Another very long video! 30 minutes long and I feel there are still so many things I could/should cover but left out in this review. So is there anything I have missed in this review you think I really should cover? And do you think the SL2 worth it's expensive price tag?
Richard Wong I love my S1R and I wouldn’t dare pay that significant price difference for the SL2. It’s a beautiful camera and will be a great tool for those willing to pay the premium though.
Thanks for another thorough review, Richard :) Especially for covering the M lenses and clarifying that the 4K50/60 ~x1.09 crop is shared by them both. It looks like the lens profiles provide an advantage for the SL2, though the S1R still looks suitable in tandem with lens profiles from PP software. Does the S1R also do DCI 17:9 4K60? I'd also be interested in comparisons of the 24mm Summilux (or other wide-angles if you have to send it back) between the S1R and the other S1 variants
@@fellowcitizen Thank you my friend. Glad you like the video and the M lens test. Unfortunately I have returned the M lens and all the gear but if i have a chance I would be happy to do another test! :)
You can buy your college age kid a good 2nd Hand hatchback first car, decent mirrorless digital slr other, and some good lens glass, or this. A difficalt choice.
I absolutely love your long format videos. You give so many great details that a short 10 minute video simply can’t provide. Keep up the fantastic work!! Back to the video I go!
Oh thank you so much Sae Wms! Glad to hear you love the video. It does take a lot more effort to create a long review like this one. I spent 4 very long nights just to edit this video together, and many days writing the scripts, doing the tests..etc But if you guys like it, i will do more in the future!
Richard Wong Your long nights and hard work really show through. I’m happy to be a subscriber and I hope you stick with this kind of review. You’re great at it.
Great review as usual, always love how your test the cameras in a well controlled and very scientific way. Not many people would do it like that on RU-vid.
Great video. One small criticism is that the photo with the palm trees, sky, and building with the SL2 vs the S1R, the SL2 photo looks to be half a stop or more overexposed because the clouds blow out and are brighter. However, it still looks sharper to me and has better color than the already excellent S1R. The color seems to hold together on the Leica at higher ISOs as well. I’m very impressed and will be buying one. Great overview.
My experience with these sensors is that they can recover highlights and shadows incredibly well, but favor exposure for the highlights with shadows bumped in post. There is astonishing levels of control before the quality is visibly degraded.
Leica’s aren’t just about shooting sexy, but it’s about FEELING sexy while shooting lol….I have an x2 and TL2, I honestly just enjoy how they feel in the hands. There’s not a thousand menus, a million buttons, etc…it’s simply everything I need and nothing that I don’t. I also have Pentax cameras and as much as I love my K1ii, sometimes it’s just overkill. So many features and I have to press this to hold that while doing this…it just gets in the way of simplicity in photography. What L mount lenses are best for the SL2? Does it require M lenses to get the most out of the sensor? I was told using L lenses, like the 23mm f2 Summicron from the T series cameras would turn the SL2 into a crop sensor
Richard, first of all, thanks for all your valuable contributions. I do a lot of photojournalism, must events and concerts, a little sports 🏀 ⚽️, things like that. I am Nikon shooter and tried to replace D5 and D500 DSLRs by ML cameras Z6 and Z7. Often in e.g. City Halls, even if lights are on, AF of Z6 and Z7 is struggling even if they have phase detection AF + contrast AF. For landscape and in Studio the Z system is superb, but not for the event stuff, even the AF of an old Canon 550D is more reliable. Because Leicas 24-90 covers the focal length of 98% of my work if not on football field, I think of the SL2 since the 47 megapixel sensor makes cropping possible to at least APS-C, about 24 megapixel remaining or MFT, about 16 megapixel remaining. This lengthen the 90 mm up to 135 or 180 and for that almost 100% of my focal length needs are covered with one lens. Shooting sports I stick for sure to D5 and D500. ➡️ Now for the ultimate question: how fast and reliable is that contrast AF of the SL2? Please take into consideration, the light in City Halls and similar environment is often super bad, even your eyes suggesting to be sufficient, flattens everything a contrast AF needs, even phase detection of Z‘s are struggling. But no problem for highly specialised AF sensors of DSLRs like Nikon D5 or Canon 1DX Mk II. I have zera relationship to Leica Switzerland and unfortunately never will get a set SL2 + 24-90 + that bigger Leica flash for a week or two doing real world hardcore tests. So, I really appreciate your reply and help in advance 🙏
Hi Roland, thanks for watching the video !! Yes agree the Z6/7 are probably not the best camera for sports,especially under low light. Re lowlight AF for the SL2, I feel it works really well, fast and very precise. At least when shooting static objects. But I have not actually done any side by side comparison with a Z6/7 to really tell you how much better (or any better) is it. One thing is that the 24-90 is a f/2.8-4 lens so you would be at f/4 on the tele end so that affects the low light performance (both AF and image quality) quite a bit bit compare to a f/2.8 zoom lens. If you could not borrow a SL2, what about borrowing a Panasonic Lumix S1R? I feel the AF performance is very similar between the two so if you can get your hands on one it could get you some idea the overall performance.
