By David Farkas, LeicaStore Miami
Back in December I
received an interesting invitation from Leica. My presence was requested at
Leica’s corporate headquarters in Wetzlar, Germany to attend a Celebration of
Photography, honoring legendary photographer Joel Meyerowitz. Ok. Meyerowitz is
a great photographer, but did his Leica Hall of Fame induction ceremony really
warrant heading to Germany? There were
plenty of rumors that this event was a cover for the launch of the M10. After
all, if you were planning a surprise announcement, how do you get hundreds of
people to attend without telling them something? So, a Celebration of
Photography it was. Over the past few years, these events have all been held
under the moniker of Das Wesentliche, German for The Essentials. Perhaps that
would have been too obvious?
Regardless, once the news
broke of the upcoming event, the rumor mill reached a fever pitch and everyone
jumped to the conclusion that a new camera was about to be announced. After
all, the M (Typ 240) was launched more than four years ago, back at Photokina
2012. The time was ripe for a new M. And in this case, the rumors were mostly
true, especially those predicting the announcement date of Jan 18.
I arrived in Germany a day
early. It’s always nice to get a head start getting over the inevitable jetlag,
as well as being able to hold some meetings without the crowds and craziness of
the main event. So, I drove over to Leitz Park, popped in the Leitz Café for an
espresso and met up with some familiar faces from Leica AG. After a dinner with
colleagues from Leica USA, I headed back to the hotel to turn in early.
The event wasn’t starting
until 6pm, meaning I also had most of the day to catch up on sleep, emails and
take a stroll through the snow-dusted cobblestone streets of Wetzlar’s
Altstadt. Of all my trips here, I’ve actually never come in the winter. With the winding streets and centuries-old
crooked and half-timbered houses, you might think you’ve stepped into a fairy
tale winter village. Definitely a change from Miami.
When I walked through the
front doors at Leica, the party was already in full swing. All the usual
suspects were in attendance: The product managers and engineers who make these
amazing products a reality. Media outlets and Leica bloggers. Friends of Leica.
I heard that over 600 people were at the event
Jesko von Oeynhausen,
product manager of the M10
As the band geared up with
some serious pomp and circumstance, all eyes turned to the stage. I wrapped up
my conversation and hustled to get a good spot, working my way through the
dense crowd.
British photographer and
all around nice guy Matt Stuart took the stage as emcee for the evening’s
festivities. I got to know Matt last year when he had a gallery show and
workshop at Leica Store Miami. You can see a video of his gallery talk here.
He was one of the first
photographers to use the M10, and many of his images from the camera were
hanging in a gallery at the event.
Matt Stuart
After a brief welcome,
Matt brought up Oliver Kaltner, CEO of Leica Camera, to give his own welcome
message and talk about the Celebration of Photography.
CEO Oliver Kaltner
Then, it was Karin
Rehn-Kaufmann, who heads up Leica Galleries worldwide, to take the stage and
present the Leica Hall of Fame Award for 2016 to Joel Meyerowitz.
Karin Rehn-Kaufmann
Meyerowitz joined her and
they discussed his work, which spans decades. A few selected images were shown
on the large display.
Karin Rehn-Kaufmann and
Joel Meyerowitz
Karin Rehn-Kaufmann and
Joel Meyerowitz
Dr. Andreas Kaufmann,
Chairman of the Supervisory Board and CEO Oliver Kaltner watch on
as Meyerowitz
receives his Leica Hall of Fame Award
After the Hall of Fame
Award was presented, Matt Stuart once again resumed his emcee duties and
brought up Dr. Kaufmann for “one more thing”
Dr. Andreas Kaufmann
Dr. Kaufmann talked about
Das Wesentlichte and Leica heritage. By this time, a large group of
photographers had rushed the stage in anticipation of the big announcement.
The band starting playing
on cue and white-gloved, Leica Bauhaus T-shirt wearing ushers came up the aisle
first with the priceless Ur-Leica original prototype from 1914, then with the
new M10.
