Tomorrow: A full Leica M 240 Video Overview

March 1, 2013 First Looks, Leica 81

Leica-M-second-picture

Talk about excitement. My flu is 100% gone today AND finally, after months and months and months my Leica M 240 Pre-Order will be here tomorrow morning and the 1st thing I will do is make a full video overview sharing my 1st thoughts, the menu system, the new controls and of course the feel, speed, and the new live view aspect of the camera. I will be shooting it (and perfect timing as I am heading on a trip in a couple of weeks) non stop with what I feel is the best Leica lens made (well, tied with the 35 Lux FLE), the 50 Lux ASPH. So over the next few weeks look for my thoughts on this new Leica M 240 as I will be going over every little detail as well as starting a new Leica M 240 Daily Diary. A full review will be up eventually but I have to make sure it gets real use before I write that one up.

For those that have pre-ordered the new M, I have heard that Leica sent ONE to each USA dealer and there may not be anymore until April, but who knows what they will do. We may see more in March, but I really do not have any confirmation of anything. I do know there are quite a few who will be getting their new M over the next few days..those who were #1 on their dealers lists. I was #1 on Ken Hansen’s (email: khpny19@aol.com)  list so mine was overnighted today for tomorrow delivery and I CAN NOT WAIT! First thing I will do is put my new A&A strap on as I feel it is going to look super sweet on this new M. 🙂

Check back this weekend for more!

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81 Comments

  1. Sean Reid saw only a 1.3 ISO stop improvement over the M9. And said 3200 was the max usable ISO, while he put the MM max usable at the top 10,000 ISO. His samples showed chromatic noise at ISO 400. He didn’t note any particular dynamic range advantage. Edwin Puts said, people are expecting a quantuum leap with the M, but that’s just not the case. I’m not holding my breath.

    • That sounds like useful improvement to me. New sensors have been getting better, but gradually, and the old sensor wasn’t bad. Just limited by being a CCD. There was no way the new sensor was going to be anywhere near the sensitivity of the MM. Color filters absorb upwards of 60% of the light. Sensor improvements weren’t going to be as dramatic as that. Anyhow, I’m looking forward to seeing what people do with this handsome machine. I’ll never own one, so I’ll be enjoying vicariously.

  2. All agog here on Central European time where “to-morrow2 has already been to-day for a whole lot of hours!
    Always enjoy your Leica pieces, Steve. Ownership by proxy, I suppose! Your site gives a terrific amount of enjoyment and learning – for this reader at least. Thanks.

      • Velvet Underground’s song “I’m waiting for my man” comes to mind.

        “Here he comes, he’s all dressed in black
        PR shoes and a big straw hat
        He’s never early, he’s always late
        First thing you learn is you always gotta wait
        I’m waiting for my man ”

        😉

  6. I’d love to see a few shots side by side with the M9 using the 50 lux. (I really dislike Sean Reid’s UI and he won’t change it, so I won’t re-subscribe.) Besides, you take better photos anyway 🙂

  7. Christmas morning in March at the Huff household…Thrilled for you Steve! you work hard on your site and you have the patience of a saint with some of us….Thanks!!

  8. Hi Steve,
    has the M 240 arrived? I cant wait to get your initial impressions. I ordered mine in September and I will be really interested how it compare to my M9. Exciting times for all Leica aficionados!

  10. Oh no.. Here we go again with all the “I have GAS Steve, I can’t wait” “I need that camera” “I sold my crappy M9 to get a M”…

    Come on guys, there are no good tools, only good craftsman…

    So, if your photos are awful with a M9 or whatever, guess what : they’ll still be awful with the 240…

    Elementary my dear Watson !

    I really didin’t like what I’ve seen so far from the 240.

    It’s your turn Steve (finallly back on track), let’s see what this CMOS sensor can output.

    • Relax Kais….of course people are excited about the M240….this is a gear site what else would you expect:) I noticed you’re lurking here so obviously you’re interested too..

      • I didn’t know that Steve ordered the M, that’s the only reason for me to read this post.
        I just bought my Monochrom 2 weeks ago, so I have interest in “another CMOS camera”.

        It’s sad to say, but I think this is the end of an era for Leica…

        Would you buy a Defender with a V10 engine ? I don’t think so…

      • It’s a gear site? I must have been misreading when Steve lays out his reasons for running the site. Gear reviews/discussions are only a piece of this site. I like the “inspiration” aspect more.

