LEICA Q - A vision to behold! PHOTOS Added!

[Dream Merchant]

SENSITIVE, FAST AND INTUITIVE:

LEICA Q - A pioneer by tradition

While the Leica Q has already been launched, and the SL takes precedence where the latest is concerned, let's have a closer look at the Leica Q, which I feel has not been explored very much here in ClubSNAP. Thanks to Leica Camera Asia Pacific for making the Q available for review, this is now a reality considering that the Leica Q is almost always back-ordered, and one member of a Leica group in Europe had to wait some six months before he could lay his hands on his Q!

Leica Camera AG, Wetzlar, presents the first of a new line of digital compact cameras. With a full-frame sensor and a particularly high-speed, classic focal length prime lens, the Leica Q stands out due to its fast and intuitive handling. Its Leica Summilux 28 mm f/1.7 ASPH. lens makes it ideal for available light situations and has an angle of view that reproduces scenes with natural perspectives and proportions. This makes it the perfect camera for street, architectural and landscape photography. In combination with a 24 MP, full-frame CMOS sensor precisely matched to its lens, the camera delivers richly detailed exposures with extremely low noise in optimum quality at ISO sensitivities up to 50,000. The Leica Q offers the greatest possible creative freedom for realising even the most demanding photographic ambitions, not least thanks to the practical option of switching between macro, automatic and manual focusing.

To ensure that the decisive moment is never missed, the Leica Q full-frame compact camera has the fastest autofocus in its class and offers almost real-time precision focusing. At the same time, its newly developed image processor from the Leica Maestro II family, specially adapted for use in the Leica Q, processes the data from the sensor at an enormous speed and delivers up to ten frames per second at full resolution. To permit reliable control of subject composition at this speed, the Leica Q also features an integrated viewfinder with a resolution of 3.68 MP. Even the finest details of every exposure are displayed without any perceptible lag as soon as the camera is brought up to the user’s eye.

The digital frame selector of the Leica Q offers even more creative opportunities – alternative subject framing can be selected at the press of a button. In addition to the focal length of 28 mm at full resolution, this function also offers the equivalent of shooting with 35 and 50 mm lenses. The corresponding frames are displayed in the viewfinder at the press of a button. In the same way as with a rangefinder camera, photographers can still see what is going on outside the bright-line frame and can react much faster to changes in and around the subject. The selected framing is preserved in the JPEG image files, while the RAW files in DNG format record the entire field captured by the 28 mm lens.

 

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The Leica Q also carries forward the Leica tradition of a reduction to the essentials in terms of its design. The seal of quality, ‘made in Germany’, guarantees that only the finest materials are employed in its construction to guarantee exceptional endurance. The top plate is machined from solid blocks of aluminium, the body is made of magnesium alloy, and all lettering and the markings on its setting dials are laser-engraved. The thumb rest on the back of the camera and the diamond pattern of its leathering ensure ideal grip and clearly illustrate that form and function still go hand in hand at Leica.

All functions of the Leica Q are clearly laid out and logically placed to guarantee perfect ergonomics. Its clear menu concept provides rapid access to all essential functions and also offers custom programming options: for instance, convenient definition of the autofocus limits by key control. Alternatively, the touchscreen can be used for focusing by eye, or the focusing point can be selected with a simple touch of a fingertip. In manual focusing mode, Live View offers two additional electronic focusing aids: Focus Peaking shows points in the subject that are sharply focused by coloured highlighting of edges, and Live View Zoom simultaneously lets the photographer check the sharply focused parts of the scene with up to sixfold magnification. With the Leica Q, photographers always have everything under perfect control, even without electronic aids. The two essential parameters for photography, the aperture and the shutter speed, can be read from the corresponding control elements and set – even when the camera is switched off.

The unusually high speed and unmistakable bokeh of the lens of the Leica Q also reveal their unique qualities when shooting in video mode. Video recorded in full HD with the Leica Q is indistinguishable from professional movie footage. Depending on the scene, users can choose between 30 and 60 full frames per second for video recording in MP4 format. An integrated wind-noise filter guarantees crystal-clear sound.

 

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The Leica Q features an integrated Wi-Fi module for wireless transmission of still pictures and video to other devices and remote control by WLAN from a smartphone or a tablet PC. The Leica Q app for these features can be downloaded free from the Leica website. In addition to remote release and display of the viewfinder image, the app also allows the setting of parameters like the aperture and shutter speed from the device employed.

Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom®, a professional digital workflow solution for Apple Mac® OS X and Microsoft Windows®, is also included in the Leica Q package. This digital image processing software offers a comprehensive range of functions for the management, processing and presentation of digital image data. Leica Q customers can download the software free from the Leica website after registering their camera.

