Q & A FROM ASK AN EXPERT

Leica users everywhere have questions about their cameras, lenses, software, and just about anything you can think of. What better place to find answers than here at LHSA ?

Our experts are of some of our most renowned members who are experts in their fields, as well as Leica camera professionals. Below are a variety of answers to your questions. Check back frequently to see new Q&A from our Ask an Expert page.  If you have a question for our panel of experts, click here.

Leica M

Leica M Street Shooting Tips from Bill Royce

• Assumptions: The subjects are not posing (candid shots), daylight conditions.

• Set your ISO to ensure you get a shutter speed at least 1/250s or higher.  For bright sun this needs to be at least ISO 400, since you may encounter shadows or open shade.

• With newer Leica M digital models, especially the Monochrom, noise is not an issue so don’t feel like you need to shoot at low ISOs.  Better to have a sharp image with a little noise compared to a blurry one with no noise!  When in doubt, use a higher ISO to get a good shutter speed

• For the 50mm lens, start with f/8 or f/11, to help reduce focus errors with a reasonably large depth of field.  Also initially set about 10 feet focus distance and try to shoot close to that distance.  Practice judging the correct distance.  This distance will nearly fill the frame with most subjects

• For the 35mm lens, set f/5.6 or f/8 and set approximately 8 feet focus distance, for the same reasons as above

• Remember, while walking around looking for subjects, the camera will go to sleep.  When approaching a shooting situation, a light tap on the shutter button will wake the camera up and permit a quick shot with no delay

• When street shooting, hold the camera in your hand so it is ready to bring up to your eye; anticipation is the key!

Leica SL

Brad,

My name is John. I’ve owned a Leica SL for about 18 months now, really like it, and have several of the SL lenses, including the 24-90, which is the first one I bought, and use the most. I’ve had intermittent problems for the past three months with the zoom function on this lens, occasionally “sticking”, but which until recently would correct with gently putting some traction on the end of the lens, after which I might not have problems for a couple of weeks. Also, I treat the equipment well, it has never been in challenging environmental conditions and has never been dropped.

At this time, however, it seems for the most part “locked”, with the inability to use the zoom function. I’ve read online about a few other folks having similar problems, and they’ve had to send the lens back to the factory in Germany, which they say can take weeks to months before they see their lens again.

I’m just asking what your advice would be at this point? Should I send it to the factory in Germany, and do you have any contact information for someone there that I could talk with? Is there someone here in the U.S. that is qualified to repair? Would the lens still be under a warranty (purchased July 30, 2018)?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

John

Hi John,

I am sorry to hear about your trouble with the lens. This is the first time I have heard of such a problem.

If you purchased the lens at an authorized dealer, it has a three-year warranty. Contact the dealer to arrange service, most likely in New Jersey at the Leica USA headquarters.

Best wishes,

Brad

Leica CL: Lenses

Hi,

My name is Camila and I am a photographer from Brasil, I usually sell my pictures framed in galleries.

All my pictures are from trips around the world. I am new in Leica’s word. I got an Leica CL because I thought it would be better for taking everywhere, its compact!!!

I have just one lense, the Leica Summicron-T 23mm f/2 ASPH Lens. I like the f very down (Sorry the English, I dont know how to say it) because I like to take pictures on sunsets.

Now I am looking for a zoom lenses. So, I can take picutres from the details and maybe some wildlife for my next trip. Could you help me with the best option?

Thank you!!!

Hope to hear from you soon, I will be in US next week and would love to buy it. 

Dear Camila,

Thank you for your email. Welcome to the International Leica Society and congratulations on your new Leica CL camera. It’s a superb machine. As you know, the 23 f/2 is a remarkable lens, and so compact.

The right choice for a zoom would be the 55-135 which is the equivalent of a 70-200 in 35mm frame. The maximum aperture is f/3.5 at the wide end and f/4.5 at telephoto, so it’s not like having an f/2.8 lens, but it’s tiny in comparison and much easier to travel with and handle. The image quality is superb and a professional friend of mine says it exceeds the quality of Canon or Nikon glass he has used. This is not surprising since it’s a Leica!

You’re coming to the US so I hope you will be coming to the LHSA Annual Meeting in Boston from October 17-20.

