On Leica Losing Its Soul - A Commentary on the Future and Holding onto the Past

Has Leica lost its soul? Just last week, Irwin Puts, the renown author of The Leica Compendium, had issued a statement on his blog declaring his decision to end his 35 years involvement in the world of Leica. As far as I can understand from his statement, Mr. Puts appears to be disappointed with the direction taken by the folks at Wetzlar for marginalizing Leica’s proud heritage in optical precision by woefully succumbing to the voodoo of algorithmic shortcuts as their principal technique to enhance image reproduction.

In a manner of speaking, I can sympathize with Mr. Puts. I too have become increasingly frustrated with what Leica has been doing with their product offering. However, my frustration is not the same as that of Mr. Puts. Fundamentally, my issue with Leica is their understanding of where their company fits in the world today. On one respect, they still want to position themselves as a manufacturer of premium imaging optics with a long proud heritage. But on another hand, they aspire to position themselves for today’s selfie generation.

This is when worlds collide and bad decisions are made in desperation and haste. Of course, Leica was under considerable pressure during the transition from analog to digital imaging. They had to save themselves from the headwinds of technological change. As a result, they revived their operation teetering at the brink with the development and release of the Leica M8 and the Leica M9 - in hopes of leveraging their heritage and recent success in financial backing - most famously from Blackstone in 2011 for a 45% stake.

With financial stability backed by one of the largest investment group worldwide, Leica was on much steadier ground. However, partnering with Blackstone does come with its share of caveats. First and foremost, it is not as if Blackstone invested in Leica because they loved photography. Rather, what they wanted was a return on their investment from an increase in Leica’s revenue stream or a profitable sale of their stake in the company. In any respect, Blackstone would have expected Leica to increase their product line to reach either goal.

As a result, Leica started to introduce a growing number of products - ranging from the Leica X, Leica X-Vario, the Leica S, the Leica SL, the Leica Q, the Leica TL, and the Leica CL, along with the Leica D-Lux and the Leica C-Lux for a larger mass market. From a business perspective, this shotgun approach to product offering is not atypical or abnormal, since a diffusion strategy can cast a much wider net in reaching a much larger customer base. However, such business rationale can make core customers feel increasingly alienated by the brand.

And at the same time, Leica has recognized the importance of the selfie generation and their elevation of the smart phone as the standard of imaging and mode of publication. As such, the folks at Wetzlar have decided to partner up with Huawei in co-branding smart devices with Leica optics. Invariably, the voodoo of algorithm will creep into the collaborative effort, thus resulting in the encroachment of in-device digital manipulation in the act of documentation. For longtime loyalist, this shift in objectives can be seen as a betrayal of priorities.

Would it be wonderful if the world could always remain the same? But, technology is a Pandora’s Box. Once it is opened, whatever is unleashed can never be forced back in again. Fact is, technology has changed the way we take and share photos. Digital imaging has taken the guesswork out of taking a decent photo. And with the coming of 5G linked quantum computing, the job of micromanaging focus and exposure can be bracketed at multiple frames per second from afar with all your desired shooting permutation covered by a preset.

In time, photography will cease to be photography anymore. The act of taking any photo will be reduced to its lowest common denominator. Because of that, all that will matter will be the ends, and the means to bring you there will no longer be needed. Whatever photo you want will be captured with assistance from the cloud and crowdsourced from multiple vantage points of paying subscribers. Skill, in taking a good photo, will be a thing of the past. Instead artificial intelligence will reconstruct your desired photo from all the collected data.

Do not hate the player. Hate the game. The folks at Wetzlar are just keeping up with the times. But what does it all mean to photographers like us? Purists? Those who still seek fulfillment from the means that bring us to the end. It means the end of the line for that proud heritage, seeing that the selfie generation will prevail. Because of that, Leica will throw the expectations of longtime loyalists under the bus - given that the selfie set does not care or know anything about that proud heritage beyond the prestige of carrying around that little red dot.

