FEEL THE LOVE
There is no better example of form follows function in the camera world than Leica’s M3. Nothing is superfluous on that camera and it is all purely about the function, but consequently, the form is absolutely right as well. Tellingly, the basic configuration is still in use today, having survived all manner of upheavals over the last 65 years, including, miraculously, the transition from film to digital.
Leica did it again a few years ago with the T – now evolved into the TL2 – which exploits 21st century technologies to achieve the same end. The Leica traditionalists may not approve, but no other camera exploits the benefits of the touch screen more effectively or avoids the compromise of mixing it with buttons. Consequently, the Leica Ts are refreshingly minimalist, embodying the company’s modern-day motto of Das Wesentliche... only the essentials. So what happened with the original SL? There wasn’t much wrong with Leica’s first full-35mm mirrorless camera on the inside, but on the outside it really did look like it had been designed with a crayon. It looked brick-like and felt it too… you really had to love Leica to look beyond the appearance. Leica will go as far as to admit the SL was a bit too “Germanic” in its styling, so its successor has been given a complete makeover. Interestingly, compare the dimensions directly and the SL2 is fractionally bigger, but it looks a lot smaller because the proportions are now better balanced, all the edges and corners have been softened, and the EVF’s housing looks like it’s meant to be there, not stuck on as an afterthought. Pretty? Well, almost.
The handgrip has been reshaped and the rear panel control layout completely redesigned so the ergonomics are much nicer. There’s also an all new graphic user interface – with separate info displays s for stills and video (or, if you want, cine) – which we’ll get to shortly.
A favourite Leica party trick with its 35mm SLRs from R4 to
