GEAR TALK - Mid Year Update

LEICA M11 MONOCHROM

Leica M11 Monochrom was released in April, bringing electronic shutter to the Leica M Monochrom platform. Shutter vibration had been a major challenge with long lenses, so I was very excited. I had some reservations as well since the Leica M11 Monochrom rides on the Leica M11 chassis. In September '22 I listed 7 things that I did not like about the M11's field performance. To date, none of that has changed, nor my opinion.

To my surprise, the biggest issue has been the Leica M11 Monochrom's tone curve. While the Leica M11 Monochrom delivers more detail, more pixels and a smoother feel in the mid tones; the Leica M10 Monochrom 'pop' has gone. The Leica M11 Monochrom seems skewed towards more lower mid-tone grays and less 'pop' in upper highlights and lower black tones. It is possible there are more variables afoot than just the Leica M11 Monochrom itself -

• Time of Year:  In the spring and summer the trees have leaves, the grass is green, etc. In fall and winter that foliage goes away and/or turns yellow. In turn, when photographed with black and white film, the yellow foliage renders white, and especially so when red filters are used. Generally, fall-winter images have a stronger white / black ratio vs spring-summer images. Maybe things will seem more like the M10-M later this year as the seasons change.
• Capture One:  Capture One did nothing in terms of developing a unique profile (tone curve) for the Leica M11 Monochrom. This is easily proven by toggling the Leica M10 Monochrom or Generic DNG profiles. Nothing changes in the previews. If the Capture One did a camera profile for the Leica M11 Monochrome, I am pretty sure that would be a big improvement.
• Leica 28mm F2.8 PC-Super-Angulon R:  Many of my pictures this summer have been with the Leica 28mm PC. The 28mm PC could be categorized as a lower contrast lens, thus it probably is not the best lens to judge the Leica M11 Monochrom's contrast. That said, I used the 28mm PC on the Leica M10 Monochrom as well and could dial in a contrast result that I liked.

I am not ready to label the M11 Monochrom as this or that. Also, depending one's tastes and preferences, they might like the Leica M11 Monochrom files more than Leica M10 Monochrom files.

LEICA 28MM F2.8 PC-SUPER-ANGULON R

About 50% of this year's pictures have been with the Leica 28mm F2.8 PC-Super-Angulon R. The 28mm PC can be ill-behaved at times, but with patience on the post processing side of the equation, the outcomes can... dare I say... look pretty good if not pixel peeping too hard. Die hard tech-cam users would have me tarred and feathered for such heresy.

Given my angst with the Leica M11 Monochrom's contrast, I need set aside the Leica 28mm PC and use some contrast'ier Leica M ASPH lenses. However, I seemed to have developed an addiction and continue to use the 28mm PC despite its shortcomings. A full review of the Leica 28mm F2.8 PC-Super-Angulon R is available here.

A Phase One Achromatic back with a technical camera sounds nice in terms of upping the lens performance, but technical cameras are a whole other level of PITA. Late last year I shot the Leica 28mm PC on the Leica M11 side by side with Rm3di kit with the Rodenstock 40mm HR. While the Rodenstock 40mm HR was better corrected, the cost / benefit analysis simply was not there (for me). In turn, this elevated my opinion of the Leica 28mm PC in the sense that it was 'good enough' to avoid a tech camera kit.

That is a contentious statement and something well seasoned technical camera owners / users would likely disagree with. One my counterarguments would be, 'how to execute tilt-shift movements + red filter + polarizer + hood (or barn doors) - all without mechanical vignetting?' Also, Phase One CMOS Achromatic digital backs do not an IR filter, so that is either an additional filter, or the Phase One back goes back to Phase One to have an IR filter installed (costs $2500 USD). And with all those filters in play, the digital back needs to be equipped with the latest BSI sensors.

BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

At first glance the Leica M11 Monochrom and Leica 28mm F2.8 PC-Super-Angulon R might read as unrelated topics. For me they swirl into one discussion, especially when pondering 'if not the Leica Monochrom, then what else instead?' That question is the stumper. Pentax recently announced the K3-III Monochrome - kind of exciting, especially if it leads to a full-frame K1 Monochrome. But if the options are bounded by reality and what can be readily purchased today, there is very little to choose from the monochrome camera space.

That all leads back to the Leica M11 Monochrom being the only full-frame monochrome option, so all my moaning and groaning is pointless. The choice is either to get over it and use the gear, or pull up camp and ditch monochrome. Things are not that dire yet.