Well done. The Leica SL2 is a pretty camera for sure and the menu design looks very cool too. Fantastic build quality. And lets not forget, they hold their value very well over the years. I'm practical and it comes down to this for me: Would the Leica last 2x as long as the Panasonic? Would I want to use it 2x as long as the Panasonic? Probably not. But like anything else, you don't buy something like a Leica for practical or even rational reasons. I mean, heck, I want to buy a Medium Format camera someday. Even a used one is going to be about double that of an SL2. Do I need one? Is it going to make my photography so much better? A little maybe. But I love the color and image rendering of MF. Most people won't notice the difference. But I do. And that's what it comes down to...
hi Ricardo, thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts again! Yes I agree with you. Buying a Leica is quite different to most other cameras, there are definitely more than just rational reasons. The shooting experience as I said is one of the thing that is hard to quantify, and that beautiful camera body design as well, and there are more. Things that as human we love and some people would appreciate more than other
Excellent review! I wish Leica made a 24mp version of the SL2 like the Penny S1. Better ISO performance and smaller files. You’re basically paying 6k for the Leica exclusivity and build quality.
Thanks for the detailed analysis Richard. I enjoyed all 30 minutes of it. One question I have relates to the use of M-mount lenses on the S1R. You did mention that the sensor on the SL2 is optimized for M-mount adaption. But are there any other limitations you see mounting your Ms on the S1R, other than the vignetting?
Bello Richard. Many thankˋs for your videos and specially for your clear and easy englisch that i can understand easily. I am a Leica fan and next i geht the SL (1) and later in a few years the SL2. I am living near Wetzlar so i have to take the Leica and not the panasonic😊. For all the others - the Panasonic-Lumix is perfect but i have Many years fun with the Leica and will never sell it. A Panasonic-Lumix will be sold if there is a new one. But if you do Not want to spend so much money for a Leica- dont be sad - take the panasonic and you Van be happy with it. The Leica is econic design and build with much metall. If i donˋt use it i put it on the table and be happy to see a well performed peace of iron. I found your Videos today, so i take a abo and give a like. Now i See some more. Thanks for this. Many greetˋs from Carsten VP
Hey Shae!! Nice meeting you!! Sorry couldn't chat for too long as I was doing a photoshoot for client. But hope I'll bump into you again soon and have a longer chat or sit down for a coffee or something!! Oh just sub your channel you got some nice video i'll need to go through them!! :D
Found this video to be very informative and useful .I’m currently deciding between the SL2 and S1R and a lot the questions in my mind were addressed. Thank you. Maybe you could do a video comparing IQ of the images from the S Pro zooms trinity and the Leica zooms. That would very helpful.
