Leica Q3 vs Sony a7CR | Closer than you think! 

Good comparison. I really appreciate being able to download your original raw files, thanks a lot!

Great and fun comparison Alex. This kit would be baller for street photos and travel photography! I love that you mentioned that options affect the simplicity of using the camera because now you’re focused on what lenses you’re bringing along. That’s part of the reason I picked up a Ricoh gr iiix to compliment my Q2 and I don’t have to buy or bring lenses.

So much for the Leica look. It's shocking how well the Viltrox Lens performed on the Sony. I don't prefer either system as I mainly shoot Nikon, but that A7CRII looks tempting. Also, I'm a 35mm guy so the Leica would not work for me.

Been a Leica shooter for many years, M, S, SL, Q, T. Waited for a Q with 40/50mm lens, when Sony announced the a7cr it not only is replacing my Q the M is also being sold. Leica electronics are sadly poor, Sony is making spectacular lenses, the 24/40/50 f2.5 are small yet beautiful IQ lenses. Leica can not compete on autofocus, and Sony can not compete on the Leica simplicity in controls and menu. Take your pick. As a photographer looking for images primarily Sony wins for me, although I will miss the fun of owning a Leica, there is a beauty to their designs and quality that gives a great deal of haptic pleasure, not unlike driving a great sports car as pointed out.

If you put a manual adapted Leica/Voigtlander lens on the Sony with a Voigtlander close focus E-to-M adapter, you get to move as slow as you want. No one has to put an automatic, focus-by-wire lens on a camera. You can put manual and vintage lenses on them just fine. And that changes the final conclusion a bit. If you really want to move slow, on any system put a manual lens on it. Yet even with zone focusing, it's only slow until you have practice. These A7C series Sonys are getting really close to the best parts of the Leica experience, slow deliberate shooting and all (if you want that).

Thanks for comparing these two cameras. Like you, I find that the user experience is the key difference. I’ve been shooting the Q2 for a while and loving it. My A7CR is a great addition (with Sony’s 28mm f2) but one camera cannot replace the other. Let’s not forget that the Q2/Q3 also shoot macro at a very close distance, something that Sony’s 28mm cannot do.

Also long time M user and CR owner. The CR EVF is not great, but for travel the CR is superb. I have several fine E mount lenses and have learned to mount one lens. A real advantage of the Sony is the ability to use a zoom. The 28-60 is very small/light and great for daylight work. If I want to replicate the Leica experience I put on a Zony 35. I don’t think that a IQ -as hyped as it is is- a real M type experience. Essentially the Leica marketing department has created an image maker for those desire the red dot.

Great comparison Alex

Great review! By by the end of it I felt like this review is more of Viltrox vs Leica lenses 😂

Good video I just bought the Sony, nice work also I can appreciate it.

I just decided to sell my Q3. Hi Alex, I am the big fan of your channel. I am also Leica and Sony user. I have experience with Leica from M9, M10, SL2-S and now M11. I bought Q3 as my first Q. And I am quite disappointed with Q3. I had experience taking photo with Summicron 28mm f2 ASPH so I can compare both apple to apple. In my opinion I do not get Leica Look from Q3 at all. What I get from Q3 is not different to Sony. And Sony has much better auto focus and versatility. So I see no point to keep $7,000 camera when I can get camera giving similar image quality and 1/3 of the price. So I decide to sell Q3 and get A7Cii. When I want compactness and auto focus, I take A7Cii not my M11. I am very happy with A7Cii. Especially when I put my Leica M lenses with A7Cii, I get very good image quality. Thank you for your video to confirm my thoughts.

Great vid - excellent comparison and with a few eye openers!!! In your conlusion, I would add that the other benefit of the sony interchangeble lens system would be to consider a zoom lens to cover the same range as say the three primes you carried. Zooms are now knocking on the door of primes in the IQ department and when travelling you can have the same range but only one lens

Great video. Great cameras.