  11. Congrats, Steve!!! You deserve to get the first shipment of the new Leica M. Guess what? We all can’t wait to read your evaluation of the new M. I am avid reader and visitor of your very informative website.Thanks for sharing your remarkable insights.

  12. Sigh…….enjoy the new fear, but more so the trip. Really looking forward to your thoughts about a camera/lens combo that would require me to sell one of my 3 motorcycles and thats just not an option, lol. But i’m not gonna lie…….thought about it more than once

  14. Hey Steve,

    Nothing really has been said about the video capabilities of this new M. Strange seeing that the video feature is one of the major changes in the new model. I am very curious to know what the video capabilities are compared to, say, the Canon 5D2 or 3. I am a film director and sometimes use the 5D2/3 for supplementary cutaways or inserts in video clips/commercials and this would be an interesting and not yet explored feature of the M for the many multimedia artists/documentary photographers/videographers that may be interested in the camera.I do not care so much for the video facility in my personal stills photography exploits, but would love to dump my all Canon gear once and for all in my professional (money earning) film making projects for one single M system seeing that I have many M lenses and MM M9 M9P bodies for my stills pursuits. Is there any chance that you can do a test or separate feature on this never before discussed or illustrated feature that the new M now offers.

    Sincerely
    Jorge

  15. I hope I didn’t offend you but I just posted a support post on LUF supporting your approach to reviews. The arrogance of some of that crowd is one thing that angers me. Any criticism of their toy results in a full on bashing of the criticizer as a person, photographer and human being. They assume that only people that can’t afford a Leica might say anything negative about the camera or the company.

    Frankly, if a luxury car company treated me as poorly as Leica treats some customers it would be the last car I would buy from them. The cracked sensors is a good example where many customers were and are still being made to wait for weeks and months for repairs. It would be like buying a new Mercedes and have the engine block crack and being told it wouldn’t be fixed for 6 to 8 weeks. No one would put up with that but Leica customers no only put p with that level of poor service but bash any customer that dares to complain about it.

    Sorry for the rant Steve, but the thread on you really pissed me off as it was an unjustified attack on your integrity. I have to say that even when I disagree with you, you appear to be a man of integrity and I respect that.

    John

    • Thanks John. I never go to the LUF..stay away and have since well before I started my site. Why? Well, I think many of us know why and I will leave it at that. Thanks for the kind words.

  18. Nice one!
    Please do a thorough comparison with the M Monochrom.
    I’m on the fence about which one to get…

    Cheers

    ET

    • Really??? You’re on the fence deciding if you need a M or a Monochrome??? They’re completely different cameras without completely different capabilities.

      • I want to see how the M renders B&W. I’d rather shoot monochrome but if the M can deliver BOTH, why not?

  19. Oh my, that looks absolutely stunning. I look forward to your reviews in the coming weeks. I’m not jealous, I’m not jealous…

  22. I hold one in my hands today at a dealer. Overall the extra weight and size dont bother me. It felt good and the electronic frames lines and the big screen are beautiful. But the camera looked more like an electronic device. It is the amount of buttons that I didn’t like. It is easier to use but visually I still prefer the simplicity of the M9P. Sadly I can’t have both. D!RK

  23. Congratulations! At least you’ll be able to do a thorough road test while we are waiting for them to arrive in Australia.

  27. Hi Steve!
    I admit, I am jealous…
    😀
    Wish you a pleasent time with your new “toy” and can’t await your first sight, first shots, review, pics…

  28. Steve, please talk about the shutter release feel and sound compared to M9 and M7 in your video. Glad you’re feeling better!

  29. Steve, you lucky. Can’t wait to see your opinion and your review. Please compare RX1 with M&35 Lux. I am so waiting for some one to do that comparison.

  30. Congratulations and good luck with the shipping!

    I tried to save paying tax by buying my M-E from out of state, instead of supporting my local dealer (same price, just with tax added on). The order was placed at a big big name dealer in NY, shipped UPS.
    The shipping box arrived crushed, they didn’t put enough packing material inside so the camera box too was crushed (and bouncing around loose). I could not believe that a pro shop would ship at $20 lens cap like this, let alone a $6000 camera!
    Yeah, the rangefinder was messed up, so back it went, money back, learned my lesson and bought locally.

    But… I am lucky enough to live in a place where I can buy this stuff locally. I’m just queasy now about trusting shipping companies with big ticket items, and I’ll never use UPS again (they had crushed another box a few days later, sent before I knew about the first one – this time it at least contained a non fragile item)

  31. Early bird get the worms.

    So the output is one per dealer per month. That will take years to fullfil the pre-orders.

