Leica has released the Leica M10-D camera, a new hybrid camera that boasts a ‘digital heart’ but ‘analogue soul’.
The new Leica M10-D showing the analogue-inspired controls. (Source: Leica Camera.)
All settings on the Leica M10-D are made with mechanical controls. Instead of a monitor screen, the back of the camera has a mechanical dial for exposure compensation that is reminiscent of the film sensitivity setting dial on analogue M-Cameras. The analogue look is further highlighted by a swing-out thumb rest that recalls the combined film winding and shutter cocking lever of the analogue M models and contributes to the handling of the camera – especially when shooting one-handed. The analogue design means photographers are more able to focus upon the elementary parameters for image creation: composition, aperture, shutter speed and ISO sensitivity.
Users will be able to decide upon the proportion of digital technology to be used in the workflow. The new Leica FOTOS app enables integration with a smart device to support many of the features and functions offered by a modern, high-performance digital camera. For example, the WLAN function can be activated directly with the setting wheel on the back of the camera to quickly and easily connect the camera with iOS and Android devices. Many exposure-relevant settings can be made, and the camera’s shutter release can be activated by wireless remote control. In addition to enabling assessment of pictures, the app also offers remote control of the camera in Live View.
As all settings made from the app are saved and stored in the camera, this enables photographers to configure the Leica M10-D to meet their specific needs whenever required. Finally, the Leica FOTOS app can also be used to transfer pictures to iOS and Android devices for sharing in social media channels and saving to a personal photostream. Thanks to the use of DNG format, even RAW image files can be seamlessly transferred by the app to suitable image processing apps installed on iOS or Android devices.
As an expansion of the built-in combined bright-line viewfinder / rangefinder, Leica’s Visoflex electronic viewfinder can also be used with the Leica M10-D. As well as being valuable when shooting with wide-angle or telephoto lenses and when positioning of the plane of focus is essential, it has a tilt function that enables photography from various angles, displays the most recent exposure for up to five seconds and has an integrated, satellite-controlled GPS module for geotagging image files.
The Leica M10-D goes on sale today at the Leica Store in Sydney and authorised Leica dealers for RRP AU$11,950.00. Released simultaneously, the Leica FOTOS App will be available as a free download from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.
