Leica M10-P Reporter

Leica M10-P Reporter

This is what I have here to try this week. It's a Leica M10-P Reporter. (Goes toward "simple cameras.") The website Digital Camera World, a year or so ago, quoted Stefan Daniel, who is now Executive Vice President Technology and Operations, Leica Camera AG, Wetzlar: "A couple of years ago we got to know about Gabriele Micalizzi, and his saying that a Leica saved his life. He was photographing in Syria, and he was hit by shrapnel. And he had one camera before his face and the other one in front of his chest…and without his Leicas maybe he would not be here, or he would have been much more seriously injured.

"His vest inspired us a bit, because this is a Kevlar vest, which protects from bullets and so on. And we thought, maybe it's also time to honor these photographers, these reporters, the people who really risk their life on a daily basis. And so, we talked."

The Reporter was limited to 450 pieces and is no longer available new. It has dark green paint scratch-resistant finish and black Kevlar body covering. The minimalist body design omits decorative engravings and retains only functional markings. The friend who loaned it to me has purchased an M11. He bought the Reporter because Leica special edition cameras tend to hold their value better. He plans to sell it after I try it for a bit. (If you're interested, I can put you in touch with him.)

Actually I'm a bit jammed up, because I also have the Zeiss Loxia 25mm ƒ/2.4 here to test, so I'll need to spend a fair amount of time shooting this week, switching back and forth.

Mike

Book o' the Week:

Ernst Haas: New York in Color 1952–1962. "When Haas moved from Vienna to New York City in 1951, he left behind a war-torn continent and a career producing black-and-white images. For Haas, the new medium of color photography was the only way to capture a city pulsing with energy and humanity. These images demonstrate Haas's tremendous virtuosity and confidence with Kodachrome film and the technical challenges of color printing."

This book link is a portal to Amazon.

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(To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.)
Featured Comments from:

Stan B.: "Recently saw a new, boxed and packaged M10 Reporter for...$44,000 on eBay—that would just about kill me."

Mike replies: I didn't see that. The two I found in the "Sold listings" both sold in November for a couple of hundred over $10,000. That means my friend might make a profit when he sells this one. The original price was $8,795.

Kenneth Tanaka: "I hope you enjoy the M10-P. I enjoyed mine. That 24 MP sensor was a real sweet spot for these passive manual cameras. More forgiving than the 40 MP M10-R that I now use*. And the M10 was the first model to slim down closer to original M dress size after a period of fat M240-style bodies laden with unwanted video features. That Kevlar wrap on the Reporter won’t stop a bullet but it’s reported to be a bit rougher and grippier than the normal animal skins. Leica recently introduced a 'Reporter' model of its Q2. (No thanks, I like my plain ol’ Onlooker Q2 just fine, thank you!)

"Re: ergonomics of the M camera: 🤣 . I almost always use an acce$$ory handgrip, often with a finger loop to keep the camera secure. I’ve found the thumb rests more inconvenient than useful. Their protrusion means that catch on clothing, etc. And since they mount in the hot shoe they have to be removed when using a Visoflex EVF, which became essential when the camera’s resolution became so unforgiving.

"...*Which is why I’ve turned to the dark side and bought an M11. That triple-resolution (18/36/60) sensor really grabbed me by the neck! And Leica seemed to have one with my name on it in NJ. So it arrives tomorrow."

Aaron Greenman: "Enjoy Mike! Great lens too…. My favorite and on my camera 98% of the time. And don’t get too hung up on the limited edition part…it is what it is. 😉 Best Regards, ACG."

Jeff: "Regarding Ken’s featured comment, different strokes. I also have the M10-R (40.89 MP), and only use the RF. I have no problems regarding focus or blurring given my smallish print size and shooting technique. The black paint finish (and no red logo) on my version also appeals. It’s an ideal pairing with the M10 Monochrom. I also like using the small Leica thumb rest, which never gets in my way, as opposed to the bulky and weighty grip. The M11 holds no allure. We Leica users are very particular about our tastes and preferences!"

Comments

[Robert Roaldi]

One of the things that online reviewers talk about a lot is the size of the grips on cameras. They're either always too big or too small, it seems. How do people manage to hold Leicas?

[To be honest it did seem a little weird to go back to it. It's been a long time since I've spent much time with a Leica M. --Mike]

[Josh Hawkins]

This doesn’t seem wise.

[Mani Sitaraman]

Robert Roaldi, Leica used to make a grip for the film M cameras, and later, a thicker one for the digital M cameras. A friend used to use one in the old film days, and I tried it out, but never cared for it.

Jeff Melody has a short report with a few pictures at his website.

http://jeffmellody.com/blog/2014/9/5/leica-m6-grip

When I would use my M6, I instinctively used to rest my right thumb against the film wind lever. The Digital M cameras don't have a film wind lever, of course, so Leica came up with a $300 part for that.

