Thread: So I sold my M7 and Summicron 50, now what?

Hi guys, my first thread here but I guess the title says it all. This week -after having owned them for many years- I sold my Leica M7 and Summicron 50 mm lens. My primary reason for doing so is that for the past year, I hardly ever used them anymore in this digital age. For me the time has finally come to say goodbye to film. It is not that I don't like the medium any longer, It's just that I don't see myself doing lots of darkroom work anymore within two or three years from now.

Where I live, it's getting harder and harder to acquire the films and chemicals I need and this will only get harder in years to come. I figured I'd still get some good money by selling it now instead of waiting for another few years and letting it collect dust. At least now I made one person really happy and I have some money to spend on a new camera.

I digital Leica is not an option for me, they're far too expensive IMHO, even the new X2. A DSLR or mirrorless system are no real options either, now that I have sold the M7, I am looking for something even more compact. Since I am used to compacts (having owned a Leica C2 and Olympus MJU II), I am looking for something similar. My main concerns when choosing a new camera are;

* excellent build quality
* excellent optics and IQ, preferably a non-zoom wide-angle to normal lens (28mm to about 50mm in terms of 35mm lenses).
* Largest possible sensor
* about 1000 USD at most

I have already narrowed my choices down to four compacts;

Fuji X10
Fuji X100
Sony RX 100
Ricoh GRD IV

What would be a wise choice? I remember visiting the Photokina in 2006 and being really impressed with the first Ricoh GRD so the GRD IV is really tempting.

Juergen

The Ricoh GRD4 is very nice, but of course a different focal length than 50mms. The Fuji X100 will be closest to using an optical VF. The RX-100 looks very impressive.

Hard choices.

Originally Posted by Juergen

My main concerns when choosing a new camera are;

* excellent build quality
* excellent optics and IQ, preferably a non-zoom wide-angle to normal lens (28mm to about 50mm in terms of 35mm lenses).
* Largest possible sensor
* about 1000 USD at most

Hi Juergen, all four of those are excellent choices. Based on your listed four primary concerns, the obvious choice is the Fuji X100 because it has the biggest sensor, excellent build, excellent optics and IQ, and a fixed focal length lens in the middle of your desired focal length range.

Here's how I would break it down according to your criteria

* excellent build quality

I haven't handled the Sony, but I imagine that all four cameras meet this criteria without difficulty

* excellent optics and IQ, preferably a non-zoom wide-angle to normal lens (28mm to about 50mm in terms of 35mm lenses).

The GRD and X100 both have terrific prime lenses. The X100 has better sensor IQ.

* Largest possible sensor

X100 > RX100 > X10 > GRD

* about 1000 USD at most

This is the only category where the X100 loses, only barely sneaking in below your price threshold with the current rebate.

From the camera's listed, only the X100 offers excellent optics and IQ on an absolute scale. On their relative scales, all the others on your list are great. However, as far as small cameras are concerned, Sony just changed the rules of the game with the RX100's huge sensor relative to its body size. This is why I'd not dump my money on an otherwise excellent Ricoh GRDIV. A GRDIII can be had for a bargain and is as good as the IV. Ignoring the USD1000 limit, I'd put the Fuji X100 and the Sony RX100 into my bag. Together, they tick all of your boxes.

The 50mm Summicron on the M7 gives you some really nice shallow depth of field, which the smaller sensor cameras will not be able to deliver. Also, the GRD IV is a 28mm equivalent, so if you want something longer and with less depth of field, the Fuji X100 is really your best choice from the options you gave.

The X10 is a wonderful little camera - I was shooting with it today and appreciating how nice it can be. But a 50mm Summicron it's not, and it won't come anywhere near it. I don't have a RX-100 so I can't make any comments from experience. The X100 is the most Leica-like of the lot, and will produce the best image quality from what I can see. The image quality of the X100 is almost legendary!

If you want the same focal length as your Leica then the X10 and RX100 are the only 2 cameras that will give you that. The X100 has a 23mm fixed lens which calculates to 34.5mm on film/full frame so is a little wider but with the APS-C sized sensor and f2 lens you can get decent depth of field plus the IQ is pretty stunning! I think it's more difficult to get decent DOF with the RX100 but I have only played with it and it did nothing for me although the IQ looks very good. The X10 is a nice camera but I found exposure to be a little odd at times.

Hello and welcome Juergen - all nice cameras (I own two of them) so good luck with your choice.

Originally Posted by Juergen

Hi guys, my first thread here but I guess the title says it all. This week -after having owned them for many years- I sold my Leica M7 and Summicron 50 mm lens. My primary reason for doing so is that for the past year, I hardly ever used them anymore in this digital age. For me the time has finally come to say goodbye to film. It is not that I don't like the medium any longer, It's just that I don't see myself doing lots of darkroom work anymore within two or three years from now.

Where I live, it's getting harder and harder to acquire the films and chemicals I need and this will only get harder in years to come. I figured I'd still get some good money by selling it now instead of waiting for another few years and letting it collect dust. At least now I made one person really happy and I have some money to spend on a new camera.

I digital Leica is not an option for me, they're far too expensive IMHO, even the new X2. A DSLR or mirrorless system are no real options either, now that I have sold the M7, I am looking for something even more compact. Since I am used to compacts (having owned a Leica C2 and Olympus MJU II), I am looking for something similar. My main concerns when choosing a new camera are;

* excellent build quality
* excellent optics and IQ, preferably a non-zoom wide-angle to normal lens (28mm to about 50mm in terms of 35mm lenses).
* Largest possible sensor
* about 1000 USD at most

I have already narrowed my choices down to four compacts;

Fuji X10
Fuji X100
Sony RX 100
Ricoh GRD IV

What would be a wise choice? I remember visiting the Photokina in 2006 and being really impressed with the first Ricoh GRD so the GRD IV is really tempting.

