Grab this card now, or a bunch of them as this deal JUST popped up at B&H Photo. $6.99 for a Lexar 8GB Platinum II SDHC card. I need to grab about 10 of these so act quick if you have been needing some good SD cards! YOU CAN BUY THEM HERE.

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Also, for the Leica people…the wonderful Zeiss Sonnar 50 1.5 ZM lens is IN STOCK in Black and Silver right now as well. Enjoy!

The Nikon V1. The perfect street camera? By Gary Perlmutter

I have been doing street photography for around 12 years. During that time I have used various film and more recently digital cameras, in fact too many to list or even remember! One of my favourites some years ago was the Nikon Coolpix 990 with its unique twisting swivel body which was brilliant for getting those candid photos. More recently I owned the Fuji X100 but like Steve found the auto focus too slow and hit and miss for street photography. ( although I am led to believe that more recent firmware updates have improved the X 100 in this area) A shame as the image quality is superb. I realised that for me my priority was a camera with super fast AF and a built-in viewfinder ( I am old school and prefer to hold the camera to my eye not at arm’s length). It was Steve in his Nikon V1 review that brought this camera to my attention and more importantly his comments on the AF. So I sold my X100 and invested in the Nikon V1 system, that is the camera body and the 10mm, 10-30mm and the 30-110mm lenses. I went for the black matt finish, which coupled with its small size doesn’t draw attention when out on the street.

In the four months since I’ve owned the camera it has lived up to my expectations, in fact the AF has surpassed them. It really is lightning quick to lock on to a subject and I have not had one out of focus picture. In fact it focuses as fast as I press the shutter with no lag, as can be witnessed in the photo of the kid walking towards me holding the bag on his wrists or the one of the men with the ‘i think he’s gay’ t-shirt. In both images I literally just clicked as they walked into frame, no pre or zone focussing here. I like shooting with prime lenses and always thought that 35mm was my favourite focal length. However at present the only prime lens is the 10mm f2.8 which is equivalent to 27mm. To my surprise I have fallen in love with this focal length and the 10mm has become my lens of choice. It is also a very compact pancake lens, making a great combo for the street. In use I have taped down the mode dial as it can be moved too easily. I set the camera to shutter priority and Auto ISO, mainly because this got round the problem that many have reported of the camera selecting too slow a shutter speed in aperture priority mode. With such a wide depth of field due to the small sensor, I don’t have to worry about what aperture is being set. One final thing… I have fitted the Ricahrd Franiec grip which is brilliant together with a Gordy black leather wrist strap. P.S the Nikon V1 also makes a great travel camera, take a look at Colin Steel’s articles on this website.

You can follow me on Twitter @gazonthestreet or see more of my work at Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/gp_photography/

I hope you like the above article and accompanying photos.

Kind regards

Gary Perlmutter

**CAMERA NOT INCLUDED IN CONTEST

Hey guys! It has been a while since I had a contest here and decided it was time to put one up again. I have had this bag sitting here in my house for a couple of months and not being used so decided it should go to someone. I could sell it but I could also give it away and with all of the news of the Leica Monochrom camera coming in August, why not have a Black & White photo contest? Should be fun! So I am giving away this lovely Wotancraft City Explorer Paratrooper bag.

SUBMIT YOUR BEST B&W photo starting NOW!

This one is easy and simple. You can submit one and only one photo to me for this contest. The rules are below:

• Photo must be Black & White and no larger than 1800 pixels wide horizontal or 680 pixels wide vertical.
• Photo can be digital or shot on film. No extensive PP is allowed (changing the photo) but light PP is (levels, contrast, sharpen, conversions)
• Photo can be of anything, just make it your favorite B&W shot that you have taken!
• This contest is open to everyone, worldwide
• You can send image starting NOW through June 15th and I will post a top 10 on the site on June 20th.
• When submitting include your name and address in the e-mail so if you win, I know where to ship the bag.
• Send ONE image only and make sure to follow the size rules.

That is it! I decided that I will choose the top 10 and I will use polling again to choose the winner. These are the rules so if you do not agree with them, do not enter  

So if you want to win this bag, you can send in your submission starting NOW to me at steve@stevehuffphoto.com. Good luck!