Thanks, Alex, well done. Like you, I own the A7CR and just bought the Q3; the jury is still out. I think a better comparison might have been to use the A7CR with the Sony 35mm F1.4 G-Master lens. I know there is a difference in focal length (for which you could compensate by adjusting your tripod location), but the 35mm is a superior lens to the 28 you were using, and is probably one of Sony's best lenses. Also, it brings the total package price close to that of the Q3. However, the 35mm adds quite a bit of size and weight to the A7CR, more than the 28 does.

Thinking of the Q3 but this is the review I`ve been waiting for. Used Leica for 25 years and still do. Currently film and digital M`s a CL and an SL2.Love the brand but not the AF system so still wary of that when considering the Q3. I was unaware of this Sony model and it seems to be more flexible as regards lenses (obviously) and better af when coupled with a Sony lens. I`m not minded to buy it as yet but I def will not be buying a Q3 now because you have demonstrated that the Sony ,at least for me ,offers a better package .Thank you .

Excellent video, the Sony rx10 mk4 is a great fixed lens camera too

I went for the A7CR, and used the savings for a Voigtlander APO lens

Honestly, if you want to shoot Leica buy an M for the authentic experience, ie. rangefinder and manual focus otherwise Sony cannot be beat for their bodies/value and optics far as full frame cameras are concerned. Leica M9/M10 owner here.

Thank you for the video. I really appreciate it and the time you took to make it. That said . . . You cannot use presets you made for a Sony sensor and expect them to work the same way on a Leica sensor. It just won't work right. That said, you had me at "you can reproduce the same imagine with any camera system" & "it's all about the experience".

I love Sony's menu I love Sony's design I love Sony's functionality I love everything about Sony The only thing that i need is a more compact 28mm lens

I think I want to stay with interchangeable lenses. I do have the TechArt M to E mount AF adapter which I currently use with Zuiko and F-mount lenses on my infrared converted camera, but I could start to add M-mount lenses and have Leica lenses on my A7CR with AF (including Eye AF).

The comparison I needed, I am going with the Sony now, maybe with the 35mm GM.

How can I tell which photos are from which camera in the samples? There are just several images in a row without anyway that I can tell which is which? Thanks for your videos!

Viltrox is killing it. All the major players manufacturering lenses should start being seriously a bit concerned. I have several Viltrox lenses on my Fujifikm X-H2 and the IQ from them is simply shocking. Price/performance is no contest and performance period is pretty much up there as well.

You can also easily adapt Leica glass on the Sony, which improves the a7CR’s experience a tad…and could let you put a barn burner like a real Summicron 28mm (the new version is supposed to be incredible) or heck even an $8k Summilux 28mm on the camera.

Results may be similar but the how you get the photo may not be the same. Camera style, shooting experience, portability, user interface. You can take a truck or use a van. You’re still getting to the destination. One may be better than the other technically such as better AF or tracking versus leaf shutter for flash sync up to 1/2000 or the beautiful monochrome JPEG profile but the unique differences will cater to the customers specific needs.

I’m a video pro, and have mostly used Canon and Sony gear…jumping to a Leica Q2 for stills a couple of a years ago. The Leica has wonderful minimalist aesthetic and quality pics…but honestly, the old Canon 5Diii is more of a workhorse for me. I’ve looked on with wonder at Sony still cams, but I like minimalism…I equate Sony with Toyota vs Canon as a Honda. The Leica I suppose is a Landrover😂! Fuji’s x100VI is the wild card. But my heart belongs to Leica.

I think Leica's commercial team has done a great job of making the buyers of their cameras feel like real photographers. You see them, just like iPhone buyers, violently justifying all the shortcomings of these antique devices. No wonder, considering the top price they paid for it. This video is another great example of that.

Leica is more fun to use (for me). That's what matters for me. I still want to see your SL2-S Silver Edition review... and give a shout-out to your Rolex.

