I'm scouring this universe of TH-cam trying to watch as much Leica M8 video I could find. Great to find you video here. Pictures and video are neatly done.
What I like is that you make very nice picture with the tool you love ! Isn’t it crazy the the people still work with these cameras. I love it. My first like was a m6. And in our school we had a reprovit. This made the nicest reproductions I ever have seen. The teacher said: just follow the advice on the column of the Monopod the camera was attached to. I thought that he is making fun out of me. But my first roll of repros made me so addictive that I spend my studies reproducing strange collages. ☺️ They really know how to make photographer shine ✨
I bought a store demo M8.2 a few weeks before the M9 came out. They said they would take the M8 back, plus $$ for the M9, but by then I was. very pleased with the M8, and still am. I've also got an M3, a M2, and an M10 which is now my favorite, but I got wonderful results from the M8, and since it is sensitive to infrared, I've used it to take hand-held infrared color and B&W photos. I'm mostly using my M10 nowadays, but maybe tomorrow I'll take the M8.2 with me. It's not better or worse than the new Leica cameras, just "different". If it ever does need service, I'll send it off to DAG Camera Repair - the owner, Don, is said to be one of the very best Leica technicians left in the USA. Congratulations on your buying one. Oh, and I see that you too have covered up the Leica symbol on the front - mine was black, not red, but I didn't see any need to advertise.
I bought a M8 over 13 years ago & 35 summarit 6 bit coded.. Also bought an M9 & 90mm summarit a few years later. Bought the M7 & 35 Nokton1.4mc Then the M-E & 50mm Cron. In 2021 I’ve sold all my gear that I never used in a while .. I only kept the M8+ 50mm cron .. I only shoot j peg B&W an it’s excellent for me .. The shutter will break one day it’s okay I’m ready to put another in for £1275 ..
Your comment made me tear up because I feel the same about my M8, I know the shutter will die, but I’ll definitely replace it because I love this camera so much.
Just had one of these go through my hands that was visually in near perfect condition. Things I wish people told me in M8 reviews: 1) Shutter mechs often die on these things. About 400-600 USD to replace. Some get lucky and go to 100k actuations but a good number of people see failures around 15-20k. 2) Hot pixels are very common. Mine had a vertical line straight through the frame. Generally you won't see these on jpegs but if you are shooting RAW and lifting shadows they pop out. 3) Get the IR cut filters if you ever want to shoot vegetation and synthetic black fabrics and still have awesome color. Also purple filters look cool. 4) If you collect vintage 50s or have a film lens kit the crop will probably drive you mad. IMHO the good stuff: 1) Outside of the motor and processor, the pinnacle of Leica film development of the M7/M6 carried over to the M8. Just a little fat but otherwise premium and precise. 2) The raw files, despite being poorly compressed, are quite wonderful and have a vibe. The sensor is so close in thickness to film that even sub-par glass can look super sharp. Color and skin tones are balanced and grade very well. 3) 10mp is better than you think. 8x10" prints only need about 7mp. 4) The crop is a non-issue when you consider the 3rd party lens options like TTartisans and Voigtlander However prices are getting out of control in the US. This camera is easily still worth 1k USD. But at 1500-2k I can't justify them when there are so many brilliant alternatives. But if you have GOT to have a Leica and it's brilliant RF the M8 is still a safer buy than an M9 (even if you get one with corrosion free cover glass those things still love to snap) and the M9 is basically the same price as the much sturdier M240.
You’re pretty spot on! Apparently Leica fixed the shutter mechanism on the M8.2, though I’ve owned 3 Leica M8s and none have suffered from this problem. None of my photographs with the camera were with an IR filter and they all turned out fine, it’s important to note it doesn’t always happen on black fabrics / vegetation etc, plus it can be fixed in post. For such an expensive price you’d expect it to be perfect but hey ho. It’s as good as they could make it.