[marcin wuu]

Another limited. From the reporter's tool to a rich man's jewelry. How the mighty have fallen.

[Mike]

That's a beauty!

[Jack Mac]

Mike, nice well done photo. What camera and lens did you use?

[You like that? Very high-tech camera called an "Apfel." --Mike]

[hugh crawford]

The swivel snap on that wrist leash reminds me of cameras I have scared in just seconds with such a device. If the rubbing on the top plate just above the attachment point wasn’t bad enough the tendency of the nub that opens the clip catching on the top plate and opening the snap is a nightmare scenario too.
Not as bad as the 72mm lens cap from hell that Nikon used to put on high end lenses that could be used as a metal file in an emergency or simply by accident, but still not something I would want on a borrowed camera worth tens of thousands of dollars.

[Stan B.]

Truth be told, it never actually showed... the actual camera- just a photo of an overly taped and packaged parcel ready to be shipped at moment's notice! Should've checked seller and country of origin, but was already laughing too hard to click Buy Now.

[Olybacker]

I have always liked and enjoyed the listing of cameras displayed by a poster in the forums on the PhoTrio web-site.

baachitraka lists his or her cameras as:
OM-1n: Do I need to own a Leica?
Rolleicord Va: Humble.
Holga 120GFN: Amazingly simple yet it produces outstanding negatives to print.

[Patrick J Dodds]

Not a huge Leica fan but this one is beautiful. Still, I look at more photographs than I take nowadays so I'm not going to get too disappointed by the fact that I will never own one.

[Tony McLean]

And if you're looking for the ultimate 35 lens for your Reporter then look no further… https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/284152183021

[William A Lewis]

I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoy my very nonspecial edition M 240 (I didn't want one that held value like that because I needed one that had come down in cost to where _I_ could take an inheritance and some savings and get it. My EDC bag still has over $5k invested in its contents and nothing but the Luigi leather half case was bought new O_O)

Oh, thankfully, there are 3rd party thumb rests out there too. It really makes the camera much more pleasant to hold with it on. The only time I take it off is to put in the Olympus VF2 electronic finder for my 21/4. Yes, Olympus. The much more insanely expensive Leica branded EVF is simply the VF2 in Leica cloths.

Be that as it may, I find myself enjoying everything from my 21/4 to a 135/3.5 and lots of 50's in between ;)

Overpriced Veblen goods but if they do what you like, they're worth every penny. For me, to wander around shooting landscapes with a digital rangefinder and a beautiful old Nikkor 50/2 is as good as photography gets. All I need is a couple of more different 50s - a Summitar and a 7Artisans 1.1 Zunow clone for example.

[Doug C]

When you said a a combat photographer was using a Leica, the image of someone taking a M series into combat seemed pretty odd.

But Gabriele Micalizzi had an SL and a Q, slightly eccentric but they seem somewhat sensible. Overkill in terms of cost, but the reputation for being "sturdy" makes them a reasonable choice. The cliche "bulletproof" comes to mind. But I won't go there.

And from a business standpoint picking an M series rather than the cameras he used makes sense. Collectors like M series. Leica and other high end companies, Ferrari and Aston Martin come to mind, have an interesting "problem" shared with artists that their older pieces are worth more in the collector market than their current products.

So I don't criticize Leica for it's collector editions, it helps them stay in business to produce stuff that regular photographers might like. I find the CL tempting, but a full frame version or an interchangeable lens Q might make me pull out the credit card.

[Ilkka]

The problem with Leica M is, at least for me, that I could not reasonably afford one until I was in my late 30s. Then when I finally did get one, and couple of lenses, I only got less than 10 years of use out of it before my eyesight started to change so I cannot use the viewfinder anymore. It just doesn’t work for me with glasses on. I can only see the 75mm or longer framelines. I could get the screw in correction lenses for the eyepiece, but I would have needed a few of them as year by year the power became stronger. Much easier to adjust the little wheel next to a modern camera’s viewfinder.

[Niels]

If I borrowed a $10,000 camera and a $5000 lens, the first thing that would happen would be me dropping it, probably on concrete.
Not on purpose of course, unless something very weird is going on up there that I don't know about.

[Mark Sampson]

"...There I was, hanging around the bar of the Hilton Inter-Continental in Kyiv, trying to figure out a way to get to the front. I'd already called all the 'fixers' I knew, without any luck. Paolo from Reuters had turned me on to a guy who said he could take me to anywhere I wanted... but the price was my Leica M10-P Reporter. But where would I get another one in Ukraine, right now? And he wasn't interested in my Canon gear, so no way..."

[David]

I had one. Didn’t like the camouflage scheme much. I put it down somewhere and now I can’t find it.