Juergen

Hi Jürgen,

I'd like to add a word of "warning." With your background, after years of using a relatively high end camera and lens, going for a small compact camera is not likely to work. I'll give you six months, after which you'll find yourself googling for something better, and trading that (serious or not) compact for something more versatile, probably a proper digital system camera. Been there, done that. ;)

As for the choices presented, of course it's a matter of taste and each of our personal preferences but, I for one wouldn't pick any of those, partly for the reason mentioned above. On the other hand, if those were the only cameras left in the world, I'd probably pick the Fuji X100.

So, I'd like to add a couple of new alternatives to your list, at least to check out before you buy anything.
Ricoh GXR
Sigma DP2 Merrill

Reasons being the specs you described above. GXR is one of the nicest "serious compacts" in design, but the user interface is clearly being designed by photographers, or at least engineers who actually shoot photos in their free time. Plus, it's actually a system camera, so when the inevitable urge to expand your digital camera system hits, you are all set. Not only do you got the 28mm and 50mm equivalents to choose from, with APS-C sensors, you also have the option to go for the Leica M lenses, if your old love will start showing signs of heating up again. You'll also get the Leica-esque sensor with no low-pass filter, albeit a Sony one, which would make it close to the M8, sort of. You'll also have the option of using an electronic viewfinder, and not just the lcd screen in the back of the camera.

Sigma DP2 Merrill, on the other hand, is another very interesting pocket size compact camera. It's the only compact camera with a Foveon sensor. What's special about the sensor is a story a bit too long to be repeated here, but go and google it if necessary. It has a couple of principles common with the Fuji sensor, but it's not the same. Suffice to say it's one of the compacts which is capable of doing excellent IQ, no low-pass filter, no moire, and very nice film-like pictures. If it had a built-in EVF, it would be the ultimate fixed lens compact, going above the Fuji X100, at least in my list. You can of course add an optical finder, too, or use a loupe, like the Zaguto, Seagull, Hoodman etc.

Oh and if you're interested in the smaller Fuji X10, I'd recommed that you take a look at the blog of one of your fellow countryman, namely Frank Doorhof. He has been blogging about his experiences with it, even about studio shoots with it. :)
http://www.frankdoorhof.com/site/. com

Originally Posted by Ernie

Hi Jürgen,

I'd like to add a word of "warning." With your background, after years of using a relatively high end camera and lens, going for a small compact camera is not likely to work. I'll give you six months, after which you'll find yourself googling for something better, and trading that (serious or not) compact for something more versatile, probably a proper digital system camera. Been there, done that. ;)

As for the choices presented, of course it's a matter of taste and each of our personal preferences but, I for one wouldn't pick any of those, partly for the reason mentioned above. On the other hand, if those were the only cameras left in the world, I'd probably pick the Fuji X100.

So, I'd like to add a couple of new alternatives to your list, at least to check out before you buy anything.
Ricoh GXR
Sigma DP2 Merrill

Reasons being the specs you described above. GXR is one of the nicest "serious compacts" in design, but the user interface is clearly being designed by photographers, or at least engineers who actually shoot photos in their free time. Plus, it's actually a system camera, so when the inevitable urge to expand your digital camera system hits, you are all set. Not only do you got the 28mm and 50mm equivalents to choose from, with APS-C sensors, you also have the option to go for the Leica M lenses, if your old love will start showing signs of heating up again. You'll also get the Leica-esque sensor with no low-pass filter, albeit a Sony one, which would make it close to the M8, sort of. You'll also have the option of using an electronic viewfinder, and not just the lcd screen in the back of the camera.

Sigma DP2 Merrill, on the other hand, is another very interesting pocket size compact camera. It's the only compact camera with a Foveon sensor. What's special about the sensor is a story a bit too long to be repeated here, but go and google it if necessary. It has a couple of principles common with the Fuji sensor, but it's not the same. Suffice to say it's one of the compacts which is capable of doing excellent IQ, no low-pass filter, no moire, and very nice film-like pictures. If it had a built-in EVF, it would be the ultimate fixed lens compact, going above the Fuji X100, at least in my list. You can of course add an optical finder, too, or use a loupe, like the Zaguto, Seagull, Hoodman etc.

Oh and if you're interested in the smaller Fuji X10, I'd recommed that you take a look at the blog of one of your fellow countryman, namely Frank Doorhof. He has been blogging about his experiences with it, even about studio shoots with it. :)
Frank Doorhof. com

Thanks Ernie and everyone else for your replies so far. Ernie, I will definitely look up the Sigma and GXR. And you have point, going back from such a high-end system like the Leica M could prove to be a mistake. On the other hand, there has been many a moment in the past where I was quite happy shooting a small film compact instead of the Leica (which still is a heavier and larger camera inspite of what everyone says. A Leica M is not pocketable).

Whatever it's going to be, it will be a trade-off between IQ and size. As for now size is more important to me because it's also a fact that I sometimes just didn't take my Leica with me for it was still too large and heavy for the situation. And since I have always had a soft spot for those small compact with fast lenses, buying one just fells like the right thing to do now. I'll let you guys know as soon as I've made up my mind.

DP2-M info and pictures are hard to find, but they are starting to trickle in. It remains to be seen if that camera improves on previous DP2 weaknesses, but if they do it is a camera to be reckoned with. It's expensive though at $1000 out of the gate.

I'd throw the Olympus E-M5 into the mix too.