THE LEICA M9 DIGITAL CAMERA REVIEW - PAGE 12 MY FINAL THOUGHTS AND CONCLUSIONS

THE LEICA M9 REAL WORLD REVIEW

PAGE 1 - THE FULL FRAME BEAUTY ARRIVES

PAGE 2 - The goods. What comes in the box and what’s new?

PAGE 3 - Is FULL FRAME really that much better?

PAGE 4 - High ISO low light photography, and the M9

PAGE 5 - Color - M9 packs a PUNCH!

PAGE 6 - Some M9 Black & White conversions

PAGE 7 - The 35 Summilux and the M9 - A match made in heaven or hell?

PAGE 8 - Full Frame = Vignetting? Not on the M9!

PAGE 9 - Untouched Full Size Sample Downloads

PAGE 10 - My favorite images form my time with the M9

PAGE 11 - More M9 from other Leica photographers

PAGE 12 - My final thoughts and conclusion

PAGE 13 - Why I prefer shooting with a rangefinder camera.

NEW! > - My Ongoing Leica M9 Daily Diary - Updated DAILY!

PAGE 12 - My final thoughts and conclusions. next---->

Wow. I still cannot believe that I am sitting here writing this with a Leica M9 next to me. The world’s smallest full frame digital camera. A year ago, NO Leica fan would have ever dreamt that before the end of 2009 we would have a FULL frame digital M9 in our hands. Well, most of us are waiting for delivery at least.

As of today, October 1st 2009, Leica is having a hard time keeping up with demand for this camera. Even at $7,000 USD, every one that is shipped to the USA is pre-sold. Most dealers are saying if you order now you may get it in January or February of 2010. One dealer said MARCH 2010! Leica USA gets a delivery every Tuesday and are filling those dealer orders as fast as they can. Still, many are in for a long wait (Unless you get lucky at B&H as they do not do pre-orders).

The reason for this is that MANY M8 and M8.2 owners want to upgrade to the full frame camera. Others, who shot film M’s and never bought in to the whole M8 idea are now wanting the M9 as they say it is what the M8 should have been. We now have twice as many people trying to get an M9 compared to the demand for the M8 when it was launched.

I placed my order with my fave Leica dealer Ken Hansen 2 months ago and I should get my M9 soon. (Update Oct 8th, I got it!) After shooting this Leica demo for a few days, it PAINS me to send it back. I have been without a camera of my own for over a month and now have another few weeks to wait. Maybe I will get lucky and it will only be a week? I hope so. I sold my M8.2 and a couple of lenses to fund this M9 and am ready to give Leica my money. Like NOW!

YES, I am indeed buying one as most of you know. After being a HUGE fan of the M8 and M8.2, I can say without any hesitation that the M9 is worth the $1000 price increase over the M8.2. Yea, I wish they would have left the Sapphire Glass LCD screen, but when you think about it, for $1000 more than an M8.2 you get a full frame sensor, 18 MP, improved high ISO performance and some things I did not even mention yet! BTW, the frame lines in the viewfinder go from 28mm to 135mm.

To finish off this review, here is the Leica M9 “Pro’s & Con’s” list:

LEiCA M9 PRO’s OVER THE M8.2. WHY IT IS WORTH THE EXTRA $1000?

1. The full frame sensor!!

2. 18 MP - more resolution, more freedom. Same fantastic detail of the M8 but more of it.

3. Improved high ISO performance (IN MY OPINION..I know others disagree here.)

4. New INFO screen shows you the real battery level and pic count with the touch of a button. Me like :)

5. Uses the same battery as the M8 (good, because I had two here ready to go)

6. It seems the battery life is either the same or improved over the M8. All of the photos you see in this review were taken on ONE battery charge and it still had some juice left. Not bad!

7. No more S mode! Yea! Well, its in the menu system somewhere, but I am not looking for it!

8. Black Paint or Steel Grey Paint. Killer finish.

9. Same size as M8, not bigger as many predicted.

10. Minimal vignetting with wide angle fast lenses when you use the Lens Detect with a coded lens, or put a non coded lens in manually.

11. A bit faster in processing/writing images and previewing images (but still not DSLR fast, and still slow)

12. Colors are improved. Richer and more vibrant when shooting JPEG.

13. New “soft” release mode.

14. New EV compensation method which is superb!

LEICA M9 CONS OVER THE M8.2. COULD THESE KILL THE DEAL FOR A NEW M9?

