Comments

Thanks for the early posting, this is an excellent blog.

The system looks very, very promising. And we all thought Leica was moribund.

The LCD screen looks a little smallish by modern standards.

I've been around Leicas for over 30 years since I used to sneak them out of the case when my parents went out to dinner. I have waited, and been frustrated by the market mistakes that have been made by the multitude of it's owners.

But now, with Mr. Kaufmann at the helm, they have truly impressed me with the S2. He seems to be a man of his word in suiting with the tradition of the company he owns. I am so happy that he has a vision - and what a beautiful Leica! The S2.

I anxiously wait to read more, (and hopefully not have Heart attack when I hear the price) and I just as eagerly anticipate the R10. It seems Leica has been reborn - and that's all good!

The S2 will retail at around €20,000 (body-only), and is aimed primarily at fashion and commercial shooters who want medium format quality combined with a DSLR's speed and versatility.

This seems the answer to a maiden's prayer ..... BUT have Leica managed to get it all to perform as expected this time?

I am somewhat saddened to see that there is no waist-level finder option like with the Blad or the Rollei/Sinar/Leaf.

THAT is the sexiest camera I believe I have ever seen! What an unexpected surprise from Leica, not one industry insider I've read even hinted at this. Let's hope the R10 is just as sexy, and competitive in image quality AND price with Canon/Nikon/Sony/Pentax!

So it's got a shutter speed dial (?!) but no dedicated buttons for ISO, WB, shooting mode, Drive or AF modes, bracketing, exposure compensation...?

Yeah, there are four buttons around the LCD. And that funny switch (CS, FPS, Off - what is that? Some Leica thing?). But unless I'm missing something, this thing looks like a usability nightmare...

I think this camera will be bought by rich hobbyists and only the vainest, most egotistical "rock star" commercial/fashion photogs out there.

The Canon 1Ds3 is proven, has a lens lineup that is unmatched, period (and will certainly cost FAAAR less than the new Leica glass) and let's be honest - does the job pretty damn well.

I simply can't see the utility in purchasing this over an H3D-II or the new Sinar Hy6 system.

20,000 euros? You've got to be kidding.

I don't know who proved that the Canon lens line-up is not matching up against 1Ds MK3, I use the 1Ds cameras since it became available until now the 3rd generation. In deed, some lens start to show weakness, but many still perform beautifully, hundreds of shots everyday to stand by this statement. The 50/2.5 macro is a 20 years old EF lens and non "L" and still very good. Without a question, 1Ds MK3 is still hard to compare with medium format backs I also use - H3d39 and P45+ on Contax 645 (again, old Carl Zeiss lenses still works well with P45+), but the file is really clean and can go miles in post production work. 1Ds MK3 for what it is - a great camera itself. And I have no doubt the Leica S2 will be a fantastic camera, a previous R user and now M/M8 user, I have faith of what Leica can do and hope this is a new beginning of an exciting company and great optics.

The idea is really interesting, I use mostly medium format backs and with the 1Ds MK3 came out, I now use more often with 1Ds MK3 0 if it is enough for the job then it is enough. The S2 can be very good strategic move, only time can tell, I have hope time is at Leica's side.

Hi Jonathan as you say the Canon 1DS3 "does the job" pretty damn well although I may respectfully differ on your statement about Canon's lens line-up.

I will surely agree with you there are some great Canon lens especially when it comes to "primes" but Canon has got plenty to learn from others when it comes to wide angles especially on the zoom wide-angle side and this to the point that I know quite a few professional photographers using "rival makers" lenses with adapters when looking for "excellency". Canon is a great system to "do the job" and even more than just doing the job but if you ever used Leica lenses you know it's got more than just "doing the job"!!

Jonathan on Sept 23 5:29 AM wrote:

"The Canon 1Ds3 is proven, has a lens lineup that is unmatched, period (and will certainly cost FAAAR less than the new Leica glass) and let's be honest - does the job pretty damn well.

I simply can't see the utility in purchasing this over an H3D-II or the new Sinar Hy6 system."

I see Leica trying to break into an opportunity. Its reflected by the fact that FF DSLR and Medium format having a wide gap and that gap is now being exploited by Leica/Phase One with this S system.

I think its a smart move for them to carve out the one market that they can compete and compete well. Its not going to challenge the real Medium Format Digital nor can it out do the FF DSLR. I simply do not see that happening. But more like the old days when Mamiya and Pentax launching their 645 SLR ( when there were only 6x6 and 35mm ). There simply exist a middle ground that can be had.

