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Leica To Sell Lens Adapters - Pentax, Hassy and Mamiya on S2

Geoff

Well-known member
Misguided. What makes the S2 special, if anything, is the glass not the sensor. And now with the 645D being weatherproof, having better high iso results and selling at less than half the price (with a lot more available lenses)... what's the point unless you're looking to make the fashion statement that a red dot somehow sets you apart?
R.I.P Leica
WIth all due respect, horsefeathers. Broadening the range of usable lenses is in general always a positive move. Thats true for almost any platform. Think 4x5, Leica M or thread mounts, etc. This is even more so with the S2, with its presently limited lens selection.
 

Bob

Administrator
Staff member
It is all about utility.
Even the lowly bracket adds utility to a system and adapters do too.
I just don't see the point for much alarm or emotion or pronouncement of doom.:wtf:
-bob
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Either do I Bob, my point was I do hope they try and make these auto coupled. That would be very beneficial to the system if they can pull that off. The stop down road I have been through and it is tough. When I had my Canons I had a lot of Leica lenses and it just made more sense to buy a DMR for them and be coupled.

Okay back to football. LOL
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Either do I Bob, my point was I do hope they try and make these auto coupled. That would be very beneficial to the system if they can pull that off. The stop down road I have been through and it is tough. When I had my Canons I had a lot of Leica lenses and it just made more sense to buy a DMR for them and be coupled.

Okay back to football. LOL
It sounds like all the lenses that will have adapters are mechanical ... like the Hasselblad lenses are V lenses not HC = stop down metering and shooting.

There are a few legacy optics that would be cool to use ... like the Zeiss 110/2FE for some character ... and 40IF for resolving power. Don't know what the S2 lens factor would be ... 1.5X or what?

Been there, done that years ago ... it was a novelty, but grew old fast.

However, I could see a 503Cw or 203FE user getting a S2 body and using their existing lenses on a different form factor body ... I did that with my V gear ... used a Nikon D3X then Sony A900 as back up to my 203FE and digital back. But as I mentioned, it got old fast.

-Marc
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
Marc been sitting here thinking actually what lens with a aperture ring would be most useful here for a S2 owner in very wide and i can't think of any wider than 28mm. Hassy and Phase have nice 28mm but they are with no aperture ring. I can see the 110mm and maybe a couple shift lenses out there that would certainly help them. But I think this is somewhat limited and given the 6 micron sensor which is a little harder on the quality of glass in front of it. I know Phase does have a adapter for Hassy V lenses but not sure even how useful that is for Phase owners. Hassy has the same I believe for older V lenses . I guess one way to look at this regardless of what system if you are a V owner you can get into a S2 with some of your existing lenses and build from there. Which is good. Just be nice for a S2 owner to nab a Phase 28mm and use that until there 24mm came out but the 28mm has no aperture ring. Either way it could help some folks so I'm all for it just wish it could be auto coupled. If i was a S2 owner today some of the MF shift lenses could be a great option to get.
 

jduncan

Active member
But the point of the example isn't really about ISO as much as it is about how the definition of what is a professional standard can be vastly different depending on context and status of the photographer (or his aspiration to status) within the industry.
I agree in general terms. Both I will say some sports shooters are high end profetionals. I will say the same about Steve McCurry, even when I don't picture him with a crew. So is not just the level of the photographer It's the application.
The Leica S2 is expensive. Simply it is. It used to be very bad at tethering etc. But it has weather sealing, is compact, has high performance beautiful lenses, it works directly with adobe, etc.
 

Guy Mancuso

Administrator, Instructor
But what is a very good and what is a very bad tethering...?
In my experience anything longer than 2 seconds is a serious buzz kill to photographer and client on set. Worse it can destroy a whole shoot when working with people in front of the cam. as the flow and mood can get lost.
 

goesbang

Member
This is great news for people that want to upgrade to the Leica but don't have the funds switch over their entire system at once. Lens adapters afford them the opportunity to use their current lenses on the S2 body while waiting to get the funds together to upgrade to Leica lenses at a later date.




