R E C L A I M I N G T H E C ROW N LEICA S3
With a new image sensor offering an impressive 64-megapixel resolution and significantly improved video capability, the S3 is reclaiming the crown as Leica’s top camera model.
It has often been said that you cannot rush perfection. This sentiment undoubtedly contributed to the delay in the S3’s release date – after all, in the field of medium format photography, perfection really is everything. On the other hand, the time was ripe for Leica to take action: the S (Typ 007) may only have been on the market for five years – an almost negligible age for a medium format camera; however, in that time Leica’s other systems overtook the flagship model with their exceptional sensor resolution. While the previous S (Typ 007) recorded images at 37.5 million pixels, the new Leica S3 is equipped with a 64-megapixel sensor – which offers not just a significantly higher resolution, but also reduced noise, a higher maximum ISO, 76 |
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and greatly improved video capabilities. Remarkably, the S3 accommodates all of these improvements in a virtually unaltered camera body with the exact same operating concept as its predecessor. If the S system was aimed at amateur photographers, this might be interpreted as a lack of progress and Leica would have ensured that the evolutionary leap is also reflected in the camera’s exterior. Professional photographers, by contrast, tend to value the benefits of continuity, combined with the best possible image results. N EW S EN S OR. The Leica
S (Typ 007) already featured a video-capable CMOS sensor, whose 37.5-megapixel resolution (the same as that of the original S2) is still more than respectable.
However, especially more recently, there has been a meteoric rise in sensor resolution across the camera industry. In Leica’s case, this has taken the form of the SL2 and M10 Monochrom with their respective 47 and 41-megapixel sensors. This fact alone would not necessarily have required Leica to take action – especially as the difference, in real terms, is still relatively minor. However, the S3’s 64-megapixel sensor offers all of the benefits of stateof-the-art technology. As a result, the S3 produces lower levels of image noise, despite the 71-percent boost in resolution. This is reflected in the camera’s new ISO ceiling of 50 000, which is two stops higher than that of the predecessor model. Leica also promise a dynamic range of 15 stops – suggest-
ing an exceptionally broad exposure latitude. The sensor’s high sensitivity proves especially useful when it comes to handheld shooting: even without a tripod, the photographer is now able to use slower shutter speeds, or stop down for compositional purposes, without the instant risk of camera shake. This emphasises one of the core strengths of the S system, which is to combine the image quality of the medium format with the handleability and ergonomics of a full-frame camera. →
With its new, ultra-high-performance sensor, the Leica S3 delivers a vastly improved image quality in a virtually identical exterior. In the professional world of the S system, continuity is considered a valuable asset
