Approaching The Scene 302: Leica Q3 vs Q2 Monochrom Image Quality + Accessories

[@chrisbogart687]

Excellent comparison. I went through the whole agonizing process of choosing between the Q2M and Q3. I ended up getting an excellent used Q2M and had more than enough $$ left over to get the new Leica D-LUX 8 for my traveling, informal situations, and family. It also gives me color and the zoom lens which really gives me extra flexibility. I live in a rural area in the scenic Shenandoah Valley. Each morning I do my exercise walk down through the George Washington National forest and always take Q2M with me. Using the Q2M really taught me more about photography than just taking pretty pictures - I have an iPhone for that. It really makes you think about composition, light and shadows much more than I have in the past. It really allowed me to grow as a photographer.

[@diforbes]

Just found your channel and this video while researching the Q3. Glad I did because you addressed one of the key questions for me as a primarily B&W shooter (Pentax K3iii Monochrome) but who misses the opportunity to shoot color when it helps tell the story. I've got my stock alert in on the Q3.

[@bryanlovephotography]

Nice review. Honestly, the Q2M is amazing, but I love the Q2 (it was also my first Leica, so I'm never selling it for sentimental reasons). The best in my opinion is the M11 or M10 monochrom because you get the versatility of changing lenses, which really opens up the world of monochrome. If I had to choose, I would absolutely choose the Q2 or Q3; I think the reason a lot of people aren't enamored with the Q2M outside of B&W fanatics is that you're limited to that wide FOV of the 28mm. When you slap a 50 summilux or a 75 or 135 on the M11 or M10 monochrom, you really see how B&W shines, even in the modern world. Spend more time with the B&W camera and you'll start seeing differently. It's tough to overcome the anxiety of leaving your color camera behind, but I find it to be an excellent exercise and opens up some creative avenues I don't always consider in my compositions. Also, the sharpness and noise performance increase on the monochrom cameras is absolutely stellar. I enjoyed the video!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I totally hear you. Thanks for the kind words. I use Nikon's ZF that way, particularly with the Voigtländer 50 1.0 and Nikon's 105 1.4. With Nikon's RAW files embedding picture profiles, the RAW images come into Lightroom in monochrome just as I saw them in the viewfinder. I'd love an M Leica, and I've no issue manually focusing such a camera, but I'm not a traditionalist and I won't do it without a built in EVF with zoom to focus like the Q cameras and Nikons. Nikon's ZF takes it another step. In manual focus it recognizes eyes, heads, torsos and you can zoom to 100% on the subject at the touch of a button without directing the focus point. It tracks as you focus zoomed to 100% manually in the viewfinder. It makes that 1.0 lens a joy to use. It's the first camera I know of to do that. I also love that they put a physical selector on it for movie/photo/B&W. :)

[@finality4795]

Q2 / Q3 is better than the M series if you want a camera for travel because it's weather sealed. And honestly, with such an expensive camera I wouldn't want to change lenses much so a fixed one is to an advantage to keep dust / debris away from the camera internals.

[@jeffchastain2977]

I just spent a month tripping around Europe with my new(ish) Q3 and I love it!!. I only took one camera and it felt a bit weird at first, but quickly became strangely "freeing". And it forced me to go back to using my feet to change my perspective and composition. I love this camera! But now Im pretty convinced that I need a Q2 Monochrom. I love B&W photography and usually edit the color out of about half of my photos. If I could do that, and eliminate all the Beyer Filter noise by simply not generating it, well I think I can sell everything else I own.

[@gerryphilpott9766]

Good comparison and solid points. I had the Q2 and then upgraded to the Q3 and really love all what the Q3 delivers. I tried out a friend's Q2M at one time and while the images were spectacular, I would always want the option of color and have both in one camera. I did some B+W converted portraits of my kids with the Q2 and everyone thought I used the Monochrom, which told me to stick with the color. If you watch any of Paul Reid's videos he's a Q2M user and it's clearly a style/life's purpose use for him and he makes it work beautifully. It's nice that Leica makes available that option for those who live in B&W.

[@makmak69L7]

Great video and comparison. I guess I have the best of the two words. I currently own the amazing Leica Q2 Monochrom (my first Leica camera) and the M11P which I purchased few months ago. I walk with the two bodies, with the 50mm Summilux attached to the M11P. With these two focal lengths, I am covered completely. I did some comparisons after converting images from the M11P to monochrom. Photos from the Q2M are cleaner in my opinion despite the lower megapixels. With higher ISO, the edge goes clearly to the Q2M. Nevertheless, I enjoy both cameras.

[@tedgoldman9121]

Well done comparison. I surely agree that AI noise reduction has perhaps made noise a non issue. I have the Q2 and Q2M. They are both amazing machines. I think there is a big difference between going out with the M vs the color and converting. Going out with the M is purposeful for B&W. With the color it’s always which treatment looks better. That’s certainly fine, but I like making the commitment first. Thanks again!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Hmmm, well a plethora of views, practices and opinions make this endeavor all the more interesting. For me I shoot in the B&W profile and view the world that way when I use the Q3 for B&W. I've certainly never chosen color processing after the fact when shooting in monochrome. I did the same with the Q2 before it. I like the Q2M, but I feel like my editing hands are tied behind my back in post not having those underlying color channels to adjust tonality differentially. I'll be Ansel Adams would have killed for that processing nuance and would not have given it up easily. :-)

[@elizabethgbrooke]

I loved my Q2M. My roots are in B&W photography, and I understand light and shadow better than color. However, when you mentioned your comparison between the Q2M and the Q3, I packed up my Q2M and traded it in for a decent price from MPB. Now I can buy even more lattes!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

And remember, you can activate the Monochrom profile in your Q3 and still "see" in B&W. As you can with your Canon and all of us can with Nikons, Sonys, Fujis or... :-)

[@elizabethgbrooke]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto And thank you for your profiles!!!

[@bobtrimbach6640]

Love the video and comparison Hudson. Even if the monochrome is ever so slightly better image quality, the ability to do filter effects is such a huge advantage. By the way, I found your channel when I was getting ready to buy my Q3, shortly afterwards ended up with a Z8 (long time Nikon shooter). Your videos have been extremely helpful with the Q3, Z8 and my little Z50 that I still love. Looking forward to working with my set of Kase filters I ordered from your storefront the other day. Thanks for all you do.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Thanks so much Bob! Really appreciate that!

[@jimtrull683]

Thanks for this B&W comparison. I own both cameras and am finding that while I love the Q2M that I am using the Q3 more often to lighten my gear.

[@richcower]

Thanks for taking the time to do this. It was informative.

[@SneakyCaleb]

High iso the mono sensor is a game changer. Image simply look stunning. Even at 12/25k iso

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

@@SneakyCaleb not much difference to my my eye at all from the Q3's noise at those iso settings, particularly with the modern capability of lightroom's denoise demosaic engine, but I know many still believe otherwise. 😊 As for me, I'll not give up that underlying color data for postproduction tonal seperation for anything. Differences of opinion make the world far more fun.

[@SneakyCaleb]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto if you shoot both at 6k + iso the difference is dramatic. Also try shooting both underexposed side by side and bring the shadow detail up. The regular Q will have tons of noise in the blacks. The mono doesn’t have that color noise. I don’t disagree fully but it’s a thing to consider. Also the mono is selling for 4k used while the q3 is 6k. Quite the difference in price at the moment.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

@@SneakyCaleb I never underexpose my shadows. I expose to the right and adjust in post. In high contrast I bracket 3 stops apart and blend the frames. That mitigates shadow noise quite effectively. I did extensive testing with both and just did not see a dramatic quality difference at all. Perhaps a bit less than a stop which is nuts when the sensor is stepping up to 60MP and that is negated by the latest noise reduction demosaicing software. I love monochrome and color. The Q3 gives it all plus the ability to tone the black and white conversions by underlying color as if you had every color filter locally active and adjustable throughout the image. I love utilizing every tool at my disposal to craft the best image possible. Others are purists and there's nothing wrong with that either. Some take it clear back to film. I had my decades of film, optical viewfinders and other limitations. The Q3 is near perfect in my book.