But yet, there is little performance / technical / Specification that really tell how well or how limited the system would be. Let's just wait and see

Personally as a long time Leica owner / user, there is finally something that worth noting. And the one big question now is what would the R system be, and how would that fit in !?

"The Canon 1Ds3 is proven, has a lens lineup that is unmatched"

I agree with the first part of the sentence, but well, obviously you never used one of current Leica lenses (SLR or rangefinder), did you ?

If by "unmatched" you mean "quantity", you're probably right, but as far as image quality is concerned, for most of them they simply are not in the same league.

And the Canon that are good are not that cheaper : somehow they sacrifice pure image quality in the favour of practical aspects (stabilisation, autofocus, weight). And it may be indeed a good choice, as long as image quality is "good enough". But I've seen for instance comparisons of L 50/1 on 1DIII with an old Noctilux on an M8 (same crop factor). It was painful to look at the Canon pictures. I don't even want to imagine what it would look like compared to the new Noctilux.

The M8 is indeed aimed at rich hobbyists and rock stars, and not a really good camera for a majority of professionals. But I don't think that's the case with this S2.

Clement VAL: I don't think the Canon 50mm f/1 L is a great comparison to anyone else's quality; this is a well-known flawed lens that Canon have not sold for quite some time now. A fairer comparison would be the newer f/1.2 L that is in the current lineup. A super-wide aperture normal lens is a specialist item in any case, not a general photographic tool; I wouldn't carry a Noctilux, even the new one, unless I was intending to shoot it wide open and had a real need for that.

Holy BAD DOF scales on those wide angle lenses, Batman. They must have some magical DOF preview implemented. And if you think the camera's expensive, wait till you see how much the lenses cost.

I think I'll hold out for the S1 'Pro' model, or better yet, the forthcoming Pentax 645 digital, which will be about 1/6t the cost of this.

Thanks,

Cameron

These seem not to be photographs but CAD-prints.

Which makes me think that the real photo's (not these CAD drawings) may prove to have a bit more detail.

The S2 lokks great, and it is an innovation with its big sensor, but I still have no digital solution for the nine Leica R lenses I own. My work-around has been to mount them on a Canon body with an adaptor, but it's fiddly. Come on Leica (or Cosina or somebody).

The S2 looks to be a great 'successor' to the existing S1. However, it is not yet released and the traditional medium format marques will be quick to get a comparable digital unit to market. I am sure the S2 will eventually establish itself but it will be a niche attraction.

Current R-camera users waited patiently for the DMR which is a marvellous stop-gap until a full-frame digital-R is (we hope) released. While we wait for this, current R-camera users will continue to be tempted over to the Nikon and Canon stables where market-leading progress is the norm. Sony, a new player in the pro-camera sector, have a goal to overtake both Nikon and Canon on those three qualities of Quality-Price-Time* and will be bringing out a stunning piece of kit in the very near future - watch this space!

* time between tehnological advance and its incorporation into the product range

I have 3 Lieca cameras ( M8, MP, M7). I love your equipment but recently purchased a Nikon D700 with the three dedicated full format lenses. The reason I switched is you don't offer zoom lenses. I'd rather have the S2, even though expensive, but I like zoom lenses. As good as your lens makers are I would think they would develop some zoom lenses.

Regards,

Ron Hubbard

20K Euros for this camera?

Steep price to play against quite capable Rolloies and Mamayis...

Styling wise it's designed as a hip pocket street shooter... Which makes me wonder why the intended audience will shoot it mated to synchronized lights and tightly controlled studio conditions. Let this thing run wild! I say. Available light is what this camera screams to capture for those enormous commercial serendipity shots.

Can it do double duty as a landscape camera? An architectural camera? A museum camera? For $30K USD it ought to....

A bit of scanning equipment and some extra time on your hands will bring you close to this resolution if you shoot 4X6 or greater with a Rollei or Mamayi film kit. And that's for one quarter to one tenth the price. If you're shooting RAW (which you obviously are).

So I am confused.

I love these cameras -- the build, the feel, the specs, the lenses.... but are they really 10 TIMES better in terms of price? Than my Nikon D2Hs / D200 / Leica DIGIUX-2 / Canon 200SD ?..... Like is the photo better?

My D2Hs Is head and shoulders over all my other cameras, but the D200 still has a winning hand in low-light with the built in speedlght. I like to compare my D50 to the D200 in those conditions and love how the D50 pulls all the great characteristics into a shot I need without any intervention shooting on RAW.

We'll see how the Leica can stand up to the Big Boys all wearing identical 18-200 DX G ED 1:3.5-5.6 ED AF-S VRII lenses.