My name is Khunya Lamat Pan, I currently reside in Austin, Texas. A link to my work can be found here. I also do a weekly mailing list called Khunya’s Photograph A Week. I basically send out an email each week with a link to a new photo of mine for people to see and send feedback on. It’s a great way for me as a photographer to keep myself in check and make sure I am always taking photographs. If one of these makes it on the site, I’d like to have the mailing list mentioned if at all possible. You’re more than welcome to include my email address as well so people may contact me if they want to be added. Let me know if that would work or if not.

Photo details:

Drag – Pentax K1000. Super-Takumar 50mm f/1.4. Tri-X 400 film.

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Glitter – Leica M9. Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4. ISO 80.

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Skate – FED-2. Industar 26M 50mm f/2.8. Ilford HP5+ 400 film.

Thanks for the cool opportunity! I also enjoy your website very much, especially the recent reviews of the SLR Magic Hyperprime lens and such. Keep up the good work!

Yours friendly,

-Khunya

Many of you requested full size out of camera samples from the Leica Monochrome so here you go! These were shot during that one hour walk and they are RAW conversions without ANY adjustments whatsoever, so these are out of camera from RAW – what you see if what you get and this is about all I have This is NOT a review, just giving you guys the images you requested in full size, without editing. EXIF is embedded in the images. As stated in the previous article all images were shot with the Leica Monochrom and the SLR Magic 50 Hyperprime T0.95.

It appears I should be getting a Monochrom and X2 for review REALLY soon and if so I plan a long road trip for 2-3 weeks to review them both – The M for B&W and X2 for color. Stay tuned!

CLICK ON IMAGES FOR FULL SIZE FILES

DOG  - T0.95

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BUS LADY – T/1.4

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RAIN – T/2

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T/0.95

My one hour  with the new Leica Monochrome by Steve Huff

Hello and here I am once again writing from my hotel room in Berlin. I just ordered room service as it is pouring rain outside and I just returned from an hour long walk Sean Reid who e-mailed me this afternoon asking if I would like to use the M Monochrome that he has with him since I did not get a chance to shoot one at all from Leica. Very cool of him. He did already post a review of the M Monochrome and the X2 at his subscription site if you would like to check it out. So I thank Sean for letting me use the camera for an hour or so. Without that, I would not even have been able to really check it out at all.

1st, MY thoughts on this Leica event and how I would have done it differently

I have to first thank Leica for inviting me to this event. I was invited to the 09/09/09 event but could not make it out that time but I always said that when they announce their next set of cameras, I AM THERE! So I was excited to be here and enjoy the whole “Leica-ness” of it all. As we all knew from the rumors there was a dedicated  black & white camera coming from Leica and possibly an X2. Both of these things were indeed true.

No WiFi at the event

When I arrived to the event I walked in and was asked for my invitation (glad I didn’t forget it)! After handing it over I entered the building and noticed that there were MANY people there. It was a packed house, full of suits, dresses, and a few people I recognized. After talking with a few of the Leica people I made my way to the stage area and had a seat. I pulled out my laptop as I assumed there would be wifi there for the bloggers and press that were in attendance. NOPE.

If this were MY event, I would have wifi setup. No questions about it. The fact is there were many of the big players here and it would seem that Leica would want the press and live coverage. I was all set to do live blogging and was disappointed to find out that would not be possible. Sure I could have paid for some sort of card but I was told there would be wireless there so I didn’t.

No cameras to try out at the event

If this were my event, or if I were in charge of it I would have made sure to have a few cameras to pass around to the blogger guys/girls. The thing Leica wants and needs is coverage of these new cameras. I would have handed out one to every major blogging person and said “use it for the day tomorrow”. That would have been great. We would have all been able to shoot with it, evaluate it and write about it. But no cameras were to be found. I was able to stare at them through a glass case though and did eventually get to fire off 4 shots with Jonathan Slacks camera he has been testing. I shot 4 shots only because I wanted to take a quick look and Jono kindly handed over the camera. (Thanks Jono, his photos from the Monochrom can be seen here)!

