Leica Q2 REVIEW! Is this the Perfect EVERYDAY camera? 

The Q2 is everything I want in a camera. I am a one-camera-one-lens photographer. I can confidently use 1/15 second shutter speed to effect motion blur while maintaining sharp focus of stationary objects. The camera has the ability to pre-crop in the viewfinder, simulating several focal lengths (there are adequate megapixels for cropping). I set it for 35mm. Weather-sealing, excellent build quality, simplicity and esthetics contribute to confidence in foul-weather shooting, and a high level of user experience. Is it worth the price? Of course.

I loved your review because you confirmed my decision to buy the Q just as the Q2 was coming out. My reasons were 1. The price, since the price of the Q dropped to around $4000 or less, and 2. I didn't want to deal with 47 MP. Even when one crops to a higher mm lens, the raw file is still full frame or 25 MP for the Q and 47 MP for the Q2. One improvement that others have mentioned is the viewfinder is noticeably better which is OLED in the Q2 than the Q. I haven't seen a Q2 myself. I will say that I wish the viewfinder had a better eye shade. Light can come in from the side, making it difficult to see the image. For me, $4000 was a splurge, but worth it. I love the camera.

Love my Q2! Just took it to a gig. I was at the back of the venue and still got some superb shots using the frame cropping!

Not to mention the best feature of this camera the leaf shutter lens That alone is worth the price of the camera, for any group or full length with flash in daylight is priceless. I did use the q really felt in love with that camera for that feature and a very quiet 🤫 shutter.

This will be Many people's gateway in the world of Leica. Starting with me. Thanks for the review.

I disagree with you on resolution: 1. High resolution makes sense if you want more crop modes (and crop modes are good zoom replacements). 2. High resolution also eliminates the need for shift lenses (because you do lose some detail after correcting for converging verticals). Also, the Q/2 is amazing even if you only shoot the 28mm focal length. Compare any DSLR with a 28/1.8 to the Q series and it will be at least twice as big. The A7 series, OTOH... Anyway, I now look forward to your Panasonic S1 review. It never ends! :-)

I appreciate your review and knowledge of the Leica brand. I am going for the original Q. I think I would like weather sealing, but I will not shoot in the rain. The Q is my next Leica. Thank you! Sean

The 47 mp sensor provides 30 mp at 35 mm and 15 mp at 50 mm, and that's a HUGE improvement over the Q. Everyday experience bears that out big time.

excellent and honest review. As owner of a Q2 I can only agree

Some people are totally obsessed with resolution and sharpness.. Thats all they look at. They base their opinion on cameras and lenses just by how sharp it can render.. Thats BS if you ask me

I understand Leica with the decision to go for high Mpix. The ability to crop to 35mm or 50mm with enough pixel left, is great. What they should do is, to go for a Q2r and a Q2s. One with a lot of Mpix and the other with the max possible ISO performance. For me, this Q2 is very interesting. Also the price, if you compare it to something like the Rx1rII.

I brought a used Q two years ago before the Q2 came out and used it as a travel camera for many occasions. I don't find myself wanting / needing the Q2 for its higher megapixel counts except for situations where I need to crop to 50+mm equivalent. The original Q is a very capable camera with the same 28mm summilux and you can get it now with a very reasonable price from 2.5k to 3k USD. As a Fujifilm X100T owner, I don't think the lens offered by Fujifilm at the X100 level is in anyway close to 28mm Summilux. I still have my Fujifilm but I only use it if I need to go into potentially dangerous areas. Although 28mm is enough for me, I really want to get a rangefinder now to get the full Leica manual focus experience. After leaving my film camera behind for a few years because it is hard to find quality film development shops in my area, I want to get back to that magical film shooting experience. I think the Lecia M is the answer in this digital age and the M 240 is not that expensive now.

Hi ISO is not preferable anyway. This is not because of noise but because of dynamic range (which drops inline with ISO increase, killing of all the quality of your expensive sensor/camera! Use primes 1.x. I have never (or very rarely) been in a situation where I needed ISO 6400... Catch the light, not the darkness 😊

I just wished it had a joystick. It makes so much sense with fast wide angle lenses.

Excellent advertising for the Leica SL ! More seriously you show very well that the best is the enemy of the good.

Wish i seen this review before trading my q for the q2.

Pretty sure Full frame sensors will go to 80mp within the next year or 2.. That's basically just 4 20mp M4/3 sensors stuck together

Fully agree on your ISO and MPix comment! So let's see what the Zeiss ZX1 will bring to us. Looking forward to... Cheers Axel

Go and buy a used original Q if you can find a good one. Leica Q has much better ISO handling and low light performance than the Q2. 24 mp is huge, even for croppings. Take the Q and spend the rest of your 2000 bucks to a tropic vacation 😎

The Summilux 28 mm f/1.7 ASPH alone could cost at least 3.000$. The camera costs 5.000$. So it is not really expensive. The M mount Leica rangefinder cameras are not weather resistant. The Leica Q2 it is. No fear of rain. I like the native ISO 50. It is the lowest native ISO of full frame as far as I know. It should offer great dynamic range control with raw files. The mechanical shutter speed 1/2000th sec isn't nice. The electronic shutter speed 1/40.000th sec is impressive but rolling shutter should be a problem. The flash synchronization 1/500th sec is good but the similar Sony RX1 series has a much faster leaf shutter.

