Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/10/31
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]Thanks for the report, we are all jealous/green with envy ;-) On 31/10/2005, at 7:49 PM, pmcc wrote: > --- Brian Reid <reid@mejac.palo-alto.ca.us> wrote: > >> I met up with 2 or 3 dozen LUGgers at the First >> Crush restaaurant last night. > > Among them was yours truly. A boisterously good > time was had by all, thanks in no small part > to the efforts of Greg Lorenzo who deftly > orchestrated the event with courtesy and bonhomie. > > The event also marked the reunion of the Bay Area > LUG, with ur-members Mark Cohen, John Gong, George > Hartzell, Ken Iisaka, Byron Ratkitzis, Tom Schofield > and your correspondent in attendance, joined by new > BALUG inductee Wayne Serrano. Our group photo was > taken by Slobodan Dimitrov, who joins John Sexton on > the elite roster of photographers who have rendered > the official BALUG portrait. > >> I let Seth talk me into attending the LHSA lunch >> today, which as I think about it means I'm going to >> be joining the LHSA. I guess they tolerate saloon >> keepers in their membership... > > The Screwmount Summit was a historic moment in the > annals of LUG/LHSA diplomacy. Brian and Seth have > been jointly nominated for the Barnack Peace Prize. > No longer will the average age of LHSA members be > the subject of derision on the LUG, and no longer > will LUGgers be summarily dismissed as a gang of > contentious geeks off their meds by LHSA members > of long sitting. > > A few interesting statements about the Digital M > surfaced at the LHSA meeting, in response to > questions from the floor addressed to Stefan Daniel > of Leica Camera AG. In no particular order, my best > recollection is as follows: > > - Digital M will preserve continuity of look > and form factor with existing M cameras > > - optical rangefinder > > - modified R9 type shutter (auf Wiedersehen to > horizontal travel cloth shutter) > > - 1.33 crop factor, not full frame (do the math > to calculate effective focal lengths for 35mm > lenses) > > - 10.5 megapixel sensor > > - 2.5" playback only screen > > - 1/8000 top shutter speed > > - lithium ion battery > > - SD memory card > > - self-timer > > - auto-shutter cocking > > - USB 2.0 connector, no video out > > - supports RAW > > - black and white mode in JPEG > > - 5 or 6 sets of framelines (TBA) > > - VF magnification TBA > > - shutter lag goal under 20 milliseconds > > - upgradable digital componentry under consideration > but not promised > > - digital sensor partner is German (not Imacon) > > - camera to be made in Germany > > - price goal under US$5K > > - targeted to ship at Photokina 2006 > > - expect compatibility with 95-97% of existing > Leica lenses > > - expect new Leica M lenses in the ultra-wide > range, which are also to be compatible with > existing M cameras (philosophy is against > digital-only lenses) > > - compatibility with wide-angle M lenses to be > achieved as follows: incorporate new micro-lens > offset technology in front of sensor; micro-lens > design to be ultra-flat; replacement of pre-sensor > anti-aliasing filter with software solution; > infra-red cut-off filter to be incorporated into > sensor cover glass, to be made of scratch- > resistant material; separate cover glass thus > eliminated > > Can't guarantee the total accuracy of the above, > but it's to the best of my understanding of what > was said. > > PMCC. > SF, CA > > > > > > > __________________________________ > Yahoo! FareChase: Search multiple travel sites in one click. > http://farechase.yahoo.com > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > Alastair