No real WOW factor

I hate to say it as I love Leica and the guys that work there but I have to say the event was a bit on the dull and lackluster side. Sure there were drinks, food and people to mingle with but the overall presentations were lacking. Not a big deal but I remember a few occasions yawning as it dragged on and on it seems. We were all there for the announcements and the way they were announced was also a bit on the dull side.

IS Leica HIGH?

OK. I have to mention it. $7200 for a Leica 50 Summicron ASPH APO. I have to admit…when I heard that I was like..”MAN OH MAN..I AM DONE WITH LEICA”! I thought it was ridiculous and borderline insanity to price the new lens like that. I mean, a SUMMICRON for more than the legendary 50 Summilux? Really? We all know how amazing Leica glass is. That is their main claim to fame. The GLASS! But pricing the new lens at $7200 US is really alienating 75% of Leicas new users.

I know for a fact there have been thousands of you who read this site, who are NOT rich, who went out and bought an M9 even though they really could not justify or afford it. Many of us, myself included, stretched our budgets to be able to purchase the camera and one or two lenses max. Why? Because while we may not have all of the money in the world, we have passion and we want to shoot with what our heart tells us to shoot with. For me, it’s usually Leica.

There were so many new Leica users over the past three years and Leica has been enjoying this success. When they release a lens for $7200 and it is a 50 Summicron ASPH APO..well, I am afraid they just went and priced MANY of us out of the market, which may be what they want.

I know for a fact I will never ever buy the new lens, no matter how good it is. Why? Because the 50 Summilux ASPH is astounding, and cheaper. The old 50 Summicron may have some character flaws to some, but you can buy them used pretty cheap. $7200 to gain some sharpness and micro-contrast?

On the other hand I have a feeling they need lenses like this for their M10 which I think is coming at Photokina. I think the sensor in the M10 will be so high res and so capable of crazy detail that they needed a new lens to showcase it. I also have a feeling many changes are coming with the M10. I have no inside info, Leica tells me nothing… but my crystal ball thinks so.

I get releasing a new lens like this for those that want absolute perfection and beauty. Those who can afford it, and there are many, will buy the lens. I just do not see them selling them in any kind of mass quantity, which again, is probably what they want.

I happen to know the lens is amazingly beautiful in its design, size, and rendering. The samples I have seen from it blew me away. I am just disappointed in the price point as they knocked so many out of the game here.

But I assume they know what they are doing and maybe they just want to go after a specific market for their new cameras and lenses. Either way, I can not deny the fact that the new Monochrome M and the new 50 are gorgeous and this lens may be the best lens they have ever made. I will give them that for sure. I would love to do  full review of it using this new Monochrome so maybe one day I will get to try it out and let you guys know how it is.

My one hour with the Leica Monochrome

So as I started this article writing about how I finally managed to spend an hour with the new Leica Monochrome camera I will now talk a little about this camera and my 1st impressions after spending just under an hour with it. The images you see embedded here were all shot with the Monochrome and the SLR Magic 50 T0.95 Hyperprime lens.  Click on any image for a larger view.

So it was raining, it was grey and it was all kinds of dreary but I headed out for an hour with the new Leica Monochrome in Berlin, which is a beautiful gorgeous place to shoot. The people also seem friendly as no one had an issue with me taking their images. Had a great time for that one hour for sure!

It’s just like shooting an M9

The Monochrome is just like shooting an M9 or M9-P except you have no color available. It’s all black and white. Monochrome (that sounds cooler). You can read the techie reviews for the details on the sensor but basically, in real world terminology this sensor will yield better dynamic range and high ISO capabilities over the M9 or M9-P.

If I can be honest, I am strangely attracted to this camera even though it is priced at $8000, the same cost as a Leica M9-P. I remember years ago people on various forums were asking for a dedicated B&W sensor Leica M camera. It made sense right? Leica has always been known for classic B&W photography. So many of us shoot B&W with our M cameras or even shooting B&W film. So why not a dedicated B&W sensor camera? With the Monochrome you get better high ISO and beautiful B&W capabilities.