The M10 makes its grand
entrance
Kaltner rejoined Kaufmann
and the two of them presented the new M10.
Dr. Kaufmann with the
Ur-Leica and Oliver Kaltner with the M10
Dr. Kaufmann with the
Ur-Leica and Oliver Kaltner with the M10
After the break for photo
ops, Kaltner jumped right in with highlights about the new camera.
The M10 is the slimmest
digital M – same thickness as an M7 film camera.
All new 24MP CMOS sensor,
specifically designed for M. Contrary to rumors, this is not the same sensor
used in the SL or Q.
The M10 gets Maestro II,
like the SL and S007 for extremely quick and responsive performance.
All new optical viewfinder
and rangefinder mechanism. 30% larger field of view. 50% greater eye relief.
And, 0.73x magnification, almost the same as analog M cameras.
With new ISO dial on top
plate, all essential camera functions are physically accessible for intuitive
operation.
Built-in Wi-Fi allows
remote camera control and transferring of files, even DNGs, on iPhone and
Android devices.
With the even over, the
din of conversations and speculation filled the air. Congratulations were
shared on stage and Meyerowitz showed off his new, personalized M10.
Joel Meyerowitz with his
personalized Leica M10
Joel Meyerowitz with his
personalized Leica M10
Joel Meyerowitz with his
personalized Leica M10
As the atmosphere morphed
from launch event to party, servers passed beer and wine, while the band pumped
out the cocktail hour music.
I made my way to the demo
area, where M10s were on full display, along with M7 bodies for comparison.
I spent a good amount of
time taking a thorough look at the M10 and got some great info from the guys
there. As always, Leica doesn’t hire trade show staff for these events. Rather,
they utilize their engineers who are intimately familiar with the products from
the inside out. In my case, I was shown the camera by a digital hardware engineer
who worked on the electronics in the M10.
On the table were plenty
of M7s so that attendees could see first-hand how similar the digital and
analog bodies really feel. It’s uncanny. If you put a film advance lever on the
M10 you would never guess you’re holding a digital M. The camera feels
incredible in the hand with the small reduction in thickness translating to a
dramatic difference in volume.
M10 (top) next to M7
(bottom)
M10 (front) and M7 (back)
The handgrip is far
improved over previous generations. It attaches securely and feels like one
solid piece when paired with the M10. Also, if you get a silver camera, the
grip with match.
New handgrip for M10
matches top-plate finish
The M10, due to its
slimness, does use a completely new battery. The M240 batteries will not fit.
The drawback is that with smaller batteries, we’ll probably see a reduction in
battery life.
New battery for M10
Battery and memory card
The ISO dial is big news.
It takes a thumb and forefinger to press the dial up into the unlocked
position, which is a little awkward at first. But with a bit of practice, it’s
not too inconvenient. And, this guarantees that you wont accidentally move the
dial and shoot an entire set of pictures at an unexpected ISO. A red band at
the base of dial warns that it is unlocked.
ISO dial on top of M10
ISO dial in unlocked
position
On the back of the camera,
the LCD gets a nice upgrade. The screen is clearer and has better color. It is
flanked by just three buttons: LV, Play and Menu. No more separate SET and MENU
menus this time around.
Three rear buttons are
easier to operate without looking. Rear LCD is improved as well.
All in all, a great event.
And it seems like a fantastic camera – most of the things that most users
wanted. Leica, has once again launched a soon-to-be successful product with the
simple act of listening to its customers and giving them what they want.
As always, I love catching
up with other Leica aficionados at these events. Jonathan Slack, better known
to most as Jono, joined me at the demo table and later on for some beers in the
main hall. Always a bad influence on each other, we vowed not to stay until 4am
like we did for the SL launch. But of course, we had to go to the afterparty in
the Leitz Cafe and threw our plan of responsibility out the window. It was a
late night, but always worth it.
The author with an M10
(photo by Jono Slack)
From Germany, I am flying
to New Orleans, LA to do camera testing with the M10. Stay tuned for a full
Leica M10 review in the coming weeks.
___________________________________________________________________________
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