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Leica Q2?

JTC

JTC

PFM Villager...
Tempted to switch from Fuji XT2 to a simpler single-lens system, with IQ and simplicity first and foremost. Thinking about the Q2. Pricy, but I can live with that.

Interested in any owners’ views on the shooting/composition process with the Q2. Does the tech ‘get out of the way’?
 
I've had a Leica Q2 Test Drive for a day, I did this before I bought my replacement GFX, and loving the X100 series wanted to make sure I was making the right decision. The Q2 is quite simply fantastic, the tech gets out of the way, it really is aimed at the photographer, the lens is just superb (as you would expect) and loves to be shot wide open and is super super sharp. Its is beautifuylly made, and feels like a quality piece of kit in the hand - but is should given its price!

If I could have afforded one to run alongside a GFX and take my X100 series 'lightweight' role, I would have one, but for me at the end of the day if I'm having a one lens solution I woudl prefer 35mm (not 28mm) and the files are not as malleable in post as those from the GFX - I decided to buy another GFX and keep my existing X100/X100F - I'm happy that I've made the right choice for now, if I fell over a bag of cash I would happily by a Q2 to run alongside.
 
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I used to have the original model Q. loved that camera and it really was simplicity to use with great IQ. What made me sell it in the end was the 28mm fixed lens. Although cropping to 35mm or 50mm was an easy option files size dropped dramatically. The Q2 has a 47.3MP sensor (compared to 24MP on the Q) so you have a lot more flexibility (and 15MP at 50mm). I've been sorely tempted to get hold of a Q2 but have so far managed to fight the temptation!
 
I bought a Q on the day it was released (June 2015) because for the price of £2,900 it seemed good value for a 28/f1.7 and a feature set that seemed to make sense. At the time Sony has a vaguely similar 35mm camera with their horrible electronics.

I loved the Q and was not keen to trade in for the Q2, but eventually did. I have no regrets at all. For general use, it's the only camera I really need.

I sold the Q for £2,000 because it was a bit bashed up. 31% depreciation over 4 years for a camera bought new is pretty fantastic. I suspect the Q2 will also hold its value very well long term.

I was tempted to sell my M system, ironically swapped out my M10 for an M10-R because I got an almost unused one for about £5,200. Sold off some other L39 kit and now down to the basics: M3 + 50f2 rigid NF, M6 0.72 TTL, 15/f4.5, 28/f5.6, 35/f2, 50/f1.4, 90/f2.8.
 
I’m still deliberating this. Was surprised to see that my XT2 would run it close for IQ (and is better at higher iso) but I don’t particularly like the Fuji shooting experience: crap, overly random menus and too many buttons. I’d hoped for a decent jump in IQ but the XT2 is already great, and the bigger sensor on the Q2 seems not to translate into better high iso performance from what I’ve now found.

Still bloody tempted though!!!
 
JTC said:
I’m still deliberating this. Was surprised to see that my XT2 would run it close for IQ (and is better at higher iso) but I don’t particularly like the Fuji shooting experience: crap, overly random menus and too many buttons. I’d hoped for a decent jump in IQ but the XT2 is already great, and the bigger sensor on the Q2 seems not to translate into better high iso performance from what I’ve now found.

Still bloody tempted though!!!
Click to expand...

don’t work from specs and tech reviews- the Leica Q2 is a different league to the Fuji crop sensors, and that lens……

In all seriousness, given it’s huge sticker price, I would have thought a trip to the Leica Store in Manchester would be a good thing to do, then you can borrow one for a day. Yes it might cost a couple of hundred quid for the day out but better that than investing thousands in something you don’t like. Don’t know if Ffordes have the same arrangement
 
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I'm going on actual sample RAW files which I downloaded to get a better idea. Obviously I own an XT-2 already. I'm not so sure it really is that much better than the XT2, although there's definitely a bit more resolution. High ISO performance is markedly poorer, as best I can tell, although the Q2 Monochrom apparently is better than the colour Q2. I've seen this before - from time to time my wife would let me play with her work Hasselblad (at the time with a 50MP MF digital back) and I was surprised how little actual improvement you get for the most part over things like the XT2. Again, difficult to be fully objective, but it's clear to me that sensor size is obviously a benefit, but not the whole picture (badum tish...)

