Phototrend.fr had an interview with Leica recently and posted their article. According to the article, sales have been dominated by the Q (no, not this one).
Leica holds a very modest market share, but is an important part of the camera industry, both past and present.
Asobinet did a great job bulletpointing the interview, so here goes.
Will 2024 be a successful year for Leica?
- 2023 was an exceptional year, but 2024 looks set to be just as promising. The fiscal year starts in April, so only half a year has passed, but the outlook is very bright.
- Because bodies like the Leica Q3 have appeared.
- Until a few years ago, the M was our best-seller and core pillar, but now the Q3 is clearly emerging.
- However, the three models share sales in a triangular structure.
Has the SL3 found its place in the mirrorless market?
- After years of hard work, the SL3 has finally found its home.
- We have been able to convince many professionals to switch to this model, even if they were switching from other brands such as Sony or Canon.
- This is not about numbers, but about a loyal (and repeat) customer base of professionals who recognize the unique quality we offer.
- They account for less than 2% of the photography market, so they’re not going to take the 5% share away from Canon, Sony and Nikon mirrorless.
- We intend to maintain our legitimacy in a market where we were not necessarily expected to do well.
- Such as an optimized charging system thanks to the inclusion of USB-C on products like the M11 and Q3: as a climber, for example, I’m happy to be able to charge the M11 directly with an external battery.
Are there any differences between the European market and other regions?
- Despite cultural differences, the major markets of the US, Japan, France and Germany are fairly evenly balanced in terms of sales.
- The Japanese are particularly fond of the artisanal and mythical aspects, and Chinese customers, with their rapidly growing purchasing power, are increasingly fond of our products.
- But our approach remains the same: to deliver exceptional products that transcend trends and rapid technological developments.
Was there a lot of demand for the Leica Q3 43?
- This is in response to a long-standing request from customers.
- There was a myth that Cartier-Bresson only used 50mm lenses, and as a result, everyone wanted to shoot with 50mm.
- But over time, the trend shifted towards wider focal lengths, and especially with the arrival of cameras like the M6, 35mm became the go-to lens for street photography and reportage.
- The move towards wider focal lengths like 28mm has been driven, among other things, by the rise of smartphones and their wide-angle modules.
- Choosing this focal length for the Leica Q was a logical choice, as it gives you more versatility when cropping, and being able to crop from a high-resolution sensor to 35mm, 50mm or 75mm is an ideal solution.
- 43mm is also a really interesting choice, as it is a focal length that is said to be close to human vision and corresponds to the diagonal of a 24×36 sensor.
- This lens is a historic focal length for the Leica brand, and customers have been waiting for it for a while. Leica is built on history.
When will the Monochrome Q3 be released?
- There’s always been a pattern when it comes to Leica’s camera release cycles.
- As we’ve seen with the M11 and its variants, and the Q2, a color model is often released followed by a monochrome model within the next two years.
- Based on past trends, there is a good chance that a monochrome model will be released.
- It’s common to see developments like this on Leica’s product roadmap, even if they haven’t been officially confirmed.
- Of course, this is all speculation until Leica makes an official announcement.
The optics patent for the 43mm F2 lens appears to be owned by Panasonic, as is the 28mm F1.7. Is it fair to assume that the synergies of the L-mount partnership will also apply to the Q?
- It is important to understand that the relationship between Leica and Panasonic dates back several decades to the design of lenses for television cameras, video cameras and video projectors. From the very beginning, Leica was designing lenses for Panasonic.
- For a long time, Leica has been providing optical expertise to Panasonic, and this collaboration is reflected in the LUMIX branded products we see, often reminiscent of “Leica” optics.
- The combination of Panasonic’s expertise in electronics and Leica’s expertise in lens design has resulted in high-quality product development.
- The fact that Panasonic was able to apply for a patent on a specific optical system such as the 43mm F2 seems like a natural outcome of this long-term technical collaboration.
- However, even though Panasonic has patents, it lacks certain features such as apochromatic lenses that make a big difference in image quality, especially in the correction of chromatic aberrations and color reproduction. Leica’s know-how is not only in the design, but also in the fine-tuning of materials and manufacturing.
