An open letter to Leica (2015)...please share your own thoughts

[fotografz]

RE: Open Letter To Leica:

Immediately attend to your QC and shore up your service in a manner AND demeanor that befits a luxury product. The posh selling environment and buying experience needs to be perpetuated into the owning and user experience.

RE: Leica's future:

In past, Leica has gotten away with lesser "qualities" because 1) the faithful RF M user, and 2) the investment in superb RF lenses of the Leica M faithful.

(For example, it made no sense that the little LCD of the M9 was worse than that of a cheap pocket camera or even cell phone. Etc.)


Do not expect the RF "only game in town" to carry you into the projected future.

- Marc

 

[Tim]

My suggestion to Leica is this: Ask your camera partner Panasonic to make a native M-Mount body in full frame for you. Put your Leica badge on it like you do with Panasonic made compacts. Do not make a camera that requires and adapter like the m43 bodies. Perhaps think Epson RD-1. But perhaps in this day and age it needs a EVF.

With Panasonic making the bodies and even producing the firmware to some of Leicas specs we have a lightweight, reliable and hopefully affordable M-Mount FF body.

Now Leica's part is to team the kit with an affordable lens either a 35mm or 50mm Summarit. Break even on the lens if need be. Once the buyer is hooked they can sell another lens. They can keep the M240 and its line for the aficionado who lord their genuine Leica over the others.

Sticking to the M-Mount coaxes the buyer to stay in the eco-system.
If only the body could be kept at say the price of an A7 is now. Perhaps a kit at under US$2.5 - $3K.
Something like this would challenge an RX1 buyer.

 

[4season]

It's been a fun 25+ years of shooting with Leica M cameras and lenses, but at current USA prices of $8438 for the least-expensive new camera body and lens, I'll respectfully pass.

 

[ashwinrao1]

I desperately want Leica to release great products, and.......

I can imagine that if the purported Q is successful, an interchangeable lens Q at a slightly reduced price, with the capacity to take both it's own lenses and Leica M lenses (while reading 6 bit codes) would be soon to follow. It would likely represent a a higher priced, yet better matched companion for those who would hope to use their M lenses on a body capable of focus peaking, while handling some of the corrections nessary for M lens utility. Pair that camera with an M9/240/or whatever color M comes next, and you really have a great option for most people in the Leica world, as well as for those looking to enter at the "relevant" price point.

Maybe I guessed right back in June? I think an ILC AF mount is in the air, from what Leica Rumors has said. New M lenses with AF (and ? RF coupling, a bit bigger than older M lenses that are MF only).....time will tell...interesting that this has come about:

New camera system from Leica rumored to be announced before the end of the year | Leica News & Rumors

MY next guess: Comes as a kit with a 50 mm f/2 or f/1.4...would pair nice with the Q, wouldn't it ?

 

[D&A]

My hope is that this new body/system is the next M as opposed to another system camera such as the T. Rather that have adapters to use M lenses, M lenses themselves are native to this new body, both traditional MF ones as well as a new line of Af lenses. If true I suspect viewfinder to only be a EVF such as used in the new Q as opposed to a hybrid OVF/EVF. Exciting times ahead.

Dave (D&A)