I actually got it from the local official Leica dealer on Nov. 7. I had the SL before and it was obviously easy to change over to the SL2. Yes I like it so far, however I would have liked that all the menus could be navigated via the touch screen, but it’s not a big deal. I think there is an improvement in the ergonomics compared to the SL. I love the image stabilisation and the most important thing, of course, the great image quality. Thanks for your interesting reviews! 👍
Oh right. Haha I think someone is not really following/reading the Menos from Leica :p but good you managed to get the SL2 early! Yeah I also wish they could make every menu selectable from touch screen. Feels a bit weird when I first use the camera, thought there is a setting I can turn on but doesn't seem to be the case. Not really a Biggie maybe they can make it work in the future?
@@michaelc4917 I guess it is a matter of taste, but I clearly prefer the images coming out of the SL2 when using L or M lenses on those 2 cameras. However, I use Capture 1 and I can make the images coming out of the S1R looking very good.
It's a great review as always Richard Wong. No question the Leica has his magic and I admit I was tempted. But at a black Friday discount of 500€ plus the 400€ cash back for the S1R I just purchased a second body for 2,799€. As a photo shooter that's a 3100€ price difference for beauty factor and the LEICA logo on the camera. As a video shooter you get a second S1 or even almost a S1H
Thank you!! Yes I agree value for money wise the Panasonic is definitely the better choice, especially with those discount and cash back! That price is a steal! But there is really something magic about the SL2 body and that shooting experience
Keep up the good work. Please could you do a complete video on the menu settings of the sl2 (ex see the way Tony does it on the Sony a7riv). No one on RU-vid has done this for leica camera. Thank you.
Richard good information.... on a 30 minute video if you had a timeline in the description I.e. what you cover at each point in the video in the video that would be helpful and more people would watch. I’ve seen reviews on this great camera but I was interested in how it handles the M Lenses
SL2 + summilux 24mm = 13.000€. No less... However, even if I used to shot with several Leica M and R, it's hard to justify a price x 2 for roughly the same services. I'd probably prefer the Leica's ergonomics and display, but the articulated screen is a must have for me and with the remaining 3000€ I'll buy 2 Sigma Art lenses.
Good question! I own and have used many cameras from both Leica and Panasonic. There are really many reasons to choose either the SL2 or the S1R. And I honestly can't answer that as I can give myself many reasons to get either one. They may have similar specs but are actually very different cameras designed for different users.
Do you think the feel of the Leica is significantly better than the Panasonic? I ask because I considered an s1 vs a Nikon z6 and I immediately bought the z6 since it felt much better to me. The Panasonic felt clunky.
I can't really say whether you would like it or feel it's worth the extra price, but the premium Leica cameras feel really special and different to the mainstream cameras in the market.
Mr.Wong, thanks for your outstanding review. I have two questions for you: Do you think this camera with software improvement soon,would become this in the best multipurpose camera nowadays? 2.I am convinced that the next(soon) M11 camera could be the best camera in receipt with SL2' improvements but with a 24 MP sensor inside. Do you think so?
Hello, thanks for watching :). To answer your questions, I believe there will be firmware upgrade, this seems to be the current trend for all the manufacturer. What they would do I have completely no idea. 2. No doubt the m11 will have some upgrades from SL2. But I have a feeling it may also use the same 47mp sensor from the SL2 since it is already in both the new Q and SL line.
I just got my hands on a used SL2 and so far really impressed. One thing I noticed is that the joystick feels a little loose/delicate, like it has more play than I'd expect. Did you notice the same thing, or is it perhaps just the one I got?
Could you compare SL2 with S1H for photos, please? My intention is to use a camera 50% for video and 50% for stills, and not sure whether to go S1H or SL2 route. I understand S1H is a clear video winner due to moire in SL2, but would like to see how much better SL2 for stills is. It will be less sharp, but wondered if that's at 200% more or it is dramatically different. Also, as all my lenses are M glass, I planned on buying a Leica M to L adapter. Do Panasonic S series cameras support it? I understand there would not be profiles for the M lenses but wondered if EXIF data would be captured. Thanks and cheers!!!
Very nice presentation. No one seems to be talking about the colour or that special Leica feel in the images. Did you look at any comparison images with the M10. I'm desperate to get back to that M9 feel. I know many are talking about the M10 being closer but how about this SL2?