I know that as soon as I knew this camera was coming, I wanted one. I even came up with an idea to travel for a few weeks and shoot only B&W. Do a huge project. Take my time. Just me and the camera as one. Ahhh, sounds so good huh?

It’s true. B&W has a way of tugging at your soul, your heart, your brain. It’s simple. It’s basic. It’s real. No, it’s not real as in what we see with our eyes but for some reason when I view classic B&W images I can see deeper into the image. It has more emotion and soul. I LOVE B&W. The problem has always been that traditional digital cameras usually sucked with Monochrome imaging. Sure we can use plug ins like Silver Efex Pro or Alien Skin but imagine a simple camera we could have that just allowed us to be pure. To be MONO. Yep, this new Leica allows us to do that and gives us superb IQ, great sharpness, and the ability to capture that real emotion that so many of us love to see.

Shooting B&W takes me back to the time when I had my M6 or M7 around my neck with a roll of Tri-X loaded. For some reason that camera inspired me to get out and capture people on the street. I lost my fears and was motivated to shoot. Holding that Leica Monochrome in my hand, knowing its potential, well, that was enough to motivate me and get me excited to shoot today. It’s a funny thing these Leica cameras. They almost are like some alien life form that sucks you into wanting to shoot. Always happens with an M around my neck.

I walked and I shot and shot and shot, maybe about 75 images total. Not too many really and I knew that I would not get any great shots or amazing artistic images but I knew that shooting this camera for even an hour would let me judge it’s capabilities. Again, it is the same body and menu as an M9 or M9-P with a couple of minor things added. So if you have shot an M before, you will feel right at home shooting the Monochrome. In a way, reviewing this camera is easy as it is only about the images, the tonality and the high ISO performance. Notice in the title image how many tones you can see in the sock. Gorgeous.

$8000!

When I found out this body was $8000 I immediately said “WHAT”??? I mean, many will see this as a crippled M9! No color? Well, those are the people who either are not really into B&W photography or just do not get what this camera is all about. I know for a fact that I can not afford $8000 for this camera, but maybe if I scrimp and save and save some more than maybe I would be able to swing it, though I’d have to sell my M9-P to do so. I am NOT a rich guy Yes, this blog gets loads of traffic but that also means much higher costs to run it.

So after my one hour with this lovely camera I asked myself…”would I sell my M9-P to buy an Monochrome”? Well, I wouldn’t want to… but yes I would. Because after viewing my sample images I do see a difference between this output and what comes out of an M9 with conversions. Yes, $8000 is INSANE and much to expensive (it really is) but damn Leica, you always have a way to get to my heart and soul, and I feel that the Leica Monochrome, even at $8000, will eventually become a classic due to its simplicity, design, feel, use, and beautiful output. I do not think they will have a problem selling this one though I also do not think they will sell as many as they did the M9.

When I get more time with this camera I plan on spending MUCH more  time testing it with landscapes, studio portraits, and more street photography as well as some travel stuff. So c’mon Leica, send me one along with the new X2 so I can get started!

A few more samples during my one hour with the camera…exif is all embedded. I hope you enjoyed  this quick one hour walk with me Also, I have to say that this SLR Magic 50mm t/0.95 Hyperprime is GORGEOUS. Be sure and read all about it HERE.

BTW, you can now pre order the M Monochrome for $7995 at the following sites:

B&H Photo – M Monochrome Pre-Order, 50 Summicron ASPH APO Pre-Order, Leica X2 Pre-order

Dale Photo – M Monochrome Pre-order, 50 Summicron ASPH APO Pre-Order, Leica X2 Pre-Order (the silver chrome color ROCKS this time)

PopFlash Photo – they are all on the main page!

Ken Hansen has a list going as well – E-Mail him HERE - he will ship worldwide

and a higher ISO with crop

and an ISO 10,000 – yes, it’s got grain

What a day! Woke up early and had some great breakfast in the hotel and then took a stroll through the streets of Berlin. At around 1pm I met up with some other guys in the Hotel lobby as we were going to head down to Paris Cafe, which came highly recommended by Thorsten Overgaard. Thorsten drove his car (nicknamed “The Italian Stallion”  here from Denmark so that was our mode of transportation to the cafe.