@@negativemob5545 The lack of IR cut is a bit of roulette. It never affected my favorite photos. But I took one shot where it all hit at once. A photo of a woman with a black top that came out purple and her jeans had heavy moire. I just had to laugh. I also sort of loved the satisfaction of the shutter sound in discreet mode. THUD! But then as I slowly moved away and took my finger off the shutter release "whirrrrrrr". Also since I noticed, I think EVERYONE shoots this camera with 1/3 stop under exposure compensation. I know I did.
@@mvonwalter6927 for the price you pay it is insane that it happens haha, but on the flip side it’s that kind of experimentation that’s made it a great piece of kit, and I’m sure images wouldn’t be half as sharp if they’d not thinned the filter. Haha it’s such a classic sound, it’s so brutally obnoxious. Even after putting 10k shutter actuations on the thing I felt like it could go at any second because of the harshness of the noise. I’m sure the problem doesn’t happen to as many as it seems though. As you know with digital cameras watching highlights is the most important thing when exposing, and even when shooting manually and exposing for the highlights, sometimes in contrasty scenes I’d still have some blown out spots. -1/3 seems to be the sweet spot!
@@negativemob5545 I use my M8 with -2/3 shutter compensation since I bought it with perfect results. This setting is pretty much on par with the 0 setting on the M9 due to the crop factor.
Hi from germany, i allways think ab out to buy this camera, cause i am not a typical Leica-shooter, but after your video i am sure that i buy a M8........ thany you Andreas
You've got the same setup as me, the M8 along with the 35mm Nokton Classic, I also have the TTArtisans 21mm f1.5 which is a bit heavy but fun to use. Now if only I could afford the M9 Monomy Leica lust would be over. Enjoyed the video. Cheers..... 👍
It's a good camera because of the good color. I've the M8.2 flavor and mostly use an old Canon 28mm f/2.8 on it with good results. It's a bare bones honey.
Nice review! Very interested in this camera as well as Leica CL (digital). Have you tried CL? Thinking between these two cameras as they are similar in price (used).
The CL does look great but there’s plenty of other companies like Fuji etc with the X-E4 that could rival if not better the CL tech wise. Depends what you shoot though as rangefinders aren’t great for portraiture.. I personally prefer using a rangefinder, it’s more fun and helps me creativity, plus it’s nice being able to see outside your framelines when shooting street. The fact it’s manual makes it more fun also, so I think you’d prefer the M8! They’ll also fair better when you go to sell it later on.
@@negativemob5545 what i think is called a bulb blower first , camera held upside down , and then a dry swab if needed . this has worked for me . shoot the sky at f16 to check .
For almost 3-5 years i searching for the answer to why people buying this camera, I can't see any better image than other cameras, it take same image as other camera and very less futures and high price, why people wont buy fuji over this with all new features and less price
@@negativemob5545 Well, how much of a plonker are you when you throw money at something that has no value after 18 months and most people have no clue how to take pictures and rely on the camera to think for them?!!!
I'm scouring this universe of TH-cam trying to watch as much Leica M8 video I could find. Great to find you video here. Pictures and video are neatly done.
Its a wonderful object ! Love it!
What I like is that you make very nice picture with the tool you love ! Isn’t it crazy the the people still work with these cameras. I love it. My first like was a m6. And in our school we had a reprovit. This made the nicest reproductions I ever have seen. The teacher said: just follow the advice on the column of the Monopod the camera was attached to. I thought that he is making fun out of me. But my first roll of repros made me so addictive that I spend my studies reproducing strange collages. ☺️ They really know how to make photographer shine ✨
0:27 those are gorgeous colours!
Every shot missed focus though
I bought a store demo M8.2 a few weeks before the M9 came out. They said they would take the M8 back, plus $$ for the M9, but by then I was. very pleased with the M8, and still am. I've also got an M3, a M2, and an M10 which is now my favorite, but I got wonderful results from the M8, and since it is sensitive to infrared, I've used it to take hand-held infrared color and B&W photos. I'm mostly using my M10 nowadays, but maybe tomorrow I'll take the M8.2 with me. It's not better or worse than the new Leica cameras, just "different". If it ever does need service, I'll send it off to DAG Camera Repair - the owner, Don, is said to be one of the very best Leica technicians left in the USA.
