The GetDPI Photography Forum

Great to see you here. Join our insightful photographic forum today and start tapping into a huge wealth of photographic knowledge. Completing our simple registration process will allow you to gain access to exclusive content, add your own topics and posts, share your work and connect with other members through your own private inbox! And don’t forget to say hi!

Leica S Leak

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Nice report David .pretty much all the stuff i wanted to hear and could use. it sounds very Phase like the back setup which I do like a lot. I also love the focusing slip differential and the setup with buttons for on and off. Did not hear on mirror lockup though. Shutter lag as you mentioned sounded very good. Wonder if it comes with a hand strap ala DMR . Please bring that up to them. The DMR was the best hand strap EVER. Please relay that message. Tell Christian and Stefan and the rest of the gang hello from Jack and I and the GetDPI gang. Also I am ready to test one. LOL

Also if they can start a release date on all the products associated with the S2 so we can plan ahead.

Also relay this and this is a issue. We need to know service and replacement plans or this will not fly very well.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Excellent Blog info. The dual mirror cards is really good news. One center AF point is not.

On manual focus ... is there confirmation in the viewfinder like with Hassey and Mamiya?
 

Terry

New member
Thanks David,
I kept hitting refresh last night and finally think I may have gone to sleep before you. Well done with all of the info. While I don't see an S2 in my future (OK maybe used when the S3 comes out) it is nice to get a glimpse of the future platform. I love the look of the S2 and shrink down the same design for the R10 and the d700 that I said I could live with for a long time could even be history. I love the simplicity of my M8 and it seems like that continues to be the mentality. Use the same Maestro chip in a R10 and I bet it would be super speedy!
 

TRSmith

Subscriber Member
Excellent work David! We're lucky to have such an inquisitive and knowledgeable link to the show. Thank you.
 

cmb_

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Thank you David. A nice read.

- Ditto to what Guy asks, where is the mirror lockup? In Menu? I hope it is analogue like on the R9/DMR, it is one of my most loved features for ease of use.

- Marc, according to the Leica S2 site, manual focus is confirmed by an "electronic sharpness alert", hopefully they mean in the viewfinder.
 

cmb_

Subscriber & Workshop Member
David reports in his blog the Leica lens designer Peter Karbe believes the S lenses might be the best Leica has ever produced. If this is so then we are in for a real treat. Hopefully they can keep prices down because they are sharing components for the lenses.
 
Great report David. Thank you. You managed to capture a lot of info important to prospective users in your short time with the camera.

I do have one question although it may sound dumb. Since Leica introduced an entirely new format with the S2, why don't they simply designate the focal length of the lenses as a format specific focal length instead of a 35mm equivalent? Leica started from scratch with this format and the S2 lenses cannot be used on any other camera/format so it would make sense to break with tradition, reinforce the innovation of a new format, and designate the lenses specifically to the format. It is just a thought.

Mark
 

dfarkas

Workshop Member
Thanks to everyone who is following the blog and my time here at Photokina. Your positive comments are all appreciated and keep me blogging into the wee hours in leiu of sleep or food.

You've probably seen video now of Justin and Christian with the S2. You will notice that they are making a point to clear up as much confusion as possible regarding the still developing Phase deal. According to Christian this will all be sorted out shortly after the show. Just hang tight for now.

Mark, the focal length is just that. Medium format lenses are measured the same way 35mm or 4/3 system lenses are. Just divide the focal length by 1.25 to get the 35mm FF equiv. for S system lenses. So the 70 is a 56. The 35 is a 28. The 180 is 144. And the 120 macro is a 96.

Guy, the handstrap is already in the works. You know what a fan I am of the DMR hand strap. Of course I asked this yesterday.

Regarding the S&S: Leica hasn't released any details on this yet. I wouldn't even try to assume what the warranty is like or how they will handle pro support. What I do know is that the camera seems to be very robust and reliable. Christian just told me today that since the show started none of the 20 prototypes brought to show have frozen, failed, or freaked out. They are being handled by hundreds of people who have no qualms about taking the battery out while powered on, dismounting lenses, playing with every concievable menu option and custom button, etc. And not one has had a problem. And the camera still has 8-9 more months of development. This is a seriously solid product and Leica deserves some credit.