An extensive range of technical equipment and premium bags and cases is also available for the Leica Q. These include an ever-ready case, a holster, a protector and a day bag (all manufactured exclusively for the Leica Q in finest black leather). The range also includes system bags in various sizes and styles, hand straps and carrying straps. The portfolio also includes technical equipment like the Leica SF 26 flash, a handgrip, table-top and travel tripods and a selection of ball heads (please visit www.leica-camera.com for details). Just like the camera, every item in the range of accessories and technical equipment for the Leica Q is functionally designed for easy handling and manufactured from only the finest materials to ensure versatility, reliability and a lifetime of use.


Product Leica Q (Typ 116)
For Technical Specifications, please go to http://en.leica-camera.com/Photography/Leica-Q/LEICA-Q/Downloads and scroll right to the bottom of the page


Coming up over the next few days will be a personal impression of the Leica Q, user experience in a local context and sample photos.

Please note that there will be little tech talk, and probably no technical charts, or technical reviews or comparison(s). You can find a wealth of those materials already on the internet.

Cheers!

 

[Dream Merchant]

I'm glad to present some photos for your viewing pleasure as I'm sure you have already waited for them for quite a bit. My apologies - reality and work intrude.

What do you think of when you think about the modern digital Leicas? Rich, smooth depth of colours, tack-sharp lens performance that you can only get from a Leica, and now, coupled with really convenient ease-of-use, and just about the best (to me, and I guess many others) 3.68 MP EVF and amazingly accurate and fast AF, the Leica Q is simply an absolute joy to behold, and use!

The opening photo pretty much sums up what I feel about the Leica Q.

Flexible, Versatile and after spending some time with it, most definitely very Likable!

While I haven't touched a Leica RF for quite awhile, when I got the Leica Q, the simple menu selections soon became an old, familiar friend in my mind, and it took me about 5 - 8 minutes to set the camera up to my preferences. 'Simple' does not mean anorexic. Quite the contrary, there's enough settings and adjustments to whet the appetite of a seasoned photographer, without being over-cumbersome, given the parameters of what the Leica Q was designed for. I think I may have mentioned something like this when I reviewed the M-9P. The back of the Leica Q features a simple array of buttons, with only one FN button, but also offers you 3 custom profiles for different situations.

Have a look at the earlier posts for a quick glance of the feature-rich capabilities of the Leica Q.

The form factor is simple, elegant and very much like Leica's newer top-of-the-line RFs, but smaller and lighter, even though the Leica Q is still built a like a tank. While not exactly a 'pocket' camera, it slips very easily into a small pouch bag, or remains comfortably slung over a shoulder. As you can see in the previous photos of the camera, the back of the Leica Q has a very thoughtful thumb recess that makes hand-holding it all day a breeze, even without additional grips.

Operation couldn't be any easier! The Leica Q may baffle Leica traditionalists, especially with the AF, EVF, optional touch-screen controls and a barrage of high-tech convenience features, one thing for sure is that even with the hefty price tag, Leica has a very successful camera, business-wise. And with the gorgeous CMOS full-frame sensor, the exemplary Leica Summilux 28 mm f/1.7 ASPH lens and Leica's Maestro II processor, even pushing the Leica Q shooting at 10FPS at full resolution is just a click away. Small hint: Use the new gen fastest cards you can find.

Personally, I use these settings the most: 1 point AF and focus, lock, recompose, with adjusting ISO and +/-EV provided by a dedicated dial on the top-deck. I also tried a bit of video recording, albeit more to test the stabilization capabilities, and generally walked around shooting as if I were an enthusiast. I didn't really try out tracking AF nor the Wi-Fi/NFC, but I did put the camera's stabilization capabilities to the max. Switching from AF to manual focus was very intuitive, with just a turn of the well-damped focusing ring, as is when switching from normal mode to Macro.

Here are the photos I took with the Leica Q. I hope you like them, and I'll keep comments to a minimum allowing the photos to speak for themselves.



To start, I had the pleasure of photographing some very experienced, and also very pretty Yoga ladies, both in their studio, and on location, sometimes using cafe props, and while I was at it, also some shots around the area.

Credits: @shademaya @pinkchampagne13

 

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ISO 400, 1/1600 f/4

ISO 400, 1/300, f/3.2

ISO 400, 1/100, f/5.6

ISO 400, 1/1600, f/2

ISO 100, 1/320, f/1.7

 

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ISO 100, 1/100, f/2.2

ISO 100, 1/800, f/1.7

ISO 800, 1/3200, f/2.8, MACRO Mode

ISO 800, 1/2000, f/1.7

 

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ISO 800, 1/160, f/2.8

ISO 400, 1/1500, f/1.7

ISO 400, 1/125, f/1.7

ISO 400, 1/2000, f/1.8

ISO 400, 1/160, f/1.7

 

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ISO 400, 1/250, f/5.6

ISO 1600, 1/30, f/2.8

ISO 1600, 1/125. f/2.8

 

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ISO 3200, 1/250, f/2.2

ISO 100, 12 secs, f/11

ISO 100, 10 secs, f/7.1

ISO 3200, 1/125, f/1.7

 

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ISO 800, 1/800, f/1.7

Ever try AF on a TRANSPARENT bubble? It's basically a no-go, so I switched instantly to manual focus,
EVF, magnified focusing and boy, that was fun!

