In this review I will cover the Leica D-Lux (Type 109) camera. This camera really caught my interest because I always wanted to try a Leica and the hands-on fun factor design really appeals to me. I also wanted to see how this camera compares to similarly priced Sony cameras like the RX100 VA which I recently reviewed here, for example.
The Leica D-Lux (Type 109) is basically a Panasonic LX100 with a slightly different finish and image processing engine. So the colors are going to render a bit differently, and the edge in that regard goes to the Leica I would say. I also recently reviewed the very similar, but updated Panasonic LX100 II which you can check out here >>
The Leica D-Lux style camera is perfect for hands-on mechanically minded users that just want to keep things old school most of the time. You can enable features easily, but the manual lens and dials really make the user experience crazy fun and hands on. With the implementation of the A button, you can easily switch to full auto mode at any time no matter how the camera is set-up, which is a great feature when you don’t want to dial things in manually.. I will also say this camera is more designed for experienced users based on the manual control oriented camera body design.
In this Leica D-Lux Review I will go over everything you need to know and compare the camera to the Sony RX100 VA using real world testing and common sense logic… I hope you like the review and please let me know what you think below in the comments area!! Thanks for watching, Jay
My Leica D-Lux (Typ 109) Camera Review
A Blast to Use
The Leica D-Lux is great hands-on style camera for users that really enjoy taking full control of the creative process. Overall build quality is excellent and I had an absolute blast using this camera. I really enjoy turing the lens aperture and shutter speed dial to get exactly the effect I am after, and this style camera makes it a pleasure. Image quality and video quality are very good. The Leica lens is fantastic overall and extremely sharp in the real world. The separation that can be achieved with the fairly large 4/3rds sensor and f/1.7 lens is really awesome as you can see in the sample photos. The lens does have some distortion on the wider end, but it's not to bad. The lens flare is pretty dramatic, but I actually like the effect so that is subjective I would say. Battery life is pretty good, but not the greatest when compared to a pro DSLR for example. The Leica is a bit overpriced in my opinion, because you can get the Panasonic LX100 for about half the price, and it's basically the same thing minus the Leica logo. The colors do render a little different, but not enough to justify the price difference in my opinion.
Bang For The Buck
60
Feature Set
80
Build Quality and Design
90
Ergonomics
85
User Interface and Menu System
95
Auto Focus System
80
Image quality
87
Usability
90
Video Quality
80
Audio Quality
80
Optical Quality
95
Low Light Performance
85
Battery Life
75
Fun Factor
100
Reader Rating2 Votes
100
Pros
Almost silent zoom which is awesome for video
Awesome Leica 24-75mm f/1.7-f/2.8 Zoom lens
Excellent build quality and feature set
Excellent menu system and user interface
A really fun camera to use
Cons
No Articulating LCD Screen
No advanced video profiles for grading in post
Viewfinder is not the greatest quality when looking thru
Rear circle dial is a little cheap feeling
Auto Focus is decent but not as good as Sony in photo mode, and not near as good in video mode
Be sure to click on the photos for a larger version!
Lab Testing – Minimum Focus Distance
In this quick test I wanted to show you just how close you can get to your subject with this camera which really makes it awesome for close-up photography and getting the extra background separation from your subject.
The Leica D-Lux is great hands-on style camera for users that really enjoy taking full control of the creative process. Overall build quality is excellent and I had an absolute blast using this camera. I really enjoy turing the lens aperture and shutter speed dial to get exactly the effect I am after, and this style camera makes it a pleasure. Image quality and video quality are very good. The Leica lens is fantastic overall and extremely sharp in the real world. The separation that can be achieved with the fairly large 4/3rds sensor and f/1.7 lens is really awesome as you can see in the sample photos. The lens does have some distortion on the wider end, but it’s not to bad. The lens flare is pretty dramatic, but I actually like the effect so that is subjective I would say. Battery life is pretty good, but not the greatest when compared to a pro DSLR for example. The Leica is a bit overpriced in my opinion, because you can get the Panasonic LX100 for about half the price, and it’s basically the same thing minus the Leica logo. The colors do render a little different, but not enough to justify the price difference in my opinion.
That is about it for my Leica S-Lux (Type 109) Review, but please let me know what you think in the comments area below and if you have any questions by all means ask away 🙂
Have a great day, and I’ll catch up with you later, Jay
My Leica D-Lux (Typ 109) Camera Review
A Blast to Use
The Leica D-Lux is great hands-on style camera for users that really enjoy taking full control of the creative process. Overall build quality is excellent and I had an absolute blast using this camera. I really enjoy turing the lens aperture and shutter speed dial to get exactly the effect I am after, and this style camera makes it a pleasure. Image quality and video quality are very good. The Leica lens is fantastic overall and extremely sharp in the real world. The separation that can be achieved with the fairly large 4/3rds sensor and f/1.7 lens is really awesome as you can see in the sample photos. The lens does have some distortion on the wider end, but it's not to bad. The lens flare is pretty dramatic, but I actually like the effect so that is subjective I would say. Battery life is pretty good, but not the greatest when compared to a pro DSLR for example. The Leica is a bit overpriced in my opinion, because you can get the Panasonic LX100 for about half the price, and it's basically the same thing minus the Leica logo. The colors do render a little different, but not enough to justify the price difference in my opinion.
Bang For The Buck
60
Feature Set
80
Build Quality and Design
90
Ergonomics
85
User Interface and Menu System
95
Auto Focus System
80
Image quality
87
Usability
90
Video Quality
80
Audio Quality
80
Optical Quality
95
Low Light Performance
85
Battery Life
75
Fun Factor
100
Reader Rating2 Votes
100
Pros
Almost silent zoom which is awesome for video
Awesome Leica 24-75mm f/1.7-f/2.8 Zoom lens
Excellent build quality and feature set
Excellent menu system and user interface
A really fun camera to use
Cons
No Articulating LCD Screen
No advanced video profiles for grading in post
Viewfinder is not the greatest quality when looking thru
Rear circle dial is a little cheap feeling
Auto Focus is decent but not as good as Sony in photo mode, and not near as good in video mode
Zeen is a next generation WordPress theme. It’s powerful, beautifully designed and comes with everything you need to engage your visitors and increase conversions.
