Comments on the new Leica Q3?

[bulevardi]

A friend of mine told me he is planning to buy a Q3 and he asked my opinion about his plan.
He actually already decided to buy it, 'cause the idea was already sticky in his mind and he seemed drooling too much, but nevertheless he asked my advise.

The guy is one of the most impatient people I know and mostly takes his iPhone and randomly shoots 30 snaps in a row and then directly asks everyone: "look what beautiful shots I made". Then you see some ordinary shots and nod "yeah, wonderful...".

He also has a DSLR from another brand and he says he never ever had taken any good photos with that, therefore he now wants a Leica, because he's already years fan of Leica, and now he's going to retire he wants to buy himself a gift.
He doesn't want a M or SL one because it needs to be compact...
I said: "well, why don't you stick with your iPhone?"

As I told you, he's impatient and he also don't want to do postprocessing on the computer later on, he wants to transfer it to his phone directly with bluetooth...

Anyways, I was looking to reviews and all info about the Q3 today... and it seems like it doesn't do so much better than competitors, such as the Fujifilm X100VI, which is 1/3 of the price...

Then I looked to the photos online of Q3-users and only saw ordinary photos that could have been taken by any other budget camera.
When I do an online search for photos made by a +€ 6000 camera, I expect to see at least stunning photos that convince me of beauty. Photos that radiate that they could not have been taken with a smartphone.

This review here is also very critique about lots of aspects:

The Leica Q3: A Beautiful Yet Questionable Camera

I’ve always been curious about what the "Q" in the Leica Q stands for. After some use, I’ve come to a conclusion: it stands for "Questionable." Don’t get me wrong—this is a beautiful and intriguing camera. However, there are several puzzling choices in its design and functionality that make it...

fstoppers.com

So I'm wondering what REALLY justifies this 6K-price tag? Is it just snobism?
Leica knows that people with too much money will just buy, and that's the reason why they sell their accessories expensive too, and not just add a protective cover/bag for free... I mean, for this price I would expect a bit extras, no?

 

[Godfrey]

If you're looking for people to justify Leica cameras and their prices, good luck. Leica cameras are excellent, the prices are what they are. Nothing forces a person to buy a Leica. Same for comparing the Q3 against other similar camera models ... None are all that much different from the others on spec and performance. There are differences, but I don't expect a reviewer who gets a camera and uses it for a few hours and then writes a "definitive review" about it will see the differences either.

It's probably not the best choice for an impatient person, nor is a Q3 all that much smaller/lighter than an M. It does have autofocus and comprehensive autoexposure, so is faster operating at the limit. It can make great photos straight out of the camera in JPEG format, but that's mostly up to the photographer.

 

[JohnGellings]

Just let your friend spend his money. What's the harm? Don't think with your wallet. Friends let friends live. He could go from being a horrible photographer to a pretty good one based on the right camera inspiring him. The tool sometimes gets you out of the house and interested in whatever you think life is. As far as the prices... well, I am all onboard with the M costing what it does. I don't want to buy one, but I get why. The Q is unique too even vs. Fuji. I can´t imagine being shocked and offended that a newly retired person wants to splurge a little. Remember cameras do not make photos, people do. Great photos are made by dedicated people who love photography (and sometimes even cameras). However, as with hobbies in general, your friend could suck forever and still really enjoy himself.

 

[boojum]

I bought the Q3 43 a while back despite not thinking I would. It arrived 25 November. It is the B+ student: really good but not perfect. The lens is good, the sensor is good, the software is good = good images. It is just that simple. It has had its software upgraded. Most of what ships new ships with "pretty good beta" software. If we waited for the companies to get it right we would all be dead.

So for the US$6K what do you get? A pretty good stills and a pretty good video. It is small, pretty light and works. I saw some comment that is has a slow start-up. So? My Ferrari* starts slowly, too. Drives just the same. ;o) You all know that Leica is the company I like to dislike. But they have hit a sweet spot with the Q, this Q3 43 is very nice. 100% auto or full manual and all in between. So for almost all of what you are going to shoot this is a camera to pack.

