Hasta La Gadget!

Leica has outed its latest rangefinder range, kicking off with a pared-back M-E this month but culminating in the simply-named Leica M flagship in early 2013. The Leica M will clad a 24-megapixel full-frame Leica Max sensor in a deliciously retro housing, but the specifications aren’t old-fashioned: count on ISO 200 to 6,400, Full HD 1080p (24/25) video recording, and an optional electronic viewfinder, when it arrives to replace the highly-coveted M9 of 2009.

That EVF pairs with the Leica M’s 3-inch 920k dot display, which Leica has sensible placed behind a sheet of toughened Gorilla glass. Inside, Leica’s new Maestro image processor does the heavy lifting, protected by dust/splash-proofing.

Perhaps most exciting for Leica aficionados, however, is the fact that the Leica M will not only work with the company’s dedicated M-series lenses, but with classic R-series lenses too. You’ll need an adapter in order to do that, but we can see plenty of shutterbugs happy to put up with that.

As for the Leica M-E, that’s a more affordable – in Leica terms, of course – version, with an 18-megapixel full-frame sensor and a focus entirely locked onto photography. The M-E won’t shoot video, but does offer ISO 160 – 2500 and a 2.5-inch 230k dot preview display, along with an integrated viewfinder.

The Leica M-E is available now, priced at around $5,450, while the Leica M will follow on early in the new year, price to be confirmed. We’d be surprised if it came in at under the $7,000 tag of the M9 it replaces, however.

Leica M and M-E rangefinders are retro-delicious is written by Chris Davies & originally posted on SlashGear.
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Leica has its more unique creations, but some of its more affordable cameras are usually upscale parallels to Panasonic models — and that’s undoubtedly true for the newly official (and previously leaked) V-Lux 4 and D-Lux 6, which respectively echo Panasonic’s FZ200 and LX7 shooters. We can’t object too much. That similarity gives the 12-megapixel V-Lux 4 superzoom (seen up top) a 25-600mm equivalent lens with a constant, wide f/2.8 aperture to snap bright images at long distances. The D-Lux 6, meanwhile, combines its large 1.7-inch, also 12-megapixel sensor with a 24-90mm, f/1.4-2.3 lens and that distinctive aperture control ring. What you’re really getting over the Panasonic equivalents is a subtler, all-black Leica color scheme and a copy of Adobe Lightroom 4 to manage the imminent flood of photos. Photographers who don’t mind knowing their luxury cameras’ true roots can swing by Leica dealers in November to buy either design; we don’t yet know prices, but it’s safe to assume that the V-Lux 4 and D-Lux 6 will carry premiums over their more pedestrian equivalents.

Continue reading Leica unveils V-Lux 4 superzoom, D-Lux 6 compact to mirror their Panasonic counterparts

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Leica unveils V-Lux 4 superzoom, D-Lux 6 compact to mirror their Panasonic counterparts originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 18:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Not completely sold on Canon’s large sensor-packing PowerShot G1 X? The company’s latest jumbo compact offers a comparable smooth focus effect, thanks to its super-wide f/1.8-2.8, 28-140mm optical zoom lens, with image stabilization that boosts your shooting capability by up to four stops. The camera, which is designed to replace the G12, features a 12.1-megapixel 1/1.7-inch CMOS sensor paired with a DIGIC 5 processor, enabling RAW shooting, 1080p video and a top sensitivity of ISO 12,800 all in a body that’s significant smaller and lighter than its predecessor. There’s also a super-sharp 922k-dot 3-inch LCD (no touchscreen here, not that we miss it) and a built-in optical viewfinder.

The $500 G15 isn’t set to hit stores until October, but we caught an early peek at Photokina today. A Canon representative also clued us in on the camera’s naming scheme — that jump from 12 right to 15. As we know, 13 is an unlucky number in North America and Europe, but the 14 was also avoided because the number four “sounds like an unlucky word” in Japanese. So, there you have it. Regardless of what it’s called, though, the G15 is one powerful shooter, with a very solid design to boot. Though it is smaller than the G12, it’s still far too large to fit in a pocket — you’ll likely walk around with this guy dangling from your neck. There’s a mode dial up top, along with a dedicated exposure compensation dial, enabling more precise EV control. We weren’t able to examine samples in order to evaluate the camera’s bokeh capabilities, but Canon reps said that the effect is on par with the G1 X. You’ll be able to get your own mitts on the G15 beginning next month, and you can catch our hands-on photos just below, along with a video walkthrough after the break.

Continue reading Canon PowerShot G15 features f/1.8-2.8 lens and DSLR-like controls, we go hands-on (video)

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Canon PowerShot G15 features f/1.8-2.8 lens and DSLR-like controls, we go hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 10:47:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Late last month, Canon added yet another model to its Cinema EOS line — the C100 captures 1080p video, rather than the 4K clips enabled with the C500, but it also costs a heck of a lot less, at just shy of eight grand. It also offers some other nifty features, such as a pair of built-in mics and a duo of XLR inputs at the front of the top handle, SD card slots on the rear and a new autofocus button — it’s not a continuous solution, offering only single-shot, but it sure beats not having the feature at all.

The camera is surprisingly lightweight, given its size and capability, and can be held quite comfortably with a single hand, as we did during our hands-on at Photokina earlier today. With a modular design, the camera featured a 3.5-inch 920k-dot LCD in its current configuration, and offers the standard suite of ports, including HDMI output with embedded time code. It also includes an ISO range of 3200 to 20,000, a maximum shutter speed of 1/2000 second and a built-in ND filter. The C100 is expected to hit stores in November for $7,999, but you can take a closer look right now in our gallery below and the hands-on video just past the break.

Continue reading Canon Cinema EOS C100 hands-on (video)

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Canon Cinema EOS C100 hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 09:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nikon just announced its D600, a $2,100 DSLR with a full-frame sensor. Now, just four days later, we have a similar (and identically priced) offering from Canon. Coincidence? Not likely. Industry backchannel conspiracies aside, however, it’s only to our advantage to have a choice — if you’re looking to upgrade your digital SLR without taking out a second mortgage, you can now pick Nikon’s model, or the EOS 6D from Canon. The latter flavor, which offers built-in WiFi (the D600 requires an adapter), packs a 20.2-megapixel CMOS sensor, and it’s 20 percent lighter than the 5D Mark III, which will remain on the market, targeting professional users. The camera features a sensitivity range of ISO 100 through 102,400, it can shoot 4.5 fps stills and offers 1080/30p video capture. It also has an optical viewfinder, paired with a 3-inch 1.04-million-dot LCD on the rear, which looks just as sharp as you might expect.

What really blew us away, though, is the new camera’s size and weight. It’s more compact than the 5D and even the 7D, an APS-C camera, weighing in at 690 grams — a 20-percent decrease from that larger pro model. 20 percent may not sound like a tremendous improvement, but it’s certainly noticeable, boosting the 6D’s versatility, and making it an ideal choice for street and travel photography. We haven’t had a chance to shoot with the new high-end DSLR just yet, but it felt quite solid in hand, despite the more compact design and significant weight drop. Take a closer look in our gallery below, followed by our hands-on video after the break.

Continue reading Canon EOS 6D full-frame DSLR hands-on (video)

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Canon EOS 6D full-frame DSLR hands-on (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 17 Sep 2012 08:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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