Leica's 64MP S3 medium-format camera is now available to pre-order for $18,995

This camera is for people that have specific needs.

We don't know the answer to that yet, until someone gets their hands in the Leica and posts some pics. But based on the dynamic range the technical side of me says that the Leica pics will stand out.

People with adequate understanding could certainly tell. Even amateurs could usually notify the nuances within. It is not just sharpness and noise, the MF sensors always render much smooth gradients and colors with much defined shadows, even the "cheapest" GFX. Only Nikon flagship FF DSLR sensors like those in D4s/D5/Df and Sony A7S/SII could match the rendering of MF in terms of tones and colors, but they however have far lower resolution than the MF. The same applies to FF vs APS-C. The apparent differences do definitely exist IF the cameras are used properly.

In comparing my S007 to a Canon 5D4 or a 5DSR, I will just say that if you have a Zeiss Otus on a high resolution full-frame camera, then you can get a comparable shot. But looking at the images side by side in LR with no edits, the Leica S will be the image that you choose. A 5DSR has more resolution than an S007, but the new S3 will probably shoot in the 70 MP range. So a sensor that is 1.5 times the size of full-frame with that kind of resolution with the world's best glass should be among the best of the best. The differences will be obvious.

I think the more obvious comparison will be with the Leica SL2. Same quality level, almost the same resolution. Better price point and technical features (much faster because of Maestro III processor). If needed even highres mode 187 Mp.
For me obviously the better choice (and the lenses are even compatible).

Steppenw0lf:

The SL2 shoots 14 bit raws, not 16.

More importantly, the S lenses are better than the SL lenses. Right, the Leica SL lenses are not Leica's absolute best lenses.

Phase One is the one real high end and expensive. Hasselblad has lost a lot of market in that area in the last decade.

Soylent
X1D50C2 sells for $5750 all day long.
As with all Leica, you pay double or triple the competition, but you know that going in. The extra pickles don’t mean much. On paper at least this Leica is an underachiever and I’d rather the sensor be 4:5 ratio.
It’s not a value proposition, it’s a Leica proposition. It doesn’t have to make sense.

Thanks for the laugh. Vanity is thy name.

Medvedev when he was president of Russia, was photographed shooting with a Leica S hand held. So Tibor1's advertising copy, "they control an important share of the wealth in the world." will resonate with the actual market.

Have you seen the resale on a Land Rover product? "very well" isn't how I'd choose to describe it.

Marek, OPs post boring pics on all DPR forums, not just Leica.... For example, I post a lot of Q2 shots on the Leica Board and tons of GFX 100 and GFX 50r shots on the Medium Format Board. It is proof that the world's best cameras do not always produce great or even good shots. 😁

Thing is, you can post boring pictures for much less. Perhaps the overriding factor is pride of ownership but then do not spoil it with taking pictures.

@Marek M: I agree, in the Leica forum on dpreview you find a lot of boring images. As @Greg7579 also noted, this is not a specific Leica problem, but documents that the photographer and not the gear is most relevant for a good image.

Here we comment on the Leica S3 which targets not you and me but professionals. Professional will not post good images on dpreview! They are busy selling them and earning their living, independent of the gear they are using.

Since this site is for free, it almost excludes the post of really spectacular images.

I disagree. About the pro comment. DPR is the best camera gear forum and there are tons of spectacular shots posted every day by all kinds of photographers. Check out the MF Board. Lots of top pros, some famous, post their work there. There are some serious hobbyisys who post great work there. They have no interest in making money selling their work. For example, my work is not for sale. I give it away every day and there are two stock agencies mad at me for that right now.

I post a lot of shots and some of them are great, some of them are good and some of them are mundane. But it dosen't matter. People need to post their images and not be worried about being ridiculed on DPR.

Everyone is a photographer these days and we are all inundated with images on an hourly basis on every screen we look at. It's hard to make an impact with images in 2020.

Outstanding comment ... made my day!

Very true. And like the Bingo Club guys who have never even met a super model, much less dated one, most of the negative comments on all DPR Leica articles and reviews are by guys who have never owned, shot, or even touched a Leica and never will.

love_them_all:

This system, the Leica S, has been in the pro (mostly studio) market since 2008.

The SL lenses don't beat the S lenses. The target market for the SL and the S are very different.

"I think this S3 will the last model they will ever do."

That kind of depends on sales. How many completely disparaged the SL when it launched is question you have to answer here, and I'm not implying you're one. Many did so, and yet, there's a Leica SL2 and two other manufacturers had adopted the SL mount.

By your argument, which sure ain't original to you: A Nikon Z7, Panasonic S1R, and Sony A7RIV are cameras that will compete with Hasselblad and Phase DSLRs. They won't, and don't.

"Who cares if a digital camera will work in 50 years??? Many of us won't be around anyway."
No children...right?

Are you planning to pass your iPhone or whatever camera you are currently using for future generations and hope will get any use, do you think they will care? LOL

Film cameras held their value, but digital cameras do not, because you can get better next generation bodies for the same money or actually less. A digital Leica, or any digital camera, is never an investment.

You wouldn’t want to shoot one in 50 years as the quality would be so poor compared to current models. Will look good on a shelf though, I’ve dozens of film cameras on display I’d never waste my time using

1 %-ers?

Do you really think 1 in 100 people own a Leica?

like someone just said above, leicas are fantastically designed. They are onely for the 1% because of the price. YOu can buy an S2 body, lightly used on ebay right now for about the price of a new z7.

I would argue that if you spent 5G on a new z7 kit you would be approaching 1%er class too. IN fact, how many posting here have over $10000 in camera gear in your house.? Hmmm?