Best regards,

Brad Husick

LHSA “Ask an Expert”

CL: Live View, Long Exposures, Macro Work

Hi Brad,

Nice for you to offer (or is it offered) to help we struggling Leica users.

I am an 80-year-old photographer who worked professionally with a Rollei 6008 system and then Canon 1DS1, 2 and 3.  For the last 3 years I have built up a Fuji X system kit with 3 cameras and 10 lenses. 

For years though I have hankered for another Leica, for the lenses not necessarily the camera, and finally settled on the CL with three lenses.  I must say I find the manual impenetrable and wonder if there is a ‘Childs Guide’ published by anyone?

3 questions for a start. 

• First. The manual says that the camera will expose up to 30 seconds, I cannot set longer than 1 second. How do I?

  1. Second. Is it possible to turn live view on and off as can be done with the Fuji X system?

  2. Third. What lens would you recommend for macro work, ie shooting flowers close up?

Thank you,

Robin

Hi Robin,

Yes, the CL has a maximum exposure time of 30 seconds.

For the live view, you can turn off all the distracting elements by pressing the center button on the back right at the middle of the 4-way. Also, in the menu you can increase the brightness of the LCD to max. It works very well in low light, but not darkness.

The best way to get a shorter focal length macro is to use a TL-to-M adapter and extension tubes on any M lens you like. It will be manual focus of course.

Cheers,

Brad

Leica Q

Dear Brad,

I recently received my Q2 which is my first Leica Camera.  So far I like it and am happy with the purchase.  One thing drives me nuts, however.  I like the FN (or Thumbwheel) button idea as you can get to what I consider important menu items quickly,.  However, when I want to switch menu items I push the FN button, scroll down to the item I want to use, and hit the Center Button.  Then the menu goes away.  I have to push the FN button again to bring up the menu item.  Am I missing something?  Having to push the FN button twice seems redundant.  It would be better for the menu to be available after I scroll down and hit the Center Button.

Thanks, Dennis

Dennis,

Congratulations on your new Q2 and your first Leica camera, and welcome to the International Leica society! 

The main access to the menus uses the MENU button. As you have discovered, you can assign specific menu items to the FN button to make quick selections. I don’t think the FN button was designed to substitute for the MENU button but to access one menu item.

Try using the MENU button as you have done with the FN button and see if that behaves in a way that is more intuitive for you. Please share your experience as I think it may help other Q2 owners.

Thank you,

Brad

Hi Brad,

Wondering why the output of the Leica Q on the LCD seems more contrasty than the Jpeg file as accessed through my MacBook Photos or even Lightroom.  Is there a more accurate way to get a better sense of what the jpeg would look like in-camera (setting of sharpness, saturation, etc.)?

Thanks!

Hi Peter,

The only adjustment you can make to the LCD on the back of the Q is a brightness adjustment. That might help a little. I would take sample shots at different settings and then review them on a calibrated monitor on your computer. Pick a favorite or two set of settings and shoot away. I don’t rely upon camera LCDs to give me anything more than framing, exposure data and histogram information.

Happy shooting,

Brad

Leica M10-P

Dear Brad,

It is great to join the Leica community and I have really learned/enjoyed a lot after joining the LHSA.

As a new user, I have a problem with the JPG generated directly from the camera. Comparing with the DNG generated in the same short, the JPG seems corrected geometrically (not only the color). It is apparently not an issue with the size/pixels. I attached an example: the JPG and DNG generated from a same short, as attached, both from the camera directly – the only thing I did was to export them from LR with a smaller size. But you may have to download for the comparison.

I did some research on the web – It seems nobody is talking about this issue. Therefore, I’d like to seek your expertise – is the JPG really corrected geometrically (e.g., to compensate Lens distortion)? and if so – what is corrected and is the correction lens dependant (this means the camera detects the lens and generates the JPG accordingly, but what if an unknown lense)?

Thank you for reviewing the questions, and have a nice day.

Best regards,

Qiang

Dear Qiang,

Thank you for being a part of the LHSA family.

It is my understanding that the M cameras correct for many aspects of the photo in JPG format, including geometry. When using lenses with 6-bit coding, the corrections match the lens. When using a non-coded lens, the best practice is to manually set in the camera the lens that most closely matches the lens you are using.

In my photography, I shoot only RAW and do all my corrections in Lightroom.