Konica used to advertise that the lens alone was worth the price. Q3 43, too. And if your eyes are failing, like mine, AF is nice. As always, YMMV.


*No, I do not have a Ferrari, I have a 15 year old Honda Fit and a 25 year old Honda Insight. The Citroën 2CV ran away with a sailor.

 

[bulevardi]

Just let your friend spend his money. What's the harm? Don't think with your wallet. Friends let friends live.

I know... but he asked me specifically because he knows I'm the photo guy in his friendzone to ask advise...
So I can't just send him away without my opinion.

What's the harm? Well, it's not just a camera of € 200, and if he regrets it a year later he will be knocking on my door: "YOU advised me to... YOU said it was a good camera,... "
I don't think with my wallet, I think with his...
And I'd love to keep him my friend, not my enemy ;-)

I know someone who is a specialist in economics and financial investments.
One day a friend asked him for financial advise... and now he regrets it because afterwards it turned out not to go the right direction and the friend lost a bunch of money.
He now says: "I never give anyone advise anymore."
I understand his way of thinking.

 

[JohnGellings]

What's the harm? Well, it's not just a camera of € 200, and if he regrets it a year later he will be knocking on my door: "YOU advised me to... YOU said it was a good camera,... "
I don't think with my wallet, I think with his...
And I'd love to keep him my friend, not my enemy ;-)

He'd be able to sell it with only a small loss though... and it is a great camera.

 

[boojum]

I know... but he asked me specifically because he knows I'm the photo guy in his friendzone to ask advise...
So I can't just send him away without my opinion.

What's the harm? Well, it's not just a camera of € 200, and if he regrets it a year later he will be knocking on my door: "YOU advised me to... YOU said it was a good camera,... "
I don't think with my wallet, I think with his...
And I'd love to keep him my friend, not my enemy ;-)

I know someone who is a specialist in economics and financial investments.
One day a friend asked him for financial advise... and now he regrets it because afterwards it turned out not to go the right direction and the friend lost a bunch of money.
He now says: "I never give anyone advise anymore."
I understand his way of thinking.

You were asked your opinion. If you offer it you offer an opinion. If the fellow who asked buys a camera and is unhappy with it whose fault is that? He made the decision. If he had taken you to the store and said, "Tell me what I should buy" it would be different. But that is not the case. Nobody wants to be responsible. Unless you held a gun to his head it is his to own. Sheesh.

 

[Godfrey]

I know... but he asked me specifically because he knows I'm the photo guy in his friendzone to ask advise...
So I can't just send him away without my opinion.

What's the harm? Well, it's not just a camera of € 200, and if he regrets it a year later he will be knocking on my door: "YOU advised me to... YOU said it was a good camera,... "
I don't think with my wallet, I think with his...
And I'd love to keep him my friend, not my enemy ;-)

I know someone who is a specialist in economics and financial investments.
One day a friend asked him for financial advise... and now he regrets it because afterwards it turned out not to go the right direction and the friend lost a bunch of money.
He now says: "I never give anyone advise anymore."
I understand his way of thinking.

The proper response to questions like this, posed from "friends", when you have no direct experience with the item in question, is something like...
"I don't know, but lots of folks I see on the photo forums seem to like it. It's a bit expensive... Up to you."
... putting the responsibility for the purchase directly where it belongs.

One of my friends bought a Leica Q2 Monochrom after he became frustrated with the Olympus Pen F digital he bought the year before. He just couldn't get the menus and options of the Olympus into his head, after a year of trying to understand and work with it. He learned the Q2M in two days and has made many lovely photos with it now. So it all depends ... The Q2M was four times the cost of the Olympus, but he is happy and is making photos he likes. What is that worth in dollars?

G

 

[boojum]

A quick question regarding JPG image size in the Q3 43. It has small, medium and large, large being 60MP. OK, tested images between medium and large. I have read that medium has better color, large has better detail. I am sure there are more sophisticated opinions, too. Has anyone else tested? What were the results? I know it is pretty much academic but I would like to know. Thanks.