Close×

Luxury German camera maker Leica has expanded its range to include the new Leica Q, a rangefinder-style compact with a full-frame, 24-megapixel CMOS imaging sensor and an ultra high-resolution electronic viewfinder (EVF).

The camera features similar styling cues to Leica's flagship M-series, though the M's optical viewfinder has been replaced with a remarkably clear 3.68-million-dot EVF. The camera is built around a fixed-focal-length 28mm Leica Summilux lens, which offers a fast maximum aperture of f/1.7.

Other features include a top ISO of 50,000, continuous shooting at 10 frames per second (full resolution), 1080p video and an integrated Wi-Fi module for wireless sharing of stills and video and remote camera control from any iOS or Android smartphone or tablet.

On the back there's a 3in touchscreen, five small buttons on the left of the screen (for playback, delete, Fn, ISO and menu) and a four-way thumb control for navigating menu items and scrolling through images. An additional button near the right-hand thumb position brings up framing lines in the viewfinder so you can crop the JPEG image to a 35 or 50mm field of view. The selected framing is preserved in the JPEG image files, while the RAW files in DNG format record the entire field captured by the 28mm lens. While selecting the 35 or 50mm framing option reduces resolution, it is surprisingly useful when you want to 'zoom'.

The top deck of the camera is simple, with an old-school shutter speed dial, thumbwheel, shutter release button and movie start/stop button. Aperture is managed with a control ring around the lens. Both the shutter speed dial and aperture rings offer 'A' modes for auto operation. With both controls in 'A' mode the camera offers full auto exposure. Move either of the controls out of 'A' mode to activate shutter or aperture priority. For full manual control, both dials are moved out of 'A' mode.
The lens also includes a manual focus ring with a detent button to activate autofocus, and a separate ring to switch in and out of 'macro' mode.

The camera's top and bottom plates are machined from solid blocks of aluminium and the body is made of magnesium alloy.
The Leica Q is available now with a recommended retail price of $5990.

More about the Leica Q.

Advertisement
For all your camera, lens and accessory needs check out the latest deals at digiDIRECT.






comments powered by Disqus