One Hour with a M8

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Nick De Marco

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Many thanks to all those who have given me helpful advice about whether to buy the M8. Before buying it I decided to take one out for a quick one hour test drive in rainy London today. I did not have enough time to really get used to it - but I liked it.

Here are some of the results: http://www.pbase.com/nickdemarco/one_hour_with_a_m8





I think I want to buy one and have more than one hour!
 
The focus is completely off Erik but I like it still. it's the Zeiss 25mm f2.8 ZM biogon. I like it and it gives me wide angle on the M8 so if I get an M8 I think I will use it a lot.
 
There is only one conclusion after testing it.
You will be buying it.

Can you not be smitten by it?
I was.


But I do miss film advance lever.
 
pizzahut88 said:
But I do miss film advance lever.
Click to expand...
My wife's rheumatologist is a classic well-to-do doctor Leica-buyer with an M6ttl (and a Ferrari, I'm told by one of his other patients). Whenever he picks up the M8 it is as if he develops a tic in his thumb; it looks for the wind-on of its own accord.

Maybe this is what we should all demand in an M9: sod the full frame, let's have a proper thumb wind for shutter-cocking.

Incdentally, Nick, I've had mine for 15 months and I still love it, though the IR/UV filters are ESSENTIAL for some subjects, especially concerts under artificial light, unless you want black clothes turning purple. The rest of the time, the IR/UV problem is trivial, in my book. Did you read my M8 review?

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/m8/m8.html

where you'll see a black/purple problem even after post-production work in the third shot (the teenage dancer with the long legs -- that should ensure a lot of hits...).

Cheers,

R.
 
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Roger Hicks said:
Maybe this is what we should all demand in an M9: sod the full frame, let's have a proper thumb wind for shutter-cocking. .... the IR/UV filters are ESSENTIAL for some subjects, especially concerts under artificial light, unless you want black clothes turning purple.
Click to expand...

Roger, I'd have to agree. I really would like manual shutter-cocking - and why not add in the potential for a Leicavit at the same time? Whether this is technically feasible is something else - winding on just for a shutter might just provide too much power - it would save the battery for its more essential work though.

Your comments on the purple clothes mirror my own experiences. Most of the time I can't remember whether I'm using UV for protection or IR/UV but if I'm shooting people I do try to ensure that I use the UV/IR as some clothing can become very purple. That said, this is not often a substantial issue for me unless a viewer is likely to actually realise that the clothing was black in the first place!
 
Thanks Roger

That is a very useful review indeed, and answers many of the questions I had, and some I should have had.

I was happy to see you got some good result with the CV 15mm. I have that lens, and under use it, but with the M8's cropped sensor I might need to use it more often now.

I like wide angle photography (more for people/street stuff than landscapes) and often like shooting with large apertures, so there are some problems I will have with the M8 and think I might need to spend on another lens or two as well. As well as the CV 15mm I have a Zeiss 25mm f2.8 (which I think will work well and be my my 35mm equiv) a 35mm Leica Summicron f2, a CV 40mm f1.4, 50mm Leica Summicron f2 and a 90mm Leica Elmar f2.8.

I think I will need at least one more fast wide angle lens, and although the Zeiss 18mm f4 is a very tempting lens it is not fast. And if I spend what it takes to get the M8 I am hardly going to afford another £1k or so for a good new Leica lens. So I'm interested in the 28mm CV f1.9. I have read good reviews of this lens and wondered if you had used it. I particularly like to know what it is like wide open, or on f2-f2.5, as this is where it would give me something the Zeiss 25mm does not. If it can come anywhere near to a Leica lens wide open I will get this one. I don't like what I have seen of the M8 at very high ISOs (I have been spoiled by my Canon 5D which looks great at 1500 ISO), I think 640 will be enough for me but I like low light photography so I really need to shoot with a fast wide lens.

Also interested to see what you said about the IR filters. When I tested the M8 yesterday I did not use any IR filter, as I was just seeing what it was like generally. You can tell this from this first photo of Len, the helpful bloke in the RG Lewis shop. His jacket was black. Now it is purple:



I'm also impressed by what you say about infra-red photography on the M8. I have dabbled on IR photography, using Leica film cameras last year. As you will know one of the most tricky things can be changing films without being anywhere near any light. I got some results I was very happy with using Kodak IR film and a very good red filter (rather than a true IR filter) - e.g.:



I have eperimented with digital infrared by using the IR filter in photoshop B&W convert, but it doesn't come close to fulm. I wonder how well you think the M8 squares up.If it can produce really good IR then this in itself would help sell it to me.

