Leica Reviews

I was surprised by the price of this item... In comparison to the price of the other Leica accessories this is a nice STYLISH addition to your Minilux Zoom for very little money. I found that regardless of red eye reduction build into the camera I would still get it occasionally. This flash is the best way to eliminate that. Also it uses AA batteries which means that you don't have to search for the special power source every time you run out. 35mm angle of coverage is good enough when I need to shoot indoors and more than enough if I want to be creative and use it for fill in flash. Pretty fast recycle ratio (about 5 sec). And since the unit is very small I find my self to carry it often and my flash photography doesn't have this typical Point and Shoot look. But the quality of marksmanship has a little room for improvement. Unit doesn't feel as good and sturdy as the camera itself.

Of course it is the ultimate, it is well made by Leica, in Germany. I found the camera to be solid and easy to use. Read the extensivly detailed manual (in three languages, including english) to discover the many features and flexibility of this work of art and design. My cloud and indoor pictures have turned out exceptionally sharp with an (almost) idiot-proof metering and auto/manual focusing system. Since I wear glasses, the adjustable diopter in the viewfinder has helped me a great deal. The on body flash is powerful, and an excellent computer integrated accessory flash is available (Leica SF 24 D). The camera's large LCD data screen makes reading your adjustments easy. I have taken a lot of pictures in my lifetime of 68 years, with a lot of different makes and types of cameras and films. All camera systems are the result of a lot of compromises, and this one is something to dream for. Even with the advent of of the digital cameras, This film camera is exceptional! It was worth every cent I paid for it and the flash.

I bought Leica C3 five months ago and the rubber ring from viewfinder came out. It took a lot of time to receive the part and to find the Leica service. Leica does not cover the cost of transportation of cameras even for a camera in warranty.
Other problem: unexplained mid-roll broken film inside the camera!

For the photos the quality is very good even in the low-light conditions, sharp and natural colours.
A good camera, easy to use, very nice design, but having problems with the camera body so soon and unpleasant experience with the Leica service is quite disappointing.

It seems everyone that is contemplating buying a new camera these days (particularly in the novice and point/shoot market place), will automatically go for the digital option, and pay a lot of money and get a camera that on the service of it, appears to offer every option under the sun, but in reality takes disappointing photos! But the thought of going back to a good old 35mm point and shoot camera, is just to socially hard to except! So why should the Leica C3 change your mind about 35mm compact point and shoot cameras!
Well to start off....Its a Leica, probably the most prestigious camera maker in the world, built designed and bread in Germany. Only the best material, best optics. and best styling go into making every model, so which ever one you go for (C1,C2,C3), you can be pretty sure its way up there on the list in its class. Even before you find out what the C3 has under that solid stainless steel casing, you won't want to put it down. It feels, looks and handles beautifully. The C3 is built to last with a real retro feel and every part of the camera oozes quality. The buttons and display are very simple, clean and very well laid out, making the camera so simple to use a child would be able to pick it up and take pictures.
The C3 features a 28mm - 80mm lens, the same as a standard lens for many an SLR. What's sets this lens apart from other brands of camera is its build (only genuine optical glass not plastic), its incredible speed for a compact camera (making pictures in less than adequate lighting a breeze and worry free) and its sharpness/depth of colour. Infact the colour reproduction is breath taking, reproducing deep rich smooth colour within pin sharp focus! I have had friends amazed by what the C3 can achieve!! The 28mm wide angle lens is also great for capturing landscapes and architecture, whilst the 80mm top end will aid you with portraits and macro work.
So with the C3 you really are getting value/quality for money and obviously a great looking camera, wearing that exclusive Leica label.
Sure this camera may not be a 5 mega pixel, movie making piece of stainless steel the size of a stock cube (although the 35mm pictures it takes cover as much, if not more detail than a 13.5 mega pixel camera, something digital lovers like to leave out), but you are getting a solid camera that takes amazing photos every time. My advise before buying any camera would be to think carefully about what you are buying it for! And If your looking for a camera that feels great, looks the part, takes breath taking photos in almost any lighting condition, that is simple to use and that can fit into your pocket, the Leica C3 is the one for you. The Leica C3 also comes with a 7 year warranty and a hard as nails plastic transparent case, making this product almost indestructible.

This is a really great camera which has a really wonderful lens for this type of camera - the colours and the details are quite stunning when compared to previous high end compacts I've used (£200 ish category). The lens is f3.6 at 28mm, very fast for a zoom compact.

It's also unusual in design which makes it quite interesting to my mind. For example it has a T mode for long exposures of up to 90 seconds (great for night scenes in cities or traffic trails). It also has a stepped zoom at 28,42,50,60,70,80mm, which I find quite handy when composing, and you can zoom right through it you want to.

Metering is excellent, I've tried a number of different films from 100-400 asa including 2 slide films, which have been perfectly exposed.

the flash is very powerful, perhaps a bit too much so, but if you focus on the nearest subject, it closes the aperture and this lessens the blast as well as giving good depth of field. It does give red-eye, but most on camera flash will - just get a red eye pen and sort it that way.

But overall it's the lens which is the real selling point. OK it's expensive, but you can't really value the difference it could make.

