à Rebours
M9 Leica
1 UNCOMPROMISING IMAGE QUALITY
2 COMPATIBILITY AS A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE
3 ENDURING PERFORMANCE AND VALUE
4 SILENCE AND DISCRETION
5 SPEED AND FLEXIBILITY
6 COMPLETE CONTROL OF ALL PICTURE PARAMETERS
With its extremely high-resolution image sensor in full-frame 35-mm format and cutting-edge image-processing system, the Leica M9 is uncompromisingly dedicated to capturing images of the very highest quality. The photographer may choose between image storage in JPEG format for fast processing, or as raw data in DNG format that supports a multitude of post-processing options. Alternatively, both formats may be stored simultaneously. In the DNG format, photo- graphers may also choose between a compressed, but faster and greater space-saving option, or an uncompressed version that preserves maximum image quality.
Of course the Leica M9 offers photographers access to the complete Leica M lens system lenses, long acclaimed by experts and users as the best in the world. Its development began in 1954, and the M-System has been continually advanced and improved ever since. The high-resolution, full-format image sensor of the M9 fully exploits the performance of legendary Leica lenses from corner to corner.
It is hardly unusual that a Leica, once owned, becomes a lifelong companion. This also applies to the digital M9: Its closed, full-metal housing, crafted from a high-strength magnesium alloy, and its top deck and bottom plate machined from large blocks of brass, provide perfect protec- tion for its precious inner mechanisms. The digital components and shutter assembly of the M9 are similarly constructed with endurance in mind. Free firmware updates ensure that the camera benefits from the latest technology. In short: The Leica M9 is an investment for a lifetime.
Discretion and unobtrusiveness are particular strengths of the M-system. In operation, the shutter of the M9 is as quiet as a whisper. An extremely low noise level when cocking the shutter is ensured by a sophisticated motor and gearing system. In discreet mode, the shutter is only cocked after the photographer‘s finger is lifted from the shutter release button when, for instance, the camera is concealed under a jacket. When shooting handheld at long exposure times, or whenever extreme steadiness is essential, slight pressure on the shutter release button in ‘soft release’ mode is sufficient to trigger the camera. In addition to these advantages, the fact that the combination of camera and lens is significantly more compact than any other full-frame camera system contributes to the fact that M photographers are frequently unnoticed and often simply blend into the background.
The Leica M9 adapts to its intended uses in a seamlessly flexible manner. Its sensitivity ranges from ISO 80 for wide-open apertures on bright days to ISO 2500 for low-light image capture. Very low noise levels and finely detailed images are achieved throughout the sensitivity range, even at the highest ISO settings. Very low image noise characteristics, an extremely bright viewfinder/rangefinder, low-vibration shutter and the availability of super fast lenses make the M9 the perfect camera for available-light photography.
The Leica M9 aids photographers with automatic functions whenever they’re required, but it never dictates how to shoot or interferes with the picture-taking process. Depending on the light level, the automatic ISO shift function increases the sensitivity of the camera as soon as the shutter speed falls below a hand-holdable value. At the same time, it also limits the shift to a maximum value determined by the photographer. This means that correct exposure without camera shake and the lowest possible sensitivity is always available to guarantee the best possible image quality in all situations. In addition, the M9 also offers automatic exposure bracketing with a user-selectable number of shots and exposure increments. This function ensures that even high-contrast subjects are perfectly captured.
Like every M camera of the past half century, the M9 is concentrated, by design, on the most photographically relevant functions. Its manual focusing – based on the combined viewfinder and rangefinder concept – and aperture priority exposure mode enable photographers to achieve maximum creative expression without imposing any limitations on their creative freedom. In combination with the 2.5-inch LCD monitor on the back, the simple, intuitive menu navigation system controlled by only a few buttons ensures rapid access to the entire range of camera functions.
