time for a redesign

bugmenot said:
I want the M9 Titanium design becoming the new design for the new Leica M. It was modern, and it would fit nicely with the more towards live view, HD video capable CMOS sensor. Also, LED lit framelines are far better... And don't make the front look ugly.
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'Til the batteries go flat, and (as far as I recall) assuming you have no need for an accessory shoe. Have you TRIED the Titanium? I have. Underwhelmed' is the word that springs to mind.

Cheers,

R.
 
Roger Hicks said:
'Til the batteries go flat, and (as far as I recall) assuming you have no need for an accessory shoe. Have you TRIED the Titanium? I have. Underwhelmed' is the word that springs to mind.

Cheers,

R.
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M9 Titanium has a hotshoe. And if the batteries go flat, you won't be taking photographs anyway. It ain't a mechanical Lecia, eg. M3.

And if playing around with it using my SD card for an hour or so in a rich relative's house counts as 'trying', then I have tried it, and it was no more or less under or overwhelming as trying a regular M9, though I prefer the Titanium design.
 
bugmenot said:
M9 Titanium has a hotshoe. And if the batteries go flat, you won't be taking photographs anyway. It ain't a mechanical Lecia, eg. M3.

And if playing around with it using my SD card for an hour or so in a rich relative's house counts as 'trying', then I have tried it, and it was no more or less under or overwhelming as trying a regular M9, though I prefer the Titanium design.
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Presumably that cover slides out then? I have to admit I didn't check. The absence of strap lugs put me off, but not as much the fact that the framelines go out after a while, so you have to keep pressing the button to keep them lit. Which flattens the battery faster, which was my point. I MUCH prefer the 'cooking' M9.

Cheers,

R.
 
Well, I know there will probably be no more film M bodies but....I would have liked to see a built in diopter adjustment for the eyepiece, say from +1.5 to -3. That would have nice. Yes, I know there were diopter's you can buy but a $100 I think, like a lot of accessories sold for Leica, overpriced.
 
I don't think it would really work. In EVF times we could easily get same size, full frame, and a viewfinder which shows you anything you want, from a rangefinder feeling to a SRL feeling, plus fast autofocus and many frames per second but I think that people seeking that kind of camera are already looking at Japanese products. These days the main appeal of Leicas for many is exactly that they still look and feel like old film cameras. As for the old decision of Leitz to keep the same design for so long I believe it was just a byproduct of bad marketing. The M5 was better than the M4 but didn't sell. The R cameras were great but when fast AF come they didn't follow and could not sell based on optics alone. Studio cameras are there (one every 25 years or so) but few can afford them and in a fast changing time they keep their leadership in image quality for a much shorter time than it could have been in the film era.

GLF
 
giellaleafapmu said:
I don't think it would really work. In EVF times we could easily get same size, full frame, and a viewfinder which shows you anything you want, from a rangefinder feeling to a SRL feeling, plus fast autofocus and many frames per second but I think that people seeking that kind of camera are already looking at Japanese products. These days the main appeal of Leicas for many is exactly that they still look and feel like old film cameras. As for the old decision of Leitz to keep the same design for so long I believe it was just a byproduct of bad marketing. The M5 was better than the M4 but didn't sell. The R cameras were great but when fast AF come they didn't follow and could not sell based on optics alone. Studio cameras are there (one every 25 years or so) but few can afford them and in a fast changing time they keep their leadership in image quality for a much shorter time than it could have been in the film era.

GLF
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So... er... how are you defining 'better'? I know which I prefer.

Did you buy an M5 when they were new? I don't think I ever met anyone else who did.

Cheers,

R.
 
I can think of one design modification which IMO would make sense on any digital camera and that would be to replace the speed dial with a vertically running slider postioned just to the side of the screen i.e. readily thumbable. Maybe another one next to the first for exposure compensation as well. Whether or not that would look out of place on a digital M, I do not know.
 
Jockos said:
Far enough to be unreachable without changing my grip! For a digital M, the ideal position for me, would be a vertical wheel just in front of, or behind the shutter release. Compared to a film body, there should be space enough after removing the lever.
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Sounds like the CL.

I'm happy enough with the M staying the way it is, but if they could make an M9 as slim as an M4 I'd be happier.
 
Godfrey said:
Sounds like the CL.

I'm happy enough with the M staying the way it is, but if they could make an M9 as slim as an M4 I'd be happier.
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Had a look at pictures of the CL, and the shutter dial seems to be much improved indeed! Even better would be if it was integrated into the body instead of disrupting the lines of the chassis.
 
Jockos said:
Had a look at pictures of the CL, and the shutter dial seems to be much improved indeed! Even better would be if it was integrated into the body instead of disrupting the lines of the chassis.
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Shutter speed dials on the front of the body are great, I find. Enjoyed that on my CL, and like having twin dials, one for aperture, one for shutter speed, on the front of my Rollei 35T also.
 
how about if they made it so I could afford a new one

(and while I am resigned to the fact that I will never know the joy of purchasing a new Leica camera or lens, I am sure enjoying the heck out of all the "old design" stuff I have)
 
I would be very sad to see the overall look of the m line (both digital and film) change as it really does it for me, some internal changes within the m10 are coming and that doesnt bother me, in fact im excited but i feel that changing the classic look and form factor of the m would be a real mistake as to me its pretty perfect. This whole debate does remind me of the fantastic henry ford quote -

"if i had asked people what they wanted they would have said faster horses"

Anyway i cant see me losing sleep over a huge re-design a-la m5 as there is always the classic models to fall back on.
 
Were I given the opportunity, I'd place the shutter speed dial round the shutter release and projecting over the front of the top plate so that I could turn it with my index finger (R8 style, but similar to the M2's frame-counter in size and position), and perhaps use the old speed dial (in the smaller M3 size) for setting ISO; and I'd add a small thumb rest to the rear of the top plate to stand in for the missing wind-on lever.

But this could be why I'm a programmer rather than a Leica engineer.
 
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