Great comparison and great video! Love it! Been shooting with my original A7C and wanted to upgrade to a higher resolution camera. Do you think the A7CR is worth it? As I got a few prime lenses, Leica is discarded. Lmk! Cheers

Thanks for the video. I know there isn’t a high quality 28mm for Sony but would have like seen you set the Leica Q3 up to change its crop-to-zoom to 35mm or 50mm and then used the Sony 35/1.4 or 50/1.4 GM and do an image quality comparison at those focal lengths. Or possibly use an M mount adapter on the Sony and a Leica Summilux-M 28 f/1.4 ASPH lens. Those comparisons would have been nice. I also own many Sony cameras and lenses and just picked up the A7CR. Maybe this will push Sony to introduce a 28mm G or GM lens. Take care.

The only true way to compare both cameras is to take each out for a test drive - just like a real car. Also why didn’t you use a Sony lens with a comparable focal length? Anyway I have the CR and I can’t imagine there could be any improvement (except perhaps the viewfinder). With my 50mm f/1.4 lens it’s just magical. Thanks for your review, very nicely done!

So what you're saying is that if I bump up the contrast a little I get the Leica look and save $3k. The lens coatings on the Leica are pretty amazing, but if I can recreate some of the look in post I'm game. I was also super surprised to see the Sony warmer than the Leica. My experience with Sony in the past was a blue/magenta hue in skin tones but the Leica has more.

Great review, been waiting for this review for a while. Just opted for the a7cr, due to its flexibility. Looking forward to shooting with it. I wonder if the a7cr should be compared more to the m11. It seems quite a few Q2/3 users migrate to the M11. Is this because it offers the lens change ability. Would love to have both but for me cost is factor. But I will own a leica at some point, because it’s always nice to experience a Ferrari in our lifetime 👌🙂

Hope this will help Q3 be more available now

Interesting video man. I shoot an A7CR and often just carry a single lens, and I feel very similar to how I feel when I carry one of my fixed lens cameras. I’ve been moving more and more towards my Sony though, because the tech is just so smooth and the camera is such an amazing tool.

for me, the a7cr is the greatest camera ever made.....

I wish you also would have added using the Sony 24mm f1.4. Maybe next time. Good video thank you

Great Video

Aren't 1.7 and 1.8 slightly different approximate ways of saying exactly the same thing - the square root of 3?

What was the weight of each setup ?

I sold my Leica Q2 for the Sony and a 35 1.4 gm. Not exactly a cheap setup either, but the image quality is easily on par. The fact I can add top tier lenses to this system for 1-1.5k vs Leicas 3-10k is awesome. I almost feel like GM glass is cheap!! 😂

There's a huge difference in the images. Just look at the concrete of the wall in the first show where your wife is sitting on the wall. No comparrison. I'm really suprised the Leica is weak in the corners. I haven't seen that before on the Q3. Is it possible that's just your camera? There really is a big difference in tonality, microcontrast and color. I really think the Q3 is much better. But not 3 grand better. And to have the interchangeable lens closes the deal. In my opinion that makes the Sony worth 3k more than the Leica. That's a lot of money for a red dot.

Leica has an incredible coolness factor. But you have to be able to swap lenses when the occasions arise. You simply need both the Q3 as well as the a7CR or a7R.

For the price difference maybe try it with better glass next time?

This is very interesting. You literally went on for 30 seconds about how the Sony is better at taking pictures in every single way .... then you do the leica puff piece that says "but it's part of the experience to have to try harder to get a good shot" like that's a good thing :D

Nice work! One of the big advantages of the Q system for me is the app.. It is 1000x easier to share/edit/post photos (when mobile) with the Leica system

I recently moved to Leica Q3 from using a variety of Sony cameras. I have no doubt that the new Sony A7CR shoots fantastic images - but I always disliked the Sony’s menu layout and I always ended up putting it in the most auto setting so that I didn’t have to deal with the Sony’s menu system. Leica is a lot easier to handle in that regard. Now, is this a reason that’s worth paying an extra £3,000? Probably not but it’s something that’s not too problematic for me, and the smaller overall package is something that was important for me too. And no, I never changed lenses with the Sony cameras I had, I was just after a convenient point and shoot that was easy to carry and gave great images.

