Leica M8.2 Questions

[rpilottx]

I got a used M8.2 today and have a few questions. Now I feel really stupid but I have only used a Canon p&s before and the instruction manual did not come with the camera (it is on the way from Leica).

It took me awhile but I finally figured out how to access the picture parameter menu. Am I correct that the camera will not shoot black and white in raw but must be in JPEG? And that things like saturation, contrast, and sharpening are only for JPEG? Thanks, Rich

 

[Beemermark]

You can get a copy of the manual from the Leica web site -
http://us.leica-camera.com/service/downloads/rangefinder_cameras/m8/index.html

that things like saturation, contrast, and sharpening are only for JPEG - true enough, raw files (DNG) are to manipulated with software, like adobe.

And you can only shoot B&W in JPEG, which is cool. Turn on JPEG + DNG and you get both a B&W and Color photo. If you want to further manipulate the raw file you can convert it to B&W with software.

 

[efix]

Congratulations on your purchase!

Those parameters you mentioned are indeed only for JPEG pictures. As Beemermark said, the DNGs are to be manipulated in an external software like Lightroom. They contain the (more or less) raw data from the sensor, whereas the JPEG files are already "developed".

Mind that the M8's JPEG engine isn't very good, so shooting DNG and developing later is to be preferred if you want the full image quality the M8 has to offer.