M8 from Tony

D

dont45

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Hi,
I just received my M8 from Tony at PopFlash. What a pleasure to deal with him!

I also received the lcd protector he suggested. Any suggestions about this? How to install? Should I install? I'm just concerned about the two-sided tape should I ever decide/need to remove it.

I've yet to shoot any pictures, but a quick read of the manual and playing with the camera I'm confused about usage of main menu and picture menu. For example, how do you 'quit' or back out of a setting. Do you just hit 'set' again, or is there a way to actually quit without making a change. I also never figured out how to get gracefully out of the picture menu. I'm sure this is all easy, but just my first impressions with playing last night. Buy the way, I've never been able to figure out any of the new gadgets, or even how to program my VCR for that matter.

What happens to picture view when in DNG mode? Does it perform a temp convert to jpeg? Just curious how it displays the DNG picture.

While I'm on a roll with newby questions, I'm also curious about your thoughts on a wide-angle. I had been planning on a 35/1.4 but now with the 1.33 ratio, I'm thinking I will go to an equivalent which I think is the 28. My interests and style tend toward longer lenses so I don't think I want wider the eq 35.

By the way, thanks to all the great users and info on this forum which behind the scenes for months has lead me to the m8 decision.

Don
 
Tony's amazing. Just got a lens from him; been looking for it for ages. He rocks.

Re: lenses--I have both the 35mm Summilux and the 28mm Cron. They both have their purposes, and you'll find people that like one or the other or both. They are by far my favorite lenses on the M8 and I'm not selling either. I almost never carry both. I like the way the 28 Summicron "draws" and its FOV seems more natural to me than the 35, but I just got the 28 Summicron and have been using it almost exclusively. I suspect I'll bounce between a 28/50 setup and a 35/75 setup.

So decide how wide you're comfortable working; no one else can decide that for you. If you don't know, I suggest trying the CV lenses--they're relatively inexpensive and can get you a lot of good experience in various focal lengths before deciding which Leica you want to buy. And many people, myself included, have decided the CVs are more than good enough!

Another approach is to determine your next lens purchase based on the lenses you currently have (you don't mention). If you have a 50, for example, a 28 would get you a better spread. If you shoot with a 24, a 28 seems a little close to me.

Re: settings--if your VCR is still blinking 12:00, I don't think I can help you with your M8. Actually, if you still have a VCR, my hat's off to you, sir. 🙂
 
dont45 said:
Hi,
[snipped]
I've yet to shoot any pictures, but a quick read of the manual and playing with the camera I'm confused about usage of main menu and picture menu. For example, how do you 'quit' or back out of a setting. Do you just hit 'set' again, or is there a way to actually quit without making a change. I also never figured out how to get gracefully out of the picture menu. I'm sure this is all easy, but just my first impressions with playing last night. Buy the way, I've never been able to figure out any of the new gadgets, or even how to program my VCR for that matter.

What happens to picture view when in DNG mode? Does it perform a temp convert to jpeg? Just curious how it displays the DNG picture.

[snipped]

Don
Click to expand...

Hiya,

OK, first, a deep breath... one of the nice things about the M8 is that you can use it much like the film Ms, despite the wants of dSLR users for more buttons and an LCD viewfinder.

To "back out" of the menu/play modes, just press the shutter, but not much!
While here, if you select "Delete", the rig enters a murderous state, with each press of the "Set" button deleting pics... SO, do not develop a "press 'Set' again" habit... again, you can press the shutter a bit to get out of delete mode, or press the "Delete" button again to exit this draconian "Destroy, Destroy, Destroy" mode.

All data displayed in "Play" mode is drawn from the TIFF thumbnail in the DNG, converted to JPEG(you'll come to /expect/ images in Play mode to present, then re-present to the LCD...) oh, and the DR of the LCD is just OK: imgs displayed on the LCD are much better when DNGs are converted/JPEGs from the card are loaded into your 'puter imaging app. Would suggest setting the "Auto Preview" to off... YMWV.

rgds,
Dave
 
The learning curve can be a bit steep with the M8, but in many regards it's the simplest digital I've ever owned.

Probably the most time consuming thing for me was learning how to get the most out of the RAW image in post as well as using the camera so as to maximize the quality of the original capture.

I think the 35mm Summicron is an outstanding lens on the M8. Well, it was my favorite until I acquired the 24mm Elmarit ASPH.