Congratulations on your buying one. Oh, and I see that you too have covered up the Leica symbol on the front - mine was black, not red, but I didn't see any need to advertise.
hi. does the shutter lifespan good? i found an used leica m8 with good condition but the shutter count reach 25xxx
@@_alliswell it is a mirrorless camera. The shuttercount isn’t that important
The dog pics are incredible! This camera works well closer in.
I bought a M8 over 13 years ago & 35 summarit 6 bit coded..
Also bought an M9 & 90mm summarit a few years later.
Bought the M7 & 35 Nokton1.4mc
Then the M-E & 50mm Cron.
In 2021 I’ve sold all my gear that I never used in a while ..
I only kept the M8+ 50mm cron ..
I only shoot j peg B&W an it’s excellent for me ..
The shutter will break one day it’s okay I’m ready to put another in for £1275 ..
Your comment made me tear up because I feel the same about my M8, I know the shutter will die, but I’ll definitely replace it because I love this camera so much.
@@tonym9635 it’s old it’s slow, but it’s ok 👌 for me
Mate discovered your channel after watching your Leica X video, loving the videos!
Nice vid. The monochrome has a nice Tri-X look to it✌️
you're views which resonate with my...and why i have one, made me want to keep it and enjoy it / thank you
Love my M8, had it since Feb. 2007.
If I was a thief, I would steal all the cameras with black tape as they must be the more expensive ones!
Just had one of these go through my hands that was visually in near perfect condition. Things I wish people told me in M8 reviews:
1) Shutter mechs often die on these things. About 400-600 USD to replace. Some get lucky and go to 100k actuations but a good number of people see failures around 15-20k.
2) Hot pixels are very common. Mine had a vertical line straight through the frame. Generally you won't see these on jpegs but if you are shooting RAW and lifting shadows they pop out.
3) Get the IR cut filters if you ever want to shoot vegetation and synthetic black fabrics and still have awesome color. Also purple filters look cool.
4) If you collect vintage 50s or have a film lens kit the crop will probably drive you mad.
IMHO the good stuff:
1) Outside of the motor and processor, the pinnacle of Leica film development of the M7/M6 carried over to the M8. Just a little fat but otherwise premium and precise.
2) The raw files, despite being poorly compressed, are quite wonderful and have a vibe. The sensor is so close in thickness to film that even sub-par glass can look super sharp. Color and skin tones are balanced and grade very well.
3) 10mp is better than you think. 8x10" prints only need about 7mp.
4) The crop is a non-issue when you consider the 3rd party lens options like TTartisans and Voigtlander
However prices are getting out of control in the US. This camera is easily still worth 1k USD. But at 1500-2k I can't justify them when there are so many brilliant alternatives. But if you have GOT to have a Leica and it's brilliant RF the M8 is still a safer buy than an M9 (even if you get one with corrosion free cover glass those things still love to snap) and the M9 is basically the same price as the much sturdier M240.
You’re pretty spot on!
Apparently Leica fixed the shutter mechanism on the M8.2, though I’ve owned 3 Leica M8s and none have suffered from this problem. None of my photographs with the camera were with an IR filter and they all turned out fine, it’s important to note it doesn’t always happen on black fabrics / vegetation etc, plus it can be fixed in post.
For such an expensive price you’d expect it to be perfect but hey ho. It’s as good as they could make it.
@@negativemob5545 The lack of IR cut is a bit of roulette. It never affected my favorite photos. But I took one shot where it all hit at once. A photo of a woman with a black top that came out purple and her jeans had heavy moire. I just had to laugh.
I also sort of loved the satisfaction of the shutter sound in discreet mode. THUD! But then as I slowly moved away and took my finger off the shutter release "whirrrrrrr".
Also since I noticed, I think EVERYONE shoots this camera with 1/3 stop under exposure compensation. I know I did.
@@mvonwalter6927 for the price you pay it is insane that it happens haha, but on the flip side it’s that kind of experimentation that’s made it a great piece of kit, and I’m sure images wouldn’t be half as sharp if they’d not thinned the filter.
