I suppose I can offer my opinion on this... I sold my Nikon D700 kit for an M8 kit. My girlfriend owns the RD-1... so I guess you have both sides of the spectrum here!
First of all, I've never looked back and wished I had a DSLR after selling my M8, though my case might be different from yours. It's helluva lot lighter than the D7000, and the feeling you get from shooting one can't be replaced by any DSLR or Mirrorless Digital. If I want autofocus and macro capabilities, I use my X100. I rarely shoot telephoto, so it's not an issue.
People complain about the M8's high iso noise control... I've never found it to be an issue, but I suppose that's a matter of taste. I find that if you overexpose by at least half a stop when shooting at ISO1250 or higher, the noise is controllable. Here's a shot from my M8 at ISO1250 with the Zeiss 28 Biogon:
Not too bad right? You just gotta over expose a bit.
The M8's ergonomics aren't the best... I find it a pain to handle without some sort of thumb grip. I'm using the Thumbie from Steve Barnett. I've tried the Thumbs Up, but it's not for my hands.
It's menu system isn't the most efficient, but it's also not horrible. My main complain is that I need to go into a menu to change the ISO.
I find that the M8's viewfinder isn't that accurate... it shows framelines that are smaller than what the lens sees... but when has that ever been a big issue?
Onto the RD-1...
My girlfriend loves the RD-1... and absolutely hates the M8. I kinda like her RD-1 too, but I NEED the crop factor and build quality (my camera is often tossed around...) of my M8.
I love the ergonomics... it's comfortable in the hand. The advance lever provides a good stable grip. The controls are exactly like a film camera's, everything vital is mechanical. You only ever have to go into a menu to change the image quality (jpeg, raw).
It's image quality is great up until ISO1600, but at that point it gets a little too grainy for my taste.
It's viewfinder is big, bright, and clear. You manually select the framelines for each lens. The bonus is that it only shows one set of framelines, the draw back is that you're limited to only 28, 35, and 50... and you have to manually set it. I somewhat prefer the RD-1 viewfinder over the M8's because it's so uncluttered and big. The meter is harder to read than the M8's though.
My girlfriend's RD-1's screen just broke... it won't display a single thing. It's pretty much a digital film camera now... some say that it's for the best (the PERFECT digital rangefinder), some find it an annoyance. The swivel screen makes the conncetions inside a bit sketchy.
I think both cameras have things that are good and bad. The M8 has better build quality, a smaller crop factor, an easier to read meter, and more selection in framelines. The RD-1 has better ergonomics, is a bit lighter, has a bigger, brighter and less cluttered viewfinder, and if you love shooting with mechanical film cameras... then it's the closest you'll get in a digital camera. If you can try them both out before buying then do so.
And for those who think we're digital purists, we shoot a load of film as well. It's never a battle between digital and film for us two. Digital compliments the film, and vice versa. Some days you need/feel like shooting digital, some days film. Some jobs are better suited for one medium over the other. You have a Zeiss Ikon, and you have a 5D... you're set.
One thing my girlfriend and I can agree on is that we do not regret ditching our DSLRs for these cameras
🙂
