We’ve added the Leica M11 to our studio scene as we try to address the backlog that built up while we were expecting to close. We’ll be adding the M11 Monochrom to the test scene and looking at whether the theoretical benefits of removing the color filter array are borne out, in the coming weeks.
As it stands, between the M11’s magnified live view and the 90mm F1.5 lens, we weren’t able to match the level of sharpness we achieved with the Sony a7R V, which offers the same pixel count. The Sony’s JPEG engine also does a much better job of presenting and emphasizing fine detail than Leica’s does.
This doesn’t take away from the fact that the M11 represents a significant step forward from the 24MP M10, though, bringing more resolution while delivering comparable image-level noise both at high and very ISO settings.
It’s worth noting that we got better results using the electronic shutter, particularly at shutter speeds in the 1/50 to 1/100 second region, as shutter shock appear to have a slight softening effect in this range. This may be less visible when shooting hand-held, as there’s less expectation of absolute sharpness, and some chance of the shock being accommodated by the photographers hand, rather than having to be stay within the camera, but for the level of scrutiny made possible by our comparison tool, the electronic shutter gave appreciably better results.
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This article comes from DP Review and can be read on the original site.
