More hands-on Leica T impressions plus camera JPEG and DNG RAW samples
In-camera Leica T JPEG and DNG RAW file samples gallery
In-camera Leica T JPEG and DNG RAW file samples gallery
Further down this page you can peruse a gallery of 50 sample images taken with the new Leica T- 50 camera JPEGs and their matching RAW DNG files (no need to wait for your favourite RAW converter to support a new camera) - all snapped in and around the one of the Leica facilities in London's Mayfair. I did previously refer to the camera as the T-1 but that isn't correct - it's the Leica T (Typ 701).
I used a Leica T with both the Vario Elmar-T 18-56mm f/3.5-5.6 Asph and the Summicron-T 23mm f/2.0. I didn't demand much of the autofocusing but I can report it was reasonably quick and audibly quiet. I did use manual focusing as well and this is by 'fly-by-wire' so there are no end-stops to indicate closest focus or infinity. The 3.7 inch touch screen with 1.3 million dots is excellent but as someone long-sighted I much preferred to use the optional 2.4 million dot Visoflex electronic viewfinder. This apparently incorporates a GPS receiver. Manual focusing automatically magnifies the view for critical focus adjustments and the magnification can be adjusted for preference.
There are no buttons on the rear of the camera at all - everything is accessed via on-screen icons. It does mean you can't learn to feel where the controls are while keeping your eye to the viewfinder but at least there are physical adjustment dials, although I am not yet convinced they are large enough or that placing them next to each other is ideal.
A lot of effort has been spent on developing the touch-screen user-interface and although I only spent a short time using the camera the touch screen interface was easy to understand and get used to. As I mentioned previously the shutter mechanism is delightfully refined and quiet, something some other mirrorless system camera makers should take note of.
So - so far generally so good, but I must say that I am a little surprised that the T only has modest-specification lenses at launch and on the roadmap. The 18-56 is an f/3.5-5.6 standard zoom where rivals have f/2.8-4 or even constant aperture f/2.8 standard zooms. There is no mechanical or optical image stabilisation featured and the focus aids don't include focus-peaking or on-sensor phase-detection points. I sense that some Leica purists could be scratching their heads over the revelation that the lenses we have seen are actually made in Japan, although we're assured they are 100% designed in Wetzlar. I'm also surprised that the lenses don't feature traditional aperture rings.
I've not yet had a good chance to examine the image quality of the Leica T and its pair of lenses, but I can already see that they perform well, with low distortion and a general absence of chromatic aberration. But you can make your own mind up with the help of our sample images below.
Sample images
To view the photo in your browser just click on the appropriate thumbnail below. To download the image file, use the 'save target as' or equivalent function on your browser. All sample images provided here are copyrighted and made available for personal, non-commercial, evaluation only.
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