I was snapping away with my Olympus OM-D and Voigtlander 17mm 0.95 lens, which I am really falling for (did I already say that in a previous post)? lol. It was funny as I saw at least 3 others walking around with the OM-D, snapping pics of the new Leica cameras. This seems to be a popular little camera, and for good reason.

As we were heading down the streets of Berlin, Thorsten was our tour guide and me and Eric Kim were in the backseat enjoying the ride After we made it to the Cafe we all sat at a table and apparently had many other Leica guys joining us. Even Anthony Suau, the Pulitzer prize-winning photographer who had some incredible stories about his work. I thoroughly enjoyed his conversation. You can check out some his work at a project he is working on right now at facing change.org. This guy is incredible.

Was a pleasure to meet Anthony Suau, World Press Photo of the Year winner 1987 and 2009

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As always, when in a Cafe I like to check my surroundings and fire away at anything I find interesting. I found the little OM-D did quite well and using the manual lens on it was a joy. BTW, I never used the magnification or assist, just MF’d using the EVF without help. I find you can do this with the OM-D without a problem, and you don’t even need peaking.

So after the great lunch that we ate at the Paris Cafe we all headed back to the hotel to get ready for the Leica event..which was inching closer.

So I get to my room, take a quick shower and get dressed. We all had to meet down in the lobby as  shuttle bus was  taking us to the venue, which was literally 3 minutes away. I was excited as I was minutes away from seeing the new Leica gear, and figured I would even get a chance to shoot a few frames with it.

After watching an hour of the event, they stopped and gave everyone and hour break. Gave me time to roam around and meet up with a few online buddies that I have never physically met. I soon found that people were approaching me left and right. They knew me, but I didn’t know them! It was a pleasure to meet everyone though, it really was. That was the best part about this whole night, for me..to meet so many of the people who frequent this site!

So after the break the new products were announced. The M Monochrome, the X2, the V-Lux 40 and the special edition Hermes M9-P.

I was excited to give the new Monochrome and even X2 a spin but was a bit disappointed when there were no samples to handle or touch. They were all behind glass. I had hoped that I would be able to at least borrow one to shoot around Berlin with for a day but sadly, no.  So for those e-mailing wanting samples, my thoughts, or a review…know that I have none (except for the 3-4 shots I already posted after I borrowed the Monochrome from someone else) because I have not used either cameras.I literally have had 280 e-mails this morning asking me what I think of the new cameras…but I can not yet say so I suggest reading the reviews that have already popped up.

What I do know from seeing others work with it is that it appears to be pretty damn incredible. To me, it is back to basics and simplicity. Black & White…Monochrome…has SOUL. I have seen many images shot with this new M and let me say that the output is mind-blowing. Don’t go by my low light super high ISO samples, check out reviews by others who have been using it.

Jonathan Slack has written a short user review that I enjoyed. Sean Reid also has one but I haven’t seen it as his site is subscription based.

One shot with the Monochrome M at ISO 6400 and this was in almost total darkness…

So yea, I will review these new Leica cameras whenever Leica wants to give me review samples. We shall see! BTW, I know the site has been running slow for the past 12 hours as well as not even loading in correctly. This is being looked into right now so it should be back to normal soon.

Here is a video of the event if anyone wants to see the announcement. Enjoy!

Thank you for your patience with the slow loading!

Steve

Steve

The Leica Monochrome has been announced! 1st shots with the camera in low light!

Hey guys! Sorry for not updating live but there was absolutely no WiFi or internet at the event, which I found odd but what can I do? The Leica event started at 6:45PM and is actually still going on right now at 11:30 PM (but I am back in my room).

As you all know by now Leica introduced the Leica Monochrome. A black and white ONLY sensor in an M camera. What does this mean? Well, long story short it means that you will gain amazing high ISO capability and huge dynamic range. Sadly, Leica did not give me a camera to test (though I am the largest Leica review site on the internet) out but I talked with others who did and have had one for months and they were floored by it.

