Forgive the long post, I rarely comment in this forum, frankly I don't have the time or energy to devote to it, plus - it's crystal clear that the majority here are entrenched enough in their beliefs… so it's mostly about the witty banter, not so much about outcome., fair enough.
Perhaps though it's possible to expand a view or two, by sharing personal experience, and to point out the obvious, that our immediate circle does not necessarily reflect the reality of the whole spectrum.
Perhaps also my comments can encourage some of you to aspire to doing things knowing there is still a great career to be had in photography despite economic turbulence and the continually-lowered barriers to entry making everyone think they are/can be a true photographer.
I'm amazed at the degree of cynicism here and, well a lot of presumptive comments about; the S2 system, Leica's 'certain' demise, the (tired) argument of DSLR vs MFDB, a working pros needs vs luxury, etc… Reminds me of a recent flight to Europe, my (enlightened) client insisted I fly executive class, getting settled in my 'pod' one of the passengers passed-by on her way to her seat at the rear of the aircraft, she tossed me a comment 'it doesn't look comfortable I wouldn't want it anyway'.
I hold the view that any company or individual adding to or developing our industry by way of new product, evolving technology, varied tools - whatever you want to call it, these individuals and companies should be applauded because they enrich photography and making images, something we all love. This absolutely includes boutique companies such as Leica who have something important to offer.
I have no way of knowing how many here are making some, or all of their modest/exceptional living at photography, I am fortunate to be in the latter group and I am not a vanity photographer. A large number of posters write like they are not making their main income shooting, or if they are, I interpret an 'amateur' mindset when it comes to equipment decisions - irrespective of the S2 system or not; 'If it's good enough for me and within my budget it should be good enough for everyone', or 'I defy you to tell the difference in image quality at A4 size between mine and yours…" honestly these kind of comments are tiresome and just make the writer look limited, there's a whole other world of photography clients/standards, etc, out there, and it's bigger and more demanding then you think, plenty of us do purchase best of breed equipment and pay accordingly because for our needs it is essential and we are competing with others who strive for the best possible product, uncompromisingly.
In my business every significant purchase is considered from both a 'creative', and a ROI perspective considering a 1, 2 and 3 year timeline wherever appropriate. Equipment is billed to the client on an as-needed basis.
In my situation, I shoot a mixture of fashion and portraits plus some other things for advertising, and editorial, across North America and a bit in Europe. I shoot over 100 days a year on assignments in my studio and on location, any pro at my level in the pyramid will tell you that is a busy year considering all the other parts such as bidding, pre-pro, post, travel, meetings, promotion, etc that go along with it.
My cameras and lights are my tools, I have a lot of tools, they are the best I can find to make my product, because they enable the process to create what clients respond to in my portfolio, in ads, in awards and on my website - and this gives me work, a lot of work. It might be interesting to note this is my best year in business - ever. I have built my career on the belief that creative and technical excellence, differentiation, client experience and hard work are uppermost, within a solid and disciplined business framework. Given this the S2 Leica promise is a likely candidate for inclusion in my work.
Given my style of shooting and my desire to have the best possible tools to achieve my results, (currently) I use several systems but (mostly) work with a Contax 645 for the zeiss glass, with a P45+, I am constantly testing other systems and formats, to date nothing has proven better for my needs. Yes I have shot and scrutinized the best and most current MFDB's and DSLRs which sometimes make sense but they are not the complete solution for me. DSLR speed and iso are undeniably better, as is cost, however they do not 'see' the same as larger glass - the aesthetic is spatially different and anyone who does not know this or care, well they are happy in their ignorance. In my experience the 14 bit file simply cannot withstand the same stress in heavy post, and when cropped the files are not large and/or versatile enough for my Art Directors.
Within the next year I will be changing from the P45+ partly because it will run out of extended warranty, but more importantly the aging of the technology (camera) combined with my writedown on the equipment will encourage this from a business perspective. For a busy shooter at my level in the pyramid - and just open LeBook, Workbook, AtEdge, etc and you will begin to see the tip of the iceberg, albeit there are a myriad of formats among my group, but a 60K system written down over three years is 20K a year plus or minus financing, this represents less then 3-5% of the gross revenue for anyone in said pyramid and is not an unreasonable expense in my view.
In fact for such a key component of the business (presuming said piece is as good or better then my current system) it is a bargain from a business analysis perspective, in my particular case I will get a fresh warranty, new technology, faster flash sync, faster autofocus, etc.
It remains to be seen whether the S2 will have enough of the features and advancements to warrant inclusion in my lineup, but I will test it and if the tools are there I will buy it without a second thought, many others will do the same I can assure you.
Dermot Cleary
