Introduction

Ease of Use

Front of the Leica M10 Monochrom

In terms of the body design, the M10 Monochrom uses the same design as the M10-P, which sees some tweaks when compared to the standard, original M10. It has a brass and magnesium alloy body, which gives it a sturdy and well-constructed feel. It balances best with some of the smaller Leica prime lenses for the M system - for the purposes of this review, we were mainly working with a 28mm lens.

Probably most noticeable from an everyday usage point of view is the “quiet” shutter. While this is not completely silent, it is a lot more discreet than that found on the original M10. This helps for those who want to use the M10 Monochrome for street photography. Another thing you might physically notice is the lack of an iconic red dot on the front of the camera - just like the M10-P, this is also designed to help keep it as “discreet” as possible.

As with other Leica M cameras, the M10 Monochrom is a rangefinder, which means that you only get manual focus. This can feel like a step backwards, or an old-fashioned way of working if you’re somebody who has been otherwise very used to working with autofocus. It can take a bit of time to get used to manual focus, but especially so with a rangefinder, which has a rather unusual way of achieving focus.

Rear of the Leica M10 Monochrom

There are in fact a couple of different ways to achieve focus. The traditional way, looking through the viewfinder, will feel quite alien to the uninitiated. Essentially, what you need to do is line up the image you see in a central box with an image superimposed on top of it. You twist a ring around the lens to bring the image into focus - once you see the two images in the viewfinder match up, you’re ready to shoot. As the two images are in the central portion of the viewfinder, it can be quite problematic if you want to focus on something on the edge of the frame. It can also be quite challenging if you’re trying to photograph something with a fairly fussy background.

The alternative method of focusing is to use Live View, via the screen. This is particularly helpful as you can switch on Focus Peaking as well as see an enlarged view of the scene in front of you. A coloured outline will appear where sharp focus has been achieved.

After some practice with a rangefinder, you’ll also likely find that you become intuitively aware as to what will be in focus and what won’t, working with the distance markers printed on the lens.

Top of the Leica M10 Monochrom

The viewfinder itself is again the same as found in the M10-P, as well as the original M10. With a magnification factor of 0.73x, it gives a good view of the scene. Its design gives it a widest focal length of 28mm, so if you find yourself working with wider lenses, you won’t be able to see the whole scene. Even with the 28mm lens, it can be quite difficult to see properly into the corners of the frame. Another alternative is to invest in the optional electronic viewfinder - with which you can also use focus peaking and enlarge the view.

If you like your cameras to have a minimalist design, then, just like its predecessors, the M10 Monochrome is likely to appeal. The body is not overwhelmed with a vast array of dials and buttons, but you still have direct access to the most commonly used settings.

On the top plate, there’s a shutter speed dial, which features speeds from 1/4000-8 seconds. You can also use the “Bulb” setting, fi you’re working with a remote release and want to leave the shutter open for long exposures, or you can also use the Auto position to have the camera choose the shutter speed for you based on the aperture and ISO selected.

The Leica M10 Monochrom In-hand

Speaking of ISO, there’s a secondary, smaller dial on the left hand side of the top plate for adjusting that. First you’ll need to lift the dial from the housing before you can twist it around, a design which has been included to prevent accidental changes. Here again you can choose to work in automatic and let the camera choose the best setting for you. The dial displays up to “12.5k”, or ISO12500, but you can also set the dial to M if you want to select a higher value. It’s worth noting that the lowest ISO value here on the dial is ISO 160, compared with ISO 100 of the M10-P - but that’s still a lower native resolution available than on the Leica M9 Monochrom (ISO 320 was the lowest there).

To control aperture, you’ll need to turn a dial on the lens itself, which will be marked with the stops. The 28mm lens for example allows you to choose between full and half stops between f/2.8 and f/22.

Flip to the back of the M10 Monochrom, and it’s another minimalist affair. There’s just three buttons, alongside the touch-sensitive screen - the same screen as brought along from the M10-P (the original M10 didn’t have touch-sensitivity). The buttons are “LV” (Live View), “Play” (for playing your images back and “Menu” for accessing more in-depth settings than the dials afford you. When you press the button you’ll be shown a list of “favourites”, which means you’ll need to select the “menu” option if you need to delve into further into a deeper menu. You can also customise exactly which options appear on the favourites list if you find you’re often wanting to change a particular setting.

Side of the Leica M10 Monochrom

A four-way navigational dial sits to the right of the M10 Monochrom’s screen. This you can use together with the screen to set the area you want to examine critical focus, as well as using the navigational keys to move around menus and your images in playback.

The final dial to mention here is a small scrolling dial which can be found on the back of the camera where the thumb rest is. By default, this is used to adjust exposure compensation, but it can be registered to operate a different function if you prefer.

Touch-sensitivity was a first for the M series when it came to the M10-P, and it has been kept here for the Monochrome version. With it, you can perform a number of tasks, such as pinching to zoom in on your images in playback, double tapping to quickly zoom in to check critical focus and swiping between shots. When shooting in Live View, the touchscreen can be used to choose a magnification point, or to double tap to quickly jump to the magnified view.

Battery and Memory Card Compartment

An electronic level can be displayed on screen, which is useful when shooting with Live View, but it’s not something you’ll be able to see if you’re shooting through the optical viewfinder. If you purchase the optional additional electronic viewfinder, you’ll be able to see it through that, though.

As we’ve seen before with previous M series cameras, a fun quirk which harks back to M series film cameras is that the entire of the bottom plate needs to be removed to uncover the SD card slot and battery slot. It’s something which is quite fun, but also quite unnecessarily faffy if you just need to quickly change a card.

Image Quality

All of the sample images in this review were taken using the 40 megapixel JPEG setting, which produces an average image size of around 17Mb.

Just as we’d expect from a Leica - especially one with such a high price point - the images directly from the M10 Monochrom camera are superb.

Sharpness and detail is exquisite, and if you’re somebody that only ever shoots in black and white, there’s little to dislike about the final image quality here.

On the whole, multi-purpose metering does a good job of producing accurate exposures, but you do need to watch out for clipped highlights. A black and white sensor - unlike a colour one - has no way to bring back those lost highlights - so if you burn out a sky to white (for example), it’ll remain white no matter how much tinkering you do in post-production.

You might also find that you need to invest in a set of filters to place in front of the lens to achieve the look you want. If you’re somebody who used to shoot film, this will be a familiar process to you - with different colour filters having a different effect on the final outcome.

As part of this review, I loaned the Leica M10 Monochrome to talented landscape photographer Matt Walkley, while we were together on a group photographer’s retreat in Scotland earlier in the year. In his images, he uses a yellow filter, which suited the overcast and rainy conditions of the highlands. Remember that using a filter prevents light from getting to the sensor, so you may also need to use higher ISOs if you want to shoot handheld.

Speaking of noise though, the M10 Monochrom produces nicely grained images when shooting in low light with very high ISOs selected. Up to around ISO 1600, noise is barely visible, becoming slightly noticeable at ISO 3200 when examining in fine detail at 100%. It’s not particularly problematic until much higher, with even some images shot at ISO 50000 being useable, if a little painterly in places.

Noise

The Leica M10 Monochrom has 11 sensitivity settings at full resolution running from 160-10000.

JPEG	RAW
ISO 160 (100% Crop)	ISO 160 (100% Crop)
ISO 200 (100% Crop)	ISO 200 (100% Crop)
ISO 400 (100% Crop)	ISO 400 (100% Crop)
ISO 800 (100% Crop)	ISO 800 (100% Crop)
ISO 1600 (100% Crop)	ISO 1600 (100% Crop)
ISO 3200 (100% Crop)	ISO 3200 (100% Crop)
ISO 6400 (100% Crop)	ISO 6400 (100% Crop)
ISO 12500 (100% Crop)	ISO 12500 (100% Crop)
ISO 25000 (100% Crop)	ISO 25000 (100% Crop)
ISO 50000 (100% Crop)	ISO 50000 (100% Crop)
ISO 100000 (100% Crop)	ISO 100000 (100% Crop)

Sample Images

This is a selection of sample images from the Leica M10 Monochrom camera, which were all taken using the 40 megapixel JPEG setting. The thumbnails below link to the full-sized versions, which have not been altered in any way.

Sample RAW Images

The Leica M10 Monochrom enables users to capture RAW and JPEG format files. We've provided some Leica RAW (DNG) samples for you to download (thumbnail images shown below are not 100% representative).

Product Images

Conclusion

Overall, it’s difficult to give a camera like the Leica M10 Monochrom a rating. It’s almost irrelevant what any reviewer will say, because it’s one of those cameras that you either want and will seriously consider, or you don’t.

If most Leica cameras are niche propositions, the M10 Monochrome is super-niche, something that only a handful of consumers will realistically consider for purchase. For the majority of people, only being able to shoot in black and white is going to be a problem - many would probably prefer to have the flexibility of being able to shoot in colour and later convert images in post-production to monochrome.

That said, if you’re somebody who wants the best of the best, predominantly shoots in black and white anyway and craves the prestige of a Leica - and of course if you have a super-high budget - then you will likely be very tempted to buy one.

In an age where you can rent what might otherwise unattainable camera equipment, it could also be a good one to consider trying out, too if you have a specific project in mind.

Image quality is superb - just as you’d expect it to be - with those who are black and white aficionados having an awful lot to like here.

The main criticism of a camera like this is, naturally, the price. But for cameras like this, it’s akin to criticising a very-highly priced sports car or designer watch - there will be enough people to justify Leica producing it, and that’s really all that matters.

To sum it up, the Leica M10 Monochrom is a niche of a niche, but it produces superb results and does exactly what it sets out to do exceedingly well. It won’t be to everybody’s tastes - or budgets - but neither does it claim or expect to be.

Ratings (out of 5)
Design	5
Features	4
Ease-of-use	3
Image quality	5
Value for money	2

Main Rivals

Listed below are some of the rivals of the Leica M10 Monochrom.

Review Roundup

Reviews of the Leica M10 Monochrom from around the web.

Specifications

News

Leica is taking digital black-and-white photography to the next level with the launch of the new Leica M10 Monochrom camera. The technical details and the handling of the Leica M10 Monochrom are identical to those of the Leica M10-P.

The Leica M10 Monochrom is available now priced at £7,250 / $8,295.

Leica Press Release

Leica Camera takes black-and-white photography to the next level

Wetzlar, 17 January 2020. Leica Camera is proud to announce the launch of the new Leica M10 Monochrom. Building on the legendary M-system, Leica is taking digital black-and-white photography to the next level with the launch of the new Leica M10 Monochrom, the modern only black-and-white only camera on the market today. 

The new M10 Monochrom is the first black-and-white camera of the Leica M-system to offer an exceptionally broad sensitivity range of ISO 160 to ISO 100000, making the extremely high ISO performance and dynamic range even better than all its predecessors. With a newly developed 40-megapixel black-and-white sensor, the best black-and-white sensor Leica have made, the M10 Monochrom delivers images with a natural sharpness and an unrivalled resolution in all lighting conditions. 

Similar to the Leica M10-P, the design of the M10 Monochrom is equally as unobtrusive and minimalist. Almost entirely constructed by hand, the Leica M10 Monochrom has no Leica ‘red dot’ logo on the front and only features a discreetly engraved logotype ‘Leica M10 Monochrom’ on the top plate – in black and white, emphasising the character of the camera. The materials and finish are of the highest standards, reflecting the exceptional quality and reliability that Leica has become renowned for. 

The technical details and the handling of the Leica M10 Monochrom are identical to those of the Leica M10-P, a particularly discreet version of the Leica M-Camera that focuses entirely on the most essential camera functions. Its features include quietest shutter release Leica has ever built, making it the ideal tool for capturing authentic photographs from the heart of life. As is the case with all Leica M-Cameras, the new black-and-white sensor on the Leica M10 Monochrom will work with all lenses in the Leica M portfolio, offering the photographer greater flexibility whilst upholding the highest imaging quality.

RRP: £7,250

Leica USA Press Release

Leica Camera Advances its Dedication to the Art of Black & White Photography with the Leica M10 Monochrom

The highly anticipated camera enters a new dimension of innovation in the world of monochrome photography

January 17, 2020 – Leica Camera continues to be a trailblazer in the world of black-and-white photography with the announcement of the new Leica M10 Monochrom. Photographers are now able explore their subjects in vivid tones of monochrome due to the omission of a color filter, resulting in an unparalleled black-and-white photography experience. The newly developed 40-megapixel true black-and-white sensor, new Wi-Fi capabilities and expanded ISO range make room for added creativity with light and contrast, bringing photographers back to the basics with the most up-to-date technology.

Black-and-white photography lends itself to establishing emotional connections between the photographer and subject matter being conveyed.  With the absence of color, a photograph conveys intense, vulnerable and timeless messages that speak to the foundation of a scene without the distractions of color.

