sell rd1 - buy m8 - end result?

[umcelinho]

I am satisfied with my R-D1 but still I consider getting an M8. RF coming out of alignment occasionally being the major one. Also, I tend to use it on AE all the time, as the speed wheel is kinda hard to move and the meter readings are not so intuitive as the M8's. Also, the thought of having 1/8000 or 1/4000 is really tempting. The 35mm framelines on the R-D1 lack the bottom line, which I find a bit annoying, on the M8 it feels better. Also, the M8 felt more natural, as I'm used to the M6. I find the thickness difference irrelevant.

Sadly, I'd have to keep the Summicron DR for the M6 only.

 

[menos]

... I do like the gritty aspects of the files. I sometimes also shoot down to -3 stops (either 1250 or 2500) and push it on computer and eventually have an acceptable results (like a 3200 bw or a pushed Tri-X on a M6); but never did that with the RD-1.

I do understand about the 667 ;->

I am veeery interested, how you tackle the awful banding of the M8 sensor at anything higher than ISO1250.

I still keep my R-D1, but very seldom use it, since I got a M8.2.

I love the M8.2 for it's handling much more similar to the M7 than the R-D1.

For me the perfect DRF would be a mix from Leica M9 + R-D1 + Nikon D3 😀

The files from the M8.2 are definitely better for cropping and printing big.
They are even sharper and more detailed, as the R-D1 files.
IR sensitivity doesn't bother me, as I shoot it almost exclusively for BW.
I like, that the DNGs are the same size, but give more resolution.

Both the R-D1 and M8.2 are almost useless, where pushed BW film or a Nikon D3 still shoots comfortably.
The R-D1 can be pushed more, than the M8, as the Leica starts early, to show strong banding in underexposed areas.
R-D1 files are more robust in this respect.

If EPSON would do a full frame R-D with improved rangefinder (love the precise Leica RF and the 1:1 EPSON viewfinder), I would think about getting one.

 

[jmarcus]

I'm planning on an M8.2 or and M9. Don't think I'll ever get rid of the R-D1s, it was my first great camera, other then a compact. Even friends have told me that I can't sell it for sentimental reasons.

 

[edwin_sn]

I sold my RD1 for an M8. The M8 is just about two weeks in my hands and i'm still learning its strengths and downsides. So far i'm a bit disappointed with the M8's inconsistent WB evening shots with artificial lighting. I have no problems with daylight. Hopefully when my IR/UV filters arrive i will not have problems with WB in my evening shots with the M8. iso1600 on the RD1 for me is a lot cleaner than the M8's 1250. I like the 1:1 viewfinder of the RD1 over the M8, its easier to compose with both eyes open with it. If the M8 was priced just say $200-300 over the RD1 i'd choose the M8 hands down. But since its almost double the price (used) i think the RD1 gets the best value for the money. For that matter for me owning an M8 is just a bragging right to have one. Of course its been just two weeks and without the IR filters on the M8, i hope getting to know its strength and weakness will improve my handling the camera. And eventually i'll learn to love it. I am looking for another RD1 though.

 

[porktaco]

funny... i just bought an rd-1. i thought about an m8/8.2 and bid on one (and lost), but in the end, what i hear about the rd-1 is that it might be flawed but people love it while the m 8/8.2 might be a "better" device but people find a lot of fault with the ones they own. i don't know if it's a function of heightened expectations, or of nitpickiness, or if one is really just better than the other but i'm happy - for now - with the choice i made.

now, if only an m9 would drop to under 2000....

 

[back alley]

rd1 or m8/8.2 sounds much like the proverbial crapshoot.
i think i would be more interested in the leicas if i wasn't so damn happy with the epson.
since i started shootng with the rd1 i 'think' i have become a better photographer (i'm sure much of that is due to the digital process of being able to come home and look at what i just shot).

 

[menos]

rd1 or m8/8.2 sounds much like the proverbial crapshoot.
i think i would be more interested in the leicas if i wasn't so damn happy with the epson.
since i started shootng with the rd1 i 'think' i have become a better photographer (i'm sure much of that is due to the digital process of being able to come home and look at what i just shot).

When I got my first RF - a Leica M6, it was an eye opening experience, veery different from the DSLRs.

