atanabe
Member
This post is about my long term relationship with my S2. Like any relationship, it has had it's ups and downs, with many compromises. I have had my S2 since 2010 as a replacement for two systems, Nikon D700 and Hasselblad CFV. I felt that several factors weighed in the favor of the S as it was weather sealed and had the "medium format" sized sensor that set the Hasselblad apart from the FF. My reasoning was that the size of the Nikon lenses and weight of the Hasselblad equaled out with the Leica S in terms of form factor and carriability - is that a word? My choices at the time would be a move to the Hasselblad H4D40 of a Phase system which were both large and not weather sealed. Weather sealing is important to me as I lived in Seattle at the time.
Lenses were few and far between and I waited patiently for the release of the 180 and 30 to add to my 70. As I patiently waited I got to really appreciate the image quality, my main criteria, was by far the best that I have experienced from a digital camera. I preface that because I still feel there is no substitute for big 8x10 chromes! But during my wait for the added lenses, I experienced a cracked sensor back to Solms (at the time) for a new sensor. The camera came back within two weeks and I was back to shooting again. Not long after my camera came back, a new 180 arrived but not without drama, the camera was exposing 1.5 stops over which had nothing to do with the at the time, sticky aperture blades issue, as this happened wide open, in manual exposure mode. This time I had to send both camera and lens back to Solms but not before a loaner S and 180 arrived from NJ - thank you. You would think by this time that I should have just bailed and got back to Nikon/Hasselblad but the image quality was so good and the options too costly or the lenses not of the same caliber (this was before Zeiss Otus). Once you start shooting a larger format, it is harder to go back to even a FF 35, which is true in both film and digital.
As an early adopter, I was hopeful of the CS lenses that were promised as I like to use fill flash a lot. I was told that I could upgrade my standard lenses for the CS lenses for the difference in price which at the time was ~$1000. With registration certificates in hand (from the Leica web site) I was hopeful to get my standard lenses upgraded to CS. Balloon burst when Leica said that the date of purchase must fall within this time period and my 30 did not qualify for the upgrade, certificates were not valid. A big cold slap in the face and I thought of dumping the system and moving to a FF high res solution. Then I looked at the images and reversed my decision, the images, it is all about the images. Recently with the abundance of used S lenses I was able to secure CS lenses for about the same or less than the original program offer.
AF motor failures, breath on the lens and the motor fails, started around the time of the 007 introduction and faster AF. It affected all of my lenses at one time or another, never kept me from shooting as the focus ring was always free and I prefer to manually focus anyway. But the big change in all the years of repairs was the level of service. I can accept that things fail, but it is how you address the failure and this is where things have gotten bad. My 180 failed and went back for a new motor only to come back with a loose front element. It went back for six months with no word on when it will be back. Far different than getting a replacement to use in it's absence.
A new year, new MF offerings are on the horizon do I switch or do I stay? Well both new platforms are weatherproof and are compact, more so the X1D. Both are unproven territory and I do not want to be a beta tester. What I have seen and handled from the X1D is a short battery life, every time that I have gone into my dealer to shoot with the camera, the battery was dead or nearly dead. My S can go weeks without a charge I average about 2000 shots before the battery needs a charge. The GFX is still to be announced and while Fuji has great lenses and great track record it is still a new platform. The silence from Wetzlar on what lies ahead for the S and the lack of availability of the S-SL adapter could be signs that the S maybe going through a transition. The value of the S has depreciated rapidly but the images are still magical. The S is fully paid for and I know the limitations and strengths after all these years.
Like a relationship, you take the good with the bad and hopefully the equation is on the side of good. I put up with the service from Leica because I value the images I get from the system. Do I wish that the system never fail? Yes. The reality is that it has failed but more important is the support system has failed and I believe that a fix is on the way. Am I just a Leica Fanboy oblivious to all the bad things? Yes and no, I am seduced by the image quality and at the same time a realist who looks at the depreciated value of the kit. To cut my losses at this point to replace it with another digital system that will too go through the depreciation cycle is not what I would like to do at this point in time. Just like getting a divorce from a wife of 40 years for a younger model, it will cost you dearly and you don't know what you will end up with.
Lenses were few and far between and I waited patiently for the release of the 180 and 30 to add to my 70. As I patiently waited I got to really appreciate the image quality, my main criteria, was by far the best that I have experienced from a digital camera. I preface that because I still feel there is no substitute for big 8x10 chromes! But during my wait for the added lenses, I experienced a cracked sensor back to Solms (at the time) for a new sensor. The camera came back within two weeks and I was back to shooting again. Not long after my camera came back, a new 180 arrived but not without drama, the camera was exposing 1.5 stops over which had nothing to do with the at the time, sticky aperture blades issue, as this happened wide open, in manual exposure mode. This time I had to send both camera and lens back to Solms but not before a loaner S and 180 arrived from NJ - thank you. You would think by this time that I should have just bailed and got back to Nikon/Hasselblad but the image quality was so good and the options too costly or the lenses not of the same caliber (this was before Zeiss Otus). Once you start shooting a larger format, it is harder to go back to even a FF 35, which is true in both film and digital.
As an early adopter, I was hopeful of the CS lenses that were promised as I like to use fill flash a lot. I was told that I could upgrade my standard lenses for the CS lenses for the difference in price which at the time was ~$1000. With registration certificates in hand (from the Leica web site) I was hopeful to get my standard lenses upgraded to CS. Balloon burst when Leica said that the date of purchase must fall within this time period and my 30 did not qualify for the upgrade, certificates were not valid. A big cold slap in the face and I thought of dumping the system and moving to a FF high res solution. Then I looked at the images and reversed my decision, the images, it is all about the images. Recently with the abundance of used S lenses I was able to secure CS lenses for about the same or less than the original program offer.
AF motor failures, breath on the lens and the motor fails, started around the time of the 007 introduction and faster AF. It affected all of my lenses at one time or another, never kept me from shooting as the focus ring was always free and I prefer to manually focus anyway. But the big change in all the years of repairs was the level of service. I can accept that things fail, but it is how you address the failure and this is where things have gotten bad. My 180 failed and went back for a new motor only to come back with a loose front element. It went back for six months with no word on when it will be back. Far different than getting a replacement to use in it's absence.
A new year, new MF offerings are on the horizon do I switch or do I stay? Well both new platforms are weatherproof and are compact, more so the X1D. Both are unproven territory and I do not want to be a beta tester. What I have seen and handled from the X1D is a short battery life, every time that I have gone into my dealer to shoot with the camera, the battery was dead or nearly dead. My S can go weeks without a charge I average about 2000 shots before the battery needs a charge. The GFX is still to be announced and while Fuji has great lenses and great track record it is still a new platform. The silence from Wetzlar on what lies ahead for the S and the lack of availability of the S-SL adapter could be signs that the S maybe going through a transition. The value of the S has depreciated rapidly but the images are still magical. The S is fully paid for and I know the limitations and strengths after all these years.
Like a relationship, you take the good with the bad and hopefully the equation is on the side of good. I put up with the service from Leica because I value the images I get from the system. Do I wish that the system never fail? Yes. The reality is that it has failed but more important is the support system has failed and I believe that a fix is on the way. Am I just a Leica Fanboy oblivious to all the bad things? Yes and no, I am seduced by the image quality and at the same time a realist who looks at the depreciated value of the kit. To cut my losses at this point to replace it with another digital system that will too go through the depreciation cycle is not what I would like to do at this point in time. Just like getting a divorce from a wife of 40 years for a younger model, it will cost you dearly and you don't know what you will end up with.