Gravis. Just added up 27k of camera gear and I’m only an amateur, just been doing it a long time it adds up.

When I was still working I had about $30000 in sensible Nikon gear, after retirement only a comprehensive set of Fujifilm bodies and lenses worth about $14000 (+ two compacts from Sony). I think I can cover a lot more situations with those than with one Leica with one lens...

@gravis92: I know, but how many for true photographic reasons?

Kashim, the good news is that you don't have to buy one. Actually if you put a lens on it it will cost more than $20G. I never understood the envy that some have for someone with the resources to buy something like this?

“Leica is for rich snobs who think their sh*t don't stink. No matter how great the images it produces, $20k for a crappy camera like this is ridiculous.”

🤦🏻‍♂️

There’s no point even trying to discuss with you, I see.

I get so tired of people bashing what they want but can’t have . I shoot Nikon dslrs and probably their Mirrorless soon . If I could afford Leica I’d own the new Monochrome one . And Leica glass is sublime period! If you know good glass and image quality.
I feel for the ignorance

Kashim - "It's always amusing to see people on here denigrate others while trying to elevate their own "expertise" in the same breath."

and your next sentence does precisely what you are whining about:

"Leica is for rich snobs who think their sh*t don't stink."

Have you ever considered reading your post to yourself before hitting the "post" button?

If people were not paying ridiculous prices, Leica wouldn’t be making them. These prices have to make up for the low sales volume.

You get what you pay for.

When was the last time I've seen a Leica in the wild? Several times, actually - and every time I've wanted to ask the owner about it, but kept to myself out of politeness.

I agree with the supporters: the naysayers are mostly just bitter. A Hasselblad is in the same ballpark, yet when that company comes out with a new model your don't see the level of resentment that just about any Leica announcement gets around here. There's less hate on expensive Canon and Nikon gear than what a Leica suffers through.

They camera is both beautiful and elegant, and hopefully that bleeds through to the user experience as well. Leica lenses, even after all these decades, are special and admired for performance, so though expensive you do indeed get what you pay for.

None of what you say is true, except for the spurious cost comparisons. Armchair CEO I think

Sorry Bernard but how do you know the Fuji ”does everything much better”?? Based on spec sheets? I bet the output of this camera will be something special.

Bernard, so you’ve tried the S3 extensively and came away with this conclusion?

Clever man.

The best part of his comment was ”I would probably still not want to add the Leica to my line up if it were given to me for free”. 😂😂😂

🤦🏻‍♂️

So much of what you say makes us think that you are a fool.

You have no idea of what you are talking about. All digital “MF” sensors are smaller than film medium formats not only Leica. Please make your homework first and get back to us.

@Foskito

I agree that it's an industry/marketing problem as much as it is Leica at fault.

But, in general, I think that it is disingenuous of the industry to use 'full-frame' to refer to a full 35mm film frame-sized sensor, and then to use the film term 'Medium Format' to refer to something that is clearly half the area of true medium film format. You can't have your cake and eat it. If they sold cameras with 24mm x 18mm sensors and called them full-frame, everyone would complain. They should call it half-medium format.

Cost is Relative!

Considering that a set of Leica Summilix-C cinema lenses is around $260,000 US or a set of Arri/ZEISS Master Primes at about $240,000 or even a set of Schneider Kreuznach Xenar-3 lenses are about $50,000 US that $19,000 US is not all that bad for a stills camera !!!

When all was said and done a Red Monstro with all the fixings and accessories ended up costing us over $120,000 CAN and YES you CAN use a Red Monstro as a 60 fps 8192 by 4320 pixel (35.3 megapixel) Full RAW Burst rate stills camera!

Add the lenses and you're getting up into the half a million range. It highly depends upon your industry as to WHAT you consider expensive! On my table at this very moment are four $6000 each of Canon CNE lenses. Are they expensive? YES! DO they get the job done WELL! Definitely! Soooooo I DO NOT consider them expensive because they GET ME IMAGES I can actually use AND our customers are paying for them for us over 4 years of lease+buyout terms!

.
That's a good deal to me
.

How True!

Those pro photographers are taking their Leicas on that recent 2020 Bentley-sponsored road trip that was done after the Geneva Auto Show was cancelled!

My colleague saw a LOT of Leicas, Phase-Ones and Fuji GFX-100's on the trip along with the multi-tens-of-thousands-of-dollars of lenses that go along with it!

BUT I should note that Bentley paid barely $3 million US in photographer expenses rather than $20 million US on trade show booths AND YES the photographers DID get to sample the finest foods and sip the finest ice wines and Scotches in the world at multiple scenic locations as they shot high end Bentley luxury cars at all hours in the rain, snow, sun, fog on the best of roads and the worst of roads!

Why? Because those photographers INITIALLY spent the REAL MONEY NEEDED in order to buy the best gear which made them FRONT RUNNERS for getting those luxury all-expenses paid AWESOME photo jobs that only come around once in a while!

Wanna Play? Gotta Pay!

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People you shoot for pay. They never post here because there is no profit in being a keyboard jockey ;-)

Remember there a two types of photographers—those who do it and those who talk about it.

If the shoe fits wear it!

I wish dentists could afford that!

a person that doesn't know how to operate a camera

@cdembrey by posting your the latter 🤣 self burns are so rare and juicy

Hang on my microscope in the lab...

The answer is, any serious photography business might be the target clientele. It’s the same target audience that would be interested in buying Phase One or Hasselblad, which are even more expensive.

From fashion-editorials to car-studios, high-end fine-art photographer’s, Headshot portraiture... there’s a wide range of customers that look into these systems. Mainly just professionals where these amounts of money make sense.