When I then got the R-D1, I loved it - different, but great compared to the M6.
When I got the M8.2, I did have the feel of quality back (no leather peel, perfect RF alignment, that actually sticks, no lens wobble in the mount, no plastic doors, proper access to battery and card, much more easy zoom for focus check, …).

Although all these improvements were great, I had a hard, long time, to learn the M8.2.
Now, I would choose the M8.2 over the R-D1, if I had to.
It really is mainly the print quality, that differs quite a bit.
If you got struck by how sharp and detailed the R-D1 files look, compared to other digital cameras nowadays (I did), then you don't believe the even more detailed and sharp files of the Leica.

 

[Garfink]

I didn't sell my R-D1s when I brought my M8... I kept both for awhile, about a year ago when the M9 came out, I sold my M8 for the M9, but kept the R-D1s.

The M8 does produce better files, but the R-D1s gives you a more film like shooting experience, the photos are more than adequate for small prints and online display. So when the M9 came out, it obsoleted the M8, but the R-D1s shooting experience is still valid, so I kept it.

Some say the R-D1 brings out the signature of lens more than the M8/9... its not scientific, but I think its true.

 

[nakedcellist]

I just got an M8 and I am selling my R-D1. When I got the R-D1 I loved it, the handling with the dials and manual cocking, the display which can be folded away, it was really an analog experience and it was the first digital camera I really liked. However, now I have the m8, there are some things I did not like that much on the R-D1. Most importantly: the R-D1 feels a lot bigger and bulkier than an m8. Also, in terms of image quality, I am much happier with the black & white results from the m8, although I took some nice photos with the R-D1. And maybe I am not entirely immune to the snobism factor. In any case, neither camera is as good for me as a M6 with film, but the m8 seems to get closer. So I am selling my R-D1.

 

[Phil_F_NM]

I had two R-D1 bodies at a time. I bought one about 15 months ago and one last November. Right after I got the second one, one of the crappy soft brass strap lugs on the first one completely wore through using the stock strap rings. I called Steve's and got quoted over $400 for lug replacement and CLA. I wrote Epson about the availability of strap lugs and they said that they do not have parts available nor do they service the cameras any more. I was then referred to three businesses stateside, one of which has gone out of business. One of the other two is Steve's, and the third was DAG who told me directly he will no longer work on R-D1 bodies.

That did not inspire confidence in the product nor the company so I decided to move to the M8, one of the big reasons was parts availability and factory support sometime into the future.

The R-D1 was a nice camera. That ISO800 was great at night, but next to the M8 handling and files, the R-D1 pales in comparison. DNG's are so much nicer to use too.

Watch out for your strap lugs wearing through!

Phil Forrest

 

[-doomed-]

I'd like an R-D1 but have resolved that if I want a digital RF the best choice seems to be an M8 (more affordable than the M9 currently) .I came to the conclusion that I prefer the rangefinder over an SLR which I own and use. So off to saving for that M8 unless an R-D1 falls into my lap . Not to mention the strap lug issue, my lightly used R2A was starting to wear through as well.

 

[back alley]

i never hang my cameras by the lugs...grip plus wrist strap...and for those who missed it...i'm staying with the rd1.

 

[-doomed-]

Joe,
You have 2 of them and obviously love them,why wouldn't you? I'd take an R-d1 if I could grab one at a sub $800 range but I can't and I envy your owning 2 of them. I'm currently stashing away some cash for an M8 in the future. I figure at this point I've got all the lenses I want to use as well a some I'd probably sell to fund an M8 purchase.

Perhaps I'm just dumping my plan in your thread to get it out of my head as the R-D1 has that funky advance lever. That lever as goofy and out of place as it seems on a digital camera. A Digital RF is something looming on the horizon for me, I'd like a digital option that uses all my lenses in a format I enjoy using.

The DSLR for all it can do is a great tool, but I've become comfortable with the RF , no af , no zoom way of working things. The $50 ebay find canon 10D and 50/1.8 is useful,and does the job, but its not the same.

Sorry for venting it into this thread , the R-D1 is a neat camera since it is the only other Digital RF offering in a sea of M4/3 and DSLR's . I'd take either one if the price was right and the money was there. It turns out the money is never there when the price is.

 

[kermaier]

i never hang my cameras by the lugs...grip plus wrist strap...and for those who missed it...i'm staying with the rd1.

