Leica M11





That’s it - I’ve seen the future. I’m selling everything so that I can buy a new £7500 Leica M11. I can then start saving for a lens.

Is it the 60mp sensor that swayed me? No, it’s the thumb support: 





And the auxiliary viewfinder: 



This is becoming a joke now. More likely it’s been a joke for a while and I’m just catching up. £230 for a thumb support? It’s just an overpriced excuse for a film advance lever, for Pete’s sake. Your friendly local 3D printer can probably knock one out for twenty quid. There’s even a 3D design for one free of charge on archive.org.

Leica always claimed they had the best viewfinders but now the one that’s built-in to a £7500 camera appears not to be good enough. If you don’t like the viewfinder in your rangefinder then why buy the camera in the first place? Was it just that the £7500 you spent wasn’t enough? Surely the clip on viewfinder (is it still made by EPSON?) isn’t for focal lengths not included in the rangefinder window? It can’t be - everyone knows Leica photographers only need one lens or two at a push.

A £7500 digital Leica is a mad purchase. The mechanical film Leicas can normally be fixed for decades should anything go wrong.

How long will Leica provide support in terms of small electrical bits and bobs for the M11 after it’s inevitably superceded? A few years? Unlike the film versions, digital Leicas aren’t investments: they’re write-offs.

1 comments:

  1. Have to agree - a rich man's toy - stunned me too when I saw the price. No doubt there'll be custom £500 Italian hand-stitched leather pyjamas for it too.

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