Most of the bashing has to do with a lack of understanding of the S2 in terms of use-value. When people don't understand how it can be used as a tool within certain professional contexts then the only thing they have to measure it by is it's associated cost, which of course makes little sense since they don't understand it's use-value in the first place.

The S2 is marketed as a camera made for professionals. Many of the features that a lower or mid-level shooter might consider to be professional might not be the same as what a higher-end shooter might consider professional quality and this leads to huge misunderstandings. A photographer's status or his ambition to achieve a certain status will often color his definition of a word and his opinion of camera features. That might be elitist, but it's also the reality and truth of the photo industry.

For example, a low-end shooter might consider high ISO a professional feature since he's forced to work with available light. But a photographer working with large budgets might consider high ISO a low quality feature since he has the capacity to light every scene with a crew. In this example, the low-end shooter might think that the S2 (in it's current form) isn't up to his definition of professional standards since the high ISO isn't useful for his work. Meanwhile, the higher-end photographer considers high ISO to be a feature that only lower-end photographers worry about. In fact, the high end shooter might actually consider reliance on high ISO to be a sign of low quality work that doesn't match his professional standard. I'm just using ISO as an example because it's one of the common criticisms encountered online in discussions about the S2. But the point of the example isn't really about ISO as much as it is about how the definition of what is a professional standard can be vastly different depending on context and status of the photographer (or his aspiration to status) within the industry.

Finally, someone who has the balls to say it like it is, thank you Mike.

The problems arise when people start taking marketing material at face value. Leica's marketing guys really had no choice but to position the S2 as a "serious professional camera". What were the alternatives - "frivoulous professional camera", "serious amateur camera", "specialist niche camera"??
You see the problem....

So, having gone out there with that positioning, they have some credibility issues when you look at the package and what it can actually deliver in terms of functionality, versatility, durability, availability, image quality, user friendliness, software maturity and a dozen other selection criteria that one might apply to a purchasing decision for a system in this price range. We are talking about a sum that will buy you a luxury car!

I am fortunate enough to fall into that category referred to as a "high-end professional". I have the client base and income stream to both justify and afford any camera system I choose. Over the course of my 25+ years as an international ad shooter, I have owned and relied on Rollei, Hasselblad, Sinar, Horseman, Canon, Nikon, Mamiya/Phase One, Fuji and Linhof products to make the images my clients pay for. Notice the absence of the Leica brand?

Despite the phenomenal quality of Leica products, the company has for decades been out of step with the needs of the majority of photographers. This aloofness has allowed them the luxury of being able to market "exclusive" niche product, and good luck to them. The problem arises when you release some exotic piece of glass, but it is so specialized that you expect to sell perhaps 50 units a year, you have to charge extraordinary amounts to recoup the development/manufacturing costs. This problem is magnified exponentially when you are talking about the R&D costs of developing MF product, especially if your elitist culture leads you down the road of developing your own sensor, a new "game changing" platform and a new range of lenses.

So, what do we have? A very cool camera with what by todays MF standards is a "middle of the road" sensor, a VERY limited range of lenses (and therefore system versatility), a dealer network who can't get their hands on stock to sell, a software system that can only be described as immature ("but it will improve with time" is not what I want to hear when I buy a camera system to gamble my livelihood on) and a strong reliance on the brand recognition to persuade me that all will be okay. Yeah, right!

What I'm saying is that despite the PR spin, this is a nice camera but NOT a serious pro contender. Before all the Leica fans start wailing, let me say that there are a few examples of pro use of this camera but is it a serious contender for the title of pro camera system, sorry, no. Can it ever be? Sure, if Leica can invest enough to round out the system, create a way to upgrade the sensor without having to buy a new camera each time, add heaps of useful lenses, etc. Barring evidence to the contrary, I doubt it.

One last thing - how many pros want to be tagged with the unspoken death-label that often goes through photographer's (and clients) minds when someone shows up with a Leica - (rich) Guy With Camera. EWWWWW!!!

So endeth the rant.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Finally, someone who has the balls to say it like it is, thank you Mike.

