Has the M9 killed the Leica film camera?

Gautham, I agree that is definitely some of it. I think many people are shooting film Leicas and dealing with film only because they want to shoot rangefinders and can't afford the entry into digital rangefinders. Perhaps as M8 prices get lower over time, many will abandon film. Others, even here on RFF, have moved to DSLR's and 4/3 digital cameras.
 
Since a grand total of 20 M9s have been shipped to US dealers, I think not.

There are *always* a lot of Leica film cameras in the classifieds on RFF and on ebay. :)

Pickett Wilson said:
Just looking at the unsold Leica film cameras in the classifieds and on Ebay, despite some great prices.

Whats up with that? Have folks decided to buy those used M8's? Go for the M9's?
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Yes, but they usually also sale quickly if the prices are rational. M film Leicas are not really moving now, even at a good price.

I don't think it is the actual numbers of M9's sold that is driving this. I think it's just that the existence of the M9 has changed the dynamic.
 
The last few things I posted on RFF got little interest; whereas I never have any issue selling on ebay. Last noticeable dip I saw was last Oct/Nov, elections and economic debacle slowed things down quite a bit, but it picked up afterwards.
 
Strange thing for me is that prices for M8 have gone down a lot but on the other hand, prices for some film M Leicas gone up. I haven't seen any near mint M7 for < ~ $2.000 in the last 6 month or M6 for < $900. In Japan, at some places the price for used (!!) M4-2 (without box, papers and strap) have gone up to $1.400 compared to ~ $ 800 - 900 half a year ago.

Anyway, I keep using my film M(s). The price for a M9 is way to high for me and the M8 has the cropped sensor....
 
Pickett Wilson said:
I don't think it is the actual numbers of M9's sold that is driving this. I think it's just that the existence of the M9 has changed the dynamic.
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And so what? If you're a collector you might worry but as a shooter I don't. Maybe I'll get that .85 MP I want for fun work after all, in addition to the M9 I'm going to get for $ work.

The only people who need to worry are those who have bodies on shelves as an investment. Those of us who actually use them are coming into what might be a good time to buy.

Besides with all the griping about the awful high ISO abilities of the M9 I doubt they'll sell many, especially at $79K or whatever overpriced number they've put on it. It is a Leica after all, so only rich fondlers will ever use it.
 
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I think the M9 has introduced a blip with perhaps a few people looking to sell Ms to finance a M9 - their first digital M. That will pass and prices will stabilise somewhat lower than they were a year ago. That was nuts!
 
Hi.

Price of the M9 is steep. Here in Malaysia there are buyers for used Ms. There is also a resurgence in 135 and 120 format. I really doubt if the Analogue Ms will die out.

Rgds

Various Ms user since 1995
 
For most of us, I guess that the Leica M9 is just too expensive to buy for now.

It's good that the Leica M 35mm film bodies are still in demand although their prices have fallen a little bit from what I've noticed.
 
The film M's will be threatened when the M9's price tapers down to about sub $2k, just like the film M's... at least that's what I think :) What Leica should do is continue churning out firmware upgrades for both the M8 and M9 even if the M15 comes out... that will make digital M's a lifetime investment much like their film cameras.
 
On one of the Leica videos on LL the Leica chap said that M production is stable at around 12,000 bodies a year. As it has been for most of the last 50 years, apart from a brief blip in the early 2000s.

The film body production is split about 50-50 between MP and M7. Most of those are sold into Japan. The Yen is at a very high level against all currencies, so I would be surprised if the current price increase to most of us is significantly affecting their main market.

Also with the end of the M8 production and the introduction of the M9 I think we will see a lot of activity in the market as bodies change ownership from users to collectors. There is no particular indication that Leica is in any sort of trouble at the moment, certainly not in their M division, though the S camera will likely be a model that could sink the company if it bombs. There is no particular reason to expect it to though, as long as Leica can deliver the goods there are enough rich people or non-rich Leicaphiles to buy the products.
 
I think it's quite realistic that the introduction of the M9 would lead more people to sell their M7 or MP. Firstly, a lot of the rangefinder users who can more or less afford an M9 probably had the money to buy one of the more expensive M's in the past. The ones who only had the budget for an M6 surely aren't thinking about the M9.
It also makes sense that if you want to sell one of your film M's in order to fund a 7k camera you sell the most expensive one. If you reckon you will only shoot film occasionally it's better to have a $600 M2 sitting on the shelf instead of a $2k MP. I personally can relate to this as I hate having money sit on the shelf. If you're not using it it's better to sell for the moment and buy again at a later time. Most things are getting cheaper with time.
Last but not least there are probably some of the digital users who first entered the M system with the M8. They may have started with an M8 and have then added an M7 or MP to have a full frame option which they now don't need anymore.
 
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The M9 has little impact anywhere but on people wanting not to deal with film.

People wanting to deal with film do not want any M8 or M9.

If I got an M9 as a gift, I wouldn't even shoot it once, I'd sell it. That camera couldn't serve me well for what I use my digital equipment to work with it. Its is a very narrow market.

After the M9 or M10, things will remain the same in general...

Cheers,

Juan
 
I will be putting up my M8 here shortly for EUR 1850 net to me. Not selling to fund an M9, but to fund college tuition for the current year, following some glitches in the financial matrix. All boxes, extra battery, charger etc. Still under warranty, purchased new last March.

Keep a whether eye on the Classifieds to see shots from and with the M8 shortly.

An M3 and M5 will compensate for my loss at a daily basis. I'd rather sell the M8 than the brilliant M-Hexanon lenses I own.
 
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haha, the m9 is a far cry from a film leica. they won't be stopping production anytime soon. in your neck of the woods, digital may be the flavour of the month, but in other parts fo the world, film is still king.
 
Sigh. I think it might be a hard case to make to Fuji and Kodak that film is still king. Anywhere. The belief seems to be part of the myopia of those of us who still shoot film.
 
I know that film is no longer king. I've known for a long time. It is a better recording medium than a digital sensor in terms of absolute quality and choice. Digital is "immediate", film requires a wait.

I'd like an M9 or M8. I hate waiting to see if I got the shims right on a lens.
 
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