Leica M Monochrom: $2000 off, vs the better and Cheaper Alternatives
Related: black and white, Canon, Canon 5DS, Canon 5DS R, Canon DSLR, digital sensor, Leica, Leica M, Leica M Monochrom, Leica monochrom, Nikon, Nikon D810, Nikon DSLR, rangefinder, Sony, Sony A7R, Sony A7R II, Sony A7R III, Sony mirrorless
The original 18-megapixel Leica M Monochrom is $2000 off. It has no Live View and makes beautiful images, if you can get the focus spot-on.
But according to both my eyes and my intellect (real images processed to B&W), even the 24-megapixel Leica M Monochrom Typ 246 is an inferior choice for monochrom to the Canon 5DS R for any reasonable ISO at least (up to 6400):
- Compared: Leica M Monochrom Typ 246 vs Canon 5DS R (Old Map)
- Monochrome Potential, thoughts vs Leica MM246 (Dolls)
- Canon 5DS R ISO Series from 50 to 12,800 in Color and Black and White (Cabin Interior)
- Canon 5DS R Examples: Color and Monochrome (White Mountains)
- Heresy: Canon 5DS R as a Black and White Camera Better Than Leica M Monochrom Type 246?
But wait—that's my finding also with the Sony A7R II and even the Nikon D800E at least matched the Leica M Monochrom—and the D810 is a notably better camera than the D800E.
Are there other sensor qualities that count? Maybe, but from what I see, the original MM with its CCD sensor had the look, and the CMOS sensor in the MM246 does not. So might as well go with a high-res color camera for far more flexible black and white options in tonal relationships, post-shot.