Believe me, I'm still very tempted, because I'm confident the Q2 will be - for normal shooting conditions - somewhat better than my XT2 with (say) 23/1.4 or 16/1.4. I suspect that the majority of that additional resolution might be lost unless the camera is shot on a good tripod with careful technique; otherwise, I wonder if the gains will be marginal at best.

Let's be clear: My interest in the Q2 isn't IQ-driven, but I'd baulk at switching over and losing IQ at higher ISOs. For the most part I'd expect it to function comparably to my XT-2 with 16/1.4 (I don't own the 23/1.4) but with probably a much more satisfying shooting experience. My dilemma is I can't justify having the XT2 and a Q2. I may see if I can play with one for a while somewhere, but assessing anything like this is a bit futile in a five minute shop demo, taking pictures of other cameras on a shelf :)
 
In 2018/2019 whilst waiting for our building at Sauber F1 to be changed to get the driver in the simulator installed, we used the Anthony Best Dynamics simulator, which had been built in the UK and then installed in a building in Wetzlar, Germany to make installation in Switzerland easier.

During one of our week long visits, we visited the Leica museum in Wetzlar at lunchtime.

There were some amazing photographs there and examples of their cameras. I was therefore able to try using a Lecia Q2. Whilst only being an occasional camera user, I have to say that it just felt right from the moment that I picked it up. Simple enough for me to use straight away it was spot on. Much as I thought that it was the best feeling camera I have ever picked up, the cost makes it something that I could not justify purchasing. But I can fully understand why others would purchase such a camera.
 
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Mentioned it to the wife and she’s actually very keen on the idea. Which was a surprise. More research required…
 
Still keen. Considering the original Q - used, half the price of the Q2. Could sell XT10 and 16/1.4, keep XT2 and other lenses, still be cheaper than selling Fujis and buying Q2…
 
Be careful with the original Q, lots of complaints about rainbows/flickering in the EVF, the EVF was much improved on the Q2, the original Q also does not have weather sealing and the battery life is much worse, still has that lovely lens though.....
 
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I have had the Q2 for a few months now and firstly it is always a pleasure to use with simple ergonomics and menu system.

Secondly, the images coming out of the camera are just incredible - the lens is wonderfully sharp with fantastic contrast and look that I think is very difficult to replicate with other cameras. I have tried and always end up coming back to Leica. Being able to crop quite aggressively has also been a bonus.

Finally, the Q2 based on image quality and the quality of the lens will be the last camera I will probably ever need. It’s that good.
 
I turn 50 next year. Might just hold off and get one then as a present to myself :). I’m terrible for rushing into things!!! Plus, maybe the Q3 will be out then, and the Q2 will drop a bit on the used market….
 
Another happy Q2 user here. I owned a Q originally, which replaced a Fuji system, & it was great to be liberated from the inevitably ever-growing collection of lenses. I spend a lot of my time in the Lake District, where it tends to rain a fair old bit, so having a weather-resistant Q was very appealing. Did the usual thing of torturing myself over the cost…

That lens is a real peach, and the photos this camera produces have this wonderful look about them. The camera's build quality is just amazing, & it's a real joy to use.
 
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Hi,

I have a Q2 Bond edition and an M10p. I LOVE the Q2, the ergonomics are first class,fantastic viewfinder implementation, weather sealing etc. I’ve had mine about 3 months now and I nearly always grab it in preference to the M10. I find it just gets out the way and leaves you to focus on what you want to capture.

as others have said out of camera jpegs are first class but a little tweaking in lightroom can pay dividends. I’m not sure shadow recovery is quite as good as the M10 but I need to use it more to full qualify that statement.

I often leave my 90 on my M10 and take two cameras and no lenses as the Q2 can cover the rest but as a native 28 is just so beautiful. It’s a digital camera with some soul. I’d love a Q2 with a long prime…

Jenny
 
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Ultra low light, hand held, wide open hoping the the ice under me doesn't collapse in the rain. This is actually a colour photograph straight from the camera, (not shot B&W or processed). The black soot is bands of volcanic ash in between the different layers within the glacier, the most amazing landscape I've ever seen.
 
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