The ultra-high resolution black-and-white sensor of the M10 Monochrom delivers images with impeccable sharpness and unrivalled resolution of details in all lighting conditions. While reaching these new feats of resolving prowess, the new M10 Monochrom is even more versatile than its black-and-white forebears, with a broadened sensitivity range at both extremes, now achieving ISO 160 to ISO 100,000 – ensuring that its unmatched imaging strengths can be used in new avenues, from the brightest of days to uncovering light in the darkest of nights. Images captured at all ISO settings offer fine-grained rendition of details with a more analog look and feel than a typical color camera set to black-and-white mode. As is the case with all Leica M-Cameras, the new black-and-white sensor pairs perfectly with the full breadth of Leica M-Lenses, showcasing their contrast, resolution and rendition of the finest details. With this combination, photographers can rest assured that the exceptional quality of the monochrome images they capture holds true to the luminance of their subject.

Based on the Leica M10-P, the M10 Monochrom now benefits from a bevy of newfound abilities for the Monochrom line, including a slimmer body, dedicated ISO dial, touchscreen controls, the quietest mechanical shutter of all Leica M rangefinders – analog or digital – and built-in Wi-Fi for wireless connectivity to the Leica FOTOS app on iOS, iPadOS and Android. For the first time in the history of Leica M Monochrom cameras, users can utilize a mobile workflow that gives them direct access to authentic black-and-white images straight from the camera to their favored social media platform  – no digital filters required.   The FOTOS 2.0 app helps bring Leica users from the decisive moment of taking the picture to the creative moment of processing and sharing the finished photo as seamlessly as possible. This new freedom ensures no boundaries when it comes to capturing and sharing photographs with a Leica camera.

The design of the M10 Monochrom camera body is as loyal to the strict adherence to the black-and-white aesthetic as the image sensor that lives within it. The camera has no Leica red dot logo on the front and all of the usual bold red engravings found on most M cameras have been desaturated to a neutral gray, creating a sleek monochromatic contrast against its bright white engraved numbers. A subtle black-on-black logotype of “Leica M10 Monochrom” on the top plate gives the camera the most minimal branding to avoid distractions. The black-and-white design details combined with the newly blacked-out shutter button and lens release make the M10 Monochrom the stealthiest serial production camera yet from Leica, emphasizing its focus on blending into the heart of the action and capturing the decisive moment.

The M10 Monochrom is built to the highest quality standards expected of a Leica M camera, made almost entirely by hand through the passionate labor of experienced specialists in Wetzlar, Germany with the finest materials, ensuring it can bear even the toughest conditions of use in its stride. The new Leica M10 Monochrom promises to be a long-term companion that delivers an unparalleled experience and impeccable image quality, as timeless as the classical black-and-white photos it creates.

The Leica M10 Monochrom is available beginning today for $8,295 at Leica Stores, Boutiques and Dealers.  

Image Gallery

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First Impressions

Photography Blog attended the UK launch of the new Leica M10 Monochrom camera in central London - find out what we thought of Leica's latest black and white camera by reading our detailed first impressions...

Leica M10 Monochrom designed to provoke an emotional response 

“There’s something very special about this camera; we believe photographers will have an emotional connection to it,” Leica UK MD Jason Heward told us at the London launch of the new Leica M10 Monochrom – a 40MP sensor incorporating digital camera that deliberately only shoots in black and white and eschews the ability to capture video entirely.

This comes on the back of Leica’s unveiling of its SL2 camera last November, for which it told us orders had been brisk, helping to contribute to what it called: “probably our best year ever for Leica. In this challenging industry it’s great that we are still managing to grow, and particularly in the UK.”

As regards the newest Leica M10 Monochrom, “it’s an incredible camera that we’re super proud of,” MD Jason continued, suggesting that using it “bestows a status” on the owner. Photographers will naturally need a certain status to own one – as the UK asking price is a cool £7,250.

The new Leica M10 Monochrom brings the current M10 family to four in number. It joins the existing M10, M10-P and M10-D – the latter famously not featuring a screen at the back.Like that camera, the M10 Monochrom will appeal to a niche market and select type of user. 

“It’s the sort of camera that probably says more about Leica than anything else we have,” MD Jason told us. “It’s something that no one else in the industry would make, really, and one that elicits that emotional connection when we talk to our customers and users. It ‘talks’ to people’s creativity a lot. It’s the ultimate camera for those who are trying to approach their creativity in a different and perhaps a more purist way.”

Holding the latest camera in the palm, it certainly feels well made and indeed tank-like in its solidity and heft. This is thanks to the M10 Monochrom boasting a brass and magnesium alloy body with a black chrome finish, while body only weight with battery inserted is 660g. 

