Leica M10R is announced
Yesterday Leica announced the latest iteration of the digital M, the M10-R. Following in the footsteps of the Q2 and the M10-M, we now have a new color M with the enhanced 40 megapixel sensor and the sizing of the M10-P. All of the specs can be found over on Leica’s site.
M10R Front View - Identical to the M10P
As a self described Leica enthusiast, I am pretty excited about this announcement. Over the years I have owned any number of digital M cameras, starting with the amazing M9 Monochrom and ending with what I thought was perfection, the M10P. I still own an original Q which looks like it has been through a war or two.
M10R Top view - They took away the engraving… Not sure how I feel about that?
With the onslaught of COVID and its impact on business, I was forced to liquidate my M10P and the SL to help weather the storm. I knew that I could still do what I needed to do from a business perspective with my Q and my Nikon Z7 kit, but it was still a very painful decision and one that I knew would some day be remedied.
Fast forward to now, and I am definitely going to give the M10R a close look. I think my original plan was to just purchase a used M10P (great deals right now…..) and dream of owning the new M10M, but this new R iteration has me rethinking my plans.
While I don’t normally chase the resolution wars too much, I do believe that the 36mp sensor or the D850 was perhaps the perfect sweet spot for resolution. Not too big and not too small it was just right. Now, with the M10R and its 40 MP sensor, I think that could be the case for the digital M.
One of the big challenges with the sensor size increases is both in camera processing and computer storage space. With traditional high megapixel DSLRs, the issues can be dramatic given the ability to shoot large numbers of images. However, with a rangefinder, that is not a typical scenario, thus making the concept of a higher resolution sensor more appealing.
The additional resolution allows for more ‘in’ image cropping which enables us to work with simply one or two lenses. Given that we shoot a rangefinder in a more contemplative way, the issue of hundreds of images being captured at a time and the ensuing processing and storage issues never really manifest themselves.
Lastly, there is no denying that the ability to use the color detail in these files to produce incredible B&W images is a real benefit. While I would love to have both the M10M and the M10R, that is just not a viable scenario. More likely, I will go back to my plan of the M10R and a mint condition M9 Monochrom, a camera that just produces incredible B&W images. Ones that I still look at today and am amazed at the level of detail coming out of the 18mp files.
If all goes according to plan, I will also add a ‘rangefinder’ experience to one of my Adventure Photography Workshops. Being forced to shoot an adventure trip with a rangefinder and only one or at most 2 lenses, really forces one to concentrate on light, composition and most importantly, pre-visualization.
One of my favorite adventure based trips, the Coconino 250 was shot on a M9 Monochrom and the M240, both very slow cameras to use. By that I mean there was no holding down the shutter and firing off a bunch of frames while autofocus did the heavy lifting. Instead, you are forced to pick your scene and get the shot, all while working on your manual focus techniques. I think this form of workshop would be a lot of fun and relevant to both rangefinder shooters and film based photographers. Let me know what you think.
Stay Safe and take pictures, ride bikes, love your fellow man and be the source for that which you wish to receive.
A couple of very good hands on reviews below:
Chats Blog
UPDATE
I have now had a couple of extra days to look and listen to some of the hands on reviews, and one consistent theme is that the new upgraded sensor is providing not only better low light performance, but more importantly, better highlight protection. I had often noticed on my M10-P how easy highlights clipped; far enough that either Capture One or Lightroom were unable to recover any detail. I have now seen in more than one review, that this is handled much better on the M10-R. Undoubtedly Reid will have a very scientific analysis, but I let my subscription to his site lapse, so I don’t have access to his thoughts.
All in all, this seems like a very good, albeit minor, upgrade to the digital M lineup. I think if you are in the market for a new digital M, the M10-R is the way to go. However, there are some incredible deals to be had on older M’s and I predict a influx of used M10-P bodies are about to hit the market.