Leica Some Thoughts About the Sony A7R as a Leica M Replacement

I've been shooting 35mm Leica M lenses on my Sony A7 a lot, and while I remain constantly tempted to buy an M or M-E because I love shooting with a rangefinder and don't like dealing with corner color shift issues.

Some nice things about the A7 though: no change of knocking focus aid out of alignment, base ISO 100, max shutter speed 1/8000. Decisions...
 
keep both? :)

I am in the same boat. The A7 has a quirky ergonomics but IQ is pretty good, it is FF, I love the flexibility of using many type of lenses, the ability to use AF if needed, and even a nice 70-200 f4 zoom. They also have more lenses in their roadmap. The EVF can both be good and bad. In certain scene, I find it useless.

The 240 is really nice in many ways. Great flexibility with liveview but I don't like the big M in front and it is heavy. I do like the shutter more than M9 or M8. It is expensive. I think the next M is around the corner similar to that of the M9-P or the M8.2. Ergonomics is better than the A7 but I still like the M9/8 more. I do find it easier to focus than the M9/M8..

M9-P, I really love the IQ and the look of the silver is just perfect. A little lighter than the 240.
 
I am the most indecisive person so don't expect any help from me! That said, every time I think I'll get rid of the M, it gives me a magical picture and so it remains. I do like the A7R though, the ability to stick just about any lens on it and the fact that it doesn't weight a ton. The only problems I have with the M are freezing and white balance colour. We Brits do tend to be rather pink in skin tone and the M just makes this soooo much worse! Actually, I constantly battle against the ability to get the picture (the decisive moment!) with auto focus or faffing about with the manual focus cameras and not getting what I hoped for versus the IQ of the full frame. I think I've gotten much better portraits using the Fuji XE1 and 60mm macro (yes, that slow old thing!).
 
Now that I've purchased the M, I'm confident I will keep it, but I don't see myself selling the Sony A7. The A7 seems like a better camera for adapted SLR lenses, and I love​ the Sony FE 55/1.8.
 
Now that I've purchased the M, I'm confident I will keep it, but I don't see myself selling the Sony A7. The A7 seems like a better camera for adapted SLR lenses, and I love​ the Sony FE 55/1.8.

Everytime I buy the Leica M, I always think that it will be it. The reason I say everytime is that the last one I sold to Carl was already my 6th or 7th one already. I kept going back and forth. The A7 that I have now is also my 6th A7/A7r body. Like someone mentioned, the grass is always greener....

If only they make the M in the size of the M9 and the look of the M9-P at the price of the Fuji X-E1, life would be so much easier.
 
Well, someone who's worse than me!

This sickness is getting worse. My collection of lens is slowly growing due to the flexibility of the A7/A7r and the M 240.
 

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I am the most indecisive person so don't expect any help from me! That said, every time I think I'll get rid of the M, it gives me a magical picture and so it remains. I do like the A7R though, the ability to stick just about any lens on it and the fact that it doesn't weight a ton. The only problems I have with the M are freezing and white balance colour. We Brits do tend to be rather pink in skin tone and the M just makes this soooo much worse! Actually, I constantly battle against the ability to get the picture (the decisive moment!) with auto focus or faffing about with the manual focus cameras and not getting what I hoped for versus the IQ of the full frame. I think I've gotten much better portraits using the Fuji XE1 and 60mm macro (yes, that slow old thing!).

I read this the other day- and it fired up some memories of "the old days". The first-generation digital cameras, the Nikon D1, and D2H suffered this problem. It was the fault of the IR cut filter over the sensor, much the same problem that the M8 had. The solution in the 90s and for the d1 and D2H: use a "hot Mirror" , which was the original name for the IR cut filters over the lens.

Pick one up off of Ebay or a forum- lots of them being sold used by M8 users. It's worth a try, might solve the skin color problem.
 
Has anyone seen a color shift and vignetting comparison for uncorrected wide-angle on the M versus the A7?

A7 - Can't range-finder focus and no OVF. EVF with focus-peaking for non-native glass. Native lenses auto-focus, some have OIS. Has sensor dust removal. Leveling tool can be seen concurrently with image.

M - No autofocus, no body or lens-based image stabilization, no dust removal. Inherent OVF rangefinder focusing. Focus-peaking for non-native glass. Can't show leveling tool and image at the same time. Better sensor-corrected wide angle performance? EVF external.

So, it largely comes down to rangefinder focusing (how much would you miss it on the A7) and perhaps the uncorrected wide-angle performance. Then comes the subjective considerations, such as handling and user interface. For you, which camera is more fun to operate? Which gives you more keeper shots?

I can see why it's a tough decision. :)
 
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