Member Mark Gowin

Are the Q's thumbs up, hand grip and Arte di Mano half cases compatible with the Q2?
Very good introduction by David Farkas.
Thank you in advance for your answers.
RFG.

A few comments:
The crop modes are a *huge* improvement over the Q, due to superior resolution.
The bigger battery is a very welcome change.
I'm able to get to all necessary functions with the default settings.
The lens hood is perfect, and the Thumbs-Up lens cap with string is superb.
The optional grip is excellent – highly recommended, and very easy to mount/dismount.
The Macro ring is very convenient.
The Menu system is easy to navigate, with good shortcuts.
The look and feel of the Q2 is exquisite.

David,
Wow, I think you nailed it. I'm glad you took your time.

These kind of reviews are what makes this site so good.
I bought a CL two months ago, with the 18 thanks to your Leica deal. I already had the 11-23 for the first T.
Then I just bought the 55-135 last month. All from Josh of course at Miami.

I was eager to see what lenses you used in Santa Fe. You explained why you stayed with primes for the most part. I suspect my next lens will be the 60mm, seeing what you did with it. I admit I remain curious as to what you may have loaded into your “User Profiles”?
I enjoyed the T, as love the design, but in choosing which camera I wanted for an update, I went with the deal on the CL plus 18mm as I had a friend who showed me his CL and I wanted the built-in EVF. That's even though the articulating EVF on the T was very handy. The CL with the 18 fits in my pockets: the TL with the external EVF is more difficult. But both are light weight. Regardless, the real happy news is the lenses extremely good, regardless of the camera body, oh yes they are. And as you said, the camera is fun to use.

I agree the SL is an amazing camera and look forward to seeing what Leica does with the SL2, but I have already been in the S system for years. If I am going to bring a bigger heavier camera, it will remain the S. The CL to me is the equivalent of the M with relatively smaller AF lenses, with twice the resolution and a lot more DR than I had with the M8.

Thanks for the effort you put into this review, and all your reviews.

Jack

This has to be one of the most, if not the most, comprehensive review I've read of any camera (not just a Leica camera). To say well done is an understatement. Thanks!

Yes. I used single field AF for all my shots.

Your comprehensive review was the final trigger to buy the CL. Thanks for this great work.

Thanks Ken.

I shoot exclusively in DNG (RAW) format, then process in Adobe Lightroom Classic CC. I created a default CL preset and apply it to all CL images upon import. So, I generally never see OOC rendering. With the preset applied, I usually don't need to do much further editing – just tweaks to exposure, WB, highlights and shadows. The CL DNG files handle extremely similarly to those from the SL. Very malleable.

ive used Nikon Pro SLR's and DSLR's my entire life, starting with the F2

After a recent trip to Italy with my D5 and a few lenses, i was ready for a change.

I spent a bunch of time at the Leica showroom in Los Angeles over the weekend, and yesterday purchased the CL kit, i was a little frustrated at first, but Ive already gotten a little comfortable with it and have taken a few reference pictures I am really happy with.

Im seriously looking forward to exploring what this CL can do. I agree with the users above, this review is spot on, in depth and super helpful

Barry,

You wouldn't have any issues printing 24×36 inches from the CL. I have prints at 20×30 inches that look as good as ones from the SL. In fact, it's near impossible to tell them apart at this size.

Well this was very helpful and your photos inspiring. My CL arrives tomorrow. I ordered also the Leica Hand Grip and M adapter as I intend to shoot my M lenses on it. I think it will be a nice compliment to my M bodies. I travel to Italy about 3 times a year and sometimes my carry on weight is restricted, so this will lighten my load and my worries about the issue. Great review overall, and quite substantive.

I really like the smaller size and faster aperture of the 18mm, so that's the way I would go personally. The zoom is a very flexible option if you only want to carry one lens though.

The APO-Vario-Elmar-TL 55-135mm is equivalent to an 80-200mm in full-frame, yet only weighs 500g or around one pound. Really, that would be your best option.

Leica APO-Vario-Elmar-TL 55-135mm f/3.5-4.5 ASPH

Thank you so much!

Thanks a lot for your review. But is the 35mm Summilux an APO ? Considering the CA issues I believe it isn`t, right ?

Glad you found it helpful. I still continue to use my CL for more casual endeavors and am always pleased by the ease of use, compact size and resulting image quality.

So, I posed the question of an APO tele extender to the lens designers when I was at the factory last summer. The answer was that they already have a 1.5x extender that doesn't result in light loss or reduction in quality. “It's called a Leica CL.” Actually makes sense. You still get 24MP and the equivalent of a 135-420mm while retaining the f/2.8-4 max aperture. Also, AF and OIS work perfectly on the CL. If Leica sold an L tele extender it would probably cost the same as an entire CL camera. So, you get an extender and a backup body that can take all the SL lenses. Not so crazy, right?

I am still interested in this camera even after the Q2 announcement. Is this a wise move? I am primarily a fair weather photographer (no video).

You sold me David and Josh.
Got the kit in time for the new year.
Thanks,
Jack

Adobe's move to monthly license fees for Creative Cloud was the reason why Lightroom licenses are no longer included in any Leica camera. Previously, Adobe was supporting both CC subscriptions as well as paid-in-full standalone licenses. Leica was able to purchase these in bulk to provide with cameras. But, Adobe ceased supporting standalone editions, resulting in older versions like LR6 not supporting RAW files from the latest cameras. Unfortunately, Leica had no say in this move.

The strap pictured is the Arte di Mano Comodo Neck Strap in Barenia Tan. Here's a link:

Arte di Mano Comodo Neck Strap – Barenia Tan

If you want to learn more about Arte di Mano, Kirsten did an awesome job going over all the options in her recent video: