In a move that does not really come as a surprise, Leica majority shareholder Dr. Andreas Kaufmann has acquired a 21.5% stake in the online photo contest platform “i-shot-it.com”. For a small fee, www.i-shot-it.com enables photo-enthusiasts to take part in photographic competitions. Winners of the online photography competitions receive cash prizes—financed by the charges due for uploading image material—and a Leica camera. Hence why we are not surprised at Dr. Kaufmann’s move.
Dr. Kaufmann has made himself renowned a couple years ago, when he factually saved Leica from going bankrupt. With the introduction of the M9 digital rangefinder, S2 medium format SLR and X1 compact camera the company saw a huge incline in sales and became profitable again. What he’s up to with i-shot-it.com? Only time will tell.
“I know how to travel and I know how to take care of myself; to survive and to be able to take pictures. How to befriend people that I may need to photograph. And how not to be noticed and not to get in the middle of things. That’s really the secret of all good conflict photography. Don’t get involved and don’t get mixed up. Don’t get between the groups.” -Horst Faas
Prized for his photojournalism work of the Vietnam War, Horst Faas (1933-2012) created new standards for covering war with a camera. Born in Berlin, Germany in 1933, Faas began his career with the Keystone Agency in 1951. By the young age of 21, he was already covering major events such as the peace negotiations in Geneva in 1954. In 1956, Faas joined the Associated Press, where his reputation as a daring, unflinching war photographer took hold. He was soon assigned to cover war in the Congo and fighting in Algeria.
Editor’s Note: We received some new information from a former colleague of Horst Faas and have included it in this article.
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Warning: Minor Spoilers Ahead!!!
If you’re a fan of Mad Men and you’re a camera geek, chances are that you heard two significant names in tonight’s Season Premiere. The first one is Pentax, which probably made all the Pentaxians super happy. But the second one was Leica. Indeed, Don Draper (the show’s protagonist) gives a doctor a Leica camera as a gift after a short meeting in the elevator. Draper states that the agency has tons of them in their closet and simply just gives one to the good ol’ Doc.
Really, Draper? I actually stated outloud, “I want a Leica” when I the exchange happened on screen. But it really makes us wonder if Leica paid for some subtle advertising on the show or not. It would only make sense though–loads of celebs own Leica cameras and it is their target market.
Indeed, this site is in debt to Leica–they loaned us our first review units to help us take it off year and a half years ago. With that in mind though, it’s nice to see that a very popular show throws a hat tip to the photog community.
Word has been circulating in some circles that Apple has courted Leica and Carl Zeiss for the next iteration of the iPhone. Recognizing the Android takeover and rise of Samsung as the smartphone powerhouse, Apple is taking great pains to make sure its next device will hit the ground running. The Leica-Zeiss rumor runs counter to Apple’s track record of guiding the market, rather than innovating within it as Samsung has done and continues to do. While we were initially skeptical, the evidence seems rather compelling that the next iPhone will be the brainchild of a team effort. Head on past the break for the full report.
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Editor’s Correction: in a previous version of this article we slipped up and compared it to the Leica M-E. We apologize for this mistake. The new Leica M indeed bests the Canon 5D Mk III’s sensor. Edits are down below. We apologize for this mistake.
DxO Mark has just released their analysis of the new Leica M’s sensor. From what I’ve been reading from other tests around the web, people are really digging the new camera. But according to DxOMark’s lab tests, more affordable full frame cameras from Canon, Nikon and Sony are still quite far ahead of it. To be specific, theSony A99, Sony RX1 and Nikon D800 all best the new Leica M. However, the M’s sensor trumps the Canon 5D Mk III.
So what significance does this have? Despite the fact that all images are still taken by photographers and they need to have a creative vision first, consider the prices. The Leica M has a full frame CMOS sensor, weather sealing, can use an EVF, shoot video, and can also use Leica R lenses. The LCD screen also enjoyed major upgrade from the Leica 9–the camera’s predecessor. The M is also more affordable than the M was on launch too.
But the Canon 5D Mk III, Nikon D800, and Sony A99 all can do what the Leica can, and more at a much more affordable price. Canon also has a much more complete system than Leica despite the sensor not being up to par. (The RX1 isn’t weather sealed though.) Granted they aren’t as compact or have the build quality of the Leica, but every photographer works on a budget. My buddy Jim Fisher over at PCMag.com sprung for one of these and now I’m wondering if he has buyer’s remorse.
Weekend Humor isn’t supposed to be taken seriously. So don’t.
It was a report that left the Leica-toting section of the photography world flabbergasted. DxOMark, the website known for its endless camera testing that serve no practical purpose, recently declared that “the Leica M9, M9-P, and ME Type 220…offer some of the worst image quality” on a full-frame sensor. They were three hairs short of saying, “Leica’s latest cameras are full of poopy.” That article was published on March 6. Eight days later, DxOMark released a statement in which the article’s author apologized for his remarks. Leica doesn’t take criticism lightly, and they made sure DxOMark understood that. Head on past the break for a tale of intrigue, vengeance, and one lone writer who was willing to stand up to a company full of Germans in this exclusive report obtained by us here at The Phoblographer.
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