It is true, as far as the article saying Leica's sensor not being the top end of sensors. I have 4 Leica's (2 M240's and 2 MM's) and 6 Fuji's. The crop 16mp Fuji's are in the ballpark with the 24mp FF Leica's. Now the 18mp MM is sharper than the Fuji, a lot sharper. But the M240 is no big deal over the Fuji.
Here is full rundown: Fuji, M240 and MM as well as many other cams...6 to 40 mp and film compared.
http://photographycompared.tumblr.com/Why did I go for Leica if the sensor is not top end?
Because a Nikon D810 or Sony FF would be useless for my style of shooting. Nikon is a bloated, fat monster and has poor manual controls. Sony, while smaller, has no manual shutter dial. I need old school shutter dial manual controls for lightning fast on the fly shooting. I can't be a camera fondler adjusting a dial wheel while needing to look at screens. The Leica can be adjusted by counting clicks and not even looking at it.
So, in essence I paid the $ for manual controls and a small simple package. The Fuji has too many buttons that keep getting pushed by accident. And Fuji has to be all readjusted if you want the flash to work. I hate shooing with the Fuji, I've missed many shots with this poor design. Guess what? If you put a flash on a Leica it actually works!
I hope the big time camera makers decide to make a 100% Leica knockoff that is affordable. I am no big Leica fan boy. It is overpriced for what it is. But it is kinda hand made and a niche market and we can't deny Leica a profit. It is said it cost Leica about $3000+ to build a M240.
What I would like is a Japanese Leica knockoff for $3000 made by Fuji ( or Nikon or Canon could make it, I don't care.) Fuji can put one of their stupendous sensors in @ FF24mp. (28mp is ok too.) BUT it has to be an exact rangefinder knockoff. Once the camera fondling engineers inject their useless designs it would be ruined.
Fuji's engineers all lumped together could not out shoot me. Sony as well. I can tell cause of the cameras they design. Camera fondlers all of them. If they shot like me they would make Leica knockoffs. Their shooting ability shows in their terrible designs. Leica perfected what is needed in a doc cam eons ago....no need to reinvent the wheel into a square Fuji.
Fuji tried to make a Leica-like camera but it is garbage if you use it as they make it for fast street work. I shoot my Fuji like a Leica, but it is still problem ridden. Now their engineer team may have a great shooter, but they must not listen to him. If they did they would not make the screwy designs they do.
(nsfw)
http://familyicp.tumblr.com/(Shot 85% with Fuji X and 15% with Leica M240.)
Focus by wire...useless...a real embarrassment for Fuji. I have to use gaffers tape on my Fuji lens to keep the aperture adjustments steady. Loose as a goose aperture controls. Now the new Fuji lenses don't have apertures or a focus scale for zone focus. Just terrible designs. None of you Lumi forum team shoot like I do as well, so all this rundown may not mean much to you landscapers. But I have been a doc photog for nearly 50 years and know what is good or not good in a street cam.
The Fuji does have a big advantage over the Leica when it comes to being a cheap, disposable cameras. I had to trash my camera and lens from shooting the familyicp project I mentioned above. That was why I use Fuji for 85% of the shoot and Leica for 15%. I can't afford to trash my Leicas and I knew the shoot would ruin the cam and lens. (Also ruined 2 flashes.) I had to wash the Fuji 7 or 8 times a day.