Hi Richard!! Just wondering if you know what would be the best ocf set up for a Leica SL2?! Im having trouble finding out what trigger would work with it!! Thanks advance!
Some advice after seeing your video. I am about to choose between M10 or SL2. I have R lenses for another EF mount camera. As M lenses are not adaptable to EF mount I am in doubts.Selling the R lenses I have no lenses for my EF. Using my older R-lenses on an SL2 does not give me the advantage of the auto focus, which is mainly the advantage compared to the M10? Using a M10 with R-lenses might be a solution, but is it worth using the R-lenses on such a high end body? Do you have any advice?
one quick question, when you compare two cameras with lens profile on, is that in jpeg file for the sl2? I mean the chromatic aberration correction function, does that works if shooting in raw file?
When comparing the value of the SL2 relative to the S1R, you did not take into account the difference in the video capabilities of the two cameras. Indeed, from what I understand, the SL2 has many more video capabilities than the S1R, which almost bring it in the S1H territory.
hi Mahamane, thanks for the comment and watching the video! Oh i did mention some of the benefits using the SL2 for video .. esp (almost) full frame even at 4k60 in the video. :) . Are you interested in buying a SL2 for yourself?
One thing I hope that Leica does or offers is lifetime repair. Companies like Nikon & I imagine Canon & other to do, is stop servicing older models forcing the consumer to move to a newer model. Hopefully a camera of this cost would service & have parts availability( hopefully not needed ) for at least 15-20 years. Pretty good vid. I could probably swing the camera but, add some top quality primes & cost wise, I’m out.
Nobody buys a Leica M because it's practical. You buy it because no other camera provides the same shooting experience. Also how's the SL2 AF compared to the S1R? A lot of people were complaining of the af on the original SL...
yes you are very true. But a lot of M shooters end up adding EVF, hand grip to make their M more practical. For those people the SL2 should be the better camera for them. If you scroll down this page, you will find there are quite a few M10 shooters swapping to SL2 already
Any hints from Wetzlar about what’s going to be in the M11? That nice big sensor and some IBIS would make an attractive combination, especially for street use and general photojournalism … hmmm… photojournalism … is that still a thing? Anyway, throw in one of those new-fangled electronic Visoflex thingamajigs and you’d pretty much cover all the bases. I’ll take an M11-D, thanks, with an iPad Pro to edit my work without going all chimpy.
@@SkepticalSteve01 an m with stabbed sensor will be a dream. Throw in a second ad slots and it's a super dream. Dont really care about evf. That kills the purpose for me.
Todd Stoilov True; when I imagine myself using an as-yet non-existent Leica M11-D (that’s the one with the 42.5 megapixel five axis in-body image stabilised sensor, no distracting LED screen on the back, and possibly a comedy “thumb rest” where a film wind used to be on old Leicas) I envisage myself wearing a comfortable coat with several pockets, holding a 35mm Summilux, a 90mm Summilux, and an old Leica screw threaded 5cm Nikkor f1.4 with a screw-to-M mount adapter on it, because I love a lens with lots of spherical aberration wide open that gets sharp as a couple of stops down. In one pocket there would also be one of those little Visoflex thingies, for when I really really want to frame precisely, like on a close-up or something. I don’t actually do many pictures like that, so I wouldn’t use the Visoflex much - but it would be nice to know it was there. Ah, dreams, dreams…
Why Leica and Panasonic only use contract focus? I remember Panasonic say phase focus drop the image quality on the M43 sensors, but full frame is so big and will phase detect really drop much of the quality of the sensor?
GFX has bigger sensor so in theory should give you better image quality, the GFX lenses are nice too. On the other hand, the SL2 body feels better when hold in hand and it is part of the L-mount alliance so is officially supported by three major brands so you have more choice in terms of lenses and also bodies in the future while GFX is only supported by Fuji themselves.