[@johntocho8954]

Thank you Hudson, awesome per usual. The comparison was an eye opener given all the talk about MONO superiority. What this does point out for me is I need to continue to 'sharpen' my Lightroom skills, they could stand improvement using the AI tool.

[@jpatrickdowns]

Good review! I want a Q3 for sure, but have to settle for my X100V for now. The ThinkTank Mirrorless Mover 10 is a great bag for these cameras...been using one for 10 years with my X100. 👍

[@mosesp6200]

Great video but there was a point missing that is very important for me: performance at 12800, 25600 and 51200. (I don't really like flash photography and for my work i never can go less than 125 shutter speed.). Do you have any info on that? It is a point thats almost nobody is talking about

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Lower megapixels on larger sensors equal stronger performance in ultra low light. Large, rich. loosely-aggregated pixel receptors yeild less noise as opposed to densly packed smaller ones. The Sony A7Siii and even Nikon ZF will thump the Q cameras and other high megapixel cameras in noise performance any time. There's a reason Sony still makes that 12MP $3500 body. It sees in the dark. You can get usable shots out of either Q camera at 12800 and even 25600 with Denoise in Lightroom's Enhance, but you'll need to either embrace some noise or some smearing of detail. The good news is that I find the Leica's sensor's noise more appealing than any other digital noise I've worked with. I really can't imagine working with the results at 51,200 for anything larger than a 5x7 print, but it's there. The Q3 really does push the noise envelope for a 60MP sensor, but 60MP sensors aren't the right tool for low lit handheld scenarios in general.

[@mosesp6200]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto Thanks for the answer! A bit of noise is ok for me. I use my X100V up to 12800 ISO and don't use anything to denoise. So i am pretty tolerant to noise - when it is a "nice" looking noise 😂

[@darkroom8317]

If I were to only take the Q3 to a workshop of yours, would it be enough? Or would you recommend an interchangeable camera system for the workshop? I have a Sony & a LUMIX system but I think I would like to travel light if possible!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I've had people being nothing but an iPhone and have a wonderful experience on landscape and street focused worshops. We even got an iPhone user a good milky way shot in Joshua tree. :) The Q3 is a powerhouse. Want wider? Shoot panos. Want tighter? Crop into 60MP. It would be hard for a wildlife trip, but great for any others. :)

[@GeoffGrant2010]

Thanks so much! Great review, great instruction! You are so clear. Thanks! Geoff

[@JenHamon]

What I like about my Q2M is not having to spend time in post angsting over whether I prefer the color option or the B&W option. I make that decision when I pick up the camera, somewhat like how a film shooter is locked into their film selection. It speeds up my editing, which enhances my experience. Is it worth the $$$? Not for most people, but I enjoy it. I would really love it if Nikon made a mid-range monochrome body (e.g. Zf monochrome, or similar) so I could get more mileage out of those lenses I have for my Z8 when the monochrome mood strikes but I don’t want to shoot 28mm.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Fair enough, but I do that with a monochrome profile on the Q3 and the ZF. I view the world in monochrome as I shoot. On the Q3 I shoot RAW plus jpeg to remind and guide the edit, since the dng doesn't carry the the MC profile through into Lightroom. By contrast, with tweak of preferences the Nikon NEFs come into Lightroom as shot with the monochrome profiles, albeit with color data underlying them which adds the ability to adjust tone by color in the B&W panel. I'd have to switch profiles to ever see my monochrome Nikon RAW files in color, but having that color data beneath its a very powerful editing tool.