Even if your taste tends towards long lenses it would be a pity not to have the 15mm CV kicking around your bag.
 
To step out of a menu w/o selection, simply press the menu button from any point. As for wide, I'm using the 28-cron'. Remember the 1.33 crop factor more closely matches the 35mm on film cameras. Mind you, I'm also new, but what the hell.
Regards,🙄
 
I have been dealing with Tony for years. he is always a pleasure to deal with.

The big learning curve for me has been digital processing. Don't waste you time shooting your M8 in jpg. Shoot RAW (DNG) only and force yourself to learn how to process your images. It takes some time and patience, but it will pay off.

It took me about a month to determine my M film bodies were obsolete.
 
thanks!

thanks!

Thanks for a good start. Here's my first attempt at raw processing with Capture One beta on the mac. It looks great (the tool) but I can see I've got tons to learn.
 

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Don,
I'm not sure what screen protector you are talking about. It shouldn't be sticky. You just peel it off of the backing and use a piece of cardboard (usually included) to smooth it down. It will last for a long time if you get it on correctly. I usually lay mine over the M8 screen and see how it fits. If any is going to hang over, trim it off with a scissors. It is better to have it a little smaller than larger than the actual screen. Start one edge loose and apply it down. Try to aim it so that it is parallel and going down straight. They don't hold as well if you pull them up and start again. I use Screen Patronus. If you are talking about another type of screen protector (glass one), then ignore what I have said and ask the question again with the brand stated. Someone has probably tried it and will chime in.
Consider the 28 Cron ASPH. It lives on my M8 most of the time. If cost is a factor, the CV lenses are all very nice. You might subscribe to a paid site: ReidReviews.com. Sean Reid has reviews for most of the M lenses that you might be contemplating. ($34 or thereabouts...worth every penny)
Good luck with your new M8.
--Cindy
 
Yes, I mentioned that. I said if it is glass, ignore me😀 and ask for help-- but provide the name so people will know what your dealing with.
 
M8 Lenses

M8 Lenses

Hi Don your questions about menu use seem to have been answered so I'll address the "what lens to use" portion of your question. I own the CV 15, 21 Elmarit, the new 28 mm F2.8 Elmarit asph., the 35 Cron, 50 Elmar and the 90 Elmar. Between these lenses I find I use the 28 Elmarit Asph. the most because of it's 36.4 mm field of view. It is also extremely sharp, compact and one of the more "affordable" Leica lenses at around $1,500. Second would be my 21 which renders a 27.3 mm field of view. Mine is the non asph version which goes for around $1,200 on the used market. The new aspheric version requires a second mortgage on your home. To quantify what I use the optics for is scenic, landscape and travel photography, so if you are planning on another form of photography, such as portraiture then you might consider the new Summarits in the 50,75 or 90 range. For bang for the buck though I highly recommend the 28 mm F2.8 Elmarit unless you need the speed of the F2. Another thought would be to see if you can rent some lenses before you buy them. I have also had very pleasant dealings with Tony in the past. Hope this helps.
 
Thanks Everyone,
I appreciate all the help and info. As for the screen protector, it is a Giotto glass protector. I still have not tried to install it. The directions say it's attached with double-sided tape. I'm worried if I should ever want to take it off, or if it should be attached with a leak and should require cleaning how would I get it off.
I think my next lens will likely be a 28. Just not sure which one at this point, but I'm in no rush.
I've been playing with raw and discovered a couple of things I thought might be of interest. First, there is a new Capture One 4 beta which you can download and try for free from phaseone.com. I'm not sure, but I think the LE license will apply to ver 4 when it's released. Does anyone know for sure? I installed the mac version and I find it much easier to use than the LE version supplied with the m8. Their site has some mini how-to's which perked my interest. So far, I like it the best of all the raw workflows I've tried. You can also download adobe lightroom for free for a 30 day trial. My interest in this was peaked from the tutorials on rawworkflow.com. These videos on lightroom are free and great, even if you're not going to use lightroom, they provide lots of learning opportunities. Has anyone seen 'how to shot raw' from rawworkflow? Is it worth the $29?
 
Giotto LCD Cover

Giotto LCD Cover

Don't worry over the Giotto LCD cover if you need to remove it use a hair dryer to soften the glue and slide it off. I've removed a couple using that method and it works fine. Don't try to pull it off you'll likely break it. The Giotto is probably the best cover around but the black border around it does block a little of the screen but I only notice it in image review, it doesn't block the menu.
 
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