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What is the Leica
Look?
This is a hotly debated subject on Internet forums, Leica review sites
and amongst many photographers who are considering the purchase of a
Leica Rangefinder M camera and Leica M lenses.
I have searched the Internet for a ‘definitive’ answer but with little
success.
One area that I have settled is the build and image quality of the Leica
M Lenses. There is absolutely no doubt that to equal Leica lenses you
will have to search very carefully amongst the Zeiss, Canon and Nikon
stock to find a 'few' lenses that match up to Leica!
The Key Elements of the Leica Look!
This image ‘Look’ is
apparently constructed from the following elements which when combined
together deliver an image, supposedly like no other –
-
A Leica film or
digital ‘full frame’ sensor rangefinder M camera
-
A Leica 50mm M
lens
-
Sharpness across
the frame
-
Excellent creamy
bokeh
-
Distinct colours
or monochrome style
-
An ultimate 3D
subject to background effect
The Leica ‘diehards’
swear there is a distinctive look to an image that has been taken with a
Leica M camera and M lens. I have long established that a ‘film’ Leica
rangefinder camera is not the driving factor as a Zeiss Icon film
rangefinder camera with a Leica M lens will deliver a similar image. The
apparent common denominator is the lens. The same image effect can also
be found in a Leica ‘Film’ SLR using Leica R lenses.
In the case of the Leica M9, this may well be a different story as this
digital version of the rangefinder camera which is also ‘full frame’
uses digital sensor technology to capture the image. Some will argue
that this Leica 'derived' technology provides the M9 with an advantage
in how it addresses the image data captured through the M lens.
A Leica 50mm lens seems to be the ‘optimum’ focal range for capturing
and defining the ‘Leica Look’ in an image. Whilst others will argue that
it applies across the Leica range of M lenses. The 50mm lens
forms a combination of the best focal range, distinct colours with sharpness across the frame
combined with excellent background bokeh to isolate a ‘primary’ subject
and to deliver that 3D effect!
The ‘Classic’
Perception
Henri
Cartier-Bresson used a 50mm Leica lens with his ‘film’ Leica rangefinder
camera. His street and reportage images during the 1900s, encapsulate
the ‘classic’ perception of the Leica M System. Those who have followed
his ‘artistic approach’ and the statement embodied within the scene of
the captured image have maintained, and today with digital, have refined
the Leica style.
There is absolutely no doubt that Leica users are predominantly ‘street’
and ‘fine art’ image photographers, usually capturing ‘old world’ scenes
of buildings, streets and people. Whenever a Leica photographer displays
images of India, Vietnam, China or other such places that have an unusual
setting structure, there is great interest and especially if the images
are in monochrome which sharpens the tonality of the scene for the
viewer!
Leica M lenses are no different to many other lenses, they have
strengths and weaknesses; they are susceptible to harsh backgrounds just
the same as Zeiss, Canon and Nikon lenses and are more than capable of
delivering coarse bokeh in the wrong conditions.
Many Leica users have mentioned the ‘Leica Glow’ a distinctive
‘highlight effect’ which is apparently derived mainly from ‘older’ Leica
lenses and in particular film images. Other lenses such as those made by
Zeiss, have this capability and again mainly those from an earlier era
which were manufactured to deliberately compete with Leica at that time,
therefore maintaining a similar construction of technology. I have seen
many, many images taken with Zeiss lenses that deliver on sharpness,
bokeh and 3D effect that easily compete with Leica. I already know that
this ‘Leica Glow’ can be replicated using software to post process other
camera/lens images by deliberately manipulating the highlights to create
that same effect.
The Honesty of the Leica Images on the Internet?
I find it odd that a
‘great number’ of Leica images appear no different to other images on
the Internet that have been taken with other cameras and lenses. In fact
those reviewers, like
Ken Rockwell, who have an honest
approach to their review images, apply very little post processing to a
Leica M9 DNG raw image other than to correct the colours.
Then there are those reviewers and photographers who blatantly admit,
most often they will not admit, that they have applied post processing,
sometimes even layering ‘changes’ in the image for effect! This
applies not only to digital colour and converted monochrome images but
also digitally scanned negatives to tiff file format which are then
adjusted for effect in Adobe or other software. I have read of this
being done by many photographers with other cameras, even images from
compacts, whereby the image no longer bears any resemblance to the
original.
During the 1900s and even today, the Leica ‘film’ rangefinder M camera
and Leica 50mm M lenses use black and white film which provides a
distinctive ‘grain’ especially at higher ISO ratings. Whilst Leica in
their digital M9 offering, have delivered smoother noise (grain) at
higher ISO ratings; the ability to post process these ‘back into’ the
image using software or by exceeding the suggested ISO in the camera to
deliberately produce noise is possible.
There is no doubt that those photographers who have specialised in the
Leica M Series System, invariably have reasonably 'skills' in
software post processing and very often will display images that other
photographers have great difficulty in emulating, even those who
regularly use a Leica.
Any Conclusions?
From my experience
with Canon 5D MK1 DSLR 'RAW' images, they have great flexibility in their
post processing, I would expect a Leica M9 to equal or better them in
conversion to Tiff and Jpeg formats.
Are the ‘standard’ Leica lens colours ‘the key’ in combination with the
sharpness, the bokeh but predominantly the ‘frame’ of the 50mm lens
focal range, which provides a style of image that appears acutely
different? Even when the Leica image is a monochrome one, converted from
a colour M9 digital image, does the colour anomaly and the combinations
I have described, assist the monochrome conversion with a distinctive
appearance.
So is this ‘look’ in reality a ‘colour flaw’ in the Leica lens design
that delivers a different image, which to all accounts is pleasing to
the viewer. I see many Leica images that have a faint blue/green tinge
to them and even appear de-saturated, very similar to a ‘bleached’ look
where the colour is indeed very appealing! I even see this in many
images that have been taken by Leica ‘derived’ compacts, especially
jpegs straight from the cameras.
Do photographers who use different cameras and lenses,
have a desire to emulate this Leica colour ‘flaw’ in post processing
software simply to provide a colour or converted monochrome image that is different from the norm? We
even have a software company that specialises in providing a package
that can be ‘bolted onto’ Adobe post processing software to provide the
‘Leica Look’ at the click of a mouse.............naturally the software is
purchased from
LeicaLook.com.
There have been some very funny moments during my searches on the
Internet to ‘determine the Leica Look’. Many post processing ‘nerds’
have deliberately processed Nikon and Canon ‘raw’ image files to ‘pass
them off’ as Leica images, then posted them on Leica Forums to great
acclaim from the Leicaphiles!
Truth be known and this may not be recognised by many amateur
photographers who currently use DSLR cameras...............that the
longing for a Leica M Series camera and M Lenses comes from a strong
desire to improve on one’s images and to experience the ‘hands
on’ manual controls of the M system.
Usually when you read up on the professional reviews relative to
photographic equipment, especially cameras and lenses, you have a fair
idea that what you expect is usually what you will get! The Leica M
System is one of those
'grey' areas where
you are unable to make a 'definitive analysis' and you really have to
purchase a Leica M Rangefinder camera and M lens to find out!
Other related articles on
Photographic Art
-
Leica M
Series Cameras
and
Street
Photography.
If you have enjoyed this article - please donate to my
Charity of Choice -
The Sick Kids
Richard Lawrence
Scotland
United Kingdom
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