The problems arise when people start taking marketing material at face value. Leica's marketing guys really had no choice but to position the S2 as a "serious professional camera". What were the alternatives - "frivoulous professional camera", "serious amateur camera", "specialist niche camera"??
You see the problem....

So, having gone out there with that positioning, they have some credibility issues when you look at the package and what it can actually deliver in terms of functionality, versatility, durability, availability, image quality, user friendliness, software maturity and a dozen other selection criteria that one might apply to a purchasing decision for a system in this price range. We are talking about a sum that will buy you a luxury car!

I am fortunate enough to fall into that category referred to as a "high-end professional". I have the client base and income stream to both justify and afford any camera system I choose. Over the course of my 25+ years as an international ad shooter, I have owned and relied on Rollei, Hasselblad, Sinar, Horseman, Canon, Nikon, Mamiya/Phase One, Fuji and Linhof products to make the images my clients pay for. Notice the absence of the Leica brand?

Despite the phenomenal quality of Leica products, the company has for decades been out of step with the needs of the majority of photographers. This aloofness has allowed them the luxury of being able to market "exclusive" niche product, and good luck to them. The problem arises when you release some exotic piece of glass, but it is so specialized that you expect to sell perhaps 50 units a year, you have to charge extraordinary amounts to recoup the development/manufacturing costs. This problem is magnified exponentially when you are talking about the R&D costs of developing MF product, especially if your elitist culture leads you down the road of developing your own sensor, a new "game changing" platform and a new range of lenses.

So, what do we have? A very cool camera with what by todays MF standards is a "middle of the road" sensor, a VERY limited range of lenses (and therefore system versatility), a dealer network who can't get their hands on stock to sell, a software system that can only be described as immature ("but it will improve with time" is not what I want to hear when I buy a camera system to gamble my livelihood on) and a strong reliance on the brand recognition to persuade me that all will be okay. Yeah, right!

What I'm saying is that despite the PR spin, this is a nice camera but NOT a serious pro contender. Before all the Leica fans start wailing, let me say that there are a few examples of pro use of this camera but is it a serious contender for the title of pro camera system, sorry, no. Can it ever be? Sure, if Leica can invest enough to round out the system, create a way to upgrade the sensor without having to buy a new camera each time, add heaps of useful lenses, etc. Barring evidence to the contrary, I doubt it.

One last thing - how many pros want to be tagged with the unspoken death-label that often goes through photographer's (and clients) minds when someone shows up with a Leica - (rich) Guy With Camera. EWWWWW!!!

So endeth the rant.
Just read this. Interesting. I won't debate the Pro status of the S2 ... that is yet to be determined. That it is very expensive is not up for debate IMO. It just is.

While I shoot for money now, my actual long time career was as a Creative Director ... the ad agency art direction side was my way up that ladder. I've shot with oodles of professional photographers, some of the best there are ... virtually none of them used cutting edge MFD gear. Usually a generation or two behind the current so called "latest/greatest". Half the time I had better gear than they did :ROTFL:

It's true, Leica branded stuff was a rarity ... but not totally unheard of, at least for some smaller format stuff. Alan Kaplan out of NYC shot an editorial type spread Ad campaign for me on behalf of Unilever world-wide with a Leica R.

Of course Leica Ms aren't suited for most big commercial jobs, and there wouldn't be many Medium Format Leica shoots ... the camera didn't exist. It's new.

I attended a zillion still and motion shoots with my Leica M camera ... and not one director, cameraman, still photographer, tech person, lighting grip or PA said ... EWWWWW. On the contrary, often, the camera people told me stories of their own Leica experiences, and wanted to handle my digital Ms ... lots of respect ... oh, and BTW, not one client even knew what a Leica was. This is experience from hundreds of shoots all over the world. So, methinks you exaggerate.:)

-Marc
 

goesbang

Member
Mark, I was expecting a bite, but not one so polite nor well credentialled. Kudos to you!
I agree that top shooters are rarely equipped with bleeding edge gear. They are running businesses and ROI is one of the factors they keep an eye on. Generally, the update cycle on MF digital backs is 3-4 years, so one is only up to date that often. This can be exacerbated by the fact that photographers are generally a conservative lot and tend to stick to the tools they are comfortable with. C'est la vie. If anything, this tendency is going to make it even harder for Leica to legitimately make the case that the S2 is a full blooded pro outfit.
On the "EWWWWW" thing - Yes, perhaps I exaggerate, but remember, people are polite.....
 

