Gizmodo reviews the Leica SL and reaches the same conclusion David Schloss did in an issue of Digital Photo Pro last year: A brilliant camera, that’s too heavy? Also, the Sony A7R II, with similar performance is thousands of dollars less.
The Leica SL is highly capable. I just truly don’t understand who it’s for. Any professional who doesn’t mind carrying the weight of multiple bricks will surely choose a DSLR with more lens options and controls. Any non-professional who wants something even somewhat portable is going to go with the better-performing and much much (MUCH) cheaper Sony A7 series, Fujifilm X series, or Olympus OM-D series.
For those with a brand affinity for Leica, just like us with Sony, price is less of a concern and they can justify the purchase. The weight though, that’s one of the main reason we and so many others have switched, and a selling point of mirrorless. Leica knows it’s stuff obviously, and likely had several meetings about the weight spec. We don’t doubt their engineering, but after traveling light for a few years, are less interested in adding weight to our camera bag.
…
My daily shooter is Sony A1 with a vertical grip and various Sony lenses attached like the FE 20mm F1.8. Find more gear recommendations in our shop. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.