LEICA Q typ116
Review and Photo example of the LEICA Q typ116.
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Review
The Leica Q typ116 (hereafter, Q) is a compact digital camera with a 35mm full-frame sensor and a built-in lens manufactured by Leica.
It is a compact digital camera with a bright 28mm F1.7 lens, a 35mm full-frame sensor, and a detailed EVF, and I think it is a well-thought-out product. I liked the specs and style, so I bought it a little after its release when the product supply stabilized.
Its simple appearance makes it easy to dress up, and you can use it with your favorite appearance, such as a leather case, grip, thumb rest, and optional hood. It is unfortunate that the battery model number has changed from Q to Q2 to Q3, but the external dimensions have been maintained, and it is also good that you can reuse the external options.
The Q battery is the same as the CL typ7323, V-LUX4, V-LUX (typ 114), and V-LUX5. The original of this battery is Panasonic’s DMW-BLC12 *1, and Sigma’s BP-51 has the same shape and battery specifications. Therefore, many compatible batteries have been released, so you will not have any trouble obtaining batteries.
From the Q2, the Leica original BP-SCL4 has been used, and it is expensive and compatible products are no longer available.
The sensor is thought to be the same as the M typ240 based on the release date and specifications, but it is likely that more optimized images can be obtained by matching the dedicated lens and image processing. If you want to compete with the Q with the M typ240, you will need to prepare a high-end lens.
The shooting functions are also substantial, and like the Leica M, the shutter dial is independent and has one multi-function dial. The button layout on the back is also neat, so you will not be confused by the operation.
Switching between autofocus (AF) and manual focus (MF) and macro mode are done with a notch on the finger grip of the lens barrel.
The AF focusing speed is decent except in the macro range, but if you are not careful, the focus will be on a different place than the intended one, and you will be disappointed when you enlarge it on your PC. Looking back at past data, there are many photos with poor focus positions.
This is partly due to my shooting style, but the shooting preview time is set to 0 when shooting, so I probably neglect to check the shot after shooting. However, sometimes when I press the play button to check, the focus seems to be where I intended in the viewfinder and the reduced display on the rear LCD, but when I display it large on the PC monitor, the focus may be off, and on the small LCD, you can’t see the exact focus unless you carefully enlarge it, so I think the preview after shooting is just a consolation.
The camera is equipped with image stabilization, so I rarely had to worry about camera shake even with slow shutter speeds and night scenes.
It has a 35mm and 50mm crop mechanism for the original focal length of 28mm, but the JPEG image of the shooting result is saved as a result of being cropped to the specified size, but the RAW image is saved at the original 28mm. I think it would be nice if I could select the crop size to be saved for recording RAW images from the menu, but there was no such function.
When I went on business trips or travels, I found it useful because I could carry around the same image quality as the Leica SL typ601. The built-in lens has excellent specs, a focal length of 28mm, and an F1.7 lens, and the fact that it can achieve this size is only praiseworthy. I think it would be difficult to achieve this price with these specs in the case of a prime lens with interchangeable lenses.
The Summicron 28mm F2 for the Leica SL mirrorless camera is about three times the size of this lens, and is priced at a price that is about the same as this camera.
The focal length is different from 35mm, but the Sony RX1 series, which has a similar concept, is quite inexpensive, with the RX1/RX1R before the final model MKII costing around 100,000 yen. The Q is stable at over 300,000 yen, probably due to the difference in specs and brand power. When I owned it, I used it in conjunction with the M typ240 and SL typ601, so I had limited opportunities to take it out, so I sold it to buy something else. I thought I could buy it again for around 200,000 yen, but the price has not come down and I have not been able to do so.
Because it was a popular camera, there are plenty of used ones available and examples of photos are overflowing on the web. As with any camera, it’s important to consider whether it suits your style or not, and I especially felt that when using this camera.
The Q-P was released just before the release of the Q2, which may sound bad, but it was released as a sort of parts clearance sale, and the only difference is the appearance, that there is no red badge on the exterior, and there is no functional difference.
Specification and succsseor models
| Items | LEICA Q | LEICA Q2 | LEICA Q3 |
| Focal length | 28 | ← | ← |
| maximum aperture F value | 1.7 | ← | ← |
| minimum aperture F value | 16 | ← | ← |
| pseudo focal length | 35/50 | 35/50/75 | 35/50/75/90 |
| Image pixels（MP） | 24 | 47.3 | 60 |
| Image sensor size | 35mm full size | ← | ← |
| View Finder | 3.68 million dots LCD | 3.68 million dots organic electroluminescence | 5.76 million dots organic electroluminescence |
| Back LCD | 3.0(fixed) | ← | 3.0(Vari angle) |
| Battery | BP-DC12 | BP-SCL4 | BP-SCL6 |
| Recorded media | SDXC | ← | ← |
| Weight（with battery）g | 640 | 718 | 743 |
| Release date | 2015.6.20 | 2019.4.16 | 2023.5.26 |
| Color | Black,Silver,Titan etc | Black,etc | Black |
Options
- Grip
- Lather case
- Thumbrest
Reference links
Update history
- 2024.04.09
- 2023.07.17
Affiliate links
- Some external links are advertisements, and clicking them may generate income for the site administrator. I would appreciate your understanding and cooperation in maintaining my page.
- Please see the disclaimer regarding advertising here.
Reference links
Update history
- 2024.04.09
- 2023.07.17
Affiliate links
- Some external links are advertisements, and clicking them may generate income for the site administrator. I would appreciate your understanding and cooperation in maintaining my page.
- Please see the disclaimer regarding advertising here.
