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| Leica Q3 (Leica Press Image) |
In August, 2018 Nikon announced two new mirrorless cameras—the 24.5mp Z6 and the 45.7mp Z7. These two long awaited cameras generated hundreds of write-ups, reviews, videos and tens of thousands of written words. These camera were Nikons first serious forays into the mirrorless world.
A good number of the reviews and articles written about Nikon's new mirrorless entries had to do with each camera having only one memory card slot. Forget about everything else that was good about the camera. Forget that all cameras had only one card slot until only a couple of years before that. Forget about the wonderful image quality they could produce (which is the ultimate goal of most of us photographers I would have thought?), it quickly became all about the cameras only having one card slot. They influencers zeroed in on that one particular fact and basically ignored most everything else about the cameras. We were told they basically weren't worth purchasing. You'd certainly lose your images files for sure without a backup card on board. You would have thought the cameras were delivered with scratched sensors by the way the critics lambasted the cameras.
Nikon then moved rather quickly (for Nikon, that is) and introduced successors to these cameras in 2020 called the Z6II and the Z7II. The both had two card slots! Finally, a camera now worthy of buying. Thank goodness!
Fast forward to now. Leica just introduced the Q3 camera body with the non-interchangeable 28mm f/1.7 lens. It has 60.3mp and from everything I've read, superb image quality. But where is the outrage? Where are the rants? Where are the hundreds of articles, reviews and YouTube videos degrading and downplaying this camera because it, in today's digital world, only has one card slot! Can you believe it? Only one card slot? In 2023?
Its predecessor, the Q2, also had only one card slot but it had a good deal of in-camera memory that could also be used in case your forgot your card, the card malfunctioned or you ran out of room on your only memory card. Leica dropped that in-camera memory in the Q3. What? They reduced capabilities? Why isn't everyone up in arms? And...this is on a $6000 US non-interchangeable lens camera, no less. The Z6 when introduced was $2000 US, one third the price of the Q3. The Z7 was $3400 when introduced, 56% of the cost of a Q3. Inexpensive by Leica standards. Yet we hear virtually nothing. Why?
So, let's talk about the lack of criticism of Leica and the Q3. Let's talk about the lack of rants. Let's talk about the lack of disapproval, condemnation, fault-finding and carping about Leica's not putting in a second memory card slot—in 2023 for goodness sakes! Not 2018. We don't hear nary a word of disappointment, do we?
I write this 'tongue in cheek' to make a point. The hypocrisy in general (not necessarily about these particular cameras) in the photographic review and criticism industry runs rampant. The reviewers have their favorite cameras and manufacturers and won't say anything 'too' negative about their products since, if they do, they won't receive the next new camera or lens to review. They are forced to mitigate or downplay any negative comments. They deny that, but, come on, we know the truth. We’re not stupid. Those same influencers, for their pet cameras and brands, will sing praise until no one will any longer listen, even if a guy with a generator and a mobile phone in Turkmenistan is the last person to hear them.
For the record, I think the new Q3 is a marvelous camera. I could never personally justify spending $6K on a camera no matter who made it, let alone one that doesn't have interchangeable lenses. I used to own and shoot Leicas (M6, M6TTL, M7, R8, R4S2) in the 1990s and 2000s, in fact until I moved to digital, Leica was my primary camera brand. Luckily for me back then, the cost of entry was not nearly where it is today. They are excellent picture taking machines as are just about every other digital camera introduced in the past five years.
Next time there is outrage flung at you by camera/lens reviewers, take it with a grain of salt and my best advice is, "Think for yourself." Don't listen to what they say, do your own research and figure out for yourself if a certain camera or lens will meet your individual needs, one memory card slot or not.
I'm off my virtual soapbox now. Back to your normal programming...
Thanks for looking. Enjoy!
Dennis A. Mook
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Excellent point. A "Grain of salt" is probably too generous for most of the reviews I have read. I have rented many cameras and lenses in order to find out for myself if they were sizzle or steak. I may not be up to a Leica Q but I do have a Fujifilm GFX on my rental bucket list for later this year.
ReplyDeleteI will admit to consternation about the single card slot on my Z7. However, it is not that it is a single slot but why is it SQD or CF Express? This makes no sense to me at all. My OM, and the M1.2 preceding it, writes at frame rates far exceeding a Z7 to a good SD II without ever hitting the buffer. I had to purchase expensive cards for the Z7. I do not believe the Z7 can approach the SD II Write Speed of 299 Mbps.
Oh well, I'll have the CF Express cards in hand whenever I decide about a Z9 (which can take full advantage of that write speed).
Kudos to Leica for having some on-board storage. This should be a standard feature for all high end cameras. There's a lot to learn from the cell phone manufacturers.
Thanks for your comment. Remember, the Z7 45.7mp files are more than twice as large as the 20mp Olympus files. That’s a lot of data to write as fast as some demand it be written. I think Nikon could have increased the buffer and gotten away with SDXC v90 UHSII cards. Personally, I like the idea of both types of cards as the SD cards can be found anywhere and the CFExpress cards write 4 times faster than the fastest SD cards. Everything is a compromise. I just like the cost of the CFExpress cards.
DeleteThat should read I just DON’T like the cost of CFExpress cards.
DeleteI've been shooting digital cameras professionally since 2003. I never owned a camera with two card slots until I bought a Fuji X-H1, and I don't use the second slot in it. I've never lost a shot in all that time.I have lost a roll or two of film, though.
DeleteDave Jenkins
Thanks Dave.
DeleteI agree about the relative difference in file size being a major consideration. My Z7 files at 14bit RAW (50+/-) are about 3 times the size of the OM 12bit RAW (17+/-). A rough calculation would have the Z7 at max 9 FPS (which are 12 bit) and the OM at 30 FPS writing the same amount of data to the card. The Z7 buffer is 19 RAW exposures. No idea about the OM but it must be huge.
ReplyDeleteI have used the OM at 60 FPS in Pro Capture without issues relative to the buffer. My last effort with dragonflies in flight rang up 13.7 GB of data to a Sony Tough SDII in about an hour.
I mainly use the Z7 for landscapes and architecture. For those purposes any card would probably be sufficient. I like the camera for what it does really well and that includes 4K video. The SQD/CFExpress slot was probably a design carryover from the D850.
Nikon fixed it with the Z7 II except for the dissatisfaction of those reviewers who maintain that both slots must be the same card type.