Hmm, I hang my R-D1s by one lug on a cross-body strap. Looks OK so far, but it sounds like I'm asking for trouble! Unfortunately, I really love this carrying method - I don't know how I ever used to hang a camera from my neck. A wrist strap + grip is great if all I'm doing is shooting, but that's rarely the case for me. Maybe I can save the lug by using a ring or other connector made of something other than chromes steel? Any ideas?

Oh, and I've been toying with the idea of an M8.2 or M9 for a while now. I test-drove an M9, and it's a great camera, with a really bright RF/VF - but I felt the R-D1's ergonomics and controls are superior. (And there's no place to hang my thumb! 😉 )

::Ari

 

[back alley]

ari, i also carry a bag to hold the camera(s) in when i am out. if i am not in shooting mode then the camera goes into the bag. i much prefer this to wearing a camera around my neck or on the shoulder.
btw, i just bought a new leather bag that i'm hoping to turn into a camera/ipad bag. it fits a body and small lens perfectly but the 28/1.9 makes a bulge.

 

[back alley]

hey jersey, i love the rd1 and sold some nice lenses to get the second body. i have always liked having 2 of the same bodies to shoot with.

if i were to move on, drf wise, it would be for the m9. i like the idea of having a 35mm lens that acts like a 35mm lens.
however barring a lotto win or inheritance i doubt the m9 will be sitting any time soon in my new leather bag.

 

[gekopaca]

I never tried M8 or M8.2 but I will change my R-D1 only for M9.
I love my RD1 for the cocking lever, the Epson analog dials, the flip screen (and nothing is similar with Leica D-cameras!)
M9 is a full-frame camera, that's why I will change my R-D1 for it.
Sure, R-D1 has some approximative operating, but I think it's the way with RF camera; if I want perfect technology operating I may own a big Canon DSLR ;-)

 

[menos]

One perspective, I want to add here, as the price point came up.
Given the usual price, even an old R-D1 beater goes still, an the respective M8 price, the R-D1 does not look so tempting TO ME anymore, as I have (and likely keep) a R-D1 and shoot mostly with an M8.2 now.

One thing, often missed in discussions about this or that DRF is really the accuracy of the focus mechanism.
The R-D1 indeed is less accurate or lets say it different: less ideal for very fast or/ and long glass (nobody can argue this, and i had my share of experience with my own sample and a wide mix of glass).
Just about every f1.4 lens + the 90 Cron and 135 APO Telyt, I use without issues is troublesome on the R-D1. You get your lucky hits, but reliable it is not.

I have screwed my 1959 35mm Summaron now on the R-D1, which makes for a wonderful snapshot combo - small, light, cute looking (is that a film camera - how cute that old thing, …) and plenty fast, even with the slow f3.5 lens.

Given this experience, I would not spring for another R-D1, if I would get a M8 for 400 − 500 EUR more.
If you plan, to use a 90 mm or longer lens or anything fast reliably, the R-D1 is a much lesser camera body, than the M8.

And, to repeat it: I still love my R-D1 - she is just unique ;-)

 

[morgan]

Maybe I'm lucky, but I've dragged my R-D1 all over the world and around town and it's been great. I've had no issues with mine. I pretty much use the 35/1.2, 35/1.7 and the cv15mm and have had no issues with focusing the 1.2 wide open. I'm seriously attached to this camera. I'm off to Belize tomorrow and I'm not bringing it (opting for the 7D and zooms for wildlife), and I just kind of sat there and held the R-D1 last night, it's the first trip in 3 years that it won't be coming along on. This body just begs to be used, it's just so natural (coming from film rangefinders).

I think I'll pickup an 8.2 (i'm going to skip the m8) in the next few years, but the R-D1 won't be sold.

 

[kalex]

I used R-D1 for about a year. It was pretty good camera, loved the image quality but hated that I had to cock the shutter every time 🙂 I forgot about it so many times. sold the camera as it was starting to give me problems. My patch moved on me, frame lines were a bit slanted. I switched to m4/3 but never got into it. then I found a good deal on M8 and so far love it. great image quality, DNG files, love the way it handles. only thing i miss from R-D1 is swivel screen. Would love to see it on the M8. It would save the screen from smudging 🙂