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Need some opinions from existing Leica M9 users

RF_Licks

New member
Hi fellow Leica users,

I just got back into photography last year with a dSLR which I enjoyed very much. A few months back I added a M8 and a M6 TTL to the kit and have been shooting RF 98% of the time. Am in the process of selling my dSLR gear and going full time with a RF for a year to see how it will work out. I currently have a 35CronIV, 50CronV3, 50 Nokton 1.5 and a tele-E 90 (I'm sure you 0.95 users started somewhere with one of these too? :D ) Haven't really used the 90 but I'm very happy with the 35 and 50s on the M8 and M6.

Question for the current Leica M9 users here who upgraded from the M8 - thinking back to when you switched from the M8 to M9, what are your opinions for me to consider:

1. Stick to the M8 for now and buy more lenses first (I'm thinking of adding 2 lenses - a wide angle 15 or 21CV lens AND either a used 28 Cron or older 35 Lux Asph)

2. Sell the M8 and go straight to the M9 with the existing lenses and enjoy FF.

3. Other suggestions?

The M8 files are adequate for me, I don't really need more megapixels but the high ISO on the M8 bothers when I want to shoot available light.

Thanks for your opinions!
Joe :)
 

ptomsu

Workshop Member
Actually I sold my M8 a year ago and got a decent price. I am not sure about the price you can get today, so maybe it is wiser to keep it.

I never bought the M9, as first I could not get one and now after a year I and some experiences with that camera (myself in testing and some friends in owning it) I decided it is not worth the money, so better wait for a revised model or the M10, which hopefully could deliver high ISO performance as current state of the art DSLRs for much less money.

But I am a bit caught also by my MF system and my D700, so I do not really need the M9. And for everyday P&S I am using M43 and Sony NEX5.

My 2c
 

cly

Member
2. Sell the M8 and go straight to the M9 with the existing lenses and enjoy FF.
that's what i would do again. i got an m9 a year ago and sold the m8 a few months later. i can't imagine going back to the m8.

BTW, the 24mm elmar is a fantastic lens and so is the 18mm IF you can live with its distortion.

--chris
 

RF_Licks

New member
Thanks guys! Feedback appreciated. I'm leaning towards the M9 for now... inching closer .....

Comments from others?

Joe
 

jlancasterd

Active member
I never bought the M9, as first I could not get one and now after a year I and some experiences with that camera (myself in testing and some friends in owning it) I decided it is not worth the money, so better wait for a revised model or the M10, which hopefully could deliver high ISO performance as current state of the art DSLRs for much less money.

But I am a bit caught also by my MF system and my D700, so I do not really need the M9.
My 2c
I was lucky enough to get an M9 within a week of its launch and agree that the high ISO performance was initially rather poor. However, recent firmware upgrades and (especially) the release of Lightroom 3 with its greatly improved M9 profiles has transformed the quality of my camera's high ISO output - I now routinely leave it set on auto-ISO and find that I can use, for publication, shots taken up to at least ISO 2500.

However, I agree that a D700 with the 16-35 f4 and 24-70 f2.8 zooms provides serious competition...
 

weinschela

Subscriber Member
I sold M8 for M9 and have zero regrets. Full frame is important to me. High(er) ISO is also far better esp with new ACR, but if your work demands extremely high ISO the M9 is not the best tool. In my view you can get acceptable files at 1200, but when i really need to do low light stuff the 5DMkii gets hauled out - and that isn't even best in class at high ISO but subjectively much better than M. But, you know you really can't decide such things based on what somebody else thinks. You have to think about what you will be comfortable with - and where you want to spend your money.
 

eleanorbrown

New member
I'm usually a medium format user...Phase One P65+ with Hasselblad H2 camera system and/or Canons. I have never owned any Leica but when the M9 came out I decided to get one....that was last march...I now have 4 incredible lenses and have used almost nothing else since I got my M9. needless to say I love it...the quality of the sensor and M lenses is incredible!!! eleanor
 

cam

Active member
i am only a lowly M8 user but i do lust after the M9 for better high ISO (available light photography). i have specifically held off buying any wider lenses as i am saving up for the M9 and know i wouldn't use them on a FF body.

you have beautiful lenses already -- i'd recommend getting the M9. especially, fingers crossed, if they announce some slight modification that makes existing users dump their old M9, making them more affordable for us :p

(to be honest, though, i will probably hang on to my M8 as a second body even after i acquire an M9, both for it's longer reach and insurance that i'm not without a Leica should one need to be serviced.)

wait for Photokina, then take the plunge and buy an M9.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Have to say if I had it my way which does not always fit the business gear purchases. I would have my current MF kit and a M9 with 3 or 4 lenses. The problem is flexibility of the M9 and reason i sold the M8 system and these are business reasons but after my review of the M9 I still want one. When i finally hang up my camera straps to retire a M9 setup would be my choice. Not sure I will ever retire though.Bummer
 

CharlesK

New member
Awesome review and database Guy!!! Great to review the knowledge that yourself and others have contributed in understanding and knowing the M9.
Only recently I have added the M9 and some great lenses, for the purposes of having a light and unobtrusive camera. The raw DNG files are great also, and still learning to fully utilize them properly. My other camera is the 5DII with Zeiss and some L lenses, which I now find I using very little for the moment. But thank you!
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
With the M8 it was the 28 cron, 50 prelux and 75 lux or cron. Than number 4 it would be a 21 elmarit.

M9 I would still have the 50 pre lux just becuase outside the Nocti maybe the nicest look there is and IMHO better than the Nocti

I would think about a 35 lux as well but probably get the 28mm first . Nothing is better in any Leica lens than the 28 cron. To me it has the nicest balance between look and focal length on a M. The 75 cron I would probably get when i want absolute sharpness wide open. It is the sharpest wide open and for that need it would be a great choice. Today I might opt for the new 21 lux as i like extreme wides and 21mm is just about perfect FF
 

RF_Licks

New member
However, I agree that a D700 with the 16-35 f4 and 24-70 f2.8 zooms provides serious competition...
John, the D700 is a great camera. I just sold mine (with some regrets) because its too heavy to lug around with the fast glass or zooms and I cannot justify keeping 2 setups for now. The digital M is so versatile. I can carry both my M8 & M6 plus lenses and its still lighter and more compact that the D700 with one zoom.

Joe
 
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