[Leica] Cameras Real Pros Use

[photo.forrest at earthlink.net (Phil Forrest)]

If they had wanted to capture a new market segment, they would have
updated the R mount with a dedicated full frame body compatible with R
lenses. They could have "sold out" just a bit and had a company such as
Sony produce autofocus lenses to Leica spec and with this capability,
they could have built the digital version of the Nikon F4. Backward
compatible but forward thinking. If someone stuck the guts of the D3
into an R9 or even just adapted the linkage from the R series to use
the R lenses with full function (no stop down metering) on a Nikon or
Canon full frame DSLR, there would be a decent sized line of people
waiting to get theirs. 

But Leica wants to stick to their current user constituency, with their
same form UI factor, hoping that it's sustainable. 

I love Leica's old mechanical cameras and I'll never get rid of my M4
but Leica will have to work very hard to make me come back and even
harder to seduce people my age to invest in their products.

Phil Forrest



On Thu, 29 Nov 2012 22:30:42 -0800
"jon.streeter" <jon.streeter at cox.net> wrote:

> This is the state of my understanding at the moment.  Leica needs to
> build a better mousetrap.
> 
> Sent from my Verizon Wireless Phone
> 
> ----- Reply message -----
> From: "Phil Forrest" <photo.forrest at earthlink.net>
> To: "Leica Users Group" <lug at leica-users.org>
> Subject: [Leica] Cameras Real Pros Use
> Date: Thu, Nov 29, 2012 9:48 pm
> 
> 
> Nope, won't happen.
> The Leica M9 failure rate was far too high for news professionals to
> consider using them for work. It's a fun hobby camera but for the hard
> working journalist, the Leica doesn't cut it. Both my M8 and M9 spent
> about 40% of the time I owned them out at Leica for repairs. I
> personally know owners of a total of nine other M9s in the
> Philadelphia area and every single one of them had to go back to
> Leica a few times. One of my friends went through three shutters in
> his M8 then two shutters and a sensor in his M9. And he's a working
> pro in Philly who luckily has Canon gear for backup but while his
> Leica was out at the factory, the backup became the regular camera.
> 
> All of the digital Leicas I have seen have had to have sensors
> remapped or replaced due to the hot pixel / vertical line issues. So,
> about 20 digital Leica M bodies in the Philly area that are owned by
> acquaintances of mine and 100% of them had to be repaired. Not
> reliable enough for a premium product. For a camera that costs that
> much, it should not only be reliable, it should be PERFECT.
> 
> You said the M9 was going to be the game changer a few years ago,
> Mark. It didn't happen. It drove myself and two of my friends AWAY
> from Leica as a matter of fact due to their incredible expense, slow
> service, and then their declining support for the still excellent M8. 
> 
> So again, we won't see Leicas taking their place in the journalism
> world. Everyone knew the rangefinder was on its way out by 1960, so
> why would that change today? 
> 
> Phil Forrest
> 
> 
> On Thu, 29 Nov 2012 20:58:56 -0500
> Mark Rabiner <mark at rabinergroup.com> wrote:
> 
> > I do think though the M9 worked and the M is going to work a whole
> > lot better and there are a huge amount of used Leica glass out
> > there in a gamut of price points. Pros are familiar with what Leica
> > rangefinders have done in the not too distant past and will be
> > interested like they always have in what that might add to their
> > work. I think the M is going to be a huge success for Leica and
> > we'll be seeing articles about pros using them for jobs. We didn't
> > wee that with the M9. We will see it with the M. Imagine shooting
> > an f1 lens @ iso 6400! And video clips. I think the new M will get
> > Pro support in the market; and Leica will be back in the hot spot
> > at least where they were in the 90's. When sure a small amount of
> > shooter used Leica but in each group there usually was at least one.
> > 
> > Mark William Rabiner
> > Photography
> > http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/lugalrabs/
> > 
> > 
> > > From: Chris Crawford <chris at chriscrawfordphoto.com>
> > > Reply-To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> > > Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2012 20:52:31 -0500
> > > To: Leica Users Group <lug at leica-users.org>
> > > Subject: Re: [Leica] Cameras Real Pros Use
> > > 
> > > Nikon and Canon digital SLRs are used by 99% of the world's
> > > professionals. Why? Because they're extremely reliable, have
> > > extensive lens and accessory systems, and those companies are the
> > > cutting edge technological leaders....and despite all that, they
> > > cost less than Leicas.
> > > 
> > > Professional photographers of all types are hurting economically
> > > today, and that is especially true of journalists. They're poorly
> > > paid, and newspapers have been shedding staff photographers to
> > > save money. Leica has simply priced itself out of the professional
> > > market. It really is that simple. On top of that, Leica's digital
> > > cameras have had a lot of well-publicised technical and
> > > reliability problems. Pros need cameras that "Just Work", every
> > > time. Canon and Nikon cameras "Just Work". The lenses are
> > > affordable. The image quality is magnificent. Using Nikon or
> > > Canon is a no-brainer.
> > > 
> > > -- 
> > > Chris Crawford
> > > Fine Art Photography
> > > Fort Wayne, Indiana
> > > 260-437-8990
> > > 
> > > http://www.chriscrawfordphoto.com  My portfolio
> > > 
> > > http://blog.chriscrawfordphoto.com  My latest work!
> > > 
> > > http://www.facebook.com/pages/Christopher-Crawford/48229272798
> > > Become a fan on Facebook
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > On 11/29/12 8:41 PM, "David Ching" <davidhhching1 at yahoo.com.sg>
> > > wrote:
> > > 
> > >> Come on, don't tease, tell us all. Which one/s? Why, if you know
> > >> the reasons.
> > >> 
> > >> And why not Leicas?
> > >> 
> > >> 
> > >> 
> > >> David Ching
> > >> 
> 
> 



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