Remember, Leica didn't design all the internals of the M8 - Jenoptik played a very large role in this. The blame for initial sensor board issues, sudden death, etc. don't rest solely on Leica's shoulders, but an established MFDB company as well. I remember at PMA quite a few years ago playing with a prototype DMR just a few months before release. It was buggier than a roach motel. The back kept dying and had to be reset, the images were a joke, and it was super slow. Again, Imacon (an established MFDB manufacturer) designed the DMR. So, I see partnerships with two experienced MFDB companies producing cameras with issues. Then, I see a very stable (5 day old, to boot!) prototype designed and built 100% by Leica. Oh and not just one, but 20! All working perfectly. Let me say this again: give Leica some credit here. They've certainly earned it.

I spent a considerable amount of time today with Peter Karbe and you can tell he is super pleased with the S lens performance. He gets this smirk everytime he talks about them and can't stop saying how the new 120 APO macro blows away the 100 APO R macro and how Leica used every trick in the bag from exotic glass with anamolous partial dispersion, to floating elements, to brand new mechanics, etc. to put the S lenses in a whole new class. He also keeps muttering that they are so much better than the M lenses, half of which he designed himself! Leica is making a statement with their lenses, that is for sure.

I have to finish up my blog and get to bed early tonight.

Thanks again for all the support. I really appreciate it and will keep working hard to bring you guys the most in-depth info available.

David
 
Mark, the focal length is just that. Medium format lenses are measured the same way 35mm or 4/3 system lenses are. Just divide the focal length by 1.25 to get the 35mm FF equiv. for S system lenses. So the 70 is a 56. The 35 is a 28. The 180 is 144. And the 120 macro is a 96.
David, I understand focal length is a physical dimension. However, I figure nothing is sacred when you design a new photographic format system from the ground up. I guess that is too far outside the box. Thank you for the follow-up and additional info.
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Mark -- what exactly do you mean? A format specific focal length? As David said -- a 70mm lens is a 70mm lens no matter what format it is on. The format will dictate the angle of view, but not the focal length. A 70mm on the S2 will act like a normal lens.

David -- I wanted to ask you about Peter Karbe and the 75 lux -- you said he didn't like it...can you elaborate? I am not sure I can trust someone who doesn't like the 75 lux...
 
Stuart, perhaps a better way of stating it would be to ask why don't they label the lens with the effective focal length rather than the actual focal length. The actual focal length of a lens isn't so important when there are no other camera formats that can be used. in this case, the effective focal length is all that really matters. At least that is what I was thinking. Perhaps someone can enlighten me.
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Well, I guess the effective focal length only matters if you are used to shooting 35mm. If you are used to medium format, you read 70mm and think "that's a normal lens" you see a 180 and say, "ah, a portrait lens". Medium format shooters are used to this -- 35-45mm is a super wide, a 50mm is a wide, a 70-90 a normal, 120 is the standard macro, 150-180 are the standard portrait lenses.

Another reason is that effective focal length is nebulous concept -- if they later change the size of the sensor, they would need to relabel all the lenses and so on -- it just makes more sense to use the actual, physical focal length like every other format (4/3rds to 20x24).
 
P

pascal_meheut

Guest
Better than a 100 Apo Macro R or that the recent M lenses? I believe Peter Karbe of course but I'm just having a hard time imagining what can be better than "perfect" :eek:
 

bensonga

Well-known member
Looking at David's photos....the S2 looks to be about the size of a Pentax 67 (or a bit smaller), as best I can tell. Looks like a great camera.

If only Pentax had taken the 67 down this road.....

Gary Benson
Eagle River, Alaska
 

robmac

Well-known member
The lenses already have me wiping drool from my keyboard. Once again, great work David - some of the best info we've had from the show.
 
P

pascal_meheut

Guest
Looking at David's photos....the S2 looks to be about the size of a Pentax 67 (or a bit smaller), as best I can tell.
As it is not that bigger than a Nikon D700, I was under the impression it was much smaller than a Pentax 6x7.
 

gero

New member
David, It is grate that you talked to Peter Karbe; I would have so many questions to him. Do you think there is any possibility that he could assist in an optics workshop so that we can understand a bit more this lenses? or at least a one day conference with q&a?

I would also like to ask him if he thinks the S system could be made as a super platform for M,R,S and MS lenses?

I started a thread where I try to encourage it. I hope that you can take a look at it and maybe see what Mr. Kaber thinks of the idea.

http://www.l-camera-forum.com/leica...ame-arfika/64480-why-not-modular-like-s1.html

Thankyou for the blog and I hope to someday buy an S2 Modular System (DMS) from you as I once bought the DMR from you also.

Regards, Geronimo

PS: Guy & Jack, if we ever have this optics workshop I an the first in line.
 
Last edited:
Top