Amen with all the thoughts. The lagging playback is a bummer. Battery life gets way better if you setup a button to deactivate ibis on/ off During bright days high shutter speed is high so ibis is just draining battery for no reason. Eye AF is wonky too. AIM it to a tree and it’s going to think it’s a person. 😂 great one Alex
No worries with playback, it's snappy! Battery life is also totally manageable. No issues with the dial neither. Using Firmware 1.1.0. The eye focus in MF might be implemented in the future, perhaps.
Hey Alex I could eleven get my ISO dial to move interestingly. However there is an option to custom set a button to lock/unlock all dials. That would solve that problem 😅
I own the Q3, but for the SL system, I ended up going with the SL2-S over the SL3 for a number of reasons: 1) The SL2-S is significantly cheaper at $3K used vs $7K new for the SL3 2) Snappy overall performance (including image review) at the expense of a lower 24MP vs 60MP (this has never been a real world issue for me) 3) Amazing low light performance 4) Class-leading dynamic range. With no way to fix the dial changing ISO on the fly, perhaps Leica will offer some sort of software solution; until then, I'll just use auto-ISO.
Great review. One thing I would really like to see more is the experience of using the M lenses on the SL3. How is adapting M lenses different on the SL from say a Sony camera? Is it still contrast driven? TIA
Hi Alex, just a warning. I lost images from my SL3 during a wedding. They simply disappeared. After lots of discussions with Leica, they released a letter to me stating that they are experiencing this issue with many other customers, and are working on a firmware update to resolve this. They state that... "Unfortunately, with the current firmware of the Leica SL3, the camera malfunctioned in individual cases, which can lead to images that have already been saved being overwritten unnoticed. We deeply regret this. Our highest priority is to restore the perfect functionality and usual reliability of your Leica SL3 as quickly as possible. To this end, we are working intensely with our development team to provide you with a firmware update to fix the error as soon as possible." Please be careful!! Apparently it happens when changing batteries out. The camera goes back and records over your images using the same file numbers, so there's no way to recover them. It's insane!
I agree with everything you say. I havn’t had a problem with the ISO dial, but the rear dial keeps changing the aperture. I miss exposure lock, without press and hold. Image quality, bokeh, dynamic range is fabulous. Great video
Great video Alex! I'm still waiting on mine. Battery life isn't an issue for me. We have so much gear, that some more batteries is no big deal. What's on the wrist?
Thanks Alex for this very clear and "to the point" video. A question for you how would you assess the ability of the SL3 to keep focus when at burst mode?
I have been on a waiting list from B&H for this camera and deciding not to get it, because I held a different camera and decided to get that instead without waiting that long for it. Could it be the 61mp files that might be the slowdown in viewing the pics? I do have the Q3 but turning off the viewing pics after taking a shot because it slowed down my shooting. I do own the SL2-S and Q3 they take the same battery and I do have the Dummy Battery for both connecting to a power delivery bank which solves the problem with changing them constantly. I rather use the Dummy Batteries in my cameras instead of charging and recharging batteries over time they seem not last very long. This way I use them as backup and they can last for years. Cheers!
Hi Alex, First, thank you for your objectively Reviews. I agree with you, my worst, disadvantage is the „Sleeptime“ when using the playmode. I hope Leica will fix this very very very fast. kind regards Jürgen
Strange playback issue, when I'm scrolling through mine it was instant for both jpeg and DNG. Perhaps it has something to do with different brands of memory cards? I'm assuming you are running the latest firmware
7 дней назад
. I noticed the other day that Ai focus worked for me with my 50 summilux- obviously it does nothing for focus accuracy if you are off, but it will seemingly punch in focus peaking and exposure to the spot when tapped.
Had looked forward to your ideo, Alex, so thank you for putting it out there. My SL3 has been on order since launch. I've also ordered an adapter for my M lenses, so appreciate your comments on that area. Since I'm coming from Canon, I have some EF lenses that I plan to adapt with an EF-to SL AF adapter. Should I expectt ok AF or do you think it'll be really sub-par?
Hey Alex! Nice video! I have a question… What do you think about the color rendition on the SL3? I loooove the colors from the original SL, which I am glad I kept just for fun and personal use. Because the colors on the SL2 are not the same in my opinion. Also, nothing related with the topic but I love your watch. It’s a Cartier … Solarbeat maybe? I love the look.
What a beautiful camera 🤩. Great video as always Alex. Recently demoed the SL3 at the Leica Store here in LA. I was so astonished by how much smaller it is when compared to my SL2-S.
Hi Alex on the Nikon Zf the eye detection works with manual focus lenses and it gives the confirmation you would like. And if you would like it you can even go further, Techart makes an adapter, so your Leica M lenses become autofocus lenses on the Nikon Z cameras.
Leica did not do enough on this camera. I expected at a minimum the following: (1) competitive autofocus, (2) internal storage, (3) faster processor, (4) better battery life, (5) content-aware technology, (6) sensor protection, like in the M11, (7) multishot, (8) manual focus assist, like the Nikon Zf, (9) biometric security, (10) larger rear screen, and (11) higher resolution viewfinder. I tried to get excited about this camera, but it does not deliver appropriate value for its price of $7,000, plus sales tax, which puts it close to $8,000. Please also know that the Leica SL cameras depreciate faster than a used car.
Agree with that, leica yes the beauty of picture yes no doubt and can’t compare the other cameras but today all of the brand want to simplify, easy to use without reduction or minimize the functionality however leica over price, without water and dust proof, stability while vlog. Overall good with the price over budget we can get more such as hasselblad, nikon or even canon, yes the quality of the picture that true one of the best.
Funny you say that about the playback . I think it might have the same processor as the S5IIX and it's a good 4 second delay also . There was just an update on the S5IIX and still not fixed .
Good discussion Alex. Agree about Leica S-series batts. Even at $200, they are double the price of the Hasselblad X-series batts. Your complaint about the ISO-assigned top dial makes me believe you are manually exposing. I get it. Exposure triangle and all. But it gives me a flashback to my early Nikon pro DSLRs. Babysitting your WB and ISO is SO early-2000s. As you state in the positives, high ISO is no longer a problem. Neither is AWB. Start using aperture priority and forget ISO. Be creative. Reassign that top dial to something else and enjoy the shoot. BTW, great images.
Leica is never going to enable that manual focus support. Forget about it..... due to that I am actually thinking of changing my sl2s for the zf... or maybe even z6iii, only thing keeping me away is my 35mm sl apo and the big lost I will get when selling the sl2s... and lenses.
I think the SL3 is a stupid expensive Camera, nearly double the price of a Sony A7RV, the SL3 have not as good EVF and not as good IBIS, the SL3 is also bigger and heavier. The Sony A7RV is more like a Leica R4, R6 Camera in size !