  32. You lucky bastard. I’m looking forward to seeing your samples because thus far I am not too fond of any of the samples I have seen…even those from Ming Thein (who is a great photog btw). Can’t wait to see what you can do with the camera!! (no pressure:)

    • Clint: I agree! …and he’s been shooting almost exclusively with his RX1, so I’m dying to hear the comparisons.

      • Yes, I too can’t wait for the comparisons to the RX1. A new M is not in the budget right now but an RX1…..it’s tempting! I hope the new M is a runaway success if for no other reason than it will push the price of used M9’s even lower than the current $4000 mark.

  33. I wish I knew where I was on on the pre-order list, but I can’t imagine I will need to wait more than 2 months or so. I thought I got on the list pretty quickly.

    Steve, thank you for doing this please go over every little detail that you can think of. I’m very curious about 2 things related to the LiveView mode…. #1 how subtle focus peaking is and if it will work in low contrast situations? #2 is focus peaking reliable with very shallow dof… say the 50 Summilux ASPH at 1.4 and minimum focusing distance? #3 ming thein says you are limited to the center area only when live view is activated… I’m curious as to why and exactly how much of the center area are you able to scroll around in.

  34. Really looking forward to it. Especially with comparison the M9 in color presentation

  35. I’m glad you are feeling better Steve, and I hope the M240 lives up to all the hype. I think it may well be dissapointing to some as I feel the CMOS sensor will make it too similar to everything else. Picture wise that is.

        • I suggested to have three RF cameras to stay up in action. One active shooting, one backup and the other in shop for calibration.

          If the M 240 live up to the hype, then maybe two is enough. Since it has “live view” and “focus peaking”.

          • How badly do you treat your cameras!

            I can see a three camera set up – a Monochrom, an M or ME/ M9 and then an MP/M6/M3 for full mechanical, reliable, no power shooting as back up (in fact, don’t tell the girlfriend but I am looking to assemble this kit myself).

            But spending minimum 4k usd for a camera to always be in the shop…

    • Remember this guy HAS to plead poverty so he can have these cameras to review,it’s a fairly innocuous kind of deception that goes with the territory,..some find it easier than others.

      • I am sure he is speaking in relative terms. It is also what he does for a living and I am sure he can justify things most people normally wouldn’t. Kind of like buying a kick butt new Dually Diesel one ton work truck when a used half ton would do the job.

        • In the case of these websites the revenue is generated by poor joes like me buying in the sites name from amazon or b and h etc.If the website was considered wealthy less wealth would be generated.
          It’s just business but can feel like begging in some cases.

          • Begging? Who is begging? I could care less if you buy a Leica M. You buy what you like and use what you have. Your comments are a bit off my friend and believe me, this website and myself is FAR FAR FAR from wealthy. Not even close but it exists due to the passion of myself and many readers who submit their experiences and photos. It is for those who want to read about the new and interesting cameras coming out and I tell my experiences with all that I use. Many like to read about these experiences but no one EVER forces or makes you buy anything.

          • Don’t listen to jealous douchebags…Even if you are making good money from this site, you are the one that is making it happen, not them. If they don’t like what your doing, why are they on your site in the first place…Enjoy your new camera!

          • Far,far, far? Wow you must be hard up,……donation in the post,is $5 ok?
            I’ll be off now……relax….smile.

          • He must have thought he was over on DPR where I’m sure he’s the Village Idiot. Blew through here just to try and piss some Leica fans off. Sadistic prick…

          • That’s a lot of pretty rough remarks chasss, are you sure you’re on the right sort of forum?

  37. Wow, can’t wait to hear about your new M240. I’m afraid to call my dealer. I picked my M-Monochrom last Friday and I’m loving it. I told him then that you watch you will get the M240 new week and I just blew all my money. It is going to take some time to recover from my last visit. Good luck and keep us posted.

  43. Congratulations Steve! Can’t wait to see your review and thoughts on the new Leica M! Hopefully i will be getting mine in April.

  45. Congratulations Steve, Can’t wait for your review!!!! you’ve got to stay up all night to play with it! Cheers,

  46. Where do you live Steve?

    Exact address please and the times you won’t be at home?

    Just askin’ 🙂

    Can’t wait to see the reviews. I’m also on Ken’s list and it’s my birthday in April so April delivery would be just fine 🙂

    • You think he’ll be leaving the house without taking his M with him?! From what I know of Steve it’ll be glued to his hands for at least the next year!

      Or are you hoping he’ll neglect his RX1 or MM?

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