Geoff

Well-known member
Its not reasonable for a camera with only a few lenses, expensive, and limited distribution to be seen as a "pro camera". That brings up images of 500C Hassy's available everywhere, a rentable stable in every town,and film backs all around. Those days are long gone, but the image of the rentable stable and some commonality in the pro-realm, not to mention their need for flexibility, durability and rentals, leave the S2 a bit off the scene. Maybe it could get there in Germany, or maybe in a town of two... but not too likely in the US.

OTOH, Leica isn't going to market this as a camera for rich amateurs. First, that's not a good sales pitch. So too, this camera is more than a trophy camera - its a really good piece of equipment. That its not on the cutting edge of the MP race isn't a really big deal: find another camera with its optical qualities, lightness, AF, and form factor. THere just aren't. And I'm not even a big fan of the camera, but these things stick out.

So Leica's got a bit of a connundrum: developed for pros, but selling to amateurs. Not enough lenses for the pro realm. The gear is good enough, but there just isn't enough market penetration (or reasonable costs) to make this more pro-likely.

The conundrum isn't just Leica's. in the car world - Lamborghini is a good model in a similar situation: based on racing state of the art, but never used for racing.... So it is possible to position yourself in one way for another market. But tricky.

Mike's post put the point into sharp focus: the issue of for whom and for what purpose was Leica aiming? That's a good point to be sure.
 

fotografz

Well-known member
Mark, I was expecting a bite, but not one so polite nor well credentialled. Kudos to you!
I agree that top shooters are rarely equipped with bleeding edge gear. They are running businesses and ROI is one of the factors they keep an eye on. Generally, the update cycle on MF digital backs is 3-4 years, so one is only up to date that often. This can be exacerbated by the fact that photographers are generally a conservative lot and tend to stick to the tools they are comfortable with. C'est la vie. If anything, this tendency is going to make it even harder for Leica to legitimately make the case that the S2 is a full blooded pro outfit.
On the "EWWWWW" thing - Yes, perhaps I exaggerate, but remember, people are polite.....
Not only polite ... I also was their almighty ad agency client :ROTFL: However, more than one top cinematographer bought a M8 or M9 once they handled mine on set. Some had dormant M lenses languishing in their vault, and didn't even know Leica made a digital M. Interest was mostly for their personal work, or to document a shoot.

A lot of these guys (still or motion) are less enamored of the cameras alone, but are elitist fanatics about the glass hanging off the camera ... that is where their respect for Leica was focused. Arri's with Zeiss made optics was common ... or Zeiss, Rodenstock, Schneider for table-top stills.

I specifically used a M on set to document my shoots and to grab stills for my client to use in presentations without being intrusive to the shooting process. I also used a M for many Pro shoots documenting a corporation's working environment ... clients like American Axel for example where I used a MFD kit and a Leica M.

If Leica gains any foothold in the Professional market it'll be due to the residual respect for their optics ... which will be slow going for Leica because most (not all) Pros are slow to adopt or change. If Leica didn't figure that into their long term plan, then they are in for a shock. However, I don't think Professional specifications are necessarily aimed at just professionals ... it's marketing 101;)

You know, and I know, that 40 meg MFD capture is more than enough for a vast majority of commercial work ... unless a Pro specializes, or is doing something special (in which case they usually rent).

I'd also agree with the poster above that pointed out the differences in terms of expectations between what an amateur thinks is Pro specifications are and what a pro thinks. 4800 w/s+ of high quality Profoto or Bron light and $10,000. worth of Parabolic light modifiers makes a big difference in ISO considerations. A herd of grips on set doesn't hurt either :ROTFL:

I can easily see the S2 in the hands of fashion shooters, editorial type shooters, and high-end environmental portrait shooters ... who are often more apt to be more open to new gear with price being no object if it enhances their specific shooting style. Time will tell.

-Marc
 
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