is the famous leica. If you want a digital rangefinder buy an M or forget about it but leica can’t survive on the product cycle of the M (especially when many owners stopped buying them after the m9 or waited from the 9 to the 10 to upgrade)

leica’s other cameras are a tougher sell... the SL vs the A7x range, the S MF vs the Fuji/Hassy, the CL vs the other APSC cameras. These product don’t have the same cache as the M and the products of rival manufacturers are a lot close to these lines than the M vs.... well vs what? The Fuji?

in a parallel universe leica probably ditched making cameras years ago... and just make lenses in a variety of mounts now!
 
dancook said:
@ecniv @wibbly

The sensor has a thin layer of glass protecting the actual sensor

Get a rocket blower, this will work a lot of the time to clear the sensor without having to touch it.

If still particles, dry clean using a sensor swab - if anything left use some sensor cleaning solution and do a "wet clean".
https://www.cameraclean.co.uk/Sensor_Swabs.php
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Thanks for the info Dan. I’m actually off to London tomorrow for a sensor clean. Leica UK offer two free sensor cleans a year, so it’s a good excuse to have a day in London and get the sensor cleaned as well. :)
 
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