1. Same small LCD as the M8 (this does not bother me as I am not an avid “chimper”)

2. Leica went back to the plastic LCD cover - Boooooo! Bahhhhh! Ok..I will stop complaining, it’s out of my system now and I accept it.

3. Format an SD card. Go ahead, I dare you. Ha ha...it seems to take forever. Why?

4. Red/Orange color can sometimes get blown out if shooting in bright light, even on standard color mode.

5.A few people have reported problems with freeze-ups during continuous mode shooting.
6.

So that’s it! With so many new features and the improved quality all the way around, the M9 is ALMOST the perfect digital M. Is it a “no compromise” digital M that I predicted months ago? Well, in reality I can say that it ALMOST is, but not quite. The thing that could be improved to make it a perfect digital M is the write speed could still be faster. If you were being really picky, I guess Leica could release an M10 with CLEAN ISO 3200 and the Sapphire Glass LCD. Would that make me sell my M9 to buy an M10? Well, I never say never anymore, but it’s unlikely. I am buying an M9 and will be keeping this camera for MANY years. It really is that good. Leica hit a home run with this camera and they also launched it superbly. 09/09/09 was a great day and even though I was invited to the launch event in New York, I had to miss it due to my family vacation. Bad timing!

If you love rangefinders, if you love Leica, if you are passionate about photography, the M9 is a great camera for you. If you shoot with DSLR’s and want a lighter camera that will become an extension of your mind and go with you everywhere, the M9 is a camera you will love. I can go on and on but I will stop here. The bottom line...

Many are saying that the M9 is basically an upgraded M8.2, but isn't the M7 an upgraded M6? The full frame sensor is the big deal and to me that alone is worthy of the upgrade cost. Let’s not forget we now have 18MP. During my time with the camera, I had no issues at all. It never froze, it never failed. But I do not do rigorous “torture” tests as my reviews are “real world” so I will leave that testing to others. I do have a tip though: If you shoot in continuous mode, DO NOT have the camera in DISCREET mode. If you do, you may have a freeze-up. To fix it, take out the battery and put it back in. Also, the full size 100% files from the M9 are not as nail bitingly sharp as those from the M8. The M9 has more of a smoother, richer signature w/deeper color as well and many will love this. It is a step up from the M8. More refined.

So, am I a Leica fanboy? I can already hear the Leica haters calling me a fanboy for giving a positive review to this fantastic camera. HOW DARE I! If being a fanboy means enjoying the hell out of photography more than I ever have in my life then sign me up. That is what the Leica M7, M8 and M9 have done for me over the years. Even the Epson RD1 was a favorite of mine.

In this review I have told you how I feel about the M9 as then backed up the talk with images. You can draw your own conclusions about the camera BUT...

I can easily recommend the M9. Hell, I LOVED the M8 and M8.2 and had a few of them over three years, all PROBLEM-FREE. The M9 is a superb photographic tool that takes the M8 to the next level with even better image quality, improved overall color, and improved high ISO shooting. Add the little things like the new EV compensation method, the new ISO button and INFO button, and the M9 is a definite winner.

If you have the funds and you want an M9, you may get lucky at B&H Photo. They do not do pre-orders so it is first come, first served. I have a feeling they will be getting some M9’s VERY soon. You can click the links below to go to their M9 pages and check stock status. If you happen to see it IN STOCK I would BUY IT before someone else does. Click here for their Leica M9 page in black, or steel grey.

B&H is TOP notch and I have been buying from them forever. Also, if you follow my links to B&H from this site and make ANY purchase, I will get a small commission. Just pennies on the dollar that will help me to keep this site running. I thank you in advance if you make a purchase at B&H or Amazon through the links at this site.

You can also check out my “Buy a Camera” page for all of the cameras I have reviewed so far. One click to check stock status or to buy through B&H Photo and Amazon as well.

I hope you have enjoyed this Leica M9 review! Now go get your Leica M9 and take it everywhere with you. Shoot it and you will soon never want to be without it! I know I won’t be! Also, let me know how you liked the review! I always love to get feedback. Email me here, or you can leave comments on this page.

One more video...the M9 shutter. How loud is it?

update 10/08/09 - My M9 has arrived so I have started my Leica M9 ongoing Diary page here. Updated every day through October.

Also, my Leica M9 photo gallery is here. Lots of samples!

I now have a new website which is faster, easier to navigate and will be the place where all new future reviews are posted!

CLICK HERE TO GO TO PAGE 13 - WHY I PREFER SHOOTING WITH A RANGEFINDER CAMERA