Leica D-Lux 8 As a Travel Camera

I sold my Ricoh GR IIIx for this…

I’ve just edited and printed the photos from my 🇯🇵 Hokkaido trip. Happy to report that Leica D-Lux 8 was competent as a travel camera.

I was surprised how I used pretty much the entire zoom range. Got a bunch of wide-angle photos (24-28 mm equivalent), some in the mid-range (35-50 mm equiv.), and a number of shots on the telephoto end (75 mm equiv.). That versatility was very welcome during the trip.

The size and portability were also a god-send during travel. D-Lux 8 is fast and convenient. And incredibly light. When doing 20k-ish steps a day, every gram you carry in your bag counts. And that’s the primary reason I usually left my M11 behind. I packed both for the trip but in comparison M11 was just too heavy, too slow, and too cumbersome. The only occasion I took it out was at Slow Boat in Sapporo.

The downside, of course, is image quality. Comparing the M11 and D-Lux 8 side by side shows the difference clearly. Plus, the smaller sensor renders less bokeh. It’s still a good few levels above my 📱 iPhone 13 Pro and infinitely less annoying (hate, hate, hate what Apple does to image processing these days; going Process Zero all the way).

All in all, I am willing to compromise on image quality for the sake of convenience and speed.

But then… I wonder if I’m just getting lazy? Preferring a smaller camera with autofocus(!), zoom(!!), and sometimes even in program mode(!!!) — instead of using a rangefinder and a more manual approach. Sacrilege! Why would one do it?

Is it old age — and less tolerance for fuss that comes with it? Or was it the fast-paced, packed itinerary of travel that made me opt for more ease-of-use and speed?

It makes me think about my photography journey. It started with an analog camera and developing black-and-white films in my bathroom. Then came digital — and I still was all about image quality, using primes, going full-frame. And now, often I’m happy with just my small, capable, zoom point-and-shoot. Sometimes, a 60 MP, full-frame sensor and a Leica prime is an overkill. D-Lux is my everyday camera. M11 — I find I need to be in a specific mood for it.

Nothing wrong with that.

The last major thing I’m missing with the D-Lux 8 is Leica Looks. Give me that and I can even skip — or greatly minimize — the editing process. Hope it’s coming in a firmware update sometime soon. That way I can be even lazier…