7 FULL FRAME 24 × 36 MM – WITHOUT ANY COMPROMISES
8 OPTIMIZED SENSOR
9 INTUITIVE CONTROLS
10 ALL INFORMATION AT THE PUSH
OF A BUTTON
The CCD image sensor in the M9 was specifically designed and developed for this camera and offers full 35-mm film format without any compromises. All M lenses mounted on the M9 offer the same exact angle of view they had when shooting film material and therefore can now be used to an optimum effect. In other words, all the outstanding characteristics of Leica M lenses are now fully maintained for digital photography as well. In short, the high resolution and superior image quality of the M9 has the ability to fully exploit the enormous potential of M lenses.
In the case of the M9, it wasn’t a matter of modifying the lenses to match the image sensor, but rather the other way around. Our dedication to further developing the image sensor has resulted in a component perfectly matched to its intended role in the very compact M-System as well as to the performance of M lenses. The special layout of the micro lenses found in the M9 sensor makes it tolerant of oblique light rays impinging on its surface, thus assuring uniform exposure and extreme sharpness from corner to corner in every image. As a result, future Leica M lenses can be designed and optimized with uncompromising dedication to the achievement of the highest performance and compact construction. A newly developed sensor filter ensures the suppression of undesirable infrared light. The conscious decision to do without a moiré filter, a cause of image deterioration through loss of resolution, ensures maximum resolution of fine detail. The optimized signal-noise ratio of the CCD image sensor reduces the need for digital post-processing and ensures that M9 images possess an unrivaled and natural visual impact.
The key control element of the M9 is an intuitive four-way switch and dial combination used in conjunction with the 2.5-inch LCD monitor on the back. To set the ISO sensitivity, simply maintain light pressure on the ISO button while simultaneously turning the dial to select the required setting. All other functions important for everyday situations are quickly and easily accessible by pressing the set button: white balance, image-data compression, resolution, exposure correction, exposure bracketing, and programmable user profiles. The user profiles can be programmed with any combination of camera and shooting settings, stored under an assigned name, and accessed quickly whenever required for a particular situation. An additional pre-defined snapshot profile is also available. In snapshot mode, the M9 automa- tically sets as many settings as possible, thus providing a valuable aid to spontaneous and discreet photography. All other functions – from automatic lens recognition via six-bit lens- mount coding and selection of the required color space to cleaning of the sensor – are easily found in the clearly arranged main camera menu.
Pressing the “info” button in shooting mode displays the precise charge level of the battery, the remaining number of frames on the installed memory card, and the most important basic shooting settings, for example the shutter speed, on the camera’s brilliant 2.5-inch LCD monitor. In image-view mode, users can switch between an image-only view (with a zoom option up to single pixel level) or access other information by simply turning the dial. The available data includes information on the ISO sensitivity setting and shutter speed in use, plus a precise histogram display.
The Leica M9 embodies the heritage and amassed experience of more than five decades of the M-System. It is also, simultaneously, a digital system camera at the absolute pinnacle of modern technology. For Leica designers, photography has always been their prime concern – whether film or digital. The combination of an extremely efficient image sensor, the latest digital components, and the classic viewfinder/rangefinder principle – consistently optimized over many years – make the Leica M9 absolutely unique in all the world.
1
WORKFLOW SOFTWARE IS INCLUDED
The digital image processing workflow solution Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® is included in the M9 package.
The M9 is supplied complete with Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom®, a professional digital work- flow solution for Apple Mac® OS X and Microsoft Windows®. The software is available as a free of charge online download for all Leica M9 customers. This also ensures that the latest release is always readily available. Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® offers a vast range of functions for the administration, processing, and exporting of digital images. If the images from the M9 are saved as raw data in the standardized and future-proof Adobe Digital Negative Format (DNG), then the sophisticated and precise processing options of Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® guarantee direct and extremely high-quality image processing with maximum image quality. At the same time, the 16-bit per channel color information captured by the image sensor is maintained throughout the processing workflow from image import to image export, ensuring that the most delicate tonal differentiations are preserved in maximum quality after completion of the post-processing sequence.
The Leica M9 can display a precise RGB tonal value histogram of the captured image after each shot, and also offers optional integration of the histogram in the automatic image view display. The clipping warning display over- and underexposed zones in each image, warning the photographer of potentially unusable images. An innovative feature is that the histogram is recalculated every time a new part of the image is viewed, thus enabling a precise quality assessment of small image areas and even the finest image details.