[@JenHamon]

@@HudsonHenryPhotoYes, no doubt the color files win on editing flexibility for those who want to create a more customized style. The other thing that attracted me to the Q2M was the claim of superior low-light capability because I found myself shooting a lot of family pictures indoors with low available light. I haven’t done any detailed head to head comparisons, but I’m very happy with the results I get and the bonkers amount of recoverable detail in the shadows when you underexpose. A more rational choice probably would have been to put $5k into improving the interior lighting of my home, but the heart wants what the heart wants 😂

[@ronancullen4565]

very nice, Q3 is very good, regarding the Q2M photos, in particular the one with your daughter, is that a jpeg straight from the Q2M? or is it edited in any way ? thanks

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Raw file. Pretty much SOOC. I might have pulled the shadow slider a touch.

[@ronancullen4565]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto really impressive tones for SOOC, I thought they might be flat raws, thats what I read anyway... nice

[@miketan4803]

Would the best comparison be q2 to q2 monochrome?

[@EliudGilSamaniego]

how do you edit the leica pictures? so you can achieve the "leica look" i got a Q2 reciently and im still wondering how to aproach the color pictures in LR, what profile (adobe color, adobe vivid) i can use to best represent the famous Leica Look, or what do you recomend? thanks

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I usually just use the Adobe standard for color. I don't tweak profiles much. The secret is really in the lens. I do far less editing to my images out of my favorite prime lenses. The Leica 28 1.7 is one of those.

[@rafibenatar2519]

Great demonstration color vs B&W only 🙌👍🏻

[@MeAMuse]

Personally, I have never bought into the idea a monochrome camera gives you significant advantages. If anything you are looking at a slight improvement in low light performance, but a reduction in flexibility (both to shoot color, but also to adjust B&W balance based on color info). If you are pixel-peeping... the chances are it is not a compelling photo! In the end, I choose Q3 because different film stocks render results differently, I see no reason why I should limit myself (especially when I can choose whether to render the preview in monochrome)

[@theday2learn]

Fellow PDXer here. I am more torn now. Do I sell my Sony A1 and get a Q3, or keep my A1 and get a used Q2M?

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

@@theday2learn if you like long lens work, then the A1 is a tool you need.

[@elliotresnick5433]

Thank you for doing this, I’ve been very curious about this comparison! Also have you tried using Silver Efex Pro (plugin) with the b&w images from the Q3 because I recently watched a KZbin video with a photographer who was shooting b&w on a Leica M10 with that plugin and the images looked awesome!

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I used silver effects pro about 15 years ago. I'm more than happy with lightroom these days. ;)

[@elliotresnick5433]

Silver Efex is a plugin with Lightroom, correct? So you don’t think it’s necessary with the latest version of Lightroom?

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

It was a plug in the original Nik company made for photoshop link long before lightroom. Google then bought Nik and turned them to build snapseed which evolved into the editing software in my Pixel 8 Pro phone. ;) Silver effects was epic back then, but now lightroom has everything I could imagine needing built in. :)

[@mahdiali6732]

How would you compare the image quality between the Q2 vs Nikon Z7ii coupled with the z28mm f2.8?

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

Those lenses aren't in the same league. Not even close. The 28 1.7 on the Lieca Q cameras is mind bending. For image quality the only Nikon lenses I'd compare it to are not at the wide end. The 1.2s, and the Plena are sharp with great bokeh, but are huge and lack it's character. The big TC lenses and the 58 Noct are most similar, but again huge. The Q lens is just that special. That's where the price comes from. The 28 2.8 Z lens is like a knife in a gunfight here. My three favorite lenses I've ever owned are the 28 1.7 on the Q cameras, the 50 1.0 Noct Voigtländer and the 400 TC. Special glass. The 105 1.4 is right up there too.

[@masterprintmaker]

has anybody figured out how to set the camera up that AE is not locked via shutterbutton half press while using AF/S mode ( p.117 Q3 manual )

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

There are a few frustrating quirks, like being unable to assign a "true" backbutton focus to custom buttons. Overall there are less frustrating quirks with the Q3 than any other camera I've ever owned, but nothing is perfect. My method of getting around all this is to use Leica's quite intelligent iAF instead of AF-S and to put AF-L on the function button to the right under the shutter dial. When I want to lock autofocus, I set the point on my subject and tap that button the bracket locks green. Recompose (exposure is not locked even if you held the shutter button halfway, which you no longer need to) and fire. ;-) That's my best workaround and it's my standard profile setting.