- After all, even if Panasonic holds certain patents, traditional Leica craftsmanship remains at the heart of premium optics.
- It’s quite possible that the optics of the Q3 43 are made in Japan. Some Leica lenses are produced in synergy with Panasonic, and some, like the Vario-Elmarit SL 70-200mm F2.8 ASPH, are made in collaboration with Sigma.
How do you explain the technical similarities between the D-LUX8 (or D-LUX7) and the LUMIX LX100 II?
- It shows the complexity of collaboration between brands like Leica, Panasonic and other camera manufacturers.
- This kind of partnership has a long history and is rooted in the need for legitimacy and specific skills: Asian brands such as Panasonic, Sony, Samsung and Fujifilm have often sought to partner with European companies to establish credibility in the photography sector.
- The Leica-designed D-LUX 7 and 8 cameras based on the LX100 II are a perfect example of this, with Leica contributing essential elements such as lens quality and, in the case of the D-LUX 8, an interface derived from the Q3.
- In fact, Leica’s contributions in areas ranging from optics to design to image processing give the final product a “Leica feel.”
Do you have any comments on the integration of M11-P and the Content Authenticity Initiative standard?
- To be honest, no, but I have to say it doesn’t get much coverage in the media.
- We are waiting for major manufacturers like Canon and Sony to integrate the standard.
- However, the SL, which is equipped with the Content Authenticity Initiative standard, will be released, and the Q will also be released.
- Either way, I’ve never seen anyone come into a store wanting to buy an M11-P just because it was integrated into the CAI standard.
- However, it is conceivable that, for example, visual artists, or artists wanting to ensure the originality of their projects, might find it useful to use the M11-P’s CAI.
Although advanced colour profiles are built into cameras, they aren’t always recognised by processing software, so is RAW really still worth it?
- RAW didn’t exist 20 years ago. In the early days of digital we mainly used TIFF and JPEG.
- The introduction of RAW was a bit of a marketing stunt and coincided with a software development.
- We have gone from saying that people use software to “process” their photos to saying that they use software to “develop” them.
- It’s important to know the steps for developing film, but how many of us actually shot in a lab back in the film days? The number is very small, probably less than 0.8%.
- Nowadays, with easy access to RAW development software and the ability to scale images up to 300%, retouching has become excessive and many people are becoming “world lab champions” in terms of colorimetry.
- Back in the day, few people had access to a microscope to analyze film in detail. Now that technology has advanced, we can make deeper changes to files. But it’s not always appropriate.
- I say it every day: use JPEG, use JPEG!
Source: phototrends.fr via asobinet
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Surprised by the "shoot JPEG"!
Despite criticism by many Leica haters, the have found and occupied their market niche, and are even expanding.
Developing the Q line was their best decision in the last decades, and a highly profitable one. A great little camera!
What I'm less convinced of, is the growing number of Sigma lenses "adapted" as SL lenses. I went Leica for the lenses, the SL misses far too many primes and zooms to compete with Canon. And Canon Zooms beat Sigma/Leicas ones easily, at least optically. Having to choose between a Canon and a Sigma/Leica zoom, I wouldn't hesitate and go Canon. But that's, I guess, the price for being small. Leica just lack the means for developing own telezooms, TS and standard zooms for the SL 3.
I’ll keep shooting RAW, though :)
You get such a broad brush to paint with with RAW....JPEG just bakes too much into the "image"...why would someone limit themselves so badly?
Just my $0.02,
cayenne
That was 5 years ago and it still stings, especially with much better denoisers available, they were dawn shots of dew covered dragonflies, so ISO12800 using an 1dx3.
The added storage cost is more than worth it for me.
Having said that, I export everything as jpeg-xl and import it into apple
photos.app in order to sync to all my devices. So what I view and show is indeed a jpeg :)
Maybe those people in my photo club were trendsetters ;).
See: https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/...-doesnt-understand-the-first-thing-about-film
BUT...I still keep my physical negatives....
My parents, friends parents and all....all have TONS of old negatives...that I am currently harvesting to digitize....
Most folks I know kept the negatives....