M9 Leica
1 UNCOMPROMISING IMAGE QUALITY
2 COMPATIBILITY AS A MATTER OF PRINCIPLE
3 ENDURING PERFORMANCE AND VALUE
4 SILENCE AND DISCRETION
5 SPEED AND FLEXIBILITY
6 COMPLETE CONTROL OF ALL PICTURE PARAMETERS
With its extremely high-resolution image sensor in full-frame 35-mm format and cutting-edge image-processing system, the Leica M9 is uncompromisingly dedicated to capturing images of the very highest quality. The photographer may choose between image storage in JPEG format for fast processing, or as raw data in DNG format that supports a multitude of post-processing options. Alternatively, both formats may be stored simultaneously. In the DNG format, photo- graphers may also choose between a compressed, but faster and greater space-saving option, or an uncompressed version that preserves maximum image quality.
Of course the Leica M9 offers photographers access to the complete Leica M lens system lenses, long acclaimed by experts and users as the best in the world. Its development began in 1954, and the M-System has been continually advanced and improved ever since. The high-resolution, full-format image sensor of the M9 fully exploits the performance of legendary Leica lenses from corner to corner.
It is hardly unusual that a Leica, once owned, becomes a lifelong companion. This also applies to the digital M9: Its closed, full-metal housing, crafted from a high-strength magnesium alloy, and its top deck and bottom plate machined from large blocks of brass, provide perfect protec- tion for its precious inner mechanisms. The digital components and shutter assembly of the M9 are similarly constructed with endurance in mind. Free firmware updates ensure that the camera benefits from the latest technology. In short: The Leica M9 is an investment for a lifetime.
Discretion and unobtrusiveness are particular strengths of the M-system. In operation, the shutter of the M9 is as quiet as a whisper. An extremely low noise level when cocking the shutter is ensured by a sophisticated motor and gearing system. In discreet mode, the shutter is only cocked after the photographer‘s finger is lifted from the shutter release button when, for instance, the camera is concealed under a jacket. When shooting handheld at long exposure times, or whenever extreme steadiness is essential, slight pressure on the shutter release button in ‘soft release’ mode is sufficient to trigger the camera. In addition to these advantages, the fact that the combination of camera and lens is significantly more compact than any other full-frame camera system contributes to the fact that M photographers are frequently unnoticed and often simply blend into the background.
The Leica M9 adapts to its intended uses in a seamlessly flexible manner. Its sensitivity ranges from ISO 80 for wide-open apertures on bright days to ISO 2500 for low-light image capture. Very low noise levels and finely detailed images are achieved throughout the sensitivity range, even at the highest ISO settings. Very low image noise characteristics, an extremely bright viewfinder/rangefinder, low-vibration shutter and the availability of super fast lenses make the M9 the perfect camera for available-light photography.
The Leica M9 aids photographers with automatic functions whenever they’re required, but it never dictates how to shoot or interferes with the picture-taking process. Depending on the light level, the automatic ISO shift function increases the sensitivity of the camera as soon as the shutter speed falls below a hand-holdable value. At the same time, it also limits the shift to a maximum value determined by the photographer. This means that correct exposure without camera shake and the lowest possible sensitivity is always available to guarantee the best possible image quality in all situations. In addition, the M9 also offers automatic exposure bracketing with a user-selectable number of shots and exposure increments. This function ensures that even high-contrast subjects are perfectly captured.
Like every M camera of the past half century, the M9 is concentrated, by design, on the most photographically relevant functions. Its manual focusing – based on the combined viewfinder and rangefinder concept – and aperture priority exposure mode enable photographers to achieve maximum creative expression without imposing any limitations on their creative freedom. In combination with the 2.5-inch LCD monitor on the back, the simple, intuitive menu navigation system controlled by only a few buttons ensures rapid access to the entire range of camera functions.
