In Praise of the Leica M9
When the Leica M9 came out in 2009, it was quite a technical achievement: A full-frame sensor on a compact rangefinder camera that accepted almost all of the classic M-mount lenses. The sensor was a CCD and it rendered crisp, warm images, reminiscent of Kodachrome — the sensor was made by Kodak, after all. The 18 MP resolution was more than sufficient at the time.
The M9 was my primary camera for several years. Leica released follow-up models with better, more modern sensors, live-view and other technical improvements. I stuck with the M9, choosing to invest in lenses rather than spending my money on incremental camera improvements. But over time those incremental improvements began to add up and by about 2015, the M9 began to feel very dated. It seemed slow and it was missing important new features, like the ability to use an EVF.
These days I mostly shoot with the M11, the SL mirrorless system and occasionally the Q line, including the monochrome version of the Q2. These cameras are very capable – fast, high resolution with incredible low light capability and bright and clear EVFs, and I love shooting with them. All the while, my poor old friend, the M9, was gathering dust.
I wondered how that old M9 would it stack up against the current state of the art. So I brushed off the dust and put the M9 into my bag with the Q2-Monochrome. I’ve been shooting with both cameras on my recent walks and taking comparison shots.
This is not intended to be scientific or precise pixel peeping. Just a little fun. All of the comparison images below were post-processed in Lightroom for tone and contrast and to allow for side by side comparisons. I used an old pre-aspherical 35mm Summilux on the M9 and the Q2-M has a fixed, state-of-the-art 28mm Summilux ASPH. Some slight cropping was necessary because of the different focal lengths. I tried to use the same aperture and the lowest reasonable ISO on both cameras. The goal was just to get them to look generally as similar as possible and then tease out the differences.
Q2 Monochrome
M9
Q2 Monochrome
M9
I’m actually seeing a little more clarity and micro-contrast in the shots from the M9, which is a testament to the quality of the sensor, especially considering that the lens I used is pretty old.
Obviously, when you zoom in, there’s more detail and crispness in the RAW files from the Q2-M due to the larger sensor and better lens. But, even after 11 years, which is an eternity in the world of digital camera technology, the M9 can give the new guys a good run for their money.