Nick Rains has been in Greenland with the D-Lux 8 - he was a big fan of the D-Lux 7 and so here are his thoughts on the latest version. There is a deeper dive into the menu settings here: • Leica D-Lux 8 Menus
Yet another stellar review Nick. Another plus for the D-Lux-8 is its size and weight. As much as I'd like to just shove my M11 into a coat pocket 'just in case', with the D-Lux-8 I could do so easily. Which also means that, as a handicapped person, whether in a wheelchair, walker or other mobility assistance device, I can still take superb photographs. I may not be able to shoot where we once did in Australia, but at least I can still go out and find other places accessible and take photographs to my heart's content and I thank Leica for considering us handicapped photographers.
Love it, just wish it were made in GERMANY and NOT China, also 20 Mega Pixels would have had me been buying one right now! I love LEICA stuff, I own an M6 and a Q3.
Thanks Nick for this review with a stellar backdrop to boot. Great way to show off the D-Lux 8’s capabilities. The adoption of the Leica menus is the real plus and a game changer. 👍🏻
You’re an excellent presenter but the DL8 is a huge disappointment. I have the DL7 that I love, but I couldn’t find one reason to upgrade since the 8 is still using older technology used in the 7. Leica could have really produced a competitor in this price range, but comparatively speaking, it just fizzles. I bought the new Fuji X-T50 and will keep my trusty DL7.
I can only hope the next revision will have atleast a 20mp usable and ibis, Oh and better weather resistance because those extending lenses of the D-Lux always get dust problems. It is the PERFECT form factor and MFT is more than enough for daylight.
One rarely sees an introduction to a new camera that looks like a National Geographic article. Congratulations, and I hope you will do a setup video like the one you did for the D-Lux 7.
Not really. In theory, maybe. But in practice the difference between 12 and, say, 14 bit is negligible. I’m sure it can be measured in test images but in the real world, not so much!
Have fun: question: is the Dl8 much superior in sharpness or colour compared to the Dl6 ? (Autofocus is much better i think). Could you share your experience?
Hmm, I had various D-Luxs over the years, back to the Type 109, but I can't say for sure if I had a DL6. DL8 AF will be better for sure and the 8 is 16MP vs 10MP for the DL6 (from memory).
Hey Leica, makes silver body and a black body with yellow color wrap then it will looks good! (Using Jedi Force) You will send me one for me to take it for street photography in Malaysia :-)
I've had a D-Lux 6 for more than a decade. It takes great pictures. In fact, I often choose it in preference to my pro-am Nikon D750, especially when I'm going sightseeing while travelling. It's lower resolution than the D750, but the Leica colours are so much nicer. My one gripe with it is that it has no viewfinder, and I don't really like having to rely upon the LCD back, especially in bright sunshine. When the Typ 109 and later the 7 were released, I had a close look at their specs. Even though each had a viewfinder, I decided, in the end, that their better features did not (quite) justify an upgrade from the D-Lux 6. Now that the D-Lux 8 is available with an improved Leica-style interface, I'm very tempted. But ever since I attended a tryout of the Leica SL you conducted in Sydney in November 2017, I've had a hankering to upgrade to one from my Nikon DSLRs (including the D750, which I acquired in 2018). Now that second hand SLs are (just about) affordable for me (if I save up for a while), I think I might just keep using the D-Lux 6 for the time being, and get an SL to expand my Leica repertoire (initially with a compromise lens, maybe a Sigma). Anyway, thanks for the video, which taught me a few things about the D-Lux 8 I didn't already know from other videos I've recently seen.
Any camera eco-system has overlaps between camera models but there seems to be quite a significant overlap between this and the Q-series cameras which are often marketed as EDC/travel cameras. How do you see this comparing with the Q? I currently have the M11 and Q2 and I’m debating whether to replace the Q2 with this to use as a companion to the M11.
The Q2 is a much higher quality camera. 47MP, weather sealed, Summilux f1.7 lens etc. Hard to compare with the D-Lux 8 unless the lighter weight is a big consideration. The D-Lux 8 will also fit in a pocket - the Q2 won't.
Very much enjoy your videos. I had one of the previous D-Lux versions. But am struggling to see how this offers any more advantages than the CL. Higher mp, interchangeable lenses and about the same size.The CL is still a fantastic camera that is very underrated.
For me, the key factors are, can it start up quickly, can it take sharp images with its AF on subjects that are moving? I’d basically be using it for street photography only. Is zooming in and out of focal length fast or slow compared to other camera makers? 🖖
I have no experience of other compacts sorry. The AF is snappy but I have not used it for tracking a subject. I’ll have a look at that when I get the chance.
It's quite different. The D-Lux 8 feels better in the hand and is much smaller, but it does not have the powerful telephoto lens of the V-Lux 5. Image quality would be very similar.
Yeah, my experience with the typ 109 is that the sensor and internal lens elements fog easily going from air conditioned to humid environments. And somehow my sensor has dust on it. Because the lens and sensor are all enclosed, you can’t easily clean them yourself.
And generate the usual massive excitement amongst the youtube pundits who act as though it is a revolutionary state of the art step forward never seen before.