Users have the choice of eye level viewfinder or fixed (i.e non tilting) LCD screen at the back via which to compose images, with a ‘LV’ (Live View) button provided adjacent to said screen. The 3-inch LCD is also a touch display – enabling photographers to pinch and flick an image to enlarge a portion of it and check focus. Manual focusing is aided by the portions of the image in focus being illuminated in red.

Leica describes the new unit as a ‘pure monochrome camera’ that has a new, specifically developed 40.892-megapixel sensor. This has enabled both a much higher resolution and an increased low light performance, which has always been one of the highlights of a monochrome camera. 

Sensitivity runs from a new ‘base’ ISO160 (whereas predecessors started out at ISO 320) up to the equivalent of ISO100,000; adjustable in 1/3 ISO increments. The camera is “almost medium format like” when it comes to the “almost 15 stops of dynamic range provided,” according to Leica Akademie tutor Robin Sinha, also present at the launch. “No light information is lost,” he continued, believing that “results can be compared with a 60MP or 80MP sensor” and that “detail is incredibly sharp because the light doesn’t have to pass through RGB colour filters. 

The pixels have their true luminance value, so the image is almost 100% sharper than the colour equivalent. Combine that with the resolution of the Leica lenses and you’ve got something very special. Plus, thanks to the 40MP sensor, there are increased possibilities for cropping, whilst still retaining a very high resolution for print. It’s certainly closer to medium format performance than what we’re used to seeing from a full frame camera.”

We were allowed a few minutes with the camera and 35mm lens on a rather gloomy morning in London to take a few sample shots. We hope to bring a more detailed assessment and report in due course, when we are able to get the camera in and have a play for longer. Safe to say that, when using the camera for street portraiture, the lack of the familiar red Leica logo on the front of the M10 Monochrom does offer a more discrete approach, enabling you to literally hang back in the shadows. 

That said, anyone spending the £7K+ on this camera may actively be seeking said logo as a badge of pride and an indicator of a certain ‘status’, as Leica UK’s MD referred to it earlier. 

It’s further worth noting that, when it comes to street photography, the Leica M10 Monochrom is being pitched as the quietest camera in the range, with what’s claimed to be, along with the M10-P, the most silent shutter the manufacturer has ever provided on an ‘M’ camera. On a noisy London street, it’s fair to say we didn’t notice any shutter noise at all.

The design and construction of the M10 Monochrom body has also been honed and ‘milled down’ to make the camera more discrete – with the dimensions of the body design more comparable to a film camera of old. Overall, it’s very similar, Leica suggested, to that of the M10-D. 

Here, everything on the camera body is either black or grey – mirroring, to an extent, the images this model delivers. The ‘A’ for auto exposure mode, and red flash symbol have been ‘greyed out’, while the ‘Monochrom’ engraving on the top is also tiny, so you have to look closely to see what the camera actually is. 

Handling wise, it has to be said that this is a camera for more considered image creation, rather than blasting away with shots; that said, buffer memory is reportedly good for up to 10 DNG (Leica’s Raw format equivalent) files at a time.

An Adobe profile for the camera was not available for the start of sales today, but we’re told one is “coming this month” – so will conceivably be ready for when most photographers actually receive the camera.

In summary, key features of the Leica M10 Monochrom are: 

• its newly developed sensor; even more discrete camera design and analogue film camera body-like dimensions; 
• a new base ISO160 setting; even finer image quality, without the need perhaps to have to stack ND filters in front of the lens; 
• even longer possible exposure times of up to 16 minutes; 
• the ability to colour tone JPEGs with sepia toning; 
• top plate dials that allow users to have everything set on the camera even before turning it on; 
• touch screen control like the M10-D; 
• plus inevitable compatibility with the Leica Fotos app, pitched as being like a ‘gallery in your pocket’.

Hands On

Want to see exactly what the new Leica M10 Monochrom black and white mirrorless camera looks like in the flesh?

Check out our extensive hands-on gallery of photos of the Leica M10 Monochrom mirrorless camera.

A gallery of hands-on photos of the Leica M10 Monochrom camera.

Image Gallery

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Preview Images

Ahead of our full review, here are some sample JPEG and Raw images taken with the brand new Leica M10 Monochrom black and white camera.

A gallery of sample images taken with the Leica M10 Monochrom black and white camera.

Leica M10 Monochrom Sample Images

Sample RAW Images

The Leica M Monochrom enables users to capture RAW and JPEG format files. We've provided some Leica RAW (DNG) samples for you to download (thumbnail images shown below are not 100% representative).

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