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Imaging resource
Evidently, the X1 is not a fast shooter in any respect but when you get to spend some time with it then its more enduring qualities shine through. If you can accommodate its slow pace you’ll be impressed by its refreshing ease of use and its amazing photographic strengths.
The picture quality of the images the X1 produces is nothing short of stunning. The richness of detail in both shadows and highlights, the smooth tonal gradation, the superb Bokeh and the lack of any lens aberration are truly commendable; outclassing any compact currently on the market and, no doubt, a few DSLRs too.
White balance was consistently good in every situation and exposure metering reliably accurate. Noise performance is terrific and by far the best I’ve seen in a compact. Images are sharp throughout the sensitivity range with only limited noise appearing from 1600. The noise that does show is mostly of the luminance type though, somewhat comparable to a grainy film and, which, in my view, is not at all unpleasant.
The X1’s RAW capture is in the DNG (digital negative) format developed by Adobe. The camera can shoot in JPEG mode or JPEG+DNG but not DNG alone. It uses SD and SDHC memory cards and has a nominal battery life of 260 images per charge but the battery I was issued with didn’t last nearly as long as that, so you should budget for a spare.
Retro flourishes are appealing, but a better display and a more responsive AF would be more practical at this price
Verdict
The Leica X1 easily delivers the best image quality in its category, as you’d expect from the company, but, at the price of a DSLR, with a few performance issues still unresolved and a mediocre LCD screen, it’s unlikely it will win over large shares of compact users.
Having said that, if you are a photo purist, a die-hard Leica aficionado or need the best picture quality a compact can offer, then the X1 is worth every single penny. And considering Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 3 is also included, which costs around £250, it could well be a price worth paying. ®
Catherine Monfils is a professional photographer specialising in portraiture, lifestyle and fashion.
More Compact Camera Reviews… |
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 Ten…
Pocket compacts |
 Nikon
Coolpix P300 |
 Fujifilm
Finepix X100 |
 Olympus
PEN E-PL2 |
 Leica
M9 |
Leica X1
COMMENTS
Sadly your more likely right than not
I know it's Leica and they have a brand name to cash in on, but 1,500 for APCS camera?! Like frigging Hasselblad, £25k for a body and will it take better photos than a Nikon D3 or a Canon 1D? Well maybe but if you can't compose your shots, then no, you just get a better quality mess of a picture.
Sadly I can imagine most of these cameras will end up in some posh city camera shops being sold to people with way more money than sense and no idea how to compose a shot to save their lives.
Badge envy...
If you go to DPReview and do a side-by-side comparison of the Fujifilm X100 with the Leica X1 (which you can do from the former's test), it's difficult to support the conclusion that the "easily delivers the best image quality in its category". At high ISO the X100 is surely a bit better and both cameras are rated highly for the lens quality (and the Fujifilm is a full stop faster).
Of course the X100 is physically a bit larger, but then it has a built-in viewfinder and something of a handgrip (both cost-extras on the Leica). With both cameras there appear to be quirks, and neither appear to be up with the best on AF, speed of use. Also both are expensive albeit the Leica hugely so.
Of course there will always be sold by the badge on a camera, and I suspect that is far and the way the most important issue when it comes to premium-priced products like the Leica. Until I see some direct side-by-side objective evidence under comparable conditions I'm inclined to think the Leica does not easily deliver the best images - if anything it's subtly the other way.
Nice camera, but..
it still looks designed to appeal to the shrill, gullible twats who buy anything with an expensive badge on it.
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