Fujifilm Natura 1600 @ 28mm Focal Length

The bean counters at Wetzlar are not going to cater to our demands still stuck in past. Why should they? After all, we are a minority. As for the majority, they want instant gratification. They want the photo taking process to be quick and easy, with the fallback option of in-device filters to beautify their captured version of reality. Plus, they want to share their photos seamlessly from their imaging device without a moment's pause or headache of wireless pairing. In short, what they want is an imaging device that literally does everything for them.

The convergence of what the mainstream population seeks and the coming of 5G linked quantum computing makes the near future a wonderful time to be alive as a photographer. Artificial intelligence from the cloud will inevitability drive imaging devices that can do everything into existence. No more will any photo enthusiast or selfie seeking individual ever face the indignity of poorly taken photos. From that point forward, all photos will always be perfect. And that should be regarded as a very positive achievement for the common good.

You would think that everyone wants imaging devices that can do everything. However, there are still pockets of dissenters like myself who continue to hang onto that woebegone proud heritage, where a more hands-on approach to photography is generally the norm. Naturally, we feel slighted by the change in direction taken by the folks at Wetzlar. For that reason, it is up to us to preserve that long proud heritage on our own, if we are not satisfied with Leica’s current direction, which is growing increasingly more automated and less hands-on.

For many photo enthusiasts and professionals, understanding the appeal of a more hands-on experience can be difficult. I mean, let us get real. Most of you are just too tickled pink in being able to get the shot. And if that means depending on some digital crutch and creature comfort, then the consensus would emphatically favor more progress. It is not like I do not understand the appeal of getting the shot either. However, I do appreciate the fundamental difference between being more digitally dependent or hands-on in getting my shot.

By now, you are probably wondering why any of this matters. In looking at the big picture, being more digitally dependent or hands-on in getting the shot makes no difference, since it is only the photo that matters and not the photographer. But when you rationalize any good photo in that way, that mindset just does not seem right. And that is precisely the point. When technology makes ability completely irrelevant, what does that make the photographer? Was that good photo taken by the photographer or by the CPU of the imaging device?

In a world where anyone can snap a good photo, given digital simplification, what else is there to differentiate a good photo from another good photo? If not the photographer, then there is nothing else. In my opinion, it is the photographer's actual hands-on involvement that defines a photo’s place in the world. Orphaned from the photographer in its undertaking, owing to digital simplification, the photo risks losing its soul. As a result, what we are left with are photos more manufactured by unfeeling computations than created from the heart.

Given the realities of the world to come, it would be unfair to say that Leica has lost its soul. Clearly, the writing is on the wall. Either manufacturers like Leica evolve or risk becoming extinct. And if you happen to be like me - still stuck clinging onto that proud heritage - then it is up to you to preserve it in your life. I mean, it is not as if the folks at Wetzlar are forcing you to accept their direction under duress. Because of that, I uphold that proud heritage by forgoing digital crutches in practice, if only to impart more of myself in the photos I take.

That said, it is important for Leica to throw us a bone once in a while. If not for photographers like me, the folks at Wetzlar would not be able to straddle their brand position between their proud heritage and their aspiration to reach the selfie set. But to be fair, what more is there for us to want from Leica? Lens quality is already good enough for us, as is the design of M-mount rangefinders. Thus, does it not make more sense for the powers to be at Wetzlar to invest their time, energy, and resources in securing the future than preserving the past?

In the final analysis, whatever happens will happen. As such, I am not going to hold my breath, hoping that the folks at Wetzlar will develop something I want. Do not worry about me. I will manage. I have more than enough gear to hold me over until the end of time. In the meantime, I will do what I can to preserve this proud heritage by taking photos the old fashion way and sharing them on this blog, if for no other reason than to demonstrate how the act of taking a photo is not dependent on new technology or product cycle upgrades.

But, has Leica lost its soul? Maybe they did. Maybe not. Regardless, what I feel is the more important question to answer is whether you have lost your soul? If your photos depend disproportionately on technological help, then I am afraid you have.

All images have been digitized on a Pakon F135, automatically cropped from full negative during the scanning process, and fine tuned very slightly in Adobe Lightroom. Images with more editing disclosed in the captions.

All film shot and developed at box speed.

And yes, the title image is of me shooting a Nikon film camera. Ironic isn’t it.