douglasf13
New member
The analogue amp quality can't be improved by firmware, although I guess that if Leica did come up with an in-camera software solution that was better than their amps, they could bypass the analogue amps altogether and just use software amplification in future firmwares.Since the in-camera sensitivity amplification control is a firmware control function, it can be updated just as much as raw converters can update how they process the data. How much it is updated is the question mark ... The evidence isn't conclusive that it is substantively improved any more frequently with raw conversion sw than it is with firmware updates.
Either way, even if the camera firmware updates did compete with raw converter updates, you can't use the camera firmware to improve a picture that you've previously taken, which is what I meant by future proof.
I still contend that, in terms of image quality, using any ISO above base ISO isn't necessary, at least if you use LR4 (which is the only converter I've tested.) However, in terms of practicality, using higher ISOs may still be convenient and necessary.
As far as A mode, I find it half baked in the M9 and earlier M cameras. Not having an AEL button (I believe the Ikon has one,) along with having very center weighted metering, forces you to recompose and re-lock metering if you want to take two or more shots in a row in S mode. If the camera had an AEL button, you could lock the exposure, or, if the camera had matrix metering, you'd likely be fine without recomposing, but the combination of those two omissions keeps me using M mode, which I'm fine with, especially considering the "ISO-less" behavior of the camera.