ISO 6400, 1/160, f/1.8

ISO 6400, 1/160, f/1.8

ISO 6400, 1/160, f/1.8

ISO 6400, 1/125. f/1.8

 

[Dream Merchant]

ISO 100, 30 secs, f/14 Junk closest to camera is blur due to water movement.

ISO 3200, 1/100, f/1.7 Focus on guests.

I REALLY Love the manual focusing, and the EVF of the Leica Q!
Even with a scene this dark, where you do not want to use any sort of AF assist, the only way is to manual focus, but how do you do it with such a dark scene? And just to make it more challenging, let's shoot wide open for a nice OOF BG.
I focused on the guys shirt. Hang on ... what guy?

ISO 3200, 1/125, f/1.7

Close up of what I was focusing on. Believe me when I say it was crazy dark, but the Leica Q's EVF magnified made minced-meat out of manual focusing! This was closed-cropped from a 4x6, reduced and blown-up. The image in the 3.68 MP EVF was more crisp. You really have to try it out for yourself.

 

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Climbing Crocodile

ISO 200, 1/2000, f/1.7

Spot the SMILEY Face!

ISO 400, 1/800, f/1.7

ISO 400, 1/60, f/2.8

ISO 400, 1/1250, f/2.2 Focus on the center of the 2nd row of melons.

 

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Come into my lair, said the Scampi!

ISO 400, 1/1250, f/1.7

ISO 400, 1/640, f/1.7

ISO 400, 1/30, f/5.6

ISO 400, 1/3200, f/1.7 Love the responsiveness and speed of the AF, even on single shot and single AF point of the Leica Q.

 

[Dream Merchant]

ISO 1600, 1/160, f/1.8

ISO 3200, 1/125, f/2.8

ISO 800, 1/60, f/2.0

ISO 3200, 1/25, f/2.8

 

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ISO 1600, 1/640, f/1.7 Focus on the string of lights.

I'm sorry guys, in case you're thinking of asking, the proprietor said this location is pretty much out of bounds to photographers.

ISO 800, 1/100, f/1.8

ISO 800, 1/80, f/5

ISO 800, 1/100, f/2.8

ISO 800, 1/200, f/2.2

 

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I skipped lower ISO as they were basically very clean from 100 up, so I started out at 3200. How useful could 12,500, 25,000 or even 50,000 ISO be? That is very subjective, as different folks have different technical requirements or tolerance to noise in photos. I also included a more edited and cleaned-up ISO 50,000 file for comparison.

 

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Please note that for all the ISO test files, the standard processing was applied, so any variances could be due to slight changes in light conditions, and camera response.

With Neat Image 50% NR

 

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One of the fun things that can expand a photographer's horizon is the ability to do high-speed sycn, even in daylight.

Here are a few examples. One was a yoga shot which I did in the middle of the afternoon, and gelled a CTO on a flash. I might have been able to sync higher than 1/1000 if I had the high-speed triggers. Think Zack Arias and Joe McNally!

ISO 200, 1/500, f/5.6

Just another example - something fairly decent, but in all honesty, boring. But it was a faithful rendition of the scene.

ISO 400, 1/180, f/5.6

Let's turn a dreary, cloudy, sun-less afternoon into a dawn scene with the sun blasting on some ferns creeping along a tree trunk.

ISO 100, 1/1000, f/4

 

[Dream Merchant]

Last installment.

Let's move onto some night scenes over at Boat Quay. This time, no mechanical support - only hand-held.

Lets see how stable the Leica Q's OIS is under more extreme low-light circumstances. It helps that the camera is mirrorless, and the shutter is so smooth. I think I heard somewhere that it offers something like 2.5 stops. Does it work?

Moving ahead conservatively ...

ISO 400, 1/50, f/1.8 Off-hand.

ISO 200, 1/25, f/1.7 Let's do some flare tests. Appears to be fairly tightly controlled. This scene could have thrown less lenses off very badly. Off-hand.

 

[Dream Merchant]

While moving towards Fulleton Hotel, the Cavenagh Bridge seemed to beckon me to shoot low speeds. How low did I go?

ISO 200, 0.3 seconds, f/4 Holding off-hand, with lower body leaning against railing.

ISO 200, 1.3 seconds, f/8 Holding off-hand, with lower body leaning against railing.

ISO 200, 1.6 seconds, f/9 Holding off-hand, with lower body leaning against railing.

Not bad I must say. But but but can the Leica Q and I do more? Since I was there, I thought "why not!" At most, I'd only embarrass myself ... and besides, no one would see the results anyway! Lol!