Haha it’s such a classic sound, it’s so brutally obnoxious. Even after putting 10k shutter actuations on the thing I felt like it could go at any second because of the harshness of the noise. I’m sure the problem doesn’t happen to as many as it seems though.
As you know with digital cameras watching highlights is the most important thing when exposing, and even when shooting manually and exposing for the highlights, sometimes in contrasty scenes I’d still have some blown out spots. -1/3 seems to be the sweet spot!
Mine has been flawless.
@@negativemob5545 I use my M8 with -2/3 shutter compensation since I bought it with perfect results. This setting is pretty much on par with the 0 setting on the M9 due to the crop factor.
Intresting video ! Lovely images ! Thanks alot to share them with us all. Greetings, Roger ;-)
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed :)
Hi from germany, i allways think ab out to buy this camera, cause i am not a typical Leica-shooter, but after your video i am sure that i buy a M8........ thany you
Andreas
Amazing camera, on the search for one now. This and the M10 are beautiful cameras.
Awesome Keep it up! Looking for getting an M8! What is your suggestion?
Lol that shutter during the continuous shooting mode sounds like a squeak toy
You've got the same setup as me, the M8 along with the 35mm Nokton Classic, I also have the TTArtisans 21mm f1.5 which is a bit heavy but fun to use. Now if only I could afford the M9 Monomy Leica lust would be over. Enjoyed the video. Cheers..... 👍
Still got it ?
Still using my Leica Digilux 2 👍 5 Mpix 😀
Had one of those. I actually miss it sometimes 🤷♂️
It's a good camera because of the good color. I've the M8.2 flavor and mostly use an old Canon 28mm f/2.8 on it with good results. It's a bare bones honey.
Loved it bro
Nice review! Very interested in this camera as well as Leica CL (digital). Have you tried CL? Thinking between these two cameras as they are similar in price (used).
The CL does look great but there’s plenty of other companies like Fuji etc with the X-E4 that could rival if not better the CL tech wise. Depends what you shoot though as rangefinders aren’t great for portraiture..
I personally prefer using a rangefinder, it’s more fun and helps me creativity, plus it’s nice being able to see outside your framelines when shooting street. The fact it’s manual makes it more fun also, so I think you’d prefer the M8! They’ll also fair better when you go to sell it later on.
Great review, you definitely got some great images out of this camera 👍
so does the m8 have the same issue of ccd corrosion that the m9 does?
Hi, No apparently, no problem
Do you need an IR filter for black and white?
Sorry if stupid question
not needed for b&w , but you can kept on . certainly need it for color even though you can correct in pp .
I loved my M8! The sensor is amazing. I sold it to get the M9.
Same. Sold the M9 later to get an M4-P
Still love my M8, haven’t sold it, added a M9-P and use both.
beautiful camera!!
this 35mm lens is equivalent to what field of view of a full frame on this camera?
I believe the crop factor multiplies the focal length by 1.33, so a 35mm lens on the M8 is equivalent to about 46mm full frame
Have you ever had issues cleaning your sensor?
@@negativemob5545 what i think is called a bulb blower first , camera held upside down , and then a dry swab if needed . this has worked for me . shoot the sky at f16 to check .
@@mglvmd forgot to mention the bulb blower. Exactly my process! Worked a treat
No issues cleaning the sensor. I have done my sensor cleaning since day one.
Yup, mine too.
I loved this camera. Regret selling it, I think. Might get it back one day.
Nice 1 m8
❤️
They look like smartphone photos
Loved by those who own one and ridiculed by those who have never had an example ….. I suspect
For almost 3-5 years i searching for the answer to why people buying this camera, I can't see any better image than other cameras, it take same image as other camera and very less futures and high price, why people wont buy fuji over this with all new features and less price
Go and try one :)
If you can’t see the difference just get the Fuji. Simple is that.
The only cameras Leica made worthwhile buying are film cameras.
You plonker
@@negativemob5545 Well, how much of a plonker are you when you throw money at something that has no value after 18 months and most people have no clue how to take pictures and rely on the camera to think for them?!!!
🥲 you really done me like that