[@masterprintmaker]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto Hey, thanks so much ! ... I shoot M since the 80s but never understood why Leica opted to map AEL to the shutter button in Digital and reason I never bought a M7. Because as a former reportage photographer I always have the shutter half pressed - no matter what. It's just instinct :)

[@RogerHyam]

Yeah but it's liberation through limitation man! (I do feel that any modern high end digital camera will do the job IQ wise.)

[@SergejHabsburg]

чудово! я з України дивлюся відео ваші! збираю на q3

[@jayc73]

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

👍 Love it and I get it. 100%. For me and the way I work, I'll take that editing power the underlying color data provides and the flexibility to see and shoot both color and B&W with the same machine. The MC was fun to play with though.

[@jayc73]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto I forgot to thank you, your eclipse guide and settings pdf were a lifesaver. My only regret was that I should have bracketed further out for post, but I was very happy with my results!

[@petergordon4666]

I would think that the monochrome would shine in high ISO work- there have been many rigorous comparisons on that score. A poor mans monochrome for M owners is a film Leica such as an M6.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

The Q3's sensor is crazy at high iso. I've been shocked at the high iso files considering the 60MP resolution. I can't imagine needing much better from a camera of this type. (Relatively wide angle fast lens and non sports/wildlife.) It's a great time to be a photgragher.

[@petergordon4666]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto Yes I have the SonyA7CR- same or similar sensor. Agree that it is amazing despite the high MP. I wish Nikon would go back to their deep roots and make an SP style Z series body.

[@deanmalencik]

@@petergordon4666 me too

[@dano6786]

@@HudsonHenryPhoto This is where the Monochrom sensors excel - very low light situations. The sensor is simply receiving more light since there is no color layer, and the grain pattern lacks any color noise. It's a stop or two of light advantage. The Q2M is usable up to ISO 25k or even 50k. This isn't to say the Q3 is poor in low light, but the monochrom sensors offers advantages in this very specific use case. This is also partly why many astrophotography sensors are monochrome. I assume it's also why so few camera manufacturers are willing to bother with mono cameras since there are trade-offs (no color data).

[@boblozano]

Really helpful comparison, thank you. I do shoot a q2m and q2 (reporter), really excellent for so many things. One side question: really, really like the fit and integrity (no discernible gaps, for example) of the rrs bracket on the q2, your comments about their q3 bracket not seeming quite as solid was very interesting. Wonder if there was some design constraints, or if they just did an exceptional job on the q2?

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

I just think quality is slipping there a bit across the board. Like north face or nat geo, great old names are sold and things change for the worse. It's not the same company that used the yin-yang symbol of old. The new bracket is good, but the fit is a little imprecise. I often have to tweak a bit to get the battery to fully drop and the mounting screw is not captive. When David Archer complained about that, they told him they had described it as "captive-like" and that there's a spot to thead it into the bracket when not in use. 😂

[@boblozano]

Sure seems like it. I bought another one of their recent designs for a different camera, big gaps, felt very much like an add on and not a well integrated extension. Disappointing, eventually replaced with a much better option from elsewhere. Just sits unused now.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

:(

[@firstclassfish01]

@@boblozanocurious who makes the one you’re happy with? Thanks

[@boblozano]

@@firstclassfish01 well given the low expectations (their q2 bracket was excellent, the m11 bracket bad), with some hesitation did get the rrs bracket for a q3 43 a couple of weeks ago. Not sure if they tweaked it or not, but the rrs bracket fits mostly fine for me now ...was a bit fiddly to clear the battery bracket, but once set is fine. Also the sd card can be a bit tedious to get out, but that's workable. Hope that helps.

[@davidmantripp]

RRS plates seem to be going downhill in every respect except price. They're dropping things like Allen key storage, and build quality is going from exceptional to just good. A pity.

[@HudsonHenryPhoto]

@@davidmantripp that decline has been happening for years. Gitzo is worse sadly. Times change.