They all said the same thing..amazing quality unlike what you can get with an M9 and conversions. For starters, the ISO capability is flat out amazing. Up to ISO 10,000 and usable at 10,000. The finish is a matte black and it looks great. Many will wonder why Leica would release this camera, and even so, at a more expensive price than the M9. Well, for those who want to shoot B&W this appears to be the real deal. But, I have not yet thoroughly shot with one though I have seen many shots from the camera and have been floored at the results.

I hope to get an Monochrome before I leave Berlin so I can review it but who knows. Have no idea why this would not be possible but you never know.

I shot some video of the event and took some shots and will have those up later but wanted to throw this quick post up showing some high ISO images that I snapped with the Leica Monochrome.

Keep in mind these were quick grab shots in darkness so I am not evaluating anything until I get to use the camera in daylight and while really concentrating on using it.

I literally grabbed a camera from Jonathan Slack and was able to get off about 4 shots, so here are three of them. Thanks Jono! I will soon have more info on the event, more photos and my thoughts on the new M and newly announced Leica X2, which looks like the X1 but is much faster to AF and has an external EVF (from Olympus).

Oh, and BTW…Leica has announced the new 50 F2 Summicron APO at a cost of about $7200 US – the M9 Monochrome will set you back about $7500-$8000 US. Wow. Shipping in August 2012.

Enjoy!

ISO 6400 – from RAW – no editing

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ISO 10,000 – from RAW – no editing

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ISO 6400 – from RAW – no editing

Well here I am in Berlin..here it is now officially May 10th 2012 and today is the big event from Leica. Today  I have already met Eric Kim briefly in the lobby and tomorrow I plan on meeting quite a few more website guys like Sean Reid, Michael Reichman, Thorston Overgaard, and an old forum acquaintance from my DPreview forum days, Jonathan Slack. Some of the coolest blogging/website guys around, and they will all be here. So cool!

I just returned from a very cool bar/restaurant here where I had a chat with some guys from Leica. It’s always fun to hang out with them and I did my best to pry out info from them but they wouldn’t budge, lol! BTW, Thanks for the invite Boris!

Later today I will be heading to the event and will hopefully be blogging live from there (as long as there is internet available). If not, I will be posting all about it when I get back to my room. I’m hearing rumblings about many new product announcements so should be an exciting evening. NEW Leica products…what is there NOT to like. But, I really do NOT think an M10 is part of the announcement. I get the feeling that one will come later, so for those waiting for an M10, I do not think it is going to happen tomorrow.

We all know the rumors so will be cool to see if they pan out and i am hoping there is a surprise in there as well. Keep your eyes peeled to this site for all of the news and photos from the event.

In a B&W kind of mood…

In any case, I have never been to Berlin but this looks like a place I could really dig. VERY VERY cool and as I took a walk around today near the hotel I was all of a sudden in a black and white kind of mood…I started seeing in monochrome and while I only snapped 4-5 shots I had a nice walk.

I am here in Berlin through Saturday and have most of the day Friday to walk around, explore and take photos. If anyone local wants to join me let me know!

BTW, these were all shot with the little OM-D and Voigtlander 17 f/0.95 ands I have to say that this lens has won me over. As I shoot more with it I am finding it pretty damn good even wide open at f/0.95. $1249 at B&H but this is a super fast 35mm equivalent for your M4/3 camera. I like the 25 0.95 as well but have to say the 17mm would be my choice if deciding between the two because there is no other alternative for this system. In the 25mm (50mm) department we have the $550 Panasonic which I think may be a bit better than the Voigtlander 25mm, and it is half the cost. Still, it is not an 0.95 nor does it have the build of the more expensive lens but it is smaller and sharper.

So if you have been looking for a fast 35mm equivalent, the 17mm comes highly recommended by me and I may just keep it if I can swing it with the $$. More photos below with the combo of the OM-D and 17mm.

Maybe in a few hours I will be shooting Monochrome with something else If the rumors are true that is…

Steve