Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2006/10/28
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]I'm doubting that Leica is going to move to a 1:1 CCD or CMOS. Nikon has given up on the full frame sensor, concentrating on lenses. Those sensors are just too big and expensive for a small manufacturer such as Leica to invest in. Panasonic hasn't brought anything near full frame out on their own either. It's a volatile market for this kind of hardware and Leica can't take a chance to bring us a full frame M without the guarantee of sales to make up for the immense expense. Even now we're still speculating about the sales of the M8. I think you can look at the photo market BEFORE digital took over to see what will be in store for Leica. They were foundering back then, as we were in the days of the do-everything super-auto SLR's such as the F5 and the EOS1V. In order to succeed in today's photo market, Leica needs to really target a larger demographic. I'm not sure how they can do this though. Part of the problem is the majority of Leica users are seasoned photographers who cut their teeth on an old rangefinder, a Nikon F or Pentax Spotmatic. Leica doesn't have a history of use with the current generation where the buying power lies. More mass marketing, less expensive products and losing the general attitude that anything with the name "Leica" on it is prohibitively expensive. That mentality that the company set up over the last 70 years has created a version of snobbery that the bulk of the current generation of photographers won't have a part of. For the most part, people think that everything Leica is too expensive, think nothing more of the red dot, and they move on to more wallet friendly names such as Canon or Nikon. This cult of superiority in everything that Leica creates is coming back to bite them on the behind. Lets hope that they can adapt quickly and bounce back, lest they fall too far behind & get bought by a construction company in Hoboken, NJ ala Contax decades ago. -----Original Message----- From: lug-bounces+photo.forrest=earthlink.net@leica-users.org [mailto:lug-bounces+photo.forrest=earthlink.net@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of grduprey@mchsi.com Sent: Saturday, October 28, 2006 11:54 AM To: Leica Users Group Subject: Re: [Leica] M8 and the Future Steve, Bob is obviously wishing for this as he refuses to accept reality. ;-) Gene -------------- Original message from Steve Barbour <kididdoc@cox.net>: -------------- > > On Oct 27, 2006, at 1:15 PM, Afterswift@aol.com wrote: > > > Hi Everyone, > > > > I have this gut feeling that the true competitor of the Canon D5 > > will be the > > Leica M9, which will be FF. We're headed for full frame 35. That's > > inevitable. > > These FFs will hit the market within a year. Digital technology > > moves fast. > > The M8 is probably a good collector's model and those few who > > actually buy it > > will get about the same results that we enjoy with the Nikon D200 > > or even the > > D70 -- which is a fast, no slouch Nikon (nevermind the pixel count, > > the quality > > is there!). > > > > I assume Leica Solms is tooling up for the M9 as we write. I'm looking > > forward to the LCD viewer for close-up and telephoto work. I assume > > there will be a > > lever on the M9 that permits us to open the focal plane shutter to > > focus and > > preview DOF live. Without the DSLR mirror problem, the simplicity > > of the M > > design should make the dual viewfinders possible -- one optical, > > the other > > electronic. My Oly 5050 has this feature and I love it. I can't > > imagine the M9 > > without it. > > > oh, you are such a tease... > > now do you know... or are you taking your "gut feeling" and wishes > for reality...?? > > > Steve > > > > > > Bob > > > > _______________________________________________ > > Leica Users Group. > > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information > > > _______________________________________________ > Leica Users Group. > See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information _______________________________________________ Leica Users Group. See http://leica-users.org/mailman/listinfo/lug for more information