TechCamerasLeica M11-D review: analogue-inspired excellence which will make you a better photographerThe Leica M11-D is possibly the ultimate digital camera for film loversWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.(Image credit: Sam Cross)T3 VerdictThe Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely uniqueReasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive designWhy you can trust T3Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about how we test.
TechCamerasLeica M11-D review: analogue-inspired excellence which will make you a better photographerThe Leica M11-D is possibly the ultimate digital camera for film loversWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.(Image credit: Sam Cross)T3 VerdictThe Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely uniqueReasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive designWhy you can trust T3Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about how we test.
The Leica M11-D is possibly the ultimate digital camera for film lovers
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Sam Cross)T3 VerdictThe Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely uniqueReasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive design
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
T3 VerdictThe Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely uniqueReasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive design
T3 VerdictThe Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.
T3 Verdict
The Leica M11-D is a wonderfully unique camera. Designed like an old film camera, this is certainly aimed at giving those photographers a familiar digital solution. Whether it works or not will come down to your personal photography style, but it certainly will make you work harder.
Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely uniqueReasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive design
Reasons to buy+Classic Leica look+Superb image quality+Definitely unique
Classic Leica look
Superb image quality
Definitely unique
Reasons to avoid-Heavy-Pricier than a lot of cars-Not the most intuitive design
Heavy
Pricier than a lot of cars
Not the most intuitive design
Why you can trust T3Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about how we test.
Why you can trust T3Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing products and services so you can choose the best for you.Find out more about how we test.
When we think about thebest mirrorless camerason the market, most of us probably think of the cutting edge of technology. The brands which are often celebrated enjoy rafts of features, with powerful autofocus, image stabilisation and more.
Leica probably aren’t a brand you think of, though. That’s not to discredit the brand – with well over a century of innovation to its name, including some of the most crucial developments in the camera industry – it certainly deserves its plaudits.
But I’ve still yet to make use of an M-series camera. Thepiece de resistancefor the brand, M-series cameras are iconic, complete with some of the most sought-after glass on the market.
Fortunately for me, that drought ends here. I’ve been testing the newLeica M11-Dto get a feel for if it’s any good. Read on to find out.
Leica M11-D review: Price and Release Date
The Leica M11-D retails for £8,100 / $9,395 / AU$15,990. That’s for the body only – a suitable new lens from the brand will set you back at least another £3,000 (approx. $3,800 / AU$5,900). Third-party lenses can be had for less, though.
The M11-D was first unveiled on the 12th of September 2024.
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
Leica M11-D review: Features
Inside, you’ll find the brilliant 60.3MP sensor. That can be dropped down to lower resolutions as needed, though I’d wholeheartedly recommend keeping the full 60MP in play when you can. The sheer amount of data you can capture is phenomenal, and allows you to crop in relentlessly without fear of losing detail.
It also features the Leica Content Credentials. That’s a system which imprints hardware-encoded metadata onto your images, in a bid to ensure provenance and dispel any potential rumours of AI creation.
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
Leica M11-D review: Performance
If you come from an analogue background, you’ll probably have a better start than most with this. It’s certainly not the easiest camera to just pick up and start firing, though a good grounding in photographic fundamentals will, of course, help.
The first thing I noticed was actually the weight. In a world where everything is getting smaller and lighter, I expected such a slim body to hardly tip the scales. Not so. That’s no bad thing in use – I actuallyprefersome added heft there, to keep things more still – but just worth mentioning.
Then there’s the shooting experience overall. Turning the camera on does illuminate a small LED to ensure you don’t leave it on and draining the battery, but there’s little else to go on. I simply plugged both the ISO and shutter speed dials into Auto mode and fired off a couple of shots to ensure everything was working correctly.
That led me to my first issue – viewing the images. Of course, with no display on the rear panel to quickly refer back to, that was slightly convoluted. You’ll have to sync the device with your phone and view the images on the Leica Fotos app. In practice, it actually works pretty well, but it’s certainly not what you’d call intuitive.
That’s also where you’ll need to make changes to your device. There is a tiny little menu in the viewfinder, but frankly that’s about as useful as a chocolate teapot. It’s all eight-bit codes and if you’re notau faitwith what they mean, it may as well be written in Klingon.
However, after about 20 minutes of searching and a minor breakdown, I did manage to change my Leica Look. You’ll need to head into the settings section of the app – fortunately I tend to stick pretty religiously to one or two, so I won’t have to do that too often.
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(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
Maybe, actually, “easy” was the wrong word to use. In the Leica dictionary, words like ‘autofocus’ simply have a blank space where the definition should go. It’s just not how one uses a camera like this, but it’s worth bearing in mind if you’ve never used one.
There is one fantastic upside to all of this, though. I really do believe that all of the faff, all of the limitations a device like this imposes forces you to be a better photographer. I’d wager we’re all guilty of leaning on the technology sometimes, but a camera like this ensures you trust your instincts. It’s a very old school way of shooting, but don’t think that’s a bad thing.
With the lights about to change, and no time to spare, I pulled the M11-D – already pre-set with some ‘point-and-shoot’ style settings – to my eye, lined up the focus and fired. The first one was a bit of a dud thanks to some poor framing, but the second was perfection.
Of course, thanks to the resolution on offer from that 60MP sensor, I had some wiggle room. In fact – should I so choose – I could zoom right in to the pup and see fine details of every fine hair of fur they had.
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
(Image credit: Sam Cross)
Leica M11-D review: Verdict
This is a really hard camera to leave a verdict on. Ultimately, what you have is a very premium camera with a good proportion of the features effectively disabled. Without some of those comfort blankets, I fear a lot of photographers could crumble – particularly with the five-figure price tag weighing on your mind at the same time.
There’s no question that you can buy more fully featured cameras for less money, but I think that misses the point of this entirely. For some, the M11-D will be a training aid – a way of learning to trust their photographic instincts which doesn’t burn through costly film with each mistake. For others, it’s a badge of honour. ‘Rear LCDs?Pah!Who needs ‘em anyway?’
Whether the outlay is worth that is between you and your God – or at the very least, your bank manager. Personally, I think the base model M11justedges it for me. For all the benefits this design can have, the M11 just feels more rounded, and at basically the same price, easier to justify.
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