I fell in love. 1. The Leica Q2 is a no-compromise street photographer's dream. I've been trying to decide what camera to get for street photography, I have been bouncing between the idea of Ricoh GRIII, Fuji X100V, Leica Q, Fuji X-E4, M9 + 28 Elmarit.. . f/8 should give you reasonable depth of field with a 28mm lens as long as your subject distance is more than a couple feet. Whatever you decide to invest in, I recommend renting one or just trying it out. Then you know that half the distance of a sidewalk is 1 meter. If youre shooting street photography on a 35mm lens, that is a good default distance to fill the frame with your street photographs, and capture a good scene. The ability to crop at 75mm allows a narrower field of view, which lends itself to shooting tighter images such a portraits, and when used in conjunction with the macro mode, can be a useful macro lens. Street lamp mixed with a led light. lens with . It didnt. . So now Im going to take the camera not only in my street photography journeys but also together with my Leica SL during my Editorial and Commercial assignments. I do use the auto iso but have set the upper limit to 6400. why not auto focus, especially when shooting street with the Q or Q2? Usually, Im a B&W purist for street photography, but girl with the blue hat is stunning. But also a camera that has maintained a strong bond with the past. Theres two kinds of street photographers, those who like their images gritty and dirty and those whole like them clean and high definition, the Q2 is really a camera for the later group, the images are simply outstanding. It is even smaller, lighter, and (way) cheaper than the Leica 35mm f/2. With these settings all you need to do is put your camera at f8 and look at the lens, but the left f8 marker and line it up to 1 meter. I am also tryng to get as close as possible to the people i photograph. The Q2 features a a new 47.3 megapixel sensor, 4K video mode recording at 30/24fps, high-resolution OLED viewfinder, dust and water resistance, and focusing speed of 0.15 seconds. I didnt mention this earlier but I have used Leica and rangefinder interchangeably in this guide. Settings for street photography - Leica Q / Leica Q2 - Leica Forum Made with: Leica Q2, Leica SL2 One, No One and Fifty Thousand Leica Ambassador Marc De Tollenaere and his camera open the doors to Venetian homes and show portraits of the unconventional characters residing there. Dont make my mistake barely being able to afford one. How to zone focus: final words. The Q2 is one of those rare cameras that give me colors that I like out of the box. In this video, I show you the Leica Q2 settings that I use for street photography. I love your take-no-prisoners, in-your-face style of street photography. Getting into Film for Street Photography?: Film Photography Talk Forum Also a Leica is far smaller and more compact than bulky DSLRs (although not necessarily lighter). With the Leica Q when I took pictures all day with the LCD display on, I was forced to have to change the batteries even two or three times per day. I fantasized about the look of the camera, the lightness and compactness of the camera, and the ease of use. Step 1: Adjust your camera settings for a deep depth of field. Both cameras have distilled simplicity, minimalism, and elegance into a perfect form that cant be improved upon. Shot at Piazza del Pantheon in Rome. If you have a digital Leica or rangefinder, lets move on: If you have a digital Leica, I recommend shooting in Aperture-priority or A mode. Then you'll hit the streets with me as I show you my settings and techniques to achieve brilliant photography in any light, indoors . Some questions: Or you can pick up a second-hand Leica 35mm f/2 Summicron lens ($1500-3000) depending on if you get the older versions, or the newest version. But the new Leica M240 has many benefits. Why? Theres a face detection mode in the camera that makes it easy to nail your portraits while passing by (A tried and true street photography tradition!) The camera has the spirit of the Ricoh GR III, with the built-in 28mm fixed lens and form factor, so you will have to love the 28mm focal length, which can be too wide for some. Leica Q2 - Winter Wonderland - YouTube The surrounding and situation is still visible and not blurred away. Verdict. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. If you are looking for a street camera and wondering hows Leica Q2 street photography, heres everything you need to know to make the best out of this full frame shooter. Theres no two ways about the Leica Q2 is a beast. Ambient light mixed with 2 led lights. The 28mm lens on the Leica is ideal for me as it creates a feeling that you are in and amongst whatever you are shooting, which you do not achieve if you are zooming in (I think this gives a more voyeuristic feelwhich is fine if it is what you are after). Using the Q2, what settings do you recommend for street photography to ensure a reasonably fast shutter speed and good depth of field? Also the lens is very sharp (apparently it is modeled after an older 35mm Leica lens design). For example, if your lens has a focusing tab (the little plastic grip in the middle of your lens) this is a benefit. One of my dreams in life was to own a Leica. This wide-angle prime lens may be compact but it packs powerful features. Humanity is the best subject of all. One less thing to worry about. The concept of shooting wide-open at f/1.4, f/1.8, or f/2 was unheard of. Leica Q Lightroom Preset B&W - 28mm Portraits - MrLeica.com (Matt Osborne) The concept is that you pre-focus to a certain distance (1.2 meters is a good default distance, which is around 2-arm lengths away) and shoot at an aperture with deep depth-of-field (around f/8-f16), and everything you capture within a zone (a little closer or further than 1.2 meters) will be in focus. I thought that buying the Leica would help me make better images, because it was quicker and more discrete. The face detection mode is very fast and has allowed me to get shots I would not have been able to catch manually (the girl wearing a blue hat is a prime example of this) Granted sometimes it focuses on the wrong face, but this is a price worth paying for when it works as you wish. To be honest even today, I do not understand how it is possible to design cameras designed for street photography without considering this feature. Hands On: Street Photography with the Ricoh GR3 in Japan The interface and menus follow the same minimal design of the latest Leica Cameras with ergonomics and usability, typically German. The Q2 uses the same batteries of the Leica SL, the BP-SCL 4, and I was able to