In digital photography it is the sensor+lens+processing that creates the image. The sensor seems the same & sony as a digital company is doing a lot of R&D so the ibis + processing is increasing. The leica has a fixed lens & the sony acr or the sont ar5 is interchangeable. Personally I would not waste a 61mp sensor on just using a fixed focal lens. The sony has a huge eco system of lens including 3rd party and many of these lenses would outperform the leica. Leica was a pioneering company during the film era but now one pays for the hype. For me the other extras that determine camera choice are also screen/EVf/ibis & how well one can use AF & MF lenses.

I think the A7IV is also a contender that is almost as compact but with more external controls. The difference in resolution is surely the least significant difference in practice. Examining DNG raw files is not a good comparison when utilised, raw images will be processed either in camera for a corrected jpeg or in post processing. High ISO and low light, the Sony beats the Leica hands down.

Can the Sony be used for ART Photography? Is it good for art photography?

A few observations 1) the 28 1.7 is what I would call a ghetto summilux. It renders nothing like any of the M summilux, where you will actually have the Leica look. I don’t get the Leica look often with the Q, like I would get with the M. 2)most of your photos are not typical of how most people would use a Leica Q, just random structures at Disney. For me, the Q shines in golden hour landscapes, the street, the dark cafes, the beaches of Hawaii, popping bright colors. Basically, if you shoot a Leica like a Sony, then the results will look like Sony. I have seen amazing shots you took in Italy, those are how you come to appreciate Leica.

actually i noticed the differences ...the blacks on the leica is deeper ....iv tried with the sony a7iv and my q3 gets darker blacks

The one thing that made me go for the Q3, despite the better autofocus on the Sony camera, is the simple fact that the Leica is the nicer shooting experience. The tilt screen is much more useful than the cheap flippy we got on the a7cR.The EVF/back screen are miles ahead, the a7cR cheaped out on these, and it makes the shooting experience subpar. There's also the menu system that doesn't feel right on the Sony during daily use. I do photography because I enjoy the process as much as the result, and the Sony completely fails on the process part.

have the Q3 and love it, would never change it for the Sony, the Viltrox is way too large to be compared :D ). Yet I think my Sigma FPL needs to go and make space for a A7cr :D

Just came back from our Europe trip. I just used my Q3 and left my A7R5 in the hotel room in the end. Loved using it but if I had to choose one I would take the Sony.

But you can't be a snob shooting Sony

Shocking to see that a three hundred dollar Chinese lens is sharper than the Q3. But the Leica will continue to have buyers, just like a LV bag.

In my opinion, the real question is: Is the Leica better than the Sony in proportion to the difference of their price? Is the Q3 twice as good as the A7CR? I would say no.

Pretty sure it is a magnesium body on the sony. There are advantages on both models but i think at this price range tje Sony is more flexible. As images are raw they can always be tweaked.

For the price of the Leica you can get the Sony A7CR and a full set of cinema or prime lenses. The build, electronics and tech are also far superior on the Sony. Only materialistic fools who likes to be seen with luxury items like the "Leica" brand would choose the Leica.

The leica image sharpness isnt smearing its.... "Character" 😆

The Leica spare battery is currently $90 more than the Sony spare battery, so the cost difference immediately gets even worse for anyone who wants a spare. Some BIG thing that rarely gets discussed (hint, hint) is depreciation. Perhaps the Leica will depreciate more slowly over the long term than the a7cr? I don't know; but I'm very curious. I suspect that the a7cr will be nearly worthless in ten years for anyone who uses it that long. A beat-up Q3 after ten years? I think it will still have some portion of its purchase price in its resale value, and that resale value may actually be flat for a very long time after ten years. The 8 1/2 year old Leica Q is currently being sold "used" for more than $2500.

I JUST bought the Leica Q2, got a great deal on it. Gorgeous photos but I primarily want it for epic shots of my fast moving toddler. Would you recommend me selling the Leica and get this A7CR? I noticed the autofocus is not great in the A2… thoughts??!!!