Finally, thanks for the advice regarding chipping. If I chipped all my current lenses I would spend enough to buy a new Leica lens. that is madness. I do like to have a record of my efix, but not that much! Perhaps if I find one lens I regularly use I will just have tha chipped. Did you feel that some lenses more than others (eg the 15mm CV) would benefit from chipping?

Oh and one more question Roger, I assume it is not possible to put an IR filter to stop blacks becoming puple on the CV 15mm lens because of its size?

Thanks again

Nick
 
Roger Hicks said:
IR/UV filters are ESSENTIAL for some subjects, especially concerts under artificial light, unless you want black clothes turning purple. The rest of the time, the IR/UV problem is trivial, in my book.
R.
Click to expand...
I am somewhat unhappy with daylight foliage greens without the UV/IR filter (enough to use the filter outdoors), especially landscape shots with "forest" in the distance comprising full range shadows to full illumination.
robert
 
Nick De Marco said:
I assume it is not possible to put an IR filter to stop blacks becoming puple on the CV 15mm lens because of its size?
Click to expand...
I am not Roger, but I have some experience with this.

I have had an M8 since November of '06 and I bought the CV 15mm at about the same time. Once the magenta problem came to the front, people started working together on the LUF and some solutions were found. I can now offer you two solutions for using the Leica 39mm IR cut filter. (Third option is do nothing and fix in post).

1. Wrap some clear packing tape around the outside of the filter. I cut it into very narrow strips and carefully wrapped it around. Push the filter into the CV 15mm hood being careful not to hit the glass. Try to keep it straight. (The downside of this is if you shoot a film rangefinder, too. This is not an on and off solution.)
Now you won't have magenta; you will have cyan corners. For that you can download a free program, http://sourceforge.net/projects/cornerfix/ or better yet, buy a type II LTM to M adapter from cameraquest and send it to John Milich. He will grind the pits. Use black and white nail polish to code according to the codes listed at www.digital-leica.com/lens-codes/index.html. The adapter is $55, John will mill it for $25, add shipping. (John also sells an adapter that is already milled.) Now you can set the M8 to a WATE 21mm in the menu that will automatically come up when you turn on the M8 when the coded CV15 is mounted. IR-lens detection must be set to ON.
Tim Issac sells a product through Popflash (M coder and D coder) that makes it easy to code the adapter with a marker. You might want to try that as another way to code the adapter.


or
2. Buy a hood manufactured by John Milich. He has worked hard on this solution. He is a small operation. You need to email him at jm@milich.com. He will send instructions on sending the money. Make sure that you include your contact info with your payment. He does this on the side and is not set up as a storefront. He has had several orders without any contact info according to a post that I read. He is usually pretty quick to send out the hood, if he has them made-up. If not, you will have to wait a week or two. This hood slips over the built-in hood. Make sure that you screw the 39 mm filter into the back of this hood (or it will vignette badly). Now cornerfix will be needed or the coded mount as explained above.

I have a hard time remembering to turn the menu item for lens detection and IR filter on and off. Make life easy and code any lens 35mm or under.
If you don't have a subscription to Reidreview.com, I would highly recommend it. It is a treasure-trove of M8, M lens, and other information.
Enjoy that M8, it sounds like you will be getting it soon.
 
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Congratulations Nick!

You will have much fun with your new M8!
It is without a doupt an incredible picture-taker!

Bully
 
Roger Hicks said:
My wife's rheumatologist is a classic well-to-do doctor Leica-buyer with an M6ttl (and a Ferrari, I'm told by one of his other patients). Whenever he picks up the M8 it is as if he develops a tic in his thumb; it looks for the wind-on of its own accord.

Maybe this is what we should all demand in an M9: sod the full frame, let's have a proper thumb wind for shutter-cocking.

Incdentally, Nick, I've had mine for 15 months and I still love it, though the IR/UV filters are ESSENTIAL for some subjects, especially concerts under artificial light, unless you want black clothes turning purple. The rest of the time, the IR/UV problem is trivial, in my book. Did you read my M8 review?

http://www.rogerandfrances.com/m8/m8.html

where you'll see a black/purple problem even after post-production work in the third shot (the teenage dancer with the long legs -- that should ensure a lot of hits...).

Cheers,

R.
Click to expand...

When the RD-1 came out I ridiculed the manual wind as a gimmick. Now, after nearly a year with the M8 I have to say I'd like one. I NEVER use the multi shot function and the energy used to wind on the shutter could be saved for longer battery life. Combine an upgraded quiet shutter with manual wind and you have an even closer approximation of the original M concept.

Dan
 
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