A tip - and this is obvious - get your photos developed somewhere pretty good as it makes all the difference when you have a good lens.

this is a cool case for a cool digital camera...

as anyone who has priced 'designer' bags will know, this is a relatively inexpensive way to acquire a 'designer-like' bag for what has become somewhat of a digital icon (at least until the release of the digital 'm' by leica a year or so hence)...

the positives of this case are: relatively compact and light weight; good insulation; trendy design...

the negatives are: funny smell and, not unexpectedly, not the highest quality leather (e.g., very unlike the leather cases used for the leica trinovid and ultravid series binos, which smell and feel like the leather used for the interior of the 'other m'); no side pockets for travel papers and the like; not included gratis with the d-2...

I want to keep my beloved d-2 in good shape, so I needed a case. This huge, clumsy thing is probably the best case available for a d-2. It has an internal compartment that holds an extra battery and some extra memory cards, and it's only about 15 times as big as it needs to be. And it's handsome, I mean, do you know how long it's been since a waitress at Fonda San Miguel came up to me and said "can I put your bag in the safe while you're eating?". Actually, it never happened before. This thing just looks awesome.

I am not sure if it's the camera or ASP film but the pics the camera took were on par with a cheap 35mm camera. I tried ASP film from both Fuji and Kodak 100,200,400. Before this camera I had an Olympus Stylus Zoom. Now that was an excellent P&S camera. This is my first Leica, they are suppose to be good, but I don't know. The camera looks great, a little bulky but unfortunately I cannot recommend it.

I try to stay away from APS in general. It was a gift from me for my mom since she wanted small easy camera with an average zoom. It's a simple design with suprisingly good picture quality. Automatic flash does the great job in mixed lighting environment. Pictures are sharp and crisp. Color saturation is outstanding. Even if APS film is limited and negative size is smaller than regular 35mm film I was really amazed by the quality. My mom who is not the most technical person had no problems operating the controls or loading the camera. It was a piece of cake for her in no time. Also very nice weatherproof box that came with the camera protected the piece in the rain. Leica did a really nice job and even if the camera is little bigger than elphs and nikon nuvis it is worth every penny.

I very rearly shoot with point and shoots I prefer medium format cameras as well as 35mm SLRs but about now Im thinking about getting one of those Leicas as my pocket snap shot/ location scout piece.

When I saw this camera for the first time I was probably the victim of irrational thought processes, seduced by the stylish minimalism and the Leica Logo of course.

However, after almost a year of use I have been really impressed by how easy it is to take good quality snaps. I always use good quality 400 and 800 film to avoid the use of flash and regularly load up with Kodak B&W 400 Advantix for excellent Black and white shots.

I have taken school sports day photos, holiday snaps, B&W panoramic landscapes on misty mornings in Cornwall and party snaps / candids and all types of photos between. The Leica performs without fuss, is easy to use, has incredible battery life and looks stunning. The case is virtually waterproof (heavy shower resistant anyway) and tough. The Fuji mechanism and lens is smooth and has never failed. Superb.

(I also use Minolta SLRs , Ricoh GR1s and Yashica T5 compacts and the Leica C11 stands up well in this company.)

This is a GREAT camera!The author is a serious advanced amateur, having two Hasselblads, a 4x5 rail camera, Canon EOS 3, Leica M3, 25+ lenses, etc. Did I mention a Nikon Coolpix 800? So, where does the C11 fit in? NOTHING is as small and light. This camera is about the size of a deck or cards! The lens is great for the 4x6 prints (if I want 16x20, there are better choices). But it is great for snapshots! Why is it better than the Coolpix? Better lens resolution AND the batteries aren't always dead!
The flash works well to about ten feet. You can just pick this up, turn it on, and take a nice photo in about three seconds. I have lots of cameras that can take good photos, but it takes half and hour to get ready.This camera is easy to hold (I really like the round bulge on the side, very gripable). All the unique APS features are present (panorama mode, date, mid-roll change, etc.).I bought this for my mother-in-law and had to get one for myself! You rarely go wrong with a Leica product; the C11 is another winner!

As someone who's always wanted to own a Leica camera, buying a C1 proved to be a bitter disappointment. That first moment of running the lens in and out and hearing what sounded like gravel in the lens barrel wasn't a good start. I immediately sent the camera back and got another one, same thing. A further disappointment was actually using the camera. With a lens speed about as fast as a glacier,(f10.5 @105mm), using the camera in the middle of the day, albeit overcast, with 100 ISO film trying to take a landscape, the camera was screaming for the flash. I sent the camera back and bought a Canon Z135, great camera, half the price and twice the features, (with a much faster lens). Buy anything, but this over rated "Leica wanta be"

Lets face it this is a P&S camera. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles but whatever it does, it does best. I have taken some excellent pictures with this camera. I have 2 SLR cameras and 6 lens. This camera does have some shortcomings but I like the quality.

Here are some shortcomings
When you zoom in it requires flash
Its slippery cuz it has a very smooth surface. I highly recommend the case if you are buying this camera
It does not store the settings. So everytime I disable the flash for the next pic I got to do it again

advantages
Takes SLR quality picture
Compact
Different from other camera

I bought this at an online auction which had 3 month warranty. There was some noise and I send the camera back and got a new one in a week. The customer service was excellent. This is almost a year back. I clicked anywhere from 20 to 30 roll of film on this camera. Its worth the money.

From it aluminum body to it vario-elmar lense. I've taken several pictures and they all came out absolutely incredible, the details and contrast are picture perfect. The camera is a little big to fit in a pocket, but it is very solid feeling, and user friendly, zoom works flawlessly.