Good shooting!

Rangefinder Focusing

Hello Mr. Husick,
I got your name from the LHSA website as a member. I am a relatively new Leica M 10 user, having bought the camera about a year ago. I wear glasses and did buy a diopter for the viewfinder as well. I am not sure if my aging eyes are to blame or not, but I often find it difficult to tell whether the margins of the person’s eyes are aligned using the rangefinder focusing especially with indoor shooting. I, therefore, have had to resort to the Visoflex more than once in order to get accurate focusing. However, I find it defeating as it increases the bulk of my camera and as well takes away from the simplicity of the rangefinder concept in the first place.

I would greatly appreciate very much if you have any word of wisdom in helping me overcome this problem. Perhaps my eyes have been “lazy” all of these years, relying on the autofocus features of my Canon cameras. I have been a photography enthusiast for almost 40 years, starting out with my Minolta X570 film camera as a teenager, migrating to Nikon N8080, then to Olympus, and finally to Canon EOS system when my kids were born. I had always dreamed of getting a Leica M due to its legendary lenses, its compact form factor, and its rangefinder concept. My dream come true in early 2018, and I have been very happy with it, taking mostly photos of my family. I use the Summilux 35mm and 50mm for my Leica.

Thank you again for your time in reading this email.

Sincerely,
Henry

Hello Henry,

Thank you for reaching out and welcome to the Leica and LHSA family. Congratulations on your M10 and lenses.

I totally understand your situation, and your dislike of the visoflex EVF, as it does bulk up the camera and the looks of the kit. There are a couple of alternatives I might suggest. First, you could try using Live View on the camera along with displaying focus peaking. That would give you a better confirmation of focus. Second, if you have enough light, try shooting stopped down a little so you have a deeper depth of field. Don’t be afraid to use higher ISO levels, as the M10 performs very well at ISO 6400 or even 12500.

Finally, you could try a trick developed by Leica in the first half of the 1900s and available for Leica screw mount cameras. Place a small piece of colored gel, yellow or orange, over the rangefinder window (the small one, not the one your eye looks through. When you see the overlapping images while focusing, the orange window may make it easier to align the images.

Good shooting,

Brad

Achieving Black and White Images

Hi Brad

Rick here, new member to LHSA, and new to Leica digital photography. (But with a deep background in old-school, film photography.) I hope this isn’t too much of a rookie’s question, but…

I want to have black & white images (architectural) and wonder if any method of achieving this is better than another. Or is it a matter of personal choice/control?

The most obvious ways are (of course): 1) shoot color, DNG format, and process the image in either Lightroom or Photoshop. 2) shoot monochrome, JPEG format. This image could also be processed post-shoot, of course. I’m guessing that option 1 gives one more data to work with than option 2, but perhaps not once the image is processed to monochrome. Also, I could choose the “shoot both formats” option and then choose. I’m guessing this just fills up the memory card faster.

I appreciate your opinions, thoughts, etc. Thanks for your help and attention.

Hi Rick,

Welcome to the LHSA family! We’re glad to have you and I hope you can make it to our upcoming annual meeting in Boston in October. It will be a great event and you’ll meet some of the nicest folks.

My advice for the best possible monochrome images is to shoot RAW (DNG) and convert in Lightroom using the Silver Efex Pro plugin. You will have maximum control over tonality and maximum dynamic range. I did a recent test of the M10 against the Monochrom 246 and original Monochrom and the results showed me that the M10 is capable of producing images equal to those cameras. I subsequently sold my Monochrom body.

Feel free to reach out again with questions.

Cheers,

Brad

External Viewfinder with Super Elmar 21mm

Hi,

I have a Leica M10 and recently bought a super elmar 21mm. Most likely I will need to buy an external viewfinder and my preference is to use it only to frame the picture.
Could you suggest which will be the best option?

Antonio

Antonio,

Congratulations on your purchase of the Super Elmar 21 and thank you for being a member of the LHSA family.

I think you will be happy with either the Leica brightline 21mm finder or the Voigtlander 21mm finder. I have used them both. You can find them both fairly easily in the used market, or used at Adorama or B&H. I don’t recommend the Leica zoom viewfinder as you lose the ability to see beyond the framelines.

Cheers,

Brad