| beejaybee |
| (Marvin) |
| 01/03/2008 23:11 |
|
Re: Which Leica Full Frame First?? Poll
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Full-frame digital M could/should appear first: if it's a poor camera it'll destroy Leica almost overnight. If it's a good one almost every M-user will want one and most would probably buy one. Size is constrained only by the lens design (backfocus), and isnt' a critical matter.
Agree up to the last phrase. IMO Leica rangefinders are defined by their compact size and build quality. If the thing gets much bigger, why bother, go SLR instead.
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A digital-R should be the 'new R3' - that is a Canon-Leica collaboration.
Why? Does no-one except Canon have anything to contribute? (Spoken as a Canon user!)
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I want a full-frame digital M (FFDM) that renders satisfactory super-wide images with lenses from 28mm to 12mm.
Certainly the wide angle field is the area where rangefinders have traditionally been strongest - the short backfocus makes WA lenses much more compact than SLR fitting lenses of the same focal length can hope to be, whilst viewfinder parallax and DoF previewing become non-issues at short focal lengths. Unfortunately it's also the area in which the optical geometry will cause most difficulty with getting a full frame sensor to work well. I don't believe they are impossible to overcome, but whether funding will permit a solution before the market evaporates is very much more of an open question.
And, let's face it, the market will evaporate if the product is delayed much longer. Leica may be able to survive as a manufacturer of premium film-based cameras for a while yet, but the digital market is rapidly going elsewhere.
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A digital-R is a different ball-game: put bluntly what's the point? Is it just pandering to the vociferous minority, or is there really a viable market for yet another expensive pro-spec DSLR? I don't think so.
The market is not exactly awash with full frame DSLR models. In fact the current range across all manufacturers totals exactly three models. I think there may be room for another, especially if it was high quality and distinctive. Manual focus with conventional dial controls perhaps? Not everyone's cup of tea, granted, but the people who want auto everything are well catered for by current models.