The M8 is wonderful thread

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Nick De Marco

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A little change from the normal 'my M8 is broken, died, is rubbish' type stuff

Just to say how happy I am to have my M8. I'm off to Cuba early tomorrow morning and as with all travelling taking photos will be my main activity. For once I don't have to pack a big bag with my heavy (and nice) 5D and lenses and then an m6 or something and separate lenses.

Just the M8, a RF film camera and 4 lenses to interchange between both cameras (Elmarit 21 and 28, Nocton 35 1.2 and 50 'cron) and I can already feel it will be so much more fun walking the streets of Cuba with my M8 than it would be witha great hunk of DSPR hanging round my neck.

Here's hoping I don't come back with a 'my M8 died in Cuba' thread

Ciao

Nick
 
Well.. I am happy to say that my M8 is at least back in the country and awaiting me.

Solms shipped it on Friday and it got here today.
Pretty speedy - although it was "finished and fixed and shipping had commenced" on June 13... this furthers my "little old man in a leather apron working by day light only in a turn of the century shoppe in the heart of Solms" Leica theory 😀

Hopefully new images shortly.

Cheers,
Dave
 
Nick, have a great trip! Gear sounds similar to what I took along in April to Malta and Sicily... M8, 21 Elmarit ASPH, 28 Summicron, 35 Biogon, and 50 Heliar Classic, but I only used the 28 and 35. Hard to know in advance what will be most useful.

The M8 performed beautifully, though I am noticing in some pics the effects of not using IR cut filters. I shot with care, as if using film, DNG+JPG, and never quite filled a 2Gb card in a day's shooting. Each evening I copied the day's pics to a laptop computer, using a card reader. I did carry a spare card and battery along each day but did not need them. I used the LCD only for menu choices, and rarely, so that saved battery power.

As usual I had my Canon ELPH Jr in a belt pouch and a few rolls of APS film for it, mostly for use on the plane & terminals.

I took Contax G2 gear last year when I went to the Caribbean, which worked out well too. Hope you bring back some memorable shots from Cuba!
 
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I've only had mine a week or so but I won't let that stop me from saying how good I think it is!

It has its problems/foibles like every camera but I've really enjoyed using it. Though I don't have any IR filters so I do notice alot more purple clothing....though maybe I just tend to photograph people who like wearing cheap man made fibres 😉

I do use a spare battery alot though I keep chimping to a minimum, maybe its swapping between JPG & RAW....maybe I should just get some IR filters afterall 🙂

Hope Cuba is/was a blast, I've haven't been yet but would love to go, maybe next year?
 
M8 - travel king

M8 - travel king

Rangefinder cameras are perfect for travel. When held in the shooting position they are the least intimidating then any DSLR available. One thing I do when traveling with a Leica M camera is put a peace of black tape over the red Leica dot. Doing this gives the impression of a standard point and shoot. Bill
 
I am not a professional

I am not a professional

Hi!

My name is Arne and I am not a professional. I use my camera for travel photography, dont go to war zones, and I make it a habit not to underexpose homogenuous surfaces at night. If I need to shot newspaper sheets from a distance I use a tripod.

I like my M8, it just works, and after the sw update and the filter, the WB-issue and the UW issue are almost gone.

The good thing is, that now I know that each failure is most probably my problem and not the camera's fault.

Cheers!

-a

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Nice photos adietich!!

Mine's back and working well so far!!!

Fred, you can break out the champagne now.. 😀

Cheers,
Dave
 

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Gear does not really matter - unless it gives something extra to the pictures of course...

Oddly enough, I really enjoy using the M8 with models in the studio! Its something about the size, and the viewfinder being in the corner. A lot of the time I fix focus & frame, and then peer out from behind the camera talking to them. And firing the shutter of course - makes for the most spontaneous poses!

Also it is just great not having to battle with autofocus and loads of menus...
 
adietrich said:
Hi!

My name is Arne and I am not a professional. I use my camera for travel photography, dont go to war zones, and I make it a habit not to underexpose homogenuous surfaces at night. If I need to shot newspaper sheets from a distance I use a tripod.

I like my M8, it just works, and after the sw update and the filter, the WB-issue and the UW issue are almost gone.
Click to expand...

Same here Arne. I would add, for the sake of the young-uns just beginning to travel to exotic places with a camera, that in the past I would come back from a trip with scads of exposed film, but gradually dawned on me that I'd seen most of the world through a little viewfinder, and spent more time noticing things on the light table than I had in person. Now I spend much more time looking with my eyes, smelling the smells, listening to the sounds, and trying to interact with the people and learn/experience their culture. The camera comes up to my eye much less often, and I have less volume of shots to show for it, but the experience is much richer. Although I've never been to Cuba (I know there are ways for us Americans to get there, but I'm chicken) I would love to go someday, and I think it would probably one of the places where I would want to be sure I wasn't putting the camera between myself and the experience.
 
Yes the M8 is wonderful. i have used it exclusively on my current documentary project and it is the best digital camera i have ever used:ParramattaRd002.jpg
 

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On Thursday I got back from a 3000+ mile motorcycle trip, cheerfully using my M8 (and MP) without problem. And my wife carried an M2 and Bessa-R2.

Sometimes I wonder how many people USE their M8s instead of whining about them. Sure, they're not perfect -- but if you don't like 'em, go aout and buy one of the dozens of competing digital RF cameras.

Cheers,

R.
 
For the kind of work i do it is theonly camera i can use:
 

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