You are correct the Sony is a workhorse, the Leica a thoroughbred, a thing of beauty, a joy to behold, the name on the top plate, History, the Red Dot, German Precision, even the bloody box it comes in is beautiful, enough said lol.

If the Q3 is digitally distorting images in raw, then how could you possibly recommend it at sub 6k. It completely defeats the purpose of having that beautiful 28mm Summilux Lens. All in all, the A7CR with multiple lenses is just so much better a deal than the Leica. The Q3 is a special camera but a clearly a less effective tool than than the A7CR especially with its focus issues. In all honesty, the Q3 would be a cheaper camera than the A7CR if it didn't have that red Leica branding.

Chris frost? Link? Don’t see it.

The a7CR's body is made from magnesium alloy

Both are made for different customers.

Leica is for Old timers who are slow LOL Sony all the way! technology IQ and price

Damn, a $350 Viltrox lens that is way sharper than the Leica. In terms of IQ, the A7CR + cheap Viltrox (lol) combo is much better.

Try the Q3 with action and moving people ... the AF is still years behind Sony. A joke for 6.000 USD.

I knew which lens was which before you revealed because I knew the Leica is wider. With that said the Viltrox looked aesthetically much more pleasing while the Leica came off too clinical. With that said I have seen some great shots with the Q3 so it's not like this is some definitive thing. Now here's the real catch. You can duplicate all of this dirt cheap that Viltrox and a used Sony A7R III for a fraction of the price. The 42.5MP sensor in that is fantastic and will out perform the 61mp at ISO 6400.

Man, again I have to cancel my Leica Q3 pre-order. I will keep my Leica Q2 and buy A7CR. I like your Tesla / Ferrari Anology .... Confused again LOL

Using this lens on teh Sony to compare the camera seems like a strange choice. Not really comparing apples with apples.

I wish you uploaded the last sample of your wife images low light looks like better a bit in Q3

I can have a great "experience" using a Panasonic LX100 ii for under $600....

Leica Q3 $5,995 ... Sony A7CR $2,998. There's a difference there too!

Why in the world is the Leica $6000

Great comparison…. you can also just bring one lens with you on the trip and save yourself $3k 😊 The beauty of the world we now live in is that the archaic vestiges of luxury no longer matter. Boomers and some of us older millennials still buy into this nonsense. I am guilty of it myself. I’ve been waiting on Leica Q3 for 8 months and now with A7cII coming out, I am going to be cancelling my Q3 pre-orders at 5 different stores. Sad. I know.

Sony for the win. Lieca don't care that they are behind in technology because people are still buying these cameras . If you like it, buy it. After I put a GM lens on the A7CR Boom $6000 kit.😮

I own a q3. Here are my 2 things what bothers me. I rely heavily on the evf. On the 7 it’s a low res one. But on the q3 you have a beautiful evf BUT trying to use the evf and moving your af-field around is a pain in the bud. If the 7 has a better evf then its(for me) a no brainer: sell the leica and buy a sony

If you think that "limited options" is a disadvantage, you'll never consider a compact camera. Moreover, if you consider that carrying 3 lenses is a better option than having only one lens for all, game over, no revue needed. But if you think that having only on lens with you each time stimulates your creativity, so think Q or (like me) M + 50mm.

The Leica has a significantly better design and a higher quality housing. The 7CR has a significantly better price. The Leica gives a special feeling. The 7CR can change lenses. Image quality no real differences. You pay the $3000 for the design, workmanship and the Leica name but not for the image.

$10k to do a comparison

Trying to convince us that better is worse.

You hold Leica, you feel extremely robust body and build quality, something that no Sony can match. Also, Q solves the need of changing lens.

I think Leica has more color saturation on every images in comparisons.

Are you blind? Definition of the whole image is much better with Leica. What sharpness? Look the whole image

Even though you tinkered with the WB, I still see the awful Sony colors. Your wife’s skin looks yellow. This is the main reason I can’t get excited for a Sony camera. They have been trying to fix their color science for years now.