Hope I'm not intruding in the conversation. I own both cameras. The GFX 50r I've been using for a year now. Just got the SL2 last week. I shoot commercially so I put both cameras through lots of different shoots. I've liked the GFX for portrait and headshot work. Even some macro work with the 120mm is great. Unfortunately the AF isn't all that great and it has issues with moire and banding. Pretty bad actually. After using the SL2 for a week I've already put the GFX for sale. I love the Leica SL2 feel and the way it shoots. Plus I like the lens options for the SL2 better as well. It also helps that I've already got a couple M lenses as well.
SL/2 would be quite a lot larger and heavier once you paired it with a fast lens. But overall performance, build quality..etc the Leica would be better
At 26:39 you say that Leica is made in Germany. Well, not really. Final assembly may be in Germany, but most of it is made in Portugal. And Portugal is not known for manufacturing excellency. But the label "Made in Germany" sells, even though in this case it is mostly inaccurate.
Hey there, thanks for watching the video (and all the way to the end as well!) Re "made or assembly" in Germany, the way I feel is, these days, pretty much all the complicated / electronic products, the word "Made In" really means "Assembled in". For example, almost all the electronics components are made in China/Taiwan/Korea. No matter a camera that is made in Japan, Germany, Thailand or U.S., it really means where the factory that puts most of the parts together is located. But it definitely is a good topic for more discussions!
@@piruzinho9 I don't know if i'm 100% correct to be honest, i think it's definitely a debatable topic! But i do agree the label "Made in Germany" sells :D
I don’t understand why every one who and why y’all complaining and comparing a Leica with other brand, that is not even near the quality and price with Leica’s Camera ...It’s like a Rolls Royce vs Toyota. Get a print 20’x20’ and y’all will see that there’s No compares. It’s like Texas Stakes vs McDonald’s.
The lack of external microphones or monitor means I'll give this a miss. It's a nice bit eye candy but not really good enough for a modern mirrorless system.
@@kennethsmith3103 Oh yeah, I'm an M shooter that would love to use my M lenses on a modern body. But the SL2 is not what most M shooters want. A few? Sure. Many? Highly doubt it. It's too big.
I am an M shooter. The SL2 looks awesome, but I went to an M because the shooting experience I get using a rangefinder with Leica lens. M Camers are special and it's a unique experience.
For the Chromatic aberration test, I've shot the two real-world comparison photos with the camera mounted on the tripod (to avoid camera shake and keep the photo framing identical), using the same lens (to avoid difference caused by lens sample variation), with identical camera settings (to avoid difference caused by camera settings), and both photos were shot within 1 minute (to minimise difference caused by weather/lighting), with in-camera correction turned off (to avoid difference caused by camera processing) to minimise any variation caused by external factors. I then showed you the side by side cropped comparison of the photos from these two cameras where the photo from the S1R you can see noticeable chromatic aberration while the photo from SL2 there is no chromatic aberration, so while I'm not shooting test charts inside a lab, I'm not sure why it is "absolutely unscientific and do not make much sense"? (This is actually the result from my 2nd test. My initial one showed a similar result, so I repeated the test on a different day to confirm the results from the first test was not caused by any human error) I would genuinely love to hear suggestions on how to improve to make it more scientific.
I even don't get which one lens did you use for exact this test. I never had any chromatic aberration with S1R on any native lenses. I guess camera processing is exactly to correct that thing between lenses. But in general you and in other samples didn't tell parameters or what did you use, kind of some group of random pictures.
@@peterlemke3468 Man, he compared *Summalux 24mm M-Mount* (M!) with adapter (or whatever), turned off corrections and speaking about that S1R have vingeting or chromatic abberation (even if it have)? *It is comparing apples and oranges.* "The Leica M mount was introduced in 1954". For L-Mount, put native LMount lens, full frame, and comare comparable lenes. Lets put on Lamborgini an engine from my car and later be big surprisied that it is not perform like Lamborgini, even it is Lamborgini body.
@@TheRealRichardWong You said Summalux 24mm *M* Mount? With adapter? Without camera correction (if someone even care about that 'twisted' things)? On L-Mount S1R?... And it have color fringes and abberations? Thats surprise, huh...