Ive had my E5 with 23mm f/2.8 since launch in mid august. It replaced a T4 and 100v.
It is effectively a T5 in a smaller form and a big step up from the E3. It’s not perfect though. Battery life can be poor, you always need to leave the house with at least 1 spare. The ‘phone app is poor. Rarely works first time, I thought it was an android thing but my mate with an iPhone struggles with it too. Also the exposure compensation dial is too easily moved when putting camera in/out of a bag.
Mine has developed a few quirks - the AF switch is so loose it switches between focus modes out of its own accord, and touching the screen while the camera is starting up or shutting off sometimes moves the focus field into the corner.
That’s one lovely camera and I’m very envious, my only concern in moving from a Q3 to a M11 is losing the stabilisation that I have in the Q3, partnering my analogue MP with the digital M11 would make a great compact setup but I wonder how much I would miss that stabilisation especially in low light situations.
I think I’ll wait for the M12 or MEV2 and see if Leica add some form of IBIS to the M camera line, for now I’ll stick to adapting my M lenses onto my SL2.
Thanks! I get your reasoning totally. For me the SL platform is too big. I like to use my M lenses and coming from a Q2 the better low light performance of the M11/Q3 sensor is a huge gain. Agree hand holding a 60MP sensor without IBS can be an issue, but I’m ok 90% of the time on a 35mm with 1/125 wide open 1.4 at ISO6400 which is pretty low light (EV-5). Even ISO12500 is very useable if not too much shadow pulling needed. The Q2 required AI NR in shadows with any pulling up.
After more than five months with the X-E5, I must say I’m disappointed in one respect. The camera looks lovely, the jpegs are excellent, the new lens is sharp, but to my mind there’s a major issue. Whenever I take it out of the bag, the first thing I must check is that the settings haven’t changed. This also happens between shots. It’s not just the exposure compensation dial, it’s also the manual/auto focus switch, etc. I find the small wheel on the back of the camera almost unusable: you’re supposed to rotate the wheel to change certain settings, but I find it hard to rotate the wheel without pressing it at the same time… My other Fuji is an X-T2, it’s not perfect but it’s far less of à problem.
Are my hands too big?? Have I become clumsy? Does anyone have the same issue? At the moment I’m thinking of selling the camera to get an X-T5.
It shouldn’t really be necessary - but you could select the controls to be locked via the menu. After that, locking and unlocking these requires a long press of the menu button. I’ve also dedicated on of the lever positions to directly go to the lock menu.
I have many cameras- mostly 35mm but also medium format and a large format set up too. I have digital cameras as well - which is mainly what I use
I have always been fascinated with the post WW2 story of the Russians taking IP and machine tools (leica and Zeiss Ikon- Contax) from Germany to Moscow and Kiev where they produced replicas. The QA was pretty variable but these cameras are capable of excellent results.
I picked this one up on gumtree. £22. It had been in drawer for 30 years. It was built in 1975. The lens is a sonnar copy 50mm f2.0
It’s in immaculate condition but all the speeds were off due to ageing and solidification of grease/lubricants. It’s a fully manual camera
I found the name of a chap who has all the original Russian tools and the knowledge to perform a CLA- I got it back just before Christmas and it’s now perfect! It’s no Leica but for the money is an incredible bargain, and a piece of history. “Made in the USSR” - something you will rarely see…
And… with the likes of LR AI DeNoise tools, you can shoot higher ISO and remove virtually all of it while keeping a sharp saleable image at large resolution still
I’ve been really happy with my Sony A7R V and am thinking of getting a Sony A1 II as well. Funding this will be part exchanging the rest of my Pentax full frame equipment while it is still almost current.
Coincidentally my first “proper” camera (excluding a Kodak instamatic) was a Zenith E. It had the cheaper f3.5 lens. At the time my dream camera was an OM2 which retailed at circa £450. Mid to late 70’s
Mine too…. I got one in the early 80s when I was at university and that started a 30 year passion for the OM system. Only really ended when I finally gave up film completely 3 years ago.