7 FULL FRAME 24 × 36 MM – WITHOUT ANY COMPROMISES
8 OPTIMIZED SENSOR
9 INTUITIVE CONTROLS
10 ALL INFORMATION AT THE PUSH
OF A BUTTON
The CCD image sensor in the M9 was specifically designed and developed for this camera and offers full 35-mm film format without any compromises. All M lenses mounted on the M9 offer the same exact angle of view they had when shooting film material and therefore can now be used to an optimum effect. In other words, all the outstanding characteristics of Leica M lenses are now fully maintained for digital photography as well. In short, the high resolution and superior image quality of the M9 has the ability to fully exploit the enormous potential of M lenses.
In the case of the M9, it wasn’t a matter of modifying the lenses to match the image sensor, but rather the other way around. Our dedication to further developing the image sensor has resulted in a component perfectly matched to its intended role in the very compact M-System as well as to the performance of M lenses. The special layout of the micro lenses found in the M9 sensor makes it tolerant of oblique light rays impinging on its surface, thus assuring uniform exposure and extreme sharpness from corner to corner in every image. As a result, future Leica M lenses can be designed and optimized with uncompromising dedication to the achievement of the highest performance and compact construction. A newly developed sensor filter ensures the suppression of undesirable infrared light. The conscious decision to do without a moiré filter, a cause of image deterioration through loss of resolution, ensures maximum resolution of fine detail. The optimized signal-noise ratio of the CCD image sensor reduces the need for digital post-processing and ensures that M9 images possess an unrivaled and natural visual impact.
The key control element of the M9 is an intuitive four-way switch and dial combination used in conjunction with the 2.5-inch LCD monitor on the back. To set the ISO sensitivity, simply maintain light pressure on the ISO button while simultaneously turning the dial to select the required setting. All other functions important for everyday situations are quickly and easily accessible by pressing the set button: white balance, image-data compression, resolution, exposure correction, exposure bracketing, and programmable user profiles. The user profiles can be programmed with any combination of camera and shooting settings, stored under an assigned name, and accessed quickly whenever required for a particular situation. An additional pre-defined snapshot profile is also available. In snapshot mode, the M9 automa- tically sets as many settings as possible, thus providing a valuable aid to spontaneous and discreet photography. All other functions – from automatic lens recognition via six-bit lens- mount coding and selection of the required color space to cleaning of the sensor – are easily found in the clearly arranged main camera menu.
Pressing the “info” button in shooting mode displays the precise charge level of the battery, the remaining number of frames on the installed memory card, and the most important basic shooting settings, for example the shutter speed, on the camera’s brilliant 2.5-inch LCD monitor. In image-view mode, users can switch between an image-only view (with a zoom option up to single pixel level) or access other information by simply turning the dial. The available data includes information on the ISO sensitivity setting and shutter speed in use, plus a precise histogram display.
The Leica M9 embodies the heritage and amassed experience of more than five decades of the M-System. It is also, simultaneously, a digital system camera at the absolute pinnacle of modern technology. For Leica designers, photography has always been their prime concern – whether film or digital. The combination of an extremely efficient image sensor, the latest digital components, and the classic viewfinder/rangefinder principle – consistently optimized over many years – make the Leica M9 absolutely unique in all the world.
1
WORKFLOW SOFTWARE IS INCLUDED
The digital image processing workflow solution Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® is included in the M9 package.
The M9 is supplied complete with Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom®, a professional digital work- flow solution for Apple Mac® OS X and Microsoft Windows®. The software is available as a free of charge online download for all Leica M9 customers. This also ensures that the latest release is always readily available. Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® offers a vast range of functions for the administration, processing, and exporting of digital images. If the images from the M9 are saved as raw data in the standardized and future-proof Adobe Digital Negative Format (DNG), then the sophisticated and precise processing options of Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom® guarantee direct and extremely high-quality image processing with maximum image quality. At the same time, the 16-bit per channel color information captured by the image sensor is maintained throughout the processing workflow from image import to image export, ensuring that the most delicate tonal differentiations are preserved in maximum quality after completion of the post-processing sequence.
The Leica M9 can display a precise RGB tonal value histogram of the captured image after each shot, and also offers optional integration of the histogram in the automatic image view display. The clipping warning display over- and underexposed zones in each image, warning the photographer of potentially unusable images. An innovative feature is that the histogram is recalculated every time a new part of the image is viewed, thus enabling a precise quality assessment of small image areas and even the finest image details.