take pictures all day with my monitor always on with just one full charged battery. I never touched the M9 after that. Using the Q2, what settings do you recommend for street photography to ensure a reasonably fast shutter speed and good depth of field? And I feel that having a 35mm affords you a little more flexibility. Comes with Street Photography Conversations - Interviews with 8 well . The from the same viewpoint I tested the Q with its distant 28mm, set on 50mm for framing. I still think the Leica is a fantastic camera for street photography, and dont discourage anyone from investing in one. Best street photography cameras in 2023 | Popular Photography But by then, theyve missed the moment. When I shoot with a flash and the Leica, I generally put my ISO to 400, my aperture to f/8, and distance to 1.2 meters. You should be able to find a good-working condition Leica M6 for ~$1500-$1800 (about the same price as most modern digital cameras). Beware, all digital Leicas will get outdated (just like iPhones). The Leica Q2 is a fixed-lens, full-frame camera sporting a new 47.3MP sensor and a sharp, stabilized 28mm F1.7 Summilux lens. I know that some set the shutter speed and put the lens on A - essentially shutter priority - but I don't like giving up control of the aperture. Street photography captures the beauty of the everyday. Yet the problem with a 28mm lens for street photography is that you need to get really close. I thought that buying the Leica would make me satisfied for the rest of my life, because it was the best gear that money could buy. In the early days of photography, the fastest lenses were limited to f/3.5. As I said in 2015 when I first reviewed the Leica Q this is a camera system that was born with two souls. In particular the resolution, crop options, weather sealing, button layouts , menu system and EVF just to name a few. Missing focus a lot? If there is one focal length street photographers love, its the 28mm. Too late for you to post the blue hat one in B&W? I imagined myself shooting with a Leica on the romantic streets of Paris, in the foots of Henri Cartier-Bresson. I still think many participants here dont realize that the 28 on the Q with a 24 MB sensor is not the same as on on film or a lower resolution sensor. If Q was my favorite camera when it comes to street photography, Q2 did nothing but strengthen my love for this system.I tried the camera even during some environmental portrait sessions, finding both the 28mm and the 35mm and 50mm modes really useful in many situations. In this video, I show you the Leica Q2 settings that I use for street photography. Know that once you buy a brand-new digital Leica M, you will probably lose $1000-$2000 of value in the next few years (just like buying a new car). Super pictures! The Leica Q2, Leica's newest serious digital camera, is supposed to be a world-class photographic tool.Just listen to their advertising material, which describes the camera as "a perfect symbiosis of the essentials and innovation." I'm not sure what that means, but after two months shooting the Q2 in all sorts of conditions, I'm sure of this - there's no other digital camera that . I know that some set the shutter speed and put the lens on A - essentially shutter priority - but I don't like giving up control of the aperture. Then see how far it actually is, then learn how much you need to adjust your focusing tab (either to the left, center, or the right). The Nikon Z 26mm f2.8 Lens is the slimmest, lightest Z series full-frame pancake lens ever. Red Dot Camera is a website dedicated to Leica cameras and Lenses. Leica has paired the Q2's 50.4Mp (47.3Mp effective pixel count) sensor with an updated version of its Maestro processing engine. Now the tricky part how do you shoot with it? If it gets cloudy, increase ISO to 800, or 1600 if it gets darker. Ambient light. It is simple, minimalist, and the controls are easy to use. I have friends who have the Bessa, who love it. Aperture f2,0 @ 1600 iso. Thanks for sharing. It's discrete, doesn't say a sound, it has amazing fast auto focus and it's a complete package. It wont make you a better photographer, nor a more confident photographer. Is this the ultimate compact camera? If there is a camera that had changed my way of shooting in the street this is undoubtedly the Leica Q. I was among the lucky photographers who were able to test the Leica Q2 on the field before it was released on the market. The main difference is the sensor the older M8 and M9 have a CCD sensor (people say the colors and black and white files look more like film, but the high-iso performance is worse). The best bang for the buck film Leica to start off with is a Leica M6 (which has a meter-built in). So I think it is just easier to get the most affordable Leica within your budget. But you can always take a step forward. Leica Q2 The best Leica camera for street photography thanks to its body sealing Specifications Type: Compact Sensor size: Full-frame Megapixels: 47.3MP LCD: 3-in fixed touchscreen Today's Best Deals View at Amazon View at Clifton Cameras View at Park Cameras Reasons to buy + Full-frame image sensor + Water and dust resistant Reasons to avoid - Digital Leicas are far more expensive than their more affordable film counter-parts. If youre shooting street photography and have moving subjects, you want your shutter-speed to be at least 1/250th of a second. Of course, the Live View on your LCD screen will show if your exposures are off. My suggestion is to just be realistic with yourself. Performance. NYC Street Photography with the Leica QP - JOE D'AGOSTINO If you shoot with a digital Leica (or a film Leica with TTL), I recommend just using the Leica SF 24D (and using the TTL, automatic metering mode). My favorite Fujifilm film simulation recipes - Life, Unintended Why? Exibart Street Contest Third Edition Winners, Exibart Street Contest Third Edition Finalists, Create an account and sign up to the contest. Fujiukian's gear list: Leica Q2 Leica Q2 Monochrom Leica M10 Fujifilm GFX 50R Fujifilm GF 32-64mm F4 +3 more. **The track here is from Youtube Audio Library. I use three different settings for focusing depending on the situation, zone focusing and face detection auto when I am shooting blind, and manual focusing when I am shooting using the viewfinder. The image quality is out of this world and its nice and portable. The Q2 has them and makes zone focusing a breeze. Best compact: Sony RX100 VII. Leica Q2 Review | PCMag It means you have one less thing to worry about. I have also been planning to print out at A2 or above, I therefore needed a camera with a full frame sensor that could handle tough conditions.