The thing is You can buy Q1 on Ebay for close to £2000 , so they don’t hold their value that good. And it might be the case with Q2 as well.

Well i own the Q2 and SL2. My opinion is not the same as yours for the Q2 in low light conditions. Maybe you did not have the new firmware version 2.00 when you did your review.

excellent review. but I never had a better low light camera!

Nice real life review. I am deeply into Nikon Z7 and DSLRS with an extensive line of lenses so will not be going in that direction. But for someone who is well heeled and starting out, it could be a good street photo or vacation camera. A longer lens such as 35mm would have been better in my opinion. If in New York City, LA or Chicago, you might want to place a bit of gaffer tape over the 🔴 logo.

Leaving aside image quality and field-of-view questions, the one thing I WILL say is that the Q/Q2 are NOT small, pocketable cameras. Of course standards vary, but if I want something with at least an APS-C sensor that is not much effort to take with me (e.g. put in a coat pocket) the X100 models, even a CL with an 18/23 mm (to say nothing of the GRiii) fit the bill to a much better degree.

Thanks Steve, What camera is the best for low light stills in your opinion, currently I own a A9 and a omd Em1 mark ii, I am looking for a change and consider SL, Q original, or SL2S.. What's your thoughts?, thanks Frank from New Zealand

Refreshingly good description of the Leica Q2..

Thanks for this. I now know this camera is not for me. The lowlight capability is necessary for me.

I appreciate your positivity... :)

8:11 my hat's off to you sir.

It is important to note that the metering is apparently based on the focal length crop used. Therefore, cropping on a computer after shooting at 28 mm is NOT equivalent to using the crop on camera. In some lighting situations, it could make a substantial difference.

The SL 2 will be our end of this year like the original I’m saving every dollar 😀😅😅

Thanks! You're helping me a lot! I will take the q-p :-)

I'm Picking one up next year

Wish it would switch to 35mm lens instead of macro closeup option ..

May we're getting a Q2s very soon

Soooo, you are not going to keep it??

When looking through the EVF and using the 35mm crop, does the projected image appear as 35mm or as a 28mm with cropped frame lines? I can see that in the rear monitor it appears as the latter.

You can buy 1000 coffee makers or 10 refrigerators or 8 washer/dryer or even 10 year old BMW for the price of the Q - but you should get the Q instead :)))

on the fence for the Monochrome one

vs the GR3 ?

Great review，Thanks！

Where did you get the ring to put over the viewfinder at 11:22? Do you have a link? Also what is it called?

It would have been if it was a 35 lens :(

I don't understand why the quality is so bad for a full frame cam is it because of all the mpx? I use to shoot with different cam and few months ago I did some concert shooting with a G85 and 15mm f1.7 micro 43 sensor and performed better, strange

Can i ask your THE MOST FAVORITE camera?

...yes it is... for those who have caviar for lunch and enjoy their weekends in Europe...

Wow that sensor is awful. Why bother with full frame if you can't low-light?!

Yes.

Everyday camera? Errr.... how many kidneys do people have for everyday cameras? lol

Whats that intro song called?

great review, thanks

It’s a Panasonic sensor though don’t forget to say that

This is my grail street camera, but I'll never be able to afford it haha

$4,500 camera probably means that there are places you shouldn’t be walking around with that around your neck

Should I upgrade from Q1?

Disappointed about the quality. Only used couple of times and the power cannot be turned on while the camera body turns hot.

Thar camera costs about $5000 Canadian, so NOT a good choice for an everyday camera! You could buy a Fuji X100F and have anough left over to travel to Europe to take some pics for the price of a Q2

not convinced..

A perfect everyday camera will hav a good full frame sensor with that amazing lens, good battery life, weather sealing, great AF even in low light and a price tag below USD1200… which will never exist. Q2 is a great camera, but not sth u call perfect, at that price range and that low light performace.. nope. It's more niche than the RX1/X100 series..

Should have came out with a 50mm version.

Everybody knows that tittle belongs to Ricoh GR series

Why even try high ISO's when you know they're no good?

It is if its only cost 500- 1000 USD :)

Are you in Amsterdam ? -)

if you like getting mugged everyday.

The perfect camera is among A7siii, XH2, A7000, EM1iii, GH6, RX100VII.

The Sony has awful colors

No....the perfect everyday camera to me is the Nikon Coolpix A....APSC...28mm 2.8 lens ...Nikon D7000 processor...and it really fits in your jean pockets,

A 5000$ camera for vacation and street photography...

Way to expensive

Lolololololol

The 28 mm lens is a no no

...who is going to buy 3 Fuji camera ??? So dumb comparance

$5k for a point and shoot.