New (Used) Kid On The Block...

All Photos: © Stan Banos

I've probably lusted for a Leica Q since 2015 when it first came out; back then, I wasn't even officially shooting digital. It was just such a sexy thing to behold, particularly amongst the vast majority of butt ugly digital cameras! And at a MSRP of $4,250, it wasn't even fodder for some potential fantasy buy of the near (and used) future... In the intervening years I read every review, watched every video that featured it, to the point where foreign language reviews started to appear. Still, it was well beyond financial reach and I had finally busied myself entering the 'new' digital realm with affordable substitutes named Fujifilm and Ricoh GR.

The years passed and the old flame lit anew; with a few extra bucks available, I began to play with the idea of maybe, just maybe. My event horizon was $2,500, but to this day, most used Q's hovering at that price range are very much used. Then I finally saw one at that exact price in Mint Cond and serviced by Leica- WOW! Still, it was a whole mess of $$$ (basically for one lens). I told myself if it was still there next morning- maybe, just maybe... Morning came, and I was actually happy and relieved to see it gone. I had resisted the pressure to buy something I didn't need, and saved my money for prints, vacation whatever. I actually felt freed from the longing for the... unnecessary.

Photos presented in order taken.

A few weeks later, saw yet another, this time for... $2,200 from the same seller in Japan, not quite so preciously Mint, but ever so tantalizingly used in all the right places, and again, serviced by Leica. I've seen more heavily used specimens costing up to a full grand more- and certainly not serviced by Leica! Damn, now they were downright daring me, mocking me not to buy! It was a Friday evening, I went to the local pub for my weekly pair of pints and told myself if it was still there on my return- I'd finally pull the trigger. 

I had held one years before and remember being surprised just how heavy and clunky it was. It's not. Quite compact, just the right weight and those rounded corners go well in the hand! I'm sure everyone is more than well acquainted with the plethora of Leica system accolades, and the Q is a magnet for such fanboy platitudes. It's a definite looker, but how does it actually perform? 

The colors and IQ here and throughout are nothing short of stunning!

Took it for a test drive the following Saturday afternoon and was immediately disappointed (shocked really) by its much lauded EVF. The Fujifilm EVF is most annoyingly contrasty and super saturated, like looking at the world as a badly printed Cibachrome print of yore. Gradually, I learned to expose for the highlights and the shadows would more than take care of themselves. The Q in comparison is astonishingly flat, washed out, with a slight bluish tinge and not very bright- WTF!!! Auto focus seemed reliable however (unlike my XT-1, 2) and the files from my test shots seemed promising. At this point, I was 60/40 that I would probably sell my new, used device. The next day I would take it to one of two San Francisco leather fairs and maybe see what it could do for real- maybe, because for most event photography I use a 20mm equivalent for the vast majority of shots. 

As things turned out, I ended up using the Q almost exclusively that day. Had the Leica mystique finally absorbed me into its fanatical cult of devotees? Hardly. There's no reason to believe I wouldn't have gotten the same shots with the GR, and I probably used the 28mm almost exclusively because: a) sheer luck, and b) the fact that the event was less crowded than usual (probably because of Monkey Pox fear). I still have to get used to yet another less than stellar EVF, and the aperture ring on the Fujifilm is flush to the body, while the Q's is on the front end- and, of course, they open and close in opposite directions! Perhaps, we'll just go shutter priority next time 'round to avoid that particular frustration. Still, it felt good to give the Q a real workout, and at the end of day I was... 50/50. 

Then I dived into the actual results- nine keepers, pretty damn good in my book, especially for 2 hours, and particularly when diminishing returns had already started to kick in a couple of years back. This is my first FF sensor camera, so I don't know if Leica files are inherently better than Nikon, Canon, Sony... I suspect not. But they are damn nice! Would have gotten more than adequate results with the crop sensor GR, but these files are definitely more... 'luxurious!' Still not sold on the Leica 'glow' BS, the shoot everything at a 1.7 buttery smooth bokeh BS, or the whole Leica makes you see and react better BS. But the IQ is definitely a step up, as it well should be. 

Forget the leggings- it takes quite the set to rock a proper beret!

Truth is, if there was a viable third party 28mm equivalent option for Fujifilm's shitty 28mm pancake or overpriced giant of a 1.4, I would still just be looking at pictures of a Q. As of now, think I'll order the thumb grip, the $15 one- not the $250 one.

All Photos: © Stan Banos